The Crusader ("The Crusader" Prequel to "Kingdom Come") (33 page)

There
were mostly younger people, one group exhibiting a myriad of pierced body parts
as Rory pushed into the place with Bud and Kieran in tow. They took a seat
against the windows overlooking the bed and breakfast, ordering ham steaks and
French fries and beer from the limited menu. When the dark brew came, Bud
ignored the fact that he couldn't drink alcohol and downed nearly the entire
glass as Kieran diverted his attention from Rory long enough to study the
make-up of the room.

"Why
would they puncture themselves in such a manner?" he asked, pointing to
the collection of youths with pierced eyebrows and noses.

Rory
shrugged, tasting her drink. "Who knows? I think they like the attention
of people staring at them, wondering why they would suffer the pain of piercing
sensitive parts of the body."

He
turned to look at her then, studying her closely. A massive hand come up,
fondling her earrings. "You have punctured your ears, too. Why would you
endure the pain of this for the attention it draws?"

Bud
found that question funny for some reason. He snorted, drinking the rest of his
beer and ordering another. But Rory simply shrugged again, relishing the
sensation of Kieran touching her sensitive lobes.

"It's
different with pierced ears," she said. "Almost all women pierce
their ears because it's easier to keep your earrings in place. Women of your
time pierced their ears, too."

He
removed his fingers from her velvet-ear, reluctantly. "Not many. Mostly
the French and their corrupt ideals of physical beauty."

Bud was
into his second glass of beer, the alcohol in his veins wreaking havoc with his
composure and loosening his tongue. "What about you? You've got scars all
over your body and now you have the nerve to look down your nose at people who
pierce their ears?"

Kieran
collected his glass for the first time, eyeing Bud as he spoke. "My scars
were not by choice. I have years of fighting and tournaments to thank for my
haggard appearance."

Bud
rolled his eyes and looked away, draining his glass. Kieran watched him a
moment, taking a swallow of his own beer and nearly choking on it. When Rory
saw his reaction, she called the barmaid over and ordered him the strongest
beer in the house. His tar-colored drink arrived just as the food came and
Kieran delved into both with gusto.

If
watching the man shower had been an interesting experience, watching him eat
was a real education in Medieval manners. Bud hardly touched his food as he
watched Kieran literally inhale the ham steak, chow down on the fries, and then
take the liberty of finishing Rory's food before she had barely taken three
bites. To top it all off, he belched loudly and called the barmaid 'wench' when
ordering more food. Bud was astounded.

"Jesus
Christ...," he murmured as Kieran ate the lettuce-and-radish garnish while
waiting for his second round of dinner.

Rory was
well aware of the man's manners and merely lifted her shoulders. "You
should have seen him at breakfast, Bud. Eating like he hadn't eaten in eight
hundred years."

Bud
shook his head, draining his drink. The table manners of the man across from
him were nothing short of barbaric, something that was completely natural him
and not in the least contrived. After the experience with the shower and
shaving, to observe Kieran's table manners only brought Bud closer and closer
to believability of his story.

As
remarkable as it was, as impossible as it seemed, Bud couldn't shake the
burgeoning seed of credence. Maybe Rory was right; maybe there were things in
this world that were unexplainable, like UFO's and ghosts and reincarnation.
And maybe the man sucking down the ham steak in three huge bites was a product
of one of those unexplainable phenomenon that were difficult to comprehend and
even more difficult to believe. Bud just couldn't seem to shake the growing
probability.

"Kieran,"
he said softly, watching the gem-clear brown eyes come up from the plate. Even Rory
looked at Bud; it was the first time he had openly used the knight's name and
she was understandably surprised. But Bud ignored her eager expression,
singularly focused on the man that was growing in authenticity before his very
eyes. "If such a thing was possible and I'm not saying it is, I want you
to tell me again; precisely how did this alchemist preserve your life?"

Kieran
swallowed the bite in his mouth, wiping his lips with the back of his hand. Rory,
hardly daring to feel some hope in Bud's question, handed him a napkin and
watched carefully as he cleaned his hand and pondered his reply.

"To
be truthful, my lord, I do not know the details," he said softly. "I
can recall drinking a series of bitter brews as the alchemist told me he had
been working the majority of his life to discover an elixir for immortality.
Although he claimed he could quite easily put a man to sleep and thereby
preserve him forever in a suspended state, the difficulty was apparently in the
awakening."

"But
you awakened."

Kieran
nodded. "Only by the strongest of human emotions. The lady loves me,
therefore, her kiss was the catalyst needed to rouse me from my eternal
sleep."

Rory
blushed dully, staring at her plate. She couldn't bring herself to look at Bud.
But she could feel his eyes on her nonetheless. After a moment, his fork hit
the plate and he took her half-empty beer glass and drained it.

"I
see," he said quietly. "But you have no idea what was in these
potions you drank?"

Kieran,
having no idea of the situation between Bud and Rory, was oblivious to her
embarrassment and his shattered heart. In answer to Bud's question, he merely
shook his head. "None. But as I was fading off into unconsciousness, I
seemed to recall the alchemist mentioning succotrine aloes, zedoary gentian,
saffron and rhubarb. I apologize that I am unable to recollect more."

Bud was
lodged in his chair, Rory's beer glass in his hand and his ice-blue eyes
glittering at the man across the table. He was about to continue the
conversation when someone turned on a television over the bar and Kieran's eyes
widened.

"Look!"
he hissed. "God's Blood, what is that?"

Rory
looked up from her plate, hoping her red cheeks weren't terribly obvious in the
dim lighting of the pub. "A television. It's like... like if you were
going to see a play, except this machine brings the entertainment directly into
your home or business. You can simply sit and enjoy it."

He
stared at the American program, completely with women in red bathing suits and
his eyebrows rose. "God's Blood, the women are... indecent. They are
practically nude!"

Bud was
observing him critically, noting his genuine awe and realizing this guy really
meant what he said. Passing a glance at the T.V., he caught the barmaid's
attention and ordered another drink.  "Yes, they are," he sighed
heavily. "This whole world is indecent. Damn confusion and indecent."

Rory
looked to Bud, wanting to comfort him in the midst of his heartache but somehow
not feeling that her consolation was appropriate. After all, she was the one
who had rejected his advances when she had been cruel enough to encourage him.
But she had been confused herself, wallowing in self-doubt and pity regarding
the outcome of her dig and the very future itself.

Bud was
a wonderful man and she loved him dearly in a companionable sort of way, and
she had been somewhat willing to pursue an intimate relationship between them
for her own foolish reasons. But that had been before the introduction of Sir
Kieran; now, she realized the only man she had ever loved was living and
breathing before her and as much as she hated to hurt Bud, she had to remain
true to her heart no matter what the cost.

The cost
was already high. As Kieran marveled at the miracle of the television, she
looked to Bud only to note he was staring at the knight. And the pain, the
confusion, she saw in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Libby,
how do they get the people inside the box?" Kieran broke into her train of
thought. "Is your age so advanced that they can do this?"

Rory
tore her eyes away from Bud, looking to the amazed knight. "The people
aren't inside the box. They're on film, or at a studio, and... boy, I'm way out
of my league on this one. Care to help me, Bud?"

The
barmaid brought Bud's beer and Kieran's food. Bud accepted the drink, taking a
long swallow before answering.

"Actually,
I'm more interested in talking about Sir Kieran," he said, the alcohol in
his manner growing more evident. "For example, now that he's awake, when
does he plan to retrieve this crown I spent fourteen damn months of my life
searching for?"

Rory
well remembered only days ago when the situation had been reversed and she had
been out of control with her alcohol intake. Watching Bud take another drink,
she struggled to lighten the mood before it turned ugly. "Bud, didn't you
tell me once that if I got drunk, then you'd pretend you didn't know me?"
she grinned when he looked at her. "Besides, I thought beer made you
sick."

He
continued to look at her and took a deliberate drink. "I don't suppose I
could feel much worse than I do now," he turned away as her cheeks mottled
a fierce red once again. "What about that, Sir Kieran? When are you going
back to get your crown?"

Kieran
had already finished his second round of ham and fries, his gaze moving between
Rory and Bud as notes of tension passed among them. But he was his usual
composed self, moving to wipe his mouth with his sleeve when he remembered the
napkin Rory had given him.

"I
am going back immediately," he said calmly.

"But
why are you even going at all?" Bud wanted to know over the top of his
glass. "I mean, you said you had a mission to complete - a peaceful
mission that would bring a cessation to the seige of Acre. Well, I've got news
for you, pal; Acre fell eight hundred years ago. There's no more peace mission
for you to complete. It's over."

Kieran's
jaw ticked slightly but he maintained his cool. "Mayhap the siege has
indeed ended. But my task has not. I vowed to endow the crown to England as a
symbol of lasting peace, and I shall do so," he tore his eyes away from
Bud lest his anger gain strength and focused on Rory. "Since I would
deduce that men do not use chargers or carriages as their primary mode of
transportation these days, I suppose I should learn how to operate a car if I
am to make it back to Nahariya. Although I could take the land route to
Nahariya, 'twould be faster to go by boat. Are there still boats, Libby?"

Bud cut
her off before she could answer. "And that's another thing. What's all
this 'Libby' garbage? Her name is Rory."

Kieran
met Bud's gaze again, cocking an eyebrow. "She is far too beautiful for
such an unsuitable name. I have decided her name is Elizabeth."

Bud
snorted, uncharacteristically animated. "Christ, you're an arrogant
bastard. Just because you don't like her name, you give her another? What
happens when you decide you don't like her hair color, or that she's too thin?
Are you going to change that, too?"

"I
would change nothing on her person. She is perfect."

Bud
slammed his hands against the table, rattling the dishes. "You're damn
right she's perfect. She's the most perfect woman on the face of this earth and
if she's going to fall in love with you, then you'd better realize what a
treasure you have," he tried to stand up, the chair falling away, but he
was too drunk and he almost ended up on his bottom. When Rory reached out to
steady him, he shrugged her off cruelly. "I'm going to bed now, Dr.
Osgrove. Have a pleasant evening with your... knight."

Rory's
eyes were bright with unshed tears. "Please, Bud," she whispered.
"Let me take you back to the hotel."

He moved
away from her before she could grasp him. "Forget it. I can make it.
Alone. Alone like I'll be for the rest of my life."

Rory
stood up but Kieran held up a hand, preventing her from following him. Bud
staggered through the door, across the street, and disappeared into the bed and
breakfast. Rory stood there, tears streaming down her cheeks, as Kieran gently
pulled her to sit. It took her a moment to realize she was in his lap.

"He
loves you a great deal, Libby," he said softly. "Why did you not tell
me this before?"

She
sniffled, wiping her nose. "I don't know... it's our own private
situation, I guess. Not something I go blurting about. "

He
watched her as she struggled with her tears. "You care for him, do you
not?" he asked softly, feeling her warmth and softness against his thighs.
"I can sense it."

She
nodded, sniffling. "Care for him, yes. But I don't love him."

Kieran
sighed, pulling her close as the smoke and noise of the pub surrounded them.
"To be denied a chance at true happiness is a cruel fate at best. 'Tis no
wonder he resents my presence."

Rory
blew her nose on a napkin. "Not only does he resent you, but he doesn't
believe you either. That just makes it worse."

Kieran
glanced at the band as they launched into a particularly loud set, noting the
open area in the middle of the room to be filled with writhing people jumping
in beat to the music. "He is coming to believe me, though he refuses to
recognize his own weakness," he said softly. "You were easy to
convince because you saw the transformation in a far more sensible manner. Bud
refuses to acknowledge the truth because he lacks the insight to do so."