The Dark Lady (35 page)

Peter turned to Grant who looked surprised as well. “Did all my men just admit to being afraid in front of a woman?”

Grant looked at him, his surprise turning to an ornery grin. “Nay, my Lord. They admitted it in front of the Dark Lady.”

Peter rolled his eyes and nudged his horse forward. Van glanced up at him but then turned her attention back to the men. The men were all distracted by the lady of the castle and none took notice of his approach. That could get them all killed in battle and he would make sure to discipline the men when training began today.

Van looked across the sea of raised arms and by the time she spoke again, Peter was within hearing range.

“
Fear is something good. Fear, listened to, makes you cautious, makes you pay attention to the situation. It is not fear that makes you less of a warrior. It is how you deal with that fear. If you let that fear run your life than you are a coward.” She took the reins from Francis’s hands and held them out to the scared boy. “If you take that fear and you overcome it, then you are its master, not its slave.”

Peter approached quietly from behind the line of boys. The men who stood with the horses stopped and stared at him.

Peter pulled his horse to a stop and waited. This was an important decision for the boy and he was unwilling to interfere. He folded his arms across his wide chest and merely waited as the boy seemed to struggle with the decision.

His men all seemed to notice him at once and looked nervously from him to the others. He just sat patiently.

Richard, Devon, Douglas, and Puelo must have noticed the gaze of the other men. They looked over their shoulders at him guiltily. He kept his focus on Vanessa.

She did not take her eyes off the boy, but he was sure she was accessing him out of the corner of her eye.

With a trembling hand the boy took the offered reins. Peter smiled, knowing it was more than likely because she had basically called him a coward if he did not.

“
I see you have all met my wife,” Peter said proudly.

All the boys spun around to face him.

“
My dear, I shall like to have a private talk with you.” Pride in her had overridden the anger he had felt and he could not bring himself to yell at her. He would, although, make sure she understood that she had disobeyed him once again and that it would not be tolerated.

“
I think we can talk here, can we not?” Van looked at him untrustingly and attempted an innocent smile that failed miserably.

“
Fine.” He would rather do it in private, but perhaps here was better. It would be a reminder as well to all the men who have seemed to forget that she was not allowed here. “You have disobeyed me once more and I would like to see you get out of it this time. I told you, you were not allowed to come here and yet here you stand.”

“
I did not disobey you, my lord.” She said calmly. “You said I could not come here with anyone and I did not. I came on my own. As a matter of fact—”

Peter lost control and yelled, “I do not care about your matters or your facts. You know damned well what it is I had wanted from you. You went behind my back and did as you bloody well pleased once again.” He took a deep breath to calm the anger roiling around in his stomach. “You will go back to the castle, you will stay there, and so I have no more misunderstandings I will say this to you.”

Peter looked down at her trying to pin her with his most ferocious glare. He felt it slip when she arched one brow at him and smiled. Damn, he didn’t understand how she got under his skin so bad.

He took a deep breath and spoke, his voice quiet and deliberate. “You are not allowed to come to this training ground in any way, with anyone or by yourself. You are not allowed to be here. However it is you think to come here, it is not allowed. Now, do you understand that?” Peter knew he had all the possibilities covered leaving her no way of getting around it.

“
Aye, my lord, I understand.” Van looked at the remainder of the horses and sighed.

“
Good, now that we have an understanding.” He turned toward Grant who was dismounting his steed. “Grant, help the men finishing handing out the horses, while I take my wife back.” He looked at her irritably and added, “Again.”

He reached down and pulled her onto the saddle. He kept her sideways until they were into the surrounding trees and then allowed her to throw her leg over the saddle. He felt a rush of lust as a length of pale white calf glittered in the bright morning light.

“
My lord, do you have to hurry back?” She pressed against him and he fought a groan.

“
That will not get you out of trouble.” His voice was gruff, but he wrapped his arm around her waist. “Aye, I need to hurry back. I was late getting there to begin with.” His arousal pressing into her buttocks insisted that he didn’t need to hurry.

He pushed Jackal to a faster pace before he gave in to his need. As they were coming to the edge of the trees, he reached up and grasped a breast. She gasped. He placed a kiss on her neck and released her.

“
Swing your leg back over.”

She did so without argument as they cleared the trees.

He pulled Jackal to a stop before the castle steps and reluctantly slid her to the ground. “Stay out of trouble, stay near the castle and away from the men. You will not go back to the men if I leave you now, will you?”

“
Nay, my lord, I have no intention of returning to the men now. I have other things on my agenda today.” She grinned and he shook his head in exasperation.

“
I will see you tonight.” With one last suspicious look, he wheeled Jackal around and she stood watching him as he disappeared back into the trees.

“
My lady, are you all right?”

Van heard the foot falls of three people behind her. “Aye, Amy I am fine.” She turned with an excited smile to greet her friends. She reached down and gathered Joseph up into her arms. “How did the fishing go?”

The excitement in his eyes lit up his whole face. “I caught a big one.”

“
Good, now how would you like to help me—well, to help the men?”

He nodded and Van led them to the well-stocked wardrobe. She was pleased with the variety of linens and wools they had to choose from. The four friends rummaged through the dusty room until they had large stacks of heavy woolen material. Each took a heaping armload and they made their way to Van’s chambers. The room had been thoroughly cleaned and Peter’s mother’s things had been packed away. It was a little empty, but it was a more comfortable area than she had ever had before. She laughed gently, thinking she had never had much more than a lean-to, so anything above that was an improvement.

Several maids joined them and the day passed as they made stockings and blankets for the men in the barracks. Van sat comfortably as they worked, listening to them talk and laugh. She interjected here and there but for the most part she silently enjoyed their lively chat.

Not long after they finished, Margaret came to the door. “Milady, there is a man here to see the lord, shall I send for him.”

“
Nay, I will see to him.” She walked down the long winding staircase. At the bottom of the stairs stood a man she had met only once. Marcus Teredo, father of Nancy, a friend of Joseph’s. Peter had introduced her when he had taken her on the tour of his land, and Joseph had told her later that he was friends with the man’s daughter.

She extended a hand of welcome to him. “Mr. Teredo, how may I help you?”

He looked at it unsure for a moment then grasped her outstretched hand and gave it a hardy shake. “I came to see Lord Grayweist.”

“
He is unavailable right now. You can come back later or you can speak to me.” She asked Margaret to send for drinks and ushered him to a chair. She didn’t wait for his consent to talk to her. She had learned over the years that if you didn’t give someone the luxury of time to think, they were more agreeable.

He sat with that same unsure look on his face. “It’s my sheep,” he started uneasily. “They are coming up missing. I was not sure what it was until last night. It is men, my lady.”

He paused as a young redheaded maid shyly brought two goblets in. He took the one offered to him and smiled in thanks. He drank heartily and when he spoke again he sounded more relaxed. “I was quite sure it was wild animals. I stayed out last night with my arrows, since it was a full moon and there was plenty of light, but it was men. They took some and left.”

“
Did you see what they looked like?” she asked in an even tone, trying to hide the nervous energy that pulsed through her. She had to know if it was Eolian’s men. If it was, why was he here? Did he follow her men or did he know somehow who she was? Her breath tightened in her chest as worry constricted around her.

“
I saw them all, but only one stood out. He was a monster of a man, wore a dark cloak with a hood. The hood fell back when he was taking a sheep.” He shuddered and stared at the trembling goblet in his hand. “His face...it was not deformed really, but...” He stopped, looked at her, and shrugged.

“
Misshapen?”

He nodded.

“
A very large man?” she asked, but she already knew.

He nodded.

Verges. She was glad that he was near, but not happy that he was not alone.

“
Aye.”

“
When did they arrive?”

“
Four nights ago was the first time sheep came up missing. I didn’t say anything when you stopped by because I had still thought it to be animals, milady.” He looked at her hopefully.

Relief fluttered through her. Four days. That meant that Eolian had arrived around the same time as her men and before she did. She could only pray that meant they were unaware of her.

“
They came last night. That should mean they will not return for a couple of days. I do not want you to tell anyone of this.” She stopped momentarily and grinned. She had a devious idea. “No actually, I want you to tell anyone you see, especially ones that will spread the word. I want you to tell them that you think your sheep are sick, that they are dying. That should worry whoever it is that is taking them.”

He looked distraught. “Milady, that will mean no one will buy them.”

She just smiled. “It will all work out if you trust me.”

At the reluctant nod of his head she showed him out. She hoped Eolian had eaten a lot of the sheep by the time the rumor of the sick sheep got to him.

She began to laugh gently as she approached her chamber door.

“
What is so funny?” Amy’s voice broke into her thoughts as Van pushed the door open.

“
Nothing, Amy. We had better get those things out to the barracks. The men will be here any moment.”

***

Peter was weary as he rode back to the castle. The training of the young, inexperienced boys had gone just as badly as he had anticipated.

He rode in between Grant and Richard as they approached the stables. He turned toward Richard but his words were lost as he watched four unmistakable figures run from the barracks to the castle. “What do you figure they are up to now, Devenroe?”

Richard looked from him to the running figures. “My lord, I am not one to guess what your wife—”

Peter shook his head. “Pretend she is not my wife. What would your answer be?”

Richard looked at him seriously. “I would no more try to judge what that woman would do than I would try to judge where I might stand not to get hit by lightning.” This sent all the men into hysterics.

Peter ignored them. “Hestlay, go on to the castle with the men. I am going to ride over to the barracks with the boys and Richard’s men.” He made a mental note to stop calling them Richard’s men. They would never become one if even he kept segregating them.

Walking into the dim building, he looked around. Nothing looked different that he could make out. What had she been up to?

“
My lord, I found it.”

Devon held up a big bundle of cloth that had been laid on his bed. On all the beds they discovered. Peter opened Richard’s, smiling as stockings and blankets came rolling out.

Peter looked his friend. “You know something, Richard, that woman will be the death of me. Just when I think she cannot surprise me, she does.”

“
One thing for sure, my lord. You will not be one stuck in a boring marriage.”

Everyone hooted and hollered at that. Peter shook his head leaving them to their fun.

He was having difficulties remaining angry with her, a grin making its appearance on his normally stoic face.

He did not see her before the evening meal, though he found himself looking for her. When he had cleaned up and made it to the dining hall, she was already there, sitting silhouetted in the candle light. The flickering of the flames reflected off the silk of her gown.

He walked directly to her and pulled her to her feet. He smiled when she gasped. “I cannot wait to get you alone tonight.”

“
Sit, my lord. We shall dine with the men, before we retire.” Her face glowed with excitement and pride. It made even the powder glow. His heart swelled with pride even as his mind tumbled with irritation.

When the meal was served and the maids clear of the table, Vanessa leaned toward him. She gestured for Richard and Grant to come forward and Peter gazed at her in distrust.