The Tempest (14 page)

As soon as the weather improved, he would go and fetch her home.

This was where she belonged…under his roof, at his side, and soon enough, in his arms again.

*****

He knew he would have hell to pay for vanishing from Nottingham without word. But as he rode along towards the DeWarren place, he gave little thought to Briwere or anything else. All he wanted was to see Cassia again, and finally get her away from her woodland seclusion. He would make up an excuse to the Sheriff later. Right now, all he wanted was to get to the house, and he urged his horse to move faster.

But as he approached the clearing, he could see through the brush that there was a crowd gathered a distance from the house. Closer observation revealed that they were all standing over an earthen mound with a wooden cross imbedded in the center…and Cassia was at the foot of that grave. Her father’s grave, he quickly realized, for he glanced about with the thought that he might see Robert, but it was not to be. Robert DeWarren was dead. How or why, Guy knew not. All he knew was that at this moment, Cassia must have been shaken to her core with grief. And he felt a part of his own heart break for her.

But his first impulse was not to go to her. He’d never been particularly comfortable with pathos. And besides…mourning and tears were the territory of women. It was the duty of a man to soldier on and to know that death was inevitable. Why weep about it? His instinct told him to go…to leave her in peace so she could grieve in private.

But as he sat there on his horse, observing, he saw how the small crowd seemed to be on the same wave of thought as he was. One by one they came to Cassia with a touch of the hand or an embrace, and then walked away from her. Soon she was standing alone. When he saw her go down upon her knees with her head bowed, he lost all ability to follow his own command of desertion. He thought of those many times when he had been in such pain, both physically and spiritually. She had not abandoned him, as the rest of the world would have been glad to do. He owed her everything, he realized…and he would not leave her this way.

Getting down from his horse, he approached with slow and quiet steps. As he neared her, he had a flashback to a similar scene of despair. Once, he had gone to visit Marian and found her weeping for the loss of a dear friend. He had made a feeble attempt to comfort her but she had brushed him off, and in a fit of anger, she had demanded that he leave.

What if, like Marian, Cassia rejected him when he tried to sooth her? He pushed away the very thought of Marian, not wanting her in his head for another moment. If Cassia refused him, he would hold fast to her until she relented and accepted his consolation. He would be there for her, as she had been there for him.

He knelt down at her side, his tone low and soft as he said her name. She gave no reply. She did not even look up. But he was not put off by it.

“I am sorry for this. Robert was a good man. I owed him my life.”

She continued to sob, and he could not remain passive for another moment. His movement was awkward…uncertain and unsure. But slowly he put his arms around her. And to his relief she did not refuse him. Instead she huddled against him like a scared kitten, pressing her head against his breast as she poured out her sorrow. He stroked her back, talking softly to her.

“Cassia, I am taking you with me to Chenivier.”

He felt the shake of her head…the tension that grew in her frame. He knew that a refusal was coming. And he quickly shushed her.

“I promise I will not remain there. You shall have your peace of mind, I swear it. I shall tell the servants something to silence their curiosity, and you shall have all that you require to ease your pain while you mourn. But I will not leave you here alone.”

After several moments, he felt her figure soften in his arms. Confident that she would not fight him now, he adjusted his embrace and picked her up from the ground. Carrying her to his waiting horse, he lifted her into the saddle and followed behind her. Securing her in his arms he gave his mount the spur, not looking back as he took her away.

*****

Before emerging from the cover of the trees, Guy stopped his horse. It would not do to ride into plain sight with Cassia before him this way. His servants would have to see her as his unwilling captive. Considering the way her eyes were swollen red, her face full of misery, it would not be hard to convince them that she was unhappy. He sighed, wishing there was an easier way than having to put her through this, but they were at an impossible impasse. She wanted to isolate herself…but he needed her close by. This plan he had concocted was the only way there was, and it was best to get through the charade and be done with it. At least she would not have to be paraded through the streets like a true prisoner.

He had arrived at the back of the house, where there would be less chance of curious eyes watching them. And as for the interested eyes of his staff…they would be silent if they valued their lives.

Getting down from his horse, he reached up and brought her down to the ground. Gently he reached out to brush the hair back from her face.

“Do not fear. My staff are loyal, and they will treat you well. But you must play the farce of being a captive. Will you do that?”

She gave him a small nod. Taking her by the arm, he led her towards the house, half-dragging her to make the appearance more genuine. As they approached, he bellowed for a groom to take his horse. The young man came rushing forward, and at seeing Cassia, a curious look flashed in his eyes. But he did not linger. Quickly he took the horse and led it away, while Guy held Cassia by the arm and led her into the house. Near the door, she gave a half-hearted attempt to pull away, and he spoke harshly to her so the servants would be certain to hear.

“Try to flee and I shall bind you at the hands and feet. Do you understand me?”

In the kitchen, the cook and two scullery maids bobbed curtseys when they saw Guy, and they looked strangely at the girl he held beside him. He put on his darkest expression.

“This girl is a prisoner. She is here under house arrest, and no one is to ask questions about her staying under this roof. If you must answer an inquiry as to her presence, you will say she is a kitchen maid and nothing more. Not even the Sheriff is to know of her. Do I make myself clear?”

The three women nodded, the fear in their eyes quite evident. He walked quickly, pulling Cassia behind him. At the end of the hall in the servant’s quarters was a small bedroom, and pushing the door open, he brought her inside. When the door was shut and secured, he reached out to gather her in his arms, whispering so only she could hear.

“You must forgive me for that bit of unpleasantness. I promise you will not have to endure it again.”

Leading her to the narrow bed, he helped her lie down. Her head had hardly touched the pillow when she started crying again, turning her face away from him.

Her tears were painful to witness. Did she weep just for the loss of her father, or because he had brought her here without her full consent? He did not know. He only knew that he wanted to crawl into bed with her, to put his arms about her and let her empty her heart of its misery. But that, he could not do…not when the entire household would grow suspicious, wondering why he lingered so long in her chamber. And what if she pushed him away? It was quite possible she would, for he had brought her here against her will, and he knew she might be bitter with him for doing so. Though he longed to stay, he knew it was best that he leave her in peace. He rose from the bed and went to the door, turning at the open archway, taking a moment to look at her.

“Rest, Cassia. I shall have a meal brought to you soon.”

Reluctantly he turned and left. As he came down the stairs, he shouted for a maid. The girl came running in, and he curled his lip in an ugly sneer.

“Get the girl food and see that she has a bath and a change of clothes. I do not want the foul smell of a peasant lingering in my house.”

The maid nodded. She turned to go, but he reached out and yanked her by the collar, holding her close.

“You will do well to inform the other staff…utter more about her than I have instructed, and I will cut out all of your deceitful tongues. Is that understood?”

Her eyes were wide with fear. She seemed almost to the point of tears, but she nodded. He released her, watching as she scurried away to do his bidding. While Cassia was here, she would not have to worry about her safety or her reputation. If he had to personally threaten the lives of everyone in his house, he would do it to keep his promise.

*****

For nearly a week, he saw little of her. When not carrying out Briwere’s orders, he kept to his room at the castle. But at times he found the chamber so quiet and lonely that it became unbearable, and he took to walking the grounds after sundown. His nights were his own again, as he had refused to carry on with the nocturnal terrorizing of villagers. With Cassia so close by, and she being within earshot of servant gossip, he feared of her hearing that he’d engaged in such cruel activities.

Briwere had been furious at the refusal…but Guy had been in no mood to listen to the temper tantrum. Having had enough verbal abuse for one day, and bitter with longing for Cassia, he had reached out in a blind moment of temper and held Briwere by the neck, pinning him to the wall.

“I give enough of my time to you during the day. Find someone else to be your night specter, for I am done with it.”

Briwere had sneered, trying to seem unmoved by the threat, but Guy had seen the fear in his beady little eyes. And the next night, the raids in the darkness ceased all together. They had never served a true purpose anyway, except to frighten villagers into further submission. As far as Guy was concerned, the villagers were cowardly enough as it was, and he was glad not to be subjected to their screams and pleas when they were shaken from their sleep. His own nights would now be more peaceful…if only he had his woman beside him in his bed.

Only twice that week did he visit his home, and that being a very brief stay. He inquired after his “prisoner”, as the servants knew her to be, and was told that she kept mostly to her room. She ate very little of the food she was served, and spent most of her time sleeping. She hadn’t said a word to anyone thus far, giving only a shake of the head or a nod in response to questions. It seemed she was grieving more intensely than he’d realized, and though he pretended to take no notice in front of the servants, in private it worried him quite badly.

He needed to get her away from everyone and everything. He needed to take her to the cottage in the glen, where he could be with her and not worry that eyes and ears would be intruding on them. He would give the workers a few more days to finish, and no more. He’d waited long enough to have Cassia for his own. He was only a man, after all…and no man’s patience lasted forever.

*****

She wasn’t sure how many days had passed, and truthfully, she didn’t care. The pain of her father’s loss was heavy on her heart, so much so that it left her with little will to even rise from her bed.

Good Lord, what would he have thought of her being here at Chenivier? He would have been hurt…terribly hurt that she’d allowed herself to be taken away from home so easily. And more so, he would have been upset and fearful to know that she’d put herself in such a precarious situation as this.

Much as she loved Guy, it was madness to think that they could be together here. It was true he had left her to herself of late. But how long would he continue to do so? He was not a man to be denied, as he had proven time and again…and heaven help her, she missed him terribly. She wanted to be with him. His warm, strong body would be such a comfort right now. But here, within these walls, just speaking to each other was a risk. It was painful to think about, but maybe it would be wiser to break away from Guy altogether. Maybe it would be better if she slipped away during the night. Sophie would take her in, of that she was certain.

But knowing Guy, he would come charging back to claim her…and it made her wonder if she would ever be more than a passion of his. He seemed to care for her very much. But was it love he felt…or was she just some favorite possession, like a valued pet that he turned to for companionship? It was too much to think about now, and she turned her head into her pillow, wishing only to sleep and lose all thought and feeling.

She heard the creak of the door…and as this was the dark of night, her safety instinct made her turn to look. A large figure appeared in the doorway, and then another…and by the light of the moon she could just make out that they were both hooded men. She opened her mouth to scream, but a hand clamped over mouth, and then a gag replaced it. Strong arms were holding her tight, making movement all but impossible. She felt her hands being tied behind her back. She tried to kick her legs, but another pair of arms was holding her there, and then her feet were being bound. The man holding her arms brought his lips to her ear, his voice cold as he whispered.

“Make no sound, do you understand?”

She nodded, terrified that he would draw a weapon to kill her…or worse, attack and violate her, and then leave her battered and broken for one of the servants to discover in the morning. A moment later she felt herself being lifted, and then her head spun as she realized she was upside down, hanging over a man’s shoulder. So the end would not come in a house, where someone would find her body and bury her in a proper grave. The end would come in some secluded place, where she would be left for the animals to feast on. She closed her eyes, praying that the end would come quick.

Whoever these men were, they were stealthy criminals. As she felt herself being carried down the stairs and out of doors, they hardly made a sound. For some distance they walked along. She realized they had gone to the woods, and her heart beat in terror at the prospect of being thrown on the ground at any moment. She swallowed a lump in her throat…and a moment later she was being hoisted up and off the man’s shoulder. He spun her around and gave her a shove, and she landed in the hands of yet another man, who lifted her in the air and sat her upon a horse. She felt him rise up behind her and situate himself in the saddle. Then, without a word spoken, they were moving along…and she realized there was something familiar about the man holding her. The feel, the scent…it was Guy who was taking her away. She was sure of it. Then she heard his voice in her ear.