The Whispering Night (38 page)

Fergus, for his part,
was immensely curious about the two brown-eyed children that Derica seemed to
have inherited. They were adorable children, to be sure, but he couldn’t help
thinking what Garren would say to all of this. He caught her attention.

“Am I to understand that
these are the peasant children you mentioned earlier?”

Derica nodded. “Aye.
Their mother pulled me from the river and took care of me until I regained my
strength. She was accidentally killed. The least I can do is care for her
children, and gladly so.”

Fergus looked at the
little boy, who was now staring at him. “I see,” he smiled at the boy. Sian
responded by sticking a finger in his nose. “Charming.”

Derica loved the
children but didn’t want to talk about them at the moment. “How is he really,
Fergus? Garren, I mean.”

“He is very well,”
Fergus’ thoughts were diverted from the children, thinking of Garren and the
trouble they would all be in soon. “He is thought of nothing but you, so much
so that he has risked all to come home to you.”

“What does that mean?”

Fergus didn’t want to alarm
her. “Nothing,” he assured her, sorry he had to lie to her. “Suffice it to say
that his joy in seeing that you are alive will eclipse the sun.”

Derica smiled at him. “I
can still hardly believe. Tell me again, Fergus. Swear it to me.”

“I swear to you on my
oath as a knight that Garren is alive and well.”

Her smiled broadened,
her eyes closing briefly as if to dream him yet again.  “And you have come to
bring me to him again, just as you did those months ago.”

“’Twould seem to be my
calling in life, to unite the two of you.”

Derica didn’t want to
wait any longer to see her husband and Keller was dragging his heels. She
spurred the palfrey toward the gate.

“If we hurry, we can be
to Cilgarren in a few hours, don’t you think?” she asked.

Fergus moved after her.
“Two hours at the most.”

Keller had been talking
to one of his knights, waiting for the two Welsh crossbowmen he had requested
to join the party. When he saw Derica and Fergus already moving towards the
gate, he spurred his charger in their direction.             

“Hold,” he commanded.

Fergus didn’t listen; he
waited for Derica to respond. She did so by simply turning her head, not
stopping her horse.

“Why?” she asked
innocently.

Keller was beside her on
his red-and-cream beast. “Another moment and the escort party shall be
complete. If You will simply wait, we shall….”

“I do not want to wait,”
Derica told him. “I have waited long enough. I am riding to Cilgarren Castle at
this very moment. You may ride with me or not. It makes no difference to me,
but if you choose not to, then give me Aneirin so that I may take her.”

Keller’s expression
darkened.  He made a surprising move by reaching out and grasping her horse’s
reins, effectively stopping the animal.

“You’re not going
anywhere until our escort is complete,” he rumbled. “I am assembling my men to
protect you and you will do me the courtesy of complying.”

Derica’s voice was like
ice. “You do not want me to go to Cilgarren; that much is clear. Any more
attempts to delay me and you shall suffer Garren’s wrath in this. Be assured
that I will tell him of your reluctance to return me to him.”

It threatened to grow
ugly. They had come too far to have it turn bad at this moment and possibly
cause Keller to forbid either of them to leave Pembroke.

“My lady,” Fergus said
quietly. “Sir Keller is merely trying to protect you. Your statement was
harsh.”

Derica had a moment of
doubt that what Fergus said was true.  Her remorse grew. “I apologize, Keller,”
she murmured. “I am not quite myself at the moment. My desire to see my husband
seems to be taking over all of my senses until I cannot think clearly.”

Keller forgave her, of
course. “As I told you before, were you married to me, I should expect the same
devotion. I can only admire your determination.” He glanced over his shoulder
at the assembled escort party. “It seems we are complete, after all. By your
command, my lady, we shall depart.”

He let go of the reins
and Derica’s little horse danced forward. Sian thought it was great fun and
giggled as the horse shook him about.  Derica’s heart was soaring, her joy in
seeing Garren too delirious for words. Two hours seemed like an eternity to
wait, but wait she would have to. As they neared the great gates of Pembroke, a
familiar figure caught Derica’s attention.  A small, cloaked wisp of a figure
was walking towards her, the face pale and the blue eyes red-rimmed. Derica
nearly fell off her horse when she realized she was looking at her maid.

“Aglette,” she hissed.
“Dear God… Aglette!”

She slid from the palfrey,
careful not to take Sian with her. The women fell into each other’s arms, the
red-haired maid sobbing pitifully. Derica was seized with fear, with surprise,
and shook the woman gently.

“What is it?” she
demanded. “Why are you here? How did you know…?”

“Your father,” Aglette
sputtered. “He and his army lie beyond the gates. They sent me in to tell
you….”

Her weeping cut her
short and Derica was filled with terror. She shook Aglette hard enough to snap
her neck. “What are you to tell me?”

The maid struggled to
control herself. “That the garrison commander is to turn you over to the army
of the Earl of Norfolk, ‘else they will raze Pembroke and kill all who stand in
their way.”

Derica knew her face
went pale. She looked at Fergus. “No,” she breathed. “Not here, not now. How
did they find me?”

Fergus’ face was grim.
He dismounted his charger and focused on the hysterical maid. “How many men did
de Rosa bring?”

Aglette shook her head.
“I do not know exactly, my lord. We stopped to pick up more men at Hereford
Castle. I heard one of the men say that the total army was about one thousand
fools and men.”

It was a massive army.
Fergus looked at Keller; he would give the man credit, for he held no discernible
expression even though his castle was grievously threatened.  It took Keller a
moment to realize everyone was looking at him, expecting some manner of
response.  His first response was to look at Derica.

“Your father is the Earl
of Norfolk?” he asked, quite calmly.

She shook her head. “He
serves Norfolk. He is garrison commander of Framlingham Castle.”

“Framlingham?” Keller
almost looked amused. “The Marshall neglected to mention that.”

Derica knew that she
should explain; the man was at risk for reasons he knew nothing of. “My father
is loyal to Prince John and Garren is loyal to Richard. We ran off and were
married against my father’s wishes.”

“I see,” Keller said.”
That being the case, your father has come to retrieve you. However, the better
question would be, how did he know you were here?”

“I do not know.”

“Nor do I,” Keller
didn’t seem overly concerned. “Spies abound, my lady. Even now, I am sure that
Pembroke is littered with them.”

Derica couldn’t tell
what he was thinking. “What do you plan to do?”

Keller sighed heavily,
dismounting his charger. There was much on his mind; that was evident. 

 “What do you want me to
do?”

“I will speak with my
father. But I want you to help Fergus escape to Cilgarren to warn Garren.”

“And hold off the horde
to buy him enough time?”

To hear Keller say it
made it sound as if she was asking the world of him. And he was getting
absolutely nothing in return. Fear crept into her veins.

“I know it is an
enormous request, Keller, but I would be eternally grateful to you if you
would….” she trailed off, feeling stupid and desperate at the same time. “There
is no way I can repay you and nothing I can promise you in return other than my
undying gratitude. But if you would do this for me, I swear that I would repay
the favor if ever I were able. So would Garren.”

He smiled at her,
ironically. “What I would have from you, you could not repay. I know Sir Garren
certainly wouldn’t.” He didn’t look the least bit distressed as he lifted his
helm, propping it up on his forehead as if that made it easier for him to
think. “Let me assure you that your father cannot destroy Pembroke, no matter
how he believes otherwise. I invite him to try. But getting you out of here is
another matter altogether.”

Derica felt a tremendous
amount of relief and fear, one after the other. “Then you will help me?”

Keller looked at her,
feeling himself weaken as he stared into the green eyes. “I believe we should
think about this for a moment and come up with a plan,” he said. “But the first
order of business is to close the gates and arm my men. I have a feeling this
is going to be a long day.”

Derica felt more relieve
than she could express. She put her hand on Keller’s arm. “Thank you, Keller,”
she whispered. “From the bottom of my heart, I thank you.”

Keller couldn’t decide
whether he felt noble or like a fool.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Keller didn’t waste any
time in ordering the timber hoards erected on the battlements. Timber hoards
were wooden platforms that extended beyond the tower battlements from the
corner of the walls, providing a fighting platform that was well above the
heads of the enemy. The entire east wall was protected by a cliff, rendering it
a non-threat, and Keller ordered the massive catapult on the northeast tower
wall to be loaded and cocked. Normally, the catapult was directed at the sea should
the attack come from that direction, but Keller had it directed at the
northwest towards the trees that would undoubtedly shield the de Rosa army.

The story Aglette gave
Derica was a sad one; Bertram had received a message that Derica was at
Pembroke almost three weeks prior, but she couldn’t say who had sent the
missive. Bertram, contrary to his nature, had spent a day and a night drinking
in indulgent self-pity until he finally made the decision to march on Pembroke.
More than anything, he wanted his daughter home. He didn’t care about Garren le
Mon, revenge or reckoning; all he wanted was his only girl-child home where she
belonged.  He had missed her terribly, and her absence cut at him like a knife.
Knowing how well she might not respond to him, he commandeered her servant and
childhood friend to march with the army and relay his terms of her surrender.

Derica had cried at the
tale. She loved her father very much. The situation at their parting had been
difficult for her, but she had been overwhelmed with her desire to be with
Garren. She still was. Nothing Aglette told her could take that away. She was
angry with her father for so many reasons that she couldn’t seem to pick just
one.

It was late in the day
when Derica sent Aglette back to her father with the message that she wished to
negotiate.  She retreated to her chamber with the children and removed the
simple clothing she wore in favor of something more elaborate. She thought
that, perhaps, if her father saw her good fortune and good health that he would
not be so inclined to remove her from a situation that obviously agreed with
her.  She wanted to present a strong, collected front.

She was nervous.
Everything seemed to hinge on this day and what would be said.  She dressed in
a sheath of the softest white linen and topped it with a heavy brocade surcoat
in rich green. The full skirt swept the floor and gold thread in designs ran
throughout. The bodice was laced tight, giving her a glorious figure. Around
her neck she wore a necklace of pale cut emeralds that Keller had given her,
and her long hair was pinned at the nape of her neck and secured with a golden
web.  She made an absolutely stunning sight.  She only hoped her beauty would
dazzle them if her courage would not.  The tension was rising and the stakes
were enormously high.

Fergus knocked on the
door and she let him in. He had been with Keller in the courtyard, discussing
his retreat from Pembroke.  One look at Derica and he found he had never seen
anything quite so beautiful.  It was enough to cause him to impulsively take
her hand and kiss it.

“You know,” he said, “if
Garren saw me do that, he would run me through. In fact, I am not so sure how
He is going to take any of this.”

“What do you mean?”

“You, here, living in
the same keep with a man who is not your husband.”

He said it rather
dramatically, wagging a finger at her. She knew he wasn’t serious, attempting
in his own annoying way to lessen a tense situation.

 “Fergus, may I remind
you that I slept next to you on the ground for several days and you were not my
husband. What makes this any different?”

“Garren doesn’t know
about that one.”

“He will if I tell him.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”