Chapter 7 New Strategy
The next day while Victor was out with the men doing general chores, a message was delivered to the captain. He read it, reread it and still could not make any sense out of it so he called Victor in from his regular chores to look at it. Maybe he could understand and translate it; after all he had read the enemies’ journals.
"Victor, come in here for a moment," Ian called, "the captain wants to see you."
Victor handed over some rope to the man next to him and walked into the captain’s tent.
"A f
"Oh," he said out loud. To himself it was another story altogether. So you have fallen for her. I have been wondering about that. The look on your face tells me that it is more than her value to this war that you are concerned about. Have you realized that she cares about you, too?It was when they started to return to their study of the maps that they realized the leaf was tied to a pebble with a single red hair. They could not know how long she had been gone. The leaf had been chosen because it was above the table that had been set up for the maps and the pebble was so that gravity would pull on the already weakened attachment. Neither of them were able to concentrate much on the maps for what felt like hours as they waited for her to return. When asked by one of the soldiers why they were so anxious, the
Victor was carrying a pack that seemed unusually full for a mission of such stealth, but no one questioned him and, in truth, the captain was the only one to notice. For the rest of the day they made their way quietly through the forest not daring even to speak to one another for fear of alerting someone to their presence. That night they were to make camp in a grove where there was much brush to give them cover. They found, upon their arrival, that a group of ten enemy soldiers had had the same idea.Victor smiled. The captain knew that he had planned this and that this group was the first they were to dispatch. They were far enough away from the main enemy encampment that the shouts of the men would not be heard and the captain could engage them his own way – where they could see him and know what was coming. Sylvia still didn’t understand why he insisted on being so visible instead of making
"What makes you think they will walk into our camp so recklessly?""They think we are at the closest a two day ride. They think they are in no danger here or the captain would have already struck their camp. It will work.""If you say so. Hurry up and get this plan into motion."Victor ran around the camp giving orders as quietly and quickly as was possible at the same time. The men were a little confused because it was unusual for the captain or Ian to set traps, but they did as they were told without question. They trusted Ian the same as they trusted the captain and in the captain’s absence, they would follow Ian anywhere.The enemy
Chapter 8 The Medicine ManIan arrived that night as they were taking their evening meal. "What is wrong with Victor? He seems tense tonight." Ian and the captain were walking the perimeter of the camp checking that everything was in order before going to sleep."I am not entirely sure. Sylvia told me last night that she was due for...You should know what I am talking about Ian, you are married."Ian laughed. "You sound uncomfortable, Mikail. Even you had a mother.""You laugh like you know exactly what is going o
"I do not intend to tell everything as I do not know it all, but a couple of the other things are that it will only answer to its rightful owner. It was given to me by Revenge, so it is mine. Even for you it would refuse to kill unless it was using you to enforce a contract. And if I concentrate hard enough, for long enough, I can call it to my hand. Other than that, what I know of its properties is negligible. You have already seen the slight shimmer around it that makes it very visible even in daylight.After I knew about the dagger, he told me what oath he wanted me to swear - that I would never betray him. In this line of work that can be a hazard. So I swore the oath and he trained me. He said that I learned so well that when I departed to be on my own he gave the dagger to me as a gift."
"She is in need of reviving. She has taken a sleeping draught after a special brew and did not awake in the allotted timeframe. The only instructions we were given were to find you if she did not wake." Ian practically said it all as one word. They were leaning towards each other so only they could hear, but were still on horseback."And why should you care if she does not wake?""Because she has proven her worth ... and Mikail loves her as much as she loves him, though they do not admit it." Ian’s words found their mark. Somehow Revenge knew now that this was not a set up and something in his countenance changed, though Ian could not say what."You must have ridden through the night to get here. That doe
"That explains certain things to me,"Like how you couldnotrealize how you are looking at someone you are helping to portray as a man!How can you not realize how you feel about her, but even more how can you not see how she feels about you?Mikail was again staring absently at Victor. Even Revenge had to give her credit for this disguise. She really did look like a young boy. It made the captain’s face almost comical staring at Victor the way he was.Just then, Ian arrived. "Good, you made it. How are things going?" He looked and sounded like he was about to collapse.Revenge looked up, "Our patient will be fine, Ian. Take a meal and get some rest. You have earned it." The captain nodded agreement, and Ian left the tent. Revenge then turned back to the captain and asked, "What is
Chapter 9 NashIan woke up late that afternoon and went straight to the captain’s tent to find out what had happened while he was unconscious. He burst in to find Victor putting on his leather vest with the captain facing the opening of the tent. Thank God I wasn’t any faster."I take it by the look on your face that Victor is not finished changing. Sit down, Ian, and have something to eat with us," the captain said calmly."How is the...um...recovery going? And where is the Medicine Man?" Ian asked quickly as he sat down beside the captain. The c
"Something like that. Captain, I do not wish to have this discussion with you at this time! You have interrupted a chiding I was receiving from Master Revenge," she spoke as though she was very close to sending him on to the manor. He took in the tears threatening to overflow the blue eyes he had come to love on a dear and trusted friend. He wanted nothing more than to protect her, but knew that something more was going on between Sylvia and her father than a mere chiding. They had done that many times back and forth and it had not made her cry. He bowed to her and walked just out of earshot, but kept his eyes on them.When Sylvia looked back up at the face of Revenge, his expression had changed. She couldn’t decide if she liked the new one better or not. "How long have you been with child?" he demanded through gritted teeth."This will be my second cycle missed," she replied flatly.
"I do not dispute that it is. Pay the woman that she and her guard may leave!""Guard?!" the man asked angrily, "She brought an entire regiment with her!""Never mind my guard," Sylvia’s voice was a shock to the crowd, "Let us finish our business and I will leave this place and my guard with me.""All of them?""All of them.""We will need some sort of proof that it was you who did slay Retribution," the once very haughty man sounded defeated."If the body and the blade are not enough, then what else can I offer as proof but the wound that blade inflicted on my hand in the struggle that preceded the death ofthat woman?" She held out her left hand to show the bandage."May we see that wound?" he asked. Sylvia pi
This time when he spoke, his tones and facial expressions were much softer. "I do not know all of the magic that was placed on the blade. I know that for me, the glow was green, not blue as it is for you. I know that it does not like to draw the blood of its master – that was one of the attributes I asked for when I commissioned it. I do not know why it did what it did, but I am sure it had something to do with it cutting you."The small group dispersed still thinking about what they had seen and heard and not knowing what they thought about it. Sylvia returned to the place where she had fought Delora. There she found that none of the men could handle Veritás without it striking back at them, though none could explain how as the blade never moved. She would have to clean it herself. She could handle that, even with a wounded hand.Thus ends phase one of this project ...&nbs
Chapter 27 Retribution’s RetirementIn less than a week, Ladies Chadwick and Kinden were settled back at Chadwick Manor and their lords were again inquiring as to what on earth they were planning. To them it was a game, nothing could possibly be serious about it because the women were too happy – in fact, they were so happy they cried sometimes.
"Because ... well ... you first saved my brother from certain death and then you requested that the medicine man come here and tend to my father who had been poisoned by Delora, thus saving our family again. He refuses to take even the smallest payment for his services. You," he paused and looked at her as though she were not entirely human, but in a good way, "I would swear that you are part or all angel sent from God’s own side to help this land recover from its sorrows.""You are too kind, Cole.""There is one other thing I must request of you," he told her hesitantly, "I must ask that you say nothing to the authorities of what we have done ... The consequences could be terrible for us.""I will keep your secret, Cole, just be careful who elseyoutell," she said with a maternal s
Delora allowed herself to be carried the rest of the way to the tree house without incident. There was terror in her eyes and etched in every line of her face. If anything, it increased when she was securely tied to a chair and her gag removed. She managed to speak after Retribution had pulled up the other chair in the small room and sat backwards around it looking at her. "W-What do y-you want f-from me?"Retribution smiled with such maliciousness that she could have made most of the guild counsel turn tail and run. "I know what you have been doing to your husband and his family, but I want to hear your story. Your fate may be a little less painful if you comply with my wishes." Delora paled then reddened. She started to let out a string of curses and insults, but was interrupted by Retribution’s steel re-enforced bracer coming hard across her face. "Insolence is not becoming of a fool." Disdain d
Chapter 26 DeloraShe crept quietly along the second floor ledge. They had been gone from the merchant’s home for three days and now it was time to return. She pulled her black cloak over her leathers. It would not do for anyone to see what she was wearing - after all there were few who even knew she wasn’t always in a skirt. She found the room she wanted and carefully slid the shutters
She stepped out of the bath. He watched her. Her wet hair contoured to the shape of her body. He heard her sultry voice telling him there was not a single towel in the entire room, but they could use one of his fine linen shirts if he would be so kind as to retrieve it and would he mind drying her?Mind? Any excuse to touch her was reason enough for him to do so ...But when he arrived at the chair where a shirt lay, she guided him into it and sat across his lap. He let out a groan of pleasure.Through the course of the night, she brought him to the brink of release and back again so many times that he lost count. Finally, as the sun began to peak over the horizon, they reached the peak of ecstasy and drifted into peaceful slumber.Somewhere around the noon meal, Sylvia appeared in a dressing robe that belonged to Mikail and requested food
"Would you back up?" the king’s voice was barely audible over Sylvia’s soft crying and the murmur of the hall, "We are in no danger from Mikail’s menorhis bride!" His comment made Sylvia smile, though for a different reason than he thought.If he only knew who I really am, those would not be his words..."Forgive them. They are overcautious in these perilous times.""There is nothing to forgive, Majesty, they were only doing the job loyalty demands of them," she replied, "It would be disappointing if they were to shirk their duties. Enemy spies have been known to infiltrate even the most watched places." The old king put his hand over Sylvia’s and nodded approval."Spoken with great wisdom, Lady Chadwick, it is good to see that Mikail has chosen well," he removed his hand from hers after giving it a slight squeeze.