She was the reason for the separation, the reason why the men weren’t entirely close with Bretton any longer. They had tried to reason with him about her, but it was clear the man was obsessed. Whether it was because she was de Velt’s daughter, or because he was simply infatuated with her, no one seemed to know. All they knew was that she seemed to have more power over him than they did, and no one liked that. Least of all Grayton.
As Bretton pondered over the smoldering kitchen, Grayton gathered Teague and Dallan. It was time for the three of them to discuss the future as they saw it, the future that Bretton had promised them. Even though they had conquered Comen Castle, as Bretton had promised, the future was uncertain. Mostly, to Grayton, it was not as he had envisioned.
In the burnt hall of Comen, the three commanders gathered. Amid the smoldering ruins and rubble, they remained out of sight as the men outside prepared to depart. Grayton backed Teague and Dallan into a corner, away from prying eyes and ears.
“You two are heading back to Cloryn Castle today,” Grayton said, his voice low. “I must remain here to see to the rebuild, which means I will not be able to keep an eye on Bretton. That is something you both must do. I fear… I fear that Bretton has lost his direction in all of this. I fear that we are on the verge of a change that none of us will appreciate.”
Dallan’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?” he wanted to know. “Bretton has not lost his focus. He has done everything he said he would and we have the riches to prove it. You have been sour since the day de Velt’s daughter smacked Bretton over the skull, Grayton. Now you are being a doomsayer to things that do not exist.”
Grayton’s lips tightened into a flat, angry line. “I am closer to Bretton than anyone and I am telling you that the man isverging on a change,” he insisted. “I can see it in his manner, especially when he gets around that de Velt woman. She changes him. We have all seen it. She even convinced him to take down the impaled bodies at Cloryn and burn them. He told us that he intended to leave those bodies up for six months, yet she asked him to take them down and he did!”
That was an undeniable fact that had the commanders perplexed since it had happened, but Dallan eventually shook his head.
“It means nothing,” he insisted. “The stench was so bad that it was affecting everyone’s appetite. He took them down for that reason.”
“He took them down because she begged him to!” Grayton fired back. “But it will not end there, nay. I fear that she will convince him to go back on everything he has promised us. Do you not understand? That woman has bewitched him!”
Dallan sighed heavily, looking at Teague, who was the most level-headed out of the three. Teague didn’t cushion his opinion.
“You speak treason,” he said to Grayson. “I think Bretton is obsessed with the woman for the sheer fact that she is de Velt’s daughter. You seem to think she has hypnotized him so that he will only do her bidding. I do not see that happening.”
Grayson was flustered that the commanders were not on his side, not seeing what he was seeing. He jabbed a finger at them.
“Mark my words,” he said. “He will not kill de Velt because she will beg him not to. If that happens, I can guarantee that everything we have been promised will be for naught. He will go back on his word to us because of her.”
Teague shrugged his big shoulders. “If it comes to that, then we will deal with the situation accordingly,” he said. “I, for one, do not intend to allow de Llion to break his promise to me. I am well on my way to being a very rich man and I plan to be richer before this campaign is through. If Bretton does not provide mewhat he promised, then I will act accordingly, but not until, or if, that moment comes.”
Dallan was already heading out of the hall, moving for the door. When Grayton called to him, he waved the man off irritably. He didn’t want to hear his nonsense. As Teague turned to leave, Grayton grasped him by the arm.
“Listen to me, Teague,” he said. “I have seen what a woman can do to a man. A woman’s will can topple the mightiest of men, Bretton included. Watch and be wary… if she convinces him not to kill de Velt, the only thing that has kept him driven and has kept us rich, then everything shall crumble. Remember that.”
Teague just looked at him, eyeing the fingers on his arm until Grayton reluctantly removed them. Even as he left the ruins of the hall, Grayton’s words echoed in his mind as much as he didn’t want them to.
Watch to see if she convinces him not to kill de Velt….
Try as he might, Teague couldn’t seem to shake Grayton’s sense of foreboding.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Lioncross Abbey Castle
Nine days later, mid-August
“Comen has fallen,”Edward was standing in the doorway of Christopher’s solar. “There are some refugees streaming into the village, people who used to live at the base of Comen Castle. They said a massive army moved in almost six days ago, laid siege, and infiltrated Comen in two days. They further say that the conquering army has posted all of Comen’s inhabitants on poles, impaling them, leaving them exposed for all to see.”
Christopher had been sitting at his desk, as was usual with him these days, working on some documentation that would see him purchase a great deal of land in Devon, but with Edward’s news, he set the quill down and stared at the man with some shock.
“De Llion,” he muttered.
Edward nodded grimly. “It certainly sounds like him.”
Christopher sighed weakly, pondering the news. “Does de Velt know?”
Edward shook his head. “I do not believe so,” he said. “The man is back at his encampment. I will send someone to retrieve him.”
Christopher nodded. “Go yourself,” he said. “Bring him back here. We must discuss this.”
Edward nodded and was gone, rushing out to the bailey of Lioncross in order to collect his horse and ride for Jax’s encampment. As Edward went along his way, Christopher pondered the event of Comen’s siege. He’d sent the missive to Cloryn regarding terms for Lady Allaston de Velt’s release but the missive he’d received in response had been terse and to the point– produce Jax de Velt or his daughter would suffer.
