Rise of the Defender (108 page)

CHAPTER
THIRTY EIGHT

     “Chris!” Gowen came barreling into the great
hall, a huge scroll of vellum in his hand. “Missives from London!”

     Christopher was up, moving to take them
already. It was nearly a month after David's departure and the snow on the
January ground was enough to freeze the devil from hell. On the fresh rushes,
Dustin was helping Christin sit up and her eyes flew to her husband
apprehensively as he took the parchment.

     Christopher glanced reassuringly at her as
he broke Longchamp's seal and read the message clear through. Unemotionally, he
looked directly at his wife.

     “Richard is released and on his way home,”
he said. “But John is drumming up more mischief in the north and I am ordered
returned.”

     Dustin's mouth opened in horror but she
clamped it shut and rapidly lowered her gaze. Even as Christopher returned the
missive to Gowen and ordered Leeton to prepare the men, his eyes were fixed on
his wife.

     He moved around the table to the hearth
where his wife and babe were playing, his heart already aching for the
departure at hand. When he returned, there was no telling how old Christin
would be or how much of her growing he would have missed. But that was nothing
compared to the pain of separation he was already feeling for Dustin. She kept
her blond head down, pretending to busy herself with the infant even as her
husband loomed over her.

     “Dustin,” he said softly.

     It took a few long moments before she
lifted her head and he could already see tears in the huge gray eyes. Without a
word he scooped Christin into his arms and pulled Dustin to her feet, pulling
her against him as he took the babe back to her nursery.

     Griselda was there, folding freshly washed
linens. The old woman had elected to stay until Deborah's babe was born in the
spring. Meanwhile, she made an excellent nanny and had become an important part
of the family.

     Christopher handed the old woman his
daughter. “I believe she could use a nap.”

     Griselda took Christin, cooing and giggling
to the babe as Christopher closed the door quietly behind them. Alone in the
corridor with Dustin, he fixed her with a gentle smile.

     “Ride with me,” he commanded softly.

     He took her by the hand and down to the
stables, where he saddled only his destrier and lifted her up onto the beast.
Sans armor or any weapon, he galloped from the bailey and out into the cold,
bleak countryside.

     The temperature was freezing, but Dustin
was warm wrapped in Christopher's arms. He let the dappled charger have his
head for a couple of miles until finally reining him to a halt by the banks of
a frozen stream. Dustin slid off and wandered to the water, studying the ice
crystals absently.

     “I must leave by tonight,” he said. “I am
sorry, sweetheart.”

     She shrugged. “I knew you would leave me
again, someday. Only I hoped that someday would never come.”

     “As did I,” he swung his leg over the
saddle and dismounted, giving the horse an affectionate slug.  His eyes moved
over the beast, which had matured considerably over the months. “You never did
name my horse.”

     Dustin glanced back at the animal and he
noticed with fascination that her eyes were the color of the landscape that
surrounded them. “I have thought on it somewhat, and I believe a suitable name
is Zephyr.”

     “Zephyr? A fitting name,” Christopher said
with satisfaction. “He is indeed as wild and unpredictable as the wind. You
have a knack for names, wife. And other things.”

     Wrapped in dark gray, Dustin only nodded
faintly and turned her attention back to the stream. He came up behind her,
enveloping her in his massive arms.

     “I am eager for Richard to meet you,” he
said softly. “And likewise thank him for ordering me to marry you.”

     Dustin knew he was jesting but she did not
feel like humor. “You would have him meet the woman that drove his mightiest
warriors apart,” she said softly.

     His smile vanished. “You have done nothing,”
he said. “Whatever happened with David and Marcus happened in their own hearts;
you did nothing.”

     She turned in his arms, embracing him and
laying her head against his chest. “I miss you already,” she said sadly. “Where
are you going?”

     He held her close. “To London, and then
north. I do not know exactly where,” he said softly. “It will be strange not
having David by my side in battle. It was strange enough not having Marcus at
the beginning of the campaign, but I got used to lt. I suppose I will have to
get used to David's absence.”

     “Do you know where David is?” she asked
softly.

     He sighed, caressing her back. “I heard
tale that he had gone to Canterbury, but I am not sure. I expected him to go
straight to Lohrham Forest, but he did not.”

     “Does he know anyone in Canterbury?” Dustin
inquired.

     He smiled. “Aye, and so do you. Emilie
Hampton.”

     Dustin looked up at him. “Emilie!” she
gasped in realization. “Of course. Chris, do you think...?”

     He shrugged, cutting her off. “I do not
know. David is not who I thought he was, so mayhap marriage is in the realm of
possibility after all.”

     Dustin was delighted, hoping secretly David
would marry Emilie and he and Chris would make up so they could all live
happily at Lioncross. But she did not voice her thoughts, although her husband
knew exactly what she was thinking.

     The sky above them opened up and a heavy
snow began to fall. The wind kicked up and within a minute or so, white ice was
swirling about them and growing stronger. Christopher hustled Dustin onto the
destrier and mounted himself, although he knew they might possibly freeze to
death before they reached Lioncross.

     “Is there a small farm or shelter where we
can wait this out?” he asked her above the noise of the wind.

     Dustin thought a moment. “If I remember
correctly, there's a hunter's shack back in the woods to the south,” she
pointed in that direction. “As children, we would often play there and pretend
it was our fortress to defend.”

     He reined the animal in the direction of
the dead trees. “It will defend us now from the elements.”

     The shack was indeed there as she
remembered, and Christopher carried her inside. It was neglected and run down,
but at least they were out of the snow. Dustin felt a sense of giddy adventure
with it all, alone with her husband in an isolated hut. Christopher flashed a
grin at her as he gathered the old wood that was lying about and after several
tries, started a fire in the dirty hearth. It was no time before he had stoked
it into a roaring blaze.

     “Now, let's hope we choke on the smoke
should the chimney malfunction,” he sat down next to his wife and pulled her
into his arms.

     Dustin laughed softly. She cuddled against
him, all alone in their private little haven. Outside the wind was vicious, but
inside the old shack, they were warm and dry.

     “I would stay here forever with you,” she
sighed contentedly.

     “Without Christin?” he asked.

     “Her, too,” she said quickly. “You can ride
back for her.”

     He smiled, feeling the warmth of the blaze.
“On second thought, I agree with you,” he said. “I would stay here with you,
alone.”

     He kissed the top of her head, her temples,
and she closed her eyes at his touch. Her stomach lurched with excitement for
she knew what would follow, and she could not stop herself from responding to him
aggressively. He had wanted their lovemaking to be slow and tender, but Dustin
turned on him like a cat in heat and he could not help but follow her fervor.

     She spread her cloak on the dirty ground
and pulled him down on top of her, pulling his woolen tunic over his head and
going to work on his undertunic. His fingers deftly undid the stays on her
surcoat and it was no time before they were both naked, frolicking on the fur
of the cloak.

     The passion between them was indescribable.
With every touch, Dustin nearly wept with delight, and every kiss spoke
thousands of unsaid words too deep to express. His hands kneaded her full
breasts, wet with milk, and he lapped up the sweetness and then suckled her for
more. She was ultra-sensitive because she was nursing, but it enhanced their
lovemaking all the more. His mouth devoured every inch of the flesh on her
torso and arms, moving to the secret place between her legs and making her
writhe with desire. His tongue peaked her little bud, probed her slick depths eagerly
before he took mercy on her and placed his organ at her threshold.

     He paused a moment, wanting to tell her
everything that was in his heart, but she wouldn't let him. She wanted him to
show her what was in his heart, and he did. Driving into her hard enough to
bring a scream to her lips, he rode her as hard as he ever rode his horse,
bringing them both to a climax in mere minutes. Descending from heaven on a
cloud of pure contentment, Dustin held him close and refused to let him
withdraw. Within a half-hour, she turned him onto his back and rode him
erotically until he exploded again in a scalding blast of seed.  Four times in
that afternoon, they climaxed one with the other.

     The snow let off enough toward later
afternoon and he took Dustin back to Lioncross. Jeffrey and Leeton, greatly
relieved to see them, recalled the three search parties they had sent out and
were better able to focus on mobilizing the troops bound for London.

     As soon as Dustin was settled and he had a
chance to check on Christin, Christopher joined them in the bailey in full
armor, mentally turning himself from the loving husband and father to the
battle-bound warrior.

     The Defender had returned.

     Dustin thought she was handling
Christopher’s return to London quite well. But when it became apparent
departure was imminent, she grew hysterical and took to her bed. When
Christopher entered the bedchamber in full armor preparing to bid her good-bye
he was verily distressed to find his wife huddled in bed, weeping into the pillows.
He coaxed her out of bed and half-carried her into the nursery where he could
say his good-byes to Christin.

     Dustin sobbed miserably as he kissed the
baby and spoke softly to her, and she grinned her sweet little smile at him.
His heart was breaking that he had to leave her, but he promised he would buy
her some pretty baubles and toys in London. He also asked the babe to take good
care of her mother, a silly statement that nearly brought Dustin to the brink
of collapse.

     Leaving his daughter and fighting off the
tears, he gently took Dustin into the vacant corridor and pushed her against
the wall, wiping her eyes for her with a handkerchief.

     “Get hold of yourself, sweetheart,” he
lectured gently.  “I shall not leave you a weeping, quivering mass. Be brave
for me, love.
Please
.”

     She was trying but every time she looked
into his eyes, the tears started fresh. Finally, he gave up trying to calm her
and took to holding her instead.

     “I really must go,” he whispered into her
hair. “Will you watch me from the window?”

     She nodded unsteadily and he kissed her
forehead. “That's my girl,” he whispered. “Now, is there anything you want me
to bring you from London? How about some new dresses? It has been a long time
since you have had any new clothes.”

     She sniffed, looking thoughtful. “Why don’t
you get Christin and I clothes to match?”

     He smiled brightly. “What a delightful
idea. I shall do that.”

     She was pleased that he liked her idea. She
smiled as much as she could at him and he kissed her gently. “I have got to go,
sweetheart. I promise I shall return as soon as I can, and I am leaving Jeffrey
and Edward here with you.”

     “Edward?” Dustin repeated. “But... I
thought you wanted him in the battle.”

     Christopher shook his head. “I have Leeton
as my right hand, plus Max and Anthony and the others. I shall not be lacking
for knightly power,” he said. “Besides, even though Edward says otherwise, he
is still afraid to brandish a sword. 'Twill be easier on him this way, although
I have no doubt that he will protect you should the need arise.”

     Dustin nodded, running her hands over his
face one final time, touching his features and memorizing them. “Be safe, my
love,” she whispered. “Return to me.”

     He kissed her sweetly, leaving her standing
in the corridor as he descended the stairs and disappeared into the foyer. When
she heard the front door slam, she went into their bedchamber and stood watch
by the window as his army moved out.

     Christopher was the last man through the
gates. He turned and caught sight of her watching him and waved a massive,
gloved hand.