Rise of the Defender (98 page)

     His eyes met hers for a moment as the
little squire pulled Christopher's gloves on. “Where do you think they are?”

     She was surprised he would ask, for he
always knew everything. She could not remember him ever asking her a question
like that.

     “I truly do not know,” she said. “But I do
not think they will be at his cottage. Mayhap they are at the monastery.”

     The page handed him his helmet and he
plopped it on his head, adjusting the hauberk beneath it. His knights were
dressed and awaiting orders.

     “Go on to bed, sweetheart,” he said,
accepting the sword that the squire was struggling to hold and moving around
the table. “I shall return soon.”

     Dustin nodded, watching Christopher and his
men exit the front door of the castle and hearing the shouts as the destriers
were brought around.

     Indecision clutched at her, wanting to tell
him of Deborah's condition so he would not be too harsh with her, yet afraid to
tell him for fear he would become enraged. She stood in the archway, watching
them mount their mighty warhorses and seeing the bailey come alive with
soldiers and torches. The massive gates began to unfold like a huge mouth,
waiting to be fed.

     The more Dustin watched the commotion, the
more apprehensive she became. She was sure that Deborah and Gowen had done
something desperate and she was terrified that Christopher's wrath would be
unmerciful. He was issuing orders in a loud voice and frightening her with his
intense manner, as if he were riding into a battle and not simply forming a
search party. Her indecision peaked and she knew, for Deborah's sake, that she
had to tell him about his sister. It was not her right and she was aware of
that, hoping that he would be merciful if he knew the reason why his sister and
her lover were so determined to be together.

     “Chris!” she suddenly bolted from the
doorway and scampered down the steps. “
Chris!
”

     Above all of the shouting, he heard her and
reined his horse around. “Dustin, go back inside.”

     “I must speak with you!” she yelled.

     He shook his head as his horse danced
beneath him. “Not now. Go back in the keep.”

     The gates were open wide and the destriers
dug into the earth and launched themselves into a full gallop. Christopher's
horse swung around with a great snort, tearing after the others.

     Dustin stood there in the bailey, watching
them race off with several men-at-arms. She kicked at the ground in
frustration, wondering where indeed Deborah was and praying her husband would
keep a level head. He had said he was simply riding out to retrieve Deborah,
and she believed him. What concerned her is what he was going to do to Gowen.

     She returned to the castle but her heart
was heavy and she found herself pacing the long corridors, lost in thought. She
was genuinely terrified for Deborah and Gowen, for there was no telling how
Christopher was going to react without Dustin to stop him. He was as
unpredictable as she was yet was blessed with far more common sense. She only
hoped he would utilize that gift and not do something rash.

     In her wandering, she passed by her
mother's room. The door was slightly ajar and she entered, her gaze sweeping
the bedchamber. Everything was the same as it had been when she passed away
nearly a year ago and Dustin sat on the bed, trying to draw strength from her
mother's memory. She went to her mother's grave often and told her of events;
in fact, her mother had been the first to know about the child she was
expecting. But it seemed as if the Dustin Barringdon from a year ago was a
distant dream, so completely removed from the life she now led that she
wondered if the girl had ever even truly existed. Dustin certainly was not the
same girl she had been a mere year ago.

     She was a baroness, married to the Defender
of the Realm, with all of the prestige and honor that goes with that station.
That alone would have been enough for most women, but not for Dustin. She had
the additional pleasure of actually loving her husband, and receiving his love
in return.

     Aye, she had grown up in this keep. She
knew everything about it, as it was her home. She knew the village and the
surrounding area for miles. She was so happy to be here, to have her husband
home, and to await the birth of their son. But just as her spirits were
lifting, they came crashing down again with one thought - Gowen knew the area,
too, if he and Deborah were truly hiding, then Christopher would never find
them.

***

     Dustin had been asleep for a short while.
She was startled awake by shouting coming from the bailey, and she rose stiffly
to see what was happening. She knew before she even looked that her husband
must be returning and she was not surprised to see nine destriers pouring
through the open gates. But she was shocked to see a female figure seated in
front of David, and another figure trussed-up and thrown haphazardly over the
back of another.

     Deborah and Gowen had been found.

     Dustin snatched a robe and wound it tightly
about her, not even bothering to find her shoes before she was dashing
downstairs. She should have been furious that Gowen was being treated like a
common criminal but she found she was more frightened than anything. The stones
were like ice beneath her feet as she charged to the front door and yanked it
open.

     A chill wind greeted her, sending shivers
up her spine. Yet the shivers were for another reason as she watched the horses
come to a halt, their breath hanging heavy in the damp air. Torches and
soldiers were everywhere and for a moment, she lost sight of Gowen as they
removed him from Leeton's destrier.

     Christopher dismounted his dancing steed
and slugged the horse as it tried to bite at him, his action indicative of his
mood. He raised his visor and snapped orders to his knights even as David
lifted Deborah from his destrier and half-pulled her toward the castle. Dustin
could see, even from a distance, that Deborah was devastated.

     “Get your hands off her!” she yelled,
racing down the steps and jerking Deborah from David's grip. “You will not
manhandle your sister like a common wench.”

     Deborah was sobbing softly and Dustin threw
her arm around her protectively, glaring daggers at David. He met her gaze
steadily, almost as hostilely, and turned back to the other knights.
Christopher, several feet away, saw the exchange but had greater concerns on
his mind at the moment. He yelled his brother to him.

     Dustin took Deborah into the castle and
slammed the great door closed. She did not speak nor ask questions as she led
Deborah up to her smaller bedchamber. Once inside, however, she sat her
sister-in-law down and demanded answers.

     “What happened? Where were you?” Dustin
asked sternly.

     Deborah was positively white. “Oh, Dustin,”
she sobbed. “You must stop him from killing Gowen. He won't even listen to me.”

     Dustin grabbed her wrists, forcing her to
be still and calm down. “Answer me, Deborah. What happened?”

     Deborah faced her sister-in-law, knowing
she was the only friend she had in the whole world. “We….we were married this
afternoon. The priests at the monastery performed the ceremony and granted us
sanctuary. Christopher violated that sanctuary.”

     Dustin's heart sank and she dropped her
head in sheer disbelief. “Dear Lord, no,” she whispered. “Tell me everything.”

     “'Twas horrible.” Deborah cried. “After the
meeting this afternoon, Gowen and I were positive Christopher would refuse our
marriage and we felt we had no other choice, so we asked the priests at the monastery
if they would marry us. Gowen’s father paid for the ceremony. When Christopher
came looking for me, the priests denied him entrance and told him why. Oh,
Dustin, he went mad; Leeton and Edward tried to stop him but he tore the door
down with his bare hands and searched every room in the church. One of the
monks helped us escape through the kitchens, but David saw us and caught up to
us. Then they tied Gowen up and brought us back.” She broke into heavy sobs.
“Christopher has not said a word to me and I know he is going to kill Gowen.”

     Dustin was pale. She let go of her
sister-in-law's hands and stood up, her beautiful face set.

      “Nay, he will not,” she assured her. “I
will go speak to him right now and find out what on earth possessed him to
violate a church and handle you and Gowen as if you were outlaws. Did you tell
him you were pregnant?”

     Deborah shook her head, wiping at her eyes,
and Dustin touched her damp head.  She softened.

     “Take off your shoes and relax,” she said
quietly. “I shall send a servant up with warmed wine.”

     “I cannot relax.” Deborah insisted. “I must
find out what is happening to my Gowen.”

     “I will find out,” Dustin said firmly. “I
promise you that I will find out.”

     She left Deborah a sobbing heap by the fire
and returned to her bedchamber. Dressing in a heavy woolen dress, an equally
heavy woolen scarf around her head, and thick hose, she proceeded back out into
the bailey.

     The soldiers were clearing the courtyard
and the knights were going about their business. The first one she came across
was Jeffrey.

     “Jeffrey,” she called. “Where is my
husband?” 

     He turned to her, his sharply angled face
pinched from the cold. “In the abbey, my lady. But you should be inside where
it is warm.”

     She ignored him, steering for the doors
that led to the abbey. Jeffrey caught up to her and cut her off.

     “Let me take you inside, Lady Dustin,” he
said in his thick accent. “The abbey is no place for you.”

     “Why did you let him do this?” she demanded
harshly. “You have known Gowen almost as long as you have known me. How could
you let Christopher treat him like this?”

     “I had no choice, you know that,” he said
softly. “Gowen is a good boy, but he was very wrong in this case. Your husband
will deal with him appropriately.”

     “How can you call killing him appropriate?”
Dustin argued loudly. “He and Deborah are in love; what is so wrong about them
wanting to be together?”

     “Who said he was going to kill him?”
Jeffrey countered. “Punishment does not necessarily mean death, my lady. Now
return to the castle; you should not be out here in the cold.”

     “Do not tell me what to do,” she snapped,
pulling away from him. “I am going to find Christopher.”

     Jeffrey snatched her arm firmly. “That,” he
said, “would not be wise. 'Tis best that you listen to me.”

     Dustin shoved at him to dislodge his grip,
beating him on the shoulder when that didn’t work. Furious, she shoved at his
face and ended up smacking him in the nose. Blood trickled but he didn’t let
go. He began to drag her towards the castle.

     “Kessler!” Came a voice so loud it echoed
off the buildings. They stopped their struggles and turned to see Christopher
standing in the doorway that led into the abbey. “Let her go. Dustin, come
here.”

     She dashed over to him, angry and
frustrated. “Where is Gowen?”

     “Go to bed,” he told her firmly, his face
set and hard.

     She shook her head, “I will not. I must
speak to you first.”

     “I have no time, Dustin,” he said sternly.
“For once, do as you are told.”

     Dustin clenched her jaw. “I am
not
leaving
until you let me speak with you.”

     His jaw ticked and his blue eyes were dark
and angry on her. “Dustin, do as you are told or God help me, I will spank you,
child or no child.”

    
Tears,
Dustin thought.
Tears
always soften the rock of a man
. Her eyes glistened with tears and she
walked away from him, sobbing loudly but purely for effect. She continued to
walk, waiting for him to stop her, and was enraged when he did not. Frustrated
that her ploy hadn't worked, she ran into the castle and wound her way back to
the rear-entrance to the abbey. There was more than one way to gain her end.

     Quiet as a mouse, she slipped in through
the rear door, her eyes adjusting to the dark and cool interior. She heard
voices in the distance and she took the stairs, her eyes wide and alert to her
surroundings. The abbey had two levels, the lower level used for prisoners, and
she assumed they had taken Gowen there. There was only one way in and out,
which concerned her, but she would have to try. She had to see him, to protect
him.

     Suddenly there was a massive body in front
of her. “No, you don’t, you little vixen,” Christopher said sharply. “Back up
the stairs. Now.”

     He yelled and she jumped, but she did not
turn tail as ordered. Instead, she pressed herself flush against the wall as he
mounted the stairs and stood over her in a great, huffing mass of armor and
flesh.

     “Wife, I have no time for this
foolishness,” he said severely. “If I have to take you back to our chamber, I
shall tie you to the bed until I return, I swear it.”