The Legend (32 page)

There were several soldiers on
the battlements, shouting to their comrades down below and Peyton heard Alec's
name at least twice. By the time Midas danced in through the open gates, Ali
was there to greet them.

"Alec, thank God you have
returned," he said in a low voice.

Alec sensed Ali's urgent manner
but refused to give in to the tension. "'Tis good to see you too,
lover," he said with their usual banter. "Meet my wife, the Lady
Peyton Summerlin."

Ali closed his eyes a brief
moment as if to ward off the horror of the introduction. "Then you did
marry her."

"Of course I did, I told you
I would," Alec dismounted his steed and eyed his friend. "And what of
you? Are you a husband?"

Ali's nostrils flared. "I am
not."

Alec raised an eyebrow, feeling
the seeds of concern take root. "And why not?"

Ali's jaw ticked and he looked
distraught, far more upset than Alec had ever seen him. "Damnation, Ali,
what's wrong?" Alec demanded softly.

Ali took a cleansing breath.
"Your father suspected that you had abducted Lady Peyton for the purpose
of forcing her into marriage. He knew that I was a party to your secret and
tried to coerce me throughout the night to tell him of your whereabouts;
naturally, I refused. Knowing that Lady Peyton would be your wife upon your
return to Blackstone, he dissolved my betrothal to Ivy and pledged her to
Warrington in her sister's stead."

Peyton heard everything. With a
shriek, she slid off Midas. "My God, Ali, where is she?"

"In her bower. Awaiting her
groom, who should be arriving late tonight."

Alec's gaze drifted to the
structure, black and foreboding.  His characteristically emotionless face was
dark with the turn of events.

"Alec, she cannot wed
Colin," Peyton grasped his arm. "You must talk to your father!"

"There is more," Ali
continued, his voice dull with emotion and fatigue. "Rachel went into
labor last night. She is still laboring to bring forth a child Pauly believes
to be dead and your mother is beside herself."

Peyton put her hand to her head,
closing her eyes and saying a brief prayer for the slight, dark-eyed woman.
With tension and crisis surrounding them like an fog, she felt Alec's arm go
about her comfortingly and she collapsed into his warmth and strength.
Yesterday, they had only been concerned with themselves and no one else, and
Peyton suddenly felt very guilty and selfish. Tears stung her eyes with the
enormity of the situation as she looked to Ali.

"Ali, I am so sorry,"
she whispered. "Had I not gone with Alec, you and Ivy would now be
married."

He smiled weakly. "We shall
be still. I plan to do what Alec has done; abduct my bride."

Alec shook his head faintly.
"It will not work. The church will not marry you, merely a lawyer, and
therefore your marriage to Ivy could be dissolved on the grounds that it is a
common law union."

Ali's ebony eyes flashed. "She
is mine, Alec. Believe me when I say I have made the woman mine in every sense
of the word and I will not stand by while she weds Warrington."

Alec drew in a deep, slow breath,
comprehending Ali's meaning and knowing his disappointment all too well. He had
been able to remedy his situation, but Ali was helpless and anger suddenly tore
at him.

"Ali, take my wife into your
safekeeping, please," he gently removed Peyton from his waist and placed
her hand in Ali's. "I am going to speak to my father. You will bring my
wife inside in a few minutes, but allow me a brief time alone with him
first."

"Be mindful that he is in a
bitter mood. I have never seen him so dark, Alec."

Alec did not reply, crossing the
bailey with his proud, strong gait toward the entrance. Peyton and Ali watched
a moment before turning to look at each other, silent words of apology and
question and apprehension filling the space between them.

Ali smiled faintly. "So you
are Lady Summerlin now? Congratulations, mademoiselle. May your union be
blessed."

Peyton glanced at Alec as he
disappeared into the castle. "I am beginning to believe our marriage is
already cursed," she turned back to the ebony soldier. "How is Ivy
faring?"

His smile faded.
"Despondent. I have been not allowed to see her since early this
morn."

Peyton sighed with regret,
wondering when the situation suddenly careened out of control. When she had
left with Alec yesterday, it seemed as if they were to be the only people
affected by their decision and she could see how their rash action was
collapsing. Ali was affected, and Ivy, and the damnable Warringtons were being
drawn into the circumstance. Having eloped was hazard enough, but now with the
added concern of Rachel's dead child, it would seem that the Summerlins had
more to deal with than ever before.

But she did not regret her
decision to marry Alec. And she knew he did not, either. Were she to repeat
that moment in time, she would have done the same again.

Ali tucked her hand into the fold
of his elbow and they began to stroll towards the castle, a leisurely pace to
allow Alec time to deal with his father. And with the turmoil of the past
night, the inner sanctum of the castle was far worse than the ninth level of hell.

Alec strode into his father's
solar without bothering to knock. Brian was at his desk, his handsome face
scrutinizing a sand-colored piece of vellum before him. When he heard the heavy
boot falls he glanced up, surprise and rage washing his features.

"Alec!" he exclaimed.

"What is this I hear? You
plan to wed Lady Ivy to the Warrington pup?"

Brian was up from his desk,
moving towards his son as if to wring the living daylights out of him. But he
came to an unsteady halt instead, no fists forthcoming even if he was mere
inches from his son's face. "Where's Lady Peyton?"

Alec was undoubtedly cool, cooler
still in his outrage. "My wife will be joining us shortly."

Brian's face mottled red
underneath the silver and black beard and he turned away, dragging a hand over
his face in a wretched attempt to control his fury. "Dear God, you married
her. You married her after I dissolved your contract!" he whirled to his
son, jabbing a thick finger at him. "You had no right, Alec! No right
whatsoever and I swear to you that this is not the end of it. You were wrong to
disobey me."

Alec raised a slow, deliberate
eyebrow. "I took what was mine and there is nothing you can do about it.
The marriage contract is in my saddlebags and the union was consummated. She is
my wife in the eyes of God and by the laws of England."

Brian marched toward his son
again. "By God, what have I ever done to cause you to go against me? Have
I wronged you somehow? Have I humiliated you, cursed you? Why would you do
this?"

"Because I want her,"
Alec replied honestly. "Why are you so angry when I have forged a powerful
alliance with            St. Cloven, to say nothing of the Summerlin heirs
Peyton will bear."

Brian blinked sharply as if he
had been struck. All of the color drained from his face and he suddenly looked
very old and very tired. Turning somewhat unsteadily, he meandered to his desk
and perched his wide bottom on the pointy edge, his brown eyes gazing pensively
into the space of the room.

"'Twill be the only heirs
the Summerlins are to have," he said hoarsely, shoulders sagging.
"Pauly says that Rachel's child is dead."

The fire had gone out of the
confrontation and Alec was deeply sorry for the heartache he had caused his
father. It was an added problem the man did not need, but he did not regret his
action in the least. Still, he was remorseful for the turmoil he had brought
down upon Brian's shoulders. He and his father had always been exceedingly
chummy and it pained him to see disharmony between them.

"Ali told me," he
replied quietly. "The child has not been born yet?"

"Not yet. It's been over
eighteen hours and there has been little progress in the birth."

Alec sighed, moving to sit beside
his father. Now that the initial hostilities and anger were aired, it was
easier to focus on the true catastrophe happening within the walls of
Blackstone. A marriage, as significant as that was, was nothing compared to the
perpetuation of the family line.

"Pauly could be wrong, you
know," he said to his father.

Brian snorted softly, sadly.
"Mayhap. But the fact that the child is nearly two months early is another
strike against it. Remember last year when she bore a daughter nearly three
months early? The child lived naught but a few hours."

Alec was truly sorrowful for
Rachel and for his father. All the man wanted out of life was a grandson, an
heir to carry on the powerful Summerlin name.

"Is mother with her?"
he asked softly.

Brian nodded dully. "Your
mother has not slept since the labor began. She is nearly at her limit and Paul
is only capable of wailing and carrying on like an idiot. He is asleep now,
thankfully, but I have had my hands full keeping him calm."

       Alec watched his father,
the man whom he most wanted to be like when he was a young boy. There was still
a portion of that little boy buried deep within, the son who wanted to be a
powerful knight like his father, still so desperate to please him.

"I am sorry to cause you so
much unrest, Da," he said quietly. "But I believe my marriage to
Peyton will be most favorable and strong. I will make you proud of me, have no
doubt."

Brian turned to look at his son,
still in his view the most powerful knight in the realm. God, how he loved him.
"You have never disappointed me, Alec. You have been the cause of a good
deal of insanity and torment, but you have never shamed me," he slapped
his fair-haired son gently on the cheek. "Yet you will know how displeased
I am with your actions. I made it quite clear that Lady Peyton was betrothed to
the Warrington boy and it was not your right to act as you did."

The mood between them was calm
and rational and Alec felt a good deal less defiant, simply the need to make
his father understand his reasons. "I want her, Da.  I have never wanted a
woman in my life, but I want her. Is that so difficult to understand? She gives
me a peace and comfort I have never known," he lowered his gaze, studying
the cracks in the floor. "I told her of Peter and as I did, I suddenly
felt as if some of my pain had been eased.  'Tis difficult to describe, but it
was a cleansing experience. I.... I need her. I have never needed anyone in my
life as I need her."

Brian was focused on his son,
amazed at his confession. He'd never heard words of such depth come forth from
his emotionless son and he was touched. "Then I am glad for you, Alec,
truly,” he said quietly. “God only knows the guilt you have harbored these
twelve years. If your wife helps ease your anguish, then I could ask for no
greater pleasure."

Somewhat embarrassed at his
admission, even if the listener was his father, Alec gazed at the floor
pensively for a moment before looking to the burly man with a sheepish grin.
"But you are still angry."

Brian raised a sharp eyebrow and
growled. "Had I the strength, I would take you over my knee. You have put
me in a very awkward position."

Alec's grin faded. "You
cannot be serious about marrying Ivy to the Warrington whelp."

"With Peyton married, Ivy is
the logical substitution."

"Have the Warrington's
already agreed to her?"

"They consented early this
morning, which is why they are on their way to Blackstone to complete the
contract."

Alec crossed his massive arms
thoughtfully, eyeing his father. "She is no longer a virgin. They will not
want her when this becomes knowledge."

"My God," Brian's face
twisted as if in great pain. "I knew it. Ali would not tell me, but I
suspected as much. Especially after your mother told me of Lady Ivy's.... er,
mark. Damnation!"

"Then you now know it as
fact. Surely you cannot promise a compromised woman in marriage."

Brian opened his mouth to utter a
reply when there was a soft rap on the door.  He and Alec turned to the door as
it opened quietly and Ali poked his head in.

"Alec?" he began
hesitantly. "I have brought...."

Alec waved him in. "Come in,
all is well."

The door opened wide and Ali
entered, leading Peyton by the hand. Peyton, flushed and nervous, kept her gaze
lowered until Alec reached out and took her from his friend.

"It's all right,
sweetheart," he said softly. "Greet my father."

Peyton raised her eyes
uncertainly to Brian, who merely gave her a weak smile. He could see her doubt
and fear and knew for a fact she was an innocent in Alec's determined scheme.
Poor naive child, he thought. Little did he realize the truth.

Brian held out his arms to his
newest daughter. "Come here, love, and let me see if you taste as good as
I remember," when she responded to his embrace, he kissed her on the cheek
and smacked his lips. "Indeed. Better by the day, like St. Cloven
ale."