Page 64 of The Sword and the Damsel

He was going to destroy Robert for hurting her. Wherever Robert had fled, he was going to hunt him down.

As her sobs subsided, she wiped her eyes. “What happened to you? He told me he was going to kill you. I was so worried.” She touched his bandaged shoulder ever so gently. “How badly did he hurt you?”

“I’ll be fine. It’s just a flesh wound.”

She laid a soft kiss on the bandage, and he thought his heart might burst. He was the luckiest man in England to have such a loving wife.

“I went after you as soon as I found the empty room and his note. He attacked me with a band of brigands on the way to Hastings. I fought them back, and Robert ran. I chased him north all the way to the woods just south of Westfield when I lost him in the fog.”

“Do you know where he was headed?” A vengeful fire lit her eyes as she spoke. Thank heavens she was angry rather than afraid. Just another thing he admired about Alais. She had spirit and fire.

“Not for certain, but he has some ties in Canterbury. I have reason to suspect he went there.”

“What happened next?”

He smiled. “I let him go and came for you.” He recounted the fight at Robert’s house and his search for her after learning of her escape. “I’ve never been more scared in my life than when we found you were gone. The thought of you alone on the streets of Hastings…”

Fierce pride lit her eyes. “I survived without getting caught, as you can see.”

He claimed her lips in a fast and passionate kiss. “I will never underestimate you again, though I have to say I never thought you would willingly come here.”

She bit her lip. “It was the lesser of the two evils. Better to be caught up in Lady Helisende’s political maneuvering than be imprisoned by Sir Robert. And now that I’m family, shehasto treat me better, doesn’t she?”

Looking her in the eye, he said, “Do not underestimate my aunt. She is a far more dangerous enemy than Robert, but I share your hope that she does not view you as an enemy. Evenfamily, though, she treats like pawns on a chess board. She will try to use you to achieve her own ends.”

Alais nodded thoughtfully. “I expected that. I knew it would stir up trouble for Daniel if I came here, but our marriage creates the groundwork for an alliance, however tenuous. Perhaps it is for the best if Daniel and Lady Helisende reach a more mutually beneficial understanding than their current agreement allows.”

Victor would never cease to be amazed by the woman he loved. “You are more clever and more insightful than anyone gives you credit for. No one ever bothers to look past your playful personality to see the sharp intelligence beneath, do they?”

She beamed and shook her head.

“Speaking of my aunt,” he continued, “we should get back to her. I am anxious to learn what she hopes to gain from keeping you here, so that we can find a way to extricate you.”

She nodded, and he kissed her forehead. Taking her hand, he led her back to the hall where Lady Helisende waited.

When they entered, they found her deep in conversation with Sir Thomas, the commander of her knights. His hair was grayer than the last time Victor saw him. The man looked like a sea cliff, all sharp angles and rough edges.

Sir Thomas caught sight of Victor and cleared his throat. Lady Helisende looked up and, seeing the two of them, smiled with undisguised avarice. “How lucky for us, Sir Thomas, that as the Earl of Winchelsea approaches, we have his commander under our roof,” she said. “And his sister-in-law too. Last time the earl visited, he had the might of Hawkhurst at his back, not to mention the mercenary army he hired to defend Winchelsea. Now, though, we catch him at a disadvantage. Our soldiers are the equal of his, and he has no one to lead them. I’m so glad I sent you to Winchelsea, Victor. You’ve gained the earl’s trust more quickly than I could have imagined, and now here you are, back with your favorite auntie. Come here and makeyourself useful. Tell us how many men he has and how they are positioned.”

Victor’s jaw dropped. She expected him to betray his liege lord after sending him away? Did she think he had no honor at all? Alais’s grip tightened on his arm. Her eyes widened in alarm.

“My lady, I cannot tell you that. I swore an oath to the earl at your behest. You told me to promise I was his man even if it meant using my sword against you.”

Lady Helisende waved her hand dismissively. “Ofcourse, I told you to do that. He’d never have trusted you otherwise. But would you truly choose loyalty to an oath over loyalty to your own flesh and blood?

Come now, Victor. I’ve known you since you were a babe. I’ve given you every opportunity to show your worth and grow beyond a mere Castellan’s son. I made you the man you are. Do you dare turn your back on me now?”

The true magnitude of their peril came into sharp focus. His aunt didn’t just want concessions on an agreement. She wanted him. She wanted all of Winchelsea if she could get it. And damn it all, what she said was true. He did owe everything to her. Even his match to Alais would never have happened if she had not sent him to Winchelsea.

For years, he’d served her without question. She was his liege lady and his benefactor, not to mention the closest thing he had to a mother. While he liked to think he’d achieved what he had through his own talent and merit, if he was honest with himself, he could see her hand in nearly everything he had done of any import. Did he dare defy her when she’d made him the man he was?

Alais’s grip and questioning eyes brought him back to himself. His aunt may have made him, but his sense of honor had made him the knight he was. No matter what loyalty he owed her, he could not betray his honor for her sake. He couldnot break a solemn oath. Nor could he stand to betray Alais by siding against her family. He had to find a way out of this predicament that left his promise to Daniel intact.

“I owe you much, my lady, but my honor is my own. I will not betray Lord Daniel.”

Sir Thomas’s hand went to his sword, but Victor was quicker. He had no idea how he was going to fight his way out of his aunt’s castle, especially with his injuries, but he had to find a way.

Chapter Twenty-Five

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