Page 34 of Historical Hotties
Cassius knew that. “The problem is that they’ve never had trouble here,” he said what they all knew. “Darian is a fine knight, but it’s very possible he’s become complacent. The Doncaster army has contributed to some of Edward’s campaigns, but that was a while ago. If Flemish mercenaries really are here and Edenthorpe is their target, then they must be prepared.”
Bose opened his mouth to reply, but Dacia and Darian chose that moment to quit the cottage. Darian was carrying Dacia’s big leather satchel containing all of her herbs and potions, and she was giving the man orders as she walked.
“…and then I want to see Emmeric to see what he has for a parasite,” she was saying. “I’m convinced that Old Timeo’s wife has a worm of some kind. Mayhap the physic has something to kill it. I would like to go into the village today.”
She walked right by Cassius without acknowledging the man. Not that he had expected her to, for ever since their conversation last night, there hadn’t been another word spoken between them.
But Cassius wasn’t going to let it bother him.
In fact, he was perturbed at himself for giving a damn in the first place. He’d had the rest of the night to stew about the situation and by morning, he was fairly cooked with regret. He’d met a young woman whom he felt sorry for and had tried to help. Or was it more than that? Truthfully, he wasn’t sure and perhaps that perturbed him the most– because he didn’t knowwhyhe really did it when it was none of his business. He thought maybe his ego had gotten the better of him and he thought he could make a difference to a rather isolated young woman when, in fact, she clearly didn’t want any help. She didn’t want or need his opinion.
It would be the last time he tried to do something kind for someone.
He was done.
As Dacia made her way out to the palfrey that had been brought around from the stable yard of the cottage, Argos suddenly bolted out of the cottage, past Cassius, and headed straight for Dacia. She was almost to her palfrey when Argos butted up against her legs, wagging his tail so hard that he kept smacking her with his tail. She came to a halt as if uncertain what to do with the dog when Cassius emitted a whistle so piercing that the horses jumped.
“Argos!” he boomed. “To me!”
The dog may have been big and silly, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew when his master was calling him. With a final lick to Dacia’s hand, he loped over to Cassius, who turned for the stable yard where his warhorse had been housed last night.
He didn’t give Dacia another look.
“We return to Edenthorpe, tell Doncaster what we suspect, and leave it at that,” he said to Rhori and Bose, pushing the woman from his mind. “And then we get out of here. We are not staying any longer than necessary. Mount up. I shall meet you in a moment.”
As Rhori and Bose headed off to gather their horses, Cassius made his way into the stable yard where the warhorse he called Old Man await him. A husky Belgian charger, the animal was as red as a stormy sunrise and built for battle. His saddle was in the small barn, in a pile of hay, and he quickly put the tack on his horse as Argos wandered around nearby. He knew the dog was looking for a meal, which was something he could find for him at Edenthorpe. But once the dog was fed and Doncaster knew that there were Flemish mercenaries involved in Hagg’s presence last night, they were departing Edenthorpe.
Hopefully forever.
The ride back to the castle was uneventful. The gatehouse opened wide for the returning knights and sealed up quickly once they passed through. Cassius took Old Man and Argos into the stables where he made sure both animals were well-fed and the horse bedded down, at least temporarily. He left Argos with the horse, knowing the dog wouldn’t wander far away from the steed he was familiar with, as he joined up with Rhori and Bose once more. Darian, who had just stabled his blond beast, emerged from the opposite end of the livery and headed in their direction.
“Well?” Rhori said, eyeing the approach of Darian. “Do we tell him now and let him tell Doncaster?”
“That might be best, Cass,” Bose put in. “If we remain to tell Doncaster as you suggested, there is no telling when we will be able to leave.”
It would have been easy for Cassius to agree to that with his need to get out of Edenthorpe. That feeling grew worse when he saw Dacia emerge from the stable, carrying her leather satchel, heading for the keep. She was covered in her customary veils, glancing in his direction before quickly looking away when he happened to look over at her.
That was enough to disgust Cassius completely.
“Tell Darian now,” he muttered. “Let him tell Old Cuffy. This is their problem, not ours. The longer we remain here, the more chance there is of us getting sucked into something that does not concern us.”
Rhori and Bose nodded in agreement. As Darian came near, it was Rhori who finally spoke out.
“De Lohr,” he said. “My colleagues and I have been discussing the attack last night. I believe this is something you should hear.”
Darian looked between the three knights with interest. “Oh?” he said. “What about it?”
Cassius looked at Rhori, silently urging the man to continue. Rhori and Bose had seen everything firsthand last night and Cassius hadn’t. Therefore, the information was best coming from them.
“De Shera and I noticed something that we wanted to discuss with Cassius before we brought it to your attention,” he said. “I’m curious… you said you’ve had dealings with Catesby Hagg in the past?”
Darian nodded. “Aye,” he said. “Over in the disputed lands. Raids on the mining operation, mostly. Why?”
“And they’ve never attacked Edenthorpe before?”
“Never.”
“Did you ride out to defend the disputed land against their raids?”
