Chapter Twenty Nine

Chapter 29 Dagda rubbed grit from his eyes as he tried to get his foggy brain to work. From the amount of light filtering in around the shutters, it was late in the day. How long had he slept? His face and nose still hurt from where the little bitch had hit him, something he planned to make her pay for. He remembered his nose throbbing in pain and taking a large amount of laudanum mixed with wine and brandy before flopping to his bed, then nothing. Dagda staggered to the guard robe to relieve himself and noticed something rank and foul- smelling, and after a moment realized it was him. He couldn’t remember when he had last bathed or even changed; he made his way back to his bedchamber, noticing for the first time the plates of rotting food, empty wine bottles, and piles of dirty clothes. Dagda frowned, trying to remember when his chamber was last cleaned or his clothes washed, it had been before that night five years ago. He had been especially drunk and angry and had the few remaining female servants that still working at the keep brought to him in the great hall. He had ordered the women to strip, and when they had refused, he’d had his men whip the women till they complied. Once the women were naked, he had taken the two most attractive women to his chamber to take his pleasure and let his men have the rest. Two of the women died, and the rest fled the keep in the middle of the night. Dagda still had a personal servant then a quiet simple man who cleaned his chamber and his clothes, but Dagda had accidentally killed him when the man had stumbled while carrying a tray of stew and splattered him with it. Dagda, in rage, had grabbed the first object handy to beat the man and cut off his head instead. Dagda’s stomach growled; he was hungry, and he needed a bath. Raymond had a man who served him and cleaned his clothes and his chamber. He would simply order the servant to draw him a bath and wash his clothes. Now that he thought about it, where was Raymond? The bastard was to have gone and found a priest and then returned? Why hadn’t someone awakened him, hell what time was it? He remembered then that he’d ordered no one was to disturb him for any reason. Dagda kicked at the piles of filthy clothes on his floor and frowned in annoyance and disgust. He had nothing clean to wear. He would seek out Raymond and take some of his clothes. Dagda made his way through the keep, finding no one till he reached the great hall, which served as a mess hall and general sleeping quarters. The hall, like his chamber, was rank with the stench of unwashed clothes and bodies and the smells of rotting food. Several men were asleep on crude pallets on the floor, while others were sitting around the food-stained tables talking and drinking. Why weren’t they on duty? They should be on the walls or patrolling the forest outside the keep. Where the hell was Raymond? Why were the men drinking during the middle of the day? “Where is Raymond?” Dagda barked, and the three closest men rose to their feet. “No one has seen him for two days.” The first man, named Wilson, replied, taking a step back. “What do you mean, two days? What is today?” Dagda demanded “Tis Thursday.” The second man, Hubert said, giving his companions a nervous look. “It can’t be Thursday?” Dagda barked, if it was the fourth day, he’d been asleep for two days. “I’m sorry, sir, but it is the Captain moves the marker every day, and its Thursday all right.” Jasper, the third man, said. “Impossible,” Dagda grumbled. “I want food, go tell the cook to bring meat and bread to my chamber, and then tell the Captain I want him to bring the two prisoners to my chamber and let the guard know I want to see Sir Raymond as soon as he returns.” “But, sir, the cook is gone,” Wilson said, taking a step back, putting space between him and Dagda. “What in the hell do you mean the cook is gone?” Dagda was hungry, and his head hurt; he wanted food and a bath. “Umm.” Wilson stammered. “What damn it?” Dagda snarled. “Don’t you remember, sir, you kicked him, and he fell into the cooking fire and was burned? He sickened and left the keep in search of help.” Wilson said nervously rubbing the back of his neck. “Fine, I hope he rots. Find someone who can cook and have them make me a meal and order the food brought to my work chamber, and find the captain at once and tell him to come to my chamber.” Dagda spun on his heel and strode from the hall, leveling a kick at a sleeping man as he passed. Wilson waited till Dagda had left the hall before turning to his friends. “You didn’t tell him the Captain was gone.” “Nay, and you didn’t tell him the Captain was the one who took cook to find help or that he took five men with him and a wagon full of food,” Jasper replied. “I say we help ourselves to what food we can find, pack our things and go. The few coins we are owed aren’t worth being beaten or burned, and someone is likely to come looking for those women.” Wilson said, and his friends nodded. “What about the women in the cells? Has anybody fed them?” Hubert asked, and his companions shrugged. “The captain said no one was to go near them. Wilson is right, we should leave while we can. There are still horses in the stable and cheese and dried meat in the store room. We should take what we can and go.” Jasper said softly, looking about the hall to be sure no one had overheard him. “Aye your right, quickly before someone becomes suspicious let us help ourselves to what we can carry and go, the guard changes in thirty minutes, when they raise the gate to let the others back in we simply ride out,” Wilson said and his friends nodded. “Let Dagda take care of himself if he’d been a better lord or a kinder one we might have stayed.” * * * * Alex watched appreciatively the way the breeches contoured to Isobel’s shapely bottom as she climbed the steep hill before him. He’d never much-considered women’s clothes or fashion beyond whether or not the garment flattered the woman or not, but he would have to say that more women should wear breeches. Alex glanced over at Bowden who was eyeing Bridgette as well with what could only be called a wolfish look; Bridgette’s tight breeches clung to her long muscular legs in a very revealing way showing that she was no stranger to exercise. “After we are wed I don’t know if I should burn her breeches or buy her more. She looks good, far too good.” Bowden said as he pulled a branch aside to let Alex pass. “I know what you mean, but as a newlywed husband, I expect feeling jealous is normal.” Alex stepped past Bowden and scrambled up the rocky hill as quietly as he could, though moving his large frame stealthily through the dense undergrowth was not easy. “I suppose, it still does not help.” Bowden rumbled before following Alex up the slope, with Oscar and Marcus close behind. That morning Isobel had led Alex, Bowden, Giles, Marcus, and four of Alex’s most trusted men through the tunnels to the door that she and Bridgette had escaped through. While Alex was tempted to open the door and check the cell for himself he didn’t want to risk alerting anyone in the keep that there was a way in and out of the cell other than the door. Alex left two men on guard duty by the door with two lanterns and then marked the way back to the opening with chalk so that the guards relief could easily find their way to the door and the guards in turn could find their way back. Once they had returned to camp Alex had questioned the men who’d been watching the keep and was confused that no sign of alarm had been raised over the escape of Isobel and Bridgette. In addition, his men had said that very few men were manning the walls and that several men had ridden out and never returned. His men said those that had left had been carrying what looked like stuffed saddle bags and sleeping rolls, making Alex think that the men had left and not planned to return. Alex had wanted to leave Isobel safely in camp under guard but he needed her help plan his attack. Now that Isobel and Bridgette were safe there was no rush to attack and he could properly plan how best to attack the keep and take lord Dagda. Alex’s advance guard reached the summit of the hill first, followed by Isobel and Bridgette, and a moment later Alex, Bowden and Giles. Alex stayed on the edge of the forest hiding behind a large oak tree as the hill abruptly dropped away before him to reveal a huge expanse of ancient forest on his right and a huge grey stone keep with a slate roof on his left. A high wall with four guard towers ran around the perimeter of the keep and Alex could see even from his distance that two of the towers weren’t manned and that parts of the wall were in disrepair. On the western side of the keep, a large wooden gate opened onto a road that wound away through what appeared to be fields of wheat. Alex saw Isobel, Bridgette, and his men lying face down on the ground in the tall grass as they looked down on the keep. Alex knelt low then crawled over to slip between Isobel and Bridgette, while Bowden lay on the other side of Bridgette and Giles lay down beside Bowden. “It is not as large as I remember,” Isobel said. “And it is in terrible disrepair, my father never would have stood for such a thing.” “I can see that,” Alex replied thinking that everything Liam had told him about the keep was true. “Where does the road lead?” “It joins the main road, if you go north and then east it will take you to the king’s and if you go south it will pass two other estates before boarding the river and eventually leading to a bridge and the market town of West Alston about thirty miles away,” Isobel replied. “Do you think lord Dagda has any allies who would come to his aid if he attacked the keep?” Alex asked. “Nay he was not well-liked, I remember my father talking to my mother and neighbor Lord Sinclair saying that Dagda was a grasping and evil man. That we should all be careful.” Isobel wished that her father had listened to his own advice. “What are you thinking?” Bowden demanded looking over at Alex. “I’m thinking I need numbers first, but I have a plan forming that I will tell you back in camp.” Alex crawled backwards. “Gordon, Scott stay here on watch, I want you to try and count how many men there are, also note when the watch changes. I will send someone to relieve you in two hours when you return to camp come and report directly to me.” “Yes my lord.” The men replied in unison as Alex waved everyone else back. Alex held his hand out to Isobel to help her to her feet, then pulled her back behind a large tree to steal a kiss as the others crawled back off the edge and merged into the trees. “Now what?” Giles demanded. “Now we return to camp and finalize plans.” Ale replied and began making his way down the steep slope ahead of Isobel. They were half ay down the hill when they sighted Oscar approaching them out of breath and in a hurry. “My lord men rode into camp looking for you, they claim to be Lady Bridgette’s family. I told them that the lady is free and they wish to see her at once.” Oscar replied. “Papa is here, he came for me?” Bridgette said breaking into a huge smile. “But how did he know?” “Valencia sent a messenger to your family that you were taken within hours of it happening and explained that lord Dagda had taken you and brought you here,” Bowden replied “She thought your family should know and that we might need their help to rescue you,” Alex said. “Papa will be so happy that I am free and betrothed. Come Bowden I can’t wait for you to meet him.” Bridgette replied and began hurrying down the slope at a jog. “Wish me luck, her family is either going to be happy or my head will end up on a pike.” Bowden shook his head before hurrying after Bridgette. “I have met Bridgette’s family; while fierce I do not think they will kill Bowden.” Isobel said. “Do you think we will have to save Bowden now, it will be hard to launch a siege without your second in command?” Giles asked earning a withering look from Alex. “Not funny, come we shouldn’t be standing about joking when the enemy is less than a mile away. What if they send a patrol out?” Alex growled. “We take them prisoner, question them, and if they are lucky we let them live. Now come let’s go save Bowden and see if our guests will help us take the keep I don’t know about you but I’m itching for a fight.” Giles replied. Alex was ready for a fight too, more than ready and he would make Dagda pay for how he’d hurt Isobel; make him wish he’d never been born. But first, he had to greet his guests and make sure they didn’t take Bowden’s head.