“We will do what must be done to free you,” Reena said firmly, choking back a tear.
Brigid refilled their goblets with cider. “Does the Dark One know?”
“Aye, the Dark One knows that I carry his child.”
“And what says he?” Reena asked.
“He insists that I go away never to see him again. He claims he must continue with his work here, and that I and his child would be safer far away from him.”
“He saves many lives,” Brigid said, “the numbers too numerous to count.”
“He has sacrificed enough of himself. It is time for him to live,” Mary said, angrily. “There will always be someone who needs saving. He cannot save them all. The people must begin to save themselves.” She sounded selfish and she was, for her husband’s sake. “And he is bound to be caught eventually. Who will free him then?”
“He chose to take that chance,” Reena said. “Can you not convince him that you and the babe need him more?”
“I have tried, but he is stubborn and I fear for his life. You may think me selfish, but I want him with me. I do not ask that he surrender his battle, just that he change how he battles. All good warriors change tactics from time to time. How else does he avoid capture by his enemy?”
“What you are telling us is that the Dark One is not a willing participant in your escape plan, which makes for a more difficult success,” Reena said then grinned. “Though not necessarily a failure.”
Mary wiped away her last few tears and smiled. “You will help me?”
“That was my intention since I first received your note, and when I read it to Brigid, she agreed.”
“I told Reena that we must come at once. Your note seemed urgent.”
“The Dark One’s plans have me remaining here until I am heavy with child. I wish to leave as soon as possible.” She realized when she helped Jenna escape that she would be wiser to hasten her own plans. When she was swollen with child it would only make for a more difficult travel. Now she was still agile and able to move freely, the babe but a tiny seed inside her.
“A wise choice,” Brigid said. “I have not yet grown full with child and I already find myself moving more slowly. It is best you go now when you have no added burden.”
“We will need to begin very soon,” Reena said. “If we delay there is always a chance of someone discovering our plans.”
“What of our husbands?” Brigid asked. “Will we require their help?”
“I think we will need them,” Mary said. “We will need strong men to carry the bodies.”
“Bodies?” Reena asked alarmed. “What type of plan have you devised?”
“A permanent one. I want everyone to believe that the Dark One and I are dead. I do not want to live in fear that one day someone will find us. I want there to be no doubt that we are dead. Tongues must wag, the gossip grow and spread far and wide.”
“It is a dangerous plan,” Reena said. “Decimus will want to view the bodies and make certain there is no breath left in them.”
Mary took a deep breath and looked at her friends. “When I was with the Dark One he took me to a village where many of the people he had helped lived. They assisted him in helping others to escape. I met a seer there and she predicted my future.”
Mary took another breath. “She told me I would be the demise of Decimus, that he was my destiny.”
Reena grabbed Mary’s hand. “You cannot mean to kill Decimus. It is too dangerous.”
Brigid agreed. “He sees everything, knows everything. He will surely find out.”
“Extremely dangerous is what I told you my plan would be.”
The two women looked ready to argue, but Mary spoke up.
“It is not the danger you think and what I am about to reveal you must swear never to speak of, not even in a whisper.”
The two women shivered and nodded their heads.
“The seer’s words made no sense and frightened me until I discovered the Dark One’s true identity. The Dark One and Decimus are one.”
Chapter 35
Reena and Brigid were stunned, neither woman able to speak. They sat and stared with wide, bewildered eyes at Mary.
“I was just as shocked,” Mary said. “I actually thought that Decimus had played a trick on me when he pulled off the black shroud to reveal himself. It took little time for me to realize he spoke the truth, though it has not been easy to merge the two men as one. Decimus continues to appear the cruel, unforgiving torturer of innocent souls and yet within him is the Dark One, the man who fights for and frees the innocent.”
“So with Decimus’s demise, the Dark One lives,” Reena said, Mary’s plan making more sense.
“Michael lives,” Mary said with a smile. “He is who I know and love.”
“And his plans for you are?” Reena asked.
“That I appear ill throughout my pregnancy and just before the babe is born, I die. Decimus would see to the burial arrangement and the Dark One to my escape, saying his last goodbye to me when he turned me over to the safety of his friend Roarke.”
“Roarke healed well and left with us, though we separated along the way,” Reena said. “He expressed the need to return and help the Dark One.”
“I will need Roarke’s help as well.”
“What is your plan?” Reena asked.
By the time they finished discussing what Mary had in mind, it was decided that Magnus and Thomas would not be told of anything until the very last minute. The women feared the husbands would attempt to dissuade them or change the plan to one they deemed more suitable and safer for the women.
Mary entered the hall to find Decimus speaking with Magnus and Thomas. They all wore frowns, and she could only imagine what her husband discussed with them.
“Your visit will be short. I have work to do,” Decimus said and turned, almost colliding with his wife. He grabbed firm hold of her arms. “Should you be out of bed? You have not been well.”
“I am feeling much better,” she said, her head bowed in respect.
“Visit with your friends now for they will not be staying long.” Decimus released her and marched off, expecting his orders to be obeyed.
Magnus approached her. “Are you all right, Mary?”
“I was feeling ill when you arrived, but a sound night’s sleep, though it was more like a full day’s sleep,” she said with a laugh, “has seen to reviving my health.”
He stepped closer to her. “Reena advised me of your note and request for help. What is it we can do for you?”
“There are some things that I will need of you, though I cannot discuss them with you now.”
“We will be here for you,” Magnus assured her.
“I appreciate your help and patience in this matter.”
Thomas stepped forward. “I stand beside my lord in all matters.”
She smiled. “You are true friends and we will talk soon, but now I must see to another matter that needs my attention.” She thanked them again and left the hall.
“Something more goes on than she tells us,” Thomas said to Magnus.
“I agree and I think it involves your wife and mine.”