“That was all, my lord,” Cole replied.
The door to the solar opened at that moment and a beautiful woman with blond hair and a green velvet gown entered. Cole almost didn’t recognize Corisande because she was dressed in finery and jewels, her hair elaborately styled, which was something he’d never seen on her before. She was exquisite.
She looked like a queen.
His heart did a little leap at the sight of her as she carried a tray with cups and a pitcher. She smiled politely at the men in the room and they parted ways, allowing her to reach her father’s table. Corisande set the tray down and behind her, Gaia entered carrying two more pitchers of drink, but whereas Corisande had been demure and polite, Gaia smiled boldly at every man who met her eyes.
Cole had to fight off a grin at the cheeky little wench.
“Excuse me, my lords,” Alastor said. “These are my daughters, Corisande and Gaia.”
Most of the men were polite in greeting except for Peter de Lohr. He seemed to go out of his way to greet Corisande, which immediately set Cole’s blood to boiling. He adored Peter, but that adoration didn’t extend to tolerating the man’s attention on Corisande. She didn’t seem to notice, or really care, as she curtsied politely to the room.
“My apologies for the interruption, my lords,” she said. “Welcome to Castle Keld. A meal to celebrate your arrival will be served in the great hall when you are ready.”
She curtsied again and swiftly departed, but not before she caught sight of Cole and smiled faintly. His gaze was warm upon her, his expression rather soft, but Gaia was slower to move. As Peter was staring at her sister, Gaia was staring at Peter and dragging her feet until Ares grabbed her by the arm and all but shoved her out of the chamber. She gasped in outrage as he slammed the door on her, smiling wanly to those who had noticed as if to apologize for his sister’s nosey behavior.
But The Marshal wasn’t paying attention. He was still focused on Alastor.
“I want to start this conversation from the beginning so there is no misunderstanding,” he said as Anteaus began to pour the wine into cups. “Jax de Velt razed Fountainhall as only de Velt can and left Canmore to interrogate.”
Alastor nodded. “Aye, my lord.”
“And after he was finished with Canmore, after discovering that The Rough’s time for invasion into Northumberland was summer, he sent Canmore to you for further interrogation.”
“Aye, my lord.”
“Canmore told you that the truth lies in Berwick, which leads us to believe that the longships will enter through the River Tweed to reinforce the Scot’s invasion into the north.”
“Aye, my lord.”
“And the Justiciar of Scotia, Alexander MacDuff, came all the way to The Keld to demand an answer to the missives Canmore sent you, an invitation to join their rebellion.”
“Aye, my lord.”
“He tried to destroy the village when you refused to join.”
“That is what happened, my lord.”
William took a cup of wine offered by Anteaus, drinking deeply as he pondered what he’d been told so far. Alastor was looking at Cole, silently suggesting he tell the man about Addax and Essien.
Cole took the hint.
“There is more beyond that, my lord,” Cole said. “After learning of Berwick, and after the attack on the village, I returned to Pelinom with Addax and Essien al-Kort. They have been with me since the beginning of this situation and they are invaluable.”
Across the chamber, Christopher smiled wearily. “The Princes of Kitara,” he said, accepting a cup of wine that was offered to him. “I have not seen them in many years. When The Marshal told me that they were involved, I wasn’t surprised. I knew them as young lads, you know. I was the first English knight they had contact with in The Levant. Were it not for me and Marcus Burton, my old and close friend, those two might have wandered into trouble and gotten themselves killed. Mayhap you already know this, Cole, but when I found them, they had just escaped from a merchant caravan.”
Cole looked at him curiously. “I did not know,” he said. “What were they doing with a merchant caravan?”
Christopher made his way over to a big, cushioned chair in front of the hearth, pushing Achilles away when he tried to steal it away from him. He lowered his bulk down carefully.
“When they had escaped the revolution in their father’s kingdom, a merchant caravan took them in,” he said. “Addax, Essien, and the servants who smuggled them out of Kitara were given shelter and protection with this caravan, but by the time they reached Acre, they’d starved and beaten Addax and Essien nearly to death. When they escaped, I found them.”
Cole nodded in understanding. “They had not told me their circumstances,” he said. “I knew that they were acquainted with you in The Levant, but not how they came to know you. You saved them, my lord.”
“They were good lads,” Christopher said. “They were smart, eager to learn. When the crusade was over, I headed home but they went to Thuringia with a group of Thuringian knights. They were good men; I knew them. I had my own problems with Richard and John, and I simply did not have time to worry over two young men who needed more attention than I could give them.”
“They speak of you most fondly, my lord,” Cole said. “They will be happy to see you.”
“Where are they?”
The warmth in Cole’s eyes faded and he looked to The Marshal. “That is what I was about to tell you,” he said. “When we returned to Pelinom and told my father what we knew, he sent Addax and Essien to Berwick to discover what they could and report back to him. The Scots hold the castle, as you know.”
The Marshal nodded. “I know,” he said. “That has long been my regret that Richard sold Berwick to raise money for his foolish campaign to The Levant. The last I heard, the Earl of Ross was in command.”
Cole nodded. “Angus MacHeth has control of it, but it is his son who is the garrison commander,” he said. “It makes perfect sense that Berwick would be the point of entry for the Northmen, my lord. With MacHeth in command of the garrison, there will be no one to stop them unless…”
The Marshal was listening closely. “Unless what?”
“Unless we lay siege and wrest control from the Scots. I believe my father thinks we should.”
“That is exactly what I think.”
The voice came from the chamber door. Startled by the voice that was deep and raspy, everyone turned to see Jax standing in the opening flanked by Addax and Essien.
A smile spread across Cole’s face.
“Greetings, Papa,” he said. “I did not know you were coming. Why did you not send word?”
Jax stepped into the chamber and the first person to physically greet him was Christopher. From one old friend to another, Christopher embraced the man, happy to see him. He and Jax smiled at each other for a moment before Jax turned to his son, to the men in the chamber.
“I did not send word of my arrival because it was faster to simply come here myself rather than send a messenger,” he said, his gaze moving from Cole to The Marshal. “It is a two-day ride from Pelinom, but I thought it important to come personally to see Lord Bernicia. What I did not expect was to see the Scarlet Lion standards flying over an encampment to the west. My lord, it is agreeable to see you again.”