Daughters of the Dagger 04 - Amethyst (8 page)

Chapter 7

Marcus had avoided his father the rest of the day, not wanting to talk about Amethyst. He wasn’t happy since she went back on her word and told his father she was the master mason’s assistant. And he was furious that she revealed that the idea of the gatehouses came from her.

But part of him felt ashamed
that he’d even asked her to keep quiet in the first place, as he was finding out that she, indeed, was very capable of the position. Marcus didn’t know what to do about the whole situation. He’d never seen a woman take charge of a whole crew before, and so successfully. He’d seen her from across the courtyard directing the men, and they were all working much more proficiently because of her.

And when he s
aw her taking a hammer and chisel to the stone, he knew she was a woman who could do anything. Even the job of a man.

This intimidated him, and also put him in a very awkward position. He’d worked hard at gaining his reputation of being one of the best and also most ruthless border
lords in all of England. Men looked up to him because of this. The king had even granted him the title of earl as well as funds and permission to build his own castle. And his father had finally started to consider him an equal, instead of the young boy who always made a mess of any situation and wasted many a good opportunity. For the longest time now, he’d even stopped comparing him to his deceased brothers.

Marcus was the only surviving sibling out of seven. Two of his siblings had died in childbirth
or not long afterwards, and he lost both his sisters to the plague just a few years ago. His two older brothers, favored by his father, both died in battle. One overseas, and the other fighting the Scots.

It was up to him now to carry on the family name. His father counted on him, and he couldn’t let him down the way he did his mother. Marcus felt a knot in his stomach at the thought of his de
ceased mother and hurried to his secret garden where he could be alone.

The garden was one of the first things he’d constructed when he started building the castle. It was secluded behind two high walls up against the back corner of the bailey.
It wasn’t really secret, but everyone knew it was his personal place and only he was allowed in. He tended to the garden himself, having spent many hours inside in contemplation. It’s where he came when he wanted to be alone, or needed to think.

He ducked
his head as he slipped under the arched trellis with climbing vines with orange flowers shaped like trumpets hanging down all around it and making it even more secluded. He walked through the aisle leading to a labyrinth in the center of the garden. There were arches overhead lining the path, with climbing roses that wove and wrapped around the trellises in colors of pink, red, white and yellow.

It had taken him years to get the roses to
climb the way he’d wanted, and this year there were more roses than he’d ever seen in his life. It was already autumn, and yet the flowers continued to bloom, But he knew they would wither soon, as the weather was slowly starting to change, and winter would be approaching shortly.

He’d considered
his success with the roses this year as a sign from his mother. Enid, his mother, had always loved roses. And as a young child, he’d always been at her side when she tended to her garden back home.

He made his way through the arches,
reaching up with his dagger in hand and plucking a red rose from the vine and tucking the stem under his belt. Then replacing his dagger at his side, he walked the circle maze of the labyrinth lined in tall bushes that he had brought in special for this project. He followed the spirals around and around, finally stopping in the center where he’d erected a small shrine made of stone with open sides and a slate roof, dedicated to his late mother.

He’d never told his father, but after his mother died and his father had her body burned, he’d collected the ashes and kept them in a sealed jar.
He’d also taken her wedding ring, telling his father that he didn’t know what happened to it.

Marcus
would never forgive himself for the way he’d treated her when she was alive. But he’d hardened his ways after the deaths of so many of his siblings and decided to shut off his emotions, just like his father. He thought that by becoming hardened and free of his emotions, he would never have to acknowledge the hurt and pain that was inside him.

He’d pushed down his feelings, and because of it, he’d succeeded, just like his father had told him he would. He’d done everything he co
uld to be accepted by the earl, and also to gain favor in the eyes of the king. His new ways brought him success beyond belief. Because of the way he conducted his actions and his life, he was now a very wealthy, and well-known and respected earl.

But
in the last few days he’d been starting to doubt himself and wonder if it was all really worth it. And it was all because of that damned girl. Amethyst rattled him to the core and made him question every decision he made. That was something no one had ever been able to do before.

He walke
d to the center of the open shrine and dropped to his knees right at the spot where he’d buried the urn with his mother’s ashes. He put his face in his hands and tried to hold back the emotions that were trying to surface.

“Oh, mother, I don’t know what to do,” he said aloud. “There is a woman here I am
supposed to marry. A woman who challenges everything I stand for. Every one of my beliefs. And tho I try to be hardened and push her away, she still seems to find a way to make me react like no one ever has before.”

He dug into his pouch and pulled out his mother’s wedding ring. He always carried it with him,
as it made him feel as if his mother was there with him, watching over him somehow.

He envisioned her
face in his mind. Then he pictured Amethyst – as his bride. Everything was happening so fast, and he just needed time to think.

“Lord Montclair? Are you in there?” called out a voice.

His head popped up, hearing the voice of his squire. Damn, what did he want now? He knew better than to bother him if he was in his secret garden. What the hell was he doing?

He
shoved the ring quickly back into his pouch. Then he took the rose from his belt and laid it atop the ground – atop his mother’s grave, then stood and hurriedly made his way back out the labyrinth to the entrance of the garden.

“Peter, you know
better than to bother me here,” he reprimanded him, exiting the garden to see his squire standing there with Benjamin, the young boy he was to train.

“
I apologize, my lord, but your father insists you start training the boy at once. So I brought him to you, as he instructed.”

He looked at the boy, who was tall for his age, but also very thin and gaunt. He didn’t look as though he’d be able to hold up the weight of a sword let alone swing one. Sadly, he reminded Marcus of himself at that age.

“Lord Montclair, I am happy to be trained by you and eager to learn all you can teach me about being a squire,” said the boy.

“Just call me … Lord Marcus,” he sa
id. Then he looked at Peter. “Both of you, just call me Lord Marcus from now on.”

“But you’ve told the entire castle never to call you that,” said Peter.

“Well, things have changed,” he said, knowing that since Amethyst’s arrival nothing had been the same, not to mention because of his father as well.

“Benjamin, the first thing you need to learn to be a squire is to never interrupt your lord when he wants to be alone.”

“Sorry about that,” said Peter with a half-grin. “Lord Marcus, I’d like to help train Benjamin as squire if that’s all right with you.”

“I was going to have Sir Gawain train him, but perhaps this is a better idea.
Walk with me as we talk,” he said, heading toward the castle. “Benjamin, the next thing you’ll need to learn if you’re going to be a squire is what is expected of you. You will carry my banner whenever we leave the castle. You will also be expected to carry my armor, shield, and any extra weapons I may need.”

“All at the same time?” the boy asked with wide eyes.

“You’ll get used to it,” said Peter with a smile.

“You will also be expected to keep my weapons in the best of condition, as
well as polish my sword and take the rust off my armor.”

“You’ll need to learn to dress him in his armor too,” said Peter. “It’s not an easy task, but I’ll show you how to do it.”

“That’s right,” said Marcus. “And as you’ve seen Peter do, you’ll need to take care of my horses too.”

“Of course, my lord,” the boy said with respect.

“If I go to compete at a tournament, you’ll need to replace any broken lances or weapons and be right there to refresh my horse.”

“I can do that,” he said with confidence.

Marcus stopped walking and just looked at Benjamin. This was going to be more challenging than the boy could ever imagine. Being a squire to a regular lord was hard enough, but having to accompany a border lord was a very dangerous position.

“Mayhap you can,” he said. “But I haven’t yet told you the hardest part of being a squire
to a border lord.”

“What might that be, my lord?” asked the boy with wide eyes.

“You’ll be expected to accompany me when I go to battle.”

The boy took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ve never been to battle before, but I am willi
ng to do what is required of me, because someday I hope to be a knight.”

“
’Tis not an easy task, nor something to be taken lightly,” he warned him. “You’ll be required to protect me, and give your life to do it if need be. You’ll also hold any prisoners I may take, as well as recue me if I should I be taken prisoner myself.”

“Has that ever happened?” the boy asked.
“Have you ever been taken as a prisoner?”

“Anything is possible, so never disregard it,” Mar
cus warned him. He turned and continued walking and both boys followed at his side. “How old are you, Benjamin?”

“I have just turned four and ten years of age,” he said proudly. Marcus knew that being a squire for a border lord turned a boy into a man faster than anything else.

“Well, no matter how old you are, you will still be expected to give whatever knight you serve an honorable burial at his death.” He stopped walking once again and looked the boy in the eye. “Do you think you can do that?”

Benjamin looked first to Peter and then back to Marcus. He straightened his stance and threw back his shoulders proudly. “I would be honored, my lord.”

“Good answer. Now, we’ll start your training with weapons first thing in the morning and I’ll see what skills you have with a blade. But today … today I am getting married. So I have other things on my mind at the moment.”

“Did you get Lady Amethyst a present
yet?” asked the boy eagerly.

“A present? What for?”

“Benjamin, you don’t know Lord Marcus,” Peter told him. “He won’t give her a present, because he doesn’t like women.”

“
I don’t like women?” Marcus just chuckled. “Where the hell did you get an idea like that?” He could barely keep the amused grin from his face. “I like women just as much as any man. Actually, more.”

“Really my lord?” asked Peter. “
Then why don’t you ever show it?”

He did show it – in bed, but he knew that was not what Peter meant.

“Because … because it’s not necessary. That’s why.” He turned and headed across the bailey. The crew was already at work, and even with their heavy loads of stone and wooden planks, they all scattered quickly out of his way as he passed.

Marcus knew he’d just given
the worst answer in the world to his squire, but it was how he’d been trained by his father. It’s the way he’d been brought up his entire life and he’d never thought of it as a problem before. But now Peter was more or less pointing out that he treated women poorly and because of it, everyone thought he didn’t like women at all. That was the biggest pile of dung he’d ever heard in his entire life.

“Peter, take Benjamin with you and find me something suitable to wear for my wedding. Lay it out on the bed for me and then make sure the chaplain knows to be at the chapel as soon as the sun sets and the workers are finished for the day.”

“Aye, my lord. Come on, Benjamin. Or can I call you Ben?” asked Peter.

“Ben is fine. Can I call you Pete?”

“Why not? Everyone seems to be getting called by new names today,” Peter relayed with a smile.

Marcus watched them go, then looked back to
ward his garden. He had always pictured his mother being present at his wedding, though he knew that idea died along with her. Just another reason he didn’t want to get married. Too many memories and unsettled emotions were being brought to the surface since Amethyst arrived.

“Damn it,” he swore,
running a hand over the stubble on his face. Now, after what his squire and the new trainee said, he started questioning himself even more, if that was possible. Was a present for his bride necessary? He had never even considered the option.