Pillaging Elinor's Castle [Elinor's Stronghold 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (6 page)

Hours later, his lord shook Hammond awake. “Again. This time I get her ass.”

Lady Elinor seemed sleepy but willing, so this time they lay side by side with her facing him so he could push his prick deep into her cunt, pressing his pelvis hard against her nubbin, determined to stroke it as often as possible.

Lord Rhys moved behind her, lifting her leg high and using the oil before holding her ass cheeks open and slamming his prick hard and deep.

Hammond felt it move in, every inch of it, and then it lay against his own prick. God’s truth, that was arousing. If his prick hadn’t stood up at the very thought of fucking her again, the feel of Lord Rhys’s prick against his would have been all it took to have his little soldier ready for battle.

Lady Elinor wiggled between them, pushing them deeper into her, moving her hips this way and that, urging them on. Then he needed no urging, he was slamming into her, copying the fast pace set by his liege lord, both of them together this time, hard, fast, harder, faster, ramming into her in a race that quickly came to an end. Her cream poured over his prick, covering it with her heat and dampness, as her muscles grabbed him tight. His seed burst from his prick, and matching heat penetrated the wall between him and Lord Rhys. It was over so fast, yet his prick was fulfilled, sliding from her as his seed and her cream dripped onto her thighs.

He rested his hands on her breast, but it wasn’t enough. He sucked first one nipple then the other into his mouth, moving back and forth, back and forth, gradually taking the whole areola as well as just the nipple.

“Lie on her,” came a hoarse instruction from behind him. Willingly, he did so, pushing his limp sword into her, knowing it would rise again soon.

Then rough fingers were in his ass, and he knew what his lord wanted. “Use the oil. It’s been a very long time,” he whispered.

Men alone on the battlefield fucked this way, affirming their right to life and finding closeness with their fellow soldiers, but it was not much spoken of. He was quite sure the church didn’t approve but had no plans to confess to Father Augustus. Rather, he thought he’d enjoy a woman under him and a man over him.

Instantly, his little soldier stood to attention. He widened his legs and enjoyed the remembered feeling of fingers in his ass. Lord Rhys was in a hurry as scarcely had the oil covered his entry than a prick was forcing its way in. Lord Rhys had oiled his cock, but it still burned on the way inside, pushing his flesh wide apart such as hadn’t happened in years.

The pain was a pleasurable one, one that spoke of men in battle together, men caring for each other as best they could. Having Lady Elinor under him as well was amazing. His prick was full and ready to go into action again. As soon as Lord Rhys began plowing his ass, he copied the movements in Lady Elinor, balancing his weight on his forearms and knees so she wasn’t hurt by the heaviness of the two men piled on top of her.

She made happy little noises, so he knew she wasn’t offended by her husband fucking his Captain of the Guard. Nevertheless, he did his very best to make it as good for her as he possibly could. But it was hard when he wanted to press back into Lord Rhys’s heavy pounding strokes instead of leading forward into Lady Elinor. After a little while, he got the rhythm coordinated, and events moved swiftly then, with Lord Rhys soon blasting his seed into Hammond’s ass and Hammond filling Lady Elinor with his own release.

They untangled their bodies, tucking Lady Elinor between them, then slept.

* * * *

The next few weeks were ferociously busy. Every man not needed in the fields was kept digging, extending the fishponds, and building an extra animal barn. Every day, women and older children went out with two guards and the wagon, collecting firewood and any edibles they could find in the forested land at the edge of the estate.

When the women found a patch of berries, or mushrooms, or nuts, they all stopped to collect them in a bucket, before continuing on their search for firewood.

In the evenings, Hammond and Lord Rhys planned their hunting expeditions. Hunting boar was dangerous, but a few large animals would be of great help to their meat supply. Such a large household needed meat and the fat with it to live through the winter months.

The first day after the barn was finished, several guards went searching for tracks. On the second day, a group of men went hunting, returning with a boar, but also with news of a sow and piglets. The following day, they killed not just the sow, but also a second boar and captured five piglets.

Elinor was very excited as she moved the animals into a pen that’d been hastily constructed for them next to the fishpond. “There’ll be plenty of natural food for them here,” said the guard who was hammering the last support into the fence.

“Oh yes, thank you,” she said, smiling up at him. “I’m not sure if they’ll survive, but there’s only one way to find out!”

Meanwhile, Wade was training older children how to tell if enemies were approaching. He held competitions between them as to who could see sunlight glinting off metal first or discern when things were out of place in the forest. “They’re very good, my lady. They understand what it means if the forest noises stop and there is silence, and they know to look for trails of smoke and other signs,” he reported to her.

Rhys and Hammond began planning to hunt a small herd of deer, but Elinor’s thoughts had turned to what would happen if her people were attacked in their small hamlets. If they ran to the forest, the soldiers would easily track them down and pick them off one at a time. Yet there was no guarantee the people would have time to escape to the safety of the castle.

Where else—how else—could they be safe?

* * * *

Elinor was leaning over the fire, stirring a huge pot of berries, boiling them down to be preserved in meats and puddings, when a child skidded into the kitchen calling loudly, “Lady Elinor! Lady Elinor! A lady on a horse with two guards!”

Elinor straightened her back and smiled at the child. He had given her his message perfectly. His manners might not be acceptable at Court, but he’d told her exactly what she needed to know, in very few words and without wasting time.

She scooped a tiny serving of berries onto a piece of hard bread and handed it to him. “Well done, child. You delivered the message just right. Does Wade have any more information to tell me about the lady and her guards?”

“John will come to tell you when someone identifies their banner. It’s red and gold, but Wade said half the kingdom has red and gold on their banners.” The child spoke with his mouth half full of bread and berries.

She nodded, and he ran off. Aunt Heloise had evidently heard him call, as she arrived then. “I’ll watch the pot for you. You’d best change your gown and re-braid your hair before they arrive,” she said practically.

“Thank you, aunt.” Elinor hurried up to her solar, changing into her tidy blue gown and brushing her hair before tying a pretty blue ribbon to the end of her braid. Guests were frequent, but it was almost always men to speak with Lord Rhys. A lady was something special indeed. She looked forward to having a long talk with her, while the lady’s husband or father spoke with her lord.

No messenger delivered further information about the coming guest, but noises in the courtyard told her they’d arrived. Byram had sent messengers to fetch Hammond and Lord Rhys, and the servants had hurriedly prepared food and drink for the guests.

Rhys and Hammond entered, both of them flicking water off their heads and hands, from the back of the house, at the same time as Wade and half a dozen children escorted the lady and her guards in the front door from the courtyard.

“Rhyannon!” exclaimed Rhys.

Elinor knew that name. But in what context?

The large man standing close beside Rhyannon bowed. “Lord Rhys, it is my sad duty to inform you your Uncle Bennet has died.”

“And you are?”

“My apologies, my lord. I am Alistair, son of Lord Alistair of the Green Mountain, and protector of the Lady Rhyannon.”

“Alistair and Ebert chose to escort me here, rather than serve my cousin. Rhys, he said I either had to marry him or leave. So I left.”

“The church does allow cousins to marry,” said Elinor slowly.

“Yes, and look what happens. Their children are all born dead. Besides, my cousin is an old man and dribbles into his beard. He’s disgusting.”

Elinor hid a smile and clapped her hands loudly for the servants to bring the food into the great hall.

Wade took Ebert to a lower bench and, still surrounded by children, began asking him questions. Rhys and Hammond were doing much the same with Alistair. So Elinor smiled at Rhyannon and said, “Tell me all your news.”

Rhyannon took her seriously and began at the very beginning. “My mother died when I was five. I was their only child. Rhys’s father and my mother were brother and sister.”

Elinor nodded. It was coming back to her now. Her own mother had explained this genealogy at some time, quite possibly when her father and Rhys’s were considering them marrying.

“My father married three more times. Each time, his wife died without them having any child at all, much less a son. My father blamed them all for being frail and sickly, unworthy of him, but with so many wives and no child, it seems to me the fault lay with him. However that may be, my cousin Coll, the son of my father’s older brother, inherited the land.”

Rhyannon’s eyes were the same dark-brown as Rhys’s, her pretty face as round and comely as his, too, but now it creased in a frown. “Coll said he’s inherited everything, but I kept my mother’s jewels. My father never gave them to any of his other wives, so they are mine,” she said fiercely.

Elinor nodded and passed her a plate of tiny cakes, fresh baked that morning.

Rhyannon popped one in her mouth and smiled again.

“When he said I was to marry him or leave, I had Ebert put my chest of possessions on the back of a mule and bade him farewell. I told him I was coming here, and he said, ‘Good riddance.’”

Rhyannon’s voice expressed a mixture of hurt but also determination.

“And Lord Alistair?” asked Elinor.

“He’s not a lord. His father is, but for some reason, although he’s the oldest son, he isn’t a lord. I love him anyway, and he chose to come with me. As did Ebert.”

“You are welcome here. Your home shall be with us for as long as you wish it to be,” said Elinor sincerely, but carefully avoiding the topic of Alistair. That would be for Rhys to decide, although she was sure he and Hammond would welcome two more fighting men. However, a husband was slightly different. At least Rhyannon had a dowry in her mother’s jewels. Every woman needed something to bring to the marriage to demonstrate her status.

Rhyannon began asking questions about Rhys’s demesne, and the castle and stronghold, and they enjoyed themselves for some time, until Elinor noticed the light was fading and jumped up to ensure arrangements for her guests’ comfort had been made.

* * * *

The next day, Rhys took four of the guards hunting for deer, along with a handful of peasants to act as beaters, and Alistair who’d asked to go with them. Elinor walked with Rhyannon around the castle itself, then out into the grounds. They stopped at the field that led to the river, and Elinor noticed two or three older boys splashing and playing in the water.

At that moment, she knew another way to protect her people. Very few people could swim. In particular, soldiers in armor never entered water as the heavy armor made them sink. If people crossed a river, they were almost certainly safe from pursuit, at least until the pursuer could find a bridge or a ford and take up the chase.

In the case of her people, it would give them time to get to the castle. If, instead of trying to run away or hide, they ran directly to the river, they could swim across and then walk to the castle, certain to arrive before the pursuing solders. As long as enough of them could be taught to swim. Surely swimming was not too hard to learn.

Catching Rhyannon’s hand, she said, “Let’s go down to the river.”

Arriving there, Elinor asked the boys, “Can any of you swim. Truly swim?”

The smallest one stood straight and proud before her. “I can. My father taught me.”

“Can you show me please?”

He splashed into the water and made his way across the river. It wasn’t really so very wide, she supposed. She doubted if a man could throw his weapon from one side to the other, but a bowman would easily shoot that far and much, much farther.

So if her people were chased by archers, they’d be better off to hide. But if pursued only by soldiers, especially ones in armor, swimming was a solution.

She thanked the children and turned to walk back to the castle.

“Whatever are you thinking, Lady Elinor?”

“Lord Jeffrey is likely to attack my stronghold. He lost some of his supplies in the fire he set burning on Rhys’s manor, and my castle is well supplied. But if he attacks the peasants in their hamlets, unless they can escape to the castle, they’ll be in great danger.”

“But how can you help them? There isn’t enough time to build a palisade around every tiny hamlet,” asked Rhyannon.

“And Lord Jeffrey had no trouble climbing the large palisade around Rhys’s demesne anyway. I think the river may offer some protection for the people.”