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It was not a question. But Andrew appeared amused. “Love?” he repeated, then looked thoughtful. “Lady Josephine de Carron is as exquisite a woman as has ever existed. She’s beautiful and is remarkably intelligent for a woman, and she possesses an indomitable spirit. She intrigues me.”

Sully felt a little irritated at the superficial observation of Josephine. “She is a very deep woman,” he said. “She has great sensitivity and a tremendous sense of duty. I have known her since she was twelve years old, and believe me when I tell you she possesses more than simple physical beauty.”

Andrew knew that, but to admit to it would be to show that he had a weakness– and that weakness was Josephine de Carron. But, somehow, in admitting it to Sully, he knew it would go no further.

“My life has been spent with a single goal, Sully,” he said quietly.

“That goal has been to avenge my mother and kill my brother. But with Josephine, I find her a tremendous distraction and she brings out a side of me that wants to laugh and to love. It’s a side that frightens me and excites me at the same time.

Have you ever had a woman affect you as such? ”

Sully knew the man was confiding in him on the deepest level.

It was an awkward conversation, considering Andrew was speaking of the woman he loved, but it was also strangely empowering in the sense that Josephine deserved a man who greatly admired her, if not loved her outright.

It was much easier for Sully to deal with a man soon to be Josephine’s husband who actually had some feeling for her.

But in that empowerment was some bitterness as well.

He wished he were the one to marry Josephine and he suspected that he always would.

“Aye,” Sully said after a moment. “I have.”

Oblivious to Sully’s inner turmoil, Andrew found great interest in that answer. “And were you not weakened by those feelings?”

“Nay,” Sully smiled faintly. “On the contrary, they inspired me. Give in to your feelings, Andrew, and you will understand. Do not be afraid of something that can give you the greatest strength of all.”

Andrew stared off into the darkened corridor, digesting that statement.

It seemed so alien to him. “I do not know what I am feeling,” he said after a moment.

“All I know is that I feel blind rage whenever I see the king for what he has brought on her and I cannot stand the thought of her in someone else’s arms. I should have never come here, yet I am glad I did. ”

It was quite an admission coming from the legendary mercenary. Sully wasn’t quite sure what to say, so it seemed best to say nothing.

For quite some time, Andrew and Sully sat in the darkened corridor, each man to his own thoughts. So much had happened to them, and between them, actions and events that had brought them together when they could have very well made enemies out of them.

That, in and of itself, was something to ponder.

With the exception of a distant voice now and again, the fortress was as quiet as a tomb.

It was nearing dawn but Andrew remained wide awake with Sully beside him, keeping silent company as their respective women slept behind closed doors.

But suddenly, from somewhere in the direction of the king’s chamber on the floor above, came the sound of approaching footsteps.

Down the stairs and drawing closer, heading directly for them.

Andrew knew the sounds of heavy war boots when he heard them. A soldier is coming. He shifted casually on the floor, then rose slowly. Sully followed suit.

“We have company,” Sully said quietly.

“I know,” Andrew murmured. “Are you armed?”

“Always,” Sully replied coolly.

“Excellent, my friend,” Andrew said, facing the approaching party expectantly. “Then this shall be quick and painless.”

Three of the king’s guards, armed and in full mail armor, approached. The flickering torches in the corridor cast dancing phantoms along the walls as they moved and the bootfalls were hard and sharp, and soon the facial features became evident.

“Who goes?” the first soldier demanded harshly.

Andrew didn’t hesitate. “I am Andrew d’Vant, betrothed of Lady Josephine de Carron, and commander of the mercenary army beyond the walls of Torridon,” he replied with authority. “And my companion is Sir Sully Montgomery, Master of Torridon and husband to Lady Justine.”

The soldiers looked at each other. Then, the first shoulder shrugged.

“The king wishes to see Lady Josephine in his chamber,” he said. “ Now .”

Andrew had known all along that this demand would be forthcoming and now it was here. He stood his ground.

“For what purpose?” he asked.

The soldier wasn’t to be dissuaded. “That is between the king and Lady Josephine.”

“And me,” Andrew said. “She is my betrothed.”

“Then you will do well to ask the king,” the soldier said. “Now, out of my way.”

As the soldier took a step towards Josephine’s door, he suddenly found that Andrew’s sword blocked the way.

He hadn’t even seen it coming, but simply heard the singing sound of metal and then a thumping sound that the point made as it embedded itself in the stone wall.

Andrew was attached to the hilt of the sword, his expression anything but tolerant.

“Now that I have your attention,” he said in a low voice, “go back and inform King Alexander that Lady Josephine has retired for the night. She will be honored to see him on the morrow. But not tonight.”

The older soldier wasn’t the least bit intimidated, at least not outwardly. “Move that sword, man,” he growled.

Andrew shook his head. “I will not.”

The air fairly crackled with tension. For quite some time, no one dared move.

They simply stared at one another, silent threats filling the air, yet no one was moving to carry out those threats.

Andrew would not be the first man to act violently, but he’d be damned if he was going to let these men into Josephine’s bedchamber.

But the soldiers were acting under direct orders from the king, and if they had to fight The Red Fury and the Master of Torridon to carry out those orders, then so be it. The soldier stepped back and drew forth his sword.

“You’ll eat those words, The Red Fury or no,” he promised.

Sully didn’t remember who cast the first blow, but it was only a matter of seconds before the sounds of metal on metal filled the corridor.

Sully had his hands full with one soldier.

He had only a small knife and was concentrating on not being impaled by the other’s sword.

Andrew, on the other hand, was fending off two of the king’s best.

The king’s soldiers weren’t like the normal soldiers, men poorly trained and even more poorly armed.

These soldiers had dedicated their lives to the king and were at the height of their profession.

Andrew, of course, was a professional soldier and was paid to win, but the two imperial soldiers were giving him a good fight.

The two soldiers had managed to back him into a wall, but Andrew didn’t appear in distress.

With a huge right arching sweep, he caught both of their swords at once and knocked them off balance.

In the split second that it took for them to recover, he drove his sword deep into the side of the man nearest him.

Sully saw the soldier fall and did a flying somersault across the floor, coming up with the dying man’s sword in his right hand. Now the odds were even in the fight.

Clang… clang… clang… clang! The battle grew in intensity and neither Sully nor Andrew were straining in the least, but the king’s soldiers were fighting furiously.

It was simply a matter of letting them wear down before turning on them, a classic battle tactic.

And when the soldiers seemed to be tiring, Andrew seemed to come alive.

Andrew was a large man with a great deal of strength.

He began to attack his opponent with vigor, with his sword contacting the other man’s weapon so forcefully that sparks flew into the darkness.

His uppercuts were double-handed, and his thrusts were well-controlled.

The soldier was merely defending himself at this point as Andrew worked him down the hall.

The fighting was furious now. Andrew began grunting as he made contact.

The soldier was breathing heavily, and was trying not to stumble as he backed up.

Sully had to concentrate on his own match and not get caught up in watching Andrew’s, for it was an awesome spectacle to witness.

Sully had never seen anyone fight with such unleashed fury.

He wondered how the soldier had lasted this long.

He was so caught up in Andrew’s performance that when his opponent made a stupid mistake, Sully almost missed taking advantage of it.

But as quick as a bolt of lightning, Sully upper-sliced right into the man’s midsection, breaching the mail and plowing into the man’s innards. In a second, he was on the floor dying.

Andrew, by this time, had his enemy on the ground against the wall; the soldier’s sword wasn’t even up anymore.

Andrew hesitated a split second before killing the man; he didn’t like cold-blooded killing, but he knew if the man was set free, he’d race back to the king and Andrew would be on the run, which would mean having to leave Josephine.

He wasn’t about to do that. Therefore, he shoved the man’s head back and drove his sword right through the soldier’s throat.

Sully was standing by him, watching the soldier twitch in the last throes of death.

As quickly as it began, the fight was over. But Sully and Andrew knew that it wasn’t really over. A battle like that made a good deal of noise and they were both fairly certain that most of the keep had been alerted to it. That made the situation rather tricky.

“We must get them out of the castle,” Sully said quietly. “We cannot leave them here.”

Andrew nodded. “I’ll take two,” he said. “Lead the way, my lord.”

Sully grinned at the use of his now proper title. “Out behind the stables,” he said. “But should you leave Josephine unprotected like this?”

Andrew heaved a soldier across his shoulder.

“I believe it is safe for now,” he said.

“The king will not send out more soldiers, at least for the time being. He’s probably assuming his men had to fight de Carron guards and I would wager to say he’ll not send anyone to check on the situation for a time. I will be back by then.”

It made sense. Sully assumed the burden of the soldier he killed. “I was hoping the king would have left Josephine alone,” he said. “I am disappointed that I was wrong. These men we fought– they were simply following orders.”

Andrew was somewhat solemn. “I did not want to kill them, but if I had not…”

Sully cut him off. “You would be dead now,” he finished, then looked at him. “Andrew, you need not explain your actions to me. I know you are a man of character and you have yet to give me a reason to question you.”

Andrew nodded quickly, grateful for Sully’s words. He seldom cared what anyone thought of him, but he was coming to respect Sully. He didn’t want the man to think ill of him. Gathering the bodies, they began to descend the stairs with their burdens.

“Why do I have the strange notion that I will not sleep for the duration of the royal visit?” Andrew muttered as he grunted under the weight.

Sully grinned. “Oddly enough, I have that same feeling.”

The king’s men were buried in the soft dirt behind the stables that night, covered up in the dark of night, never to be spoken of again.