Page 34

Seven Months Later

Westminster Palace

“A missive has come for you, Denys.”

Denys was sitting in the small solar utilized by the lord commander of the king’s knights.

Many captains had used this room in years past, and the table they used for dispatches and other administrative duties was pockmarked with the ends of a thousand quills.

It was a big table, sanded down over the years to make the surface smoother, but it was a working table and it had seen many years of service.

Denys had been looking over a dispatch from Lancashire that told of several armies standing at the ready against Edward, including the entire de Wolfe empire to the north.

The past several months had seen the king at odds with his cousin, the Earl of Lancaster, and the earl was supported by many warlords all over England.

This included the Earls of Warwick, Gloucester, Arundel, and several other powerful warlords.

The most powerful of the bunch was the Earl of Hereford and Worcester, Morgen de Lohr, and Scott de Wolfe, Earl of Warenton.

With those two siding with Lancaster, the situation was dire, indeed.

It was becoming more and more unsteady by the day.

That sense of unsteadiness included the loss of Magnus.

After Delaina rejected him, he had fled north to Berwick and his father’s property of Berwick Castle.

He had left with only a few words to Edward, resigning his post the very same day Delaina sent him away.

He didn’t even think about it. He simply told Edward he was resigning and left.

It had been Denys who explained the circumstances to Edward, who was shockingly sympathetic.

So sympathetic, in fact, that he had a rather heated discussion with Hugh about the situation.

Admonished for trying to manipulate Magnus, Hugh had licked his wounds for several weeks after that.

As it turned out, Edward blamed Hugh for losing the best lord commander he had ever had.

That was a small victory as far as Denys was concerned, and he’d even sent word to Magnus about the situation, but he never received a reply.

In Magnus’ absence, Denys had assumed the position of captain of the king’s knights because only Magnus had been appointed lord commander.

Edward did not grant Denys that title. In fact, he told Denys that Magnus would have his former position returned to him whenever he wanted it, so Denys was under the impression that his command was only temporary.

Frankly, it didn’t bother him all that much.

Denys knew what had driven Magnus out of London, and, truth be told, he’d had a hand in it.

He knew he was responsible in large part for what happened, but he was still under the belief that it had been necessary to save Magnus’ career.

He wasn’t exactly sure how Magnus felt about him at this point, and he missed his best friend, but he hoped that someday Magnus would understand that Denys really had believed he was acting in his friend’s best interest. He hoped that, someday, Magnus would return to London and assume his position.

Until then, Denys was an excellent replacement.

He spent the first couple of months of Magnus’ absence sending missives north to Berwick, informing Magnus of what was happening in London, but again, he never received a reply.

He had been forced to accept the obvious sign that Magnus didn’t want to communicate with him at that time, so he threw himself into his new duties as captain of the king’s knights.

From watching Magnus handle that position, he knew that it was a lot of work, but he was content with it.

When the warlords started distancing themselves from Edward and siding with Lancaster, he wasn’t so happy with those politics.

His own family, the House of de Winter, remained loyal to Edward because that was what the House of de Winter did.

No matter who was on the throne, they were loyal to that person.

In this case, it was a king who was driving wedges of division between himself and his very own barons.

Denys saw all of it firsthand.

“Denys? Did you hear me?”

He had, but he had been lost to his own thoughts. He looked up to see Loring standing in the doorway.

“What did you say?” Denys said, rubbing his eyes. “A missive?”

“Aye,” Loring said. “Actually, it’s to Magnus, but he is not here, so I thought you should have it.”

Denys looked at him in surprise. “Who is it from?”

Loring’s response was to put it in front of Denys. He looked at it curiously, picking it up and looking at the seal.

He didn’t recognize it.

“Who sent this?”

Loring shook his head. “I know one way to find out,” he said. “Open it.”

Denys gave him an irritated expression. “Dolt,” he grumbled. “It belongs to Magnus. I will forward it to him.”

“It will be weeks before he gets it. Mayhap it is something important.”

That was true. Magnus was far to the north, and if the missive contained anything important, then Denys would know how quickly he should send it. Therefore, he peered at the wax seal. Then he brushed at it and looked more closely.

His expression slackened.

“Wait,” he said. “I think I have seen this seal before.”

Loring wasn’t too interested. “Who is it?”

Denys cast him a concerned glance before carefully breaking the seal and unfolding the vellum. That expression had Loring paying more attention to the missive itself, though he couldn’t read it. But he could certainly read Denys’ face.

Denys turned positively ashen.

“What’s wrong?” Loring asked. “What is it?”

Denys couldn’t answer. He read the missive again before standing up. The missive fluttered to the tabletop.

“When did that come?” he finally said.

“Within the hour,” Loring said, peering at him in concern. “Why, Denys? What is it?”

Denys was looking at the missive as it lay on the top of the cluttered table.

Then he looked indecisive for a brief moment before swinging into action.

He grabbed his broadsword and strapped it on, followed by a few other daggers that he tucked into his mail and body in strategic positions.

All the while, Loring was watching him with apprehension and puzzlement.

“I must go,” Denys said, pushing past him. “Command is yours until I return, Lor. If anyone asks for me… tell them I have gone on an errand. I shall return as soon as I can.”

Loring simply nodded as Denys rushed past him, clearly unwilling to tell him what it was all about. It didn’t make any sense to him, but then again, he was a follower and not a leader. Perhaps there were things he didn’t need to know.

This was one of them.

But curiosity got the better of Loring. When Denys was gone, rushing off like a madman, Loring picked up the missive that had fallen to the tabletop.

He, too, was shocked when he read it.

Then he burned it.