Chapter 15

Aldwyn stood before the ornately engraved doors of the King's study. The court maiden announced his presence, which was followed by the resonate voice of the king granting permission to enter. Aldwyn had hoped to properly bath before presenting himself, but that was now out of the question. He signed as the maiden opened the doors. The maiden stepped aside, allowing Aldwyn to enter first.

Standing in front of the desk was the king and the lady Isana; both of them facing him. Aldwyn wasn't sure of what was going on, but he suspected that he was about to become involved in whatever they had been planning. After the king dismissed the maiden and the doors were shut, the king spoke, "Sir Knight, do you recall the debt of service you owe this lady?"

"Yes I do, you majesty," Aldwyn replied, "Does the lady wish to call upon what she is owed?"

"Yes she does," The king answered.

The lady stepped forward, "Knight Aldwyn, I call upon you to ensure my safety for the length of my life."

Surprise was a vast understatement of Aldwyn's response, "My lady... I am honored that you would entrust me with such a duty, and while I do not wish to seem hesitant or reluctant to fulfill my obligation, there is the conflict. I am still sworn to your noble father as the captain of the guard. I am due to depart and return to your father's service shortly after the wedding."

"That has been taken into consideration," The king replied, "I have already dispatched a messenger to your lord. Once he is made aware of the situation with the barbarians, and also of the lady's request for your continued presence, he will surely release you from your obligations to him. Besides, he still owes me a few favors, and surely your protégé... Lieutenant... Waren, I believe it is, should be up to the task."

Aldwyn was silent for a moment then answered, "It would be an honor to serve you my lady. Provided that your noble father releases me from my duties, I will gladly continue to protect you until my dieing breath."

"Very well," The king interjected, "You are dismissed."

"Thank you kind King, My Lady," with that, Aldwyn left the room.

Isana smiled. It touched her to see him so devoted to her, but something seemed somewhat amiss about it. She didn't doubt the sincerity of his devotion, but why was he so devoted? Yes, she was his lady and he was sworn to defend her, but oaths only went so deep. In the relatively short time that they had really spent together, he had shown her unflinching dedication, and now he had all but deferred his loyalty to her father in preference for her. Something else was in play here. Whatever it was, Isana was glad of it... and of him.

Chapter 16

Deep in the castle, among the most ancient of the foundations were the most secure cells of the most secure dungeon in the land; reserved for captured enemy leaders, traitors, and the most vile of criminals. Here there were no limits with regard to what could be done to prisoners. In this inner sanctum, the king ruled absolutely in every way possible.

In this dark dank pit lit only by a few torches, a single man stood in the center of the room. A thin lithe young man in fine robes looked about himself, half disgusted by the filthy conditions and half terrified by the fact that he had just been hauled out of his bed by a small troop of royal guards. They had brought him here to this cell deep inside the castle footings and had been standing there for some time, trying not to touch anything.

Finally, there was the sound of steps on the long narrow stairway. The light of a torch illuminated the gated doorway. There was a jingle of keys, and sound of sliding metal. Then the door cranked open. In stepped a well dressed knight; tall, long dark hair, high cheek bones, and green eyes. The guard behind him closed the door, locked it and retreated back up the stairs.

The young man wondered if this was a ploy by his lover, but if it was, it was a very elaborate one. If it was he certainly was looking forward to being ravished by this dark haired stranger. "You are the escort of the prince?" The knight asked.

"I am and you had better have a good explanation for bring me down here," The escort was playing up his resistance; just in case his lover was watching, he wanted to make sure he gave a realistic performance.

"I am the Knight Aldwyn and I am in charge of the Lady Isana's personal security."

"What does that matter to me?"

"Read this," The knight thrust a scroll of parchment towards him from his right hand. Somewhat confused by this, the escort took the parchment, walked over to one of the torches for light and began to read the document. Immediately he was struck by the title, "The report on the personal character of Prince Albert, Son of King Dietrich." As he continued to read, he was shocked to find that the document contained intimate details and secrets that he knew only a select few were privy to. It was dawning on him that this was no game, but in fact real. "Where did you get this?" the escorts voice was practically a whisper.

"From you," The Knight answered.

"I didn't write this!" the escort's voice shrieked.

"But you dictated it to someone who was in the service of a foreign land," the knight replied, "Thankfully; in this case, I was the one who employed that someone. The secrets contained there are only known to me, the Lady Isana, and her hand maiden."

The escort looked on at the parchment in wonder. He couldn't possibly have been the source of this report... but so many of the details here could have only come from so many people and he was one of them. "But it couldn't have been me," the escort protested, "I would never betray my prince."

"I don't think you did it intentionally," The knight replied, "But you did reveal those secrets to someone. Someone whom you were intimate with... a woman."

It was impossible for the escort to believe. He had never told anyone he enjoyed the pleasures of both sexes. How could this knight know such details? How on earth could he... Then it dawned on the escort that he occasionally spoke freely with those he had shared his bed. He began to cry, "I never meant to... hurt anyone. Please don't tell Albert about this."

Before the escort fell completely apart the Knight interrupted, "He doesn't have to know. Only you, me, and the person in my employ know of your indiscretions. It can stay that way under two conditions."

"Name them."

"First, you provide me with all the names of the people you were intimate with and anyone else you might have confided secrets to, and second you swear never to divulge any information to any lover ever again."

"Done."

The knight walked over to the gated doorway and with a gloved fist banged on the gate and called, "Guard!" The steps on the stairway returned. The torchlight cast through the doorway, and the guard appeared at the gate. He handed a scroll of parchment, a quill, and an ink well to the knight through the gate and retreated up the stairs again. The knight placed the items on a bench near the doorway. "Write down the names," the knight instructed, then added, "This is your chance for redemption."

The escort walked over the bench, knelt down, and began to write down the names. His hand trembled slightly as he desperately fought trying to remember all of them and also to keep himself from crying. When he was confidant that he had them all, he stood with the list in his hand. As he handed the list over, the knight spoke, "If you ever betray the confidence of your prince again, I will see to it that you spend the rest of your life in this cell... and Albert will know why." Aldwyn suspected that the second part of that threat would be more devastating.

Again the knight walked over to the gate, banged his fist, and called the guard. The guard appeared. "Take him back to his quarters," the knight ordered. The guard opened the gate and the lead the young man up the stairs. Aldwyn stayed a moment and read the names.

Chapter 17

The Lady Isana and the King Dietrich sat at the table discussing the pending matter of the fall crop harvest when there was a knock at the door. "The Knight Aldwyn is here at your request!" came the voice of... the knight Sheridan, strangely enough.

"Enter," boomed the king. Aldwyn and Sheridan entered the room, both of them were smiling.

"I just received word from your Lord, Knight Aldwyn," The king spoke, "He has agreed to release you from his service, thus allowing you to remain here."

"That is excellent news majesty," Aldwyn responded, "However I do believe I have better news."

"What news is that?" Isana asked perplexed.

"We have found a man who sold information to the barbarians," Aldwyn answered, "In fact, it was information that he provided them that made the attempt to kidnap you possible, my lady."

"Where is he?" Isana felt a surge of wrath.

"Guards!" Sheridan called over his shoulder. Four heavily armed men walked in apparently carrying the accused man. Sheridan pointed to a spot on the floor and the four men dropped the man there. The four guards withdrew and took positions to the sides of the room.

The man on the floor laid there groaning. He stirred only a little. Finally he managed to sit up. His face was badly bruised, his shirt was torn, and there was dry blood scattered all over him. It was obvious that this man had been severely beaten.

"What happened to him?" Isana asked.

"My apologies for his appearance Lady," Aldwyn spoke in a gentile manor, "When we arrived, he resisted arrest and had to be taken by force. Also we had to extract the confession from him."

"How can you be sure that his confession isn't false?"

"In addition to confirming many details surrounding these events," Aldwyn removed a small purse from his belt, "We found these in his possession." Aldwyn poured the contents of the purse into his hand, "Thirteen gold talon ingots; the standard currency in barbarian lands. He used coins like these to pay for his excesses at the public house and the brothels. Also he recently paid off several of his personal debts with like currency. Also we have a witness who can confirm that this man had knowledge of your lady's travel arrangements."

"How did you find this man?" the King asked.

The Knight Sheridan stepped forward, "The knight Aldwyn discovered the method by which this man was able to gather his information, then compiled names of suspects. Investigations of the suspects by the royal guard lead to this man's arrest."

"How was this man able to gather such sensitive information?" the King asked.

"That is a delicate matter which I have dealt with, your majesty," Aldwyn answered, "I assure you the issue has been resolved."

The king looked over to the lady. Her expression obviously meant 'trust him.'

"Alright," the king accepted Aldwyn's response, "My dear Lady Isana, here is a man who bares a significant amount of responsibility for the assault on your person. What punishment would you consider appropriate for this man?"

Isana took a moment to examine the man who sat on the floor. "I want to be angry at this man, but I find myself pitying this pathetic creature before me."

"Lady!" Aldwyn spoke out of turn, "Do not be fooled by this man's appearance! While you were at the mercy of those barbarians, this man was out whoring and drinking to his gluttonous heart's content, paying for it with the gold that he sold you for! He is without remorse or moral conscience! His only regret is that he been caught! He must be made an example of!"

"You forget yourself Knight Aldwyn," the King spoke deliberately, expressing no connotation in his tone.

"My apologies," Aldwyn's gaze dropped, "My comments were out of place."

"Lady," The king still spoke without connotation in his tone, "The knight is right. This man has betrayed you and the crown. He must be made an example of. What that example is, is up to you."

The lady continued to look at the pitiful man on the floor. "Let me see his eyes," Isana commanded. Aldwyn grabbed a lock of the man's hair and yanked until his gaze met the lady's. The lady looked into the man's eyes. He stared blankly at her. There was no sign of his true feelings. He was already dead on the inside. She considered if it was really worth executing this man, but then she remembered Alicia: How terrified that golden girl had been; the thought of what might have been done to her had they reached barbarian lands; that beautiful girl being forced upon by those hairy brutes.

"Cut off his head," the lady commanded, "Put in a basket, and send it to Damien, as a warning. Burn his body."

"With pleasure my lady," Aldwyn grinned. The guards stepped forward, picked up the man from the floor and marched out the door. The Knights Aldwyn and Sheridan were close behind.

"Certainly harsh punishment," the king observed.

"An example must be made," Isana answered mimicking the king's unexpressive tone.