Devereux wasn’t without sympathy; she had, after all, what the woman wanted. She put her hand on her shoulder briefly. “No need,” she whispered. “We have all had our moments of foolishness and weakness.”
Avarine simply hung her head. With a lingering glance at the woman, Devereux turned around and headed back for Davyss’ tent.
“I shall await you inside, sweetheart,” she said, head held high. “Take whatever time you need.”
Davyss watched her go, fighting off a grin of such astonishment and pride that it was difficult for him to conceal. He was constantly amazed by the caliber of the woman he had married, so much love for her in his heart that he couldn’t begin to describe it. As she disappeared into the distant tent, he turned back to Avarine, who was still rooted to the spot with a somewhat dazed expression.
Davyss took some pity on her; after all, she had just received a fairly impressive tongue lashing, truthful though it might have been. With a faint sigh, he moved to within a few feet of her and knelt down, focused on the little girls.
Two pairs of hazel eyes gazed back at him, curiously, and he smiled. “Who is Isabella and who is Angela?” he asked gently.
The little girls looked confused a moment before timidly pointing at each other. Davyss laughed softly lowered himself to the cool green grass, getting comfortable.
“That did not help me in the least,” he told them. “Let me try again. Who is Isabella?”
One twin pointed to the other. Davyss’ smile grew and he held out a hand to the little girl. “Isabella, would you like to sit with me?”
Isabella took a timid step forward but Angela was faster.
“I want to sit!” she announced, plopping onto her bum.
Davyss nodded with approval. “Thank you, my lady,” he said sincerely. “I do not like to sit alone.”
Isabella fell to her knees, grinning at him when he looked at her. Then she inched forward. Angela, seeing that her sister was moving closer to the enormous man, inched forward also. Isabella suddenly launched herself into Davyss’ lap and he grunted as the child hit him in the chest and groin.
The girls giggled as he groaned. Davyss ruffled the hair of the child in his lap, thinking they were indeed lovely little girls. It made him think of the child Devereux had lost and he felt a brief stab for the loss, but nothing more. He hadn’t really thought about a family with many children until this very moment, but with two little girls sitting on his lap, he realized he could come to like it very much.
Devereux peered from a crack in the closed tent flap, watching the interaction between Davyss and his girls. It made her heart swell to see him speaking to the children, his mannergentle and warm. She smiled as she watched the child in his lap pop up and accidentally ram him in the chin. When he fell over, mortally wounded, the girls pounced on him with squeals and Devereux laughed softly at the sight. He was going to make a wonderful father to their own children and suddenly, she wasn’t so terribly hurt over their loss. Watching Davyss with his girls oddly eased her. She was confident there would be others, just as he was, and very much looking forward to it.
Thoughts of hazel-eyed children were her last coherent idea before the world turned painfully, abruptly black.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Davyss didn’t waitto be admitted entrance. He charged into the king’s solar in the White Tower, ramming aside a knight who had been foolish enough to try and stop him.Lespadawas flashing wickedly in his hand and he gored the next man who came at him right in the chest. The ancient blade of the de Winter male line dripped with blood.
People were screaming and running as Davyss, followed by Hugh, Andrew and Philip, charged into the room and slashed anyone who got in their way. At the other end of the chamber sat Simon, calmly watching his godson wreak havoc. He had been expecting this moment and was prepared. As Davyss approached him, sword aloft, Simon merely lifted an eyebrow at him.
“If you kill me, you shall never know where she has gone,” he told him.
Davyss was indeed mad enough to kill; he had killed at least three men who had tried to bar him from the Tower and injured countless others. Dressed to the hilt in complete battle armor, he was formidable and terrifying. It was de Winter at his worst. He came to an unsteady halt several feet from de Montfort, flipping up his visor to display blazing hazel eyes.
“Where in the hell is she?” he boomed.
Simon glanced behind his godson, seeing the carnage and destruction left in his wake. Servants were dragging away the dead knight and others were helping the wounded. He could hear people weeping and groaning. He sighed heavily and refocused on Davyss.
“She is perfectly safe and unharmed,” he told him evenly. “She will be my honored guest for a time. I insist.”
Davyss’ jaw ticked violently. “Give her back to me or I will tear this place apart.”
“Tear it apart and you will never see her again.”
Davyss’ jaw stopped ticking and his hazel eyes widened. “Why?” he demanded, sounding more like a plea. “What in God’s name have I done that you would do this to me? I gave you what you wanted; I swore my fealty. Why would you take my wife?”
There were several armed knights in the room, men that had rushed in to protect de Montfort from Davyss’ rage. But Simon sent those men away with the flick of his wrist, unafraid of Davyss’ wrath. He knew his godson was hot headed and rash, but he wasn’t foolish. He knew thatLespadawould not end his life.
“Send your men away, Davyss,” Simon said quietly. “I will speak only with you.”
Davyss turned to the heavily armed men behind them, sending them off with a nod of his head. They followed the path they had taken when they had entered, leaving the room in disarray and chaos. When the last of the injured had been removed and Hugh quietly shut the door, Davyss turned to Simon.
