“My pleasure, my lady.”
For a moment, they simply stared at one another, Caius wondering what she was really feeling and Emelisse because she found herself in an unexpected position. The half-hour she’d spent with her brother had been an enlightening one because she’d realized a great many things. It was time to let Caius in on them, too.
She looked at the old soldier.
“How many men are left, Harcourt?” she asked.
“Thirty-one, my lady,” he said, telling her the same thing he’d told Caius. “They are all down in the storage vault.”
“Go down and tell them that I have returned, will you?”
“Aye, my lady.”
As the old man shuffled down the stairs, Emelisse turned her attention to Caius. “It would seem this day has brought about something quite unexpected,” she said. “I am now the heiress of Hawkstone. It belongs to me.”
“It does, my lady.”
“Let us speak privately.”
“If that is your wish.”
Emelisse thought on what she was going to tell him, knowing he would not be pleased with the conclusions she had come to while grieving over her brother. Caius was a reasonable man,and chivalrous, and she appreciated that about him. That, and so many other things.
But she was positive he was not going to like what she had to say.
After a moment, she simply reached out, took him by the hand, and pulled him into what had been her bedchamber since birth. It was a big, well-appointed chamber that was now cold and dark. She shut the door softly before facing him.
“Sir Caius, since Hawkstone now belongs to me, I have decided to remain here, holed up in the keep in my brother’s stead,” she said quietly. “Caspian gave his life to maintain the keep’s integrity. I must take his place and ensure that it does not fall.”
Caius felt as if he’d been duped. He’d followed her into the chamber willingly, perhapstoowillingly, but his eagerness had been for naught. Speaking privately had meant she was going to say something outlandish. Emelisse issued an unexpected statement and one Caius was inclined to immediately disagree with.
“Impossible,” he said. “My lady, I understand that you are now the sole heir of Hawkstone, but that does not include closing yourself up with the remnants of your army and starving to death.”
But Emelisse stood her ground. “While I appreciate your concern, the truth is that I must do this,” she said. “I must take up arms in my brother’s stead, my father’s stead. I am the last de Thorington. Hawkstone will not fall while I have breath in my body.”
Caius didn’t want to get into a battle with her. The woman had been through so much that he was genuinely trying to be considerate of her feelings, unusual for a man who had always, and only, considered himself first above all things. He had seen firsthand how emotion and fear and rage had turned her intoa wildcat and he didn’t want to see that again, something he suspected would happen if he tried to bodily remove her from the keep.
That only left logic.
“My lady, I am not the great negotiator,” he said. “That is what I named my sword, in fact– Negotiator, because my sword does my reasoning for me. I do not wish to use that instrument with you, however, so we are going to have to resort to a battle of reason. I told you that I do not intend to force you to return to Winterhold and I meant it, but that does not mean I will leave you to rot in the keep with the remainder of the Hawkstone men. We must find a happy medium here because I am not leaving until we do.”
Emelisse sighed faintly. “Truly, my lord, there is nothing to negotiate. I have made my decision. I will not change my mind.”
He cocked his head thoughtfully. “Will you do something for me?”
“If I can.”
“Will you please address me as Caius in private?” he asked. “I feel as if we have moved beyond the formalities of the situation. I feel as if we have become… friends. As a friend, I would be honored if you called me by Caius, or even Cai. I will answer to whatever you call me, Emelisse. If I may call you that as well.”
That brought a smile to her lips. “You may,” she murmured. “Then, as your friend, let me say something. I have told you that I am deeply grateful for your assistance, and I am. You have brought me home and I can never repay you for that kindness. But thisismy home and I intend to remain, now more than ever. My father and brother died for it. How would it be for me to shame that sacrifice and abandon it?”
“And how do you think your father and brother would feel, knowing you starved to death because of them?”
She faltered. “It is more than that.”
“Is it?”
She took a few steps towards him. “Do you not understand what it is like to love your home as if it were a member of your family?” she said imploringly. “That is how I love Hawkstone– because it is a member of my family. Relinquishing it would be like surrendering my mother or father. Do you not understand how that feels?”
