Calum was shaking his head, back and forth, like a madman. “He didnotdo it!”
Val sighed heavily. “Ask Kenan if you do not believe me. I told Hugh to go back to Henry and tell him what he had done so mayhap that is why du Reims is here, but something tells me that your brother has not returned to Winchester. If he did not stop at Selborne to tell you what he’d done, then I seriously doubt he’s gone to Winchester to admit it to the king. Any man who would murder like that… I cannot imagine he would willingly announce what he has done.”
Calum was beside himself. “But… why would my brother do such a thing? I do not understand!”
Val resumed his walk for the keep. “Nor do I,” he said. “But he did. There were many witnesses to it, in fact, not just my men. I brought a wounded monk with me to verify my story for Henry but the man did not live past Guildford. He died last night of the wounds he sustained in the attack. So, now it is up to me to explain what happened when I do not even understand it myself.”
Calum was following him as he took the stairs up to the entrance. “My brother,” he mumbled. “I must find my brother. If he has not come here and he has not gone to Winchester, then I can only imagine he must have gone north to my father’s holdings. He would have nowhere else to go.”
“If I were Hugh, I would flee, too. Henry’s wrath shall be severe.”
Much like Val, Calum could see the long-term implications of his brother’s actions. “Not only on Hugh but on you as well, Val. Henry will want to know… my God, I cannot fully grasp all of this.”
The entry to the keep loomed before them and Val came to a halt, putting a hand on Calum. He could see that the man was deeply shaken with the actions of his brother, much as Val hadbeen when he’d witnessed the bloodlust that Hugh was capable of. Hugh de Morville had been a man of honor and trust up until that point. Now, he was a murderer.
It was difficult to take in.
“Tell no one,” Val reiterated softly. “Let me speak with du Reims and I will tell you the outcome. Meanwhile, go to Kenan and hear what he saw your brother do. He will tell you the same thing I did.”
After that, he tried to move forward but Calum wouldn’t let him. He held on to him, his features lined with grief. “I am sorry, Val,” he whispered. “I did not know my brother… I never thought he would do something like this. I am so sorry for the position he has put you in.”
Val patted the man on the cheek. “It is not your fault,” he said. “I do not compare you to your brother, you know that. Now, let me go inside and face du Reims.”
Calum let him go, watching him enter the dark keep and disappear inside. But his movements were not those of the Val he knew; they were lethargic, dragging. Calum didn’t blame him. But he did blame his brother. On the heels of his deep shock came anger such as he’d never experienced before. It was consuming as well as terrifying, especially when taken in context with what the future held.
His brother was going to sink them all.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“At least youhave grandchildren,” Margaretha was saying to Tevin over a pitcher of very fine red wine from Spain that she only brought out for special guests. It was very sweet and she’d had too much of it. When Tevin mentioned his multiple grandchildren, Margaretha seized on it. “Valor is thirty-four years of age and has not even married yet. I will be in my grave before I ever see my first grandchild at the rate he is going.”
Tevin had known Lady de Nerra through her husband, Sir Gavin, although he’d not seen her in years. She was a handsome woman with pale eyes and smooth skin, and she was also quite forthright, something that reminded him a great deal of his own wife. He’d been sitting with Lady de Nerra for the better part of an hour and found her to be quite funny at times.
“Give him time, Lady de Nerra,” he said patiently. “Most knights that I know do not have marriage on their minds, merely glory. Val has a very important royal appointment and it is good that his focus is on that for now.”
Margaretha frowned. “Pah!” she said. “He is more loyal to Henry than to his family.”
“I doubt that.”
“Then where are my grandchildren?”
Tevin couldn’t help but chuckle. “Then mayhap you should help him,” he suggested. “Find him a wife.”
Margaretha rolled her eyes. “I could bring him the most beautiful and eligible woman in England and, because I selected her, he would turn his nose up at her,” she said, watching Tevin laugh. “You have sons of your own, my lord. Tell me they would not do the same thing if you selected their bride.”
Tevin thought of his own sons, five of them, in fact. “My three eldest are married,” he said. “I helped arrange the contract but I allowed my sons the final word. My younger two have not yet married, but I am sure they will at some point.”
Margaretha cocked an eyebrow. “Were any of them thirty-four years when the married?”
Tevin shook his head. “Nay,” he said. He drained the wine in his cup. “This is very fine wine, by the way. Where did you acquire it?”
Margaretha’s eyes narrowed. “Do not change the subject,” she said. “I implore you, as a father of five sons, how would you handle any son that did not wish to marry at the advanced age my son is?”
Tevin was coming to feel rather bad for Val, with such a persistent mother. But before he could answer her, he heard boot falls at the chamber entrance.
“Good God, Mother,” Val entered the room, his unhappy gaze on his mother. “Isthatwhat you have been discussing with Lord du Reims in my absence? I cannot tell you how ashamed I am.”
Tevin stood up as Val approached, grinning at the man. “Do not be,” he said. “My wife does the same thing. ’Tis good to see you, Val. You are looking well.”
