“Fitting, don’t you think?”
“Definitely,” Creston said. “But how does Lia fit into this plan?”
Amir’s dark eyes glimmered. “Think about it,” he said. “If your wife goes to visit her mother and grandfather, it will not raise any suspicion. You will go with her under the guise of visiting Axen Castle, which will be yours one day. A reasonable pretext, is it not? De Bulverton will not be suspicious in the least.”
Creston could see the logic. “Probably not,” he said. “Then what?”
“We will travel with you,” Ming Tang said. “All of us, your cousin and de Lohr included. We will not be bringing an army. Nothing that will announce we have come. But we will hide on the outskirts of the village while you and your wife gain access to de Bulverton’s castle. You will proceed to have a peaceful visit while the rest of us lie in wait for St. Abelard to appear. When he does, it will be your duty to make sure we gain admission to de Bulverton’s castle. Once we are in, you will take your wife tosafety and we will capture de Bulverton and deliver him to St. Abelard, who will do as he wishes with him. The man is trying to destroy us to punish the Hellions, after all. Let de Bulverton face St. Abelard, as a man would.”
Creston sighed sharply. “He is not a man, he is a viper,” he said. “But now that I hear of the plan, I understand it better. I suppose I owe de Lohr an apology.”
Ming Tang grinned. “I would not worry about it,” he said. “He understands why he upset you. But a word indicating you do not hold a grudge would be appreciated, I am sure.”
Now that his fits of rage had died down, Creston was feeling weary. Weary and worried, a combination he was not used to. None of this was anything he was used to, and he didn’t like it in the least. Scratching his blond head, he pushed himself off the wall.
“I’ll do my best,” he said. “It would probably be best if I consult with him on the details of this operation. This is what I instruct my recruits on—interrogation, dealing with an enemy, anything underhanded or dark. I can handle any torture, under any conditions, and I do my job well. But involve my wife in a scheme and it’s like I forget who I am. But I will remember. Preserving Blackchurch, preserving our home, means we must defend it. And it means this threatwillbe avenged.”
Amir smiled faintly. “Spoken like our Avenger,” he said softly. “Even if it means the death of your wife’s grandfather?”
“Even if it means that,” Creston muttered. Then he held up a hand as if to beg forgiveness. “But I want to be clear.Veryclear. If St. Abelard takes de Bulverton away as his captive, I will not assume the mantle of the Earl of Sidbury. No matter what the man has done, I am not doing this to usurp the man’s title. I am doing this to protect Blackchurch. I am doing this to protect the life I am building with the most wonderful woman in England.Damn the man for trying to destroy it just to exact his petty revenge.”
No one could disagree with him. Amir put a hand on his shoulder.
“What will you tell your wife?” he asked. “I am all for protecting women, but she must know. For her own safety, she must. And if it were my wife, I might teach her some ways to protect herself against her grandfather. If the man has any hint that you know what he’s done, the stakes may turn… deadly.”
That was true. If they were about to head into a difficult situation, then Ophelia had to know why simply to protect herself. Sending her in blind would be the worst thing he could do. Creston snorted softly.
“I’ve trained hundreds of men, and women, over the years,” he said. “It never occurred to me that I would be in the position of training my wife to a certain extent. Lia has a level head—she’ll be able to take instruction. She’s not the fearful type.”
“That is wise,” Ming Tang said. “You may not be with her every moment of every day, so she will need to know how to handle herself, or the situation, if you are not with her.”
Creston nodded, thinking of that petite, lovely woman in his cottage, waiting for him to return home.Waiting for him. That was the sweetest thing in the world, but now, with this crisis, he felt the urge to get home to her more strongly than he ever had.
“I know,” he said. “Let me speak with de Lohr first and then I will head back to my cottage. Do we have a timeline of when all of this is supposed to happen?”
The three of them turned for the solar door. “It will take at least three days for a missive to reach Plymouth,” Amir said. “If St. Abelard is not there, then it will be another two days to Falmouth. If he still cannot be found, then it simply depends on when the messenger can find him. I have suggested to St. Denis to send more than one messenger. That way, any of St. Abelard’sknown ports can be covered in a short amount of time, rather than one man trying to hunt him down.”
“Agreed,” Creston said. “It could take days or it could take months.”
“Months we do not have,” Ming Tang said quietly.
Amir opened the door to the solar, revealing the group beyond. All eyes turned to them as they entered, most especially to Creston. He locked eyes with Myles, but before he could say anything, Payne was suddenly in his path.
“Do ye know what the man said about the Demons of the Sea?” he nearly shouted at Creston. Then he threw a finger in Myles’ direction. “He’s said they’re a gang of misfits and rogues. Sin is about tae kill the man, so if ye want tae throttle him, we’ll help ye!”
Payne was always excitable in any given situation, but in this case, it was justified. Astria, his wife, was a former pirate, although she did return to sea from time to time, and Sinclair’s wife, Elisiana, was a cousin to Santiago de Fernandez, the fearsome leader of the pirate group called Demons of the Sea. Blackchurch had a history with them. But Creston wouldn’t be riled up, not again, so he grabbed Payne by the neck and pulled the man back as he addressed Myles.
“De Lohr, I’m afraid you’ve stirred a hornet’s nest,” he said. “I apologize for my behavior earlier. It’s simply that I am, naturally, quite protective of my wife and I do not want to see her put in any danger.”
Myles nodded, accepting the apology. “I was clumsy about it,” he said. “I am not married and I should have been more sensitive. As for the pirates… I did not realize Triton’s Hellions was the only faction Blackchurch was related to.”
Creston nodded, eyeing Sinclair, who was standing several feet away and glaring at Myles. “That was the hornet’s nest I referred to,” he said. “I know you did not mean to upset some ofus, but everything you’ve spoken of has involved the women we are married to. We are, if nothing else, a very loyal bunch when it comes to our wives.”
St. Denis intervened, his hand lifted to halt any further conversation because this entire situation was already out of control and he didn’t want it growing worse. “I’ve told him,” he said. “He knows it now, so there will be no more insulting pirates around here if he wants to keep his head.”
Creston still had his hand on Payne’s neck to prevent the man from running amok. “Payne’s mother was none other than Bloody Maude, the Pirate Queen,” he said to Myles. “She was the leader of Medusa’s Disciples until her death. It is now led by Payne’s brother, Pope Francis. Did anyone tell you that?”
Myles shook his head, eyeing the big Scotsman. “Nay, they did not,” he said. “We only discussed the Spanish pirates. But I wish they had told me everything. Now I am standing in the middle of the hornet’s nest, and I hope I do not have to jump out of the window to escape with my life.”
