Before Kress could reply, Achilles was going for his sword and Susanna, seeing his movement in her periphery, vaulted from the bench and ended up several feet away, her skirts up around her waistline to reveal that she was wearing leather breeches and a broadsword strapped to her waist underneath. Her hand was on the hilt of her sword and the gemstone eyes were fixed on her opponent, but before Achilles could charge her, Cadelyn stood up and put her hands out.
“Cease!” she commanded in a tone that one could not have imagined to come from a slender young woman. “Susanna is quite capable of taking you on in a fight but I will not permit that to happen, not at this moment. We have more important things to deal with than her bold tongue and a man’s wounded pride, so keep your weapons in their sheaths. Susanna, go stand by the hearth. I will not have you provoking these men.”
Susanna immediately turned for the hearth, going to stand where she had been told. She was quite obedient. Achilles, however, was furious. His eyes spit venom at the woman as she quite calmly met his gaze. There was absolutely no fear there.
Kress could see that. In truth, it was impressive. If the woman had the skills to back up that unruly mouth, then she would be a fearsome creature, indeed. His gaze lingered on her for a moment before turning to Achilles.
“Sit down,” he muttered.
Achilles did as he was told, but he was clearly unhappy about it. Furthermore, he refused to turn his back on Susanna, so he moved to the other side of the table where he could face her to ensure she didn’t try to move on him with his back turned. He ended up sitting next to Alexander, who shook his head reproachfully at the young knight.
If there was a fight to be had, anywhere, Achilles was usually in the middle of it. That was simply his nature. Man or woman, Achilles would not back down from a fight. But Alexander could see– they all could see– that perhaps Achilles and Susanna were going to have to be watched so they didn’t try to kill each other. The tension between the pair was obvious.
In fact, Kress was wondering just how closely they were going to have to watch the pair. As Achilles settled down next to Alexander, Kress leaned in to the man.
“I want no trouble out of you,” he said quietly. “Do you understand me?”
Achilles took a deep, calming breath. “Aye.”
Kress didn’t push him, but he was fairly certain Achilles didn’t mean it. His attention moved to Susanna, standing over by the hearth.
“You are under my command, my lady,” he said to her. “Do you understand that?”
Susanna nodded firmly. “I do, my lord.”
“One more infraction against any of us and I will leave you behind. Is that clear?”
It was the first time Kress saw any reaction from the woman. Her jaw tightened, but that was all. Her response was calm.
“It is, my lord.”
Kress studied her for a brief moment, to see if he could spot any hint of rebellion from her, before returning his gaze to Cadelyn. The woman had just resumed her seat and she was looking at him with a hint of what he thought might have been an apologetic expression. Kress didn’t further address the situation; for the moment, he let it slide.
But he had a feeling this wouldn’t be the last of it.
“Now, my lady, if we may concentrate on the situation at hand,” he said. “Your betrothed is expecting you shortly, bysummer, so I will give you two days to say your farewells and pack your belongings. We have no time to waste.”
Cadelyn stared at him. “Twodays?” she said, aghast. “But… but it will take far longer for me to pack my belongings. You cannot ask me to pack up my life in two days!”
Kress tried to be patient. “You have known we were coming for quite some time,” he said. “You should have been at least moderately packed.”
Cadelyn blinked as if surprised he should say such a thing. In fact, Susanna had said the exact same thing to her, but she wouldn’t acknowledge that. She wouldn’t even hint at it. She was still muddled from the very moment of coming into the hall and realizing the handsome knight she’d flirted with in Lynn, and given that lewd poem card to, was, in fact, her escort to Chester.
Oh, the foolish luck!
Cadelyn should have been embarrassed about the situation but, in truth, she wasn’t. She wasn’t sorry she’d given him the poem in the least. If anything, she was coming to realize that she was glad she had. She took a moment to look him over as she sat there, feeling both contrite and defiant about her packing status.
Kress…
His name was Kress. When she’d met him in Lynn, he’d had his hauberk on, but not his helm, and that had given her a good view of his handsome face. Square-jawed, with a blond beard covering it, a straight nose and big, blue eyes. He had lovely eyes. Now that the hauberk was peeled back, she could see that he had cropped, damp blond hair on his head to match his beard. The man was positively golden with all of that blond hair, and quite attractive.
All that attractiveness wanted her to be packed up in a mere two days.
“I have been at Castle Rising for many years,” she said after a moment. “My entire life is here. Of course I knew you werecoming, but I did not know exactly when, so I have not moved swiftly with my packing. There are things I must leave behind and things I wish to take. Are we traveling with a wagon?”
Kress shrugged, looking to Padraig. “I did not bring one,” he said. “I was assuming the lady would ride a palfrey, but if you have a wagon to spare, she can ride in that with her belongings.”
Padraig looked over at Cadelyn. “What do you prefer, my lady?”
