She felt some hope in that. “Do you think these wars may finally come to an end?”
“Anything is possible.”
“Will we return home to England when it is over?”
“You do not want to stay in France?”
She shook her head. “I want to go home.”
He understood. With a kiss to her hand, he rose from the bed and took his cup back over to the wine. He was preparing to pour himself another measure when he glanced out of the window and noticed that there was some activity in the bailey. He could see Dylan and Alex chatting with Stefan, who had just come down off the wall. Having been asleep most of the morningand then lingering with womenfolk for the past hour, he thought perhaps it was time to make his presence known and meet with his men. He set the cup down.
“I will return in a while,” he told Ellowyn. “I have not seen my castle in several weeks so it is time to make my rounds.”
Ellowyn grinned as she continued to knit. “It is falling apart at the seams,” she told him saucily. “I have been running it into the ground and taking great delight in ruining your empire.”
He scowled, though it was without force. “Naughty wench.”
She giggled. Winking at her, Brandt quit the chamber and headed out to the dusty, windy bailey.
It would be the calm before the greatest storm of all.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
“Patrols returning fromthe north have reported a large army heading our way,” Brennan said. “They are moving in the dead of night, my lord. That speaks of determination.”
Having been woken out of a deep sleep by Brennan, who had the night watch, Brandt stood in the corridor outside of the chamber he shared with Ellowyn. It was close to midnight and the passageway was dim and quiet. Rubbing his eyes, he appeared weary but the mind was sharp. It was already calculating the situation.
“Standards?”
“It was difficult to see beneath the moon glow, but he thought he caught thefleur de lis.”
Brandt stopped rubbing his eyes and looked at him. “Fleur de lis?” he repeated, somewhat incredulous. “Is it Jean?”
“The army is large enough, my lord. Thousands, at the very least.”
“Coming here, did you say?”
“Their path will take them to our doorstep.”
Brandt let out a hiss. “Someone told him I had come home,” he muttered. “This was planned, don’t you see? They knew I had separated myself from Edward. They’ve come to destroy me or at the very least, weaken me and keep me from joining up with Edward.”
“The king has many spies in our camp, just as we have spies in his,” Brennan replied quietly. “The king was already heading south towards Poitiers. It would not have taken much for him to alter his course and head for Melesse.”
Brandt could see the logical tactics taking place. He understood them implicitly. “How much time do we have?”
“They will be here by dawn.”
“Which was, no doubt, part of their plan.” Brandt was on the move, heading to the spiral stairs that led down to the first level and the keep entry. “Rouse the rest of the knights. Everyone has their assigns posts. I want everything bottled up tightly and if I know Jean, he is particularly fond of flaming projectiles. Make sure the thatched roofs of the stables and trade shacks are thoroughly watered down. He will try to burn us out but we will not allow it. Hurry, Brennan, there is no time to waste.”
Brennan ran off as Brandt continued down to the living level of the keep. He continued outside in the dead cold night, heading to the armory and listening to the sounds of the castle as the knights began to rouse it for battle. He could hear men moving and shouting, wagons moving, and servants as they were given orders. Already, the smell of battle was in the air. He could feel the energy rise.
In the armory, he donned his armor with the help of the sleepy squires. Straps were secured, weapons checked. He was very calm, as he usually was before a battle, because he knew only calm heads would survive. He intended to survive.
Ellowyn.
He paused in his dressing, thinking of his wife asleep in their chamber and struggling not to feel fear on her behalf. He had time to remove her from Melesse, but the closest trustworthy shelter was at least four or five hours away through the dead of night. He wasn’t sure that was a safer option than barricading her up inside of a keep that had withstood many sieges. Melesse was built for battle. After much internal debate, he decided the safer option was to keep her at the castle.
Fully dressed, the Black Angel emerged from the armory and headed towards the keep. By now, the entire castle had beenalerted and men were running about in organized chaos. Brandt made his way across the bailey, now lit with hundreds of torches burning brightly into the night, and took the stairs to the keep.
