WolfeLord by Kathryn Le Veque

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

She didn’t much like the knights’ quarters.

That was where male visitors were housed, including Gar. The entire structure was low-ceilinged and smelled of mold. It had a dark, dank feel to it and the chambers were very small, barely big enough for a bed.

Adria found her father in one of these tiny cells.

The door was partially open because the building had ventilation problems, so the door was open to help air circulate. Therefore, Adria didn’t have to knock. She saw her father through the open door as she approached, sitting on the bed and looking at something in his hands.

She stepped into the chamber.

“I was told you were still here,” she said.

Gar’s head snapped up, his features registering surprise. “Aye, I’m still here,” he said. “I… I could not leave until you and I made peace. I did not want to leave with our last words being harsh ones.”

Adria wasn’t convinced. “You told Lord Irthington that you were feeling ill.”

“I was. Ill that we had such harsh words between us.”

Adria had come to his chamber with a purpose and it wasn’t to make peace. She wanted him gone, now more than ever, and she was going to make sure he understood that.

No more excuses.

“As long as we do not have another discussion like the one in kitchen yard, there will be peace,” she said. “I’ve come to tell you that you are to leave on the morrow.”

Gar didn’t react to that directive right away. He simply looked at her, shrugged, and looked at what he’d been holding in his hands. He held it up, a small, brown, leather-bound book.

“Do you remember this?” he asked. “It is your prayer book, from when you were a child. I always travel with it.”

Adria did indeed recognize it. “I wondered what happened to it,” she said. “I have not seen it in years.”

“I had it,” Gar said. “It reminds me of… better days.”

Adria could understand that. “I am glad it gives you some comfort,” she said. “But you are still to leave on the morrow. If you do not go of your own free will, you will be forcibly escorted out.”

The pleasant expression faded from his features. “But I am not well.”

“You are well enough.”

“You would cast your own father aside when he is ill?”

She was losing her patience. “You are not ill,” she said. “You simply want to remain here and become a burden to Irthington’s good graces, which I will not allow. I do not want you here, Gar. I have told you that.”

She couldn’t even bring herself to address him as her father any longer. The man was a nuisance and a burden, and she was tired of it. He had become Gar to her. There was too much going on at Carlisle to accommodate his particular brand of foolery and she wanted him gone and out of her life, but that was more than likely too much to ask.

“I am your father and I have every right to be here,” he said. “Our business is not concluded, Adria, not in the least. There is still the matter of a marriage…”

She cut him off. “There will be no marriage to those you spoke to,” she said. “I do not want to hear another word about it. You will leave at sunrise or I will have you bodily thrown from Carlisle.”

With that, she turned on her heel, heading out of the knights’ quarters.

Tossing the prayer book aside, Gar went in pursuit.

Adria didn’t know her father was behind her until the man grasped her by the arm. Startled that someone was touching her, Adria yanked her arm free and spun around, fists balled, only to see Gar standing behind her.

Her eyes narrowed.

“You will not touch me,” she hissed. “I told you that once. Do it again and I will find the nearest weapon and use it on you.”

Gar wouldn’t be intimidated. In fact, he’d had quite enough of his daughter’s attitude. “There is no knight to save you now,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “I am your father. In this world, a man’s word is law and I will no longer tolerate your refusals. I do not care who accepts my offer first, but whoever it is, you shall marry. If you refuse to do it, I shall take my case to the church and they will force you.”

Adria stood her ground. “I told you I would join the cloister before I allow you to marry me off like a prized mare.”

“Do you really think they’ll accept your pledge when I tell them of your disobedient and stubborn nature?”

She cocked an eyebrow. “Then I’ll run away to someplace where you cannot find me,” she said. “This is a battle you cannot win, so I suggest you not try. Leave me alone, Gar. That is all I ask.”

Gar took a menacing step in her direction. “I’ll teach you who is in command of your destiny, you silly cow. I’ll…”

“My lady?”

They both stopped in their brewing battle, turning to see Scott standing a few feet away. He was looking at them with a mixture of curiosity and concern, a very big knight who happened to be armed. Wearing a broadsword in a sheath at his side was as natural as breathing, but to Gar, it signaled danger. Yet another Carlisle knight to protect Adria. As he stepped back from his daughter, Adria forced a smile.

“My lord,” she said. “This… this is my father, Lord Alcester. Father, this is Baron Kilham, Lord Irthington’s father.”

Gar blinked in surprise. “De Wolfe?” he said. “You are a de Wolfe brother?”

Scott nodded. “I am,” he said, looking Gar up and down. “I had heard you were here.”

“Indeed?” Gar seemed excited about that. “I came to see my daughter, of course, but we have family business to attend to.”

“Of course you do. I’ll not keep you.”

He started to turn away, but Gar stopped him. “Sir Ronan’s father is your brother, correct?”

Scott looked at him. “My younger brother, aye,” he said. “You know Ronan?”

Gar shrugged. “We have met,” he said. “We have business together that I should like to discuss with you.”

“Papa,” Adria said quickly, putting herself between Gar and Scott. “Baron Kilham is much too busy to discuss business that does not concern him.”

Gar knew she was trying to prevent him from bringing up a betrothal, but he wasn’t going to let her. “Surely Baron Kilham has an interest in his own nephew’s future,” he said. “Especially when the man could inherit a title by marrying you. Surely he will put in a good word to his brother.”

Adria was so embarrassed that she prayed the ground would open up and swallow her. But that wasn’t possible, so she did the only thing she could do. She looked straight at Scott, knowing she had to tell the man the truth. She knew that he was aware of Lily’s request of her and Will because Will had told her. She didn’t know Scott personally, but if he was anything like his son, she knew that he must be a noble and understanding man.

She prayed her assumption was correct.

“My father feels that I am too old to be unmarried, my lord,” she said plainly, even if it was a bit of a lie. “Because of that, he has been made attempts with Ronan and Hermes to offer a marriage contract even though I have told him to cease. I have also instructed him to leave, several times, and he has refused. It should be noted that he does not know of current events at Carlisle. He knows nothing.”

The words hung in the air between them and, after a few moments, Scott’s eyebrows lifted in understanding.

“I see,” he said, focused on her in a way that suggested he did indeed comprehend what she was trying to tell him. His attention shifted to Gar. “My lord, Ronan is too young to marry, so I will not speak to my brother on such an issue. As for Hermes, his father has his own plans for him. If you wish to broach the subject with Hector de Norville, then I suggest you go to Northwood Castle. It is unwise to discuss the issue directly with Hermes.”

Rebuked, Gar didn’t seem particularly dissuaded, but he did seem annoyed. Mostly at his daughter for opposing him in front of someone as important as Scott de Wolfe.

“Then I seem to have troubled you, my lord,” he said. It sounded like an apology, but it wasn’t even close. “Forgive me then. Thank you for your time.”

With that, he turned away with the intention of returning to the knights’ quarters, but Scott stopped him.

“You have been asked to leave,” he said. “It would be the polite thing to do, since you are here on my son’s good graces.”

Gar’s pleasant expression was completely gone. “Can a man not visit with his daughter?”

“She says that she has asked you to leave. I would say that your visit is over.”

Gar didn’t say a word; he just continued walking. Both Scott and Adria watched him as he headed back to the knights’ quarters, disappearing into the small, stone building. When he was out of sight, Scott turned to Adria.

“We’ve not met formally, my lady,” he said.

Adria sighed heavily, smiling as if hoping he’d see the humor in the situation. “And this was not the way I had planned it, my lord,” she said. “I sincerely apologize for my father. I am his only child and he can be quite… stubborn. He has plans that I do not agree with.”

Scott put up a hand to ease her. “Not to worry, truly,” he said. But his gaze remained fixed on her for a moment. “Will told me about Lily’s request. Clearly, your father does not know.”

Adria shook her head. “He does not,” she said. “If I do marry your son, then I suppose he will know at some point, but not now.”

“Why not? It is clear that he is trying to broker a betrothal right now. Would it not be better for him to know?”

Adria averted her gaze, sadly. “I do not know, my lord,” she said honestly. “You may as well know that my father, although titled, is not a noble man at heart. He squandered the family fortune and looks at any marriage as a chance to regain coinage to feed his bad habits, mostly gambling. That is why he is trying so hard to find a husband for me – he wants a man he can bleed money from.”

Scott nodded faintly. “I see,” he said. “Does Will know this?”

“He told me that he can handle my father.”

“He can.”

Adria swallowed hard, lifting her eyes to meet his. “If your son has told you anything about our discussions about Lily’s wish, then you must know that I have been reluctant,” she said. “Much of the reluctance is because of my father. It is not fair to Will to have to deal with a shameful father-in-law, but Will does not seem to care.”

A gleam came to Scott’s eyes. “Rather than hide the truth, you have come forth with it,” he said. “Rather than accept Lily’s request with any hint of deceit on your part, you are completely truthful about the challenges Will may face even though it may cost you an excellent position. You are to be commended.”

She smiled timidly. “He has suffered through one unhappy marriage,” she said. “I would not want to be the cause of another. He must know that I come with an ambitious, greedy father.”

“He does now.”

“And I am sorry for it, truly,” she said. “That is why I have asked my father to leave. I want him to be home when he receives word that Will and I have married, if we marry. I do not want him here where he can start his campaign of begging money from my new husband.”

Scott cocked his head thoughtfully. “Why do you say ‘if’ you marry?”

Adria shrugged. “Lily has not yet given birth,” she said. “A miracle could still happen.”

Scott forced a smile, not wanting to delve into why that was more than likely not going to happen. “I appreciate your optimism,” he said. “And I look forward to more conversations with you, Lady Adria.”

Her smile turned genuine. “As do I, my lord,” she said. “Now, I must see to Atticus and Lily, in that order. When your grandson is out of my sight for too long, I worry that he is off burning down a village somewhere.”

Scott laughed softly. “A reasonable and completely understandable fear where he is concerned,” he said. “If you need help taming him, please send for me. Good day to you, my lady.”

“And to you, my lord.”

With that, Scott and Adria went their separate ways, but with a better understanding between them. At least, Adria felt better about it. If she could only get her father out of Carlisle, then perhaps she’d feel better all the way around.

You are to be commended.

Perhaps she was, but she was still nervous that her father wasn’t finished with her yet.