“I am,” Gareth answered.
“You are here!” Hereward pointed out with a frustrated shout. “A hundred yards away from her. You cannot stop a dagger from here, you fool.”
“Cedric wants the throne. To have it, he must kill the king, the king’s children, and me,” Gareth argued. “He wants that even more than his war. But he knows he cannot fight me without Madoc at his side. He knows it, Hereward. He won’t risk losing Madoc’s allegiance.” When Hereward still didn’t look convinced, Gareth continued. “Madoc has my command to kill Cedric if he touches her. We’ll kill them all if we must, but it will bring war. I set my course to stop Cedric once and for all many months ago, and only if she’s harmed will I alter it.” Gareth’s eyes grew hard with unshakable resolve. “You must not try to stop what Madoc and I have begun. We must bring proof of Prince Daffyd’s intent against my uncle. We must stop them from killing the king and his family. If my brother succeeds, he’ll have the armies of the north behind him and he’ll decimate the Norman marcher lords first. But war with William won’t be fought in England. The Normans will come here, andmypeople will die. I cannot allow that to happen.”
“So you risk her life for the people.” Hereward threw at him, his voice riddled with resignation to the truth and disgust.
“I didn’t want her to be a part of this, Hereward. But she is, and now, even more than before, I cannot steer from my course. I want to give her a future without bloodshed and sorrow, famine and death. I set my eyes to that course when I was ten and introduced to a girl with a dimple in her cheek. I won’t veer away.”
The fierce determination in Gareth’s voice was unmovable. Hereward knew he would have to kill him in order to rescue Tanon. Lowering his head, he muttered a low oath. He really didn’t want to kill Gareth. He was fond of the bastard. He also understood all too well the horrors of war. The Normans had killed his brother, a simple farmer, when they had first come to England, setting him on a path of destruction that lasted over a decade. The Risandes’ young sister, Katherine, had also been killed by the Saxons. Innocents died when kings battled. And battle seemed inevitable here, unless Gareth could stop Cedric and Dafydd.
Hereward studied the man in front of him. A prince of the south, who would do anything to keep his people safe from war, even wed a Norman. But…he loved her, had loved her, it seemed, since he was a boy. Had this young prince truly set his steps on this path since then? He was the famedWyfyrn, a warlord who, as of yet, had never lost a single battle. If anyone could keep Tanon safe and stop an army bent on killing a king, it was Gareth. Leave it to a cunning serpent to outwit a jackal.
“Very well,” Hereward dusted off his breeches and retrieved his sword. “I’ll not stand in your way. Damn me, but you make perfect sense.” He drew in a tight breath, knowing he had to be daft to go along with this madness. “Your reputation for finesse does not exceed you. One more question before I place my neck on Lord Risande’s chopping block by allowing this. Does she know that Madoc has not deceived you?”
“Nay.” Gareth answered, his eyes shadowed with deep regret. “She knows nothing. It’s safer for her.”
“Aye, it is.” Hereward ran his hand over the dark auburn bristles on his chin. A pensive frown creased his thick brows. “Ioan told me that Cedric’s attempted assassination would occur when you and your uncle were together. How will that happen if you are here?”
Gareth cast Hereward an impatient look. “You said one question.”
“I am not known for being all that truthful,” Hereward said with a shrug of his broad shoulders. “I’m curious to know why you’re hiding in the woods while your king awaits your protection.”
Without saying a word, Gareth turned his gaze toward Tanon growing smaller in the distance.
“I see.” Hereward sighed. “I was right then. She has come to mean more to you than the peace you seek. Come then.” The Saxon pushed him toward their horses, his beard not quite concealing his faint smile when Gareth nodded. “Let us watch over her together, and when the time comes, I will help you impale some heads on pikes to decorate your courtyard. And may God have mercy on us both if her father ever finds out about this.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Aveil ofcharcoal clouds rolled across the vast swath of sky, dulling the light of a pale crescent moon and darkening the rising hilltop, where Tanon stood with Cedric and the others, with shifting shadows.
“Soon I’ll rule all of Deheubarth, and then I’ll defeat the Normans and cross Offa’s Dyke.”
Tanon looked up at the man standing beside her. Cedric stared at the distant fortress bathed in the illuminating incandescence of thousands of torches. His dark eyes reflected the flickering lights like an unholy fire burning from within. A tight grin, mirroring his macabre thoughts, snaked over his lips.
“You think to kill King William next and take over England?” Tanon found it difficult to mask her mocking expression. “You forget William’s elite commanders, as well as the king’s own sons. Rufus is especially unkind to his enemies.”
Cedric turned to her and angled his head, his mouth carved in amused disdain. “Woman, I too can be quite unkind, as you will no doubt discover.”
She ached to tell him that she already knew he was an uncouth, unkind, brazen barbarian, but she doubted Madoc could stop him again if he tried to strike her. She looked away from his wry smirk instead and returned her gaze to the fortress.
The grand structure was built upon a motte at least thirty feet in height. A wooden tower jutted upward at the fortress’ right, both overlooking the high ramparts constructed of wood and sandstone boulders that encircled an enormous bailey below. A palisade of timber planks with sharpened points was hammered into the top of the motte around its perimeter, while another tall timber wall encircled the bailey. Tanon could make out tiny figures moving about along the causeway that gave access to the bailey from the motte, and more men patrolling the land from the walkways behind the palisades.
“However do you hope to get past the king’s guards?” Tanon asked.
“They don’t expect us,” Cedric’s smile was laced with arrogance. “They won’t even realize we have breached the walls until it’s too late. Tomorrow we’ll dress ourselves as musicians and gain entrance into the town without lifting a sword. My uncle has an affinity for music. If the gods look favorably upon me, we will be brought directly to the king and his regent, kill them and any soldiers who are with them, and leave in the same fashion we entered without anyone knowing we were there. ThoseTeuluwe kill will be named heroes for defending their king and losing their lives to the king’s assassin.”
“And who is the king’s assassin?” Tanon asked, staring up at Cedric’s strong profile, so much like Gareth’s.
He looked at her from the corner of his eye. “Why, Gareth, of course.”
Tanon’s lips tightened into a thin line. She knew he had told her too much to let her live. He had to know she would never allow Gareth to be blamed for killing King Rhys. She would probably never leave those walls alive once she entered them. Cedric wanted to go to war with the Normans. Killing her would ensure that. Her mind told her that Cedric was a fool for believing he could even strike a blow to her husband. But Cedric had Madoc at his side…and Prince Dafydd. Did all Welsh princes move in battle like Gareth? How skillful was the Prince of the North? He’d managed to capture Gareth and imprison him in his dungeon. Could Dafydd fight Gareth and win?
She almost wished her nagging suspicions were correct. If Gareth were aware of this heinous plot, he would be prepared for it. Killing him would be that much more difficult. Of course, if he knew, it would mean that he also knew that Madoc had brought her to Cedric, and that Cedric planned to kill her.Non,she told herself for the hundredth time. Gareth wouldn’t be so willing to let her die. He would never have left her alone with his enemy for almost a se’nnight, not knowing, not caring what became of her. Would he?
“You won’t kill him,” Tanon said quietly. “And even if you do, King William will never believe that Gareth killed his uncle.”
Cedric laughed. “I don’t care what William believes. I need theCymryon my side. When they learn that their beloved prince has murdered their king, they’ll accept me back into their arms.”