Sorry for the delay. RL Work got in the way.

DAUGHTER OF EREBUS
By TIPPER

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CHAPTER FOUR: KING OF FOOLS

Gwen was twisting the ring around her finger, sitting very still and very straight in her chair in the council chambers. Doing his duty as king, Arthur had been forced to recall the High Council into session, to complete the day's agenda, but it was pretty clear, at least to her, that he was barely paying attention. The others seemed fooled, however. Any why not—to them, their work was done. Unlike Arthur, they were used to sitting back and letting others fight their battles. Arthur, she knew, desperately missed the freedom he'd had when he was prince to be out there with his men.

For her part, she watched the women around her, trying to catch one of them in a lie or a question. She hadn't told Arthur yet, but one of them had something to do with Merlin's abduction, she was certain. She just had to figure out which one.

Lady Perrin seemed the most obvious. She'd joined the afternoon session, looking none the worse for wear. Her outfit was a shiny, shiny blue—clearly it was new, and the jewelry dripping from her ears, neck and fingers belied the supposedly destitute state of the Perrin lands. Not to mention, the large blue ring on her finger easily matched the description Merlin had given. Plus…well, Gwen didn't like the Perrins. At all.

Lady Bailor was also a strong possibility. She hadn't shown up for the afternoon session, which made her even more suspicious. Fact was, her husband was a conniving jerk, always trying to gain an advantage, never above using people to get what he wanted. His wife wasn't much better, though Gwen had always felt some pity for the woman, having seen her crying often in her chambers when she thought no one of import was watching. His lordship was such an awful person that Lady Bailor clearly had to find happiness any way she could, often without her husband's permission. And that happiness could be bought with enough gold. More to the point, Lady Bailor was strong enough that she might be able to carry this sort of thing off all on her own.

Lady Humphries, on the other hand, had an air of fragility about her that was so pervasive, Gwen thought a harsh wind might blow her over. Like Gwen, she was the only one who seemed genuinely interested and involved with what the men were discussing. But she too wore a large blue ring, and, personal feelings aside, it could have been her. The Perrins needed gold to supplement their extravagance, Lady Bailor to find happiness. The Humphries needed gold to protect their lands from raids from Lot's kingdom. What if Arthur's denial of the extra military allotment was the cause of all this?

Which only left Lady Exestan. She too had also been missing from the morning session. But Lady Exestan was also almost seventy years old. Formidable as that woman was, was she up to something like this? So late in life? Then again, Merlin did say that the figure seemed hunched, as an older woman might be. But motive? That Gwen couldn't figure. Of the four, Lady Exestan seemed the most unlikely.

She sighed, shaking her head. If she was going to figure this out, she was going to need help, but how could she tell Arthur that she suspected one of the ladies of the court? Just on Merlin's word of a large blue ring?

She closed her eyes, trying to think of a better way to figure this out….

"What do you think, Sire?...Sire?...Sire, are you alright?"

Gwen's eyes popped open, and she looked to see Arthur look up from where he'd been sitting at the head of the table, chin balanced on his hand, blinking rapidly. Oh dear. She'd been wrong. He hadn't just been barely paying attention; he hadn't been paying attention at all. And when Gwen looked at the unimpressed faces of the High Council, it was fairly obvious they all knew it now. Arthur frowned, and stood up.

"My apologies, Lord Perrin," he said, looking down at the map of the kingdom. "Can you repeat what you just said?"

Lord Perrin smirked slightly, but did as he was asked, describing his suggestions for new supply routes through his kingdom. Arthur nodded when he was done.

"Sounds fine," he said, shrugging slightly.

"Sounds fine?" The Lord Gwent snapped. "Sire, not to be difficult, but these new routes add on hours to the lines. He's only suggesting them so he can avoid having anyone cutting through his precious new hunting grounds. It's utter nonsense! We need those routes to be as straight as possible, or my fishermen run the risk of losing half their wares to time-induced rot!"

"Nonsense!" Lord Perrin puffed. "How dare you! I chose routes based on topography, thinking of avoiding the many stark ravines and impassable rivers that crisscross my lands. My merchants need ease of passage as well!"

"Look," Gwent snapped, pointing to a dashed line on the map, "this route is perfectly passable, and—"

"Enough," Arthur said sharply, waving a hand between them. He sighed heavily, looked at the map, and then shook his head. "I am sorry, my lords, but my head is not in the game today." He pressed a hand to his forehead. "I suggest we leave the lines as they are for now, Lord Perrin, and then we revisit this in two months time, at the next session."

"But—" Lord Perrin began, but Arthur held up a hand, stopping him. The Lord Gwent scowled slightly, clearly not happy either that the issue wasn't resolved.

"The decision is made."

"Perhaps a break is in order," Lord Exestan suggested, kindly.

"For the day," Lord Humphries stated, looking almost as pale as Arthur. "It's closing in on mid-afternoon. I believe we can resolve the remainder of our issues on the morn, during our last session."

Gwen didn't miss the grateful look Arthur gave the young lord, but she couldn't help but wonder if Humphries did that on purpose. Or Lord Exestan. Which was a horrible thought, because the two of them were amongst the most genteel of the lords.

She rubbed a hand across the back of her neck, hating having to even think this way about any of these people.

She stood and acknowledged the bows in her direction as Arthur agreed to the dismissal and the men filtered out. Arthur glanced at her, and raised his eyebrows in question—he was asking her permission to throw duty to the wind and join the search. At her nod, he flashed her a grateful smile and quickly strode out a different door, the one that led to his quarters, with George dutifully on his heels.

She sighed and looked around. Several of the ladies were still in the room, chatting, including Lady Perrin and The Lady Gwent. The two older women had wandered over to the table with Lady Fitzgerald and were looking down at the maps the men had left behind.

"Is it a nice area, the new hunting areas you've designated?" The Lady Gwent asked. Lady Perrin gave a shrug.

"You know hunting is not an interest of mine, Charlotte," she replied, sounding a little despondent. "Still, it would have been nice to have this subject resolved, for my lord's sake."

"My lord would have liked it resolved as well," The Lady Gwent said, glancing towards the doors through which most of the men had left. She shook her head. "All this consternation over one servant."

"Indeed," Lady Perrin said. "Isn't it enough that we've committed all our knights to this search? The King acts like it's not enough."

"It is very strange," Lady Fitzgerald said, huffing slightly, brushing a loose lock of gray hair from her face. "My Lord is most frustrated—I know he thought gifting his knights to aid in this minor happening would please his majesty, but it seems nothing will."

"Well," The Lady Gwent said, "I doubt my lord would have even thought of it, had young Lord Humphries not nearly shown us all up."

"I cannot believe this supposed kidnapping is having such an impact on the King," Lady Perrin sniffed. "Uther would never have permitted such a distraction."

"He wouldn't even have noticed it had happened." The Lady Gwent chuckled. "He knew the qualitative difference between nobility and the peasants."

Lady Perrin laughed. "And he knew better than anyone how nobility should be treated. With respect, not disdain." She shook her head. "This whole affair is…eye-opening. I fear for our kingdom's future, if this is how King Arthur intends to rule. Putting servants before taking care of his most loyal subjects."

The Lady Gwent looked at her, about to say something, when something must have clued her in to the fact that Gwen was still there. With deliberate slowness, she turned her head to look at the new Queen of Camelot, and raised her eyebrows as if to say, "case in point." Lady Perrin and Lady Fitzgerald both glanced at Gwen, but looked away quickly, as if she wasn't worth the effort.

"Ladies," Gwen said, moving forward to the table. "I suggest you either join your lords in their chambers, or find somewhere else to be. I do not believe you are welcome in this room anymore today."

Lady Fitzgerald drew herself up. "I do not—"

"Leave," Gwen ordered. "Now."

Lady Fitzgerald turned a lovely shade a pink, and Lady Perrin raised her nose in the air. Linking arms as if for support in the face of such rudeness, both strode out of the room without another word. The Lady Gwent smirked slightly, but made no move to leave.

"You sounded very commanding just then, you majesty."

Gwen inclined her head. "If the crown fits, Charlotte…." She frowned. "Which it does."

The Lady Gwent actually chuckled at that, and inclined her own head. "Well done." She turned to walk out of the room, and, like moths to a flame, the other lingering ladies fluttered around her, leaving the room simply because she was. On the threshold, The Lady Gwent turned and smiled at Gwen. "You'll make a queen yet, your majesty."

Gwen regarded her coolly, saying nothing as The Lady Gwent left her alone in the room.

As obnoxious as that exchange had been to overhear, it had told Gwen something rather important about her list of suspects.

And it was heartbreaking.

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Merlin had started to doze again, his arms having lost some of their feeling and his head aching a little from being sick earlier. Thankfully, the last lingering effects of Camilla's magic had finally faded. Although he still felt like a rag that had been beaten against a rock on wash day, he no longer felt sick. Just tired. If it weren't for the fact that he was surrounded by bandits and that he didn't know the extent of Camilla's powers (or even what she really was), he might have tried using magic to escape.

The stocky one—Aaron—had been kind, giving him water and cleaning his face, and Jason had, oddly, been entertaining, sitting with him the whole time and talking about nonsense, as if excited to have someone new to talk to. The other men were eating, gaming and joking, openly discussing their plans for getting in and out of the vaults this evening. They weren't hiding anything from Merlin, which, if what they said about Camilla's powers were true, made some sense.

It was strange—his earlier fears had abated somewhat, partly because he had his magic back, but also because it seemed that these people genuinely did not intend him harm—but he was still no closer to understanding why he was here. Or why Morgana might want him. Or just how dangerous Camilla was.

Time was ticking by—it was close to late afternoon—and Merlin wondered what Arthur was doing. Were they looking for him? He hoped not. He hoped Gwen had warned him to protect the vaults instead, because Merlin knew he could get away now, if he could just get a chance to—

"Is he here?" a new voice asked, strong and clear…and undeniably feminine. Merlin looked up, head turning towards the newcomer. He knew that voice.

And it was most definitely not Morgana's.

Malcon stood up from where he, Camilla and a couple of others had been discussing strategy. A figure in a dark cloak, the same cloak Merlin recalled from this morning, had ridden into the camp on a dark brown horse. Everyone in the camp stood at her appearance and a few—including Malcon and Camilla—actually bowed. Though, not as respectfully as they could have, Merlin noticed.

As she dismounted, tossing her reins to one of the thieves, the newcomer pushed her hood back, and Merlin's mouth dropped open. It couldn't be. Not her. Damn it, he'd liked her.

She walked into the camp, ignoring Malcon as the leader moved to meet her, her gaze clearly searching. When she found Merlin's face, she stopped.

And then she smiled. It was a nasty, nasty smile.

Until this moment, Merlin could never have imagined that Lady Eleanor Humphries could have ever looked so ugly.

"Hello, Merlin," she cooed, pulling off her riding gloves and striding across to where he sat on the ground, as if she owned the entire camp. "How lovely to see you again." She smiled brightly, crouching down as if to scrutinize him more carefully. "How do you fare? Are you well?"

He blinked once. "Not so much," he deadpanned. "I've been kidnapped by thieves."

She nodded solemnly. "Indeed you have. My thieves. How astute of you to notice."

His brow furrowed. "Your thieves?"

"I am their patron, as my father was before me." Her smile faded. "If he hadn't died soon after wedding me to my 'precious' lord, he probably would be standing here instead of me." She stood, so that she was now looking down at him, clearly relishing the feeling of superiority it gave her.

"I don't understand," Merlin said, his mind spinning with confusion. "Why? Why would you need thieves?"

"Are you serious?" she asked, shaking her head. "Why else would one need thieves?" She tilted her head, her eyes bright with what he could only assume was avarice. "Because there's gold sitting inside Camelot's vaults, being wasted. And I want all of it."

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Gwen stood on the battlements, watching as Arthur rode out with a contingent of knights of mixed colors—mostly red, for Camelot, but also blue, green and yellow for Perrin, Exestan and Humphries. She wished them luck.

And she also wished herself luck.

The more she considered the members of the High Council and their wives, the more convinced Gwen became that the person she suspected was guilty. The fact was, none of the older members of the nobility would have done this—kidnapped Merlin to elicit a ransom—because they all thought as Uther had: that servants weren't important. But not all of the Lords and Ladies thought that way. And there were only two she could think of who could even conceive that Arthur might be willing to pay a literal king's ransom for a mere servant. Only two who understood that servants could also be friends.

The irony of it was sickening.

But Arthur would need proof beyond her suspicions (and, frankly, so did she), so she'd gone to the best network of spies Camelot had, calling in whatever friendships she still had left among the servants to get information. Once she knew who to focus on, they were able to corroborate that one of the Ladies had left the Castle this morning, and indeed, had left again about thirty minutes ago, by herself, for a ride to get some "air." They also corroborated nighttime walks around the castle, and other strange behavior. It quickly painted a picture of treachery that had made Gwen's stomach turn. Unfortunately, it was still only hearsay, and without something tangible, Arthur would never accuse the woman Gwen was now certain was behind everything.

And Gwen was determined not to let her get away with it.

"You sent for me, my lady?"

Gwen glanced at the Castle Steward, inclining her head. "Yes. I need your help. It's for Merlin."

The Steward straightened eagerly. "Anything you need."

"Anyone you can spare, I need them watching the forests and the roads from the battlements with the guards. One of our guests went out on a ride an hour or so ago. When she returns, I want you to tell me exactly what direction she rode in from."

The Steward frowned—he didn't need to be told who the woman was. They all likely knew by now. "As you wish." He took a step back, and then paused, uncertainty visible on his face. "Is…will knowing that help us find him?"

Gwen nodded. "I hope so. Also please inform me the moment any of the knight contingents return, or if Sir Leon returns from the Ridge of Chemary."

The Steward bowed. "I will do so immediately, your majesty."

To Gwen's ears, that was the first time he'd said her title and actually meant it. As he turned to leave, she returned her attention to the forests beyond the town's walls with only one thought on her mind.

If one hair on Merlin's head was hurt, she was going to prove just how well her crown fit; and there would be no place Lady Eleanor Humphries could hide.

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It felt like the world had turned upside down. Of all of them…of all of them, the one he'd liked the most was Lady Humphries. Like Gwen, she'd risen above her station, married for love, made a lady in the court of Camelot…. Why would she do this? What more could she want?

"Your father was a thief?" Merlin said, trying to make sense of this. "I thought he was a merchant."

Lady Eleanor's smile turned ugly. "Oh, he was a merchant, and a wealthy one. But he didn't make his money from selling wares. He made his money running this lot." She gestured to the thieves in the camp. "And he ran them so well, and garnered so much wealth, he was able to marry his only daughter into nobility. It was his dream." She snorted then. "For all the good it did me."

"He paid to marry you into nobility? But I thought…we all believed that you loved…. That it was your love for each other that softened Lord Humphries' father's heart, so that he permitted the marriage."

"Oh please. Eric's father was so desperate for the cash, he had to agree to the marriage, and my foolish father squandered everything we had made on the dowry, thinking that marrying me to a lord would mean I'd want for nothing for the rest of my life." She shook her head. "But all he did was marry me off to a hapless boy whose lands are perennially at war with the neighboring kingdom. Because of that, every penny we receive from your miserable Camelot goes to protecting the farmers and villages, and not one gold piece comes to us."

Merlin frowned. "That's not true. King Arthur sends a generous allotment every—"

"Generous? In his mind, maybe. You wouldn't say that if you saw how we live. I am forced to live in a castle that is falling apart, with a roof that leaks every time it rains, and windows that are held up more by boards than glass. We barely have enough servants to keep it running, our food is worse than a prisoner's rations, and our dungeons are overflowing with bandits, thieves and cutthroats, because Eric hasn't the time or energy to try them all." She knelt again. "Do you know what it's like, Merlin? Having your father give everything to see you succeed, only to see it all squandered on helping other people, protecting villages that no one cares about, while we shiver in a castle that hasn't been warm in six months?"

Merlin simply remained silent, though he'd felt his upper lip curl slightly. He'd been at the castle for the wedding last autumn—it had looked beautiful, bright and full of life. Plus…it was a castle. Not exactly a symbol of the impoverished.

"So I'm taking the money I need," Lady Humphries declared. "I'm taking gold that will be used to make the Humphries name great again, to restore our lands to their former glory and make us a force in court. And since neither King Arthur nor my husband will help to make that happen, I will do it myself." Her eyes shone with excitement. "And with enough wealth, and the king's own vaults stricken, we'd be able to undermine the king himself—he'd kneel at our feet, begging for money from us, instead of the other way around."

Merlin felt sick again, but not from illness. "And Lord Humphries doesn't know about this," he muttered.

"Eric? Are you kidding? He worships Arthur. The idiot. He thinks we can survive the way we are. I married a man whose sole ambition in life is to make everyone happy, even the servants. He doesn't want more, doesn't see the problem with how we live. Look at the way he treats you! He acts like you are one of his closest friends—a mere peasant boy." She shook her head. "He was so miserable when he found out what Arthur had done to you yesterday, blaming himself. And when he learned you'd been taken? Like the world had come to an end!" She sneered, lifting her chin so he could almost see up her nose. "I will not live like that. That is not what my father bred me for. I will be the most powerful lady at court, you'll see. The Lady Gwent will be the one fawning over me, not the other way around."

Merlin had rarely felt so badly betrayed. He had only met the Lady Eleanor twice, but both times she had seemed wonderful, a perfect wife for Lord Humphries, who really did deserve happiness. She had seemed kind and honest—even Gwen liked her, and Gwen didn't hold many of the ladies of the court in much esteem.

He knew a little now of what Arthur must have felt upon learning about Agravaine. Hurt, first and foremost…and disgust at himself for being so easily fooled.

"You don't deserve to be a lady," he spat. "You don't deserve to be Eric's wife."

She laughed again, straightening up as she did, as if he had just said the most hilarious thing she had ever heard. "I don't deserve him?" she repeated, gasping a little for air. Her eyes were bright as she stared down at Merlin. "With everything I'm going to give him, he doesn't deserve me!"

Merlin turned his head away, unwilling to even look at her anymore. Eleanor snorted.

"You actually think you can ignore me," she said. "That you are better than me. Your audacity is a wonder, Merlin. It's astonishing that Arthur didn't try to keep you out of the public eye earlier than this—do you talk to him this way?" She kicked his shin, and he grunted in pain. "Not that it matters what you think. The hilarious part is, you're not going to remember any of this, and when I see you again in court, you'll be in love with me once more."

"I wouldn't be so certain," he whispered, turning to glare at her. "I'm not going to let you get away with this."

"With what?" she asked innocently. "Stealing from the vaults?" She knelt down again. "Or using you to distract Arthur? Because, frankly? I have already succeeded at both."

He frowned. "What does that mean?"

"It means I've already won. It's just a matter of time now."

"Speaking of," Malcon said, clearing his throat as he stepped up next to Eleanor. "I take it, the plan is working then?" He looked down at Merlin. "Arthur is searching for the boy?"

"As I knew he would. The fool has sent every available knight out to look for him." Eleanor turned away, ignoring Merlin and pulling her riding gloves back on. "He's done exactly what I knew he would, made Camelot vulnerable all for the sake of one tiny servant."

Merlin's eyes widened at her words. "What?"

"I told you the boy was his weakness," Eleanor continued to Malcon. "The only person he cares for more is that wife of his. I'm only surprised no one else has tried to exploit their strange relationship. And I was right, was I not? Taking the boy was easy, and how useful that he's the only one who could threaten our plans to rob his master blind."

Weakness? Made Camelot vulnerable? Merlin felt like he couldn't breathe, hearing Arthur's words to him yesterday ringing through his mind.

"While Arthur's foolishly out here, looking for him…." Eleanor kicked Merlin's leg again. "You'll be in the vaults, with only a handful of guards to worry about. It'll be the easiest take you've ever had."

Merlin's thoughts were reeling. Oh God, he understood it now, what Arthur had been trying to say. It hadn't been about him, it had been about them…people with power looking for any tool to use against the young king. Arthur had known that if the lords figured out how close they were, that he could be used as a weapon to hurt Camelot, just like Morgana once had….

Just like Lady Humphries was doing right now.

"I hope you didn't just jinx us, Patron," Malcon said, and Merlin looked up at the bandit leader.

He was regarding Merlin coolly, almost scientifically, and Merlin shrank back a little under that stare, trying to guess what the bandit leader was thinking. But Malcon clearly only addressed his "patron" when he spoke next.

"When do you want us to act?"

Eleanor nodded. "The evening meal, which will likely be held at twilight. The feast celebrating the end of the High Council session has been postponed because of the search, but Arthur will still be dining with all of his guests at that time, trying to pretend he's still a proper king. With most of the knights still out in the forests, and the guards distracted looking for clues, and the servants focused on taking care of us, you'll be able to slip in and out with none the wiser."

Malcon gave a nod. "Where do you want your share of the gold?"

"Under the carriage, with the rest."

Malcon nodded again, and he looked down at Merlin. "And the boy?"

Eleanor's smile turned nasty again, staring down at Merlin as one would when looking at a bug they were about to squish. "Well, I was thinking about just having Camilla make him forget, but I think someone needs to teach Arthur, and my husband, a lesson about caring too much for servants." Her eyes narrowed. "Kill him."

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TBC…