Chapter Ten: The Rescue
Alvar wasn't at all amused or in the mood for being entertained as he entered the great banquet hall, having just left Everly in Bendel's care. Perhaps it hadn't been the wisest idea, but it would give her a good look around, and he didn't imagine that Bendel would have the evil imaginings of Garris to be of any real threat to Everly. He was here for business, anyhow. Why should he worry about Everly? The girl had brains as well as beauty. She could take care of herself.
The banquet hall was already loud, even at this early hour in the evening. Garris had well over forty guests in the room, most of them men younger than he and Alvar were. The men were drinking their fill of the reputed finest rum and wine in the whole of Stormhold. Alvar wasn't one to drink, especially not when he had come for the purpose of retrieving money. He had learned, once upon a time, that masters of the house were more prone to try and make their warriors drunk if it would save them from handing over vast sums of money.
There was no beating about the bush on this one. Alvar wanted to leave this place as soon as possible, and he wanted his money going with him. He held his head high and walked through the room with firm steps, moving straight towards Garris.
"Lord Garris," he spoke, sitting next to the man when it was gestured that he do so.
"Yes, Sir Alvar?"
"I'd like my payment for the Lady Jacqueline. Then my servant and I shall be on our way."
"You don't wish to enjoy the evening's fancies?" Garris asked, taking a gulp of his water and signaling towards the doorway. "The meal has only just begun."
Alvar's dark eyes flitted to the doorway, and he watched as servants entered the room, carrying immense trays of food.
"I'd rather just get my money and go," Alvar said firmly.
"If that's what you wish," Garris shrugged. "Here you are."
He pulled several pouches of coins out from beneath his seat and placed them in front of Alvar.
"Count it, if you wish," Garris said coolly.
"I will," Alvar scowled, opening the bags of coins and beginning to count.
Food was spread across the great table, and Alvar ignored all of it as he counted and checked every coin to make sure it was real. He had been cheated before, and he didn't wish for it to happen again. He snarled when a flirtatious servant brushed her hand across his shoulders and winked at him.
"Garris, is it habit of yours to find only the most flirtatious of servants?" Alvar growled, closing one bag and opening another.
"Most of my guests find it pleasurable," Garris answered. "I can imagine, with your lovely servant, that you might perhaps understand the pleasures of having beautiful women around."
"It seems your servants are rather happy to be here."
"Sad my betrothed isn't in that group of happy servants," Garris sighed.
"Ah, and here comes the good lady now," one of his drunk comrades exclaimed, slamming his empty wine goblet onto the table.
"Indeed," Garris nodded, and the sudden glitter in his eyes gave Alvar an unsettled feeling in the pit of his stomach. True, Jack was no longer in his care, her price having been paid, but something bothered him about Garris's affection for the woman.
"The most beautiful woman in the room," Garris said proudly, sitting back in his seat and watching as Jack came in, carrying a plate of some roasted meats.
The tray was heavy and hard to hold, and Jack stumbled under it, but that didn't give Alvar cause for being unsettled. No, it was the way she was treated as she walked across the room. The servants of the household had dressed her in clothing that Garris had sanctioned the servants, and the dress Jack wore did little to ease her mind, as well as Alvar's. She was clothed in a dark blue dress, form fitting to accentuate her figure, calling for the whistles of Garris's guests. She didn't fit in with the rest of the servants, for they were either older gentlemen, accustomed to all sorts of mannerisms, or the female servants, unattractive women with wandering eyes and crude manners. The woman was truly a lady, walking tall and remaining calm even as she walked across the room and men with filthy, alcohol-covered hands, sought to touch her.
Only Alvar saw Jack biting her lip, keeping her eyes looking straight ahead as someone spilled rum on her in an attempt to grab her, and only the warrior noticed the glimmer of tears in her eyes as she was called an objectionable name and was whistled to like a dog.
"Lady Jacqueline, that dress certainly flatters you," Garris spoke as Jack stopped before him.
"Thank you, my lord," she whispered, placing the platter down before Alvar.
Her hands were shaking, and Alvar glanced up into her face. She didn't return the gaze, but looked away and made a move to leave when Garris took her hand and pulled her to him.
"Darling, that's enough serving for the night. Please, sit with me."
"No thank you, my lord. I prefer serving your guests," Jack said quietly, never looking into the man's face, like a dog.
"Nevertheless, I insist," Garris crooned and then pulled her so she was sitting very nearly in his lap. She moved so that she was sitting on the edge of his knees, barely sitting, more like balancing, and she shuddered when Garris moved a hand to her hair.
"Isn't that much more comfortable?" Garris smiled, pulling her hair away from her neck.
"Yes, my lord," Jack shivered.
"Really, you should have brought your servant, Alvar," Garris said, wrapping his arms around Jack. "She would have enjoyed the festivities."
"No. She'd rather be refreshed for when I get back," Alvar said coolly.
He didn't like this. Not at all.
"Mm…Quite the meal," Alvar said, standing abruptly. "I do believe I'll retire to my chambers for the evening. I shall be leaving on the morrow. Good night, Lord Garris."
The man didn't answer, but pressed a kiss to Jack's temple, apparently having forgotten all about Alvar already.
With a sneer, Alvar went to his chambers and unlocked the door. He stepped quietly into the darkened room and then closed the door behind him and locked it. He turned to see Everly asleep in the bed, cuddled up in her blankets, her innocent face illuminated by a stream moonbeam.
He had never really cared for innocence, never really valued purity, but Everly and Jack were two women that made him respect it. The look on Jack's face when he left the room traumatized him. The way Everly behaved when he touched her made him nearly laugh, but at the same time, it made him ponder.
As he changed his shirt for a more comfortable one to sleep in, he tried to push away the nagging feeling gnawing at his conscience. Jacqueline wasn't in his care anymore, yet he was worried. He hated that. He assumed it had something to do with that dress she had worn on Shakespeare's ship. No, it was more than that. He hated how her eyes no longer danced, as they had on the ship. He despised that here, she bowed herself like a true slave, without any fight, without that loveable defiance of hers.
Alvar sighed as he grabbed a blanket from the foot of the bed and then lay down on the floor next to Everly. He wanted to be there for this girl, should any intruders come to do her harm. He tried to sleep, but found, as he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, that he really couldn't fall asleep.
He wasn't the only one that couldn't sleep. Once the banquet was over, Jack retired to her room. Her room was immense, frighteningly so, with great pieces of furniture that cast frightening shadows in the darkness. The furniture did little to scare her in comparison to the master of the house. Garris terrorized her. She had been nearly ready to faint when he held her, and the way he fed her meat, the way he treated her like she was just a morsel herself…
Jack's stomach twisted for the third time that night, as she slid into her bed, dressed in yet another immodest nightgown. She wished there were pirate shirts and breeches in here. She'd feel a whole lot safer. But no, there had only been this nightgown, and if that wasn't enough to trouble her, the door had immediately been locked behind her when she got in the room.
There would be no sleeping tonight, and Jack was expecting several more rounds of nausea. She felt like the walls were caving in, for there was no way to escape, and she knew she was nothing more than a pet, without a single way of defending herself.
With this thought, she climbed out of the sheets and threw up in the chamber pot under the large bed. Thus emptied and weakened, she nearly fell back into the bed. She was too faint to react to her chamber door opening and closing, though she knew exactly who had entered.
Garris, through with the drunken party in the banquet, had come up to enjoy his prize. He stalked over to the bedside, hoping to find her asleep. However he was well pleased with the state he did find her in. She was on her back, pale, looking at him with frightened eyes. It was almost a pity, he thought, that this would be so easy after all this time. Shrugging, he leaned towards her.
Jack was up as quickly as she could manage. Now she stood opposite him, in between him and the door but far away from it.
Garris grinned. Perhaps she still had some fire left in her after all.
"Now, now my dear," he said, "You belong to me now. There's really nothing you can do. Precious Alvar will leave in the morning and forget all about you. It's my right."
"It's not," Jack disagreed. "We aren't married. I'm just a servant." She was inching backwards, hoping he wouldn't notice.
He sighed. "And here I'd hoped we could come into some sort of agreement over that. Perhaps after tonight I could persuade you to marry me."
"Not in a million years," Jack whispered. She was trembling but trying her hardest to stay upright.
Garris had caught her small movements towards the door, and covered the distance she'd traveled in a single step. He was inches from her now, and she had to fight her instinct to lean back. If she did, she would fall over.
But he had had enough. Without warning, he brought his hand slamming hard against her cheek, trying to force her to submit. He also stepped back, so she doubled over. She gasped from the pain he had inflicted. It felt as if someone was holding a red-hot iron to her face.
Then he stepped forward, so that he was standing above her. Panicking, she grabbed the first thing she saw and launched it at him as hard as she could.
Garris was met with a chamber pot crashing into his face, spilling vomit all over him. He yelled in rage, but was blinded enough that he didn't see Jack tear out of the room as fast as she could.
Alvar, unable to sleep, was pacing up and down the hallway outside his and Everly's room. He was still dressed in his heavy black cotton shirt with the soft leather pants. He wanted to just go ahead and get out of this palace. But Garris might not be too keen on his guests leaving in the middle of the night.
When he reached one end of the hall, the warrior could still hear sounds of drunken revelry from the banquet hall. Smiling wryly, he turned and almost crashed into Jack, who was sprinting towards him dressed in an embarrassingly revealing nightgown. As it was, in her weakened state, she tripped and went sprawling. On instinct, Alvar caught her.
"Garris!" she cried, looking into Alvar's eyes. Tears were coming from the corners of her eyes, and she was sweating and shaking. "He…he tried to…" A violent tremor rendered her silent but Alvar could gather her meaning. He hoped she didn't start going into shock. Even he would feel bad for having to slap her while she was in this state.
"Jacqueline," he said, "Go into the room with Everly. Your pack is in there. Change into the men's clothes that you have. We will get out of here."
She nodded, and slipped into the room he indicated. When he had closed the door behind her, she had a brief moment of panic where she thought he would lock her and Everly in here and just keep them prisoner until Garris came to collect her. But, she figured, she would much rather face Garris in her men's clothing than in the stupid nightgown. So she woke her friend and explained that Alvar was going to get them out. Sleepily, Everly rolled out of the bed and complied.
When both of them were dressed, Alvar came back into the room. He went and dug in his own pack, pulling out two newsboy caps. He tossed one to each of the women.
"Shakespeare," he said simply, "For disguise."
Everly placed hers on her head, and Jack nearly laughed. She didn't look like a boy from up close, but perhaps from a distance, the hat would cover the women's long hair and they could pass as male.
Then the three of them ran, as quietly as possible. Alvar went first, short sword drawn to clear the path. The two women stayed together behind him. They had just reached the passage that lead to the stables when they heard the sound of soldiers approaching. Garris had sounded an alarm. Still, the stables were silent. No one had thought to check there yet.
As quickly as possible, Lincus and Excalibur were saddled. This time, no one was bound to anyone except Lincus to Excalibur so that the new horse could follow Alvar's stallion. The warrior noticed Jack's tremors and saw she was in no shape to ride. So he hoisted her onto Excalibur, Everly onto Lincus (while instructing her on how to hold on while they galloped), then swung himself up behind Jack. Then they galloped off into the freezing night.
There was no talking as night drew to a close and the morning sun began to appear, its beams spreading gaily over the earth. It was very cold, but Alvar saw to it that he and the women were clothed enough to stay warm until the sun came up entirely. Everly had a cloak covering her clothes. She had fallen asleep atop Lincus' back, but the good horse stayed close to Excalibur and never strayed off path.
Jack hadn't been able to sleep until several hours had passed. She shivered constantly, from sheer terror, and while she didn't have a cloak, Alvar was wearing one, and he wrapped it around her, letting her stay warm with his body heat as well as the cloak. He had thought, when first putting his arms around her to warm her, that she would object and fight, but she was too tired and afraid to fight, and to the warrior's shock, she snuggled up against him. Presently, she had turned her head and nuzzled her face into his chest, falling asleep almost automatically after that.
The sun was shining high overhead when Everly woke up and sat up with a start, finding that she was lying flat on her horse's neck.
"Good morning," Alvar yawned, completely exhausted.
"Hello," Everly said uncertainly. "What happened?"
"We left the home of our dear Lord Garris," Alvar said, frowning when Jack shifted against him, pressing more firmly against him for warmth.
"You saved her, didn't you?" Everly asked, eyes widening when she saw Jack lying back so comfortably against Alvar.
"Did I now?" Alvar snorted.
"Where are we?" Jack's sleepy voice asked as she slowly opened her eyes and blinked several times.
"On our way to safety," Everly said gently.
"Oh," Jack whispered and then shifted, trying to sit up and figure out where exactly she was. When she realized that she was pressing against Alvar, and not only that, but she was snuggling against him, she sat up bolt upright with a gasp and glanced down to see his hands wrapped around her. She bit her lip fiercely and then closed her eyes, ignoring the urge to fight him off.
"Did you sleep well?" Alvar asked with a grumble. "Because I certainly didn't."
"What happened to Garris?" Jack asked worriedly.
"I don't know. I wanted to ask you that," Alvar said. "You must have done something fierce to come running to me, and in such clothing, too."
"That nightgown wasn't my choice," Jack frowned.
"Did you have to put it on?"
Alvar was surprised when Jack didn't say anything. He had hoped that she would retort back, would show some spirit after her traumatic evening, but she didn't argue. Instead, she let her shoulders slump, almost in defeat, and sat back slightly, not leaning so far forward on Excalibur to avoid Alvar's hands. Alvar's eyebrow arched in curiosity, and he looked to Everly, as though hoping to get an answer from her. With a look of mischief, Alvar slid his hands back slightly, so that instead of hugging Jack, they were resting on her stomach, pulling her back more tightly to him.
The woman didn't fight.
"Isn't now about the time when you should be fighting?" Alvar asked her, resting his chin on her shoulder, trying to spark some sort of fire.
"Why should I fight?" Jack asked tiredly. "You did save my life. I changed hands from Garris to you."
"And on top of that, you were in such a hurry, you made me forget about my pay," Alvar snorted.
"I'm sorry. I can pay you back with the money at my house."
"What?" Alvar and Everly both asked at the same time.
"You did save me," Jack said quietly. "And I have the means to repay you, if that's truly what you wish. I just need to get back to my home in the woods."
"You aren't going back there with the state Bendel is in. Before we make any more advancements with anything, we're going somewhere safe to get rest and recover," Alvar frowned. "We have a whole day's journey before us, so get comfortable. It's going to be a long ride."
