December Desolation Chapter 31
They were beginning to regret taking the kid with them on their impromptu expedition, thinking about it now in hindsight it would have been more sensible to just have the kid write them down and follow them. It would have saved their ears a lot of pain and certainly Athos would have been feeling less homicidal and likely to throttle a small child. For someone who had been so terrified by the three imposing soldiers in front of him, to such an extent that he had burst into tears and begged for forgiveness, he sure did know how to chat.
"And then Jacques and I managed to knock the sword out of Freddie's hands and then we chased him across the creek and then we reached papa's farmhouse and he fell in the mud and he had to give Chloe's necklace back" Gabriel paused for breath, twisting awkwardly around on the front of the horse to check that D'artagnan was still listening to him and then heaved in a deep breath to launch into the story of his successful battle.
"Please, Gabriel" Athos forced out through gritted teeth, "as lovely as your escapades are, I think it would be prudent for us to have a little bit of silence while we ride"
He winced as baleful blue eyes swam with tears, and a little lip protruded in a wobbly pout. It was almost enough to make him feel bad about it, almost but he managed to tear his eyes away from the pitiful sight and harden his ever softening heart. D'artagnan ruffled the shaggy brown head in front of him and smiled at the tearful child, "take no notice of Athos, he even snaps at the pretty man you saw and he's one of his brothers. He chats even more than you do Gabe, Athos is just worried, we have to be very quiet so the bad men don't hear us"
"Okay D'artagnan" he chirped, cheerful again and preoccupying himself with patting the neck of the horse he was riding on and chatting away in its ear.
The young Gascon fixed their leader with an unimpressed glare and watched in amusement as the older man's ears began to flush red and he stared fixedly ahead. Suddenly Porthos thrust his arm out in front of the rest of the group, head tilted slightly to the side as he listened intently. The others filed neatly in behind him and scanned the horizon intently for whatever it was the bigger man was hearing.
"Err… Porthos?" D'artagnan's voice lilted slightly at the end in his confusion, "what is the problem?"
There was an enormous cacophony of rustling from the bushes in front of them and within seconds all hands were securely on the hilts of their swords, ready to draw in the blink of an eye if a threat was posed. A rather dishevelled young man emerged from the bushes, stumbling over protruding vines and ending up face first in claggy mud after having windmilled his arms wildly.
The three musketeers observed in baffled bemusement as this stranger remained lying in the mud, clothes beginning to dampen as the moisture spread through the thin fabric of his frayed tunic. Porthos dismounted gracefully and approached the figure with cautious footsteps, then reached down to grasp a handful of hair and yank.
A strangled moan was dragged from his throat but now at least he was not drowning in the sludge, so really Porthos couldn't care less about how he was feeling. Athos motioned for D'artagnan to keep his distance and protect the child perched in front of him, of his brothers he was the only one who would recognise the distinctive silver and black of the livery of the Albert family.
"Porthos" Athos declared in an authoritative tone, "secure him and bring him along, we make camp when safe to do so and then interrogate him. He will know something."
With a grunt of effort the big man hauled their new addition onto the back of his horse before mounting up in front of him and making sure everything was secure, they set off.
Gradually Aramis regained the power of speech, the shock having worn off slightly and allowed his brain to kick back into gear. Now it all made so much sense, only he would have the audacity to plan such an extensive act of treason and still remain hidden in the shadows.
"So what was it that upset you this time?" he asked jovially from his position on the floor, he would be damned if he was going to let how much the situation jarred him show in his demeanour. He did have a reputation to uphold as the most aggravating person to kidnap.
The figure remained towering before him, hat tipped forward to conceal his eyes whilst a finger tapped rhythmically against the sword hilt strapped at his waist. "Now, now Aramis. Still as lippy as you always were, that sharp tongue of yours is going to get you into trouble one day. Oh, wait" he raised a long slender finger in the air in front of his face in a mockery of contemplation "it already did"
"Well, Frederic it has been a long time. You have not changed one single bit despite the ten long years that have passed, one would have hoped you would have grown out of this behaviour. Isabelle certainly did"
That was enough to make him snap, the short fuse of his youth not having lengthened any and Aramis well recalled the right buttons to push in order to garner a reaction. The sharp crack of his hand connecting with Aramis' cheek echoed around the room and his head was thrown violently to one side, cheek smarting from the blow.
Frederic seized him forcefully by the collar and dragged him until he could feel his breath on his face, "You. Don't. Speak. Of. Her. You understand?" each word was punctuated by a severe shake by his lapels and spittle flying onto his face with the sheer venom of the other man.
"Why?" his gasping response was almost laughing "is it an honour reserved only for you?"
"You have no right to speak of my Isabelle, you destroyed her with your ways and your lies. She was perfect and she was beautiful until you corrupted her, she was going to be MINE"
Straining against his bonds with a rage that had remained deeply hidden by melancholy for years, all resurfaced in the blink of an eye as he ranted and raged at his captor. "She was never yours, she belonged to NOBODY! She was always beautiful, she was pure and bright even in the darkest of times and she despised you. Not even if you had been the last man on earth would she have contemplated relations with you."
With those words he knew he had crossed the line, the maniacal glint that flared to life in Frederic's eyes made him fear for his life. That coupled with the main gauche in his captor's left hand that was pressed to his jugular.
"Frederic!" a deep voice rumbled from the shadows, "we have had many conversations regarding your impulse control, it would benefit you to recall them. We wouldn't want to harm our most honoured guest, well not yet anyway. We are still waiting on Athos to join us."
"You coward, show yourself!" Aramis cried angrily, "what kind of honourless man uses trickery and deceit, I have encountered many criminals but none so depraved as you"
"Now that's no way to speak to your gracious host, anyone would think you didn't appreciate the way we treated you"
"Considering I cannot even count the number of broken bones nor abrasions that you have dealt me, I would say you were correct in your assessment of the situation."
"It was a pleasure talking with you but now I must leave you to the tender mercies of our mutual friend Frederic, I'm sure you remember his… lust for certain actions very well."
A/N: I am so sorry everyone for the massive delay, I have had exams that have just taken over my life. Thankfully they are over now and I hope to be updating more regularly and actually finish this story soon! :D Thank you for everyone who has stuck with me and for your kind comments, as usual please read and review :D
