Hello. I'm back. Just to let you know that I passed my Viva and I am now a Doctor of Science! :)
I hope the delay wasn't too long. Thank you to the guests that commented as I can't respond to you individually. :)
The event near the end of the chapter may split some opinions but I'll be happy to hear whether you liked it or not. Hope you enjoy it! :)
Chapter Thirty – Three
Aramis sat staring at the body of Simon. The man had done what he could to help a man he didn't know. Aramis didn't doubt that Simon had killed innocents because he was told to but he knew that Simon obviously did not relish his role like some. He was grateful to the still man for all of his help.
Porthos lifted Aramis away from the site and they watched as Athos and D'Artagnan laid Simon's body flat before D'Artagnan spread a blanket over the body.
'C'mon,' Porthos said quietly as he carried Aramis into the make-shift kitchen that was warm as D'Artagnan added more wood to the blazing fire. Athos cleared the table and Porthos placed Aramis down gently.
Finally, in the light of the kitchen the musketeers got to see the damage inflicted upon their brother. His ribs were clearly bruised but it was the cuts that infuriated the musketeers. The two large cuts from Aramis' shoulders to his nipples were clearly showing signs of infection.
'What happened to your nails?' D'Artagnan asked suddenly noticing the blackness of Aramis' fingernails.
Porthos growled and Athos looked slightly sick as they realised what had happened. Athos noticed Aramis had seen the box on the side table and moved across. He opened it to find the needles and one that was still covered in blood.
'Athos,' Aramis said quietly. 'You know what you need to do.' Athos looked up forlornly but he was aware of the treatment needed. The treatment would certainly cause Aramis more pain but it needed to be done.
D'Artagnan left suddenly surprising the others but soon returned carrying Aramis' medical supplies.
'Saw them during the fight,' he shrugged. Aramis' thoughts dashed to Fidget and tears well up in his eyes.
'D'Artagnan, go and get the horses and bring them down here,' Athos ordered quietly while Aramis got the impression the older man wanted to make sure D'Artagnan wasn't present for the unpleasant treatment he was about to inflict.
'Clever horse you got there,' Porthos smiled as he started adding ingredients to a pan to make a stew. Aramis looked confused as Athos twigged what had happened.
'Fidget's ok,' he held Aramis' hand. 'He found us. He's the reason we found you.'
'They lied about everything,' Aramis looked down at his legs and suddenly realised how undressed he was. It wasn't something his brothers hadn't seen before but he was still a little uncomfortable and now they were aware of his injuries Porthos was clearly trying to stop his anger from boiling over while Athos' posture was stiffer than usual.
'This will hurt, Aramis,' Athos said quietly as he took one of the needles from the box. Athos gave Aramis fingernails a slight tug to see if any were loose and found that surprisingly they were all still tight to the nail bed.
'I thought some of them would fall out,' Aramis said quietly. His eyes were beginning to droop as the adrenaline of the rescue started to wear off. Porthos noticed quickly and moved Aramis to the end of the table and held his body upright as gently as he could, doing his best not to put pressure on the cuts that covered Aramis' chest. Athos moved to the fire and heated the needle and returned to the table. He was hesitant as he knew it would cause Aramis more pain.
'Just do it,' Aramis breathed as he braced himself.
Athos placed the heated needle over Aramis' right thumb nail and gradually started to twist it, drilling a hole in the nail to release the pressure. Athos held Aramis' hand still as Porthos let Aramis lean back on his chest and took hold of Aramis' right arm.
'Arrgghh!' Aramis let out a scream as the needle punctured the nail but soon he felt relief as the blood started to seep out of the hole releasing the pressure.
'On the bright side, just nine more to go,' Porthos tried to lift the mood and chuckled slightly at Aramis' glare.
Athos continued his work on Aramis' fingers and was nearly finished when D'Artagnan returned. The Gascon took one look and felt sick as he saw Athos making holes in Aramis' nails. The blood was dripping onto the torn braies Aramis was wearing and D'Artagnan could see the pain etched on his brother's face.
'Last one,' Athos said as he took Aramis' left thumb in hand. Aramis was clearly exhausted and cold but they didn't want to clothe him until they had seen to his wounds. Aramis braced himself as Athos punctured the last nail and the blood dripped free.
'Done now,' Porthos said quietly as Aramis' exhaustion meant he was completely leaning on Porthos' chest and was no longer able to hold himself up.
'We need to clean the cuts and then we can let him sleep,' Athos said quietly.
'I can hear you,' Aramis' replied grumpily but his eyes were closed making Athos and Porthos exchange looks of slight amusement.
'D'Artagnan,' Porthos indicated he should help him lay Aramis down on the table. Porthos moved over to the stew and finally stirred it, 'Can you burn stew?' he looked up seeing D'Artagnan smirking.
'Athos, your arm,' D'Artagnan noticed and Athos just shrugged.
'A scratch,' he said dismissing it but he received twin look of concern. 'We'll sort it after we've sorted Aramis.'
'Sort what?' Aramis blurrily opened his eyes.
'I have a scratch on my arm,' Athos started as Aramis suddenly tried to look at Athos' arm. 'It doesn't require your attention and probably doesn't need stitches. Lie down,' Athos said forcefully to Aramis who looked dubious but finally obeyed.
'We need to clean these,' D'Artagnan said quietly looking at the cuts on Aramis' torso and legs.
'I think they're already infected,' Aramis admitted quietly as he shut his eyes, missing the exchanged looks of worry between his brothers. If the infection had already started then they all knew Aramis could be in trouble.
Aramis dozed as Athos and D'Artagnan made quick work of cleaning the wounds on Aramis' torso and legs, both looking at each other nervously as they realised that infection was starting to set in. They decided to stitch the larger cuts but the smaller cuts were already starting to plug again after their wash and they decided it was better to leave them. Aramis hissed as the stitches were put in place but he wasn't really lucid anymore as he tried to doze. Porthos got the stew finished and was plating it as Athos and D'Artagnan finished. For once Athos was proud of his needle work. Aramis always said he was the worst.
'I'll get his spare clothes,' D'Artagnan said but Porthos stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulders.
'His shirt and braies will brush over the wounds,' Porthos said as he looked Aramis over. 'Mine are far too big but it may give the wounds room to heal if they're not constantly touched by fabric.'
'Good idea,' Athos agreed as Porthos moved over to his bags that D'Artagnan had retrieved from the horses.
'What's good idea?' Aramis mumbled. He knew he'd dozed off but he could hear them talking.
'Oh, good. You're awake,' Porthos smiled while Aramis groaned slightly as Athos and D'Artagnan propped him up. 'Today my stylish friend, you will be wearing my clothes.' Porthos grinned as Aramis rolled his eyes.
'They'll swim on me,' he moaned.
'Are you calling me fat?' Porthos tried some more humour.
'No, merely...larger than me,' Aramis replied by yawning in the middle. Athos and D'Artagnan exchanged amused looks. They hoped the fact that Aramis was in good spirits was a good sign.
'Right, let's get this shirt on you,' Porthos said as Aramis just let the others manoeuvre his arms about to get them into the shirt that was basically swallowing him.
'We'll need to cut those,' D'Artagnan said pointing to the torn and bloody braies.
'Just watch where you're cutting, alright,' Aramis knew it had to be done and there was no shame in being uncovered but still it wasn't the most pleasant thing, plus he was cold.
Athos quickly cut away the material and they all managed to get Aramis covered quickly. Aramis couldn't help but laugh as he looked ridiculous but his wounds weren't rubbing against the material which was the point of it.
Aramis was swiftly lifted down from the table into one of the chairs and then found a plate of stew in front of him. He knew he wouldn't be able to eat much as his stomach was weak from lack of food but he hadn't really been starved which was good thing. He took a sip of the surrounding broth and found it tasted nice.
'Not bad, Porthos,' he teased but he could already feel his energy levels waning and could feel his brothers' glares upon him.
Aramis managed a few mouthfuls but could already feel his stomach starting to fuss. He drank some water offered by Athos and then he collapsed back in the chair exhausted.
D'Artagnan and Athos disappeared and then reappeared carrying one of the cots that had been in the makeshift bedrooms. Together they slowly laid Aramis down on the cot and covered him in several blankets.
Finally reunited, they knew trouble still lay ahead of them.
Rochefort was once again pacing in his study. He hoped that Renard and the Duke had managed to keep the musketeers away from Aramis but most importantly that they had kept their mouths shut! Any hint of his implication in Aramis' abduction, or heaven forbid the Queen's, he would be ruined.
He continued to pace. The Duke would surely have anticipated the musketeers but Renard would also make sure that Aramis could never be found. Rochefort took a deep breath to calm himself. Unless the musketeers could prove he was involved he was safe. He could merely point out that he had no idea what would happen when he sent Aramis to the Duke.
He could only hope that the men hadn't let anything slip and had made sure Aramis couldn't be found. He was fine, for now.
'Remind me what you overheard about timing, D'Artagnan?' Athos asked as they sat around the table while Aramis looked peaceful as he slept.
'Renard told the Duke to send no-one here tomorrow or the day after,' D'Artagnan repeated.
'That gives us a two day window,' Porthos said thoughtfully.
'If we can get Aramis out of here without being seen we should be able to get to Paris by tomorrow evening,' Athos stated in his monotone. 'Then we may be able to get the King's consent to arrest the Duke before he realises what's happened.'
'We may have to tilt it towards the Duke being involved in the Queen's abduction but the King will surely want to speak to the Duke for that,' D'Artagnan agreed.
'What about our prisoner?' Porthos growled.
'I think we'll have to leave him here,' Athos sighed as he knew it wasn't ideal. 'If we take him with us he will do all he can to slow us down and attract attention.'
D'Artagnan and Porthos nodded.
'What we gonna do about Rochefort?' Porthos growled loudly and Aramis flinched slightly in his sleep as Porthos looked slightly guilty.
'We can't do anything,' Athos sighed.
'Surely we could-' D'Artagnan started.
'We have no proof,' Athos cut across him. 'Unless the Duke confesses to the King that Rochefort was involved we can do nothing. Rochefort will point out that he couldn't have known what would happen and he just figured that Aramis would be best to deliver the letter. He is too close to the King so our proof must be irrefutable.'
'I'm going to see the prisoner,' D'Artagnan said as he stalked down to Renard's cells. He was struggling with the fact that Aramis had been targeted and so badly hurt. He unlocked the cell door and was for a moment stunned.
Renard was smiling but his complexion was looking rather grey and then D'Artagnan noticed the empty vial near his feet. D'Artagnan picked up and sniffed it.
'I'm going nowhere with you,' Renard grimaced slightly. 'I'll die here rather than at the gallows.'
D'Artagnan stormed out and arrived back in the kitchen with a thunderous look. Athos and Porthos looked surprised at his demeanour when D'Artagnan placed the empty vial on the table.
Athos sniffed it,' Hemlock,' he said quietly.
'He drank poison,' Porthos sighed. 'Didn't think to check him.'
'Nor did I,' Athos tone was curious though and that caught the others attention. For a moment there was silence as Athos considered the vial as though it had hidden properties that needed to be unlocked.
'Athos?' D'Artagnan asked quietly as he sat down beside the older man.
'From the smell I think this may have originally been used as a medicine,' Athos pondered. He looked up to see two confused faces in front of him. 'Hemlock is poisonous but has in the past been used to treat maladies, although because of its poisonous contents careful administration is needed.'
'Why d'you think this is medicinal?' Porthos asked quietly as he stole a glance towards the sleeping form of Aramis.
'It doesn't smell particularly strong,' Athos mused. 'When Aramis wakes we can ask him as he will most likely know.'
'Will it kill Renard?' D'Artagnan asked Athos.
'It depends how full the vial was,' Athos said quietly. 'If it was full then yes, it will kill him. But it will be a prolonged and painful death. How did he look?'
'He looked a bit grey and was holding his stomach. He did grimace slightly,' D'Artagnan informed them.
'Whatever happens, he's in for a rough time,' Porthos said as he moved to lie down next to Aramis.
Dawn broke quicker than expected but the musketeers knew that time was of the essence to get Aramis back to Paris. Although weak, he had slept fairly comfortably with only a couple of occasions where Porthos had needed to soothe him. He never woke up from the dreams.
They managed to get Aramis to eat some bread and D'Artagnan manged to poach an egg for him. Aramis's stomach was still weak and he could already feel his body slightly rising in temperature. He decided not to tell the others as that would just make them panic.
'Aramis,' Athos made sure he had the marksman's attention. 'What do you make of this?' Athos handed over Renard's vial. Aramis sniffed and a look of realisation appeared on his face.
'It's hemlock,' he confirmed Athos' suspicions. 'Very watered down. Likely used for medicinal purposes. Why?'
'Our friend downstairs drank it,' Porthos grumbled.
'Was it full?' Aramis asked.
'Don't know,' D'Artagnan sighed. 'Just found it on the floor when I went to check on him.'
'Even if it was full, he'll be in agony for days,' Aramis said quietly. 'It will kill him in the end.'
'That's what I thought,' Athos said looking glum.
'Good,' D'Artagnan said strongly causing the others to look at him curiously. 'What? He deserves it!' The volume of D'Artagnan's voice was raising with each word and he was now on his feet. 'After what he did to Aramis he should die in pain!' D'Artagnan looked confused at the calm demeanours of his brothers. 'He wanted you to die in the most painful way possible!' the younger man's eyes locked with the marksman's.
'You're right D'Artagnan, it is what he deserves,' Aramis agreed quietly.
'But?' D'Artagnan demanded.
'We're not like him,' Athos said quietly placing a hand on D'Artagnan's shoulder and pushing him gently back into his chair.
'We don't revel in others pain,' Porthos looked D'Artagnan in the eye. 'If we did we'd be no better than them.'
'So we will go down there and ask him some questions, which I doubt he'll answer, and then I'll shoot him,' Athos stood up but D'Artagnan still looked confused.
'Mercy,' D'Artagnan looked towards Aramis, 'is what separates us from them. Rarely do we leave opponents to die painfully. We finish them off. It can be addictive to enjoy other people's pain but in the end it only eats away at you. As much as I hate Renard I know that I am a better man than him...so I will show him the mercy that he didn't afford me.'
D'Artagnan found himself nodding. His anger had taken over but he also knew that leaving Renard there to die in pain would indeed eat away at him. D'Artagnan and Porthos helped Aramis down the stairs, (he refused to be carried), and Athos unlocked Renard's cell door.
Renard was curled over as his liver and stomach started to cramp. Hemlock was a poison and he didn't understand why it hadn't killed him yet! He threw up into the bucket that had originally been placed there for Aramis. His stomach was mainly empty now but bile kept surfacing. He was shivering and his body was wracked with pain.
He was supposed to be dead. Why wasn't he dead?
He heard the door open and the musketeers stood in front of him. Aramis still looked unwell and was propping himself up against the door frame but the others had faces like thunder.
'Come to gloat,' Renard managed to growl out before another wave of pain hit him.
'There are a few questions we want to ask you,' Athos said in a bored voice.
'You can't understand why you aren't dead yet, can you?' Aramis question caught Renard off guard and he shook his head before realising what he had done. 'I know why.' Renard almost gave Aramis a pleading look and Aramis couldn't help but momentarily enjoy the role reversal.
'So...you're Vincent's brother,' Athos looked at Renard curiously.
'How did you know?' Aramis looked perplexed as he hadn't filled them in on why Renard wanted them.
'Similar mannerisms and it's been eating away at me. Then I realised that the Duke was an ally of Marie de Medici,' Athos looked rather smug.
'So this is about the baby?' Porthos supplied.
'I believe that is likely as it was Aramis' grip that baby Henry slipped out of,' Athos smirked.
'You're annoying, you know that?' Aramis shot back. All the while Renard continued to squirm on the floor.
'Yes, that was what it was about,' he grimaced. 'You cost me my brother and the Duke the position he should have had.'
'Why kidnap the Queen?' D'Artagnan asked.
'You have traitor in your court,' Renard grinned. 'I suppose you realised Rochefort was involved.'
'We had thought so,' Athos again sounded bored. 'So Rochefort wanted you to kidnap the Queen in return for Aramis?'
'Yes,' Renard started coughing and it took a minute or so for him to regain his composure. Aramis was struggling to stand and D'Artagnan moved closer so Aramis could put some of his weight on him. 'Wanted the Musketeers disgraced. We tried to attack before but I didn't think you'd be so difficult to beat. I went to Rochefort because he commanded the Red Guards. It was his plan so that the Red Guards would carry favour but you weren't meant to be there. He said he'd send Aramis to us.'
The musketeers were surprised that Renard would give this kind of information so easily but they also realised it was worthless as Renard would be dead and they would have no proof of Rochefort's plan.
'The Duke was part of this plan?' Athos asked suddenly looking far more interested.
'Obviously,' Renard shot back sarcastically.
'If the Duke testifies against Rochefort then we've got 'im but if he doesn't we'll never have enough proof,' Porthos said angrily.
'Rochefort's slimy,' Renard huffed and grimaced. 'Funny though, if anyone can be his downfall I think it may be you lot. One thing,' he looked to Athos, 'how did you find us?'
'The horse.'
'Bloody hell,' Renard cursed as he rolled in on himself again. 'I should've shot the bloody thing!' Renard gave out a long moan as his body was racked with pain.
'That hemlock wasn't very strong,' Aramis said quietly. 'It'll be days like this.' Renard curled tighter as he realised that Aramis was right.
Athos removed his pistol from his belt and moved closer to Renard who looked up at him with curiosity. 'Ask me?' was all Athos said.
Renard felt a lump in his throat as he realised he was being offered a merciful death. He knew that these men wouldn't offer it to tease him as that would go against their honour. Why would they offer it?
'Why?' he croaked in disbelief. 'Why would you...show me mercy?'
'Because it's what separates us from you,' D'Artagnan repeated the words Aramis had used earlier and felt the marksman squeeze his shoulder lightly. 'We don't revel in your pain, even if you deserve it.'
Renard finally felt his anger clear. The anger he had lived with for year. The anger that had caused him to seek revenge.
'There wasn't a baby in the blankets, was there?' his realisation showing on his face. Aramis just shook his head.
'Ask,' Athos said quietly but the command in his voice was clear. A part of Renard didn't want to give in but the pain racking his body was screaming very loudly. He would die here but he now had a choice. A couple of days of pure pain or the swift end at the hands of his enemies.
'I know I don't deserve it...but I beg you...have mercy,' he looked into the cold icy stare above him and heard the shot fire as blackness engulfed him.
'We have to hope that the Duke will rat on Rochefort. We can't let him get away with this,' Porthos growled.
Aramis looked at the lifeless body of his tormentor. A small part of him was triumphant but mostly he pitied the man who had lived his life in anger for the past year. Aramis was aware that the torture inflicted on him may yet have greater consequences but he was glad that Renard wasn't suffering in pain, no matter what the man had done to him.
Aramis felt himself be picked up by Porthos' strong arms and gave a moan.
'No-one's here to see the dignity you've lost,' Porthos grinned as Aramis rolled his eyes.
They re-entered the kitchen and Aramis was checked over. The two large cuts were still showing signs of infection despite being cleaned the night before. They were becoming very itchy but Aramis neglected to tell anyone this. Due to the uncomfortable ride ahead they decided to bandage Aramis so as not to cause the wounds to reopen. This meant that not only was he wearing clothes far too big for him but he now looked like a mummy underneath. This was greatly amusing to the other musketeers but Aramis did manage to point out that he was in charge of their medical needs and could easily retaliate. Well, he hoped that would be the case.
Aramis' energy levels were truly waning again and as much as he wanted to ride alone he knew that he was riding with Porthos and that was that. That didn't mean he wouldn't do his best to moan loudly about it though.
Aramis was led out into the open for the first time in days. It was good to feel the wind in his hair but for once he was glad that the day was overcast. No hot sun. With Porthos' help he gingerly made his way over to Fidget who was currently tied to Zad.
'Hello boy,' Aramis said as he reached his horse. Fidget, clearly recognising Aramis' state, very gently nudged the marksman's shoulder as Aramis stroked his nose. 'I here you're a hero. You brought them to me.' Fidget nodded slightly as if confirming Aramis' statement. Aramis tickled his chin as he knew his horse liked as Fidget breathed down into Aramis' hair.
Soon Porthos dragged him away as Athos and D'Artagnan helped him sit in front of Porthos. Aramis was exhausted and he leant back against Porthos' strong chest and closed his eyes. He didn't see Porthos' smile but he could feel it in the big man's chest.
They'd been travelling for a few hours with Aramis sleeping for most of the way. The day was overcast but Porthos was gradually becoming worried as he could feel Aramis' warmth against him. Aramis was too warm.
They stopped for lunch but Porthos took the chance to feel Aramis' forehead again. He was hotter than he should be.
'Porthos?' Athos questioned.
'He's too hot,' came the reply.
A/N: From what I could find hemlock was used to treat maladies such as asthma and breathing difficulties. It is very poisonous though so a lot of knowledge was needed to stop poisoning by asphyxiation. As far as I can tell there is still no cure if the concentration of hemlock is too high, although it has been used to counteract other poisons.