Betrayal Bk. 01

Emily hesitated in the corridor, she ran her hands down her dress to straighten it out, and then took in a small breath. Her hand rose up, and making a small fist she readied herself to knock on the door. She froze. Her heart pounding and her stomach rattling. She closed her eyes tightly and tried to quell the fear and anxiety inside herself. She remembered the man who had died by her hand. How she'd offered him the drink with a smile, the drink she had poisoned. She hadn't had to watch him die, thankfully. The poison had been slow and he had deteriorated over the next few days, it hadn't been quick. She shuddered and held back a sound of sorrow at the thought of his slow death. She took in a few deep breaths and pushed that thought from her mind. Her father hadn't told her exactly why she had had to poison him; just that it had to happen, for the family. He'd said that if she knew, she'd start making decisions inside, thinking about right and wrong and whether he deserved to die. Although she hadn't been burdened with the 'why' he should die, she definitely still felt that she had done something wrong. Pushing the thoughts aside and steeling her resolve, she knocked firmly on the door to her father's study.

"Come in." The command barked, in a deep authoritative voice. She pushed the door slowly open and stepped inside. Her father was speaking with a clerk, there were papers piled up all over the desk. "I don't care about his demands." Her father sneered, his last word loaded with contempt. "I am the lord of these lands, I am his lord and I do not do his bidding. He. Does. Mine."

The clerk nodded, "Yes, my Lord. Of course. However, I remind you that he owns many of the merchant ships we use to bring in food and indeed much of the commerce in this-"

Her father silenced him with a wave of his hand and an infuriated nod, "Yes I know." He sighed, relaxing a little, his eyes looked to be ringed with shadows and almost sunken back into his skull. He looked a decade older than he had two years ago. "Tell him that I will pay him as promised. Apologise that I will need to keep the loan slightly longer than originally stated."

"Yes my Lord." The clerk muttered moving from the room with some papers held to his chest. He nodded to Emily as he left with a reassuring yet sympathetic smile, "My Lady." He said respectfully.

Her father stood looking out the window, his arms behind his back, hands gripping forearms, interlocking. He was a large man, well over six foot and broad shouldered, he made her feel like a child again in his presence. As a younger man he had been cheerful, charismatic and handsome. She knew that when his own father had been alive he had been one of the more eligible bachelors. However he had chosen to marry his first wife, her half-brother's mother, out of love. She hadn't been of a ruling house and many others condemned him for his choice. She had died giving birth and his father had been forced him to remarry. However after the embarrassment of his first marriage, he'd had to 'settle' for Emily's mother. She was from a small house, one that was bound to a larger family already, but she had been beautiful. She had given him two pure blooded daughters and she was sure that her father and mother had been in love at the end. That her death had hit him so hard was evidence enough of that. Thoughts of her mother made her smile softly, in a melancholy fashion.

She stood there with her father, his figure nearly blocking out the light from the window and she held the silence for a few seconds before breaking it with her small soft voice, "Father?" She saw that even more grey ran through his once dirty blond hair that she vaguely remembered from childhood and as was depicted in portraits around the house.

"Emily. Our house is dying." He said it without any emotion in his words. She blinked, a little taken aback by how easily it seemed he'd said something so earthshattering for her, she frowned as he continued. "We are in debt and out of favour. I need to do something before our heads slip under the water entirely." He sighed, his hands coming up to rub his temples. "The damn merchants have been grabbing up all the wealth for too long and now they hold too sizeable a claim to be ignored... or destroyed." He turned, his face had lines showing the signs of age, though his features were hard and strong, he wore them as a mask to the world, she saw his weariness in his eyes.

"Father-" She started to speak again but he ignored her as he continued.

"I have to make some alliances, with people I do not trust, if I wish for us to continue." He clenched his jaw. "I've arranged for a gift to be sent to Lord Barrett." He gestured to a trunk at the side of the room. "Probably the most we can afford without hanging ourselves, it's my 'all in' gamble." He shook his head, turning away from the large trunk, "I can't stand to look at it." He growled with some contempt in his voice, "That all my family was and is has come down to this pitiful chest." His brood was interrupted by a knock came at the door.

Hammond, the head of her father's guard since the death of Charles two years ago, opened the door. "My Lord." He said to her father before looking to Emily, he smiled, that smile sent a shiver down her spine. She didn't like him. His eyes reminded her of hunting dogs eyes as they prepared them for the chase, filled with a primal desire, she could almost imagine his grin as him bearing teeth at her.

Her father gestured to the chest, "Take this and keep it secure until tomorrow. I'll be taking it to Lord Barrett's estate. Seal it and make sure it is not opened until we arrive."

"Yes my Lord." Hammond gestured to someone outside the room and they walked in, the other man looked like a street thug. She frowned and turned away from them as they carried the large chest out of the room together, closing the door behind them.

Once the door was closed Emily relaxed a little, "I do not like him. I wish you wouldn't trust him."

Her father sighed and nodded, "I know he seems the brutish type Emily, but he is a strong man and has been loyal to me for over a decade." He turned to regard her, "He's not done anything that would break my trust has he...?" He asked, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.

She blinked and blushed shaking her head furiously, the very idea of his suggestion making her feel dirty, "No! Of course not."

He nodded and relaxed, "Good." He smiled at her softly and for a moment he looked like the kind man he'd once been. It made her a mixture of happy, at him looking at her with those eyes again, and sad that it had been so long and this was but a fading shadow of the past that would not last. "I've kept you here longer than I should, my precious daughter." His face relaxed back to its sunken look of sorrow. "I've needed you, since..."

They both knew when he spoke of and he left it unsaid. "Father, what is it you need me to do?" She asked, truly wishing to help the house in any way she could, she could see how much weight her Father was under and how it was crushing him.

"I need the marriage between you and Lord Cavallo to happen immediately." He said. "I've arranged for a carriage."

She nodded softly, she'd known it was coming soon, part of her never wanted to leave even though the shame of still being single at her age was becoming greater and greater. "Yes father, I'll make arrangements over the next few days to-"

He shook his head, "I'm sorry, you must leave today. Time is critical."

Her lips parted in slight shock, "Today?! But- What about- Surely you could have told me sooner?" She said with pain in her voice.

He winced and shook his head, "I am sorry Emily. My sources told me that his father has come down ill recently; you would be the Lady of the house sooner than I had anticipated. I can't risk letting others have a chance to break your engagement. An unmarried head of a house, even a small house, is a valuable prize." He smiled softly at her, "Besides, you don't want to be stuck at home looking after your aging father for ever do you?"

She smiled and moved over, placing her hand on his arm. "Don't be foolish father, you aren't getting old yet. I had briefly started looking for a new match for you in between one for Lisa."

He scowled a little, and ignored that comment, "Hmm, yes arranging an engagement for her has been tough. But when you are married to Lord Cavallo you'll be in a better position to find one for her."

She nodded, "Father, why is it we need to gain favour from Lord Barrett, I thought that you despised him, said he was an untrustworthy cur. Surely there are better options?"

He scowled again, clenching his jaw and nodded, "Indeed he is, but he is also crafty, devious and a cheat. He is the perfect business man and has made a fortune. I need him to keep trade routes open to our land, without them we'll be strangled to death in weeks. He really is the only one who can do this now." Another knock at the door and her father allowed the clerk to enter.

"My Lord, the merchants are here to-"

Her father's eyes widened, the calmness he'd shown with her shattered, as he interrupted the other man with a furious roar, "Damn those money hungry sharks!" He stormed towards the clerk and the door. "Do they not have businesses to run, can they not see that I am a man of my word!?" He turned to Emily as he left, his fury calming a little as he spoke to her, "Emily, please be prepared to leave this afternoon." She sighed and nodded, wondering how she'd be prepared in time.

****

She had finished hugging Lisa and saying her goodbye's mere minutes ago. She wiped a small tear from the corner of her eye as she made her way toward the carriage, accompanied by her maid Saide, who'd be coming with her. She pondered for a moment how the older woman was coping, also being ripped up from her home and thrown into another without a moment's notice. She was about to ask her if she was well when Hammond came from around a corner to join their side and a mix of fear and revulsion snapped her jaw shut.

"My Lady." He said, with a nod of his head and a vicious grin as he walked behind. It was proper for him to follow behind or walk ahead. Whichever he chose, was left to his discretion, in protecting his masters. But she swore she could feel his eyes on her, feel them piercing through the fabric of her skirts, touching her, stroking her. She refused to allow herself to turn around like frightened prey being stalked by a predator. But that was how she felt right now. They arrived at the carriage and a few of Hammonds rough looking guards stood either side. They would be accompanying her to the Cavallo estate and for a moment she had a jolt of fear, realising that other than Sadie, she'd be alone with these men for the trip. It made her shudder, she was thankful to have her maid with her, being alone with these men would not be good.

A guard walked to Hammond and whispered in his ear. He nodded and looked to Emily. "Your father wishes to speak with you before you leave." "My Lady." He added the honorific to the end as if it was an afterthought. Sadie was looking back at the house with a sad look in her eyes, she wanted her to come with her, but as Emily followed Hammond and his man, she didn't move, still looking back at the house that had been her home too. She'd lived there for longer than Emily and she couldn't imagine what she might be leaving behind, she didn't ask her to follow, instead giving her a moment of silent farewell in peace.

They led her down the main corridor and then back up the stairs, instead of going towards her father's study that looked over the back of the house and the gardens, they moved towards the guest quarters. She hesitated for a moment, "Where is it that I'm meeting my father?" She asked sceptically.

Hammond turned and smiled, it was probably meant to be reassuring, but it did not feel that way, "He wanted to watch you leave so he is in the guest bedroom, front of the house." It sounded plausible and she followed. They opened the door for her and as she walked inside she realised that Hammond had not addressed her with her title and the proper degree of respect, she'd have to have a word with him about that. Her father stood looking out the window, only... she looked again, that wasn't her father.

She turned to ask what the meaning of this was, but before she could she felt something push into her mouth. She made a cry of protest as the door slammed closed and two hands grabbed her wrists, pulling them roughly behind her back. She struggled as best as she could, but the man was strong, much stronger that her. The gag in her mouth was rough and it scraped against the edges of her mouth, she screamed into it loudly, but her cries were muffled into little more than fright filled murmurs of panic. The door clicked as the lock was turned and her efforts to escape redoubled with a wave of fear sending adrenaline through her veins. The man who had been standing in as her father's silhouette in the window turned and walked over. She kicked at him, but he had been expecting it and stepped to the side, catching her foot and pulling back. If the other man hadn't been holding her from behind she would have fallen over, but as it was she was just held out in the air between them like a sheet to be folded. He grabbed her other ankle, holding them firmly, her body stretched out between them.

They moved her to the bed, dragging her skirts along the floor, and she panicked, her worst nightmares filling her mind with all the things they were going to do with her. She cried out, tears welling in her eyes from fear and slightly from pain from how tightly they held her. They threw her to the bed, she bounced and they rolled her over onto her front. She struggled to reach for her gag, if she could pull it out, she could scream and someone would surely hear. But the solid grip was reapplied to her wrists and they were pulled down to her lower back as she felt a weight, placed on her behind, one of the men having straddled her, pinning her down. She tried to kick but someone had taken hold of her legs, she felt something tightening around her ankle, through her boots and then realised that she couldn't pull her feet apart. They'd bound her legs together at the ankles.

She let out a sound of pain as the hands holding her wrists pulled her arms into an awkward position, pressing her elbows together tightly, and wrapping a rope around them. She tried to struggle but the hands were too strong, she felt rope wrap tightly around, half a dozen times, more than enough to keep her secured. As she struggled she felt the man sitting on her behind bounce slightly and laugh, pretending to ride her like an unruly colt. The others laughed too, taking humour from how he mocked her. She couldn't believe how they casually joked with each other whilst assaulting her like this. The weight lifted from her and she struggled to move her arms, able to bend her forearms she tried to wiggle the rope around her elbows loose. But it held in place and her wrists were quickly grabbed as she felt more rope wrapping around them, she tried to scratch at the hands, her nails raking at the calloused fingers, but got nothing more for her trouble than another amused chuckle and finally her wrists where held firmly together too.

She kicked her legs, struggling to curl up like a prawn being thrown into a hot pan of water, but she felt as helpless as one and her struggles were about as effective as that of the prawn. She felt a hand slip under her hip and she cried out, expecting to feel an invading hand grope at her womanhood, instead she felt it remove itself and a belt tightened around her waist. She whimpered as a knee pressed into her back and pulled it tight. She felt something being attached to the back of the belt and then something around the rope on her ankles.

She was rolled onto her back and she saw Hammond's eyes. Her heart stopped beating in fear. His eyes that had looked so primal before were aflame with that same intensity, his teeth revealed like a wolf looking over its prey. She tried to get away, but she couldn't even lift her legs up, tugging at the belt as she tried, she realised a bar was pressing between her buttocks. It had been fixed to the belt and her ankles and prevented her from bending her legs. "Mmmm, how deliciously vulnerable you look. My Lady." He said the last two words with mockery.

She held back her tears and hardened her eyes to look at him like the woman she was, and not like the girl he made her feel. Holding back tears, she stopped struggling and tried her best to sneer at him. He laughed. And she flinched a little at that, the sound scaring her.

"Hmm, I'm sure you are thinking 'I won't get away with this' or 'My father will find out and kill you'." He said, using a small squeaky voice to mock her words. She had indeed been thinking that, thinking these men were idiots for kidnapping her in her own home, especially when she was expected to be leaving in the carriage any minute now.

As if reading her mind the two men grabbed her under the arms and dragged her up and off the bed, her feet hitting the ground. They half walked her, half dragged, though her walking was more of an awkward shuffle and 'half' was a generous estimation. She was held, looking out the window and saw the carriage leaving. She widened her eyes and screamed into the gag. Hammond laughed.

"Yes, you see, as head house guard I have the ability to hire men I choose worthy, and I suppose I look for a different worth than you would. I don't care about honour or loyalty to a house name. My men are loyal to money and they see your house bleeding it dry. So now we answer to a different Lord, one with much deeper pockets." He grinned. "My men have taken your maid and are departing as if you are with them. Nobody will know any differently. Of course your maid will have to die." She thrashed against the arms that held her. "After, they've had their fun with her." He said with a vicious grin that froze her in place.

Emily screamed and thrashed some more, but she was rewarded for it with a tap to her stomach that knocked the wind out of her. Hammond wrapped his arms around her from behind, holding her tightly to himself. She was sure she could feel something other than the pole pushing into her behind but she tried to ignore it. His words whispering into her ear however, she could not ignore. He was so close that she could feel his warm breath and it made her whimper, "They will take Sadie off the main road and they'll strip her. They'll fuck her all night long, using all the holes she has to give. By the end she'll be begging for death and they'll give it to her." She cried out behind the gag, sobbing for her maid's fate and was thrown roughly on the bed. She felt a wet rag pressed to her mouth and as she struggled to breath she sucked in the fumes of something very strong smelling that clouded her vision. She tried to hold onto consciousness, fearing all the things the men might do to her whilst she was passed out, unable to resist, her body free for them to run their hands over, grope and probe. She felt a hand give her bottom an appreciative squeeze and a slap as she slipped into a drugged and restless sleep.

*****

Chapter 4

Gan stood looking out over the camp as it was being set up; they'd made good progress so far. Moving further in a day than he would usually ask from them. The gang was driven by the same hatred he was. Fuelled by the flames of fury, they marched hard and fast. They would get their three deaths, or they'd see Farg burn. He'd see that anyway, if he could. Farg's gang was a strong one, not particularly big, but made up of the sort of men who killed for fun. The type who would torment an injured animal, offering it the hint of freedom and relief only to snatch it away again. He did not want to lose men fighting him if he could help it, but he feared it may come to that anyway. They had a limited supply of ammo and only a few rifles. When they should start to fire would be the biggest tactical question. Once one side started firing the other usually had to react in kind. If he ran out of ammo and the enemy were still shooting, then they'd be crushed. It was possible Farg had no ammo. He could only hope. As he stole from other clans, it was likely they'd all fight to the last bullet and he stayed away from claimed lands. Gan knew his only chance in battle would be if that was true.