Chapter Six—Coming to Terms

 

Hours passed in agonizing slowness, yet the day of the feast dawned far more quickly than Curran thought possible. Though weak from hunger, for the Duke had ordered him put on reduced rations so that his heart could speak more closely with God, he felt strong-minded and confident about his choice.

Since he felt certain Luthias wouldn’t come to him before late evening, Curran passed the daylight hours in front of his only window, gazing down upon the busy area behind the kitchen where extra cooking fires had been lit. When the wind blew from the north, heavenly aromas tickled Curran’s nose. Deer, fowl and hare caught by Tanis roasted on several spits, their juices dripping to sizzle on the hot embers.

Tanis. Odd how often the hunt master came to mind. Then again, perhaps it wasn’t so odd after all. The night with Tanis figured largely in Curran’s deliberations. To dedicate himself to Luthias in mind, body and soul meant that there would be no other opportunity to savor the sensual delights the hunter had to give.

Wet, hungry kisses. Lean, strong arms. A stiff cock that—

“Enough,” Curran told himself sternly as his own rod hardened at the memories of how good it had felt to be the recipient of Tanis’ forceful thrusts.

No doubt his ardor had more to do with the dearth of physical love in the preceding months than any special talents the hunt master possessed. Surely his body would react with equal passion when Luthias came to visit. For, after taking all other aspects into consideration, Curran had decided to admit the Duke when he knocked.

Curran thought the night would hover on the edge of forever, creeping up on him only when his back was turned. As it turned out, he had little chance to notice the passing of the day. Evander entered the room a bit earlier than had been his usual custom. His arms were laden with a morning repast fit for a king.

“His Grace asks that you enjoy this hearty meal,” the servant told Curran, still addressing the floor.

As hungry as he was, it was the servant who drew his attention. This dog-in-the-manger behavior had gone on long enough. “Why will you not look me in the eye when you speak to me, Evander? We used to be friends.”

“I would rather not say, my Lord.”

“Lord? What rubbish is that? I am no more noble born than you.”

The servant settled the tray upon the large, square chest at the foot of the bed. “The Duke has announced to those within the keep that he has taken you into his family. You are to be treated the same as we would treat any member of his direct line.”

Holy fuck! It was only because he covered his mouth that this curse did not ring throughout the valley. Curran couldn’t be more surprised. Then his brain caught up with his heart and he realized that Evander had cleverly thrown out this information in an attempt to distract him from the previous question.

“You avoid the issue, Evander. Even though I am to be treated as a noble now, we were first friends. Have I done something to wrong you?”

“Not in such a manner as you would recognize, my Lord.”

What in the Seven Hells was he going on about? “Speak plainly, man. I have not the patience to whittle my way through your convoluted thoughts.”

“‘Tis worth my life to do so,” Evander admitted, glancing over his shoulder at the open door.

Curran strode across the room and slammed it shut. He then went to the window where he closed the heavy drapes. Although more secrecy shouldn’t be necessary, he grabbed Evander by the collar and brought him to the center of the room, away from any wall where a lack of mortar could provide a spy-hole.

“Speak now to me in low tones. I give you my word that I will not repeat what you share.”

The servant then replied in a voice so soft that Curran had to strain to hear him even though they were standing nose to nose. “Evil lives within these stones, my Lord. A dark and dangerous madness infects the most respected of men. ‘Tis only a matter of time until you succumb to the same disease, and I wish not to see it overtake you as it has claimed so many others.”

“Evil? Madness? What nonsense you speak.”

Evander hunched his shoulders in defeat. “You are blinded to it, yet I swear to you it exists. I have seen great men fall prey to its all-consuming power. I wish you had never been brought here.”

“Duke Luthias is a man of noble blood and noble heart. Surely he would not tolerate such defilement within his keep.”

“Do not speak his name,” the servant hissed. “Lest you call his attention to you.”

“You say that as if the Duke has the powers of a devil, to know all, to see that which he could not possibly see.”

“That man is the very creature of which you speak. I have seen him engage in acts to sicken your soul. A monster who delights in blood, who fornicates with his own kind, who defiles the very house he claims is pure with these atrocities.”

Ah. Curran gained a glimmer of understanding. Servants were often a superstitious lot. Lovemaking between men, particularly by those who did not share the taste, could be construed as a sacrilegious act. A bias that, in truth, was held by more than the commoners and fueled Curran’s caution not to let his true feelings for the Duke be known.

And then there were those who could not reconcile their needs with their moral beliefs and thus tortured themselves and their partner in the process. If Evander had witnessed such an act inside the castle walls, it would explain much.

But how to convey that to Evander without giving himself away?

“Sometimes what we see has a hidden meaning that cannot be disclosed to the naked eye,” Curran told the servant who now trembled under his hand.

“So you say, my Lord, and so I think you mean. But Sir Gavin told me otherwise shortly before his departure, and he did not come back.”

This new information troubled Curran as he could not see how it fit with his theory. The Duke had told him of his special relationship with the knight. No doubt, as sole caretaker of the room and its occupant, Evander had come upon them at a time when they were too involved with each other to notice. Perhaps when confronted with what Evander had seen, Gavin replied with this preposterous story of madness and wicked sin to ensure that the servant would speak of it to no other.

Unfortunately, there was no opportunity to test this new conjecture as there came another knock at the door.

On this day more than any other, Curran could not let a summons go unanswered. He remembered well the Duke’s warning. “Yes? Who is there?”

The door swung open revealing two lads struggling to keep a wide, wooden tub upright on its side. As they muscled it through the opening, Evander moved away so as not to look like they had been in close conference. “My Lord, forgive me for not making myself heard when I spoke of this earlier. To close the drapes as you ordered done summoned your bath.”

Trying not to laugh at the way the young boys wrestled with the tub tied Curran’s stomach into one big knot. As tempted as he was to help them, he stood idly by as any other noble in the castle would have done. If he had indeed been admitted to the Duke’s family, he would not dishonor them by acting in a manner unbefitting his new station.

He couldn’t prevent himself from having a bit of fun with Evander though to relieve their previous tension. “So am I expected to drown myself every night as I close the drapes before bed?”

“Not unless that is what my Lord wishes. This morning the arrangement was made at the Duke’s request. Again I beg your pardon that I did not make my meaning clear.”

Clear? It hadn’t been mentioned at all. Not that Curran blamed the man for this neglect. Curran hadn’t given him the chance. “Right. A bath. I seem to recall you saying some such thing. Well, so be it. Fill it up, boys. The day wears on.”

There. That sounded pompous enough.

Evander looked a bit started by the transformation, but hurried after the young ones to oversee the carrying of the water. No doubt, more would end up on themselves and the floor than would remain in the pail if left to their own devices.

From that point on, the day advanced at a rapid pace. Servants scurried in and out of his room like mice under Evander’s catlike gaze. Curran bathed. He dressed in new finery. His bedding was changed. His old belongings were carefully packed away in a trunk.

In between activities, Curran stole bites of salted ham from the tray Evander had brought to him early on. His thoughts bounced between Tanis and Luthias, Gavin and Evander.

Finally, as dusk settled a colorful blanket over the distant hills, Curran had no more answers about this mysterious evil Gavin spoke of than when he began. Perhaps he could raise the matter with the Duke when he came to visit. He had promised Evander that his words would not be repeated, but surely there was a way to gain understanding about what had transpired without putting the servant at risk.

 

 

 

The knock came well past the midnight hour. Curran had finally given in to his body’s need to lie down. As he rushed toward the door, he jerked at the fabric encasing his limbs, trying to arrange it as Evander had before he took his leave. “Yes? Please come in.”

Curran heard the sound of iron hinges protesting yet the door before him did not move at all. How could that be?

“I knew you would make the right decision,” Luthias said from behind Curran.

Curran spun around in time to see a part of the interior wall close. A part that, up until now, he’d assumed was solid rock. A secret passage, then. It thrilled his heart to learn of it. Where there was one there might be others. It was the kind of thing that could be useful to know.

“I see you have donned garments suitable to your new station,” Luthias observed, stepping further into the room. “Do you like them?”

Curran noticed the man was a little unsteady on his feet. “They take some getting used to, your Grace. All this”—he gestured at the room, flapping his arms like a bird—“seems excessive.”

The Duke laughed. “That’s what being rich is all about, my young friend. Being excessive.”

Luthias rested against the bed. Even in the dim light, Curran could see desire in the man’s eyes. He waited for the hitch of sexual yearning to drop into the pit of his belly, but it didn’t come. Had nerves cowed his libido into retreat?

“Come here, boy.”

Curran winced at the term. He didn’t want to be seen as a child, especially not now. However, he approached the Duke with proper humility. “Yes, your Grace?”

Luthias hooked a greasy hand around his neck. Curran could smell the remains of the feast from that close touch. “Are you prepared to give me a demonstration of your gratitude?”

“Of course, your Grace. I owe you much.”

“Then see to it.”

The older man tugged on his neck, encouraging him to bend. Curran required no additional coaching to know what was expected of him. However, the Duke seemed far too deep in his cups to remain upright while Curran was otherwise engaged. “Perhaps you would be more comfortable if you were to lay down,” he suggested.

Luthias glanced over his shoulder toward the bed, then curled his fingers as if seeking the stem of a cup. “No,” he bit out harshly. “On your knees, now. Pay proper homage to me, or the deal is off.”

Curran did as he was asked. He resented the way the Duke was approaching what should be a special time, but he knew he should be grateful for every scrap of attention Luthias threw his way. It would be all too easy to end up back in the barracks—or worse, out of the castle entirely—before he got his first taste of battle.

It turned out that there was a use for all that fabric, as it cushioned his bones, preventing his knees from resting against the hard stone floor. He reached for the Duke’s breeches. There was no hardness to be found under his fingers.

Luthias would find the same if he were to search for evidence of Curran’s lust. Somehow, that made it even more difficult for Curran to proceed. With Tanis, each movement had been so natural. So easy. So welcome. Tonight, with the Duke, Curran would be little better than a hired whore.

Ah, Tanis, why couldn’t it be you in my bedchamber tonight?

“Do I not interest you?”

Curran’s head snapped back as the Duke roughly tugged on his hair. He could see Luthias’ eyes clouding with anger. “No, your Grace. It is awe and respect that slow my hands.”

To his relief, the Duke chuckled and released him. “I thought Tanis would have disabused you of any such romantic notions when it came to me.”

“Truthfully, your Grace, the hunt master had not spoken much to me before you came upon us.”

The Duke caressed Curran’s head, petting him like a beloved hound. For some reason, it set Curran’s teeth on edge.

“Then he is not your lover?”

Confident that the candlelight would conceal any trace of deception, Curran said, “I have never visited his bed, nor he mine.”

“That is not the question I asked, boy. Has he claimed you as his lover?”

“No, your Grace.” For in truth, Tanis had not. Although they had taken each other, the hunt master had not spoken any words of claim. If anything, Tanis had protested the opposite.

To distract the Duke from his current topic, Curran fumbled with the lacings to expose Luthias’ member. It was flaccid and far from sweet smelling. Curran used the softest cuff of his sleeve to clean it off under the guise of sexual stimulation.

The Duke seemed not to notice and continued with his discussion. “What if I told you I heard otherwise as we came upon you?”

“I would say you have excellent hearing, your Grace.”

Luthias’ lengthening rod twitched within Curran’s fist. “Then you admit he favors you?”

“No, your Grace. I meant the words that drifted to you upon the wind must have been uttered some greater distance away as the hunt master never said as much to me.”

The Duke got a cold look in his eye. “You have a smart mouth on you, boy. Let us see if you are as good with my cock as you are with words.”

Curran dutifully applied his teeth and tongue to the job of arousing the Duke. Luthias’ member flopped around his mouth like a dying fish. Curran moaned in dismay.

None of his fantasies about the Duke had proceeded like this. In all his dreams, the Duke’s rod jutted out straight and proud. His skin was sweet tasting and not nearly so pliant. In fact, it was much more like loving Tanis had been.

Dwelling on the hunt master increased his enthusiasm. The Duke seemed to appreciate his renewed efforts and was eventually brought to completion. When Luthias spilled his seed, it was a piteous amount, a fact which made it possible for Curran to swallow the sour substance without gagging.

“Now I know you were speaking the truth,” Luthias said as he tucked his limp and sticky member away. “Tanis would have trained you better if you had been his for any length of time.”

Curran sat back on his heels. He didn’t know what reaction he expected—the Duke and his kind did not often give thanks to those beneath their station—but surely he could have used words far kinder than these. “If I failed to please you, I offer my humblest apologies.”

“Oh, get up, will you? I am not displeased. In fact, I think I will enjoy training you to my tastes over those of that beast.”

Curran rose to his feet as the Duke retreated into the shadows in the far corner of the chamber where the hidden door lay. He hadn’t expected Luthias to leave so soon. There were many questions to be answered. Ones of far more importance than the Duke had seen fit to raise. “Duke Luthias, may I ask when I might see you next?”

A chuckle came from the shadows, and Curran shivered. He could well believe that sound was responsible, at least in part, for Evander’s rumors of evil. It was not the sound of a happy man, but rather of one drunk on power.

“That eager for my cock, are you, boy?”

“As your unworthy vassal, I am eager to be with you in all ways you see fit to have me.”

“Another pretty speech, Curran, but I have had enough of you for one night.”

“Then I shall present myself to you in the morning?” Curran pressed.

Luthias ran his hands over the stone wall. The light was too dim for Curran to see what the Duke was doing. “Though I just returned from a lengthy campaign, it seems our enemy grows braver and bolder. I must make plans to depart within a fortnight. Therefore, you will have to find other ways to amuse yourself until all is in readiness and we take our leave.”

For the first time since Luthias arrived that night, Curran felt the stirrings of excitement in his chest. “Your Grace, if there is anything I can do—”

The Duke cut him off. “You have much to prove before I am willing to trust you with my most private thoughts. You can start earning that trust by remembering you belong to me now. Once I see that you can conduct yourself in the manner befitting a member of my household, I may find other tasks for you to do.”

There was a slight puff of cool air as the concealed door opened. Luthias departed without another word. And once again, Curran was left alone in the dark to wonder what he had gotten himself into.