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Chapter 17: Preparations and Surprises


It was a week after my meeting with Earl Tomas and Baronet
Francis. His Majesty had informed Count Terrence that we
would be making an official visit at His Majesty's behest,
and we were to be made welcome. Messages had been exchanged,
and a date set for two weeks hence.

Preparations were being made, including placing spies in the
Count's household, and readying the force that was to
accompany me. The ninety soldiers were already chosen, and
it was well known that all within my Garden would attend me.
The only question was how many Warriors of the Green would
accompany us. I wanted firm intelligence on the Count's
forces before I made a decision.

A knock on the door interrupted us as Francesca and I were
going over the quarterly tax lists. My advisors and I had
agreed that after resolving matters with Terrence, we might
as well make the quarterly audit of my Duchy before
returning home. Francesca and I were deciding which
communities were most in need of a personal visit by their
Duke.

"Enter," I called, then set my boots up on my desk and
leaned back in my chair. Francesca just watched me
tolerantly.

Vincent entered and gave Francesca a small bow, which she
acknowledged with a bright smile and nod. Then he turned to
me. Over the years I'd made it clear to my advisors that I
tolerated courtliness towards myself only when a neutral or
unfriendly Noble or unfamiliar guest was present. But I
demanded the utmost chivalry for any Lady in my company.
"M'Lord," Vincent began. "We have received a pair of reports
that will be of utmost interest to you. The first states
that the Count's home force consists of five hundred men at
arms, consisting of heavy, medium and light horse, and
footmen being mostly pike and spear."

I nodded. "Inform Mystique," Mystique was the War Mistress
of the Warriors, "that the entire force of The Green will
accompany us to Gaiford, and are to be prepared to act as an
archery force against heavy armor. What was the second
report?"

"Baronet Francis of Siddoway has apparently met with
tragedy. Reports we have intercepted state that his body was
found not far from the roadway. The cause of death is said
to be a large and vicious animal attack."

My boots and the chair legs met the floor at the same time.
"What details do you have? How long ago did he die? Where
was he found? Have they buried him?"

Vincent checked his notes. "The Baronet was found less than
two days ago, and reportedly not long after he perished.
Apparently the blood and gore were still rather fresh. He
was found approximately five miles from Terrence's Castle,
heading for his own estate at Siddoway. The attack
apparently occurred sometime past midnight."

"Alright. Can we get someone in to inspect the body?"

"Possibly, m'Lord. But what are they looking for?"

I frowned. This attack was very strange. First, I doubted
Francis was likely to be traveling unaccompanied late at
night. And why would Terrence send a fellow Noble home at
such a time. "I've heard from the Marquise Eleanor of other
attacks in her marquisate. Mostly peasants or craftsmen, but
all killed by a large animal. When are the funeral rites for
the Baronet?"

"Three days hence, m'Lord. You aren't planning to attend,
are you?" Vincent was clearly shocked at this possibility.

"Aye. I have a suspicion concerning this beast, but I have
to see the victims to prove or disprove my concerns. Tell
David to prepare the required personnel. Also inform Carlton
that I'll require his attendance. I want to leave tomorrow
at dawn."

Vincent nodded, quickly considering the necessities my
decision entailed. I'd realized oh-so-many-years ago that
there would be times I'd have to travel by daylight. My
first choice at such times was a very large carriage drawn
by a matched team of heavy horse. Heavy indigo curtains
covered the carriage windows, with solid wood shades inside
the curtains in case of high wind or attack.

For those times I was required to travel by horseback, I
preferred full plate armor, and under the visor I wore a
heavy black velvet hood. I did have a third option, but it
required a great deal of preparation, and was only effective
for a few hours at a time.

I'd also decided that whenever I traveled, my Garden
accompanied me. Most thought this an affectation, or the
mark of a libertine. In actuality, it served several
purposes. It gave me access to my food source. It also
surrounded me with absolutely loyal bodyguards, and many of
my most trusted advisors.

"Have Pegery," he was the Commander of my Ducal forces,
"organize a Guard of Honor, with an additional squad, to
accompany us. We won't be able to conceal any of The Green
in this force, so we'll make do. Also, send messengers to
the Marquise and the Baronetcy that we will be attending the
Baronet's interment."

"Yes m'Lord." Vincent left to follow my instructions.

I turned to Francesca. "Are we finished, as well?"

"Aye, m'Lord. There are a dozen communities we will need to
inspect, and we've set a route that will allow you to visit
each Blossom in the allotted time." And this was the true
reason I made this journey each quarter. I used the
opportunity to renew the Covenant with the former members of
my Garden that chose to remain bound by it. At this time,
there were one hundred twelve former Blossoms within the
Duchy that kept the Covenant.

"Thank you, Francesca. Now, shall we retire to the Rose
Garden for tonight's lottery?" She smiled and looped her arm
with mine as we made our way to the Commons of my Garden.

After my talk with Kaylene, and another with Iris, it had
been decided to re-instate the original, ancient lottery
system. Each of the women had selected one of the original
twenty gemstones, and I would draw one as the previous
night's winner held the bag. The previous winners' stones
were kept in a separate bag until the circuit had been
completed. So the lottery held thirteen possible winners
tonight. When Francesca and I entered, the eligible women
hurried to surround me, then settled to their knees as Kyra
brought forth the bag of stones. She shook the bag carefully
to distribute the pieces, then opened it and held it above
her head, so I was forced to draw blindly. I think they knew
that if I really tried, I could have memorized the shapes
and sizes of the stones, but I was scrupulously fair in this
matter. I reached in and drew out a round sapphire, almost
black in color. I held it up for all to see, and Nyria gave
a gleeful cry and leapt to her feet. I chuckled at her
delight and put my arm around her as I addressed the others.

"My Ladies, I have received disturbing news this eve that
requires us to travel to Siddoway on the morrow. As usual, I
desire your company. I'm sure Vincent has maidservants on
their way here to assist you in preparing for the journey.
We will be gone five days, with funeral rites to attend. We
will not be accompanied by The Green, so prepare
appropriately." They all nodded understanding that I
expected them to have their arms available. "Rest well,
m'Ladies, and the caravan will leave at dawn." Nyria and I
made our departure.

At my chambers, I stopped inside the doorway to admire
Nyria.  She was an islander, like all of my Garden at this
time. She wore a blue velvet hooded dress that covered her
shoulder length black hair. Her eyes, when she turned to
face me, were a bright gray. She smiled at me teasingly, and
backed towards the bed, her hands slowly undoing each button
of her dress. With one hand, she slid each sleeve halfway
down, while the other hand held the dress closed.

Her voice was musical as she said "I think you're
overdressed, m'Lord."

I chuckled and stepped toward her, but she shook her finger
in refusal. "Undress first, M'Lord. But if you need some
incentive..." She opened her dress for a moment and
displayed her small conical breasts, then quickly held it
closed again.

I grinned at her, unlaced my shirt, and slipped it off. I
stepped toward her again, and she stopped me again. "More."
But she bent down and lifted the hem of her dress and lifted
it to above mid-thigh.

I kicked off my boots and took another step forward. She
smiled and lifted her dress higher, but keeping her pubes
still hidden. "Finish, and find your reward," she teased.

I chuckled and stripped off my trousers, and stood before
her naked. She looked me over in a teasingly appraising
manner, then let her dress fall in a pool around her feet.

I looked at her admiringly, then looked again. It took my
mind a moment to absorb what I saw, then it clicked. Nyria
had shaved her pubes completely. "Come claim your reward,
m'Lord," she said with a grin. "Come and give Nyria a kiss!"
She said this as she reached between her legs and ran her
finger along her sex.

I walked over and knelt before her. She spread her legs to
give me better access, then sighed as my mouth began to
caress her labia. She tasted sweet to me, and my lips were
quickly coated with her increasing desire. It wasn't long
before her climax washed over her, and she staggered
momentarily. I stood quickly, lifted her in my arms and
carried her to the bed.

As I lay her down, she reached over and stroked my cock to
fullness, then spread her legs wide. "Make love to me,
M'Lord, I want to feel you within me."

I lay beside Nyria and kissed her slowly and passionately,
my hand caressing her lovely breasts and teasing her nipples
to steel. Then I rolled on top of her and kissed her hard as
I slid slowly into her tight moistness. She bucked against
me, forcing me fully inside, then our rhythms coincided, and
we took gentle and sweet pleasure in one another.

As her moans and gasps grew more vocal, and her legs wrapped
around my bum and she began writhing against me, I pressed
my lips against her throat, caressing her skin sensually.

When I stroked her skin with the tips of my fangs, she
groaned in eager anticipation, and began to thrash around
me. When my fangs opened her skin, she cried out and
stiffened under me while her pussy muscles went into wild
spasmodic contractions that milked the fluid from my loins.
As I drank from her, I filled her with the fruit of my
loins.

When we finally relaxed, I sealed the wounds I'd caused, and
we snuggled against each other for the rest of the night.


It was perhaps an hour before dawn when David entered my
bedroom. "Good morn, Your Grace, Lady Nyria. The carriages
are prepared and loaded. Is there anything you wish to have
prepared, Your Grace?"

"Good morn, David. My arms are loaded? Then no, I don't
think I have anything else special I will need. Breakfast is
being delivered to the Garden, is it not?" At his confirming
nod, Nyria climbed out of bed and hurried to my wardrobe for
a dressing gown.

David watched her with an amused and admiring smile, then
bent down slightly to allow her lips to softly touch his
cheek. "Thank you, David. I'll see you both in an hour."

David shook his head wryly and picked up her discarded
dress. He handed it to one of the servants that followed him
in, as the rest quickly packed a trunk with clothing for me,
then hurriedly bathed and dressed me. Then David and I made
our way to the entryway of Castle Caradine.

I climbed into the first of six carriages and settled in
with Kaylene, Erin and Mystique. Vincent climbed into the
one behind me, followed by Carlton and then David in the
fourth one. In the last two were four Blossoms each. On each
carriage were also a driver, his assistant, and two
guardsmen who acted as footmen. Also accompanying us were a
force of thirty horsemen.

The journey to Siddoway was uneventful, as I'd expected.
With my Ducal Standard on display, and an obviously well
armed force, only the most desperate bandits would have
bothered us.

We made camp an hour out of Siddoway. I planned to enjoy a
good night's rest for my troop, and to arrive fresh. I also
needed to prepare for a few hours in the sunlight.

Members of my Clan excel in three skills, or disciplines.
The ability to persuade another to do our will. The ability
to make ourselves more charismatic. And greater tolerance
for physical damage, including fire and sunlight, then other
Kindred. This was useful for short times, but if I knew I
would be exposed to the sun for a length of time, I took
precautions.

Nalita had shown me these precautions when I still lived
with her. They involved taking great amounts of blood from
one's Kine. In an emergency, the heartblood of two victims
would suffice. But it had obvious detriments. If one had a
herd of Kine, or like myself, a Garden, one could feed off
many Kine for the desired result. This is what I did this
night.

I selected half of my Blossoms and fed deeply from each one.
I could have used fewer, but it would have left the chosen
ones in an unconscious sleep, useless for days. This way,
they were simply drowsy afterwards. Thus, when we arrived at
the Baronet's residence in Siddoway, I stepped into the
morning sun and took the Baronet's widow's hand in
condolence.

I took a moment to study this young woman. Her pregnancy was
the first thing I noticed. I judged her to be slightly less
than eight months along. But she was surprisingly agile as
she curtsied to me, and didn't really need my assistance
when I helped her up.

"No need for such formalities, M'Lady. I come to honor your
late Husband and Lord."

"My thanks, Your Grace. My Lord would have been honored at
your presence."

"When did you last see your Husband, M'Lady?"

"Your Grace, please call me Natalie. I saw him last more
than a fortnight ago. He has been serving Count Terrence
closely."

I nodded. She hadn't seen him since before his visit to my
duchy. We continued our conversation for a bit longer, then
she had her butler show me to my guest room.

I'd known that most of my entourage would be accommodated
outside the main house, but I made sure two of my Blossoms
were given an adjoining chamber. And late that night, we
made our way to the Main Hall and unwrapped the Baronet
Francis' corpse. He'd been dead for several days, and even
with the oils they'd used to anoint him, he was beginning to
stink. It was probably a good thing they were burying him
tomorrow.

As Francesca held a torch, I inspected the body, paying
close attention to the wounds and the skin around them. It
was obvious the creature that had made the wounds was quite
large, with long fangs and teeth. It had also been quite
strong, judging from the numerous broken bones it had
inflicted. I leaned close to one particularly deep wound and
sniffed carefully. With difficulty, I ignored the scent of
decay, and searched for another scent. It was very faint,
but at last I found it. It came from a single very coarse
hair within the wound, and I knew the creature that had
slain Baronet Francis of Siddoway.

The word slipped from my lips. "Garou."
