Chapter 27 Conspiracy

The other calves would want to come with us, but my mother would never let them. She said that we had to be very careful because if we mixed with others who had higher levels of Reback genes, the magi would be more likely to condemn all of us. She’d admonish, ‘Your father and I fought hard for this family. You just leave lesser with lesser’. She was right, too, because here I am about to complete the most sacred duty there is. – Prince Eater #34

When Alec arrived home, Jon was asleep with Fia stretched out on the bed beside him. Seán sat in the uncomfortable wooden chair next to him, keeping a cool cloth over the good side of Jon’s face to reduce the swelling caused by blows from the scuffle. Seán held another cool cloth over the bruises on his own face. Erienne reclined in one of the upholstered chairs with her feet on the footstool and her knitting needles flying, too focused on her yarn to greet Alec. However, Seán was restless and eager to tell him all about the altercation. Alec perched on the edge of Jon’s bed to listen and took over holding the cool cloth on Jon’s face. The boy shook his freed hand to restore circulation and placed the tired arm in his lap. Seán’s relief was so palpable that Alec reached out and took over holding the cloth against Seán’s face, too.

“Go on,” Alec encouraged. “Finish telling me what happened.”

When Seán reached the end of the story, Alec commented “Quarterstaff? Hmm. I don’t have any work lined up for tomorrow, so we can go out and get you a staff of your own, something that suits your height, maybe with metal tips on each end. A bludgeon, too. They make a new type of small crossbow designed for use with one hand. We’ll look at those, too, since you could hang one on your belt easily.”

“You don’t have to fit him out like a soldier,” Erienne complained without bothering to look up.

“Based on what I just heard, I do,” Alec replied. “And since you mention it, exactly where were you when all this was happening? You are supposed to be watching out for Jon. That’s the entire reason you’re here. I’d hoped that you had the good sense to keep an eye on Seán’s safety, too, but that wasn’t part of the original deal when you moved in. Jon was, and I expect you to be there every single time Jon needs you for any reason. Well, at least Fia understands earning her keep.”

“Alec –” Seán tried to interject.

Alec set down the cloth that had been against Seán’s face, held up his hand, and said, “I appreciate that you want to defend her, but her actions don’t warrant defending. It’s her job; her employment; the reason she’s here at all. I warned all of you not to go out, but you did anyway. There’s no excuse for her not being there to help.”

“She isn’t the Armed Watch or a Kings Guard. Why would you expect her to fight?” Seán asked, as he soaked the cloth in the nearby bucket and resumed holding it against his own face.

“She is to do anything Jon needs her to do,” Alec replied as he lurched to his feet. “That includes fighting if Jon needs her physical protection.”

Fia rose up and barked once at Alec who lifted her off the bed and set her on the floor. She wagged her tail at Alec who patted her on the head before he strode over to the upholstered chairs, stopping only when he loomed directly over Erienne. She kept her eyes on her knitting and ignored him.

“Erienne,” he said. He paused, and then repeated, “Erienne.”

When she still didn’t respond, he clutched her yarn and needles, jerked them away from her, and hurled them across the room. Erienne’s hands lingered in mid-air momentarily and then she dropped them into her lap, leaned her head back against the chair, and heaved a long sigh.

“You pay attention when I speak to you,” he snarled. “You work for me.”

Disdain oozed from her as she corrected, “I do not. I work for Annie and Tom.”

“Then get your ass over to their house and work for them,” he boomed.

“How dare you!” she yelled, hurtling to her feet. “Annie’s right. You are nothing but a colossal brute.”

Fia moved between them and barked tentatively.

“Alec stop,” Jon said softly from his bed.

“No, Jon,” Alec reacted. “I’ve had it. She eats our food and lives in our home. I give her money above and beyond whatever Annie and Tom pay her.”

“Alec,” Jon repeated. “You’re right, but you’re too angry.”

“You were almost kidnapped,” Alec said, enunciating each syllable distinctly. “You or Seán could have been killed. There is no excuse for her not to have been at your side. Maybe she would have noticed them in time to shout a warning. Maybe not. But if we’re supporting her, she’s going to do at least that one thing well.”

“That one thing well,” Jon muttered, his face turning scarlet.

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Seán jerked to his feet and stormed over to Alec. He rose on his toes trying to look straight into Alec’s eyes and said, “You weren’t there either.”

Fia inspected each person in the room boiling with emotions and then positioned herself in front of Jon to guard him.

“Don’t you start with me, Seán,” Alec snapped. “You know very well that I was working, and that I warned you not to go. I was doing something that has to be done — earning money for us to live on. By us I mean including you. I paid for the shoes on your feet. I made a special effort to obtain nice clothes for you that fit better than Kenzie’s cast-offs. I appreciate that she did that for you, I do, and I don’t know how we’ll ever repay her generosity, but the only reason you have decent clothes that reflect your status and that fit well is because I earned the money they cost.”

Seán opened his mouth to protest, but Jon intervened from the bed, “Seán, be respectful. You’re talking to the man who saved your life. He was under no obligation to help you at all, especially after the way he was treated by our father and Ava Most Revered. He would have been justified to simply stand there and let them sell you. No one would have condemned him for it, and many would say that he should have let you be hurt as retribution.”

“He’s entitled to an opinion,” Alec said. “Even if that opinion disparages one of the only people who stood by him. I’ll still buy him whatever weapons he needs to defend himself and I’ll still train him so that he knows how to use them effectively and safely. I’m not bothered about any of it. First of all, Seán, because you’re Jon’s brother I will do anything that I can for you. Second, you’re young, and vulnerable through no fault of your own, so my honor demands that I protect you to the best of my ability. And last but not least, I consider you my friend. My point is simply that Tom hasn’t changed what he gives us even though there are now four of us and a dog.”

“Leave Fia out of this,” Jon said as he wiped his forehead with his sleeve.

“I don’t object to Fia,” Alec answered. “I love Fia as much as you, and she’s proven her worth here.”

Jon dragged himself to his feet, took his cane, and limped toward Alec. Beside him, Fia matched his pace.

He had only taken a few steps when Erienne declared, “Fine. You don’t want me here? That’s fine. Because you don’t count, Alec. Seán doesn’t count either. Jon counts. Jon and only Jon. That was my agreement with Annie. You don’t amount to the sand on the bottom of my shoes.”

“Erienne!” Jon cried out. “That’s uncalled for.”

“If you don’t like me here, Alec, if you don’t want to be around me, get the figg’t out,” Erienne continued unabated. “Annie already assured me if you become a problem, she’ll get rid of you.”

“Stop it, Erienne,” Jon yelled. “Alec is being an ass right now, yes, but what he’s saying is true. You should have been with us in the park. Not on a shopping spree. And you, Alec, need to stop being an ass. She’s only human. She can’t be everywhere and do everything any more than you can. Both of you need to settle down.”

“I’ll settle down,” Alec said. “Right down to the pub. Don’t wait up. I may not be back. Of course, that’s probably fine with you, isn’t it Jon? You haven’t needed or wanted me around since Erienne came along.”

Alec spun around, nearly smacking into Seán as he did, and then stomped out the door.

“Alec!” Jon called after him.

“Good. Maybe he’ll stay away,” Erienne exclaimed.

“Alec is my husband,” Jon shouted. “This is his home. If you can’t accept that then you get the figg’t out.”

Erienne soften her tone, stepped closer, and said, “Jon –”

“No,” Jon cut her off. “Alec is right. You need to talk to Annie and Tom. Not to get rid of Alec. That will never happen, Erienne. But you do need to rework your agreement with them. You have to listen to us, not Annie, and you have to be here for all of us. If you can’t be, you need to leave. Permanently. That’s final, Erienne.” He turned toward Seán and said, “Would you mind helping me down the stairs? I need to talk with Alec.”

Seán stepped next to Jon and let his brother drop an arm around his shoulder. Making sure that Fia stayed behind, they headed down the stairs. Unlike Alec, Seán didn’t yet have the strength to carry Jon, so progress was unyieldingly slow. Halfway down, Jon leaned against the wall to rest and explained, “We have to be careful, Seán, very careful. I couldn’t say this in front of Erienne, but those two men who attacked us were at our wedding. They were interacting with Annie. When Alec and I left they started to follow us. Gil stopped them.”

“Gil Braeford was at your wedding?”

“Yes. I’ve seen him a couple times in SnakeIn. I think he’s concerned about my safety,” Jon surmised.

“I was there when he hauled you away,” Seán objected. “All of us thought he was going to kill you.”

“I don’t know what to think about it, or how to process it,” Jon agreed. “He knows where I am now, though, and hasn’t made any hostile moves.”

“I vowed to kill him for what he did to you,” Seán said thoughtfully.

“Those first few dimmings, when all I could do was lay in bed and look at the ceiling, I would have encouraged it,” Jon commented. “The pressing issue right now is that I think Annie is behind the kidnapping attempt. What Erienne just said supports that. Annie was livid that Alec and I married.”

“Because you’re next in line to be King of Midhe Nuae?” Seán asked with concern. When Jon nodded, Seán added, “Would you like me to get Padraig?”

“No, I don’t want you out on the streets alone anymore. We have to go back to how things were when you first moved in,” Jon said, his brow furrowed with thought. “But if you could send someone to get him, Rory or Callen maybe, he could meet us in the pub. You should be at the meeting, too. Let’s go on down before Alec actually does leave.”

Seán assisted Jon down the balance of the stairs, and then to where Alec sat at the bar. When Jon slid onto the stool next to him, Seán nodded awkwardly and turned to leave.

“Thank you,” Alec said softly. “I’ll see that he gets back up the stairs safely.”

“Don’t get too drunk, though,” Seán said with a nervous laugh. He reached out to touch Alec’s shoulder and then thought better of the gesture. He added, “Or neither of you will make it.” When Alec raised his head to look at Seán, the boy tossed him a companionable smile and left the couple to talk between themselves.

He found Rory and Callen in the kitchen laughing and joking as they scrubbed dishes. Rory immediately agreed to find Padraig, wiped his hands on a towel, and banged out the kitchen door. Seán stood to one side, out of the way, as Callen continued to wash the mountain of plates, pots, pans, and utensils. Silently, Seán picked up the towel and fumbled his way through the unfamiliar task of drying dishes.

“She hasn’t replaced you, Alec,” Jon began as he took a small sip of ale. He leaned closer to Alec so his words would remain theirs alone. “Not in my life. Not in my love. I’m sorry I allowed it to look that way.”

Alec didn’t respond or raise his head again, but simply lifted the shoulder closest to Jon, and then let it drop. Jon turned away, wiped his hand across his eyes and forehead, and then turned back.

“Alec. Alec, please look at me,” Jon urged. “I wouldn’t be alive today if you hadn’t come after me.”

“I suppose,” Alec mumbled, still looking down. He moved his mug of ale as if to drink, and then pushed it away.

Jon leaned so close that his lips tickled Alec’s ear and he whispered, “I love you.”

©2022 Vera S. Scott