WolfeStrike (De Wolfe Pack Generations #2) - Kathryn Le Veque Page 0,17

to Brampton is financial – he pays a good deal of support for the man’s army and receives protection from it for his homes and his fleets.”

Nat pondered the wealthy businessman, which here in the north was a fairly rare beast. Most people this far north were either warlords or farmers, or both.

“But his son became a knight,” he said. “Not only does he not serve Brampton, he serves de Royans.”

“It is a more prestigious house.”

“To be sure, but you would think the son would follow the father.”

Tor shrugged his big shoulders. “Steffan de Featherstone seemed to be a man who did as he pleased,” he said. “Mayhap he did not wish to become a merchant like his father, just as he decided not to honor a marital contract with Isabella. Who made that contract, anyway? Was it the father?”

Nat shook his head. “From what I heard, it was Steffan himself,” he said. “Isabella is a pretty thing, you know. He saw her somewhere, I do not know where, and fancied her. He was the one who made the contract.”

“And decided in the end not to honor it.”

“That was my understanding, aye.”

Tor looked on up ahead into the busy village at this time of day. “Then we shall make sure his father understands that,” he said. “You had better let me tell him while you remain out of the manse. In case I am taken prisoner against Steffan’s death, you will need to go for help.”

That thought had occurred to Nat. “Or mayhap you simply dump the body at the door and run.”

“I have considered that.”

When Nat looked at him, he grinned, and the two of them snorted at the suggestion. Honorable knights didn’t run, no matter what the circumstances, and no matter how much they wanted to.

They were going to have to face Steffan’s father.

The deeper they progressed into the town, the busier it became. This was one of the larger villages in between Newcastle and Carlisle, so there were many peasants from the countryside bringing in their produce to sell. This far north, there was a great deal of agriculture and sheep, and as they entered the town center they could see big corrals stuffed with wooly, white sheep.

There were more sheep in small herds outside of the corrals, being kept closely guarded by dogs and shepherds. There were wool merchants haggling with the farmers over the quality of their wool and even as the bargains were struck, sheep were cut out from the herd and clipped by men whose entire profession it was to clip the wool from the sheep. Those men were very precise with their big, steel shears and they were in much demand by the wool merchants because they were very precise. A bad job of shearing could cost them money.

Because there was so much going on in the town, no one seemed to be noticing two knights lumbering through the village on expensive warhorses. They were both wearing de Wolfe tunics, identifying them as being from one of the most powerful families in the north. Tor was hoping that they could get through the village without being noticed at all but, unfortunately, that was not to be.

A situation arose.

It all started out of their sight, in a corral on the other side of a livery that was at the edge of the town center. A man was selling beautiful and expensive Spanish horses, brought all the way from Madrid. He’d had twenty of them with the intention of selling them to the nobility of England, but because times were rather poor at the moment, he’d only been able to sell fifteen of the twenty on his journey through England.

Now, he was down to his last five and they were the most expensive. They were fine Spanish Jennets, horses bred from Arabians and long-legged warmbloods. The resulting horse was a masterpiece of equine breeding, both fast and sturdy. At the moment, the man was trying to sell a gorgeous white mare to a woman who seemed to have a discerning eye for horseflesh. She inspected the horse, looking over every inch of it, before deciding she wanted to sit on it. The horse was only green broke and against the man’s better judgment, he let her sit on the horse.

That was when all hell broke loose.

Tor was first aware of it when he heard a scream go up. He was on the road heading towards a turn off that would take them south, but