Read An Oath Taken for Free Online Page B

Sir Nicholas.”
    â€œMy thanks.” He cleaned the grease from his hands then accepted the cloth. Nicholas handed back the linen. “ ’Tis all I will require for the night.”
    Relief washed over his squire’s face. He retrieved the bowl, then started away.
    â€œThomas.”
    At the edge of the dais he halted, his expression guarded. “You wish for more food, Sir Nicholas?”
    He shook his head. As tired as he was, he couldn’t help feeling empathy for the stricken expression that shattered the lad’s face. “You will accompany me to my chamber.”
    Thomas’s fingers shook and water spilled over the sides of the bowl. “I-I thought I was to sleep in the stables.” Defensiveness etched his whispered words.
    â€œYou will sleep on a pallet by the hearth.”
    The little color on his squire’s face fled.
    The last thing Nicholas wished was to add to the lad’s problems, but in this instance there was no way around it. Thomas must learn to trust him.
    Exhausted, Nicholas departed the great hall with his squire in tow. At the lad’s hesitant step, protectiveness for Thomas overwhelmed him, the depth of it surprising even himself. ’Twas not uncommon to find tragedy striking families during this volatile time. So why did the misfortune of this one lad touch him as none before? The only reason that made sense was because Thomas reminded him so much of his brother, Hugh.
    Nicholas glanced at his squire keeping pace by his side as he headed up the turret. God help him. If he had a say in the choices of his future, Thomas wouldn’t live such a cold life or know its pain.
    At the third floor, he headed to his chamber.After his squire had entered, Nicholas closed the door, then gestured to the trunk at the end of his bed. “You will find blankets inside. Make a pallet for yourself beside the fire.”
    The lad’s gaze grew wary. “If nae the stable, I could sleep outside your door.” Hope shone in his eyes. “ ’Tis commonplace.”
    He wanted to keep an eye on Thomas, for more reasons than he wished to count. “For now you will sleep here.”
    The lad’s throat worked. “Aye.” With forced movements Thomas knelt and began the task, slanting suspicious glances toward him every so often.
    Nicholas poured a cup of wine, tried to focus on the warmth of the fire and the sweet scent of heather on the night breeze, welcome after the stench of death. As his squire glanced at him for the fifth time, Nicholas muttered a curse. “Thomas.”
    The lad jumped and dropped the blanket in his hands.
    Nicholas grimaced. “I will not harm you.”
    His squire picked up the blanket, but his gaze remained unsure.
    Frustrated, Nicholas walked to the bed. He couldn’t protect him from all of life’s horrors, but while the lad remained at Ravenmoor Castle, he would spare him a few. “You are to keep away from the dungeon.”
    The lad clenched the edge of the blanket until his knuckles turned white. “ ’Tis my duty to assist you.”
    His squire’s courage was admirable but on this he would not relent. “Stay out of the dungeon.”
    â€œSir Nicholas, I—”
    â€œEnough!” he interrupted, confused by his squire’s insistence to aid with the grisly task. “’Tis done.” He raised his hand when Thomas started to shake his head. “Do not challenge me. As with any order I give you, ’twill be obeyed. Is that clear?”
    Thomas’s throat worked. “Aye,” he replied, his voice barely a whisper.
    More than ready for sleep, Nicholas turned to his bed. The day had been long, more so by the morbid discovery in the dungeon. The last thing he needed to deal with was a mule-headed lad who confused him at every step. With a tug, he removed his tunic and threw it on the floor. Warmth from the hearth heated his skin as he undid the laces on his trews