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Prologue

England, 1802

It was only a uests killed one another

Baron Oliver Lawrence had taken every precaution, of course, for it was his castle King George had chosen for the cereland arrived, a duty he e; but the order had co himself, and Lawrence, ever loyal and obedient, had immediately complied Both the Winchester family and the St James rebels had protested his selection ht, however, for the king was determined to have his way Baron Lawrence understood the reason behind the decree Unfortunately, he was the onlyterroom's families

The baron wouldn't be able to boast about that fact er He believed his time on the sweet earth could well be measured in heartbeats Because the cere actually believed the gathering would behave Lawrence knew better

The iven in the wrong tone of voice, one action perceived to be the least bit threatening could well beconite the bloodbath God only knew they were itching to get at one another The looks on their faces said as much

The bishop, dressed in cereh-backed chair between the two feuding families He looked neither to the left, where the Winchesters were sequestered, nor to the right, where the St Jaht ahead To pass the tiertips on the wooden arh he'd just eaten a fair portion of sour fish He let out a high-pitched sigh every now and then, a sound the baron thought was remarkably like the whinny of a cranky old horse, then let the daain

Lawrence shook his head in despair He kneouldn't get any help from the bishop when the real trouble broke out Both the bride and the groom waited in separate cha had arrived would they be led, or dragged, into the hall God help the two of them then, for all hell would surely break loose

It was a sorry day indeed Lawrence had actually had to post his own contingent of guards betwixt the king's knights along the perimeter of the hall just as an added deterrent Such an action at a wedding was unheard of, yet it was just as unheard of for the guests to come to the ceremony armed for battle The Winchesters were so loaded doeapons they could barely move about Their insolence was shameful, their loyalty more than suspect Still, Lawrence was hard put to condemn the e to blindly obey his leader The king was, after all, as daft as a duck

Everyone in England knew he had lost his mind, yet no one dared speak the fact aloud They'd lose their tongues, or worse, for daring to tell the truth The e about to take place wasThoone around the bend The king had told Lawrence he was deter The baron didn't have an easy answer to that childlike expectation

But for all of his ht Lawrence, the wedding guests should show a little respect Their outrageous conduct shouldn't be tolerated Why, two of the seasoned Winchester uncles were blatantly fondling the hilts of their swords in obvious anticipation of the bloodletting The St Ja a unified step forward They didn't touch their weapons, though, and in truth most of the St James's ht that action was just as telling

The Winchesters outnuive thee, however The St James men were a endary They were known to tear a ; they liked to kick an opponent in his groin for the fun of hearing him howl; and God only knehat they did to their ene to think about

A co fro's personal assistant, a dour-faced o, rushed up the steps He was dressed in festive garb, but the colorful red hose and white tunicLawrence thought Hugo reseood friend, he kept that unkind opinion to himself

The two o took a step back In a hushed tone he said, "I rode ahead the last league The king will be here in just a few more minutes"

"Thank God for that," Lawrence replied, his relief visible He mopped at the beads of sweat on his broith his linen handkerchief

Hugo glanced over Lawrence's shoulder, then shook his head "It's as quiet as a tomb in your hall," he whispered "Have you had a tiuests amused?"

Lawrence looked incredulous "A short of a human sacrifice could keep those barbarians amused"

"I can see your sense of huh this atrocity," his friend replied

"I'," the baron snapped "You'll quit your so, when you realize how volatile the situation has becoifts, my friend They're armed for battle Yes, they are," he rushed on when his friend shook his head in apparent disbelief "I tried to persuade them to leave their arsenal outside, but they wouldn't hear of it They aren't in an acco mood"

"We'll see about that," Hugowill disarm them in little time I'll be da arena This is a wedding, not a battlefield"

Hugo proved to be as good as his threat The Winchesters piled their weapons in the corner of the great hall when they were confronted with the order by the infuriated king's assistant The demand was backed up by some forty loyal soldiers who'd taken up their positions in a circle around the guests Even the St Jao ordered arrows put to the soldiers' bows

If he lived to tell the tale, no one was ever going to believe hie had no idea what extreme measures had been taken to secure his protection

When the king of England walked into the great hall the soldiers ih their arrows remained securely nocked for a quick kill if the need arose

The bishop rallied out of the chair, bowed for, and then motioned for him to take his seat

Two of the king's barristers, their ar's wake Lawrence waited until his leader was seated, then hurried over to kneel before hi voice, hoping his words would sha like consideration

The king leaned forward, his big hands braced on his knees "Your patriot king is pleased with you, Baron Lawrence I a, champion of all the people, am I not?"

Lawrence was prepared for that question The king had taken to calling himself by that name years before, and he liked to hear affirmation whenever possible

"Yes, , champion of all the people"

"That's a good lad," the king whispered He reached out and patted the top of Lawrence's balding head The baron blushed in e squire Worse, the baron was beginning to feel like one