Page 233 of Historical Hotties
“Are you certain?”
Domnall nodded. “Certain enough,” he said. “The man I have been paying said that the Earl of Ashington was at Westminster today and he and Henry were arguing over Thor. You remember him, don’t you? He fought with Prince Edward against de Montfort, but we’ve met him before. At a feast at Bowes Castle years ago. His father is Lord Ashington and Thor serves the king as his personal protector.”
Rotri was beside himself at the news. “Of course I know him,” he said. “I knew his father’s brother, Boothe, many years ago. Gage de Reyne is an ambitious bastard. Married the Ashington heiress and assumed the earldom.”
Domnall cocked an eyebrow. “Sound familiar?”
He meant the current situation they were trying to manipulate, and Rotri scowled. “Tamworth is your right, lad,” he insisted. “With my brother dead, and Constantine gone, it would be logical that the earldom would go to you.”
“You and I may think so, but no one else seems to. Now, Callie is betrothed.”
That was devastating news to Rotri. Raking his fingers through his silver hair, he turned away, trying to think of a way to salvage the situation. But he couldn’t get past the disappointment he felt.
“Damnation,” he muttered. “I knew she had Henry’s attention. I should have moved more swiftly with this. I should have gone to Rome myself for a dispensation.”
“That would have taken months, if not years,” Domnall said. “What we should have done was abduct her, and I would have married her by force. Not even Henry could have dissolved a consummated marriage.”
Rotri glanced at him. “And you know she is betrothed for certain?”
Domnall nodded. “The servant heard it for himself.”
“Who is this man?”
“His name is Peregrine.”
“And he is close to the king?”
“Very close.”
Rotri considered that as he sat down in one of the remaining chairs in the chamber, one that hadn’t yet been sold. A servant very close to the king could still be useful. Perhaps there was still a way out of this.
“Then if he is close, he can tell us when the marriage is to take place,” he said after a moment. “Mayhap there is something we can do to prevent it.”
“Like what?”
Rotri rubbed his chin. “Mayhap there is something the church can do,” he said. “Knowing we have staked a claim on Caledonia, mayhap they can intervene and prevent the marriage until word is received from the pope.”
“We do not have a claim on Callie.”
“We have a better claim that de Reyne does,” Rotri snapped. Then he cooled as an idea came to him. His eyes widened. “Wait… a claim… aclaim.”
Domnall eyed his father, who seemed to be in the throes of a striking idea. “What claim?” he said. “What are you talking about?”
Rotri held up a finger as he tried to put his thoughts into words. “A claim—a legitimate claim—might be the only thing to stop the marriage,” he said. “Something I should have done long ago.”
“Whatareyou talking about?”
He looked at his son. “Aclaim,” he said urgently. “I had it within my grasp the entire time but did not think of it. Isuppose that I did not think it would be so difficult to obtain a dispensation and simply forgot about it. But now… it may be our salvation!”
Domnall sighed impatiently. “I do not know what you mean.”
Rotri held his hands up, shaking them like a madman. “Listen to me,” he implored. “I have a missive from my brother that asks me to manage Callie’s affairs, but it is a very old missive from when she was a young girl. If Rhun died while she was still young, he would need someone to manage her. He asked me to do it.”
Domnall was starting to catch on. “And you are just remembering this?” he said, aghast. “Do you still have it?”
Rotri nodded wildly. “I do!” he said. “It is back at Dordon, somewhere in my solar. I’ve not seen it in years, but it must be there. I will send a servant for it immediately!”
Now, Domnall was excited like his father was. “If this is true, then it could be what we have hoped for all along,” he said. “At the very least, it will delay whatever Henry is intending. Rhun was her father and, as a widow, she would fall back under his wardship with no other man to take charge of her.”
