Blood of the Neko - 20. Chapter 20

The Duke watched Brenner secure Laos to be transported back to the Court for trial. The real question was what to do with all the others. Had they blindly followed Laos' orders, or were they just as guilty in their treason against the king?

Geoff Brenner handed Laos over to another guard before he turned and quickly shouted orders. He had his men rounding up both the guards and the mercenaries from Polanthia. Damien noticed that the guards had to stop a few slaves from continuing to beat on their former masters, and he wasn't surprised to find that a couple of the overseers had been killed. As much as he hated the bloodshed, he couldn't blame the abused slaves for wanting their revenge.

A few of his men were talking calmly to groups of the slaves, apparently helping to allay their anger and worries. Many of the slaves were starting to look his way, apparently wondering what he would do.

He was glad when Oliver dismounted next to him, and they were both able to survey the scene. "We'll have to find new overseers, someone we can trust to run the mines," Damien said grimly. "It'll take time. In the meantime, it looks like I'm living here."

And for the first time, he was actually thankful that Kayden had come with him. He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle being so far from him for the months it would take to get this place back into a decent working order.

"No," Oliver stated, and Damien whipped around to his friend in surprise. "You aren't staying here, Marsten needs you, especially with the king failing like he is. I'll stay."

"But--"

Oliver grinned, "It's what I wanted. To get away from the manor for a while. And here, I'll actually be doing good and working for the king. Father can't argue with that too much."

Damien chuckled, "Very true." He patted his friend on the back. "Thank you."

"No problem, my lord," Oliver smirked with a huge bow. Damien just laughed at his friend's jesting tone.

Damien walked over to where the former slaves were gathering. He tugged the bottom of his navy and gold doublet straighter. They deserved his attention first. With the mercenaries and the overseers already subdued, he needed to allay the fears and worries that the slaves might have. They were crowding together at one side of the compound, some looking as if they were ready to take off into the woods, some he suspected already had.

He'd only made it a few steps, with Oliver beside him, before a figure flying across the compound toward him caught his attention. His eyes widened when he saw that it was Kayden, with Saladin and two of hybrid guards behind him. He was surprised to see him so soon as he was sure his boy would still be up the mountain at the lookout.

"Kayden!" he shouted, his whole face lighting up at the sight of the boy. He turned and opened his arms in time for the neko to barrel into him, burying himself into Damien's chest.

Damien gripped the boy tightly, dropping his head to kiss the top of Kayden's and smoothing over the silky black ears with his hand. "I missed you, even if it was just for a few hours," he whispered. "Thank you for helping Saladin find the lookout. It was a big help."

Kayden only nodded against his chest. Damien held on for a moment longer, looking up at Saladin over the boy's head. "Thank you for looking after him."

Saladin just nodded.

"And that distraction and freeing of the slaves that was extremely brave of you and your men, Saladin," Damien praised. "It saved a lot of lives. Thank you."

Saladin glanced uneasily at the ground. "It was a brave thing to do, sir. But I didn't do it. None of my men could have fit through those barrack windows."

Damien suddenly straightened, and he felt Oliver crowding in next to him, obviously curious as well. "Well, who did, then?"

"It was, uh, Master Kayden, sir," Saladin choked out.

Damien's expression darkened instantly. "You sent my kitten into the compound by himself?!" he roared, his arm tightening on the boy protectively. "Do you have any idea what could have happened?"

Saladin nodded firmly, steeling his stance and ready to take any punishment the duke gave. "Yes, sir. I take full responsibility for my mistake. I did not protect him like I should have."

"No," Kayden squeaked from under Damien's hold, as he tried to wriggle free. "It wasn't his fault."

Damien was staring down into the bright green eyes, made more golden by the morning sun casting its glow over them. Somehow, Damien knew he wasn't going to like the next words out of his boy's mouth.

"I stole the keys and snuck down to the compound myself. None of them knew what I was doing. I tricked them into letting me go."

"I see," Damien's tone was tight, his lips pursed.

Saladin chanced speaking up one more time. "It was his plan, sir. And, a very good one. Would I have let him go if I'd known what he was up to? No, sir. But, as you said yourself, he saved a lot of lives today. The most we could do once we discovered what he'd done was come in after him."

"And the explosion?"

Kayden grinned giddily. "Gunpowder in one of their fires."

As much as Damien wanted to be angry, he couldn't. He wasn't happy that his kitten had been placed in so much danger, but the boy had apparently done it himself. Again. Damien suspected that he was going to have a hard time reigning in his lover's need to protect him. It was probably a futile effort to even try.

Damien finally let out a chuckle at the boy's grin. Obviously, he was proud of thinking to throw the gunpowder on the fire. It was ingenious, as the explosion offered the distraction they'd needed to break the stalemate.

"Thank you, kitten," Damien hugged Kayden closer. He leaned in and kissed the boy firmly, needing to feel that he was okay, that he was fine.

"I love you," Kayden whispered, and Damien was unaware of anything or anyone around them for a few precious moments. He was lost in the love of this slip of a feline, the one who'd forgiven his sins and accepted him back into his heart.

"I love you, too, sweetheart," Damien breathed.

A clearing of a throat next to him dragged him out of the dreamy fog. He turned to see Oliver grinning at him like an idiot.

"Sorry, my lord," Oliver addressed him formally, "I thought maybe you might want to address these men and women." Oliver swept his arm toward the slaves.

All of them were looking at him in some mix of awe and hope now, rather than fear. He realized that it was Kayden's presence that had eased their minds that perhaps he wasn't so bad after all. Kayden had been the one that had risked everything to free them. If he was with the duke, then the duke couldn't be that bad.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he started, and he noticed several of them straighten at being addressed with such respect, "I am Damien Whitmore, Grand Duke of Marsten. I am here by order of the king. Acting on reports that Overseer Laos had been enslaving people illegally as well as possibly selling our coal across the borders without permission, the king sent us to determine what was happening." He didn't tell them that he'd tried to get the king and court to do something about it almost a year ago.

"I am very sorry for all you have been put through. I understand many of you may have been captured and enslaved by hunters who sold you to the mines," he continued with a slight glance at Kayden. "I can only imagine the horrors you have been through. But I can tell you those days are over. You will all be compensated, and I will personally find each of you work should you want to accept it."

He waited while excited murmurs ran through the ragged, dirty group of former slaves.

"Lord Oliver Druet here will be taking over the running of the mines. We will be seeing to the refitting of the barracks as well as the conditions of working in the mines. I understand that Laos used the money that was allocated for the appropriate care of all of you for his own greedy ends. The production of the mines will suffer greatly as we find willing workers and bring the conditions here up to better standards.

"Because of that, I would ask that if any of you would possibly consider staying on, as a worker, not as a slave, it would be greatly appreciated. All of you are free to make your own choices. You may leave, or you may stay and help make the mines a better place. No matter your decision, you will all be paid for your services.

"I only ask that you consider it, as a favor to myself and the king, for some of you to stay and help Lord Druet. We expect there will be a loss of production for a while, but the loss will be less with workers who already know the mines. I give you my word that Lord Druet is a fine man and will treat you with the utmost respect. We will be here a few more days, so you don't have to decide now, of course, unless you wish to leave with my men who will be escorting the prisoners back to the castle. Take your time, make your choices. Should you decide to stay, you can still choose to leave at any time."

With that, Damien waved and bowed courteously to them before he turned toward the more concerning matter--what to do with the other overseers and guards as well as the mercenaries. He released Kayden, looking briefly around for someone to take his boy and keep him safe.

A splash of red hovering on the fringe of the compound caught his eye. "Finn!" he shouted, waving the startled man over.

The red-head darted over, his eyes brightening and a relieved smile lighting his face at the sight of the smaller figure next to him. Kayden's hand tightened on his arm.

"Finn, I'd like you and Kayden to go take care of Gemini for me. Oh, and check on Nash, make sure he's doing okay," Damien said, as he turned and looked at the Overseers' quarters. "That building there probably has sufficient bedding and supplies to get him settled. He needs to get the leg up."

Finn grinned broadly as he glanced at Kayden. "Yes, sir!"

Kayden hesitated, obviously not wanting to leave his master's side, but also torn between going to help his friend.

Damien wrapped him up one more time, pressing a firm kiss to his head. "Go, kitten. I've got a few things to do, and I'll meet up with you in a bit."

Fortunately, Kayden nodded and released him. Although he wouldn't have minded holding onto the boy longer, he didn't need the distraction as he dealt with the other overseers and Polanthian mercenaries. He watched for a few moments as Finn excitedly started babbling and the two bounded off to collect Gemini and Arabella.

He first addressed the mercenaries; there were perhaps thirty of them. "You are trespassing on Marsten lands with the intent of aiding a threat to our king. Are you here with the knowledge and consent of your king?"

Most of them refused to answer, as Damien had expected, but one of them finally spoke up. "He did not send us, my lord, but he did offer compensation if a trade alliance was formed with Master Laos."

Damien nodded grimly. "I see." It was obvious that Polanthia wanted access to the mines, being that they had to rely on trade with Marsten and other countries for most of their coal, but the king was smart enough not to condone the action outright. That would be an act of war, and Polanthia didn't have the resources to survive a war with Marsten.

"Brenner," Damien called over the captain, "strip these men of any armaments; any guns, swords, daggers they may have are forfeit."

The eyes of several of the men widened, knowing they were about to be left with little to survive with. Their arrows, guns, and daggers were paramount for hunting.

"Yes, sir," Brenner quickly acknowledged and nodded to a couple men who started the process.

"You will be marched to the border, chained together like the men you attempted to help keep enslaved. At the border, my men will hand over one bow with a couple arrows and a small dagger, so that you can hunt for food as you finish the trek through the woodlands and return to your king. You will inform him that any further indiscretions on his part will be met swiftly with force. Marsten will not tolerate Polanthia imposing on her borders. You may inform the king to expect a decree from King Eudon banning all trade with Polanthia for at least a year. He better be on his best behavior, or I can guarantee you will never be offered trade terms again."

With a turn on his heel, he ignored any protests the men might have about their weapons. He honestly didn't care what they thought. They were lucky he wasn't in the mood to march them all the way back to the king to stand trial. And he didn't really think the Polanthian court would have condoned such an obvious act of war, which is probably why the men were all hired mercenaries and not part of the royal guardsmen. Still, it didn't hurt to make sure Polanthia knew its place.

He knew that Brenner would already be assigning several men to march the group back to their own country. They would probably even be gone within the hour.

As for the guards and overseers...