993. Chapter 993

After Much Ado About Murder

Episode 8.20

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: Once more unto the breach for I do not own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

"Isn't he the most beautiful man ever." Said a young woman standing next to Kate.

Kate looked at the woman. She had spoken in English so Kate assumed she was one of the women who traveled with the company She also noted that the woman wore a dress that was far too low cut, exposing far too much of her breasts, for polite company. Kate surreptitiously pulled the front of her gown down a bit, rather surprised at the feeling of jealousy she felt. She looked at the woman's breasts again and decided that the woman overmatched her in that regard.

"Captain Castle is quite handsome." Kate said, hoping to keep the venom out of her voice.

"The Captain?" The woman said. "Oh, of course. But I was talking of Huw. He's my man. My last husband died of the fever a month ago. I hope that he'll ask to wed soon." She turned to look at Kate for the first time. "Of course, the captain would favor a lady such as yourself."

Kate turned her attention back to the contest. The new target would be a partial suit of armor, three hundred paces away. A chain mail shirt with a breastplate over it and a helmet on top, held up by a wooden frame. To win, the archer would have to use one arrow to make a kill shot. Castle shot first. He judged the distance, accounted for the wind and in one fluid motion, shot. His bodkin arrow hit the center of the breastplate and penetrated.

Father Ryan and Will Fox ran forward to check the result. Ryan announced the result. "The arrow penetrated the plate and the mail and went only a bit further. A man hit so might die, but not at once."

Huw nodded to Castle. He judged his shot and loosed his arrow. His arrow flew to the narrow gap between the top of the breastplate and the bottom of the helmet that was covered only by chainmail. It punched through the chainmail and went deep into what would have been a man's throat. A kill shot for certain.

The woman beside Kate screamed and the crowd shouted. "My Huw has won. But your man did almost as well." She said, hugging Kate in her happiness. Kate thought that she should correct the woman. Captain Castle was not her man, but that seemed pointless and the woman was soon gone.

There was one item still to be done, however. Workers from the town brought out more bales of hay and built a wall some six feet in height and a good hundred feet in length. No targets were placed on the wall. The company lined up some two hundred paces from the target. On a word of command from Castle, each man shot twelve arrows. When the last arrow was loosed, some 1500 arrows were embedded in the hay wall.

Castle approached the members of the town senate who were standing looking rather shocked at the whole demonstration.

"Gentlemen, we are about to be attacked by some twelve hundred pirates and I have far more than fifteen hundred arrows." Castle bowed and walked off.

As they were both headed for the Beckett palazzo it was natural that they would find themselves walking together.

"You shot well enough to win, I thought." Kate said.

Castle grinned. "So did Huw. But at that range, we both could have missed. A slight puff of wind while the shaft is in flight, and either one could have been a clean miss. We were both lucky to hit at that range."

"I hope there was more than luck involved." Kate said quickly. "Tomorrow we have…" She stopped, not even wanting to think about would happen to Pola if Demming and his pirates took the town, much less what would happen to her.

"Does Demming have anyone in town that might let him know what we've been doing? I really hope we can surprise him. As far as he knows, two priests came into town with an escort of a dozen archers."

Kate thought for a moment and then shook her head. "I think not. Demming took his galley back to his base, where ever that is."

"No one knows where his base is?" Castle asked.

"No, not exactly that. The coast of Dalmatia is filled with harbors and anchorages that have given shelter to pirates since….Since the days of ancient Greece. He moves from one to another as pleases him. But he'll be somewhere around Spalato, that's a fair sized town and will have the wine and women he and his men enjoy."

"So, attacking his base and destroying it would do no good. He could just move."

Kate nodded. "To answer your question, I doubt that Demming has gotten any word of your company's presence here. It'll probably take his galley two days or so to reach his lair and then two days back to here. A rider on horseback couldn't get to him in two days, the country south of here is too rough and no ships have left Pola since before you arrived, not even small boats."

"I've noticed that while you have a fine harbor here in Pola and a fine stone dock, there are no merchant ships moored here and only a few small fishing boats. Why is that? The dock looks like it could easily handle a score or more of merchant ships."

Kate sighed. "It goes back to Duke Cosmo. He had no interest in things military. When he became our Duke after his father, Duke Nicolo, died, we had a fine city militia, several companies of professional soldiers and a fleet of war galleys to protect our shipping. But Cosmo didn't care about that. He took the taxes meant for warships and spent it on a new fresco for his palace. The funds to pay the mercenaries went to pay for a statue of himself by a famous Milanese sculptor. The city militia was also starved of funds for Cosmo's artistic projects. The City Senate objected, but Cosmo considered them to be a bunch of low born money grubbers who lacked his aristocratic artistic sense. As the city grew weaker, the pirates grew bolder. Soon, ship owners and merchants began to move to Venice. The Venetians had enough war galleys to convoy their merchant ships and to chastise any pirates. By the time de Braquenne took the city there wasn't a merchant ship left in Pola. The few small fishing boats you see at the dock won't go out of sight of land. And when they see a ship headed this way, they flee back to Pola for fear of pirates."

Castle smiled. "So, with any luck, Demming thinks he's headed for a city that's basically undefended. He can't think much of the city militia. No one in their right mind would."

They arrived at the Beckett palazzo. When they entered, Kate heard a disturbance. It was her father, drunk and demanding more wine. Lanie was refusing to give him any.

"Damn, you, wench! I am the master of this house and I will be obeyed. Get me a jug of wine and get it now or I'll have you flogged."

Lanie looked at Kate when she came in. "Kate, your father shouldn't be drinking so much wine. It'll kill him."

"It's my damned life and I'd be better off dead. Now get me wine!" The elder Beckett screamed.

"I appreciate your good intentions, Lanie. But after watching my mother…."Kate could go no farther on that. She shook her head. "Get him a jug. I'll take him and it to his room. Perhaps later….." But she was sure that later would be no different.

Kate took her father to his room and left him with a jug of wine and a cup. Then she went to her own room and threw herself on her bed and cried.

Later, Lanie knocked softly on her door. "Kate, you should eat some dinner."

"I'm not hungry."

"No, you probably aren't." Lanie said, entering the room. "You should eat, however. You are the mistress of the Beckett family, and all of us, now. You need to be strong."

"I don't want to be strong."

"I'm sure you don't. But you need to be strong especially when you don't want to be strong." Lanie walked to a cupboard holding Kate's clothing. "I think you should wear the yellow dress. You look especially beautiful in that."

"What difference does how I look matter?" Kate asked, but got off the bed.

"Captain Castle is waiting for dinner downstairs. He said we won't eat until you come down. He says it would be impolite to eat before the hostess."

Kate came down, not much caring how she looked. Castle made small talk through the dinner, to which she replied in monosyllables.

When dinner was over, both rose.

"I need to see to my men." Castle said. "We have many things to prepare for, Lady Katherine."

"Captain Castle." She said as he turned away to leave. "I think you should call me Kate."

He smiled. "Then you should call me Rick. It's short for Richard."

She walked over and took his hand. "I should thank you for what you've done for me, for my family and for all of Pola. And for what you will do tomorrow." She stood on her toes and brushed her lips over his. "Goodnight, Cap…Rick."

Rick watched her as she walked away, then put his hand to his lips.

Castle woke up well before dawn. He had many things to do that day to prepare for Demming's arrival. He shaved and dressed carefully, feeling that this would make a good impression on his men. Seeing their commander concerned about his appearance would let them think that he wasn't worried about the coming battle. He was, of course, but would never show it.

Coming down the stairs, he saw a soldier in a mail shirt and helmet waiting for him below.

"Are you from the city militia?" He hoped something hadn't happened while he was dressing.

"I suppose I am." Kate said, turning to face him.

"Lady Beckett? What are you doing here wearing armor?"

"Am I not Kate anymore, Rick?" She teased.

"Why are you dressed like that, Kate?" He asked softly.

"You know what Demming will do to me if he takes the city. Then he will sell me to de Braquenne. He has boasted that he'll rape me and give me to his whole army before burning me at the stake as he did my mother. I'll die before I allow that to happen." She took his hand in hers. "Rick, promise me that if…it comes to that, you won't let me fall into Demming's hands alive. I want you to swear that you'll kill me before that happens."

Castle raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. "Lady Katherine Beckett, I swear to you that I will let no one harm you. Not today and not on any other day. I will protect you always."

"Always?" She asked.

"Always, Kate."

"Then we should go, Rick."

They left the Beckett palazzo hand in hand.

They walked through the silent streets of the city and went up the stairs to the top of the gatehouse for the sea gate. There Will Fox met them.

"Good morning, Captain, Lady Beckett. It's a good hour until sunrise, perhaps a bit more."

"Is everything as I asked, Will?" Castle asked.

"There are five of our men at the other three gates. The portcullises are down on all but the northern gates. Its seems the wealthier townspeople have little faith in us. They've been leaving for Venice with as much of their valuables as they can manage since late afternoon yesterday. I've ordered our men at the north gate to close it at dawn no matter what. If that bastard…." Fox stopped and looked at Kate. "My apologies, Lady Katherine."

"He is a bastard, Will. Don't worry about telling anyone that."

Fox smiled at Kate, then turned to Rick. "She's a keeper, Captain."