1002. Chapter 1002

. 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

Rick, instead of using his longbow, slipped off his horse and ran towards the enemy knight. As Rick had expected, the knight headed away from Kate.

He dodged a sword blow and swung his own sword at the hindfeet of the horse, but missed. He sprawled on the ground and saw the horse rear up on its hind legs to crush him. But as he did, Gwen ran to the other side of the horse, knelt and filed a bolt in to the beast's belly. The horse screamed and fell backwards, dumping his rider. The man was surrounded by a half a dozen archers and spearmen who soon killed him.

Castle found himself wrapped in Kate's arms as she threw herself on him. "Don't ever do that again." She whispered fiercely.

"I'll do that any time it's necessary to save you."

"Castle….."

"Sir Richard?" Another voice said. "A word please?"

Castle looked up at a young page on horseback whom he recognized as being one of Sir James'. "How may I help you?"

"We seem to have a bit of luck. There's a trail through the woods on our left. Duke Rodrigo has led his horsemen through the woods and should be ready to attack the enemy in the rear quite soon now. Just like Poitiers, I believe."

"And what would Sir James wish me to do?"

"It pleases Sir James that you tell the Irish horse on the far end of your line to prepare to charge if the enemy breaks and runs. "The page looked past Castle. "It appears that your troops have defeated the enemy here, Sir Richard."

Rick turned around. The page was right. There were still a few fights going on, but most of the enemy were definitely moving away. "I'll tell the Irish. What does Sir James want the rest of us to do?"

"Once it is clear that their army is on the run, you should follow on." The page bowed. "Have a good day, Sir Richard."

Castle found that most of the Irish horsemen had drifted towards the archers as there was no longer any enemy in front of them. The leader of the horsemen, whose English was as bad as Castle's Irish Gaelic was happy to be able to chase down a beaten enemy.

"Something's happening, Sir Richard." Will Fox said, pointing to the east.

Something indeed was happening. The rear of the enemy line was being attacked by Duke Rodrigo's eight hundred knights. De Braquenne's men were tired and wounded. Their horses were tired, or wounded, or dead. It took very little for the Duke's fresh knights to set the rear part of the enemy army fleeing. And as they found that the men behind them were fleeing, more and more of the enemy began to flee.

Directly in front of Castle's men the enemy was already all in flight. Only the dead or wounded were left behind. The Irish horsemen charged, cutting down the wounded and unhorsed and charging after the fleeing knights. While the knights, in their panic, tended to fragment into small groups, the Irish stayed together and were able to overwhelm the individuals and small groups they caught.

Soon all of de Braquenne's army was in full retreat and the retreat was turning into a rout.

Castle watched as the enemy began speeding over the far ridge. He turned to Kate. "Will you go back to the baggage train now? The battle is over."

"What will you do?" She asked.

"What I was told to do. Chase the enemy. But their cavalry will outrun my men and I'm sure the pirates and Venetian crossbowmen are running as well."

"Then there's no danger for either of us, is there?" Kate said with a smile.

"Still, you could…."

She cut him off. "I'm going with you."

Castle just nodded. "Will, we'll be going after them. Put the spearmen in front and everyone else behind. We'll have no trouble until we reach the ridge yonder, then we'll see what's on the far side."

The ground was littered with dead and wounded, both men and horses, and the detritus of war. The wounded were put out of their misery. The men stripped the dead of weapons and armor they could use or sell. Archers and crossbowmen picked up undamaged missiles.

Suddenly an armored knight rose up in front of them, one arm in the air and one hanging limply by his side. An archer walked towards him with a sword poised to kill.

"I am worth ten thousand gold Venetian ducats." The knight said quickly.

The archer stopped and looked back at Castle. Rick rode towards the man. "Do you wish to surrender and be held for ransom."

"Are you a noble?"

Castle nodded. "I am Sir Richard Castle, of the Great Company of England, led by Sir James Walden, in the service of the Duke of Istria."

The knight bowed. "Pietro Dandalo, Lord of Rimini, your servant." He smiled. "And your prisoner."

"You're wounded." Kate said.

Dandalo looked up at her in surprise. "Certainly, I am now dead, for I see an angel before me."

Kate smiled. "Not an angel, I am Lady Katherine Becket, betrothed of Sir Richard."

Dandalo took in Kate's armor and weapons. "Are all English women so…martial?"

A look of anger ran over Kate's face, but quickly disappeared. "De Braquenne murdered my mother. I so wish to meet him again."

Dandalo nodded, then frowned. "Your mother was Dona Johanna and you are…." Seeing the look on Kate's face, he stopped. "My apologies. I will feel forever dishonored for fighting for such a man."

"Why did you fight for him?" Castle asked.

Dandalo shrugged. "Politics. The Serene Republic wishes to control the entire seacoast of Dalmatia. My family said it was my obligation to fight. So, I fought."

"Sir Richard?" Will Fox said, interrupting. "I found an uninjured horse for the gentleman. If he's worth so much money, we'll want to make sure he stays alive, won't we?"

The horse that Fox had found wasn't a fine warhorse, but it was a serviceable mount. Dandalo thanked Fox and mounted.

"What happened to your arm?" Castle asked.

"Broken, I believe. My horse was hit by your arrows and threw me."

"We'll have that looked at."

They crested the ridge and looked down at the battle, which was still going on.

They stopped and as they did, Duke Rodrigo and Sir James rode up to them, accompanied a dozen riders.

"I'm afraid you're missing the battle, Richard." Sir James said, smiling. "De Braquenne has left the pirates to fight and slow us down. They know they'll be hung if they survive, so they fight to the death. He's using his crossbowmen as his own rearguard and he may just get away, although…."

"Pietro?" Duke Rodrigo interrupted. "Is that you?"

Pietro bowed. "Duke Rodrigo, I am the prisoner of the gallant Sir Richard Castle." He turned to Rick and smiled. "By the way, Sir Richard, the ten thousand gold ducats I mentioned was just off the top of my head. When you contact my family for the ransom, you should demand two hundred thousand ducats and not take one ducat less that one hundred thousand."

"One hundred thousand ducats?" Castle said, shocked by that amount of money.

"Pietro's uncle is the Doge of Venice." Rodrigo explained. "Anything less than a hundred thousand would be an insult to him."

"Indeed." Pietro agreed.

"You were fighting for de Braquenne, Pietro?"

The Venetian nodded, "Regrettably, it was family politics, you'll understand. Nothing personal. Although finding out what he did to Lady Katherine and her mother, I could not fight for that man again." Pietro brightened. "You should put that in my ransom demand. That I never fight for de Braquenne again. As it doesn't involve money, my family will agree."

"I'm afraid that my friend, Pietro, is what they call the black sheep of his family. I first met him in the Aegean Sea after he had been banished from Venice. Something to do with a lady?" Rodrigo smiled. "And her husband?"

"The pig enjoyed hurting his sixteen year old wife during…" Pietro glanced at Kate, not sure whether her ladylike sensibilities would be offended by what came next. Seeing her dressed as a soldier, he decided they wouldn't. "During the carnal act. I merely showed him what it felt like to be beaten by someone larger and stronger."

"And you showed young Dona Isabella what it was liked to be loved by someone who was gentle?"

Pietro shrugged. "She deserved it."

"Her husband was a member of the Council of Ten, you could have been executed and not just banished."

Pietro laughed. "She was worth every day I was away from Venice. He was stabbed to death in a drunken brawl. And how is dear Dona Isabella?"

"Married to young Angelo Cadorna. He worships her and she loves him."

Kate hadn't heard the last part of that conversation. She could see a man in a red cloak knocking a man off of his horse and climbing aboard. The horse, apparently wounded, moved off slowly.

"Demming!" She screamed, spurring her horse and riding after the man.

Demming's horse was slow and she easily caught up with it. She drew her crossbow and fired at Demming, but the bolt just nicked his saddle. He was so engrossed in trying to get his horse to run faster, he didn't even notice as he lashed the horse with a riding crop.

The horse stopped entirely, giving Kate time to cock her crossbow again. This time she shot a bolt into Demming's right hip. The impact caused him to fall from the saddle.

"I will pay you for your horse. Please." Demming called, not realizing who she was or that she was the one who'd shot him.

"You'll pay all right, you bastard." Kate leapt from her horse, strode to Demming and slammed him in the face with the crossbow.

"You?" Demming said through broken teeth.

"Me! Lady Katherine Beckett. You were going rape me and then sell me to de Braquenne so that he could give me to his troops and then have me burned at the stake as he had my mother burned.'

"No, never. I would never have…."

"Liar." She turned when she heard horses behind her.

"Kate?" Castle asked. "Are you all right?"

"Priest!" Demming yelled. "Save me. This woman is mad. She wants to kill me. You must save me."

Castle laughed. "I'm no priest. I was just wearing a black cloak and hood the day that we met. I'm a soldier and Lady Katherine is my betrothed."

"Would you like some assistance, Lady Katherine?" Will Fox asked,

"We'll be glad to help. "Pietro Dandalo added. "I'm sure it would be well within my rights as a prisoner to aid you."

"Lord Pietro?" Screamed Demming. "We fought together. You must help me."

"Help a pirate? What an odd thought."

Fox had dismounted. He walked over to a dead knight and picked up a broken lance. He hefted it in his hands. "It is still some ten feet in length and there are plenty of pavises about. Lady Katherine may I suggest that we drive this lance into the ground, tie him to it and then pile the wooden pavises around his feet."

"And set it on fire."Dandalo said. "What a capital idea, Signor Fox."

"No!" Screamed Demming. "NO!"

A number of archers had caught up with their commander. Fox began to organize them. "Now, lads. Someone get a mallet and pound the stake into the ground. The rest of you gather some pavises, and we'll need some kindling to get the fire started."

"I have some flaxen tow." Said one young archer.

"I have some as well." Added another.

"I have a flask of oil." Said a third, an older archer. "It's good for starting a fire when it's a bit damp. We don't want the fire to go out."

"Where he's going, the fires never go out." Added a spearman, getting a laugh from the men.

"I have an old bowstring. We can tie his hands behind his back and to the stake. Who has an old bowstring to use for his feet?" A dozen archers began looking for an old bowstring.

All the while, Demming cried and begged. No one paid any attention.

Once the stake was driven into the ground, Demming was bound to it and broken pavises were piled around the pirate. Several men were industriously chopping a pavise into kindling.

"What do you think, Lady Kate?" Fox asked.

Kate looked at Demming, now sobbing as his head and torso fell forward from the stake. She examined the wood piled around him. Then checked the kindling and the flaxen tow, now well soaked with oil.

"Not quite yet." Castle said. He walked up to Demming and slammed his hand into the man's stomach. As Demming retched, Castle pulled down the man's hose and tore off his loincloth, exposing his now shriveled manhood. Castle grasped it in one hand, then drew his dagger. He sliced upwards and the scrotum and the penis fell to the ground. "Light the fire quickly so that he doesn't bleed to death."

Kate nodded. "It's good." She knelt by the kindling and took out a flint and steel. Striking them together brought sparks which caught the tow on fire. The fire spread to the wood and Demming began to scream. He screamed for over five minutes before he stopped. By then, his corpse was on fire. Kate inhaled the smoke from Demming. Nothing, in her mind had ever smelled sweeter. The only thing that would ever smell better was when she burned de Braquenne at the stake. Then she smiled. She was wrong. Castle smelled better than any villain in the world. She stood there and watched as Demming's corpse was devoured by the flames.

Kate turned away and vomited. "Father Ryan, I would like to make my confession."

Author's note. I would like to acknowledge Swordwriters' assistance on this chapter