DARK WARRIOR
A Medieval Romance
By Kathryn Le Veque
A Dark Sons Novel
© Copyright 2019 by Kathryn Le Veque Novels, Inc.
Kindle Edition
Text by Kathryn Le Veque
Cover by Kim Killion
Edited by Scott Moreland
Reproduction of any kind except where it pertains to short quotes in relation to advertising or promotion is strictly prohibited.
All Rights Reserved.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
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This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook, once purchased, may not be re-sold. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it or borrow it, or it was not purchased for you and given as a gift for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. If this book was purchased on an unauthorized platform, then it is a pirated and/or unauthorized copy and violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Do not purchase or accept pirated copies. Thank you for respecting the author’s hard work.
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Kathryn Le Veque Novels
Medieval Romance:
De Wolfe Pack Series:
Warwolfe
The Wolfe
Nighthawk
ShadowWolfe
DarkWolfe
A Joyous de Wolfe Christmas
BlackWolfe
Serpent
A Wolfe Among Dragons
Scorpion
StormWolfe
Dark Destroyer
The Lion of the North
Walls of Babylon
The Best Is Yet To Be
The de Russe Legacy:
The Falls of Erith
Lord of War: Black Angel
The Iron Knight
Beast
The Dark One: Dark Knight
The White Lord of Wellesbourne
Dark Moon
Dark Steel
A de Russe Christmas Miracle
Dark Warrior
The de Lohr Dynasty:
While Angels Slept
Rise of the Defender
Steelheart
Shadowmoor
Silversword
Spectre of the Sword
Unending Love
Archangel
A Blessed de Lohr Christmas
Lords of East Anglia:
While Angels Slept
Godspeed
Great Lords of le Bec:
Great Protector
House of de Royans:
Lord of Winter
To the Lady Born
The Centurion
Echoes of Ancient Dreams
Blacksword
The Darkland
Ancient Kings of Anglecynn:
The Whispering Night
Netherworld
Battle Lords of de Velt:
The Dark Lord
Devil’s Dominion
Bay of Fear
The Dark Lord’s First Christmas
Reign of the House of de Winter:
Lespada
Swords and Shields
De Reyne Domination:
Guardian of Darkness
With Dreams
The Fallen One
House of d’Vant:
Tender is the Knight (House of d’Vant)
The Red Fury (House of d’Vant)
The Dragonblade Series:
Fragments of Grace
Dragonblade
Island of Glass
The Savage Curtain
The Fallen One
Great Marcher Lords of de Lara
Lord of the Shadows
Dragonblade
House of St. Hever
Fragments of Grace
Island of Glass
Queen of Lost Stars
Lords of Pembury:
The Savage Curtain
Lords of Thunder: The de Shera Brotherhood Trilogy
The Thunder Lord
The Thunder Warrior
The Thunder Knight
The Great Knights of de Moray:
Shield of Kronos
The Gorgon
The House of De Nerra:
The Promise
The Falls of Erith
Vestiges of Valor
Realm of Angels
Highland Warriors of Munro:
The Red Lion
Deep Into Darkness
The House of de Garr:
Lord of Light
Realm of Angels
Saxon Lords of Hage:
The Crusader
Kingdom Come
High Warriors of Rohan:
High Warrior
The House of Ashbourne:
Upon a Midnight Dream
The House of D’Aurilliac:
Valiant Chaos
The House of De Dere:
Of Love and Legend
St. John and de Gare Clans:
The Warrior Poet
The House of de Bretagne:
The Questing
The House of Summerlin:
The Legend
The Kingdom of Hendocia:
Kingdom by the Sea
The Executioner Knights:
By the Unholy Hand
The Promise (also Noble Knights of de Nerra)
The Mountain Dark
Starless
A Time of End
Contemporary Romance:
Kathlyn Trent/Marcus Burton Series:
Valley of the Shadow
The Eden Factor
Canyon of the Sphinx
The American Heroes Anthology Series:
The Lucius Robe
Fires of Autumn
Evenshade
Sea of Dreams
Purgatory
Other non-connected Contemporary Romance:
Lady of Heaven
Darkling, I Listen
In the Dreaming Hour
River’s End
The Fountain
Sons of Poseidon:
The Immortal Sea
Pirates of Britannia Series (with Eliza Knight):
Savage of the Sea by Eliza Knight
Leader of Titans by Kathryn Le Veque
The Sea Devil by Eliza Knight
Sea Wolfe by Kathryn Le Veque
Note: All Kathryn’s novels are designed to be read as stand-alones, although many have cross-over characters or cross-over family groups. Novels that are grouped together have related characters or family groups. You will notice that some series have the same books; that is because they are cross-overs. A hero in one book may be the secondary character in another.
There is NO reading order except by chronology, but even in that case, you can still read the books as stand-alones. No novel is connected to another by a cliff hanger, and every book has an HEA.
Series are clearly marked. All series contain the same characters or family groups except the American Heroes Series, which is an anthology with unrelated characters.
For more information, find it in A Reader’s Guide to the Medieval Worl
d of Le Veque.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Get ready for a very different de Russe story, although given Gaston de Russe’s traitorous turn at the Battle of Bosworth, it’s really not out of the realm of possibility to have yet another de Russe rebel in the family.
Cort’s that rebel – sort of.
He doesn’t start out that way. As you’ll see, he’s a VERY cheeky Jack the Lad. Hilarious at times. But this story is about the growing up of Cort de Russe and sometimes when you grow up, you take a stand for things that are important to you. We see a lot of growth with Cort in this book, which is something I really like to explore with my characters.
But it’s not just Cort who grows up, but our heroine, Dera (pronounced DARE-uh). She’s a MacRohan, and you met the premier MacRohan legacy knight (Bric) in High Warrior. But that story takes place more than 200 years before this one, so the MacRohans have been serving de Winter for a very long time. Dera thinks it’s long enough, and so does half of her family. But her brother, Brend, is in the same position that Bric was those centuries ago. Bric came over to the House of de Winter as part of a dowry, and that’s when the MacRohan legacy knights began. Brend is the latest de Winter legacy knight and takes that position seriously.
His sister, however, does not.
It’s weird to think that the stories from the de Russe Legacy all take place about two hundred and twenty years after de Lohr, de Wolfe, and others. There’s a BIG time span between these major houses and, in fact, we’re into the reign of Henry VIII with this book, so it’s technically the Tudor period and no longer Medieval. The span between de Lohr and de Russe is the same time span between our modern times and the Regency period – a couple of hundred years. How’s that for context!
Now, one of the central themes in this novel is that marriage between the Irish and English was outlawed as far back as the 14th century in a set of laws called the Statute of Kilkenny. Before that, there was a good deal of intermarriage between the two countries as the Normans tried to get a foothold, but it’s much more complex than that. The relationship between England and Ireland has always been complex, but for this time period, it makes interesting reading. At the time that Bric MacRohan married Eiselle de Gael in High Warrior, that type of marriage wasn’t illegal – but it was outlawed about one hundred years later.
Just a small note – you’ll see castles I’ve mentioned in other books in this tale, also – Narborough, Deverill, and Melesse to name a few. Chateau Melesse played a big role in Lord of War: Black Angel as the French property of Brandt de Russe, and it’s still in the de Russe family. Oh – and rotten tea makes an appearance in this book, too! If you recall, I’ve used it from time to time in my novels when someone is very ill or injured because it was literally penicillin tea. There are records of physics using such a brew during the Third Crusade – it was basically moldy bread steeped in hot water for days, but the benefits were indisputable. It was, indeed, called rotten tea. Can’t imagine having to drink that stuff. Blech.
Lastly, Gaston does make an appearance in this book. We know he’s been ill through the latter books in his series – Dark Moon, Dark Steel, A de Russe Christmas Miracle – and now this book. I’m normally ambiguous with ages for the most part because in the de Wolfe Pack, the senior members are well into their eighties. But in this case, I thought I would spell it out. Gaston was thirty-seven years old in A Dark One: Dark Knight, so in this book (which is chronologically the latest book in the series), he is seventy-three. He’s lived a long, fruitful, and adventurous life – and he has the deep love of his family – so that’s a great legacy for any man.
Now, without further ado, jump into the story of Cort and Dera. I think you’re going to love these two and a whole host of other characters that are particularly endearing. Should you bring tissues? By about Chapter Nineteen, you better break out that box…
Enjoy!
Hugs,
CHILDREN OF GASTON AND REMINGTON DE RUSSE
Trenton (Gaston’s first marriage to Mari-Elle de Russe) married to Lysabel Wellesbourne, has issue. Cynethryn, Brencis, Raphael (Rafe), Gaston, Brandt, Matthew, Trevor, Kristienne, Lucien
Dane (Remington’s first marriage to Guy Stoneley) married to Grier de Lara, has issue. Rory, Etienne, Adreanna, Felicity, Sophie, Sebastien, Tristen, Gregor
Adeliza (married to Gaspard de Ryes, has issue) Madalene, Marguerite, Remy, Cassandra, Nynette, and Rosemarie
Arica (married to Damien Delamere, has issue) Bryant, Etienne, Henry, Elise, and Nicola
Cort
Matthieu (widowed, has issue) Braxton, Hugh, Gaston, and Lucien
Boden
Gage
Gilliana
Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Kathryn Le Veque Novels
Author’s Note
Children of Gaston and Remington de Russe
Epigraph
Prologue
Part One: ENGLAND
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Part Two: IRELAND
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Epilogue
About Kathryn Le Veque
De Russe motto: Et est spes est virtus
“In Valor there is Hope”
PROLOGUE
November
Year of Our Lord 1521
Deverill Castle, Wiltshire
Beneath a warm blue sky, a great escort of men in crimson and gold charged into the bailey of Deverill Castle. Men with great weapons, astride expensive and powerful horses, all of them riding with determination and focus.
But there was no man more determined or focused than the man in the lead.
Henry Tudor, King of England, had arrived.
A big man with long legs and a crown of auburn hair, Henry dismounted his dappled stallion easily and charged towards the keep of Deverill as if God Himself were waiting for the king within the old walls.
But perhaps it wasn’t God, after all.
It was the devil.
In any case, Henry was on the move. He mounted the steps for the keep, shoving open the door and practically knocking the servant of the door on his arse. This was the home of the great and mighty Gaston de Russe, Duke of Warminster, a man known in his lifetime as The Dark One. He was the man who had helped win the throne of England for the Tudor dynasty, and there had been no one fiercer or more frightening on the field of battle, ever. Gaston was a man who could move mountains, tame wild beasts, and fight armies all single-handedly.
At least, that had been the rumor of his youth.
A rumor Henry had always believed.
But he wasn’t here to praise the man, nor was this a social call. He’d been summoned by Trenton de Russe, Gaston’s eldest son and heir, the Earl of Westbury. Something was terribly amiss with the sons of Gaston de Russe, one son in particular.
Cortland Henry Hubert de Russe.
It didn’t matter that the man was named for Henry’s father.
Henry was mad enough to kill him.
“Where is he?” he demanded as he burst into Gaston’s solar, located near the entry of the keep. “Where is Cort?”
He was met by a room richly furnished in furs and comfortable chairs. A fire snapped in the hearth. There were only two men in the chamber, however, and neither one was Cort de Russe. Henry found himself facing Cort’s oldest brother, Trenton, and a very old family friend. Matthew Wel
lesbourne, Earl of Hereford, set down his cup of wine.
“Your Grace,” Matthew greeted calmly. “Welcome to Deverill.”
Henry scowled at him. “Why are you here?” he said. “Do you think to ease my anger, Matthew? Because it will not work. I demand you bring Cort to me immediately.”
Matthew had been Gaston’s friends since the days of their youth. He was an astonishingly excellent warrior, a man who was as legendary as Gaston ever was, but he was also known for his calm manner, diplomatic ways, and benevolence. Exceedingly tall and well-built, with a head of pale blond hair that had mostly gone gray, he faced Henry steadily.
“He is not here,” he said. “And I am here for Gaston, not you. If you stop shouting, Trenton will tell you about his brother.”
Henry’s focus shifted to Trenton. He looked exactly like his father; enormous, dark hair, dark eyes. A more formidable man had never lived.
“Your Grace,” Trenton greeted calmly. “Thank you for coming so quickly.”
Henry wasn’t in any mood for men who didn’t seem to appreciate his anger. He ripped off his leather gloves, tossing them onto the nearest table as he made his way to the wine pitcher on Gaston’s table.
“Spare me your stalling tactics,” he said as he poured himself a sloppy cup of wine. “Where is your brother who has failed me so miserably?”
Trenton’s eyebrows lifted. “He failed you miserably?” he repeated. “It seems to me that you failed him when you sent him on this mission to begin with.”
Henry’s eyes widened. “Me? I failed him?”
Trenton’s eyes narrowed. “You,” he said. “None of this would have happened if it had not been for you, so do not blame my brother for your actions.”
Henry was so mad that he threw the full cup of wine into the hearth. “You dare accuse me of wrongdoing?”
Matthew, seeing this conversation was not starting well at all, put himself between the two men. “Now that we have the shouting behind us,” he said pointedly, “let us speak calmly on this subject. We are speaking of a man’s life, after all. Your Grace, Cort is not only your vassal, he is your friend. The two of you grew up together, so he is, in fact, your brother. We can become angry with our brother, but we do not hate him and we do not punish him. Quite the contrary; we love him, so this anger is out of love and concern. We all understand that.”