Out of Time

Chapter 47

Arthur followed behind as Merlin quickly scanned each room, stopping when they reached the last one in the hall. He turned back to Arthur, gesturing that there were three people in the room, all friendly.

He sighed a breath of relief. It must be Lancelot, Danielle, and Guinevere. Arthur lifted his blade at the ready regardless. If a person could put together an enchantment of this magnitude, there was no telling what more they could accomplish. He wouldn't trust his eyes again until he set foot outside of this building.

Charging into the room after Merlin, he came to an abrupt stop at the sight of his wife hacking away at a length of chain. "What are you doing?" he said before dashing forward and grabbing the sword from her hand on an upswing.

She spun around. "Arthur, what's the problem now?"

What was the problem? He saw red for a moment, and logic lost all meaning for him for a moment. "What's the problem? You run off, sword in hand, endangering our child and you have the gall to ask me what's the problem?"

She glared at him. "That's how you want to announce this? Seriously?"

He felt guilty for a moment. After all, such an important announcement shouldn't be disclosed in such a haphazard way. And now, thanks to his thoughtlessness, there probably wouldn't be a single member of the castle that wouldn't know by morning. But the guilt fled quickly enough as he remembered where they were. "That is beside the point. You could have been hurt. The child could have been hurt. Haven't you had enough loss already?"

She gasped, and he felt like he worst human being in the world.

He wrapped his arms around her, careful of the two swords he held in his grasp. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I think you scared the life out of me when the stable master told me you'd run off to rescue Lancelot. I don't think I've thought straight since."

She buried her face against his chest, completely oblivious to the unforgiving chainmail that covered it.

Behind her, Merlin worked at releasing the bonds that held Lancelot in place. One by one, the chains fell, signaled by a clanging noise as the links rang against each other. One. Two. Three. Four. Guin half climbed onto the table, clutching him to her chest.

Merlin touched Lancelot's shoulder, then looked up at Arthur. "I don't think he's conscious."

The look in Merlin's eyes told him it was probably a good thing. He'd seen the marks on Lancelot's body, and he had to agree. Better for him to sleep through a bit of the healing process.

#

Getting out proved to be a lot easier than they would have thought. Before long, they'd settled Lancelot in his bed, Guin kneeling beside him and holding his hand to her chest, almost as if in a prayer.

They bandages his wounds, and after a few moments of work, Merlin managed to wake him. "Welcome back to the land of the living," he said.

Lancelot looked around him, disoriented. "Is this a dream?"

Arthur clasped his shoulder. "No. You're safe now."

Lancelot nodded, turning to look at Guin. "You don't hate me, do you?"

"No," she said, kissing his chuckles. "I could never hate you."

He nodded, and settled into the bed.

"What do you remember?" Arthur asked.

"I... I don't know. Everything was... First there was Lady Morgan, then Guinevere, then my liege. It never had the same face twice."

Merlin frowned and looked back at Arthur, shaking his head. "We should let Sir Lancelot get his rest. It is much deserved."

Arthur ushered everyone out of the room, taking his wife's arm, and leading her to their own chambers. Once the door clicked closed, he rounded on her, ready and willing to force her to see reason.

"Don't even start," she said, holding up her hand to thwart him. "Didn't I tell the stable master so you would be right on our heels?"

"That's beside the point. You shouldn't have been in that situation at all. It was dangerous for you both."

"Do you have no faith in Merlin's amulet?" she said, laughing at her joke.

"It's not funny." He pulled her into his arms. "I can't lose you, Danielle."

"You're not going to lose me. You're stuck with me. I really do feel sorry for you. I'm not exactly a prize."

He scoffed. "Well, certainly not when you run off straight into danger while pregnant. I about had an apoplexy."

"But you didn't."

Arthur rubbed her back, his mind running in a million different directions. "I'm concerned."

"About?"

"Who took Lancelot? Why did they take him? This person was capable of hiding their efforts from Merlin. How powerful are they?"

"You're worried about what they might do next."

"Yes."

"What do you plan to do?"

He didn't know. What could they do?

She pulled away from him and sat down on the bed. "Okay, let's work it out together." She stuck one finger in the air. "We have an unknown force using magic with unknown intentions. We do not know the extent of their capabilities or connections."

"That wasn't helpful."

"I wasn't done." She held up a second finger. "They took Lancelot specifically. What are the qualities that make him special? Why specifically him? Because he's your first? Because he's married to Lady Guinevere and thus related to King Leodegrance? Or perhaps some connection to the land of his birth?"

Arthur nodded. "What else?"

"Well, I don't think it much matters what made him special, targeted. That will not change most of the preparations we'll have to make, only changing our investigation into the culprit. All three options lead back to a connection to Camelot, to an action that would require a reaction from this kingdom as both King Leodegrance and Lancelot's family are allied with us."

"True." He scratched his chin. "We must present a united front."

"That's a good idea."

"It actually brings me to an idea I've had for a while now."

"And what's that?"

"Knights of a round table?"

"Really?"

"You don't like it?" He frowned. He'd always thought it was a good idea. A free exchange of ideas, no man being better than the rest.

"No, I do. I'm just wondering where there might be a table round and large enough nearby. I'm also trying to figure how it will aid our current problem."

His heart lightened at her approval. Up until that moment, he'd never had the heart to actually ask her about his idea. It had seemed such a fragile idea, such a fragile hope. "It will allow us to coordinate forces and intelligence, work together better for a common goal."

She nodded. "Then we should get started on it right away. I'll get started on finding a meeting place for it. How many men do you believe will be part of it?"

Arthur started counting on hisfingers, mouthing the names of his various knights, himself, Merlin, and evenDanielle. "Thirty-nine, I believe,should be enough."