Iron and Magic (The Iron Covenant #1)(18)

She nodded. “You have an army, and I have a base.”

So far they were in agreement.

“Shall we talk terms?” she asked. “What do you need from us?”

“My people will need barracks, rations, and equipment,” he said.

“That’s reasonable,” she said.

“They aren’t farmers. They won’t be tending the fields or milking your cows. They won’t assist your people in daily tasks unless it’s an emergency.”

She raised her eyebrows. “So what will they be doing all day?”

“They will patrol the grounds. They will drill, perform PT, repair and fortify the castle, and take care of any external threats we will face.”

He slipped that ‘we’ in there. The sooner she saw them as allies, the sooner he would get his people fed.

“PT?” she asked.

“Physical training. You are hiring us as employees with specific jobs. We must be free to do those jobs.”

“I’m picturing three hundred people lying about, eating my food, and drinking my beer all day,” Elara said.

“Only when they are off duty. They will patrol the castle and the outer perimeter in shifts, and if they do choose to drink beer in their off hours, they will pay for it. Which brings me to another point. They will need to be paid.”

Elara leaned back. “You expect me to feed them, clothe them, equip them, and pay them?”

“Yes. I expect them to put themselves between you and danger.”

“If we paid each of your people $500 per month, the bill would come to $150,000 per month. If we had that kind of money, I would hire mercenaries. I wouldn’t have to stoop to this farce of a marriage.”

Stoop? Oh really. “When Nez slaughters your people like cattle, and you walk among their corpses, inhaling their blood, you should tell them that.”

Elara drew back. “I’ve taken care of my people until now. I’ll take care of Nez without you.”

“I can take this castle with twenty people,” Hugh said. “I can burn it to the ground, or I can kill all of you and take it.”

She leaned forward, her eyes fixed on him, icy with rage. “Try it.”

He leaned toward her. “I can do this, because my people are professional soldiers. You will treat them like soldiers.”

“We don’t need you.”

“Yes, you do. I saw Nez a month ago. He’s coming.”

The blond Caitlyn appeared in the doorway. Savannah took the pitcher from her hands, waved her off, and set the tea on the table.

Elara’s eyes narrowed. “And I should take your word for it?”

“Yes.”

“The word of a man who betrays his friends?”

“The word of a man who is willing to marry you with all of your baggage. I don’t see a line of suitors outside this door, do you?”

She recoiled. “How do I know you’re not working for Nez?”

“He is the Preceptor of the Iron Dogs!” Stoyan snarled behind him.

Hugh raised his hand. Stoyan snapped his mouth shut.

“Nez wouldn’t bother with subterfuge,” Hugh said. “You’re not worth the trouble. You’re easy pickings.”

She opened her mouth.

“How many of your people can kill a vampire one-on-one?”

She didn’t answer.

“Each one of mine can. They’ve been trained to kill them, because Nez and I spent a decade trying to murder each other. He sent me the head of my childhood friend, and then he and I had coffee in Charlotte a week later. That’s the kind of man Nez is. So snarl all you want, princess. But you will marry me, because you have no choice. You won’t win this fight with farmers. You need a cold ruthless bastard like me, and I’m the only one here.”

They stared at each other in silence.

“It has to be food, equipment, and board for now,” she said. “Take it or leave it.”

“I’ll take it. In return, you’ll let me make modifications and repairs to this place as I see fit. You will finance it, if needed.”

“We will discuss each modification individually,” she said.

“No.”

“I may not have the money.”

“Fine. We will discuss the budget for each modification with the understanding that my requests for materials and labor are to be given first priority.”

“Fine,” she ground out. “We do not tolerate crimes here. While your people are here, they will obey the laws. If one of them murders or rapes one of my people, you will kill that soldier. If you don’t, I will, and believe me, they will wish you had done it.”

She’d caved on the upgrades. Hugh had to give her something. “Agreed. I will need fifteen horses.” They were seventeen mounts short, and horses were damn expensive.

“Done.”

Shit. Should’ve asked for twenty.

“And just to be crystal clear,” Elara said. “This marriage is in name only.”

“Sweetheart, you couldn’t pay me enough.”

Pink touched her tan cheeks. “If you betray us, I’ll make you suffer.”

“We haven’t even married yet, and I’m suffering already.”

“We have that in common,” she snapped.