Lord Wolf
Chapter 41 — Wining, Dining, & Crazy Women
After about 20 minutes of Billy fussing about and getting me all decked out in the Faire’s version of black tie, another ping came through:
3, Sir. She’s falling faster than I thought she would.
I smiled and headed over to the Ale House that was in the process of shutting down. The crowds were working their way either towards the banquet or towards the exit. The sun had set, and it was nearly 7:30. Pop and one of the twins were manning the room since they had already called for last round about 15 minutes before.
The girls had already moved over to the field, where it had been set up for the smaller, grander banquet. This one is for sponsors and supporters of the Faire. The tickets were quite pricey apparently. I was gifted one since I was in the Knight’s tournament.
I chatted with a few of the remaining patrons and Pop was thrilled with how things were going. He gave me all the credit for the success of our venture. I gave him credit for a great brew and thanked him for his efforts. He was looking forward to proving to his wife that he was able to achieve some success with his brewing business. I got the impression his wife was totally unsupportive and a real negative nag about it.
By the time I had made my way down to the banquet area, there were two lines. One was moving pretty quick while the other seemed to crawl. As I got closer, I realized that one was for the “royalty and honored” who were in the process of being announced. While the other was for the wannabes who just wanted to get to their tables and watch the procession and gawk at the extravagant costumes some people chose to wear.
I was noticed and was quickly ushered up near the front of the line, behind the other knights. Apparently, I missed the memo that I needed to have a lady on my arm. The Faire coordinator was starting to get frazzled when Antie came up and solved the man’s problem.
“You should be grateful. . . “ Antie stated as she stood next to me staring ahead.
I looked at her puzzled. She was looking ahead. Normally our interactions tended to be confusing, and she regularly talked in circles. Usually to be playful, but this time I sensed she was agitated and a little fearful. She finally looked up at me when I didn’t respond.
“You don’t realize how much impact you are having on the Faire, young man. If I hadn’t set some guard rails in place, you would be up to eyeballs in women.” she teased. “Your squires have been very active and have taken your lead in being helpful and seeking out opportunities to be of service to the women they encounter. Had I used a different word, it could have been any woman at all. Even girls as young as 12 or 13. Had I used a different meaning, it could have meant any girl who had had her first period. Be grateful that I included only the ones you would want to sleep with and filtered out the rest. The others are thankful for sure, but they don’t feel the need to reward you.
But I did feel some obligation to you since you’re impressing me with your honorable behavior. You really do want what’s best for people. Even as you accept your rewards, you give back as much or more than you receive. What you did with the widow was quite touching. I don’t think I could have done better myself. And I have seen a change in the queen’s behavior since she visited your tent. That is scoring bonus points in my book. Anything to piss off that arrogant bastard, Bryce. Even making his champion look bad at the last event.
I am pleased you haven’t allowed this power to go to your head. I hope it doesn’t corrupt you.” She added as she patted my arm.
The whole time she was talking, the line was moving forward. People in front were being introduced and then moved into the banquet area. I had been listening intently as well as aware of our surroundings. It appeared that people were oblivious to our conversation. She finished just as we were “on deck.” A functionary took our names and handed them to the herald who banged his stick on the ground and introduced us. We moved forward into the seating area and there was a fair amount of applause as we entered, which wasn’t normally the case. I wasn’t sure if it was for me or for Antie, but several people stopped us along the way to shake my hand and others to acknowledge Antie. She guided me to her table.
“I appreciate the reward, but I’d like to know more about what you have gotten me into. It seems to me there is a lot more going on that I have no clue about.” I said quietly as I pulled out her seat and pushed it back in.
She just looked at me with her piercing blue eyes, an unreadable expression on her face. Then she shooed me over to the table that was reserved for the knights and plus ones.
My fellow knights greeted me and thanked me for saving them from the dunk tank. Apparently, the rumor mill worked at warp speed here. I agreed with them that it wasn’t something we wanted to deal with and told them it wasn’t my doing but that the girls had volunteered.
The Black Knight was seated at the head table to the right of the king with the queen to his left. I was the only one without a female partner, but the guys didn’t mention it. I guess coming in with Antie quashed any ribbing they would have given me. Not to mention that several of the girls made their way over to me and ensured I had anything and everything I wanted. The others deferred to me, and I seemed to be the one the others wanted to impress. Several of the knights shared stories of past events and challenges. Even though the majority of the event was like a boring awards banquet, I enjoyed the camaraderie of these men.
Unfortunately, the trouble began not long after I had sat down. I had noticed a functionary come up to the king and tell him something that was quite upsetting to him, and his response was an emphatic no. From my seat, I had a clear view of the remaining line of people to be introduced. I spotted a very perturbed Layla. Putting two and two together, I quickly got up and surreptitiously made my way back around to the back of the line.
It turns out that Layla had been removed from the introduction list, even though she was listed as the queen on the list but also as the head of the charity that was a sponsor at the event. The King had the Faire completely removed the charity from the introduction list even though they had paid for a reserved table. He was not only snubbing her, but he was also slighting everything she was associated with. He even made the event staff move their table from the main area of sponsors off the far corner of the room.
The excuse they gave for not introducing her was the fact that she had no partner to be introduced with. She had also demanded that she be introduced as Her Majesty, regardless of whether or not she had a partner. It didn’t help that she had been drinking and was tipsy. She was allowing her emotions to get the better of her, but it wasn’t right that they would not introduce her at all.
I approached the functionary and resolved the situation by being her escort and slipping the herald a $100 bill. He conceded and was willing to introduce as her Royalness. After all, the herald wasn’t getting paid for this and he didn’t like the king either. He banged his stick three times attracting everyone’s attention and introduced us. I escorted her to her table and there was a smattering of applause throughout the room, but you could tell that the king was pissed. The queen locked eyes with me for a moment. She looked pissed, but I just smiled knowingly, and she lowered her gaze. Fortunately, Layla was appeased and graceful as we walked to the charities table, and we sat down together. Soon the room returned to their meals and the conversations were filled with the gossip of our entrance.
Layla quickly engaged herself in the discussions of the people around her. Tracy got up and came around behind me and whispered in my ear, “Thank you for that. As well as your generosity with your ladies. I think we have a game plan that will generate a substantial increase in our donations tomorrow. We will have to see what your reward is.” She stated, before returning to her seat.
I stayed at their table for a while. Even though Layla was being conversational and the typical socialite, I watched her finish off several glasses of wine. Evidently, she was not happy with the way things had turned out after all and was attempting to drown her frustrations. After about 30 minutes, there was a break in the speeches, and I excused myself. I whispered into Tracy’s ear before I left, asking her to keep an eye on Layla’s alcohol intake to ensure she didn’t overdo it. Although I suspected she already had.
I returned to my seat at the Knights table. After sitting through the remaining speeches and accolades awarded, they finally brought out the band and opened up the dance floor. Fortunately, they were good and lively. The energy in the room grew and lightened. Not having a specific woman with me allowed me to do two things: One, enjoy the beauty of the women in the room and dance with a few I wanted to, and two, to stand on the sidelines and watch.
The trouble continued when I saw Layla starting to drunkenly make her way up to the head table. I quickly made my way to head her off. I intercepted her and quickly redirected her to the outer perimeter of the tables. I wasn’t the only one who saw this. Antie met us as we reached the corner near the exit. Turns out, Layla had allowed the alcohol to get the better of her and was planning to give her estranged husband a serious tongue lashing. She was belligerent until I took out one of my scarves and tied it around her wrist. This allowed me the power to control her and make her compliant. I told her to forget her anger and hurt about her husband. She was also pretty wasted so I was able to distract her by talking about anything else.
“Someone needs to take her home. All she will do now is embarrass herself.” Antie stated.
She was looking at me as I helped hold Layla up. I could tell she wanted me to step in here. I was hesitant. I had plans with both Spitfire and the twins. I was planning on enjoying my evening of debauchery with them. After a moment, I formulated a plan where I could do both. It would just require some restructuring.
I nodded to Antie, and she handed me a bottle of water and a bottle of Gatorade. “Water is for you and the Gatorade is for her. Now get her out of here before we are noticed.” she added as she melted back into the crowd.
I pulled Layla up and guided her towards the exit. Spitfire must have been watching and met us as we left the area. I asked her to make sure the twins got back to the hotel and that I would meet her there to continue our negotiations. She smiled knowingly and accepted the assignment. She told me not to dally helping this damsel in distress, that the party was wrapping up and they would be back there within an hour.
I ushered Layla to my truck. She was drunk, but not nearly as bad as Sophia was last night. That thought hung in my mind. It was hard to believe all that had happened in the past 24 hours. That I was once again taking a drunk woman back home. Thankfully, the situation was different. I had no past with Layla and hopefully I could get her home and then back to the girls in short order.
But that was not to be . . .