章節 98: Chapter 98

"Lady Sansa. Is the food to your liking?" he asked as he chewed on the Whale cuisine that his chef had learned from one of his Ibbenese Prisoners who chose to give up various kinds of information about his homeland rather than be sent to live in the Wall for life.

"Mmm…" the girl elegantly wiped her lips with a handkerchief and gave him a pretty smile that he had come to dislike over the past few months because of just how fake it was. "It is. The food is delicious my lord."

"Then you should finish it all sweet girl." His aunt, her words filled with sweet poison that threatened to end his appetite right then and there.

"You concern is noted but I think you should worry about your own health instead of poking in other people's business Lady Barbrey." Lady Catelyn snarked from the other side of the table where she was sitting beside Sansa. "If your maintained your beautiful figure then you might even catch the eye of some hedge knight and become a married woman once again."

Oh… that was a cheap shot. Lady Catelyn should not have poked his aunt's marital status. Especially considering how the war caused by the Stark was the main reason why his aunt's husband died in the first place.

Judging by the abrupt silence in the dining table, perhaps Lady Catelyn also realized that she had crossed the line because her face went pale and even Sansa, who didn't understood everything that was going on was starting to look worried.

Now, if someone else had insulted his aunt in such a manner, then he would have thrown them to the prison and then shipped them off to the Wall. But this was Lady Catelyn Stark. Plus, as much as he was ashamed to admit it, it was his aunt who started this whole argument. So he didn't have any moral high ground either.

Still, in a fight between Lady Catelyn and Lady Barbrey, he was always going to take the side of his aunt. Because she was family.

"Lady Catelyn." He said in what he had dubbed his 'lordly' voice and every head in the table turned to him as he seriously looked at the woman with an apathetic but slightly angered expression "Lord Stark sent a letter to you this morning. It seems he cannot take such long time of separation with his dear wife and daughter. The love he holds for you has moved me and I'm willing to break the 4 month agreement and will allow you to go back to Winterfell. In fact, I feel that you should go as quickly to your husband as possible. Today in fact. I'll allow you to go and pack your bags."

Sansa Stark still look confused but Lady Catelyn's expression had turned furious at the blatant way in which he was telling her to 'fuck off' back to Winterfell.

But really, did she really think that she would be able to live in his home and then insult his own aunt in front of him.

In hindsight, perhaps the idea to have Sansa spend some time here in Dreadfort was not such a good one after all.

But in hindsight, when he had called for Sansa to stay here, he had really not expected that Lady Catelyn Stark would come with her. In hindsight, he should have guessed that this could have happened.

The presence of Lady Stark changed everything because even if his aunt was willing to tolerate the Stark children, as was shown by her disinterest toward Robb and Jon during their stay here, she had a lot of hate toward Catelyn Stark because the Tullys were the main reason why Brandon Stark was not able to marry her.

And with Catelyn always staying close to her daughter as if they were in a hostile territory, the hate that his aunt held for Catelyn also started extending to her daughter Sansa who had no personality of her own and tried to emulate her mother in just about everything.

His aunt and Catelyn had mixed like oil and water from the start and any event that saw the two of them come together would be a tense one.

Because of that, the breakfast and dinner had been tense affairs these past few months but as long as they didn't cross the line, everything was just about alright. Except. Lady Catelyn crossed the line this time.

Lady Catelyn had the right to be angry on her daughter's behalf but she had no right to say what she did to his aunt.

He maintained his ice cold facade as Lady Catelyn angrily got up from her chair and pulled a confused Sansa along with her daughter.

Once Lady Catelyn and Sansa left the room, it plunged into silence once again.

He hated this silence. Everyone in the dining table was like a family to him. His sworn shields, Ygritte, Karsi, Lyra and Celly. They should be enjoying the food and each other's company. Not be silent in such a tense atmosphere.

"Lady Barbrey. Come with me." He said and got up from his chair. The occupants in the dining table got up along with him but he shook his head. No reason why he should let them go with empty stomachs for his mistake "You all can continue in my absence." And with that, he left the room, his aunt following behind him in a subdued manner.

As soon as they got to an empty room, he closed the door and cast a sound muffling barrier around it and turned to glare at his aunt who flinched at his expression.

"Did sniping at the heels of a little girl really give you so much satisfaction that you're willing to put my alliance with the Starks in jeopardy?" he asked in a cold and apathetic tone "Or was that your intention from the start."

His aunt looked hurt at his accusation "Dom. Listen to me."

"No." He cut her off "I've been listening to you ever since I was a child. But it was time for you to extend the same courtesy for me, you did not. You continued you childish spat with Sansa and Catelyn. And now this is the result. How do you think Lord Stark will take it when he finds that I threw his wife and his daughter out of my home. Huh?"

His aunt chose to remain silent in the face of his anger and he continued to glare at her before he finally felt a deep exhaustion come over him and he let out a sigh.

"I'll go with Lady Catelyn and Lady Sansa to Winterfell where I'll take full blame for this whole debacle and ask for forgiveness from Lord Stark."

"Dom. No you can't…"

"YOU… on the other hand, will go to the Bolton Port where you'll live as the Castellin for the next three months." He said, effectively exiling her from Dreadfort for the next 3 months.

"Dom… you… you can't…"

"4 months." He replied in a cold voice.

His aunt continued to look imploringly at him for a long moment before she finally lowered her head and gave him a nod.

"I… I understand my lord."

And then she left the room, leaving him in silence that made him wonder if he should have used some compulsion charms on Lady Catelyn when she first started butting heads with his aunt. That would have made things so much easier. But Sansa was his betrothed. His fiancee. And even if he had no plans to marry her, that still made her his pseudo family for the time being. And he had a rule to never use mind magic on his family members.

He was such a fool to put Lady Catelyn and Lady Barbrey in the same room and hope that the whole thing won't blow up in his face.