Chapter 9

York, Great Britain. May 1067

Slowly, Sergeant Madeline Baker forced her eyes open. At first, nothing made sense to her; if this was heaven, it was sorely disappointing, and if it was hell, it looked comfortable. The bed she was on was uncomfortable, but the fabric around her was white. As the rest of her senses started working again, Madeline heard other people moving around. Not five minutes after waking up, the fabric around Madeline’s cot was pushed back, and a brown-headed nurse invaded Madeline’s space. The nurse seeing Madeline awake, gave her a warm smile before checking her vitals without saying a word. Once done, the nurse spoke:

“Welcome back to the land of the living, sergeant.”

“Land of the living? I’m not dead?”

“No, you’re not dead, sergeant,” the nurse said, chuckling. “However, you gave us quite a scare, and it was touch-and-go for a while. You are now at the York Military Hospital. If you give me a minute, I’ll get the doctor.”

The nurse left, and Madeline looked around. She couldn’t see much from her spot except other soldiers in nearby beds and the light streaming from a window. Not seeing much else, Madeline turned her attention back to herself and explored her body. She found numerous bandages on her arms, and one of her legs was in a cast. Her stomach hurt a bit, and when she tried to sit up, she couldn’t without getting very dizzy.

Seeing someone step up next to her cot, Madeline looked up and saw a woman with red hair and a white overcoat. The smile on the redhead’s face was what she noticed next.

“Hello, Sergeant. How are you feeling?”

“I hurt and get dizzy when I lift my head.”

“Well, that’s to be expected, you lost a lot of blood, and the field surgeon had to stitch you back together out of spare pieces.”

“How long have I been here, doctor?” Alice smiled.

“You have been unconscious for a month, and Alice will work just fine, Madeline.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Madeline said crossly.

“What’s wrong, Madeline?”

“I’LL TELL YOU WHAT’S WRONG; IF I HADN’T LISTENED TO YOU, I WOULDN’T HAVE LEARNED HOW TO READ, AND I WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN STUCK UP IN THAT SCOTTISH HELL!”

“Why do you think that?”

“My old unit wasn’t sent up there! I got transferred and promoted after I learned my letters, and look what got me; I GOT MY ARSE SHOT OFF!”

“But look at what you accomplished...”

“WHAT I ACCOMPLISHED!!!” Madeline screamed, cutting Alice off and attracting the attention of others in the ward. “All of my squad is dead but me, and if I weren’t so much a coward, I would have been killed like them; I should have died with them.”

“Coward? From what I heard, you played a pivotal role in driving the Scottish attack back. If you hadn’t been there, the Scots would have overrun the base before moving down the line. You stopped them, Madeline. The other survivors agree that your leadership saved the base and broke the attack. Six other soldiers that would have died were saved because of you. You helped break the back of all organized resistance in Scotland by holding your ground and driving the Scots back. The war up there is now over. Madeline, you did that; you played a major role, thus saving many lives.”

“Wait! What?” Alice gave Madeline a warm smile.

“You heard right, Madeline; you helped end the Scottish War. Your regiment is still up there mopping up, but according to General MacDougall, they will be home in a week. Now, get some rest, sergeant.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Madeline managed to get out as she drifted off to sleep.

Alice pulled Madeline’s blanket up a bit and got up. She told the orderly she was headed out for a bit but would still be on the base. After the orderly nodded, Alice headed to Luke’s office. Arriving, the office workers nodded to Alice as she entered. It had taken her some time, but nobody stood when she entered the room. Whenever people did that to her, she found it embarrassing. Finally, Alice got to Luke’s door, and his secretary rose to open the door for her. Alice shook her head as she walked through the door, finding Luke right where she figured he would be. He was sitting at his desk reading reports when Alice walked in.

“Hey, Alice. What’s up?” he asked after glancing up.

Marion’s group had taken a while to stop looking up when Luke asked that question. By now, everyone who spent time around Luke knew what he meant.

“Sergeant Baker finally woke up, and I had an interesting talk with her. She’s got a mix of survivor’s guilt and aggravation at us.”

“I warned you about the survivor’s guilt; it took me years to get over mine. Why is she ticked at us?”

“She believes that if she hadn’t learned how to read, she wouldn’t have been put in that place in the first place.”

“She may be right, but we’ll never know for sure.”

“Her old unit was never sent to Scotland.”

“Ah. Well, I’ll stop by later and straighten her out.”

“You might want to hold off for a day. She’s still very weak.” Luke nodded at her.

“The rest of her regiment should be here in a week. Will she be able to stand on her own by then?”

“Possible. Her leg has been in a cast for a month, and most of her cuts have healed. She complained about being dizzy, but that’s to be expected.”

Alice walked around Luke’s desk and plopped down on his lap as he wrapped his arms around her. Once comfortable, Alice laid her head on Luke’s shoulder and sighed. There wasn’t anywhere on Earth she would rather be than on Luke’s lap. She stayed there for about half an hour before returning to the hospital, now completely relaxed.

After Alice left, Luke left to find Marion. He knew her schedule and figured she would be in her office. The trip into town was more complicated than usual because of all the people and construction. After fighting through town, Luke got to the castle and went looking for Marion. Sure enough, Luke found her in her office and buried under paperwork.

“Why did I ever let you talk me into being queen?” Marion complained when Luke walked in.

“Because you’re good at, and you’re nobility.”

“FUCK ALL THAT SHIT! I should have insisted you becoming king!”

“I don’t want to be king,” Luke said calmly.

His calm demeanor was almost undone when he noticed the gleam in Marion’s eyes.

“You know, darling, one advantage of being queen is having absolute power. You know I can order anyone to do anything I want, and they must obey.”

She got up from her desk and shut the door. When she turned back to look at Luke, her little pink tongue slid out between her lips and wetted her lips. Luke’s eyes were large as she came back toward him, unbuttoning her shirt as she went.

Marion had recently given birth to a premature boy who had survived and was named Fredrick Lucas MacDougall. Once again, if it hadn’t been for Alice, a baby and possibly the mother would have died. Fred, as Luke was already calling him, was barely two and a half kilos but otherwise healthy.

Now Marion glided across her office, horny as a two-peckered billy goat. She could feel her juices running out of her, soaking her pants, and Luke’s cock making a tent in his pants. By the time Marion got to Luke, her shirt was unbuttoned, so Luke ran his rough hands over Marion’s milk-filled breast, causing her to sigh. Marion breastfed Fredrick since she wasn’t on the run like when they had Mackenzie and used breastfeeding as a contraceptive.

Luke sucked one of Marion’s nipples into his mouth, getting a mouthful of milk, much to his delight since he had been a bottle baby. Marion buried her fingers in Luke’s hair to keep him at her breast because it had been a while since she had fed Fredrick, and she was full. She didn’t release Luke’s head until her breasts were drained. During the day, Marion had a wetnurse for Fredrick.

Having drained Marion’s breast, Luke worked his way down her body, kissing as he went. Luke unbuttoned Marion’s pants and slid them down her legs as he kissed her soft skin. When he got to her bald mound, he wrapped his arms around her and picked her up, making her laugh while sitting her on her desk. Luke stood up, and Marion saw the fire in Luke’s eyes. If she wasn’t flowing before, she was now and attacked his pants. It took only a few seconds to get Luke’s pants open and his fully erect cock in her hands.

Marion was too horny to mess around with foreplay, but she sucked on Luke to add moisture to his tool. Happy with how slick Little Luke was, Marion moved around and put her ankles on Luke’s shoulders.

With Marion’s ankles on his shoulders, Luke thrust into Marion, seating his cock deep inside her with one thrust. They both had fire in their eyes as Luke started pounding Marion, and Marion moved her hips with Luke’s thrust. It only took Marion thirty seconds before a pleasurable orgasm began to wash over her, but Luke sent her much higher when he reached down and pinched her clit with his fingers. This caused Marion to squeal, alerting everyone in the office to what was happening in Marion’s office.

When she had been a local noble, nobody cared much who Marion had sex with, but now she was the Queen of Great Britain, and her sex life had taken on a national meaning. Hearing Marion squeal, some of the new people in the office moved to try and see who she was having sex with, but Marion’s secretary stopped them. The secretary had been with Marion since Marion had taken over in York and knew what the boss was doing. That squeal was something only Luke could make Marion do, and she had opened the door for Luke herself. The secretary missed the betting that used to occur when Marion and Luke got tangled up in the office. Many of the new office personnel were much more prudish than when Marion had been a local noble and Luke had his office at the army base outside town, so they didn’t have office sex very often.

In the office, Marion went from the crest of one orgasm to the next. Luke still pounded her while pinching her clit with one hand while holding Marion in place with the other. With Marion’s vaginal muscles flexing tight on Luke’s member, he was getting close. It had been a while since Luke had been in his wife, and Little Luke missed her tight little kitty. Before Luke could try to last longer, his cock exploded, painting the inside of Marion’s vagina with cum.

After he finished, Marion moved her legs down and wrapped them around Luke’s hips, signaling that she wanted him to lay on her for a little while. Luke bent over and laid his head on Marion’s shoulder. She gently ran her hand through Luke’s hair while listening to Luke’s breathing slow. As Luke calmed down, he gently kissed Marion’s neck and rubbed her stomach.

Their bonding was interrupted by a knock at the door. They looked at each other and sighed before Luke stood and pulled Marion up as he stood.

“Come in,” Marion called as she was fixing her shirt. Marion’s secretary came in and admired Luke’s cock before he got it tucked away. She had always been envious of the tool that Marion, Alice, and Gabriella got to play with, but the secretary knew better than to try to do anything more than look. Marion had her clothes fixed by the time the secretary got done checking out Luke. “What is it?”

“A new ambassador from France is here to see you, ma’am.”

“A new ambassador; what happened to Benedict Martin?”

“I don’t know, ma’am. This guy says he’s the new ambassador and has the papers to prove it. Shall I let him in?”

“Yes, please. Then would you please go down to the kitchen and get me a sandwich and a brew.”

“Of course, your majesty.”

Luke snickered when the secretary addressed Marion as “your majesty,” and Marion smacked Luke on the arm just as the ambassador was coming through the door.

“Jehan Du Pont at your service, your majesty.”

“Good morning, Mister Du Pont. Allow me to introduce my army’s commanding officer, General Luke MacDougall,” Marion explained while gesturing toward Luke. She had a feeling about this guy but wasn’t sure exactly what the feeling meant. Seeing Marion’s reaction, Luke sat down in a chair near the wall while she moved back behind her desk.

“It might be better if we discussed our business in private.”

“This man is not only my army’s commanding general but also my husband, my closest advisor, and I trust him with my life. So, whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of him.”

“Very well, your Majesty. His Majesty King Philip is concerned with your recent conquest of Scottish lands.”

“What are his concerns?” asked Marion carefully.

“He has been led to believe that you are getting too powerful, and unless you immediately agree to withdraw from northern lands, he will order all trade cut off and arrest all English merchants in French cities.”

To Luke’s surprise, Marion remained calm. With the French attempting to extort the weak link of Great Britain, Luke would have expected Marion to do a good imitation of Mount Vesuvius. However, a second look at his wife revealed something much more disturbing. Her eyes were lit with blue flames, and the lines on her face looked set in stone.

“You can take a message back to your king,” Marion said evenly, “tell him if he interferes in British trade in any way, he will suffer the grave consequences. As far as the northern lands go, those are British lands now and forevermore. He is free to try and force me to return those lands, but he better be prepared to lose everything. Get out of my office and don’t return until you are ready to talk instead of making threats.”

Jehan stood there, rooted in his spot. The anger radiating off the queen was unmistakable, and he could see King Philip had completely misread the situation. Queen Marion was here to stay; nothing the French could do short of a successful invasion would dislodge her. To Jehan’s annoyance, Benedict had said much of the same thing before disappearing. Now, Jehan would have to do damage control:

“I am sure his majesty’s words were mistranslated from his directions...”

Marion saw right through this:

“But my words were not mistranslated. You return to your king and tell him what I told you. Now get out of here. GUARDS!” She didn’t say a word until the guards came in: “See that this man leaves Britain as soon as possible. After he leaves, report back to me.”

Both guards snapped to attention before coming up to the diplomat to escort him out of the country. He couldn’t believe that a mere woman could wield as much power as the Queen of Great Britain. His thoughts were interrupted when he felt the guards take him by the elbows. He considered such a move completely inappropriate, but knowing the reputation of Marion’s guards, he thought it would be best not to say anything.

By this time, Marion’s Household Guards had gained a reputation as the toughest soldiers in the known world. These soldiers were absolutely loyal to Marion. What confused many people was almost half of Marion’s household guards were women.

After the guards left with the French ambassador, Luke leaned back in the chair that he sat down in after the ambassador came in and looked at Marion:

“Wow, don’t hold back, sweetheart. Tell him how you feel.”

“That arrogant bastard pissed me off!”

“Even in my time, the French had a reputation for being arrogant, although his might be just aristocratic.”

“Hey, I’m part of the aristocracy!”

“But you’re not French now, are you, sweetheart?”

“No, I’m not,” Marion answered with a warm smile as she sat on Luke’s lap.

Marion always found that sitting on Luke’s lap helped relax her, especially when leaning against Luke’s muscular chest as he stroked her hair. This time, she was so relaxed that she fell asleep. Luke watched her sleep with a sense of awe. He always wondered how he got so lucky to be transported back in time and find such a perfect woman. Then he reminded himself that it wasn’t just one ideal woman but three, even though one of the three was a lesbian and only coupled with Luke once in a while.

When Marion’s secretary came in, Luke signaled her to be quiet and waved for her to whisper in his ear.

“Doctor Kensley is here.”

Luke nodded, and the secretary left to get Alice. When Alice walked in, her heart instantly warmed, seeing Marion curled up on Luke’s lap. Marion hadn’t been sleeping well recently; that had been taking a toll on her, so Alice was happy to see her getting some rest.

“Hey, doc, what’s up.”

“Sergeant Baker is awake again and is being transferred to a general ward.”

“Good. How’s the little spitfire doing?”

“I took her cast off before we moved her, and her leg appears to have healed. We’ll be fitting her with a brace tomorrow, so she can get around without putting too much stress on the leg. Without an X-ray machine, I can’t check to ensure its healed completely. Her cuts are completely healed, although she’ll have some scarring.”

“So, will she be able to participate in Marion’s planned ceremony when her regiment returns?”

“Physically? Yes. Mentally? I think that’s a different story.”

“Get the survivors together with her and see if that helps any. If not, I’ll stop and talk with her.”

“Ok, what about that blonde beauty on your lap?”

“Let her sleep. She needs it.”

Alice nodded, gave Luke a kiss, and quietly left. Luke sat with Marion on his lap while she slept and softly stroked her hair. An hour after Alice departed, Marion woke up, and the first thing she saw was Luke smiling at her, causing her heart to skip a beat. She moved her head so they could kiss before getting off his lap to stretch.

“Alice stopped by earlier and said that Sergeant Baker should be ready for the ceremony, although she’s suffering survivor’s guilt.”