Teodora stopped them before they could leave. “What of de Lacy?” she asked. “Is he leaving me here to rot or is he pleading my case to the king?”
Hamilton sighed faintly. “You will not be executed,” he said. “But de Lacy has no power to have you released. For now, you are the king’s prisoner and he has the final word over you. If you are obedient and patient, mayhap he will find the heart to release you back to de Lacy someday.”
“I am quite certain that my husband does not care if that ever happens.”
“He is grieving the loss of Cullen right now, my lady. He may have a change of heart someday.”
Teodora knew that wasn’t going to happen and, in truth, she wasn’t sure that was the better option than what she had now. It was either return to the husband who hated her, now with no comfort or protection from Cullen, or remain with the king and be subject to his whims.
Either way, it was hell.
“I will not wait for that day,” she said as more tears streamed down her face. “But I will ask you for a favor, please. My grandmother came with me to Rodstone House. If you could make sure she is returned safely to Cerenbeau Castle, I would be grateful. I do not need a blind old woman in the path of de Lacy’s rage.”
Hamilton nodded. He hadn’t met the old woman, and he honestly didn’t know where she was. The truth was that he didn’t care and didn’t want to be bothered. But he wouldn’t tell Lady Barklestone that. He figured the least he could do was leave her with the illusion that he would try.
“Aye, my lady,” he said.
The chamber door was suddenly thrust open and de Lara was standing there in all his hulking glory. Their time with the lady was finished for good. Taking the hint, Hamilton and Godfrey quickly departed the chamber, leaving the lady to her grief and silently congratulating themselves at a scheme well-executed.
They got over their guilt of manipulating innocent people rather quickly. Cullen believed the lady to be dead, and she believed the same of him. Now, nothing stood between Godfrey and Hamilton and their ambitions when it came to the Earl of Barklestone. No interference from Cullen or Lady Barklestone, who were both now conveniently out of the way.
Of course, the last person to tell in all of this was de Lacy himself. Although they could not lie about Lady Barklestone’s death as they had to Cullen, they could, indeed, tell de Lacy that they had never found Cullen. It would save them telling the man that Cullen had been killed by the king’s men because, surely, de Lacy would want to see the body. With no body to provide, the only choice was to tell him that Cullen had not been seen.
And never would be again.
With that, their scheme would be complete. A visit to the king was in order and plans for the future of Preston de Lacy could be made.
As far as they were concerned, he didn’t have much of a future left.
Soon, he would be a dead man.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Southeast of Rockingham, Leicestershire
Village of Geddington
Three weeks later
After near three weeks of travel with an old woman who was doing her gamely best to not complain about anything, Cullen finally made it to the village of Geddington that surrounded Geddington Castle. The castle itself was rather magnificent, with a motte and bailey, at least two courtyards from what he could see, and an ingenious moat system that drew water in from the River Ise.
As a man who was interested in the construction and design of buildings, as it had always been a hobby of his and something that, during his service to de Lacy, had been impressed upon, he found himself quite intrigued with the castle and its moat system. It could be seen at a distance but before he could get a close look at it, he was obligated to find a place for Regal to rest and take in a meal. It had been a long day and the old woman had been surprisingly little trouble, and Cullen had been determined to take very good care of her.
But that kind of care required money.
Before he’d left Farringdon House, William had given him quite a bit of coinage, knowing he would need it on his travels, and Cullen had been extremely grateful for it. In fact, it was enough money for a man to live for a year or more and he’d been very careful with it, spending only when necessary and even selling some of his smaller daggers so he wouldn’t use what money he’d been given.
He felt odd spending William’s money even though he still had his magnificent broadsword and other items of value. He also had his horse, which he’d been able to remove from Rodstone before word got around that he was a wanted man. Whether the Rodstone sentries had ever told Preston that they’d not only seen Cullen, but that they had let him leave with his horse, was something of a curiosity to Cullen. He suspected that they wouldn’t admit to allowing a wanted man to get away, leaving the absence of Cullen’s horse in the stables of Rodstone a big mystery.
One that would probably never be solved – or, at least, not confessed to.
Three weeks later, the memories of Rodstone House and Westminster Palace seemed like years ago to Cullen and he probably could have forgotten about them altogether had it not been for that fact that he felt the pain of losing Teodora every single day. It was the last thing he thought of at night and the first thing he felt in the morning, knowing that the woman he’d opened his heart up to was gone.
It was a nightmare without end.
In truth, he didn’t even care about his failures as a knight anymore. He didn’t care about the shame he surely caused his family, or the disappointment of William Marshal, or the anger of King John. None of those things mattered to him. The only thing that mattered was that he would never again hear Teodora’s voice, or see her smile, or listen to her become angry over something minor. Those thoughts always brought a smile to his lips, how she could become angry at the slightest thing. And the night she’d pretend to jump from the window brought the most humor from him, mostly because he’d fallen for her dramatics. She’d been good at dramatics.
God, he missed that so terribly.
Odd how someone he’d known such a short amount of time could have left such a mark upon him. It was a mark that was etched into his heart, as surely as the stars were etched into the heavens. He could never separate himself from it because it was part of him. No matter how long he lived, he would love her as he did now until the day he died.
That would never change.
He also discovered something else as he and Regal had ridden northward. He’d taken the old woman with him because he couldn’t bear to part with his one and only link to Teodora. But he’d soon discovered that seeing the grandmother of his beloved was a daily reminder of what he’d lost rather than the comfort he’d hoped she would bring.
Regal had been surprisingly quiet on the journey, which made her a rather ideal traveling partner, but Cullen could tell that the old woman was hurting, too. He could see it in her face. When he’d told her of Teodora’s death, the old woman had done nothing more than close her eyes and pray, and she’d strangely had little to say about it. When Cullen told her that they were traveling north to escape the wrath of King John, Regal made absolutely no mention of wanting to return to Cerenbeau Castle. Cullen was coming to think that the woman thought he needed her somehow, which he did.
For now, he did.
A link to everything he’d lost.
And now, almost three weeks later, they found themselves in Geddington, a bustling burgh with more than its share of taverns along the main thoroughfare. The Star and the Cross, The White Stag, and The Dirty Oak were just a few of them. While Cullen went to the castle, he wanted to settle Regal into one of them, and he picked The Dirty Oak because it seemed less crowded than the others.
He soon found out why. It was much better kept and more expensive than the others, catering to a more discriminating clientele. Digging into his purse and pulling forth a precious coin, he paid it to the innkeeper, who promptly brought forth a meal for Regal that was fit for a king.
The old woman was presented wit
h bird pie, cheese, bread, a pea pottage, and a true delicacy – sweetcakes made from lemon and honey. Lemon was rare and the innkeeper made a point of telling Cullen that he’d had two trees brought all the way from Italy. One tree had been stolen straight out of the ground, but he’d managed to keep the second one and it had thrived. Lemons were worth a good deal of money and he was very proud of his fruit.
With Regal in good hands and eating away, Cullen slipped from the tavern and took care of his horse. The animal ended up in the livery across the road having a fine meal for himself. With the horse munching away, Cullen headed for the castle. The main avenue through Geddington was quite busy, but he didn’t pay much attention to the people moving about their business. He was more concerned with the castle that dominated the skyline, and he was particularly interested in getting a close look at the waterway system.
In fact, he was feeling some hope that Godfrey’s cousin might take him in, and he and Regal would find a place to stay for a time. But those hopes were dashed when a group of riders came barreling out of the gatehouse, heading straight into town.
Immediately, people began to scream and scatter because the soldiers on horseback had no intention of slowing down. One man was nearly too slow and although he was knocked to the ground, he retained his life. Curious, not to mention somewhat concerned at such reckless behavior, Cullen sank back into an alleyway between two homes, watching as the group of soldiers charged past him, thundering toward the center of town.
And then, he saw it.
The white tunics with the blue shield. He’d seen those before, several times in London and at Westminster, because they belonged to the Earl of Rockingham. He’d seen those same tunics on Barric Fitz Hammond’s soldiers. Now quite curious, he stayed out of sight as he made his way up to the castle, wondering if the Fitz Hammond soldiers had been tipped off by a certain knight named Sudeley and were now looking for Cullen de Nerra, an enemy of the king.
Cullen wouldn’t have been at all surprised.
As he stood in another alleyway right at the end of the village, looking at the series of moats and ponds around the exterior of Geddington Castle, it began to occur to him that any doubt he’d ever had that Godfrey and Hamilton were loyal to the king had just been summarily dashed. He didn’t know why he was surprised by any of this. In fact, he was coming to feel rather foolish that he’d listened to Godfrey when the man was only setting him up. Perhaps he hadn’t taken him to the king the last time they saw each other, but he was making amends for that now.
Geddington was crawling with Rockingham soldiers.
Clearly, they were looking for the man who had murdered their liege and with the greatest disgust, Cullen turned away from that intriguing castle and made his way back to the tavern where Regal was. He’d hoped the old woman had eaten her fill because they were going to have to leave quickly. He didn’t want to chance being caught by Rockingham men.
He was far more cautious on his return to the tavern, making sure the avenue was clear of soldiers before leaving the alley and crossing over to the inn where Regal was. Even when he entered it, he was much more cautious than he had been the first time because he didn’t want to be surprised by Rockingham soldiers lurking inside.
Fortunately, it was still fairly vacant, with only a few well-dressed travelers inhabiting the common room. Regal was still where he left her, sitting over by the hearth, stuffing her face with the food she’d been given.
Cullen approached the table and as he did, Regal’s head turned in his direction. Having traveled with the man for almost three weeks, she knew the sound of his footsteps and the smell of his musk.
“Well?” she said, her mouth full of bread. “Did you see all you wished to see?”
Cullen looked around the room, almost nervously, before taking a seat. There was a veritable feast spread out before him and he figured he might as well eat some of it before they had to rush out. He wasn’t sure when they would eat again, so he took the dull knife that had been brought with the bread and used it to scoop out great bites of the bird pie.
“I saw enough,” he muttered, mouth full. “Rockingham men are all over the castle, so we cannot go there. It is quite possible they are there looking for me.”
Regal swallowed the bite in her mouth. “Rockingham,” she repeated. “That is Fitz Hammond.”
Cullen shoved more pie in his mouth. “Aye,” he said, chewing. “I think my man Godfrey betrayed me. In truth, I am not surprised. I should not have taken his offer when he told me to come to Geddington Castle, to his cousin, and seek a position. The man is loyal to John and I should have known he would send Rockingham troops here to wait for me.”
Regal was silent a moment as he continued to shovel food into his mouth. “Godfrey is not the one who took my Teddy to her death.”
“Nay,” Cullen said as he started in on the bread and cheese. “That was Hamilton Banbury.”
“But both of those men are under the king’s thumb.”
Cullen slowed his furious eating to look at the woman. She wasn’t eating any longer, but simply sitting there, her milky eyes staring off into space. She’d been so calm, so even tempered during their travels, that sometimes he forgot that he wasn’t the only one burdened with grief.
“It is my belief that they are,” he said, more gently. “Regal, I know I have not spoken much beyond what I told you of Teddy’s… passing, but there are politics involved in the situation that overshadow the right and the good of it. Everyone is in danger from John and your granddaughter most of all, but I did not realize it until it was too late. I hope that you find it within your heart to forgive me for such failings. There is no excuse for my ruin.”
Regal didn’t say anything, but her hands were moving to the wine pitcher. She poured a sloppy cup and thrust it at Cullen, who took it.
“Drink it,” she said. “It helps.”
Cullen looked at the red liquid. “If I thought it would make everything go away, I would drown myself in it.”
Regal picked up her spoon and resumed eating, but much slower. “You are correct on one thing,” she said. “You have not told me much beyond Teddy’s passing. I’ve not brought it up to you because I know how devastated you are. I can hear it in every word you speak, Cullen. I do not have to have eyes to see how badly you are grieving for her.”
Cullen didn’t really want to talk about it. He didn’t want to talk about his sweet Teodora, who was now in a crypt somewhere, lying in the cold and in the dark. His last vision of her at the window of the king’s chamber haunted him, the very last sight he had of her was of her smiling at him as he climbed into the window. She’d been feisty with him and he’d loved it. But then it had all ended and he didn’t think he’d ever recover from the swiftness of the loss. Nay, he didn’t want to talk about it, but out of respect for the old woman, he would.
No matter how badly it hurt.
“You lost your Robert years ago,” he said. “Mayhap, I now have a small understanding of what you went through. I suspect if anyone knows what I am feeling, it is you.”
Reaching out her bird-like hand, she patted his meaty mitt. “All I can tell you is that you learn to live with the pain,” she said. “It never goes away. There are times when I think of Robert and tears still come. I long for what we had, and what never was. I long for the life I wish we’d had together. Henry ruined that for me just as his son ruined it for you. They both took something precious that we loved.”
That statement made Cullen drain the cup of wine and pour himself more. “In my case, I am coming to realize it could have been prevented.”
“How?”
He gulped down half of the cup in his hand. “I could have not let her go to the feast that night,” he said. “I knew the king was going to be in attendance but I also knew hundreds of other women would be there, too. I thought it would provide enough of a distraction for him that he would not notice Teddy. But Teddy… she was very excited about attending her first feast. I could not h
ave denied her the opportunity and I should have. I should have been smarter about it.”
Regal sighed faintly. “John would have seen her, eventually,” he said. “My Teddy was so beautiful that she could outshine the sun. You could not have concealed that beauty forever.”
“I should have tried. God, I should have tried.”
Regal could hear the anguish in his voice and thought it best not to continue the conversation, lest he become too distraught. There was evidently danger in town and he needed all of his concentration to figure out what they were going to do now. They’d made it to their destination only to see that it wasn’t safe. Not strangely, Regal felt protective over the strong young knight who had loved her granddaughter so. She had to help him as much as she could.
“Life is full of regrets, sweetheart,” she said, patting his hand one last time before returning to her food. “You will always have this one, I am afraid, but you will learn to live with it. Now, let us finish this beautiful meal and vacate this town that is crawling with Rockingham men. It would not do for them to find you. I would have to fight them.”
In spite of his gloomy mood, Cullen grinned. “Would you?”
She nodded firmly. “You think you are the only one who can handle a sword? Give me one and I will show you what I can do with it. But be advised that I cannot pick and choose my targets, so stay well out of the way unless you want to be cut down.”
Cullen laughed softly. “Not to worry,” he said. “I will handle the sword for now. Hurry, now; eat so we can be on our way.”
Regal did, and between she and Cullen, they cleared the table of everything edible. When the pie was gone and there was nothing but crumbs left on the table, Cullen bundled her up and took her across the road to the stables, where his fat horse was taking a bit of a nap. Soon enough, however, the horse was loaded up with his saddle, his master, and an old woman, and the three of them slipped from Geddington as if they’d never been there. They headed north, toward Blackthorn Forest, hoping to hide in the trees until they figured out where to go.
Noble Line of de Nerra Complete Set: A Medieval Romance Bundle Page 22