by Lisa Shea
His brow shadowed. “I didn’t recognize the man we ended up meeting with on the docks. He was undoubtedly a trusted servant. But he had a signet ring he used to prove he was the one we were to give the information to. And it was for Lord Bloodworth’s house.”
She stared at him. “So you thought it was planned by Lord Bloodworth?”
“I couldn’t be sure,” he amended. “It could have been one of his two younger brothers. But I remembered Roger had ended his time in the Crusades and returned to Lord Bloodworth’s employ, a few months before King John asked me to work for him. Roger and I had been good friends. I had to trust someone, in order to make further progress. So I contacted Roger and told him the whole story.”
She paled. “What if Roger was involved?”
He shook his head. “I just don’t think so. Roger had always been a straightforward man. Back when he joined the Crusades it troubled him deeply that King John had been excommunicated and he prayed daily for the rift between the Pope and King John to be healed. The happiest day of his life was when that occurred.” He shook his head again. “I just can’t see him ever taking any action against King John. Especially now that the Pope has reclaimed a position at the King’s side.”
She nodded. “So you trusted Roger, and Roger got you an invite to that dinner, so that you could see all three brothers for yourself.”
He gave a small smile. “And instead someone tried to drug me, to find out what I knew. So instead of trapping one of them, I nearly became trapped myself.”
He drew to a stop and turned to look at her. “And then you saved my life.”
His eyes were deep, as deep as wells, and it took every ounce of her strength not to fall back into that embrace.
She gave herself a small shake. “We will sort this out,” she vowed. “And soon.”
He raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t realize you felt so strongly about protecting King John.”
She shook her head. “You mistake me. King John can watch over himself, for all I care.”
“Then …?”
She took a step toward him and lowered her voice. She raised her eyes to his.
“Because, with all we have been through, I want to pledge myself to you as wife as soon as I can. For I love you, I love you, I love you, and I shall never be parted from you again.”
A pair of ravens rose from the meadow, stretched their wings, and sailed silently to the west.
His eyes shone, and there was no more need for words.
Chapter 25
Lord Bloodworth and Richard were still ensconced in their study for lunch, and Nathan wasted no time in sliding his ample bulk over the seat to be immediately next to Alicia. He beamed warmly at her as he took down a long drink of his mead. “About time you rejoined the living, lass. Life is too short to waste it.”
Lady Bloodworth smiled over fondly from her seat on the other side of the empty main chair. She raised her glass to Nathan. “So very true!”
Nathan speared another piece of chicken with his knife, bringing it back onto his bread trencher. His eyes moved to Alicia. “So, are you planning on returning home to Wales?” He gave a low snort. “Better do it soon. King John did quite a number to your Northern provinces a few years back. Burned some villages to the ground. Who knows what he’ll get into his deranged mind next time he’s in that part of the country.”
Alicia nervously glanced around, but nobody else had heard his disrespectful mutterings. Alicia had a feeling his other brothers might have been less than pleased with his near-treasonous comments.
As she looked again at Nathan’s smiling face, interest rose within her. If any of the three brothers might be conspiring against King John, Nathan certainly seemed to be a reasonable choice.
Alicia leaned forward to Nathan, pitching her voice low. “It is a relief to at last find a like-minded person to talk with. Wales was sorely used by our King. There were many in our village who would quietly talk about rising up against King John.” She gave a wry shrug. “But John is our God-selected King, after all. What could we lowly serfs possibly do? He already breaks our back with the heavy taxes – all to pay for his extravagant lifestyle, his affairs, and his costly warfare on lands hundreds of miles away. In the meantime, we farmers barely have enough food to survive the winter.”
Nathan eagerly nodded, waving his knife in the air to make his points. “It is the nobility which must act. They are the only ones with the strength and resources – the ones who have a chance of righting these wrongs.”
He scoffed and looked toward the closed door of his eldest brother’s study. “Father should never have left the estate to that effete dunce. He’ll follow the King to the end merely because John is the surviving eldest child of Good King Henry II. Would that we could have kept King Richard instead! Now there was a King.” He shook his head. “But instead we’re left with a pale shadow – and a shadow who tried to back-stab his own brother.”
Alicia let her eyes go wide. “King John did that?”
He nodded, drinking down more mead. “John did that when Richard was off in the Holy Crusades, fighting for God Himself. Can you imagine that? And now that John has the power, he abuses it. He is vindictive and cruel. He takes hold of any baron’s wife that catches his fancy. And the cuckolded husbands can do nothing but gnash their teeth and pray for an illness to strike John down.”
Alicia spoke in a mere whisper. “Maybe a noble with inner strength will do more than just pray.”
His eyes shone at the idea, and he turned to her. His voice rose with fierce energy. “King John will never take Normandy,” he vowed. “Because –”
The study doors opened; Lord Bloodworth and Richard strode out. Richard’s eyes immediately went sharply to his seat.
They speared into Nathan.
Nathan flushed and guiltily looked down. He slid a seat down, back into his own place.
In a moment Lord Bloodworth and Richard had settled into their seats on either side of Alicia. Lord Bloodworth warmly patted her hand. “It is good to have you with us again, my dear. My wife always knew you would come around, if we were but patient.”
Alicia dipped her head. “I thank you kindly for your hospitality, My Lord. You have cared for me admirably these past few months.”
He smiled. “And you did your part, with beautiful spinning. You and your cousin. And now your uncle and cousin are back where they belong, and you are healing. My dear wife would say it is the best possible outcome.” He nodded to a servant as she filled his wine glass full, then motioned to Alicia. “Wine for Alicia as well.”
The servant nodded. “Of course, My Lord.”
Alicia watched as the rich ruby-red fluid flowed into her glass. As much as Nathan seemed enthusiastic about taking down King John, he was, after all, the third son. He had few resources at his command and seemed more of a talker than a doer. In comparison, Lord Bloodworth had full control over the family’s wealth and ample reason to despise the King’s high taxes.
The thought came to her again, despite Dylan’s uncertainty. Could Lord Bloodworth have been behind the smuggling of information about King John’s activities? Could the Lord have attempted to drug Dylan at his own party, in order to torture information out of him? Could his gentle-family-man exterior all be some sort of an act?
She shook her head, taking a long drink. It didn’t seem to make sense for Lord Bloodworth to attempt to poison Dylan right at his own table. Surely he could have found another more private way to have his guards acquire Dylan at some point in the evening.
She looked at the throngs around them, from the many people filling the tables to the guards by the doors and the servants moving to and fro with food and pitchers. On the other hand, perhaps the quite public nature of the scene would mean, if something went wrong, that few would think the Lord himself could possibly be involved.
Lord Bloodworth raised his glass. “To you, my dear. To your healing and renewed health.”
She touched her glass to his, th
en took a sip. The wine was indeed quite good.
He smiled at her reaction. “You like it, yes? It’s from Normandy. Thank God all the fighting will be done soon and we can get our reliable shipments out of those wineries again. That’s what our country needs. Peace. For everything to settle down so we can keep what’s ours and protect it.”
He looked with pride down the strong, stone walls of his great hall. To the fluttering banners which bore their family crest. “My father entrusted me with this keep and lands. I will do whatever it takes to see it safely to the next generation.”
Nathan scoffed and leaned past Richard. “Do whatever it takes, you say. You sit there doing nothing while King John destroys our country! Look at how much gold he has squandered in these wars of his! Money that belonged to us. At least, if he achieved victory, we could share in the spoils. But if he gives up now, if he retreats like a white-bellied coward –”
Lord Bloodworth had clearly had enough. He drove hard to his feet in fury, his eyes blazing down at his brother. “Out. I want you out of this keep until you can hold a civil tongue about our King.”
Nathan rose in return, his own face glowing. “You are a fool,” he shot back. “You will destroy everything our father entrusted in you to protect!”
He stormed around the head table and out of the hall.
Richard leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers. He watched his younger brother head through the great doors, shaking his head. “Our mother always spoiled the young fool too much. Gave him romantic notions of a perfect, chivalric world. He has to learn to see things for what they really are. To see the shadows and to know how to use them.”
Lord Bloodworth plunked back into his chair and took a long swig of his wine. “He needs a good beating, is what he needs.”
His wife gently patted his arm. “There, there, my love. He’s just being petulant. You know how he can get. He’ll be fine again in the evening. Like he always is.”
He put his hand over hers and sighed. “You are right, my dearest. What would I do without you?”
Alicia’s eyes were drawn to his fingers.
On the third one he wore a large signet ring.
One with his family crest.
Chapter 26
Alicia kept her head next to Dylan’s as they walked their afternoon circuit around the keep’s high stone walls. Dark clouds roiled above – it looked like a late-autumn thunderstorm might pummel the area soon. Normally she might have opted to stay inside – but she knew she had to let Dylan know what she had discovered.
She relayed every detail of what she remembered from the conversation at lunch. Nathan’s energetic desire to take down King John. Richard’s sympathy for the French and concern for the Cathars. Lord Bloodworth’s hopes to keep his family peaceful and whole. It seemed each brother might have good cause to take action against King John – and to take issue with the spying Dylan had been doing on those activities.
Dylan tapped his lip. “And you have not seen any sign of Zachariah – the man with the ice-blue eyes who seemed to be in charge of the soldiers sent to hinder me?”
She looked over at him. “You’re worried that he escaped the blaze, then?”
“We have to assume so. His body wasn’t identified and we know at least one of his men was alive to club me from behind.” His brow scrunched. “How many bodies were charred beyond reasonable identification?”
Alicia’s eyes shadowed. “You mean, beside yours?”
His hand moved toward hers before drawing back with effort. “Alicia, I’m so sorry.”
She drew in a breath. “You are here now, and that is all that matters.” She glanced in the direction of the chapel. “Most of the bodies escaped total destruction. But there were three which were little more than char and ash. You, Walter, and Zachariah.”
Dylan’s gaze widened in awareness. “Walter. He was the soldier who was supposed to guard the gates, when the assault to rescue me took place. But somehow Zachariah made it out past him, only leaving him with a bump on the head.”
Alicia could see it clearly now. “And Walter could easily have gotten news to Zachariah about where you had been brought.”
Dylan nodded. “It seems likely that Walter was the one who lent Zachariah a hand in that fight. The two of them escaped together. So the question is where Zachariah is now.”
Alicia shook her head. “I have not once seen Zachariah in all the time we have been at this keep. Surely, if he was working for one of the brothers, he would have come in to report on his activities?”
Dylan gave a soft shrug. “It could be, with me thought dead, he has gone on to other tasks. Just as Tibault and Simon have returned to France to seek out new jobs.
His eyes shadowed. “Or Tibault and Simon could be dead by now. Someone hired them to gather and transport information. If that someone felt their usefulness was now over, the two could have been removed from the game - permanently.”
A chill ran through Alicia’s spine. She knew this was all quite dangerous. After all, Zachariah, Ralph, and Don had been quite ready to torture and kill Dylan in order to find out how much he knew about the conspiracy. But to hear that the two men she had come to know and like might have been callously slain still touched her.
She looked over to Dylan. “I saw that Lord Bloodworth had the signet ring on his finger. The ring you say was shown to Tibault and Simon in order to prove the contact was who he said he was. Do you think that helps to prove that Lord Bloodworth himself is responsible for the actions?”
He shook his head. “I imagine the younger two brothers could find a way to temporarily acquire that ring. It isn’t beyond belief that one of the other brothers somehow gained access to the ring for an hour or two. It was an identifying sign which could not be duplicated. It ensured the secrecy of the message.”
Alicia frowned. “But what if this servant had been caught meeting with spies with the family ring in hand? It could lead to a massive scandal.”
He gave a dry smile. “There was a watcher in the distance, undoubtedly with a loaded crossbow. I have no doubt if there was the tiniest hint of trouble that the servant would have met a quick end. Then the family could simply say the servant had stolen the ring and was acting on his own. There would be none to gainsay them.”
Alicia’s mouth went dry.
Dylan looked up at the keep. “The question is, which brother risked the family name and was prepared to kill his own men in order to take down King John?”
Alicia scuffed her shoe into the dirt. “Maybe it is all three brothers, working together.”
Dylan gave a low laugh at that. “Those three? They cannot make it through a meal together without nearly coming to blows. I cannot imagine the three of them agreeing on anything of this nature. And if they did, one would have to think that the older two brothers would rein in their younger’s outbursts against King John while they were deep in its teeth.”
Alicia reluctantly nodded. “I suppose so.”
Dylan ran a hand through his hair. “I would hope to count out Lord Bloodworth. Roger trusts in him wholly. My friend has nothing but praise and respect for all that Lord Bloodworth has done to ensure the safety of the Bloodworth family holdings.”
He waved a hand toward the keep. “Lord Bloodworth married Mary of Lancaster for her family’s wealth, to shore up his family’s household budget. By all accounts he treats both of his younger brothers fairly. He did not have them sent off to war or to become a priest. He lets both live off of the family holdings. Roger thought him an able administrator who was even-handed with all who worked for him.”
“That still leaves both younger brothers as capable of these machinations,” Alicia mused. “Richard is the more serious of the two – but Nathan has a passion within him. The question is which one it is.”
Dylan turned to her. “I would still ask you to go home. Go back to your uncle Benet in Canterbury. Or even further, to Wales. I will join you when this is all over. This is far too dangerous f
or you to be embroiled in. If they were to realize what you are up to –”
Her spine set in determination. “Never. I will never leave your side again. We have been parted twice – I will not risk a third time. And you can hardly ferret out the information on your own, in the guise of a lowly beggar. Did you not make a vow to keep King John safe, no matter what it took?”
His gaze held hers, deep in shadows. “But not this. Not to risk the life of the woman I love.”
She gave him a reassuring smile. “A few more days. That is all it will take. We will discover the truth and then I will tell the family that I am ready to return home to Canterbury. They will be thrilled at my progress and send me back to Benet. You can leave as well, you can get the information to your contact, and then we will be free of it all.”
Dylan’s face was creased with uncertainty, but he nodded. “We are so close. A few more days, and then we get you out of here. You are right, after all. They are expecting you to wish to return home at some point soon. So your departure will be expected and unremarked on.” His voice lowered. “I will just pray that it is as soon as possible. Every day you remain within their walls fills me with concern.”
She drew her eyes to his. “And then home to Wales, where we will be wed on the steps of our church. In front of both of our families, as I have always dreamed.”
His eyes lost focus, and he reached for her hands. “Oh, Alicia –”
Quick footsteps came from along the path behind them. Both spun.
Roger was approaching them, his dark cloak billowing in the growing breeze.
Chapter 27
Alicia guiltily drew her hands behind her back. How much had Roger seen or heard? She knew Dylan trusted his friend, but still, they were investigating high treason. There was always the chance that people could be turned from their path for a wide variety of reasons. Money beyond imagining. A chance at a title and lands. Perhaps even blackmail.