Bond of Blood

by Roberta Gellis

  Leah startled Lord William considerably, not by the obvious pleasure with which she greeted him or the urgent clasp of her hand on his—women very often pursued him, even women he had met only once or twice before—but by the deep sigh and tense murmur of, "Well, I hope that turns a few points elsewhere."

  "What did you say?"

  Turning her greenish eyes up to his with a sweep of long lashes and adding a smile of innocent vacuity, Leah murmured, "I have put a bug in her ladyship's ear that may buzz a tale or two, that is all." Then she frowned. "Have you seen my lord? I must speak with him as soon as may be."

  William blinked at the first sentence and then put its meaning down to his own suspicious mind. Radnor's girl wife could not possibly have intended to say what that sounded like. "No, I have not seen him, but we can stroll about to look for him. Lady Radnor, your new life must agree with you, I have never seen you more beautiful. Truly roses bloom in your cheeks this day."

  "If you mean I am flushed with anger, you are perfectly right. Roses indeed!"

  William of Gloucester was Cain's foster brother and, although Leah knew there was no special affection between them, she also knew she had no need to guard her tongue with him. Lord William jerked upright from his automatically amorous lean as if he had been pricked. He was only taken aback momentarily, however, before he realized that the poor girl must have been put out of sorts by Maud's prying.

  It was possible too that Maud had been giving Leah some details of Radnor's private life in an effort to make trouble between them and enlist the girl in the court's interest. He would have to warn Radnor of that when he had a chance, but just now the best thing would be to try to soothe Leah himself. He was just about to start on a new tack, when she took her hand from his hurriedly.

  "Forgive me. There is your brother just come in. I know you will not wish to speak to him because you have quarreled, but Cain has a particular kindness for him, and I must do so."

  Philip did not notice Leah until she took his hand in hers as she rose from her curtsy. Even then his clouded mind took a little time to fix her in memory … Radnor's new wife, that was the girl whose warm clasp was giving spurious life to his right hand. He noted that she looked different from the two or three times he had seen her at Pembroke's keep—not in dress or jewels, although she fairly glittered with the Gaunt collection now—but in her expression. Her face was alive with intelligence, the shrewdness of her glance contrasting strangely with the childishly flushed cheeks and innocent mouth. He murmured a conventional greeting, wondering what she wanted.

  Leah, for her part, continued to hold Philip's hand while she answered with equally conventional words because she had the feeling that if she let him go his mind would slip away. She fought a sensation of revulsion, thinking that she had never touched a corpse before but now knew what it was like. The flesh was cold, flaccid, and clammy, and absorbed her warmth without return; only the eyes lived in a face that was no longer capable of changing its expression.

  "Lord Philip, you cannot stand here. Let me help you to the window seat."

  Philip tried without success to steady his shallow breathing. He was very nearly at the end of his endurance. "I could use an army to steady me. I fear you are right. I must sit down." His voice was hardly above a whisper and his eyes had started to glaze over.

  Leah glanced at the crowd that bustled about them, but those close by had turned their backs, politely, so as not to intrude on a private conversation. In any case, Leah realized instantly, she could not call on a stranger for help. It might just happen that that person was an enemy to Philip and that he would not wish it known how desperately sick he was. She pulled his arm over her shoulder and stiffened under his weight, which fortunately was not great. Fortunately, too, the window embrasure was not far, and she eased him down and back against the wall. Screening him with her own body, Leah looked wildly into the crowd. She could see no one that she could trust, but she heard a light, pleasant laugh that was hearteningly familiar.

  "Are you all right? Can I leave you for a moment?"

  Philip nodded faintly in answer to Leah's questions, and she plunged off in the direction of the laugh. Hereford was merrily engaged with a group of about his own age, one of whom was a startlingly beautiful dark girl who looked familiar. Leah neither saw nor cared what Hereford was doing. She grasped his arm and pulled him aside.

  "My lord, you must obtain some aqua vit for me at once."

  "Aqua vit?"

  "Strong waters—usquebaugh—I know not what you call it. Oh hurry, please."

  "Is something wrong with Radnor?"

  "For pity's sake, do not waste time with questions, but do as I ask."

  He was back very quickly, holding a flask, no trace of laughter in face or voice.

  "Now," Leah added, reaching for the drink, "find Lord Radnor for me, I pray you, and tell him that Philip of Gloucester is here and is very ill."

  "Philip! You mean I have been swallowing my heart for that traitor?"

  "Hush, oh hush, Lord Hereford. I know very little of such matters, but he is dear to my lord. I do only what I think Cain would desire. And you should not speak so loud of such things in this place. I beg you to bring my husband to that window seat."

  After Leah held the flask for Philip, almost forcing him to take several healthy swallows of the fiery liquid, he began to recover and asked anxiously where Lord Radnor was. Before Leah could reply, Cain reached them with a scowling Hereford in his wake. By then Philip was perfectly capable of talking, but he knew that the flash of strength lent by the drink would be ephemeral and that when it passed he would be worse than ever. There was no time for consideration or caution.

  "Cain—"

  "What are you doing here? I did not expect you for two or three days longer. Why did you travel in such haste?"

  "Because Pembroke will be in London tonight or tomorrow morning."

  Now Cain scowled as blackly as Hereford had done before. "Curse him!" he said briefly. "He swore he would not come, but we guessed he would not keep his word."

  Philip wiped sweat from his face with a shaking hand. "I heard on the road that he rides with a very small force for the sake of secrecy. If we could take him, there is a chance of delaying or even preventing the accusation against Chester. I took to my horse thinking to beat him out by some days, but my accursed body failed me. For Christ's sake, Radnor, do what you can to stop him."

  "You took to your horse? Have you taken leave of your senses? Are you trying to kill yourself?"

  "Radnor, for once in your life, let your head rule your heart. I know you love me, but great matters are at stake. Pembroke, as you say, swore to us all he would not come to this council. He comes in person so secretly only to betray Chester and gain Fitz Richard's lands. If we keep him from court, perhaps we can yet save Chester and all those with him."

  "I cannot believe it !" Hereford gasped.

  Lord Radnor appeared to have heard neither Philip nor Hereford. His unstable temper had disintegrated with a crash, for he had been reasoning hopelessly with Chester on that very subject when Hereford had found him.

  "To hell with Pembroke and Chester too. May the devil fly away with this damned country and its idiot ruler and everyone connected with him. I will tell you what I will do. I will take you and put you to bed, and if you move a muscle, I will end your agony and mine also by throttling you."

  Hereford gripped Radnor's shoulder so hard that the big man winced. "Wait. There must be some mistake in this. Philip, God forgive me, I may have wronged you, but this is no time to talk of that. I know that Pembroke's swearing he would not come and then doing so looks ill, but I am sure he means no harm. In any case, Radnor can do little enough about stopping him because he may not offer violence to his father-by-marriage. If Pembroke plans to betray us, I am not so bound. I will go."

  "Is that you, Hereford?" Philip squinted in an effort to see better. "My eyes are not good. Come closer. Take a warning. Stop Chester if you can
. If not, save yourself. The whole country knows your so-called secret plan."

  Hereford laughed bitterly. "Apparently. God knows I would give much to be clear of it. When known, such a plan can be nothing but disaster. I have given my word, though, and I will not betray it. You may rest assured that I will do my uttermost to save what can be saved while keeping faith." He turned and departed briskly.

  "That was the most urgent matter," Philip said, wiping the cold sweat from his face again. "You had better go now that Hereford has left us. The less we are seen together the better."

  "How did you come here?" Radnor asked, clinging stubbornly to his purpose.

  "On horseback. It is only a little way. Do you think I wish to tell the whole world of my weakness?"

  "Fool!"

  "You are so wise!"

  "I pray you, lower your voices," Leah interposed. "People are looking at us."

  "Here, you, page," Radnor called. "Go down and order Lord and Lady Radnor's horses and men to make ready, and Lord Philip Gloucester's too."

  "Radnor, you will ruin me!"

  "I do not care."

  "My lords, please! Cain, do not argue with him, you only make him worse. Can we support him between us in such a way as to hide his illness?"

  "Not another move does he make. Look at his face. What is there to hide? I will carry him. Nay, Philip, it will not hurt me. You do not weigh what you once did. My step will be steady enough for this small distance."

  Lord and Lady Radnor arrived back at the White Tower barely in time to sit down to dine. Having seen Philip into bed and somewhat recovered, Cain began to use his head again. In an attempt to remove any doubts that his intimacy with Philip might have raised, he answered the few questions on his absence with equal truth and indifference. Philip of Gloucester had been taken ill, he said calmly, and he had seen him safe home. His manner was sufficiently unconcerned so that those who heard him had little doubt that he too disapproved of Philip's new loyalties. Radnor was apparently prepared to do his duty punctiliously, but no longer cared for a closer association than that duty required. He was serious enough with those who approached him to discuss political matters but a trifle impatient, quite plainly preferring the antics of the jugglers and dancers.

  He was quite impatient with his pretty little wife too, William of Gloucester noticed as he took his seat. William gave no sign of his irritation at Radnor's stupidity, but he touched Lady William who moved down at a glance from him, and he slid in beside Leah. It would be well to sweeten her somewhat until he could get her husband alone and point out the dangers of snubbing his wife as he had just done.

  "You have had an exciting day, Lady Leah—I may call you so, may I not? We are in some sense related, since Lord Radnor is my foster brother."

  Leah looked up quickly with a tentative smile. It seemed to her that Maud's eyes were fixed on their table across the smoky room.

  "Oh yes, that is, if my lord does not object. I could not."

  "But you do not like rudeness or familiarities, I know. You were very angry with me for saying that you bloomed like a rose."

  Leah's pretty laugh trilled out. "Well, I was very angry, but not with you, Lord William. The queen showed such a kind interest in all my lord's doings that I was hard put to answer her."

  Was that a warning? William did not know, but he was sure that the need to talk to Radnor about his wife was very pressing. He continued to flatter Leah, but when the roasts were being removed he leaned behind her to tap Radnor's shoulder.

  "We have both had enough to drink, Cain. Come with me to ease yourself and make room for more." Near the garderobe he put out a hand to stop his companion. "I hope your wife knows not too much of your private affairs," he said softly, looking over his shoulder to make sure they were alone. When he looked back at Radnor, he was stunned to see that he was shaking with laughter. "Man, you are drunk. This is serious. That girl is not as stupid as you think. You snarl at her. Maud offers her sympathy. She will spill everything she sees and hears if you do not have a care. Why did you bring here a babe that does not know that her advantage lies with her husband even if she hates him? It is no laughing matter. You may think you tell her nothing, but if she be a sly one she can learn."

  Radnor grimaced and spoke equally softly. "Nay, William, I am sober still. Some men say I was born of the devil. If so, my wife and I are well matched, for that chit is surely a spawn of the serpent. Pembroke's daughter! You should hear the pack of lies that sweet babe poured into the queen's ears, and all with those eyes as wide as they could stare and those sweet lips trembling a little with fear, I doubt not." Radnor's expression sobered. "I laugh now, thinking on it, but I was not so merry earlier. She told Maud that she overheard Hereford and myself condemning Shrewsbury for playing with Henry of Anjou."

  "She did what?" William gasped, and then, clinging to a straw, "Did you?"

  "Of course not. If he has had dealings with Henry—and it would in no way surprise me because Joan likes to keep one foot in each camp and he does her bidding in all—he has kept it very close. I know nothing of it and, though I do not love him, it is not my way to tell lies, even of my enemies. Come, since we are here, let us accomplish what we came for. It would look strange if we went out again later. She also filled Maud with some cock-and-bull story about Oxford trying to shake my homage oath."

  The earth seemed to heave under William's feet. He had flattered himself that he knew all there was to know about women. It was inconceivable that such an innocent bit of fluff could have so tortuous a mind—unless Pembroke had schooled her well in advance.

  "Did he?"

  "Who? Oxford? He was too busy trying to kill me—or trying to escape the consequences of someone else's attempt to kill me."

  "Are you sure that was what she told Maud? Or is this a tale for your ears?"

  There was a short pause while both men rearranged their clothing. When Radnor turned back to William his face was set in troubled lines.

  "I am no longer sure of anything. This morning I would have said that the girl was as pure as the rain that falls from heaven, but she is like all women. What I do not know is whether she be false to me or false to Pembroke. I think she told me the truth," he added slowly. "She has a fondness for me, at least, well, I think so."

  "Then you had better smile on her a little more and growl at her a little less. An unhappy woman is fruit ripe for the picking by anyone—unless she be afraid, and one who lies so readily to queens is not easily frightenedor with child, or better, both."

  Radnor began to laugh again at that. "You should know, but the growls were her idea, not mine. I will have you know that her ladyship has so ordered me that in the public eye I am to look upon her kindly but seldom. It seems she also told Maud that I was a severe husband, impatient with her youth and folly."

  "She told … Are you?"

  "I wish you would stop asking stupid questions. I told you she made whole cloth out of lies. No, I am not impatient. I find her more amusing than traveling players."

  Nonetheless Lord Radnor did not look in the least amused. He could not quarrel with Leah, for what she had done was in his best interests. In spite of the assurance he had displayed to William, he was uneasy and rather resentful of the way in which she was assuming independence.

  William was not much deceived by Cain's light tone, but he had done his best to warn him and would only irritate him by insistence. When they turned back towards the hall, therefore, he changed the subject, and by the time they were again seated at the table their conversation was innocent enough for anyone to hear. Radnor was maintaining that the finest falcon a man could fly was a white gerfalcon, and Lord William was insisting that the brown peregrine, although smaller, was fiercer and gave better sport.

  Suddenly Radnor's voice drifted away, and Lord William became aware of Radnor’s fixed gaze on the dancer who had just come to their side of the room. Then the eyes of both were riveted on the writhing, sinuous form before them. Brown arms, brown
legs, hairless and gleaming with oil, shone and retreated into shadow in the uncertain flare of the torches. Smooth and shining, the body dipped and swayed, its even glow broken by the glittering of jewels set in the oddest places.

  "What is she?" William murmured on a note of awe.

  At first Radnor did not answer. The girl was certainly aware of their attention for she had not moved on. Her body moved ceaselessly, hypnotically, and the strange music provided by the two boys who followed her beat against the watching men giving even more meaning to the girl's already obvious gestures. There was a wail to that music, a beat, a sensual hesitation that sent the blood up.

  "From all I have heard and read," Cain said at last, "no Saracen ever dressed his women like that, but books may lie."

  "All I can think of," William murmured avidly, "is Salome."·

  "You cannot count—or else she has dropped a few veils along the way."

  Radnor kept running his tongue across his lips, his eyes fixed in an unblinking stare. His words were light, but his face was rigid and his utterance choked with lust. William, equally responsive, had permitted his mouth to drop open. He was all for relaxing and enjoying the titillation of his senses, but Lord Radnor's reactions were more direct. Somewhat relieved that he could respond to any woman besides Leah and thinking that he would show her that she needed to tread warily with him, Cain got to his feet.

  Leah stopped mid-sentence in her conversation with Lady William as she saw her husband sweep food and wine out of his way and slide across the table in his haste. The trestles nearly gave way under his weight, but he made it safely. With unbelieving eyes she watched him accost the dancer, exchange a few words with her, laugh, point to one of the gold chains which she herself had hung around his neck, and start towards the door, steering his prize with a hand on her shoulder.