Will sighed, rubbing the tension from the back of his neck after an uncomfortable night’s rest. He reminded himself of the necessity in being prudent when it came to Lady Isabel as well. He must think of her only as the noble woman she was rather than the woman he desired and was beginning to care for. God, but it had been a very close thing yesterday with that as well, when he had tasted her lips. That innocent kiss could have led to all sorts of trouble. He had to be strong and resist her, even though it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep some sort of distance between them—how exactly was he supposed to resist when he was not only drawn to her, but in close proximity of her every moment of the day? If only she had consented to having a handmaiden to travel with them and act as her companion.
He flicked his eyes to the heavy curtains that formed a partition, leading to the sleeping area of the chamber. As they were pulled back, Lady Isabel walked through.
‘Good morrow, my lady.’ He stood and inclined his head slightly. ‘I hope you slept well and are ready to break your fast?’
‘I did eventually, thank you, and, yes, I’m famished,’ she said as she perched beside him.
‘Come, I have procured food and Madame Forester is bringing up a small pot of hearty wild boar stew as well.’
‘Thank you, that sounds delicious.’ She took the plate from him and helped herself to the food.
They sat side by side eating quietly, the atmosphere a little strained. Will threw her brief sideways glances as he pushed the food around his plate. He was glad when the forester’s wife knocked, bringing with her a hot steaming pot of stew and a couple of clean bowls and utensils.
‘Our thanks, madame,’ he muttered to the woman who dipped a curtsy before leaving the room.
‘Here, allow me.’ Isabel’s fingers brushed against his as she grasped the pot and began spooning the stew into two bowls, handing one to him.
‘This is delicious.’
‘Yes,’
‘Very warming.’
‘Quite.’
They continued to eat until Isabel turned her head round. ‘Will, is anything wrong?’
‘Should there be, Lady Isabel?’
‘No.’ Her brows creased. ‘And I thought we agreed to drop the formalities until we resumed our roles in England. Don’t you remember, Just Will?’
He swallowed uncomfortably, feeling uneasy with the direction of this conversation. ‘Yes, but you are not, nor shall you ever be, Plain Isabel, my lady.’
‘Why ever not, for goodness sake?’ she said on an exhale of barely suppressed annoyance. ‘Is this because we kissed?’
Will almost choked back the contents in his mug.
How damned typical of the woman to get straight to the heart of their predicament.
‘Isabel... Lady Isabel, I can only apologise for that, as it should not have happened. I’m honour bound to protect you and take you back to England. Anything beyond that crosses a boundary, which is why I had originally advised the need for a handmaiden to accompany us.’
She squirmed before putting her plate down and standing up. ‘I believe you’re thinking too much about it, Will. It was quite an extraordinary situation that we found ourselves in yesterday and the fact that we managed to get away so effectively from Rolleston’s men made us feel huge relief and, well...that chaste kiss was possibly due to the euphoria we felt for getting away, do you not think?’
‘Yes, but—’
‘And as for your advice of a handmaiden, I thought we had agreed to that as well. I really do not want someone following my every move while we travel to England. There will be time enough for having many handmaidens and I’ll be ready for it, but not...not just yet.’
He expelled the air he had been holding. ‘Very well. As you wish.’
‘In the meantime, I suggest we continue our progress as companionable friends.’
His lips twitched as he watched Isabel, her head tilted upwards, her hands clasped together, her back straight as she waited patiently for his response. She was showing glimmers of the woman she was destined to become—Lady Isabel de Clancey. His chest clenched as he reflected on this. Oh, yes, Isabel would fulfil that role wonderfully.
He stood and stretched out his hand. ‘Very well, we shall go on as amiable friends.’
Her lips curled upwards as she placed her small hand in his, heat spreading from their joined hands throughout his body.
‘And as an act of friendship, I think it my duty to inform you that you have got a little bit of stew on your chin.’ She motioned with her finger. ‘No, not there. Oh, allow me.’ She licked her thumb and used it to wipe his chin as he stood there, unable to move, his eyes wide with disbelief and bemusement.
Friends, indeed... God help him!
Chapter Ten
They had left the Foresters’ dwelling soon after they had finished their repast and purchased some much-needed provisions from the couple for their day’s journey. The long day yawned on and the riding stretched as they travelled through woods and farmlands, until eventually they stopped for a quick respite alongside a brook, allowing the horses a drink and Will and Isabel to stretch their legs.
Will had been glad that the journey that day had not continued in the same vein as the conversation had that morning. That whole episode was a source of damned embarrassment, especially since he was still having entirely unacceptable thoughts about his friend. He had to apply discipline and cease thinking of Isabel as anyone other than who she was—a noble woman whom he was escorting back to England. But it was not easy. He snapped his head up and sighed deeply, watching Isabel splashing in the stream as she led her young palfrey to drink. She had taken off her boots and short hose, so Will was able to snatch glimpses of the pearly smooth skin of her ankles and feet.
‘Are you quite sure that you do not want to join me, Will? The coolness of the water is very gratifying.’
Why was this woman insisting on driving him to distraction?
‘Thank you, but, no. I will use my time to work industriously on my carving.’
He needed to do something other than to allow himself to ponder on her small ankles or the insteps of her slender feet.
God’s breath, he needed to contain himself and these redundant feelings.
She splashed back towards the grassy verge and sat drying her feet on a strip of linen.
‘I’ll take your horse,’ he said gruffly as he tethered the animal near his.
‘Thank you, I have been wondering about Rolleston. Do you suppose we may encounter him again?’
‘Not if I can help it, Isabel. But remember that if we do, we shall deal with his men as we did yesterday.’
‘With the element of surprise.’
‘Precisely.’ He shook his head with a ghost of a smile. ‘Again, I marvel at how you implemented that surprise. Without it we would never have got away.’
She smiled slowly. ‘Oh, we both know that we got away due to your ingenuity, Will, but I shall accept your compliment all the same.’
‘As I shall yours.’ He grinned, returning her smile.
‘In that case you must be right.’ She shrugged. ‘We do work well together.’
‘Yes, we do,’ he whispered. His eyes locked with hers momentarily and incredibly he could sense the warmth in them, but also veiled beneath there was sadness and uncertainty.
Damn!
He could drop a boulder on his head for his insensitivity in the way he had handled the delicate situation that morning, despite her nonchalant response. He had not only offended Isabel, but had also hurt her feelings.
Yet, he had to remain resolute. He had to protect her, even from himself. This morning’s clarity between them was necessary for the remainder of their journey. However much he desired and longed for Isabel, she was not for him—a bastard son of a noble, a disgrace and a man responsible for the deaths of so
many. He tore his eyes away in disgust at himself.
‘That is why I need your help, Will,’ Isabel said quietly.
He flicked his head up. ‘I’m at your service, my lady...as always. What would you have me do?’
‘Help me uncover the riddle of the unidentical pendants.’
‘Ah, yes,’ he said, welcoming the change of their discourse. ‘In truth, I have been thinking about them.’
She tapped her fingertips absently against her lips. ‘I must admit that this has been puzzling me all night, apart from that childish nightmare.’
‘Nightmares are not childish, Isabel. They reveal underlying fears.’ He grabbed the leather flagons from the mat, and strode to the stream, filling them up.
‘It may, however, help me sleep better at night if I could only figure out the mystery behind the pendants—’ she shook her head ‘—and unlock their secrets.’
‘You do realise that they may not have any secrets to discover.’ Will filled the last flagon with the crystal-clear water and stilled. He snapped his head in her direction, suddenly alert. ‘What did you just say?’
Her eyes widened, excitedly, as they met his. ‘Unlock...unlock...oh, my goodness, Will!’
‘Exactly.’ He nodded. ‘The reason why they are almost identical, but the design is indented in exactly the same places...’ He closed the gap back to her.
She smiled brilliantly. ‘Is because they lock together.’
Will quickly took off his pendant from around his neck and Isabel fetched the other one from her satchel.
They each held a pendant in the palm of their hands, studying both intently.
Will rubbed his chin and stared in wonder. ‘They are the perfect opposite to each other. Here, take this and try putting them together.’ He dropped his pendant in her other hand.
Isabel slid the two pendants together, placing them on top of one another with the decorative design and gem locked together, making a single solid diamond-shaped jewel.
The thickness of the sides was that of a nail now, with a continued etched pattern, revealing some form of written characters.
‘They fit together, just as we thought...but what now?’ she asked.
‘Try twisting it, so that they lock together.’
Isabel did as Will suggested, but the solid pendants didn’t move, let alone twist in any direction that she tried. ‘Mayhap they only fit together and that is all.’
‘But that makes just as little sense as having them look identical, only to slot them together for no apparent reason.’
She ran her fingertips along the solid silver edge. ‘Could it have something to do what is scribed on these sides?’
‘Possibly.’ He held out his hand. ‘May I?’
Isabel moved to pass the pendants to him, but as his hand brushed hers, she accidentally dropped them. Will instinctively caught them mid-air and in doing so pressed the middle of the adjoined pendants. His eyes widened in surprise. ‘Did you hear that, Isabel? They clicked in together when I pressed the centre.’
She beamed at him excitedly. ‘Look at the side of the pendants. It’s released an opening.’
Will ran his fingers across the silver edge of the locked pendants, as Isabel had only moments ago, but this time caught his fingers over the opening. ‘There’s something inside, but my fingers are too big to get it out.’
‘Let me try.’ Isabel pushed back the silver compartment that had jutted out a fraction and slid her finger inside, dragging out something soft. ‘What on earth is this?’
Will picked it from her open hand and rolled and spread it out. ‘It’s a roll of velum,’ he said, studying the contents. ‘With strange marking and symbols on it.’
‘I don’t understand any of this.’ She lifted her head. ‘Do you have any notion of what these markings signify?’
‘No, I’m afraid I don’t.’
‘So how are we to understand what they mean?’
Will’s brows rose. ‘Should we find out what they mean?’
‘Yes!’
‘If we go on some quest to find out what these markings signify, then we have more of a chance of running into Rolleston’s men and, more importantly, we would delay in getting you back to England and back to your mother.’
‘True, but think about it, Will. I believe that these pendants are what motivates Rolleston and whomever he might work for in their pursuit of us. If we uncover its secrets, then we are closer to understanding the reasons for that and possibly the reasons for a lot more.’
‘And what about your mother?’
‘From what I remember of Mama, I believe she’ll understand. Or rather, I hope she shall.’
He grimaced. ‘We might be inviting unnecessary peril on a journey that is already far from running smoothly.’
She touched his sleeve. ‘Please, Will...let me try to unravel this and understand what it might mean in relation to the past... To my past.’
‘But you do realise that this is all supposition. It could end up meaning nothing.’
‘Yes, but unless we try, we shall never know.’
‘God, I know I’m going to regret this, but very well. If it is so important to you to uncover the truth about all of this, then we shall. But I want your word that you must accept whatever we find.’
‘You have my agreement.’
‘Come what may?’
‘Yes.’ She nodded. ‘Come what may.’
‘In that case, there is only one person I know who may be able to help us with this and, if not, may know someone who does.’ He expelled a deep sigh. ‘We shall divert the course of our journey to St Savinien.’
‘Thank you, Will! You really are a true friend.’
He inclined his head a little, his eyes never leaving Isabel’s. ‘I’m happy to oblige.’
Chapter Eleven
They had made their way to St Savinien by sundown and wandered through the back streets, before reaching a single-storey grey stone dwelling—a presbyter on the outskirts of the village close. They had crossed the River Charente and arrived at a time when there was not a soul around. Even so, both Will and Isabel had donned dark cloaks with hoods to conceal their identities.
Will knocked on the arched wooden door, looking around in every direction before an old, balding man opened it tentatively.
‘Yes, may I help you?’
Will pulled his hood down and smiled. ‘I hope so, Father Gregor.’
‘Saints above, if it’s not William Geraint. What are you doing here? No, don’t answer that! Come in, come in, my boy,’ the old man said, as he ushered them inside.
‘And who is your lady friend? Your wife, I assume. Blessings to you both.’
Isabel flushed as Will shook his head. ‘No, Gregor, you know that I’m not a marrying man... Let me introduce you to Lady Isabel de Clancey, whom I am escorting back to England.’
‘Ah, excuse the folly of an old man. I’m honoured, my lady. Please come within my humble abode. Come, come. You are more than welcome. I’ll get the serving boy to take your horses to the stable round the side.’
After they relinquished their animals, Isabel and Will followed the old priest through a narrow hall and into a small, sparsely decorated parlour with a fire in the hearth and a few candle wicks lit and dotted around, giving the chamber a hazy glow.
‘We’re sorry to disturb your evening, Gregor.’
He waved his hand dismissively. ‘Come, sit by the fire and rest. You must both be hungry. Here, it’s not much fare, but you’re welcome to share my evening meal.’
‘Thank you, Father, but we have already eaten,’ Isabel said.
‘Well, in that case, let me fetch you some wine?’
‘That we shall readily accept.’
They watched as the priest poured the dark red drink into three separate mugs, passing one t
o each of them.
‘Our thanks, Gregor. Salute!’
‘So—’ the older man took a sip, and glanced from Will to Isabel ‘—to what do I owe this pleasure?’
‘The truth is, Gregor, that we hoped you’d help us with something.’
‘Happily, my boy. How can I be of service?’
‘Well, Father Gregor,’ Isabel said, ‘recently we acquired something that neither Will nor I can decipher. It uses symbols that we cannot unravel.’
‘And you thought to come to me?’
‘I cannot think of any other scholar, philosopher or alchemist with the knowledge that you have, Gregor.’
‘You put me to the blush, William. Allow me to see your manuscript.’
Isabel handed the vellum to the older man. ‘Please do take a look.’
Father Gregor studied the vellum and the inscriptions on it, his eyes widening in shock. He snapped his head up. ‘Where did the two of you come by this?’
‘Never mind that, Gregor. Do you know what any of it means? From my limited knowledge I can see that there is more than one dialect inscribed here, plus these strange symbols.’
‘Three to be exact—Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek—and the symbols are ancient Christian iconography.’
Isabel and Will exchanged a look of surprise.
‘And do you understand what it says?’ Will took a sip of wine.
‘No, I’m afraid I don’t. Although I can understand some of this, the rest...well, it is far too faint to fathom. I need a little more time to translate it and carefully decrypt it.’
Will grimaced and shook his head. ‘Sadly, we don’t have time, Gregor.’
‘Then I’m not sure if I can help, William.’
Isabel gave Will a speaking look before turning to the priest. ‘We’re sorry to have troubled you, Father Gregor, but is there anything you can tell us about it? Anything at all?’
Her Banished Knight's Redemption--The follow-up to award-winning story the Rebel Heiress and the Knight Page 11
