by Aston, Alexa
She started toward the steward’s office and stopped when she saw Sabelina coming down the stairs. Now seventeen, her stepdaughter was even more spoiled than when Faylinn had arrived. Even worse, she acted flirtatiously toward every soldier she encountered, disregarding her stepmother’s advice to act in a more demure manner suited for her station.
“I thought you were supervising the candle making this afternoon.”
Sabelina gave her a sullen look. “I did for a while. Resa shooed me away. She said I was no help at all.”
Faylinn knew Resa was right. Sabelina did little to no work at the castle. She’d whined worse than any child about duties given to her and had grown surly as she’d gotten older. Faylinn believed her stepdaughter deliberately did things wrong or too slowly so that she would be excused from doing anything at all. Though she’d tried from the beginning to be a good stepmother to the girl, Sabelina had let Faylinn know she was no replacement for her own mother. The girl’s resentment of Faylinn had grown over the years until their relationship was less than cordial, each trying to avoid the other’s presence whenever possible. Even Amaury had given up trying to reconcile the pair.
“Your father will be in from the training yard shortly. Go to the kitchen and ask that water be heated for him to bathe.”
She could see her stepdaughter was reluctant even to run a small errand such as this and only hoped Sabelina would do as asked.
Faylinn entered the study and saw a scroll lying on the desk. Curious, she went to it and as she picked it up, she heard someone clear her voice behind her.
Turning, she saw Resa. The woman was head over all the servants within the keep and Faylinn depended upon her a great deal.
“The rider came from Newbury Manor,” Resa told her.
Faylinn frowned. “I don’t know this place. Did the messenger mention who sent the missive?”
“Your brother.”
Excitement filled her. While she’d lost touch with her two oldest brothers many years ago, Ashby corresponded with her regularly. She smiled. At least she wrote him lengthy letters once a month. Her favorite brother, three years her senior, answered three or four times a year, always short notes scrawled in an almost illegible hand. Still, she was happy they stayed in contact, even though she hadn’t seen him since her marriage. Ashby, who’d fostered at Stanbury in Sussex, had chosen to remain there in service to Lord Garrett, Earl of Montayne, once he achieved his knighthood. Lord Garrett was Ashby’s closest friend, more a brother to him than his true blood ones, and he handled many business affairs for the earl. Ashby’s last brief message to Faylinn some months ago had told her that the nobleman was sending him to France to do business regarding his vineyards in Bordeaux.
She wondered if Newbury Manor was in France. The name didn’t sound as if it would be located there. It occurred to her that Ashby had mentioned Lord Garrett had wanted to award him a manor house for his loyal service to the family. Mayhap this Newbury Manor was it.
“I think I will go to the solar and read my brother’s missive.” She paused. “Dare I ask how Sabelina did with the candle making?”
Resa snorted. “That one loves to be idle. Her mother was just the same. I pity the man who must wed Lady Sabelina.”
Faylinn agreed but kept silent on the matter. Instead, she said, “I am sorry she wasn’t very helpful to you.”
The servant shook her head. “She only knows how to help herself. And Lord Amaury doesn’t see her faults at all.”
“Resa,” she warned. “You are treading where you shouldn’t.”
“The sooner you can find a husband for her, my lady, the better. Mallowbourne will be a more pleasant place once Lady Sabelina is gone.”
Resa left. Faylinn knew she should be stricter with the servant but it was hard when everything Resa said was true. Sabelina was lazy. She had a sharp tongue and little compassion. Faylinn supposed it was time to address finding her stepdaughter another betrothed since hers had died from a fever two years ago. Amaury doted on his only child and was reluctant to let Sabelina go. Still, the girl was seventeen now, a good age to wed. A strong husband might curb Sabelina of her ways.
Taking the scroll, Faylinn went to the solar and poured herself a cup of wine. She unrolled the parchment, eager to read what Ashby had to say, and surprised to find the entire page filled.
My dearest, most favorite sister (you are, you know—even if you are my only one) –
First, I know you’ve already scanned the page and seen just how much I’ve written. Yes, more than my usual four or five lines, but everything has changed in my life for the better and I need to share it all with you.
You know that Garrett sent me to Bordeaux. I spent some time at Chateau Branais, where Madeleine’s parents live and manage Garrett’s vineyards. I learned much about the grape, which seems to be all-consuming and the topic of many conversations in Bordeaux. Afterward, I went to the neighboring estate, Monteville. There I learned even more, especially new ways to grow and process grapes. But more importantly, I found the love of my life.
Yes, Faylinn—I’m deeply in love—and now wed to my darling Marielle. I hope you were sitting down as you read this. If not, I’m certain you’ve collapsed into a heap. Ashby fitz Waryn, your wayward brother who has dallied with countless female hearts, had his own stolen by a beautiful French noblewoman. Marielle is lovely, both inside and out, and loving her has made me a stronger, better man than I ever dreamed of being.
I will leave out all of the details of how we met and the adventures that ensued—merely to entice you to come to Newbury Manor, which is but a day’s ride east of Stanbury (so we will see Garrett, Madeleine, and the children more often than not). Surely, your curiosity (of which I remember greatly) will get the better of you and you will come in haste to meet my loving wife and view our small but efficient estate. I’d written to you that Garrett wanted to give me one but it’s not from him. It was bestowed upon me by a French cardinal. Hah! Now, I have your attention and know you will come to see how an English knight did a favor for a man of the cloth—and earned a place to call his own.
Seriously, Faylinn, we both want you to come. I know it’s been years since we’ve seen one another, I’m thinking a decade or more, but you are my treasured sister and the link between my past and present. We know it’s a long way to come but we’re begging you to do so. I want you to see Newbury and meet Marielle. Of course, Lord Amaury is also invited but if he chooses not to come such a long way then let me know and I will send a guard for you.
I will close with a bit of joyous news. Marielle has told me that we are to have a child. Can you imagine a little me running around, getting into mischief? I’m actually hoping for a girl, one who is calm and patient and as beautiful as her mother.
Please come, dearest sister. Whenever you can. I look forward to hearing from you. Alas, my hand tires after writing so much, more than I have in a year. I am—and always will remain—
Your loving brother,
Ashby fitz Waryn
Faylinn read through the missive again, more slowly this time, soaking in all of Ashby that she could. To think he had a wife and a manor house and estate now brought her immense happiness. For all his flirtatious ways, he would make for a good husband. If he’d chosen to settle down with Marielle, he would be faithful and loyal to her. He would also make a wonderful father to their babes.
She wished she could visit them but with Amaury ailing, everyone depended upon her to keep Mallowbourne running smoothly. She couldn’t be gone from home for such a long time, what with the journey to and from and the weeks she would spend at Newbury Manor. It saddened her that she might never see Ashby again, much less meet his wife and children.
That was the one gaping hole in her life. No babes had come in her nine years of marriage. Amaury had trouble on their wedding night with consummating their union. He’d explained as she’d wept that it wasn’t her fault. That his age had something to do with it. Finally, two weeks—and many attem
pts later—they’d been united in the marital bed. Their lovemaking had been sporadic after that, often failing when Amaury couldn’t perform his husbandly duties. The few times his cock managed to harden, Faylinn had merely endured the coupling.
Suddenly, she realized it had been weeks since her courses came. She added up and quickly knew eight had come and gone with no monthly flow. She recalled her husband waking her in the middle of the night, saying he’d had a lustful dream. He’d eagerly pumped into her and then fallen asleep. She hadn’t given it a thought.
Until now.
A quiet joy filled her. Her courses came regularly. She’d never been with child. Surely, she was. She had felt tired in the past few weeks. Her breasts had ached and seemed tender. Yesterday, she had even vomited after the noon meal and had worried she was falling ill. After resting an hour, though, she’d felt her usual self and gone about her tasks. In the business that surrounded her, she hadn’t realized what her body tried to tell her.
Faylinn’s hands went to her belly, thinking of the child that grew there. She hoped for a son so that he would inherit Mallowbourne and his father’s title. Daughters had no say and were powerless in this world. She knew from experience when her own father gave her to one of his oldest friends. That was wrong. Faylinn should have been allowed to wed a much younger man. If she had, she would have had many babes by now. The happiness which had eluded her for so long was now finally possible, though. She would have a child. One she would cherish and nurture.
Mayhap this news would lift Amaury’s spirits. Give him something to live for. She knelt and said a prayer to the Holy Mother, begging for her babe to be a boy. One who would grow straight and strong and be a good man. A son would allow her to remain at Mallowbourne. A daughter would mean, upon Amaury’s death, that the both of them would be homeless. The king would use his authority to appoint a new Baron of Gaynesford. The new nobleman—and his wife—would have no need to keep Faylinn and her child around.
A son meant security. A daughter mean uncertainty. Where would she go if she birthed a girl?
Now that Ashby had his own small estate, she would turn to him if necessary. Her brother had always been her friend and protector. She would go to him instead of Ashland, her oldest brother. She felt no ties to him or her childhood home.
Though she wished to write Ashby immediately, she knew Amaury would arrive from the training yard at any moment. She would compose a missive to her brother in the morning, letting him know she would have to put off any visit indefinitely because she herself was with child. Ashby knew how lonely she’d been because she’d written to him of it. A babe would end her loneliness. Mayhap even Ashby and Marielle could travel to Mallowbourne once their babe came and visit her instead.
Faylinn went to the small cask where she kept all of Ashby’s missives and placed the most recent one inside it.
A light rap sounded on the door and she bid them to come in. It was the hot water for Amaury to wash in before they went down to the great hall for the evening meal. As Faylinn poured another cup of wine, her husband entered, looking weary, his eyes sunk deep into his face. The servants finished pouring the buckets of water into the copper tub and left.
Without having to be asked, Faylinn removed the layers of clothing from her husband. They were damp with his sweat. She tossed them aside to be washed and handed him the cup of wine. He downed it immediately and returned it to her.
“Did you help in the training yard today, Amaury?” she asked, even though she’d been there and seen him. She doubted he would remember she’d been present for some of the time.
He rambled on about something as she got him into the tub and took up a cake of soap. She washed him thoroughly and rinsed the lather away. He’d fallen silent and remained so as she helped him rise from the water and dried him.
“Come into our bedchamber and I’ll prepare you for the evening meal.”
He moved sluggishly and it took her a long time to dress him. By the time she finished, Faylinn was out of breath.
“Let us go downstairs,” he said.
She caught his hand as he began to move away. “Before we do, I have something I must tell you that will brighten your day.” She smiled. “The time has finally come, Amaury. I’m with child.”
A look of astonishment filled his face. “You are certain?”
“I am. My courses haven’t come the past two months.” Faylinn squeezed his hand. “We are going to be parents, Amaury.”
He gave her a huge smile. She couldn’t remember the last time he’d been happy.
“I hope it’s a new beginning for us,” she told him.
“I am very happy, Wife. Very happy, indeed.”
Faylinn hoped he would be around when she gave birth. “By my estimate, the babe should come in late October.”
“October?” A confused look crossed his face. This always preceded his thoughts becoming muddled.
“Would you like to dine in the solar tonight, my lord? I can have Resa bring our food to us. We can have our own private celebration,” she encouraged.
He pulled away from her and crossed to a chair, sitting in it heavily. She looked at his lined, weathered face and snow-white hair, hoping he would be alive to see the birth of their babe.
Then Amaury gasped. He wheezed loudly, trying to draw in a breath. Panic flooded his face when he couldn’t. His eyes met hers, his fear obvious as he groaned and then fell forward, landing hard on the floor.
Chapter Four
Faylinn rushed to her husband. As always when a crisis occurred, a calm descended over her as she rolled him to his back. His eyes, still wide with panic, bored into hers. No words came from his moving lips. She retrieved a cushion and placed it under his head and put her palm against his cheek.
“I am going for help, Amaury. I will bring the healer to you.”
Noise erupted from his lips, all garbled. His left hand clawed at her.
“I know you are frightened but Karys may have the answer. You know how clever she is with the way she uses herbs. I promise I won’t be gone long.”
Pressing a kiss to his brow, something she’d never done before, Faylinn left the solar. She lifted her skirts so she could move faster but she didn’t want to shout for help and let others know what had taken place. There was no sense to worry anyone—yet.
Faylinn only hoped Karys would be strong enough to help Amaury. While the healer had a vast wealth of knowledge and had seen to the needs of the people at Mallowbourne over decades, her age and physical ailments had begun to slow her. Karys had a hard time moving about now, especially climbing the stairs. Her fingers were often sore and swollen and she had admitted to Faylinn her heart raced at time, leaving her breathless. Faylinn prayed Karys had it in her to help Amaury and pushed aside the regret that she hadn’t already found a new healer for Mallowbourne. She had broached the matter with Amaury a few months ago but he had told her it wasn’t time yet to replace Karys. Faylinn hoped that decision wouldn’t cost her husband his life, especially now he had the coming babe to live for.
As she reached the stairs, she saw Sabelina and hurried to meet her.
“Go to your father at once,” she commanded. “He has fallen ill. I will bring Karys back.”
Sabelina’s mouth trembled. “Will he die?”
“I don’t know,” Faylinn said bluntly, though she suspected she already had the answer to the girl’s question. “Hurry. He needs you.”
Her stepdaughter scurried up the stairs and down the corridor as Faylinn went downstairs and spied Resa.
Pulling the servant aside, she latched on to her forearm and said, “Find Karys at once. Lord Amaury has great need of her. If anyone asks tonight, you are to say we are dining privately in the solar. Do you understand?”
Resa’s brows shot up but she nodded brusquely. “Yes, my lady.”
The two women parted and Faylinn returned to the solar, finding Sabelina weeping loudly at her father’s side. She pulled her stepdaughter to her feet
and away from Amaury.
“Save your tears. You’re frightening him,” she chided. “This isn’t about you. It’s about your father.”
Sabelina looked shocked at being chastised and replied. “You are coldhearted, Faylinn.”
Ignoring the girl’s condemnation, she returned to Amaury’s side and took his hand. “Everything will be fine, Amaury.”
She squeezed his hand, worried that he remained glassy-eyed. He still couldn’t speak and his mouth drooped on one side, indicating apoplexy. He could survive an attack of it—and be bedridden for years.
Or he could die tonight.
Resa and Karys came in, closing the door behind them. Together, the three women managed to get Amaury upright and into his bed as Sabelina watched defiantly.
As the healer examined Amaury, Faylinn drew Resa aside and quietly told her to fetch the priest. The servant nodded and left as her stepdaughter replaced Resa, glaring at Faylinn.
“You think he’s going to die,” Sabelina said flatly.
“I am hoping for the best but I think it wise to send for Father Martin,” she told the girl.
Sabelina crossed her arms. “You want him to die.”
“Why would you think that?” Faylinn asked, upset at the false accusation.
“You’ve never liked him. Now that he’s gotten old and confused, you walk about Mallowbourne as if you’re Baron of Gaynesford instead of Father.”
“Someone had to step up, Sabelina, and assume the responsibilities in order to keep Mallowbourne running smoothly. Your father has been ill for some time. As his wife, it is only natural for me to help.”
“My lady?” Karys called and Faylinn hurried to the bedside.
The healer shook her head slightly but that gesture told Faylinn all she needed to know. She drew Karys to the far side of the room as Sabelina went to stand by her father.
