by Marie Hall
"The matter at court was not so much I thought to be missed," Xavier said, motioning the men should go inside then guiding them to the table he commonly occupied. Nell was quick to bring everyone a drink, and she gave Xavier a wink as she always did.
"It was not of any importance, but it is unlike you to miss anything," Richard said, looking after the woman before turning and raising an eyebrow at Xavier.
"And the house is abandoned," Sir Quaid added.
"The house is not a safe environment for my wife; she was not happy there," Xavier said easily.
Richard shook his head and chuckled. "And as it is always a matter of her happiness, for you."
"Her safety was at issue," Xavier said and felt all eyes fall on him. "The yard… there are traps. Io fell in one."
"She was hurt?" another man asked with concern that seemed more than appropriate.
"Minimally, but enough I will not have her there."
"Because she was hurt or she was unhappy?" Richard asked, and Xavier responded with nothing more than a shrug.
"There are no other houses you might be set in. Already, many are hosting a number of other noblemen," Quaid told him what he already had guessed.
"Io is happy here, and this good man…" Xavier pointed to the innkeeper, Joseph, now putting some food on the table. "…he has been pleasantly accommodating."
"Anything for Lady Brice, my lord. Finest lady I have ever known," Joseph said with a smile before going back to tend his business.
"I think the coin must be the finest, too," Richard muttered.
"It is good but not so much I will notice. Io is welcomed here, she is happy, and the area is easy to defend. We will stay here." Any argument ended there, for now. Xavier would need to wait to hear what the crown thought of the move.
"Well, then," Richard said and elbowed that third man, who dropped the beef he was shoving down his throat, wiped his fingers on his shirt, causing all the others at the table to shake their heads in disgust, and pulled out a letter. "Well, give it to him," Richard said with a tired sigh. Like Xavier, Richard had little patience for men in training. "It is your… formal invite to the reception at Lord Cutcheon's." Xavier's groan made the man laugh. "Three days. Do you want me to send that coxcomb Sherralon to you?"
Xavier slumped back in the chair; so much for Io's good mood. He'd not given their disagreement over the lessons in manners a thought once he figured out Io was more upset over how harsh he'd been when she had a tantrum. But with an impending gathering, where all eyes would watch and judge, he needed to make sure Io could at least portray the highborn lady she refused to admit she was. It wasn't very much of a request by him, but Io, so far, refused to comply. If he knew why, he might be able to convince her, but she'd not told him. "Yes," he said with a sigh, scrubbing his hands over his face. Three days wasn't much time. Io would revolt at the idea they'd use up her entire day, but that was her making.
"Lady Io can be impressively stubborn, if you should not find insult in my saying so," Richard said as he pulled apart some bread and stuck a piece in his mouth.
"Impressive? More impossibly, but it is a truth I have no reason to deny. Her stubbornness has served her well."
"And will do so while she is here," Richard reasoned.
"Sir Howard," Io's cheery voice rang out. "What brings you here today?"
Xavier didn't miss the way the third man suddenly sat up, brushing at his clothes trying to look more dignified than he'd looked a moment ago.
"Io, how wonderful to see you looking so well," Richard said, only getting halfway to his feet before Io waved him down and plopped herself onto Xavier's lap. But when she reached for some of the meal on the table, he grabbed her hand. "But for this. What has happened?"
"I do not know?" She giggled and pulled her hand back, grabbed the bread, and leaned into Xavier. "I took some splinters, but…" she said then shrugged. "What brings you out?"
"I had to deliver the announcement of a reception in His Majesty's honor," Richard told her, and Xavier felt her stiffen in his arms.
"You must go?" she asked, setting her head on his shoulder.
"You both are to attend," that third man said then grunted when Quaid elbowed him in the ribs.
"No," Io told him with an uncertain chuckle. "Matters with the king are for Xavier, not me."
And there it was, from her lips, without prompting. Io's statement she'd no wish to have an audience with the king. She'd no desire to meet the man, let alone try to ask for favor. He knew that would get passed on to everyone who cared and mattered at court.
"Lady Io," Quaid started.
"Io, I have no use for titles."
When he looked to him, Xavier just inclined his head. "Io, His Majesty will not be there. It is only a gathering of lords."
She laughed, this time with some amusement. "Then how can it be in the king's honor? How absurd. You cannot have a party for someone if they will not be there. Unless what you are actually having is a wake."
Richard's drink spewed from his mouth, Quaid almost fell out of his chair, and that third man just stared open mouthed at her.
"Will all things at court be so nonsensical?" Io asked as if she didn't notice anyone's reaction.
"I never said anyone here would be reasonable or logical," Xavier made sure he said this loud enough all three men heard.
"There are times, Io, I doubt any woman can be only sensible, and then you speak and I realize it is possible and all other females are simply unwilling."
"Sir Howard." Io chuckled. "I am always reasonable." Xavier had to grab for her as his burst of laughter nearly sent her to the floor. She balled her fist and punched him in the arm. "I am," she pouted.
"I will not tolerate lies from you, wife," Xavier said between gasps for breath.
"I do not lie, I am the reasonable one. It is you who cannot be reasoned with. Not at all," Io huffed.
"Have you struggled to reason with your husband, dear lady?" Richard asked, trying to keep a straight face.
"I have."
"What is he being unreasonable about?" Richard asked. Xavier leaned back and gave the man a look that told him to be ready.
"Goats," Io answered without pause.
"Goats?" Richard asked, blinking at her.
"He will not get me one."
"A goat?"
"Yes, I need a goat. He knows I need a goat. And he will not get me one. I have tried to reason with him, but—"
"I will get you a goat when we return home," Xavier said.
"Io?" Everyone turned when the little girl called from the back door.
Io didn't even bother with proper goodbyes. She scrambled to her feet, gave Xavier a kiss on the cheek, and ran after the child who'd already gone back outside.
"Best get Sharralon out as soon as possible," Quaid said before they all started laughing.
"Your wife wants a goat?" that third man questioned. Xavier only guessed he'd not been properly introduced because he lacked any true potential of becoming a permanent part of the king's guard.
"She actually needs one, but we did not find one that satisfied her this winter. There will be new ones to choose from when we get home," Xavier told them.
"A goat? Not jewels or furs?" Quaid asked.
"I was telling her only this morn to go find something shiny to buy." Xavier shook his head and laughed. "She wants a goat."
"And she does not want to meet the king?" Quaid confirmed.
"I have a… peculiar woman as wife," Xavier said and smiled.
"If only we could all be so fortunate," Richard told him, and he sounded only sincere. Xavier might invite him to come see the other side of Io's peculiarity, when Sharralon showed up at the tavern the next day.
Chapter 16
Io could hardly look at the man she was wed to. His insistence she take the damn stupid lessons she didn't need or want was going to cause her to say things she knew she'd regret. The only thing keeping her tongue still was that people watched. Most every
woman from the tavern was in the main room working on sewing dresses torn by patrons.
"Io, there is no more time for your resistance," Xavier said as she turned and paced back across the room. "In three days, you are going to be standing among the peerage, and your casual demeanor will not be welcomed by any of them."
"Then let them not welcome me at all," Io snapped. "Go be among them without me."
"Your presence is requested by the crown," Xavier said for the hundredth time.
"He will not even be there," Io yelled and paced back the other way. "I do not need these lessons; I do not want them." She cleared her throat to keep her voice from cracking as tears threatened. She stopped, keeping her eyes on the wall until she could be sure she'd not cry.
"Io." Stella's hands settled on her shoulder. She pulled Io from the wall and walked her to stand before Xavier.
"I do not need or want these lessons," she muttered again.
"Could you not simply show him you do not need the lessons?" Stella asked. Io only shrugged. "Could you not skip the lessons in their entirety and teach only what she may not know? Even most of my girls know enough to pass for a lady at some level for a time. We all naturally accumulate these skills through association. She was not raised by wild animals, was she?"
"No," Io muttered as Xavier grumbled, "Nearly," voicing his displeasure of her manner of care before she became his.
"Then show her only those things which might be different for the company she must keep," Stella suggested.
"I do not need these lessons," Io said again.
"Then, prove it," Xavier snapped, and Io couldn't have felt the bite of those words more had he slapped her.
Blinking hard to stop the tears, she lifted her head and looked Xavier straight in the eye. "Fine, I will," she said then spun away and all but ran back to her room where she slammed the door and refused to open it for anyone.
The only witnesses to her well-developed abilities were the women of the Buck and Dove. Io's own men were not allowed inside during the four hours it took for Master Sharralon to discover he'd nothing to teach her and she'd things he needed to learn. His only comments were he knew she was not putting effort into much of what she displayed, and Io couldn't argue that fact. She knew what needed to be done and she could do it with the perfected practice of any lady. She just didn't. These skills never helped her. Being able to dip into the deepest curtsy and hold it indefinitely until bidden to rise never saw food put in her stomach. Speaking in a measured tone never stopped a fist from swinging in her direction. These were nothing but pointless motions imposed by those who needed constant reassurances they were somehow better than those around them, even if they were less worthy than the man who cleaned the pig sty in the yards.
Master Sharralon left, promising he'd reassure Xavier that Io wouldn't embarrass him among his peers, and Io stayed locked in her room alone until the morning of the party when she only allowed in the women who helped her bathe and dress. She'd not so much as heard from Xavier, though he'd returned the same night she finished proving her abilities. Stella said he'd seemed quite pleased with the report she'd give a good show. The woman tried reminding her it was simply a woman's lot to have to act like a trained monkey to please men, and promised her she'd have a full cask of the mead Io liked waiting on her return.
Io took special care with her dress, going as far as binding up all her hair in a tight and plain coif wrapped tightly in a net. She added the heavily embroidered barbette, which always made her feel as if she was being strangled, to hold the plainer veil which dropped past her shoulders covering her hair completely and gave her the sense, with every breeze, that someone breathed down her neck. She'd not been this formal for her wedding, but if Xavier wanted her only as the ladies of court were, she'd comply. She'd hate it, but she'd comply. She left the room, still angry over his last words to her, but as Stella advised, she'd use that anger to get her through this affair. The last item she put on was the ribbon, red but embroidered with silver threads, holding the medallion Xavier gave her. Other than her wedding band, she wore no other jewelry.
Still, when she stepped into the room and the crowd of men parted so she faced Xavier, a feeling she only knew as lust very nearly made her forget he'd demanded she prove herself to him.
The only thing that reminded her of the man she was wed to was the soft smile touching his lips when he turned to look at her. He was dressed fully in black. His boots, hose, and both the long tight sleeved and the wide sleeved, high necked garments he wore under the cyclas were solid black and plain, while the very formal cyclas was black, but with elaborate black embroidery worked over it. The wide black leather belt was loose around his waist and held his more decorative sword. He looked every bit the executioner he was proclaimed to be, minus the hood.
The deep red and silver gown she wore complemented his dress to perfection, muted and elegant, but hardly boastful, even if their position and rank allowed such. Each wore only enough to proclaim they were not simple nobility, but nobility with tight ties to the crown.
"My lady?" Xavier said, stepping up and bowing slightly.
Io narrowed her eyes before letting them and her head drop, and bent deeply at the knee in a fashion far more graceful than she ever showed Sharralon. She rose but said nothing.
The tense silence lingered until Roth stepped up with their cloaks. Xavier took hers and held it for her. She let him set it around her shoulders but jerked away when he tried to adjust it so she could set the clasp. She heard him sigh but refused to yield. He wanted a lady like those he always knew; well, those types of ladies didn't drool over their husband's fine form or speak of inappropriate things they could be sharing but for such duties.
"Shall we go?" Xavier asked, holding out his arm. Io set her hand on his arm but didn't take hold as she normally did. Xavier sighed again but walked her out the door.
She was surprised to see the large coach waiting. She certainly didn't need such a vehicle for only herself, but then she noted that while her men were mounted, no other horses waited. Besides herself, Xavier, Roth, Mark, and Jon would all be traveling inside. She stepped up and took a seat on the far side, Xavier got in next and took the seat beside her. Io waited until Roth was inside ready to sit and then switched her seat so she sat opposite and diagonal from Xavier, which meant Jon had to squeeze past Xavier and Roth to sit.
Xavier rapped on the roof and the coach lurched forward. Quiet reigned a while, but Roth tried to break it with some comment about who would be attending. Jon added to that, but with the two main parties sitting in painful silence, it didn't last.
Perhaps an hour further down the road, Jon tried again. "You look very lovely tonight, Io," he said and smiled when she looked at him.
"Thank you, sir," she said quietly, as one might expect a lady to.
"The color of the gown suits you very well," he added. Io didn't miss him nudge Xavier with his elbow.
"Mistress Sarah, or should I say Lady Sarah, selected it," Xavier announced. "I must admit, she is a much better judge of what shades and colors enhance such beauty than I am."
She responded to his smile by turning to look out the window. And again, another hour passed in silence.
"Are you never going to speak to me again, my lady?" Xavier asked. Io remained stiff, looking out the window and completely silent. "Io? Io." He reached for her, but even in the confined space, she managed to avoid his touch.
Without warning, Xavier stood, slammed his fist into the wall behind him and pushed open the door. He place one foot on the carriage step, which given the rutted road, was rather dangerous then yelled up to the driver, "Stop the coach. Stop." He pulled himself back inside, and before the coach stopped completely, he reached in, grabbed her by both arms and lifted her from the seat. Io put up a struggle that left both Roth and Jon ducking to get clear. Xavier dragged her from the coach and let go. He blocked both her attempts to get back in. "Right now," he yelled, "right now, right here, you will tell me
what I have done to so offend you, to so anger you, that you will risk the entire evening with this pique of bad temper?"
Io lifted her skirts and made one more attempt to reenter the coach. "Let me pass, my lord," she snarled at him.
"Not until you speak to me. I have done nothing to deserve your disdain," Xavier said, jerking her back into the center of the road.
"Ha," Io spat as she worked her arm free of his grip.
"Tell me?"
"You do as you always do; you lied," Io said, wondering at how quick the hurt could steal her anger. "You lied, the same as you always do. You say one thing, declare it to be this way or that, and then make all of it untrue with what you say next."
"You will be clear, Io, what did I lie about?" Xavier asked, though he seemed to be willing to consider what she might say. "I can think of nothing I lied about?"
"All of it, you lied about all of it," she screamed and then wiped at the tears that splashed her face.
"Have mercy," Xavier screamed back at her. "Tell me what words I spoke that was untrue? What words?"
She didn't know if she could narrow it down to only a few words now. It was so tangled in her head and her heart. "The lessons," was all she managed.
"What about them?"
"You forced me to take them."
"You agreed to take them."
"I did not need them," she raged and saw him draw back.
"Io," he soothed.
"I did not need them, but you demanded I take them, demanded I prove to you..." She heard him groan as he turned and took a seat on the floorboards of the carriage, leaning so his body kept the door open. "Did you not beat me for trying to prove something, did you not beat me and declare I had nothing to prove to anyone? Did you not?" She watched him take a deep breath and then, setting his elbows on his knees, drop his head into his hands. "'You have nothing to prove to anyone, nothing to prove to king or peasant. Your very being is proof enough that you are strong, capable, and worthy enough that you should be out of reach of mere mortals.' That is what you said."
