A Year & a Day

by Virginia Henley

  Lynx de Warenne sent a sealed dispatch to the governor, whose headquarters were in Edinburgh. His lieutenant, Montgomery, was a swift rider who should reach his uncle sometime tomorrow. From the stables, the forest beyond the meadow was clearly visible and Lynx saw Jane disappear into the trees.

  His first impulse was to send Taffy after her, but the squire was nowhere to be seen. When Lynx spotted Jane’s brother Keith, he pointed toward the trees and told him Jane had gone into the forest alone.

  “She’s gone to the pool, my lord; she’s been going there since she was a child.”

  “Yes, our first encounter was at her forest pool, but I’d feel better if you’d keep an eye on her.”

  Keith, who liked de Warenne, promised that he would.

  Within the hour, a courier arrived, giving Lynx cause for concern. He liked neither the message nor the messenger. John de Warenne informed him that Fitz-Waren had been granted lordship of Torthwald Castle, and his uncle had sent the message with one of Fitz’s light cavalry officers.

  Lynx masked the animosity he felt toward Fitz’s officer. Torthwald was not too much farther away than the Bruce stronghold of Lochmaben; far too close for Lynx’s peace of mind. He had the distinct impression that a watchdog had been set down in their midst. The appointment had the king’s stamp of mistrust all over it. It was a common Plantagenet ploy to set one against another.

  Fitz-Waren’s man also delivered personal invitations, one for Lynx, the others for Marjory and Alicia, to visit Torthwald Castle. Lynx took all the letters and informed the messenger that he would see that the ladies received them. De Warenne told him there would be no reply, then turned him over to his steward for refreshment. Lynx certainly intended to visit Torthwald, but he would do so covertly, without Fitz-Waren’s knowledge.

  By the time Keith Leslie decided to check on Jane’s whereabouts, she was already on her way back to the castle. Keith did not want her to know he had been asked to keep his eye on her and played his role so well, he did not think Jane was the least bit suspicious. At the same time, Jane was so cautiously evasive about what she had been doing, Keith suspected nothing.

  Jane made her way to the castle kitchens and came away with a small haunch of venison. She knew she could not ask for raw meat without prompting questions, but her explanation to the cook about her condition making her ravenously hungry at odd hours was accepted with understanding.

  The next morning she set out with the meat, some of which she had laced with poppy, and a pot of ointment made from yellow loosestrife which was good for quickly closing up a wound so it could heal cleanly. This time she made sure that Keith did not see her go into the forest.

  With her heartbeat pounding in her eardrums, she parted the brilliant foliage and found the lynx where she had left him. She tossed him the meat and moved away to let him eat in peace. Animals were unpredictable when food was present. As she walked toward the pool she could hear his low growls as he devoured the venison.

  Jane picked up a pair of nosy hedgehogs who had come to see what she was doing and carried them to the safety of the far side of the water. She also shooed away a doe and a flock of doves. By the time she returned to the lynx, he was dozing from the opiate she had fed him.

  Quickly she cleansed the wound of its caked blood and mud, then covered it with a thick layer of the healing salve. Again, she bound it so the lynx could not lick it off.

  Back at the castle, as Jane made her way to the kitchens, she jumped with guilt as Lynx spoke her name and caught up with her.

  “I am on my way to Lochmaben. I may not return until tomorrow.” Actually he was going to Torthwald, but didn’t want even his squires to know. “If there is aught you need—”

  “Thomas and Taffy will take good care of me,” she finished his sentence for him.

  Lynx stood looking at her with a bemused expression on his face and she suddenly felt compelled to explain where she was going. “I’m on my way to the kitchens. A good chatelaine always knows what the cooks are preparing,” she lied.

  She looked so pretty, Lynx had a sudden urge to touch her. He put his fingers beneath her chin and raised her face until their eyes met. “You will make somebody a very good wife.” His green eyes were filled with a teasing light.

  Jane’s pulse began to race. For once he was actually smiling at her. She swept her dark lashes down over her eyes and murmured, “My lord, you are flirting with me.”

  Lynx laughed. “It is permitted,” he murmured back, and touched his lips to hers. He found that one taste was not enough. He looked down at her soft lips and hungered for more. His mouth came down on hers with an aching tenderness. Then his powerful arms tightened about her soft body as she pressed herself against him. Lynx parted her lips with the tip of his tongue, then thrust inside with slow, insistent strokes.

  His hot, hungry mouth sent tiny tremors through Jane’s body. His masculine scent stole her senses as she yielded her mouth for his ravaging. He drew her sensual lower lip into his mouth as if it were a ripe cherry, and held her so tightly her breasts were crushed against the hard muscles of his chest. Before the lingering kiss ended, it had aroused an unquenchable longing deep inside her.

  Jane was weak with desire when he departed, and thrilled with the knowledge that he was beginning to respond to her. But she was relieved that he would be away for a couple of days so that she could tend the lynx secretly. Jane knew if Lord de Warenne learned of the risks she was taking, he would be livid. He would never understand, and he would never forgive her. He would lock her up for the remainder of her pregnancy and throw away the key!

  Under cover of darkness, Lynx de Warenne tethered his horse and walked the perimeter of Torthwald Castle. Try as he might, he could find no way inside without being discovered. Fitz-Waren had the walls so heavily guarded, there was no chance to even swim the moat without being seen.

  The following day, he rode out across the surrounding dales and talked with shepherds and cattle herders. The rumors of atrocities at the castle seemed so exaggerated, Lynx doubted most of what he heard, but he was sure of one thing. Hatred for the English conquerors was spreading like a contagion.

  He spent the afternoon in the village of Beattock, but the people were so closemouthed and suspicious of him, he found no one who would answer his questions. Lynx realized he would have fared much better if he’d had Jock Leslie or one of Jock’s sons with him. In the evening he went to the village of Torthwald. The people were surly and afraid. When he saw the gibbets with their grisly fruit, he understood why.

  As Lynx de Warenne rode back to Dumfries, the grim realities of trying to conquer a people brought his spirits low. He thought of all the castles garrisoned by English across Scotland and wondered how many were being ruled by an iron fist rather than conciliation. Were the English so blind they could not see such brutality would only strengthen the Scots’ resistance?

  Lynx believed that John de Warenne would be a moderate governor, even though the other viceroys, Ormsby and Cressingham, were incapable of moderation. He knew the first thing he had to do was get Fitz-Waren removed from Torthwald. On the ride home, the heavens opened and cold rain poured down in sheets. The glorious autumn weather had lasted into November, but winter threatened. By the time he stabled his horse at Dumfries, Lynx felt sick at heart. He wanted the heirs of his body to hold this castle in peace and prosperity. He prayed it was the weather that had drowned his optimism and put him in such a dark mood.

  Because of the drenching rain, he did not take the outside steps to the parapet of the Master Tower. When he reached Jane’s chambers, he hesitated, in the hope that she would hear him and speak. He lingered for long minutes in the silence, feeling strangely empty. Then he made a decision and slowly undressed.

  As he moved toward the bed he said, “Jane, are you awake?” He thought he heard a swift intake of breath. “Don’t be alarmed, it’s Lynx.” He slipped into the warm bed and moved across it until he was against her back.

  “My
lord,” she gasped, rising up.

  His strong arms went about her to draw her back down. He stroked her hair. “Hush, Jane. Go back to sleep.”

  Their breathing was the only sound that disturbed the silence. As she lay with her body touching his, she knew it would be impossible to go back to sleep. But she lay still as his long, strong body shared her warmth. In a while she felt his hand slide over her belly where it lay possessive and content. Jane smiled into the darkness, feeling surprisingly contented, too.

  19

  In the morning Jane awoke alone in her bed. She had not heard Lynx leave. Could she have just dreamed that he’d slept nestled against her? No, his body had left its imprint in the feather bed. Her hand touched the linen sheet, imagining she could still feel his warmth. She wondered why he had come to her. Was he troubled? He hadn’t come to talk, and it certainly wasn’t desire that had brought him to her bed. There was only one answer: his unborn child had drawn him to her.

  Jane wished with all her heart it were otherwise, but she decided she wasn’t going to waste her day longing for the impossible. When she was dressed, she made her way to the kitchens, secured a leg of mutton for the lynx, and wrapped it in a linen towel. His wound had almost healed and she hoped that within another week he would be able to hunt for himself.

  To avoid being followed by Keith, she did not go near the stables, which was the shortest route to the forest pool, but instead walked across the clearing behind the laundry, toward the trees.

  From his chamber window in the Master Tower, Lynx watched Jane as she headed toward the woods. Where the devil was she going and what was she carrying? He had asked her brother Keith to keep an eye on her, but it looked as if she were deliberately avoiding the stables. As Lynx watched her, he knew she was not out for a morning stroll, but had a definite purpose in mind.

  He had been mulling over whether to pen a letter to the governor or go to Edinburgh himself, but Jane’s actions now filled his thoughts and he knew his mind would not rest until he discovered what she was up to. Lynx made his way to the laundry, then crossed the clearing and entered the forest at the spot where he had seen Jane disappear. He did not resort to stealth, but strode through the trees knowing instinctively which direction to take. It wasn’t long before he glimpsed her some distance ahead of him. He saw her pause and turn with alarm, ready for flight.

  “Jane, hold!” he commanded her. She stopped in her tracks as if rooted to the spot, as he closed the distance between them. The look on her face clearly betrayed the fact that he had caught her at something she didn’t want him to know about and that she wished him a thousand miles away.

  “What are you doing?” he asked bluntly.

  “What do you mean, ray lord?”

  “It’s a simple enough question. What are you doing?”

  “Nothing.” Her breasts rose and fell with her agitation.

  “Clearly, you have come to the forest for some purpose.”

  “I have come to gather herbs,” she said, indicating her cloth bag, yet gripping it close as if she would keep the contents from him.

  Lynx raised a powerful hand and took the bag from her. He did not know what he expected to find, but it was certainly not a leg of mutton and a pot of ointment. He pulled out the meat. “This is in case you fall hungry while you are gathering your herbs.” He knew her dainty appetite. The suggestion that she would eat a whole leg of mutton was palpably ridiculous.

  She opened her mouth to speak.

  “Do not lie to me, Jane.” His face and his tone were grim. His first suspicion was that she had come to aid some outlaw or fugitive hiding in the forest. He had her neatly cornered and suddenly he watched her evasiveness turn to anger as she took the offensive.

  “It is your fault,” she flared. “You and your careless hunters! I am simply tending an animal I found wounded by an arrow.”

  For a moment, Lynx felt badly. He knew how tender-hearted she was with animals and the creatures of the forest. “Jane, in a hunt, it happens. We try for clean kills, but it happens. Where is it?”

  “I won’t tell you!” she defied.

  He gave her a level look. “You don’t need to tell me. It is near the forest pool. I will go with you.”

  “No! No!” she cried with passion. “Go away, leave me alone! You set my brother to spy on me and now you are following me yourself.”

  Her reaction was so explosive he immediately knew she wanted to keep her secret from him at all costs. What the hell creature would devour a leg of mutton? “What animal are you feeding?”

  He watched her press her lips together and lift her chin in defiance, but he also saw her fingers clutch her touchstone protectively. His eyes widened in disbelief. “Splendor of God, it is that lynx you told me of!” His long strides carried him in the direction of Jane’s forest pool.

  She ran after him, knowing his intent. “No, no, please don’t kill him!” But she saw that his hand was already drawing out his dagger. Her concern was all for the lynx and the fury de Warenne directed toward it. She did not even think of the fury he would direct toward her.

  At the edge of the pool he stopped and looked intently for a spot where an animal might lie concealed. Infallibly, his keen eyes fell on the low-lying branches with their brilliant foliage, and without hesitation, he strode toward them.

  “No!” Jane sobbed, dashing ahead of him and flinging herself down in front of the place where the lynx had taken refuge.

  His big hand closed about her wrist and he plucked her from the forest floor as easily as if she were a wildflower and thrust her behind him. He tore back the branches with his knife at the ready, then cursed aloud when he found the lair empty, the wild beast gone. Lynx de Warenne’s accusing gaze swung to Jane and she saw the enormity of the risk she had taken through his eyes.

  “You care for naught but the child! You are obsessed!” she flung at him, too afraid to retreat into the defensive.

  “’Tis a damn good thing somebody has a care for it.” His voice and his eyes were like ice. To stop himself from shaking her until her bones rattled, he ran a frustrated hand through his tawny mane. “You have deliberately put my child in danger’s way, risking its very life, without a thought in your empty head. Does your own child mean nothing to you?”

  The cruel and false accusation angered Jane. “I love my child very much, I would never do anything to harm it! Please try to understand that I was in no danger from the lynx. I have the power to communicate with animals and to heal them when they are hurt. I think it is about time you got to know me and recognize my special abilities.”

  “Not one more word!” Lynx ground out. He pointed in the direction of the castle. “On your way, lady.”

  As Jane hurried through the trees ahead of him, his ominous silence blanketed her. He did not speak again until the walls of Dumfries closed about them. “You are confined to the castle,” he said shortly.

  Alice Bolton had just returned from her daily visit to the stillroom with Kate Leslie, where they had been distilling a new concoction purported to bleach hair. Alicia and her maid saw Jane arrive, almost in tears, with Lynx de Warenne close on her heels. The couple’s body language screamed to all witnessing the scene that they had been fighting, even before they heard Lynx tell Jane she was confined to the castle.

  A sly smile of satisfaction curved Alicia’s lips as she watched Jane rush past her to ascend the stairs. “Your sister is upset. Take her some more of my special wine and find out what the trouble is,” she instructed Kate. “We can wash my hair later.” Alicia knew she had allowed this young woman to gain a profound advantage over her and hoped to use the quarrel as leverage. While Lynx was angered with the girl, she would try to lure him back to her bed. Tonight in the haft she would leave her hair uncovered and wear one of Lynx’s favorite gowns.

  Kate arrived shortly, obviously out of temper with her sister Jane. “She would barely speak to me, my lady. She puts on fine airs these days, pretending to be better than the rest
of us.”

  “Did you give her the wine?”

  “She set it aside with the other wine I took her. Was there something in it?” Kate whispered suspiciously.

  “Of course not,” Alicia lied. “Wine loosens the tongue. I thought it would make her confide in you. Didn’t you even learn what caused the quarrel?”

  Kate, wishing to avoid a tongue-lashing, said quickly, “It must have been the child, Lord de Warenne has no personal feelings for my sister.”

  Alicia’s lips thinned. “Of course. He has forbidden her to ride and now he has confined her to the castle. The care and attention he bestows upon the child must make her seethe with jealousy, and the brat isn’t even born yet.” If the little bitch would drink the wine, she would abort!

  Alicia unpinned her head veil. “Let’s get my hair washed. I must look particularly beautiful tonight.”

  Various plans flitted through Alicia’s mind as Kate ministered to her faded locks. Her maid obviously could no longer get Jane to confide in her, but she had her uses. She had free access to her sister’s chambers in the Master Tower, which was an absolute necessity for the scheme that Alicia’s brain had concocted. “I may have a gown that will fit you, Kate. I’m surprised your sister isn’t more generous with you.” In Alicia’s experience, a bribe worked miracles.

  Before she went down to the hall to dine, Alicia brushed out her hair and adorned herself with the sapphires Lynx had given her long ago. He treated her with casual indifference these days, and she must take this opportunity to change all that. Excitement stirred her blood. She had seen Lynx’s anger, barely controlled, and it aroused her. Alicia shivered as she pictured the battle scars on his naked body. They were the visible proof of the danger he constantly faced.

  When Lynx went to the hall for dinner, he knew Jane would not be there. After a quarrel, it was a woman’s way to keep to herself as if she were the injured party. Well, it would be a good long time before he would ask her to sit with him in the place of honor again. She could dine in her chamber and consider her reckless behavior.