April Munday

by His Ransom

  “Boys from the town. They come up every day to practise,” said Thomas from behind him. He had entered the room silently. Richard had grown used to him turning up unannounced on the ship, but had assumed his sickness had made him careless. He was annoyed to discover that Thomas really could move quietly.

  Richard nodded. Of course, English archers trained hard, for he had heard that it was impossible for a man who had not been trained from boyhood even to pull back a bow let alone direct an arrow’s flight accurately. He had never tried. This was the closest he had ever been to an English archer.

  They watched together for a while, Thomas commenting on the boys’ technique. Richard nodded politely. He did not want to know how clever the archers were. All he knew was that they killed Frenchmen and he wanted to kill them. No English archer who was captured by the French lived long and usually died in great pain after their two string fingers and their eyes had been removed. Now that he was close to them, he understood why they were so feared. These boys were only training and they were the ones that had been left behind when their lord had gone to war, but they were unfailingly accurate and fast. Their movements were a blur.

  “Come, Lady Rosamunde wishes to speak to us. But you should eat first. She thinks you are too thin.”

  Richard laughed, finally distracted from the archers. “I’m never much fatter than this.”

  “Then you will need to find some other way to prove to her that I have not mistreated you.”

  Richard laughed again. “My friend, Lady Rosamunde will never believe that you have done anything other than treat me very well.” Richard dressed quickly and Thomas led the way to the hall.

  Rosamunde met Thomas and Richard in her father’s solar after they had broken their fast. They spoke French for Richard’s sake and Thomas’ French was far more fluent than he had led Richard to believe on the ship. He did not hold it against Thomas. The younger man had prepared him well for his arrival. If Thomas had allowed him to speak French all the time he would have found his life much harder at the castle. When he had met the men whose room he was to share, he had been able to talk to them and understand what they were saying. There had been some misunderstandings, but the other two had laughed them off.

  This council with Rosamunde was the first time since he had left Bordeaux that Richard was able to take a full part in a discussion and he was grateful.

  Rosamunde still had not explained why she expected the castle to be besieged and Richard did not ask. Thomas did not need to be told. If he thought it strange that Guy had not been invited to this meeting, Richard did not reveal his feelings to the others. He listened and spoke when he had something to say. Thomas had a better feel for the castle’s defences than he did and even Rosamunde had a good idea of how to make the best use of the men that she had available.

  As he had for much of the voyage, Richard wondered why the duke had made him promise to protect his daughter. Honour demanded that he help a defenceless woman; he did not have to give his word. The duke knew that, yet he had insisted that on the promise. The duke also knew that Thomas and Guy knew more about the castle than he did. Still he had made it clear that he was depending on Richard and not on his own men. They reached the end of their discussion and Richard was expecting to be dismissed.

  “Now, Thomas, perhaps you will tell me why you lied to me yesterday.” Rosamunde had turned quickly to face him, her face hard.

  Thomas’ expression did not change, but Richard saw that the colour was draining from his face. There was silence. Richard knew why Thomas did not speak, but was interested to see how he would deal with Rosamunde.

  “I see you do not deny the lie.”

  “No, my lady. Your father asked me to hide the truth from you. I knew it was futile.”

  Now Richard recalled a loud conversation between the duke and Thomas just before they had left Gascony. He had understood little of it, but Rosamunde’s name had been mentioned frequently.

  “He must have lost his wits if he thought I would believe that he was too busy to come home when we face the threat of siege, because he does not come.”

  Thomas looked around, as if for support, but there was no help for it. While her father was away, Rosamunde stood in his place. If she asked a question it had to be answered as if the duke had asked it. Finally, Thomas spoke. “There was much illness among the army after the battle. My lord and Henry were very ill for a time and not well enough to travel with me. He wanted me here before news of Sir Simon’s death reached Sir Walter. They will come when they can, but it may not be until spring. They were recovering well,” he added hastily, seeing the horrified look on Rosamunde’s face.

  “You were right. He should have known you could not lie to me.”

  “Please forgive me.”

  “I know you did it out of obedience to my father. Yes, I forgive you.”

  Thomas looked relieved and bent to kiss her hand. Richard was surprised; he seemed to be treating this young woman exactly as if she were his lord. This was more respect than would normally be shown to a lord’s female representative.

  “Thank you, my lady.”

  “We have done what we can this morning. Thomas, please tell Guy what we have discussed.”

  Rosamunde and Thomas had continued to speak in French, so Richard knew that she had meant him to understand her anger and the reason for it. He also knew, however, that she did not know him as well as Thomas and that, should he so choose, he would be able to lie to her undetected. With a shock he realised that he would not lie to her, although she had no defences against it. But he was only here to protect her from physical harm, not the vagaries of untruth.

  Thomas bowed and Rosamunde left the room.

  “Will you take me outside?” Richard asked Thomas, remembering to change back to English, now that they were alone. Rosamunde had allowed the conference to be in French for his convenience, but he assumed that he would normally be expected to converse in English.

  Thomas looked puzzled, granted the request and led him down to the stables. They took two horses and rode away from the castle.

  “The eyes of a stranger might be of some help,” he explained his insight to the younger man. “I might see something that you would not, because you know the castle too well. Where would someone who did not know the castle expect the weaknesses to be?”

  Thomas stared at him. “All castles have the same weaknesses – gates, windows, towers.”

  “No, they do not. My father’s castle does not have a moat, but it is on top of a very steep hill. The village is at the bottom of the hill. The river is not very close. This castle has a moat. The town lies close to the castle and close to the river. There are many differences.”

  Thomas was not convinced, but they began to ride around the castle.

  Richard finally gave in to his curiosity. If he was to defend the castle, he needed to know as much as possible about the man who was coming against them. “Why do you all fear a siege?”

  “Because the garrison is away in France and we can’t defend the castle.”

  Richard growled, exasperated. “My English is not that bad. You know what I mean.”

  Thomas grinned. “Sir Walter is a banneret who lives half a day’s ride away. He has no money. His land borders the duke’s to the north. It is as poor as he is. He is a coward, so he made no money from the war. It seems he would rather marry it. His wife died in the Big Death, so he came courting my lady at the same time as Sir Simon. Rosamunde had not been betrothed earlier. The duke has some strange ideas and he thought to give her some choice.”

  Richard mirrored Thomas’ shrug. Women obeyed their fathers; they did not have choices. The duke was an indulgent father. Richard had already concluded that he was unusual. He had treated his prisoner well and told Thomas to treat him well. Now it seemed he had some strange ideas about fatherhood. Rosamunde was old not to be married. Richard thought she must be about seventeen. He had learned from one of his bedmates that she had only been betro
thed for six months before Simon went away. Richard’s sisters had been married at twelve or thirteen. Perhaps there was something wrong with Rosamunde that had put off her earlier suitors. He could not think what it might be. She was beautiful and her body seemed strong. She would bear many healthy sons. She was clever, their conference this morning had demonstrated that, and that would put off many men. For himself, Richard would have valued a clever wife. This young woman had been left in charge of her father’s estates while he was at war and she seemed to be carrying out her charge well.

  “Anyway, Simon was young, rich, handsome and clever. Walter is forty-five, poor, plain and clever. Even a maid without Rosamunde’s intelligence would not find it a difficult choice. The duke also preferred Simon, but Walter did not take the refusal well. He had seen Rosamunde and lusted after her and her dowry.”

  Richard could understand that. Even without her dowry Rosamunde would be a prize to many men.

  “But why would he besiege the castle and why is he not in France?”

  “It was not supposed to be a large army that went to France. The Prince of Wales was only supposed to be annoying the French and the king thought to leave himself some defence here. Sir Walter is supposed to be defending his neighbours. As to Rosamunde’s safety, after the duke had given his permission and before the betrothal ceremony Sir Walter tried to abduct her.”

  Richard must have looked blank, for Thomas continued, “I don’t know how you do it in France, but if an unmarried woman is abducted and spends the night under a man’s roof, he has to marry her.”

  Richard nodded. “Then he lusts for Rosamunde’s body more than for her dowry.”

  Thomas looked at him shrewdly. “I think his lust has made him mad. He thinks the duke would give up my lady’s dowry to her abductor.”

  “And he would not?” Richard was surprised. Even though it would not be Rosamunde’s fault, the shame would be great and it would be impossible to find another man to be her husband if she was taken from Walter. Surely the duke would want to make the best of it and make his daughter’s life comfortable.

  “He would kill any man who did that to Rosamunde.”

  “And the lady?”

  “Would go into a convent for the rest of her days.”

  Richard shuddered. A woman such as Rosamunde should not spend her days in a convent. One of his own sisters was a nun and the life suited her perfectly, but Rosamunde was surely made to laugh and to love with a husband. But he was here to make sure that this did not happen and he thought it a good cause to fight to keep Rosamunde from the convent and safe for the marriage bed. Not that he had any choice in the matter.

  The two men came at the castle from a variety of directions and Richard finally identified a weakness.

  “The town is not protected.”

  “He does not come against the town,” Thomas protested.

  “I would hold the town to ransom for the surrender of the castle. You said he is poor, so he will not have siege engines or guns. But he is clever, so he will be inventive. I do not know the lady, but I guarantee her father has ordered her to protect the town at all costs.”

  Thomas looked downcast. “I have been following Prince Edward in chevauchées for the past year and I did not think of that.”

  Richard bit his tongue. He had almost forgotten that this man was his enemy, but Thomas had been one of those who had destroyed crops, animals and farms so that whole villages had disappeared from the face of France.

  “Will you go home again?”

  Thomas’ question broke the awkward silence and surprised him. Richard turned to look down the river. Would he cross the sea back to France? Would he travel the length of it to Charimaux? He shrugged. “There would be no point.” Only his mother would welcome him and she had other sons to comfort her.

  Thomas put a hand on his shoulder. “Then you are English now.” He started back towards the castle. Richard waited a moment before following him. Thomas was right. If he was not going back to France, he was no longer French. His king was as much a prisoner as he was and a kingdom without its king was nothing. This was his place now and the duke’s people were his people and it was his duty to protect them as much as it was to protect Rosamunde. It did not matter that a few months ago he had been fighting them. Now they had a common enemy and they would fight together.

  Richard had not been keen to give the duke his word to look after his daughter, even though it was his duty. Women were a hindrance, distracting men from their real work. But he was a prisoner and had not really had a choice. The duke would not release him until some form of ransom had been paid and his service was the only thing that Richard had to give. His family had little enough money and what there was must be used to keep the estate going so that his older brother could inherit. Richard was not bitter. As the youngest son he had always known that he was less important to his father. But it was the loss of honour that disturbed him and he knew that even if the duke gave him his freedom the moment he returned from Bordeaux he would not return to his home. He would have to find another lord to serve.

  Despite his feelings about women in general, Richard was beginning to change his mind about Rosamunde in particular. She had made him welcome, treating him like a guest. She had fed him and provided him with good lodgings. He could see that even in her father’s absence his household was well-cared for. That she inspired the trust and loyalty of someone like Thomas, who Richard had come to respect and like over the past few weeks, had made an impression on him. Thomas did not seem to think it beneath him to listen to the lady’s suggestions with regard to the defence of the castle and he spoke to her about these things as if she were a man. Richard also approved of the way she had dealt with her grief and he knew that she did grieve. But she did not display her grief. He had been surprised when she had told him that it was not her husband who had died, but her betrothed. That she loved him he could not doubt, yet such depth of feeling was rare between a betrothed couple and even between man and wife it was not often to be found.

  He was very far from ready to revise his opinion of women, but he was beginning to think that Rosamunde might be the exception.

  They rode back into the castle and he spent the rest of the morning watching the men train in the bailey. The duke had left a small force to guard his castle. It was not beyond imagining that King Jean could have sent a force to invade, but these few could not have defended the castle against a much larger army for long. But Sir Walter would be a different matter.

  They entered the courtyard and watched the men as they trained to fight. Guy was in charge and he pushed the men hard. Thomas stood beside Richard as he watched and they swapped comments on the men. Richard found that he had to change his opinion of Guy. Despite his youth, the man had managed to pull together a well-trained force and Richard now began to understand why France had been defeated at Poitiers. This was a people that took war seriously and trained to fight under any circumstances. He had seen the archers that morning. The boys shot with an accuracy which could only be matched by the very best crossbowmen. Their speed could be matched by none. They had also practised swordplay, although not to the same level. And when Richard asked later why they had done this, he was told that at Crécy the archers had run out of arrows and the duke had decided that his men would be trained to fight in other ways should that happen again.

  In one corner of the courtyard the men-at-arms trained with pikes and swords, but what surprised Richard was the amount of training the knights did off their horses. French knights also trained to fight on foot, but not to this extent. He turned to Thomas. “Do you show me this to humiliate me?” he asked, with a slight curl to his lip.

  Thomas laughed. “No, I simply wanted to know when you think you’ll be able to join in and whether you think there’s anything we could do better.”

  Richard laughed, “You ask a defeated enemy how you can improve?”

  “These men will be tested soon.” Thomas was serious again, “And I w
ould rather not lose any more men.”

  “Why should we trust him?” asked Guy, coming up behind them panting heavily from his exertions.

  “Because,” said Thomas, “Should Sir Walter get inside this castle, he will not stop to ask whether anyone inside is French or English, friend or enemy of the duke. He will just kill everyone until he gets to Lady Rosamunde.”

  “No,” said Richard. “That is not why I will help you. I will help you because I am sworn to protect Lady Rosamunde. And if that means helping to train these men, even though they later use those skills against France, then that is what I must do.”

  Guy paled. “Do you intend to arm him?”

  Thomas grinned. “If he promises not to turn his sword against anyone in the castle, of course.”

  “You will accept his word?”

  “Yes, I will.”

  This did not please Guy, who muttered something under his breath and left them.

  “I will not give you cause to regret your trust in me.”

  “No,” said Thomas. “I don’t think you will. Come, Margaret said she would have something ready for your leg by now. Perhaps she can ease the pain a little.”

  Distracted by her grief, Rosamunde only gradually became aware of the effect that Richard was having on her household. She supposed it was only to be expected that the women would find as many opportunities as possible to be near him or to watch him. He was an extremely attractive man. Once he was rested and clean he dominated the other men. His dark beard and hair had been trimmed, although his hair was still long. Although they affected to laugh at the strange fashions that he wore and his almost incomprehensible English, they had been wary of Richard from the start and now they paid him very close attention. Despite his limp, he moved with grace and his long hair and beard gave him an air of mystery and excitement that seemed lacking in the men who had remained at the castle. That air of mystery was not diminished when he did not always understand what was said to him, or sometimes pretended not to understand. He spoke little unless he was in council with Rosamunde and she quickly realised that it was because he spoke English so poorly. There were very few people in the castle who were able and prepared to speak French with him. His very silence seemed to increase the women’s interest in him.