by Anne Herries
‘Did they have a young woman with them?’ Stefan asked. ‘Did you hear them speak of a woman at all?’
‘The wenches would have naught to do with them, for they said they stank, dirty pigs,’ the innkeeper growled.
‘I meant a young gentlewoman, perhaps injured or in an unconscious state—a girl who did not look as if she belonged with them?’
The innkeeper shook his head. ‘A man arrived late last night. Whatever he said made the lord angry and there was some shouting. They mentioned a man named de Montfort…’ His eyes narrowed as he looked at Stefan. ‘It was of you they spoke.’
‘Did you hear what was said?’
‘They said that once you knew you would seek vengeance.’
‘My God!’ Stefan looked at Rob, his expression bleak. ‘Cowper must have ordered them to take her, but something went wrong—unless they took her straight to the ship!’
‘I’ll send two of my men to make enquiries. We’ll discover the name of his ship and whether anything was seen of a woman,’ Rob said and went outside to dispatch the men.
‘I thank you for your help,’ Stefan said and took a pouch of gold from his jerkin. He gave the innkeeper five gold pieces. ‘Is there anything more you can tell me?’
‘The man who brought the news was called Marc. He mentioned someone called Fritz. He said that Fritz had betrayed his master and had been dealt with.’
‘Which means he is dead,’ Stefan said grimly. ‘Thank you. If you see any of these men again, please send word to the Chateau de Montifiori and you shall be rewarded.’
The landlord bit one of the gold coins and grinned. ‘I’ll do that, my lord,’ he promised.
Stefan went outside. Three of Lord Melford’s men had already set off towards the harbour to make inquiries. He turned as Stefan came up to him.
‘One of us should return to England and see what can be discovered there.’
‘I have a score to settle with Cowper,’ Stefan said grimly. ‘I know what a coward he is. He will run to his manor and hide there, thinking himself safer inside its walls, but he forgets that it was once my home. He shall answer to me, I promise you that—but first we must return to my home and discover if anything has been heard of Anne. Hassan will know that Cowper has not turned up and he will have joined the search for her.’
‘What happened to the poor devil?’ Rob asked, remembering the horrendous disfigurement of Hassan’s face.
‘He was sold into slavery as a young lad and was unfortunate enough to be bought by Sir Hugh Grantham when he was travelling in the east. Sir Hugh had his slave master beat him many times for disobedience. However, they could not break his spirit and he tried to run away. For that sin he was tortured and sold. Fortunately, I saw him being beaten by the slave master in a market place. I bought him and set him free.’
Rob’s gaze narrowed as he looked at him, for he remembered hearing recently of Sir Hugh’s murder, and that of a young woman. However, he said nothing, because for the moment only Anne’s safety mattered. He would join forces with the devil if by that means he could find his daughter safe and well!
‘We must go back and help them,’ Rob said. ‘If my men bring news of her, I shall follow and report her abduction to the King. Cowper will give her up to Henry or end in the Tower—and if he has killed her, his life is forfeit.’
The two men nodded, in perfect agreement. ‘If I discover that she is dead, I shall kill him myself,’ Stefan said. ‘But if she lives, we shall seek justice from the King.’
The two men mounted their horses and set off for Stefan’s home, but it was a sombre journey, for neither held much hope of Anne being found alive after the news of Cowper’s hurried return to England.
Anne’s eyes flickered open. She was immediately aware that her head ached and she moaned softly, looking about her as she tried to discover what had happened to her. Where was she? Not in her own bed at Melford… Melford… Her name was Anne Melford and… Suddenly, her head was filled with such frightening pictures that she screamed.
Where was she? What had happened to her? Anne’s thoughts were whirling round and round like the wheels of a capsized hay cart, so many confusing thoughts in her head that she was terrified. Her hand moved out, discovering that she was lying on a dirt floor with nothing but a pile of sacking under her. To one side of her there was a crack in the wall and moonlight filtered through it. She struggled to her feet, dazed and confused. She was Anne Melford…she knew that her name was important, but at this moment she could not think why she needed to know that fact.
As she stood for a moment, her head going round and round and the sickness rushing up to her throat, she could not make sense of the whirling pictures in her head: a huge wave rushing at a ship, darkness, a man’s face…and then more darkness. She stumbled towards the crack of light, her hands exploring the rough texture of wood. Was she in some kind of a hut? Following her instinct without knowing what she was searching for, Anne moved round the walls, feeling each piece, unable to see much because there was hardly any light, and finally finding metal. Her fingers ran over its smooth curves as she found it was a latch. She lifted the latch, which gave easily, opened the door and felt the rush of cool air on her face.
Stepping outside, she discovered the moon was high, though sheltered behind a cloud, making the night darker than it might have been, but as her eyes accustomed themselves to the light she could see a little. She was in a clearing. The hut must belong to a woodcutter, perhaps the charcoal burner. Beyond the clearing were dense woods on all sides, dark, eerie and frightening. Which way should she go? Her mind was dazed, struggling to cope with all the pictures that kept crowding in on her. There was a place she wanted to be, and a man…but she could not make her thoughts keep still long enough to remember the things she needed to know. They went round and round so fast that she felt dizzy. At the back of her mind she heard a voice telling her that there was marshy land somewhere in the wood, and she resisted the urge to run blindly. She must follow a trail because it would lead somewhere rather than wander off and get lost.
Something told her that people would be looking for her, but for the moment she felt too ill to think who those people were or why they would be searching for her. As she hesitated, the moon came up overhead and she saw what was clearly a well-used trail ahead of her. It looked as if a cart had come that way recently, for the undergrowth was flattened. She began to walk and then to run as she heard an owl hooting deep in the wood, her gown catching on a bush. She tore it away, leaving a scrap of fine material clinging to its thorns. Her mind was still confused, but her instincts told her that if she followed the trail she would find a man who was important to her and safety.
‘Any news?’ Hassan said as Stefan entered the hall, closely followed by Rob and a few of the men. ‘Cowper was not at the meeting. I am certain he never intended to come. He sent word that he would be there in order to cover his tracks.’
‘She has not been found, then?’ Rob asked, a nerve flicking at his right temple as Hassan shook his head. ‘Cowper has run back to England. I had hoped that Anne might have been found. If she is not found by morning, I think one of us should follow him and see if any news can be heard of her in England, though the landlord at the inn in Cherbourg had heard nothing of her.’
‘Cowper is afraid of what I will do to him,’ Stefan snarled. ‘And he is right to be afraid after what he has done. Tell me, where have you searched so far? If Cowper did not have her, she could be somewhere in the woods. I want the search to continue throughout the night.’ It was a desperate hope because his instincts told him that something bad had happened to Anne—what else would have sent Cowper scurrying for home? His mind conjured up pictures of rape and murder and a red mist formed before his eyes. He had to dig his nails into the palms of his hands to stop the rage boiling over. If Cowper had not run, he would have torn him limb from limb!
‘I have detailed the woods to be searched bit by bit,’ Hassan told him. ‘There were some signs of men and hors
es in the woods near the chateau, but they split up and went different ways. I am not certain why they should do that.’
‘I think they most likely fell out amongst themselves,’ Stefan said, but he did not voice the worst of his thoughts. The man called Marc had carried the news to Cowper that had set him running for cover—and if Cowper was afraid for his life, that must mean that Anne was dead. He had a sick burning at the pit of his stomach, because he ought to have protected her from the evil men who sought to revenge themselves on him. He had not dreamed that someone would breach their security and snatch her and he was torn by grief and regret. If anything had happened to her, he would never cease to blame himself!
‘If Anne is not found by morning, I shall take some of the men and find a ship bound for England,’ he said, because he knew he could not stand the agony of seeing her lifeless body brought back to the chateau. ‘You will stay here and continue the search, Hassan. Lord Melford should stay in case Anne is found. If she is hurt, she will need her father.’ Rob nodded his head in agreement. ‘Besides, Cowper did this because of me. It is for me to find and punish him for what he has done.’
‘You need me to watch your back,’ Hassan said, his dark eyes anxious. ‘Lord Melford will do all that is necessary here.’
‘No, you must stay,’ Stefan said. ‘If you love me, do as I ask, Hassan. Anne means more to me than my life. Ali made her well once. She may need his skills again. Stay here and see that everything is done as it ought to be, but I pray that we shall find her this night.’ He turned as he heard the sound of excited voices, a look of expectation and hope in his eyes. ‘There is news…’ One of his men came rushing into the Hall, clearly bringing news of import, and Stefan started towards him. ‘Have you found her?’
‘No, my lord, but we found a man stabbed and near to death in the woodcutter’s hut. We think he may have been one of them—’
‘What makes you think it?’ Rob asked bluntly. ‘Did he say anything?’
‘He has not spoken, sir. But there was a scrap of cloth caught on a bush nearby and it matches a piece we found near where the lady Anne was snatched. We think that she must have run away into the woods after the man was wounded…or was carried that way.’
‘Have you set men to searching the trail?’ Stefan asked fiercely. ‘What of the man you found—have you brought him here?’
‘Ali told us to take him to the men’s quarters. He is with him now, but he said it might be too late to save him for he has lost much blood.’
‘I shall speak with Ali,’ Rob said and looked at Hassan. ‘Send more men to look in the area of the woodcutter’s hut. If she was there, she may be nearby. One of those trails leads to the village. Send some of the men there—though De Vere may have gone that way, unless he has given up and gone home.’
‘He would not have done that,’ the Comte St Orleans said. ‘I will ride there and discover if he has heard anything. Stay here, Melford. If I have news, I shall send word or come myself.’
‘I shall join in the search,’ Rob said. ‘I cannot rest until my daughter is found.’
Anne saw a light moving ahead of her. She knew that someone was carrying a lantern and she instinctively turned towards it. Her head was aching again and her mind was still confused, though she had begun to remember. She had been washed overboard the ship carrying her and Harry to France, and then someone had rescued her… She could see his face in her mind and she knew she wanted to reach him, to be with him, because she loved him.
‘Stefan…’ His name was on her lips. She remembered that he had rescued her, cared for her, but she felt so ill that she could not think clearly. Her head was going round and round. She seemed to have been stumbling through the woods for hours and hours, but she was nowhere near finding her way through them, even though she could see that the trail had been used recently, for the undergrowth was flattened by horses and wheels. ‘Where are you? Please help me…’
The light was just ahead of her now, and the trees were thinning. Anne could hear voices. She tried to call out, but no sound came. Her throat was too dry and her mind too confused to form the words she wanted to say. All she could do was to stumble on towards the light, but she felt so ill. She was going to faint. As she did so a faint cry issued from her lips and then she fell, clutching at a bush as she did so, causing it to crack and the leaves to rustle.
‘What was that?’ Comte De Vere listened, but the cry was not repeated. He called to one of his men who was carrying a lantern. ‘Over here—to the right, Etienne. I am sure I heard something. Bring more lights. It may have been a fox, but it sounded like a woman’s cry.’
Several men hastened to do as he bid them. They had been searching all day, save for half an hour when food and ale had been distributed. Most of them were beginning to think fondly of their beds, but their lord would not give up the search. It had seemed hopeless, but as they began to search the trail they had already been over earlier, one of them saw something lying on the ground and gave a shout that brought the others running.
‘Here! I think I’ve found her. Yes! It is a woman! God be praised. It must be her.’
Comte De Vere dismounted quickly and went to join the others crowding about the woman on the ground. He knelt down, feeling for a pulse, then looked up, the light of triumph in his eyes.
‘It is her. There will be a gold coin for each of you when we return. Lift her into the cart, Jean—help him, Carl and Philip. We are closer to my home than de Montifiori so we’ll take her there. One of you must ride ahead of us and have a room prepared. We shall need a physician—and de Montfort must be told. And Melford too. We do not yet know if she is his daughter, but he will want to see her as soon as she is well enough to receive visitors.’
Comte De Vere smiled inwardly as he watched the men lift Anne into the cart they had commandeered from a neighbouring farmer. It was fortune that had led him to find her—or perhaps the will of God. De Vere was a devout Catholic, and he believed in fate. It was one of the reasons he had decided to take Anne to his home rather than back to de Montifiori. If she was Lord Melford’s daughter, it might be that once she recovered her memory she might not wish to keep her promise to wed Stefan de Montfort. At his home she would be given the freedom to recover in peace and decide her own future without any pressure being brought to bear.
Besides, his plan might have failed to cause a breach between Lord Melford and de Montfort, but he could still hold the whip hand if he had Anne. She was beautiful and he needed a wife. It would give him pleasure to snatch her from under de Montfort’s nose. First the woman, and then his house and lands.
Stefan looked at the man Ali had been tending. Half of him wanted to finish off what had been done to the devil who had taken Anne, but the part that still retained a modicum of compassion held back his anger. He could not be certain what part this rogue had played in the abduction.
‘Will he live?’ he asked harshly.
‘He may if Allah wills it,’ Ali replied. ‘He has bled a great deal, but had vital organs been damaged he would not have lived this long. With careful nursing he should live—is it your wish that I continue to tend him?’
‘Do what you can for him,’ Stefan replied. ‘It may be that he can tell us what happened to Anne—and why.’
‘You want me to save his life so that you can hang him?’
‘Perhaps,’ Stefan growled. ‘If he harmed her, he does not deserve to live. But I shall give him a fair trial—do you ask more of me?’ He glared at his friend. If this man had harmed Anne, he deserved to die and he would!
‘I know she means a great deal to you,’ Ali replied. ‘As long as I have your word that he will have a fair trial, I shall do my best to save him.’
‘Did he have anything with him?’
‘Just his clothes and a pouch. I have not looked inside.’
Stefan glanced at the man’s clothes and the leather pouch. He made a move towards it and then stopped as he heard heavy footsteps. Going out into the hall
way, he saw one of his men coming at a run towards him.
‘You have news? She has been found?’
‘She has been found, my lord. At the far side of the wood close to Comte De Vere’s land. He sent word that he is taking her there.’
‘Why not here?’ Stefan demanded and then shook his head. The soldier could not answer for the Comte. ‘Thank you—has Lord Melford been told?’
‘He was about to leave with a fresh search party when the news came, my lord. He asked that someone take him there immediately—and he rode out even as I came to find you.’
‘She is alive?’ Stefan breathed more easily as the man nodded. ‘Melford wishes to know if she is his daughter. In his place, I should do the same.’
‘He did not wait for you, my lord,’ Ali said. He had come to the door and heard what the soldier had to say. ‘If she is Anne Melford, he is her guardian, and will have the charge of her welfare. You cannot deny him in law. Do you wish me to come to Comte De Vere’s house with you?’
‘You have work here at the moment,’ Stefan said. ‘I shall speak to De Vere and Melford. If you are needed, I shall offer your services, but we do not know yet—’ He stopped, his expression harsh. ‘I shall ride to De Vere’s home and see how she is. If they need you, I shall send word—but until then stay with your patient. We may need him alive, because I want the truth of what happened here.’
Chapter Six
‘May I see the girl?’ Rob asked as he was shown into the Comte’s presence. His expression was one of extreme concern. ‘Is she well? What has happened to her? How did you find her?’
‘It was sheer chance that we were the ones who found her,’ the Comte said. ‘We were at the edge of the woods, our search almost done for the day. Indeed, we had already searched that part of the woods, but I was reluctant to give up and we had begun to search the common ground at the edge of the woods when I heard something. The sound was faint, but I thought it a woman’s cry and I was right. She must have been wandering the trails for a while and she fainted when she became exhausted.’
