“Like that.”
“I told you that I was fine to travel in the beginning. We could have been there and back again in these past several months.”
He looked her in the eye, somewhat sternly. “I am not going to travel with my pregnant lady. I told you that.”
“So we must wait until your son is born before we do anything to that regard?” she asked, growing pouty. “Then you will not travel with an infant, and neither will I. He will be several years old before we will be able to travel to Saxony, but what if we have more children? We will never go and we will never receive our annulment because I will never be able to travel.”
“I could always send a missive, as I have suggested.”
“And chance that it would not be received? A thousand things could happen to a lone messenger. Nay, we must all go together to ensure our request is received and approved.”
Tevin wasn’t about to suggest he could go alone. It would not be well met, at least not at this time, so he did what he usually did when she grew upset – he shifted the subject in an effort to both distract and comfort her.
“I am sure there are many different possibilities we can speak of at another time,” he said quietly. “But in speaking of Thunderbey, to reiterate my position on the subject, I do not want to force you to travel over miles of open road in your condition, so we will wait until the child is born before I will as much as entertain the thought of returning home. Why would you ask such a question?”
Attention successfully diverted for the moment, she shrugged as she handed him the other boot and he slipped that one on as well.
“Rochester is my home,” she said simply. “Hunt was born here and this child shall be born here. Do you not like it here?”
He nodded. “I like it very much,” he reached down and carefully pulled her to her feet. “But, as you said, it is far from East Anglia. At some point, I must return home to my castle and to my people. I do not want to be gone overlong from my lands.”
Her brow furrowed and he could see the pout coming. “I suppose,” she said, doing a bad job of hiding her unhappiness. “But I do not want to travel with a new baby and if you must return to Thunderbey at some point soon, I am afraid you will go without us. I do not want you to go without us.”
He kissed her forehead, hugging her gently. “I will never go anywhere without you,” he assured her softly. “I have told you that before. I will never leave your side, Cantia, not ever.”
“Promise?”
“Of course I do.”
He appeased her somewhat and was in the process of kissing her again when he heard sentry shouts coming from the bailey. Going to the window, he pulled back the oilcloth to reveal an enormous bailey below, alive with the glow of dozens of torches. As Tevin watched the activity, Cantia came up behind him. Together, they watched the commotion on the walls.
“I wonder what the activity is about?” Cantia asked. “What could be happening so early in the morning?”
Tevin had his arm around her shoulders. He watched the increasing commotion for a moment longer before kissing her on the temple and releasing her. Returning to the open wardrobe, he pulled on a pair of woolen socks before sliding into his heavy leather boots.
“I will find out,” he said. “I want you to stay to the keep until I know what is going on.”
“But I have a meal to supervise.”
“You may not go outside for any reason, at least not until I know what has my soldiers so excited.”
She sighed and sat down beside him, watching him tie off the last boot. He leaned over and swiftly kissed her before rising from the bed and heading to the door.
“I will return shortly,” he said.
Cantia blew him a kiss as he left the room, shutting the door softly behind him. With nothing to do and nowhere to go, she ended up lying back down on the bed and quickly fell back asleep.
When she dreamt, it was of copper-haired babies and summer weddings.
*
Tevin could hardly believe what he was seeing.
He actually looked at Myles, who was standing next to him, as if to confirm that the man was seeing the same thing. Myles looked surprised as well, so Tevin knew they were both envisioning the same thing. In the darkness of the new dawn, a group of weary and ragged people stood at the gatehouse of Rochester. Men in disheveled clothing, old weaponry, and one very old ox cart comprised the group, and at the head of it was Gillywiss.
Tevin had the gate guards raise the portcullis. When it lifted midway, he walked underneath it with Myles, John and Simon behind him. Although John and Simon did not know who Gillywiss was, as they’d never met the man, they could see that the appearance had Tevin surprised. With weapons drawn, they stood behind the earl as he engaged the ragtag leader of the group.
“What are you doing here?” Tevin asked the man. “What is so important that has you traveling in the darkness?”
Gillywiss was astride an old bay stallion. He wearily slid off the beast, coming to stand before Tevin with his usual wild-eyed look and toothy smile. In spite of his exhaustion, he bowed gallantly.
“My lord earl,” he said. “I have brought you something that will make you forever remember my name.”
Tevin cocked an eyebrow at the bold boast. “What do you mean?”
Gillywiss cocked a finger at him and began to walk back into his group of haggard travelers. “Come with me, my fine earl,” he said. “I want you to see what I have for you.”
As Tevin hesitantly followed, Myles, John and Simon fell in behind him with their weapons at the ready. The dirty, ragged group of men that had accompanied Gillywiss gave them a wide berth, unwilling to provoke the heavily armed knights. When the entire group reached the ox cart that was in horrific condition, Gillywiss tossed back the dirty canvas that covered the majority of the straw-covered bed. Upon it, in the darkness, lay a body.
“There,” Gillywiss said proudly. “I did what I said I would do.
Tevin’s brow furrowed as he gazed at the rolled-up corpse. It was so dark that he couldn’t see very well. “What did you do?” he asked.
“I found her.”
“Who?”
“Your wife.”
Tevin’s eyes widened as he stared at the pile. “You cannot be serious.”
“Serious indeed. See for yourself.”
Expression full of disbelief, Tevin hesitated a moment longer before snapping his gloved fingers at Myles.
“Bring me a torch,” he hissed. “Now.”
Myles bellowed orders and someone came on the run out of the gatehouse bearing a searing torch, casting warm yellow light into the dark of the dawn. Myles grabbed it from the man, holding it high as Tevin reached into the cart to make clear the contents. He tried to stop his hands from shaking as he rolled the figure onto its back and peeled back the layers of musty, varmint-ridden material. As he tried to get a clear view, Gillywiss stood on the opposite side of the cart, watching intently.
“I told Lady Cantia I would find this woman,” he said confidently. “I have many family members living in Paris, in the catacombs, and they know the streets. They know the people there. So I asked them if they knew Louisa of Hesse. Do you know what they told me?”
Tevin wasn’t looking at him even as he shook his head. But that was the only reply Gillywiss received, so he continued in his usual theatrical fashion.
“They told me they might know of her,” he went on, “but there are thousands of people living in the streets of Paris with no names and no history. I spent months in Paris, following clues that would lead me to nowhere or to women who claimed to be the wife of a great English lord but they could not tell me what your daughter’s name was. That is how I tested them. I asked them to name the child they had abandoned. No one could tell me, but this one could. And she wept when she spoke of her.”
He was pointing in the cart and by this time, Tevin had pulled away enough of the material so he could look at the face. Heart pounding, he had Myle
s hold the torch close so he could see the pale features. And what he saw shocked him to the bone.
“My… God,” he breathed.
Myles was crowded beside him, equally electrified by the very pivotal moment. “Is it her, Tevin?”
Tevin just stared, unwilling or unable to reply for a moment. He just stared. Finally, he tilted the dirty face upward so he could see it from another angle. Then, he hissed.
“Louisa?” he shook the face gently. “Louisa, can you hear me?”
Gillywiss was watching the scene, rather proud of himself for doing what he set out to do. “She is a prostitute,” he said as he watched Tevin try to rouse the woman. “I found her in a hovel of other prostitutes because I had been told a woman calling herself Princess Louisa lived there. When I told her I was looking for du Reims’ wife, she wanted to know how Arabel was faring. She asked me to take a message to her daughter.”
Tevin’s head came up, his dark eyes intense in his pale face. “What was the message?”
“That she was sorry. And then she wept.”
Tevin’s gaze lingered on the man before returning it to the frail woman upon the straw. She was struggling to open her eyes.
“What is wrong with her?” Tevin asked. “Why is she collapsed like this?”
Gillywiss’ gaze moved to the small figure. “She has the French disease,” he said, his tone less grandiose. “Many prostitutes have it. It will destroy her mind and eventually kill her. She is not long for this world.”
Tevin immediately removed his hands from the woman, as he certainly did not want to contract anything she might have. He pulled his gloves off as he looked at Gillywiss.
“Then why did you bring her here?” he hissed. “I do not want her infecting my entire castle.”
Gillywiss shook his head. “You cannot catch her disease unless you bed her,” he said. “That is why they call it the French disease.”
“Nonetheless, I do not want her here. Cantia is pregnant and I do not want to risk her or the baby.”
Gillywiss shrugged. “Can you tell for certain it is your wife?”
Tevin’s gaze moved back to the lump on the straw. “I… I cannot say for certain,” he said, sounding hesitant and strained. “It may be… but I cannot say for certain.”
Gillywiss motioned to the men who were controlling the cart. Tevin and his men stood back as the cart began to move as if to turn around.
“I have done what I set out to do,” Gillywiss said. “Your lady saved my sister’s life, so I promised her that I would find the person that stood between her and her happiness, and I have done that. I have paid my debt. What you do with this woman is your own business.”
Tevin’s attention was divided between the cart and Gillywiss. It was clear he was still very shocked. He was also confused.
“Why would you do this?” He had to ask because he never believed the man had been sincere in his declaration to find Louisa. “Cantia is nothing to you, nor am I. I do not understand why you would do this.”
Gillywiss’ expression seemed to harden. He, too, was torn and attempting not to show it. “Because,” he said, almost defiantly, “perhaps you will remember this day and you will be owing to me, and I can come to you when I need something and you will provide it.”
“So you did it so I would be obliging to you?”
Gillywiss waved his arms at his men, who began to disband and move away. He followed them somewhat, like a shepherd moving sheep, waving his arms and casting Tevin and his men defiant yet triumphant expressions. The wild eyes were working steadily. But when the group moved a nominal distance down the road, Gillywiss suddenly rushed back in Tevin’s direction with a finger thrust forward.
“I did it because your lady was kind to us,” he was nearly whispering but the finger was shaking threateningly. “I did it because she and I have something in common, wanting things we can never have. I did it because she saved my sister’s life. There are many reasons why I did this and you will not question me again.”
Tevin gazed back at him steadily. He could tell the man was posturing for the sake of his comrades for his words did not match the angry actions.
“Not only do you seem to have a deep understanding of these dark times,” he said quietly, “but it also appears that you are indeed a man of your word.”
“I am.”
“Come to see me again. We will discuss what I may do for you in return.”
Gillywiss’ gaze lingered on him as if trying to determine how serious he was. Then, the toothy grin made a bright return.
“Invite me to the wedding,” he said rather saucily as he turned away. “Perhaps I will wear one of the fine garments your lady left behind. And if you do not understand what I mean, ask your lady. I believe she knows.”
“She knows. She told me.”
Gillywiss paused, an eyebrow cocked. “What did she tell you?”
“That you like her clothes more than she does, so she left them for you as a gift.”
Gillywiss wasn’t quite sure what to make of the statement so he laughed. Then he laughed again, that crazy wild-eyed laugh that he was so capable of. He was still laughing as he moved back down the road and mounted the weary bay stallion. The group closed in around him and they began to move off down the rocky road, into the dawn that was growing brighter by the moment. Tevin just stood there, staring at the fading figures, until Myles caught his attention.
“Tevin,” he said quietly. “What do you want to do with her?”
Tevin turned around, seeing that Myles as well as John and Simon were clustered around the ox cart, gazing at the dusty, dirty figure on the bed. Tevin walked up beside Myles, gazing down at the unconscious woman, before replacing his gloves. Then, he rolled her onto her back so her face was fully in view. The more he looked at her, the more he knew the face.
“Simon?” he muttered. “You knew Louisa. Is this her?”
Simon sighed heavily as he gazed down at the slip of a woman. After several long moments, he nodded his head.
“I believe it is,” he confirmed. “I can hardly believe it, but I believe it is.”
Tevin took his hands off the woman, still staring at her. “God’s Blood,” he hissed. “This is something I never thought I would see again. After all of these years… and in such bizarre circumstances. It does not seem possible.”
Simon could only shake his head, as stunned as his lord was, while Myles seemed a bit more logical about the entire thing. Unlike the others, he’d never met the woman and didn’t have an over amount of emotional investment in the situation.
“I will ask the question again,” he looked at Tevin. “What do you want to do with her?”
Tevin sighed heavily. “If she is ill, I will again reiterate that I do not want her infecting the entire castle.”
“But if she has the French disease, it does not spread like the Plague. We can still bring her inside and keep her isolated.”
Tevin was still resistant but he didn’t have much choice. It wasn’t as if they could leave the woman outside the walls, tucked away in the old ox cart, until they decided what to do with her. He looked at Simon.
“Have her brought inside and find a place where she can be kept well away from everyone,” he ordered. “Have a couple of serving women clean her up and make her comfortable. Make sure they clean themselves after they have touched her, for I do not want her disease spread through them. Furthermore, have the physic exam her. I will speak with the man for his opinion on her condition when all of this is accomplished.”
Simon nodded, already moving to carry out Tevin’s orders. He was snapping his fingers at some of the soldiers lingering outside the gates to have them move the ox cart inside. As the old cart began to slowly move towards the gates, towed by a few soldiers, Myles turned to Tevin.
“What are you going to tell Cantia?” he asked quietly.
Tevin drew in a long, thoughtful breath. “For the moment, nothing,” he said. “I am not sure at the moment. When
this woman is in better spirits, I will speak with her to see what can be determined.”
“And if it is Louisa?”
He lowered his gaze, contemplating his answer. After a moment, he shook his head. “Anything I say will sound harsh and ugly,” he said, lifting his eyes to Myles. “The truth is that I am relieved. I am relieved if it is Louisa and the fact that she is very sick and more than likely dying. It means that she will soon no longer be an issue and I can marry Cantia as God and the laws of Nature intended. If that is a horrible statement, then I am horrible. I feel guilty for even thinking such things. But I will overcome that guilt the first time I take Cantia in my arms and call her my wife. Cruelty such as this will seem trivial.”
Myles wriggled his eyebrows in sympathy. “I do not disagree,” he replied. “But I should at least tell Val.”
“Why?”
“Because she can read my mind. She has already learned this skill and we have only been married two months. If I do not tell her, she will beat it out of me.”
Tevin gave him a half-grin. “Then it would be wise to tell her,” he said. “Moreover, she knew Louisa. If anyone can confirm the woman’s identity, Val can.”
“I am not entirely sure I want my wife around a sick woman until we can determine whatever she has cannot be spread.”
“Agreed. Make sure the physic examines her in short order so we know what we are dealing with.”
Myles simply nodded and the pair of them watched the ox cart, which was now lumbering beneath the yawning portcullis as it made entrance into the enclosure of Rochester.
With wonder, disbelief, and perhaps some fear, they followed.
*
It was noon before the physic could be found and instructed to examine the woman in the cart, mostly because the castle physic of Rochester, although a knowledgeable man, was something of a drunk and it had taken that long to find the man sleeping off a binge in a muddy crevice of the castle.
Myles had manhandled the old surgeon to one of the unused smithy shacks where they had the woman called Louisa sequestered. Tucked away on a straw bed with a serving woman to watch over her, the surgeon took his time in examining the woman, struggling to shake off the after effects of too much drink with the big knight glaring daggers at him. The man felt her pulse, looked in her eyes and ears, and listened to her lungs. He also poked and prodded a good deal, and thumped her several times on the back and listened to the results.
Masters of Medieval Romance: Series Starters Volume 1 Page 70
