by Diane Darcy
Because he was a good man. Kind and honorable, hard-working, willing to do what needed to be done when he could have chosen bitterness, disillusionment, and self-pity.
He was trying to right a wrong. And what made it worse was the way everyone continued to talk about him, to mock and to laugh at him, as if it was all one big joke.
Pressure grew in her chest, and she just couldn’t stand it a moment longer.
“Excuse me,” she said, and made her way past Gillian even as the other woman tried to stop her.
There was a break in the conversation as people watched her go.
She almost expected to be hauled back, reprimanded for her social gaffe in leaving without permission, but instead, heard the queen murmur, “Let her go.”
She thought it was sympathy she heard in her voice, and relief made her knees weak as her emotions continued to run hot. She hurried out the front doors, and headed for their tent before she realized she was looking for Lady Helena.
Upon arriving at her tent, she drew back the opening only to discover it was empty, the blankets neatly piled off to one side, and she stood there clutching the material, feeling colder than she ought to.
“My Lady? May I be of assistance?”
Sir Gladwin gave a short bow and relief flooded through her at the sight of a friendly face. “Have you seen Lady Helena and the girls?”
“They came back to warm up for a while, and the last I saw they were at the keep searching for something to eat. Is anything amiss?”
At his concern, the tears she’d been holding back sprang to her eyes. She glanced away, her gaze flitting to the other tents, to the fire pits, to people chatting and walking about. “Have you heard about Wallace?”
She finally glanced at him, and the sympathy in his gaze told her the answer.
He gave her a quick nod and then sighed. “He is in the dungeon, at the king’s whim.”
“What can we do?” She found herself wringing her hands, like some damsel in distress, and stopped when she realized she was doing it.
Without Wallace at her side, she did feel weaker, unprotected.
Growing up with a mother who was a lawyer had given her a sense of safety, the feeling that no matter what, she would always have someone to stand for her.
Now, left to the whims of a king with a financial stake in making sure Wallace’s voice wasn’t heard, it wasn’t just infuriating, it was frightening.
“Wallace does have support, my lady. Because of the way his lands were confiscated, that makes the other nobles nervous that the same could happen to them. So, the king won’t keep him in there permanently, he is simply teaching him a lesson in keeping quiet.”
“Good to know.”
He laughed at her sarcasm. “I understand that you have the queen’s favor. Can you use that to your advantage?”
She sighed. “Perhaps I shouldn’t have walked off the way I did.” She glanced at him and away again. “Thanks for the sympathetic ear, I’m going to try and find Lady Helena.”
“I will walk with you.”
They started toward the keep, and she was glad for the company. It made her feel less conspicuous.
“I guess you know my necklace is missing?”
“Everyone knows.”
She rubbed at her chest for a moment, and then dropped her hand. “Now I am missing both a necklace and a fiancé, or a betrothed, or whatever. I’m starting to get a little paranoid that lady fate is acting fickle, and has decided I need to be punished or something.”
As Sir Gladwin waved off her concerns and told her all would be well, she latched onto the idea that perhaps she’d done something to tick off fate.
Time traveling to the past maybe? Ruining things for Wallace? She’d been attacked, her necklace stolen, and been living rough lately, and now Wallace was sitting in the dungeon.
It did sort of feel like she was being punished.
She’d once been on a movie set where she’d been part of the team doing makeup and hair for Zeus and his merry crew who had terrorized other gods and mortals alike.
She glanced up at the sky, as if to see if God were peeking down at her, laughing, and cursing her with bad luck.
It was as good a theory as any.
When they reached the keep once more, she said her goodbyes and went inside.
She immediately asked and made as if she knew where Lady Helena was, and was told she was in the upstairs solar, sewing.
She headed in that direction, going up the flight of stone stairs, and down the hallway, before opening the door into the warmest room she’d been in yet.
Lady Helena, her daughters, and several other ladies sat near a blazing fire, as they practiced needlework of all things.
She shut the door and walked over to Lady Helena and said in a whisper, “What are you doing? Do you know what’s been happening?”
Lady Helena shot a glance at the other ladies nearby, and glanced over at Dori. “Fetch another chair, lass, and the two of you scoot down so Lady Cara can sit beside me.”
Cara waited impatiently until she was able to settle herself. “Well?” She finally asked again. “Have you heard?”
“About Wallace? Of course, I have.”
“Well, what are you doing?”
“Stitching. It helps me to think.”
With a loud sigh, Cara sank back into the seat and crossed her arms.
Lady Helena sent her a sharp look, and she immediately straightened in her chair, feeling like a child getting caught out for doing something naughty.
“What’s the plan?”
Lady Helena glanced at the other two ladies in the room, and said, “Lady Lancaster, will you keep an eye on my girls for a moment?”
The lady in question, wearing a large headpiece with two points sticking up like a deranged unicorn, gave a gracious nod. “Of course, I will.”
Cara followed Lady Helena out the doors, and halfway down the hall into an enclosure, with a window that overlooked the courtyard below.
Cara felt a little more subdued at the obvious irritation in the other woman’s gaze. “I’m sorry, I’m feeling a little flustered. What are we going to do?” She said in a much more subdued tone.
“I am willing to listen to any suggestions,” Lady Helena said with a glance around to make sure no one was listening.
“What if we apologize and ask the king for his release?”
Lady Helena glancing out the window. “The king is fine with him in the dungeon and out of the way. My family is naught but an inconvenience to him now.”
Cara threw both hands in the air, walked a few steps away, and then came back again. “What are we going to do, break him out with dynamite?”
“What is dynamite?”
“It’s like a red stick with the string on one end that you light, and when the string burns down to the stick, kaboom!” She fisted her hands and lifted them in the air and extended her fingers, “The wall blows up.” That would be really satisfying right about now.
“What?”
“It explodes with such force that it knocks down the stone walls, or even chunks of mountain.”
Lady Helena quirked a brow. “Very well, where do we get some?”
Cara shook her head. “I have no idea, so we’ll have to go with another idea. Let’s see ... if we only had a wrecking ball, we could break down the walls by bashing them in.”
Oh, it felt good just to say that.
“How so?” Lady Helena asked.
“Well, it’s a machine with a big metal ball on the end. It swings one way, and when it comes back, pow!” Cara hit her fist into her palm. “It breaks down the wall.”
Lady Helena shook her head.
“No? Well, what if we tunneled under the ground and got him out that way?”
Lady Helena sighed.
Cara couldn’t seem to stop herself; she knew she was being silly, ridiculous, whatever, but she just felt so helpless, that she kept going. Besides, Lady Helena might be shaking her head,
but now she was smiling.
“I do hope you become my daughter-in-law. You are never boring to be around, which is more than I can say for most.”
Both of their smiles slowly faded as the hopelessness of the situation settled on them once more.
“Mayhap I can arrange marriages for my daughter’s, for some future date, if you are able to keep them looking so beautiful.”
“They’re already beautiful, but I know what you mean.”
“In the meanwhile, I’ve heard the queen has taken a liking to you. You would do well to try and get the queen on your side, whether it helps my son or not, though the queen might influence the king.”
“I hope so.”
Lady Helena pursed her lips and nodded once more. “For now, let us adjourn to the kitchen, and we can arrange for some food to be taken to my son.”
“Good idea. Maybe we can bake a file or a lock pick inside a cake and he can breakout on his own. We can have the horses ready and make our escape!”
Lady Helena scoffed, rolled her eyes, and led the way. But her lips twitched and she bit back a smile.
Cara grinned behind her back as the older woman led the way.
Glad to have something productive to do, Cara followed Lady Helena down what turned out to be the servant staircase down to the kitchen. When they arrived, Lady Helena was quick to get the attention of an older lady who looked like she might be in charge.
“Aye?” The lady, wearing a great dress with a crisp white apron over the top of it, her hair pulled back tightly from her head, looked at the two of them, impatience in her expression. “How may I help you?”
“My son is Lord Wolfsbane, and is spending some time in the dungeon at the king’s behest.”
Cara wasn’t sure she would have started with that, but Lady Helena had plenty of experience with servants, so Cara stood silent, and kept her expression blank.
“I would like you to take him a fine meal, to make his time there more bearable. What can you serve him?”
The woman’s mouth curled in a slight sneer. “In the dungeons, you say? We don’t usually worry about sending fine meals in that direction.”
“And yet, you shall today,” Lady Helena assured her, giving her a steely eyed gaze in return.
Cara looked around and noted the expressions on the faces of many of the other servants.
More sneers of disgust, smirks, and even an eye roll.
She felt her body tense, and tried to follow Lady Helena’s lead, willing her face to show no expression as she clasped her hands in front of her.
People were already treating them differently.
If the servants were reacting in such a way, she could only imagine how the aristocracy would treat them.
She could almost feel the lack of power, and it caused her stomach to clench.
If Lady Helena felt any of the same lowering emotions, it didn’t show in her face.
Finally, the cook gave a slight bow of her head, and said, “As you will, ma’am. I will take care of it.”
“And I will oversee you taking care of it.” Lady Helena insisted, and no one in her vicinity could doubt that she would do exactly that.
The cook quickly snapped at several of the ladies, and gathered a meal while Lady Helena oversaw the entire thing.
Slowly, Cara felt herself relaxing, bit by bit. She could learn a thing or two from Lady Helena.
When a tray was prepared, with all kinds of different food, with meat, cheese, fruit, potatoes and even some desserts, Cara asked, “Can we go with them? See Wallace?”
Lady Helena followed the servant, and Cara went after her. “Nay, we’ll see it delivered. Visiting Wallace will only weaken our position.”
They stopped as a guard opened the dungeon door that led downward, and watched the other guard take the tray from the servant and carefully take it down the stairs.
When they could no longer see him, Lady Helena said, “I am going to see what I can do about finding suitors for my girls. If you can, let the queen know we would be amenable to paying taxes on the property again.”
She didn’t look happy about that at all, and Cara didn’t blame her. “I’m sorry.”
Lady Helena gave a slight shake of her head. “Better we tighten our belts than lose everything, including my son.”
Cara gave her a quick hug. “My mother is a pragmatic lawyer, and you’d get along really well with her.”
They broke apart and Lady Helena smiled. “I imagine so. I get along with her daughter so well that I can’t believe it would be otherwise.”
With that, Lady Helena headed back to the girls, and with one last look at the dungeon doors, Cara went to go find the queen.
Chapter 28
Cara made her way back into the great hall, which was more crowded than before.
She wasn’t even sure where to start.
People stood in groups, trying to out talk each other, and it looked like alcohol flowed freely.
She made her way around the edge of the crowd, and spotted Gillian talking to two other ladies.
Gillian noticed her weaving her way toward them, and was quick to raise a hand. “Over here!”
Cara joined them, listening to the conversation and doing her best to join in. They were talking about the wedding tomorrow, the clothes, and complementing Cara on her skill with hair and makeup.
Gillian finally excused them both, and pushed her in the opposite direction.
“Any news?” Gillian asked in a quiet voice as they slowly made their way out of the great hall.
“No, you?”
Gillian shook her head. “I’m so sorry about all of this. What’s the plan?”
“Still the same. Everyone thinks I should network with the queen, get her to talk to the king, and get him to reinstate the joust I interrupted.”
Gillian shot her a worried look and didn’t speak until they made their way out of the hall. She dragged her outside, so they could have a little privacy. “She’s really happy with your ability to do hair and makeup. She’s been talking about it while you’ve been gone. I guess we could join everyone around the queen, but it’s so loud, I don’t see how it’ll make a difference. I think we need to get her alone somehow.”
Bitterness tightened Cara’s lips. She just felt so helpless.
Gillian placed a hand on her shoulder. “Kellen is out talking to some of the other men, and I know he’ll do what he can to help. But with the king, these things take time and finesse.”
Cara nodded. “I wish I had some facial cream or beauty mask gel, or something. Actresses love to have alone time with me, if they think it’ll improve their skin, and give them an edge. I might be able to talk the queen into beauty treatments if I had anything to work with.”
Gillian’s face brightened. “That’s a really good idea. What could we use?”
They were walking side-by-side, as much as possible with the crowd spilling outside, and Cara couldn’t help that her gaze was drawn toward the dungeon.
Not wanting to dwell on it, she looked around for plants, but there was nothing in the courtyard, just some stray grass grown up around some of the buildings. “If we were in a desert, we could use the aloe vera plant, or an avocado, and maybe even some lemon juice.”
Gillian shook her head. “There’s nothing like that around here. What about fruits and vegetables? My mother-in-law has been showing me some of the plants that have medicinal benefits indigenous to England. Kellen’s stepmom, actually. Besides that, I brought a book about it, as well.”
She shot Cara a quick glance. “It’s at Marshall Keep, however.”
“Of course, it is.”
“They may have some things in the garden I’ll recognize if we go take a look.”
Gillian waved down the servants walking by. “Which way to the gardens?”
The young lad, about fourteen or so, showed them the way, and they headed around some outbuildings, and found a massive garden on the other side. It was bordered by tents, and Gill
ian quickly scooped up a bucket that was off to one side.
Unfortunately, it looked as if the garden had been recently harvested, and while there were some vegetables still growing, there was not much in the way of anything they could use as a beauty treatment.
“This looks like lavender,” Cara said, plucking up some of the spiked grass tipped with purple flowers. She sniffed some, definitely lavender, and put the grass in the bucket and plucked some more.
“Maybe we could find something in the kitchen,” Gillian said.
Cara considered products that were put into beauty masks. “What about honey? Oil? Something like that?”
As she glanced across the field, she saw a patch that had more greenery than the others and headed that way. “Strawberries! We could mash them and use them as antioxidants.” As Cara plucked some juicy berries she said, “What about red wine, or clay?” starting to feel a bit of hope and excitement. She could work with this.
Gillian shook her head. “We could probably find clay, but if we get caught digging up dirt to put on the queen’s face, we might be drawn and quartered.”
Cara laughed, glad to have Gillian at her side, so she wasn’t alone in all of this.
“How about oats?” Gillian looked like she was getting caught up in it too. “There are plenty of oats to be had.”
Cara nodded, “Yes! That could work out really well.”
“Oak trees are common here. Could we use acorns?”
“Too hard to grind, and they might end up scratchy on the face,” Cara looked around, hoping for something more.
Gillian took the bucket and placed a cucumber inside, hauling it off as she looked at some vegetables a few rows away.
“Lady Marshall? Do you and your companion wish for any help?”
Two young men wandered over to see what they were doing. One, tall and sandy-haired, the other shorter with dark hair, both looking amused and interested.
Cara waved a hand. “Sorry boys, were gathering ingredients for a secret recipe.”
Gillian laughed at that. “It’s for making women look younger,” she said archly.
“Oh. Really?” The bolder one said, looking them both over. “You two beauties need no such help.”
