Chapter Three
“…Not to act on my thoughts would have been the wiser. My error was in the act of doing….”
The Chronicles of Sir Sean de Lara
“Did she say anything of value, then?”
“Nothing that I would consider, my lord.”
“But you conversed for some time.”
“It was light conversation, I assure you. Politics barely entered into it.”
These meetings were always clandestine; dark alleys, dark rooms, stables, anywhere they would not be easily recognized. Such had been the way for years, since Sean’s induction into the service of the king.
The meetings were no more than once every three months or so.
To attempt a more frequent encounter would be to invite suspicion.
As it was, Sean had to make sure his schedule and activities were nothing out of the ordinary.
It was the middle of the night, after the king had retired for the evening, and Sean was in the stable bent over the hoof of his immense charger.
The other half of the conversation came from the loft above, well hidden in the mounds of freshly dried grass. They never spoke face to face.
“I am truly not sure how much she knows,” the voice said. “Her father died last year and left her with a great earldom. From what I understand, she has assumed his mantel in every way. What Jocelin knows, she knows. If there is imminent rebellion in the wind, she will know it.”
Sean used an iron pick to clean dirt out of the horse’s hoof. “If there is imminent rebellion in the wind, then you would know it, too.”
The voice grunted. “Not necessarily. Some of the barons believe I am too far removed from their cause and that my head is swept up in the storm of politics. Some believe my time came and went with Richard. In any case, I wield power, aye, but only within my own troops and close vassals. I do not have the pulse of the common man.”
“And you believe that she may?”
“’Tis possible. She is rooted to the rebellion on a much more grounded level.”
“Then what would you have me do, my lord?”
“You have made contact. Perhaps you should maintain it, simply to see if she will provide you with anything useful.”
Sean had planned on doing that regardless. “She has a security force. It will not be a simple thing to communicate with her.”
“You are the Lord of the Shadows. Stealth is your gift.”
Sean was silent a moment as he dropped one hoof in favor of the other.
Although there were stable boys to do this work, none of them would go near his charger for fear of being trampled.
Bred in Galicia by a man whose family had been breeding big-boned war horses for a hundred years, the animal’s military reputation was beyond compare.
Sean was the only one who could get near the beast.
“What else do you know of her?” he asked casually.
The voice hissed, the gesture of an individual with strong opinions. “That she will make some man a very wealthy husband. She is quite lovely as well, but I am sure that escaped your notice.”
Sean knew it was a jab but he chose to ignore it. “Does she have suitors?”
“Nay. Jocelin has told me that she has refused every man her father attempted to contract with. Now it is the bishop’s duty to find her a husband, which will be no easy task. The man actually listens to her opinion. He is a fool.”
Sean didn’t reply. The voice continued. “Has the king seen her?”
“Not yet.”
“It is only a matter of time. He will demand her, you know.”
Sean’s movements slowed. “That is possible.”
“You will have to bring her to him as you have the others.”
Sean remained silent. The voice spoke more loudly. “Sean? Did you hear me?”
“I heard you.”
“Why do you not respond?”
“Because I have nothing to say on the matter.”
The tone of the voice turned to one of disbelief. “You cannot actually be thinking of refusing him?”
“As I said, I have nothing to say on the matter.”
“I have listened to you speak of the St. James woman for the past half hour. I know you, Sean. I have known you for thirteen years. If I did not know better, I would say that you have an interest in her.”
“Think what you will.”
The voice fell still for a moment. “No matter what you feel, you cannot refuse him. You have not refused him for nine years.”
Sean let the hoof fall. He leaned up against the horse, his gaze moving out into the darkness of the stables. His manner, normally steady, suddenly turned bitter.
“Aye,” he muttered. “For nine years I have catered to his every repulsive whim. For nine years, I have kidnapped men’s wives and delivered them to the king like a gift on Christmas morning.
For nine years, I have cleaned up his leavings, disposing of the women who have died as a result of his lust and delivering those who managed to survive back to their homes.
” He tossed the iron hook against the wall, so hard that it lodged in the wood.
“No matter how much I have convinced myself that the king’s behavior was of no consequence, deep inside, I knew that it was.
For the women that died as a result of his lust, I made sure they had a Christian burial.
For the women who survived, I made sure they were cleaned and fed and delivered to those who would care for them.
For every evil I helped create, I also tried to right it.
No one knows that I orchestrated anything other than the evil, of course, other than God.
The king’s sins are my sins in the eyes of men. ”
The voice in the loft was silent. Long moments ticked by before it spoke again. “Though I have always suspected your feelings on the matter, this is the first I have heard you speak openly of them.”
“I am getting foolish in my old age.”
The voice snorted softly. “Take care, then. You are as we had always hoped for you; the most feared man in the kingdom. Your reputation is without equal. You are finally where you can accomplish the most good. Be strong, de Lara. The day will come when you will be rewarded for your loyalty.”
Sean broke from his cynical, thoughtful stance and moved around the horse. He picked up a currycomb and ran it across the silver hide. “I hope that day will come soon. I grow weary of being seated by the Devil’s right hand.”
“As would any rational man, but you are by far the strongest of us all.” The straw in the loft shifted, raining down on the horse’s back.
“Keep your focus, Sean. You are where you are most valuable now. The barons are clearly amassing and I sense that John’s days are numbered.
But you are critical to this success. Is that clear? ”
“It is, my lord.”
“If anything crucial happens, you know how to contact me. Otherwise, I will contact you again in a month or two. We shall meet again.”
Sean didn’t answer. The straw stopped falling on the horse’s back and he knew his contact had slipped from the loft, out into the dead of night. He normally left these meetings feeling a new sense of purpose. Tonight, he left feeling disheartened.
When he finally slept in the last hour before dawn, his dreams were of luminous blue eyes.
*
“What did I tell you about him?” Jocelin exploded. “Did you not hear a word I said? The man is dangerous!”
Neely had waited eight whole hours before confessing the evening’s events to the bishop.
Sheridan had been rudely awakened by Jocelin’s shouting shortly after dawn.
Now, in the antechamber of their apartments, she found herself on the defensive.
Completely missing the point of Jocelin’s rage, as usual, Alys sulked in the corner because her sister had gotten to speak to the mysterious Sean de Lara and she had not.
“I have told you twice what happened,” Sheridan said evenly. “And I know what you told me about de Lara. But he was a complete gentleman, I assure you.”
“He is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” he fumed. “What possessed you to go outside the Tower in the first place? You are mad, girl, mad.”
She lifted an eyebrow at him. “If you are going to insult me, then this conversation is over. I should like to wash and dress for the day.”
“You are not dressing just yet,” he jabbed a finger at her. “You will provide me with satisfactory answers.”
She sighed with exasperation. “What would you have me say? That I was tired of being preyed upon by your friend, the Bishop of Coventry? That I was, in fact, disgusted by the man rubbing his feet on my leg, so much so that I was compelled to get a breath of fresh air or vomit?”
Jocelin looked at her with shock and she nodded her head, firmly. “Aye, he did that, the old fool,” she insisted. “So I had to take a walk to clear my thoughts. As I was walking, a man tried to attack me. Had it not been for de Lara, I would not be here at this moment. Now, may I please dress?”
Some of the wind went out of Jocelin’s sails. “Oh, Dani,” he whispered. “Why didn’t you say something to me? Why not tell me about William where I could have confronted him?”
She waved him off. “I would have told you, eventually. I simply did not want to embarrass your friend in front of you.”
Jocelin sat his bulk down in the fine sling-back chair adjacent to the hearth. There was peace now where there had been fury seconds before. “It is not a matter of embarrassment,” he muttered. “I cannot believe that he would betray me so.”
He seemed genuinely distressed. Sheridan went to him, leaning over to kiss his bald head. “He did not betray you. He rubbed his toes on my ankle. Perhaps it was an accident and he really meant to rub the table leg. In any case, you needn’t feel bad. It’s over and done with.”
Jocelin grunted. “Over and done with, aye. But at what cost? Putting you at the mercy of de Lara.”
She pursed her lips with frustration. “How many times do I have to tell you that he was a perfect gentleman?”
He didn’t have an answer. He was much more concerned with entertaining the horrible scenarios. Leaving Alys half-asleep and still pouting on the chair opposite the silently brooding Jocelin, she retreated into the bedroom.