Chapter Ten #2
Curtis snorted. “As far as I am concerned, he is the only sane and reasonable one in your family,” he said. “The man has good sense, and it is a pity you learned nothing from him. But I suppose he is to be hated, too, because that’s the only thing you have in your nature.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You do not know what is in my nature.”
He frowned at her. “Are you mad?” he said. “That is all I’ve seen from you since the moment we met. Since you tried to topple me over that wall, and you’ve been showing me ever since. Petty, arrogant, foolish, and full of hate. That is all I’ve seen from you, and I do not want to see any more.”
Elle was hurt by his words, more than she would ever admit.
She’d pushed the man, and now she was paying the price.
The truth was that other than their first meeting on the wall, he’d been inordinately kind to her, and all she did was throw it in his face.
He’d given her soap and she’d given him vitriol.
He’d smiled and she’d frowned. He’d tried to reason with her, and all she could see was her own pain and superiority.
Nay… He wasn’t wrong about anything he’d said.
Now, the situation was coming clear.
“We were married a while ago,” she said. “Your father isn’t going to let you walk away.”
He laughed bitterly. “You let me worry about my father,” he said.
“I will have the marriage annulled, have no doubt. Now, go back to my tent and take off that dress. I’ll not have the likes of you touching something that means a good deal to my mother and father.
Hopefully, if you take it off quickly, your stench will not cling to it.
You can find other clothes in my chest if you wish.
There are tunics there, and hose. They will not fit you, but I’m sure you do not care.
Take them. I am going to Presteigne to find myself a room for the night because I need to get away from you.
You can sleep in my tent. But when I return in the morning, I want you gone. ”
With that, he headed off, leaving Elle standing there feeling as if she’d just been thrashed.
More than thrashed—beaten. Badly. But, as she’d realized from him since the beginning of their association, he was right.
He could always win an argument. She had started the downfall of Brython.
She was so determined that the Welsh castle should be solely for the Welsh—for Llywelyn—that she’d disregarded her father’s treaty and sent the English soldiers away.
That had been the beginning of the end.
The truth was that her father had died long ago.
It had been Gruffydd and her father’s loyal men who held Brython and kept the treaty.
She’d been at Tywyl and Brython for years before finally taking the initiative to throw Gruffydd in the vault and purge the castle of the English soldiers, all in the name of Welsh freedom. But it had cost her everything.
Now, it had cost her the only man who had ever been truly kind to her.
Not that she blamed him.
She deserved everything he said to her.
Elle looked up into that clear, cold sky.
Perhaps that tongue lashing had put her at a crossroads.
He told her to leave, but the truth was that she had nowhere to go.
She couldn’t go back to Tywyl Castle, her family’s home.
Gruffydd was there. She could go north to Llywelyn, but he was her grandmother’s cousin and she’d never even met him.
All she knew about him was from her grandmother, how he was the only man truly dedicated to Welsh freedom, and when she’d purged the English from Brython, she was going to send Llywelyn word that Brython was now held by the Welsh without any English links.
It had honestly never occurred to her that the English soldiers, thrown from Brython, would rush to Lioncross Abbey to tell Hereford what had happened.
Before she realized it, the de Lohr army was on her doorstep.
She’d never had the opportunity to send the missive to Llywelyn.
Now, she had nothing at all.
Did she want to be known as someone with hatred for the English in her veins?
Because her hatred, and Llywelyn’s rebellion against the English, had not accomplished anything.
In fact, she couldn’t think of anyone she knew where hatred had ultimately gained them peace and happiness.
Curtis had told her to be humble in defeat, and he’d shown her mercy.
He told her that he knew her nature. It occurred to her that she knew his, too.
Elle was forced to make a choice that night. When she saw Curtis heading from the encampment, heading east, she knew what that choice had to be.
She only hoped it was the right one.
*
“He’s left, Papa,” Myles said quietly. “Curtis has left.”
Christopher was standing in his tent, cup of wine in hand.
Everyone else had cleared out about the time Curtis went after Elle, who had run out.
After that, there was no more celebration.
Roi, Myles, Peter, and Alexander had cleared out the sons and nephews, soldiers and junior knights, but Myles had gone in search of his brother and his new wife just to make sure something horrible wasn’t occurring between them.
Unfortunately, that seemed to be the case.
“Where is she?” Christopher asked solemnly.
Myles gestured toward the east. “Sitting on a rock,” he said. “She and Curt had an argument. I couldn’t hear what was being said, but they were agitated, and you know it takes quite a lot to agitate Curt.”
“He was angry?”
“I think so,” Myles said. “And then he collected his horse and left.”
“Do you want me to go after him?” Peter said quietly. “I will bring him back.”
Christopher shook his head. “Nay,” he said. “Let him be. He has been forced into an impossible situation, by me, and I can imagine that he needs time to reconcile this. I only wish he’d not left her behind. She needs to reconcile it, too. They should reconcile it together.”
Peter and Alexander, two of the older and married men in the group, looked at each other and lifted their eyebrows in silent sympathy and contemplation of the situation.
It wasn’t an easy one, that was certain.
In fact, it had been damn awkward, celebrating both a marriage and a victory when the woman who had suffered the defeat and the forced marriage had been present, watching them congratulate Curtis and each other.
But it couldn’t be helped.
“Roi,” Peter said, turning to his younger brother. “Go make sure that the posts are set for the night. With Curtis out, we need a commander for the evening, and that will be you.”
Roi nodded, heading out without argument. Normally, Christopher gave those commands, but he didn’t seem willing to do so. Or as if he even cared about it at that moment. As Roi headed out, Peter turned to Myles.
“Watch the lady from a distance, please,” he said. “Make sure she comes to no harm.”
Myles headed off, leaving the three married men alone in Christopher’s tent.
This was a situation that only men with wives might understand, although comprehending the complexities of a woman was beyond any of them to varying degrees.
All three of them had married strong, determined women, with Alexander and Christopher in particular having married women perfectly capable of battle.
Now, so had Curtis.
But the situation wasn’t going well at all.
“Well?” Peter said quietly. “What now?”
Christopher shrugged. “They are married,” he said. “There is nothing either one of them can do about it.”
“But the marriage has not yet been consummated,” Alexander pointed out. “Did Curtis ride to the nearest church to see about an annulment?”
“He wouldn’t dare,” Christopher said. “He knows this marriage is too important. He would not try to dissolve it, and most especially without my knowledge.”
Alexander wasn’t so sure. Curtis was the silent, steady type, but he wasn’t beyond completely going against his father if he felt strongly enough about it. There were times when Christopher’s commands had been mere suggestions to Curtis.
They hoped this wasn’t one of those times.
“You cannot be sure of that, Papa,” Peter said, voicing what they were all thinking. “None of us can. When Curtis sets his mind to something, he never fails.”
Christopher looked at him. “Are you telling me he has set his mind to ending this marriage?”
As Peter shrugged, Alexander spoke softly. “I think the fact that he left his new wife behind speaks for itself,” he said. “He is making a statement.”
“Aye, he is. I would like to make one as well.”
It wasn’t Christopher or even Peter who answered. It was Elle, standing in the open tent flap. The three knights turned to her with various levels of surprise before Christopher began to move in her direction.
“Lady Leominster,” he said, addressing her by her rightful title. “Please come in. Would you like some wine?”
Elle stepped timidly into the tent, nodding briefly to Christopher as he moved quickly to procure her a drink.
She was dressed in terribly oversized clothing—a heavy tunic and hose that were far too large for her.
Gone was the blue dress that Christopher had lent her.
She looked quite odd, to be truthful, but she also seemed so terribly nervous in their presence.
Given they were talking about her, she’d probably heard most of it—and most of the discussion on a husband who evidently didn’t want her.
It made for a difficult situation.
“Since you sent one of your sons to spy on me, I thought I’d better come straight to you,” Elle said to Christopher as he handed her the wine. “My lord, I would be grateful if you would allow me to speak with you.”
Christopher grunted with some chagrin over the spying comment. “I sent Myles to watch over you to make sure you did not come into any trouble,” he said. “You are in an encampment full of English.”
“I realize that.”
“May I ask what became of my wife’s dress?”