Chapter Seventeen
“What are you doing?”
Those were the first words out of Juliandra’s mouth when she saw a collection of men, all kneeling in a circle, as one of them threw what looked like rocks into the center of the circle. It took Juliandra a moment to realize that they were throwing bones.
Gambling.
The young man throwing the bones leapt to his feet and faced her, somewhat guiltily.
“Games, Lady de Lara,” William said.
The next day after her wedding to Kevin had dawned lovely and bright, and Juliandra had awoken to Kevin’s kisses and a renewed sense of purpose. She felt as if Wybren truly belonged to her now and she was determined to be the best chatelaine she could be.
The best wife she could be.
She’d come into the stable yard on the hunt for clean straw to put in the kitchen yard to sop up the excess moisture and debris, but what she found were men gambling.
She knew who William was, as she had been introduced to him when he had arrived with the other knights.
But here he was, surrounded by men twice his age, all of them taking advantage of the young man.
Of that, she was certain.
She frowned.
“Get out of here, all of you,” she said, waving her hands at them. “You should be ashamed of gambling with this poor, innocent boy. Get about your business before I tell the knights.”
The circle broke up unnaturally fast as men scattered, but William stood there as if uncertain what to do. He had a fist full of coins he’d just won and he tried to keep them out of Lady de Lara’s sight.
He didn’t want her to know that he’d instigated the games.
“Truly, my lady, there was no trouble,” he said innocently. “It was nothing serious.”
Juliandra peered up at the handsome young man who was quite a bit taller than she was. “You should never play games with men who are older than you are,” she said. “They will take everything from you.”
That hadn’t been the case at all. William had taken everything from them and they had been trying to win it back, but he wasn’t going to tell her that. He didn’t think she’d take it very well.
“Thank you for the cautionary tale, my lady,” he said, eager to leave. “With your permission, I will be along my way.”
Juliandra pointed to the clean straw piled in one of the stalls. “You can help me before you go,” she said. “Will you help me carry this straw into the kitchen yard, please?”
William looked at the straw. He wasn’t a stable servant, but he didn’t want to deny the lady, so he dutifully went to the wheelbarrow that was propped up against the wall, righting it so they could pile straw into it. Juliandra handed him the pitchfork.
“Thank you for your assistance,” she said. “I hope I am not taking you away from anything important.”
Only my gambling game, William thought unhappily. But he simply smiled politely at her.
“Nay, my lady,” he said. “How much straw do you want?”
“A big pile.”
William started shoveling the straw into the wheelbarrow as Juliandra took a second pitchfork and began to help.
“You are a good worker, William,” she said. “But then again, you must be if you serve the Earl of Bath and Glastonbury.”
William tamped the straw down. “I do not serve him, my lady,” he said. “I serve Caius d’Avignon.”
“Who is he?”
“They call him The Britannia Viper,” he said. “He is one of the Executioner Knights, like your husband.”
Juliandra looked at him curiously. “Who are the Executioner Knights? I have not heard that term.”
“Those are the agents of William Marshal,” he said. “They are the most ruthless, skilled warriors in the entire world. Did you not know that?”
Juliandra stopped shoveling. “I did not,” she said. “My husband told me that he had served William Marshal, but I have never heard of the Executioner Knights.”
William piled more straw on. “I want to be one,” he said. “I am going to be a great knight, someday. Even greater than William Marshal.”
Juliandra smiled at the young man with big dreams. “I am sure you will be,” she said. “Do you plan to serve the king, then?”
William shrugged. “Mayhap,” he said. “It depends on what he offers me for my fealty.”
“You are going to have lords bid on your services?”
He looked at her, completely serious. “Of course,” he said. “My father says that I am worth the price.”
Juliandra bit her lip to keep from grinning at his arrogance. “Where is your father?”
“Warstone Castle,” he said. “My father is the Earl of Wolverhampton.”
Juliandra nodded. “I see,” she said, setting her pitchfork aside. “I wish you well in your quest to become the greatest knight England has ever seen, William. With so many great knights in England, you have a task ahead of you.”
William didn’t seem too concerned. The wheelbarrow was full and he rolled it out, heading for the kitchen yard as Juliandra walked after him, silently laughing at the brash young squire who wanted to be the greatest knight England had ever seen.
Over near the gate to the inner ward, she could see Alexander and Peter, dressed in full regalia and their horses loaded for travel, as they spoke to Kevin and Sean.
The sun was climbing in the sky as the morning advanced, and the gatehouse that had been shut yesterday after Aeron’s visit remained closed.
Juliandra’s heart fluttered at the sight of her new husband.
He had been so brave against Aeron the day before and she had heard him tell his brother that they were going to keep the castle sealed up indefinitely, at least until the situation with Aeron eased.
She also knew that Alexander and Peter were heading back to Lioncross Abbey today, while Sean intended to remain for a little while.
She liked the man and looked forward to his extended visit.
Kevin, Sean, Alexander, and Peter all happened to notice William driving the overloaded wheelbarrow towards the kitchen yard and there was no mistaking the curiosity on their faces.
Inevitably, they looked to Juliandra, who was walking behind the young man, and she waved to them.
They waved back. Kevin broke off from the group and headed in her direction.
“You have de Wolfe doing a servant’s job?” he asked her, incredulous.
Juliandra didn’t see what the fuss was about. “I went to the stables to get fresh straw for the kitchen yard and I found him there, being taken advantage of by several of your soldiers.”
Kevin frowned but nonetheless reached out to take her hand, tucking it into the crook of his elbow. “Soldiers were taking advantage of him?” he asked. “What do you mean?”
“Gambling,” she said, lowering her voice because it was scandalous. “They were forcing him to roll dice. I saw it and broke up the game so they would not take all of his money.”
When Kevin realized what she was saying, he started to laugh.
“Sweetheart,” he said in a tone that bordered on scolding.
“You should know that de Wolfe is a master gambler. He is a genius when it comes to such things, so more than likely, he was taking advantage of the soldiers. He is not the innocent boy you think he is.”
Juliandra looked at him in surprise. “I did not think he was innocent, though he is young,” she said. But she put a hand over her mouth in astonishment. “He was the one doing the gambling?”
Kevin nodded, still snorting. “That is why he is heading back to Hawkstone Castle, where Caius lives,” he said. “The de Lohr brothers tried to break William of his habit and couldn’t do it. So, he is returning back to Cai and more than likely, a life that includes crime.”
She started to giggle because he was still laughing. “He says he is going to be the greatest knight England has ever seen.”
“To be perfectly honest with you, I would not be surprised.”
“He’s that good?”
“He’s that good.”
They enjoyed a chuckle over Juliandra’s badly misguided opinion of William, but it was in good fun. But the laughter soon faded as they lost themselves, for a moment, in each other’s eyes.
“And how are you feeling this morning?” he asked softly. “Happy?”
Juliandra wound her hands around his big forearm, leaning into him affectionately. “You’ll never know how happy,” she said. “I’ve never felt like this.”
“Nor have I.”
She looked at him, smiling sweetly. “You are happy, too?”
He nodded. “More than you know.”
She squeezed his arm. “I am glad,” she said.
“I feel as if my whole world is here at Wybren and always has been. But I also know that is not true. There is still The Neath, and my father’s stall in Pool, and my father himself.
Do… do you think we could send word to him that we have wed?
I am not asking you to release him, but I would at least like him to know.
It would be better if I could go to him and tell him myself. ”
Kevin’s good humor faded.
He was perfectly happy to push aside the greatest mistake he’d ever made and it was very easy to do right now as he basked in the euphoria of his marriage to Juliandra, but he knew he couldn’t ignore it.
The more he ignored it, the more it would weigh down upon him until it suffocated him.
Already, he was living on a steady diet of regret.
Christ, why did I have to be so stupid in the first place?
But in her polite question, he saw a way out.
He could send “word” to the alleged location where he was holding her father and then receive word in return that the man had perished.
It would be the easy way to do it, the coward’s way out.
But at this moment, he couldn’t stand the thought of losing what he’d gained.
A woman he adored.
More and more, he knew he couldn’t lose her, but he hated that he had to lie in order to save himself and his marriage.
Quite possibly her love.
His love.
“I will send word,” he said after a moment. “I will do it today.”
Her face lit up. “Will you?” she said. “Thank you ever so much. It means a great deal to me.”