Chapter Twenty-One #2
His brow furrowed thoughtfully. “It seems we must start with Lance,” he said.
“He had contact with this man, so we must find the man and straighten this out. It could be anything, Catalina. Mayhap the man merely found the cross and made up a story. Mayhap he knew Alfred and is trying to assume his position. You must not believe the worst. Not when I know you and I are so strong together. We will be strong together. We must have faith.”
The simple words of encouragement bolstered her. His strength gave her strength, but it didn’t chase away the fear. “It will be a simple thing, truly,” she said hoarsely. “I will know if it is Alfred the moment I see him. Either it is him or it is not. There will be no question.”
“Then you must see him.”
“I must.”
That was the crux of the situation—she had to see the man who had brought the cross, and Essien was starting to feel sick again. He was trying to stay positive, but it was difficult.
“If it is Alfred, then understand something,” he murmured.
“He was gone for more than two years. You were informed of his death. I realize that the law allows for seven years until a missing person is declared legally dead, but you had it on good authority, from his brother, that he was dead. You and I were married because you believed that you were a widow. I will fight this all the way to Rome, Catalina. You are my wife. Whether or not Alfred has returned is immaterial. He does not get to come back and throw your life into chaos. We have not touched the edge of heaven only to have it torn away from us.”
Catalina hugged him fiercely before finally looking him in the eye. “I am not entirely sure how the church will see this,” she said. “They may be sympathetic, but then again, if my dead husband is discovered alive, they may simply look at the marriage and not the circumstances.”
Essien knew that. God, he knew it. The fact that it had only been two years would work against them. He sighed faintly and let her go, gazing steadily into her eyes.
“Then I will ask you this,” he said, hardly able to bring the words forth. “If this man is, indeed, Alfred, what will you do? He is the Earl of Mercia now, not me. He has everything I thought was mine, including you. Will you go with him and assume your role at his side?”
Catalina looked up at him, into that handsome face. She could see the torment in his eyes and, truthfully, she had enough of her own. In her mind, and heart, there was only one answer to give.
“Nay,” she murmured. “I will not go with him. I have a little money. We can take the girls and flee to Scotland. Or to Ireland. Or anywhere you wish to go. Essien, it is true I did not want to marry you. We have established that. But now I cannot imagine my life without you. If it is possible for love to happen in just a few short days, then it has for me. I will hold you in my heart, and only you, from now until the last breath the world ever draws.”
He drew in a long, fortifying breath and reached out to grasp her hand, bringing it to his lips. He closed his eyes tightly as he kissed her flesh, sweetly.
“My love for you will endure,” he whispered. “When we become stars, we will be bound by time and space, to one another, for eternity. There is no life without you, Catalina. Whether or not this man is Alfred, it does not matter. You belong to me as I belong to you.”
She clasped his hand with her free hand and the two of them stood there a moment, foreheads touching, holding hands tightly.
It was a powerful moment, one that elevated their new relationship to something bigger, better, and enduring.
Sometimes love wasn’t readily obvious in a relationship.
It could take months or years to develop.
But sometimes, love recognized love at the onset.
Old souls, perhaps, coming around again to find one another.
Remembering the love of past lives, of past times.
That was what had happened with Essien and Catalina.
Love recognized love.
“Mama!”
They were jolted from their thoughts by a familiar shout.
They looked over, toward the long stable near the tournament field, to see both Adabella and Ines on a pony being led by Addax.
It was a pretty blond pony and the girls were having a marvelous time.
They waved at their mother. But Catalina took one look at her daughters and whimpered.
Essien heard her.
“Nay, my love,” he murmured. “Show no weakness in front of them. Children need for their parents to be strong in the face of a crisis. I watched my mother and father in the face of my father’s failing kingdom, and never did I feel afraid or lost because they were strong. We are strong.”
Catalina sucked in a deep breath, struggling for composure. “You are correct, of course,” she said. “We are strong.”
“We are.”
With that, Catalina lifted her hand to her daughters. “That is a beautiful pony,” she called to them. “Are you enjoying him?”
The girls waved back, declaring their undying love for the animal. Catalina and Essien went over to meet them.
“His name is Algernon and he used to belong to Rebecca,” Addax said. “Now, he is growing fat for lack of use. The stable master said that you can probably have him just for the asking, so I leave that up to you to ask Hereford.”
Essien nodded, unable to reply at the moment, as Catalina went to the pony and scratched his nose.
“He’s beautiful,” she said. “How fortunate that Sir Addax found him for you. Did you thank him?”
Both girls turned to Addax. “Thank you!” they said in unison.
Addax smiled. “My pleasure, ladies,” he said. Then he spoke mostly to Catalina. “I was telling them about the first pony I ever had. My grandfather, Bodhi, gave him to me. It was a beautiful pony the color of sand and I named him Makara, after a sea serpent.”
“Makara!” Ines said happily, patting the horse’s neck. “His name is Makara.”
“A fine name,” Addax said. Then he handed Essien the lead rope that was still in his hand. “I have entertained them, but I must gather my things and head to the competition field. And so should you.”
Essien finally found his tongue. “Something has happened, Ad,” he said in a low voice. “I have need of you.”
Addax didn’t like that tone. He was puzzled for a brief moment, but he didn’t question his brother. “I am yours,” he said. “What do you need?”
Essien held up a discreet hand, asking for patience, as he turned to Catalina. “My sweet, please take the girls into Lioncross’s bailey,” he said. “Find a servant and send him for Lady Hereford. When she comes, tell her what has happened.”
Catalina looked at him seriously. “Everything?”
“Everything.”
She nodded reluctantly. “Very well,” she said. “But you are not coming with me?”
Essien shook his head, handing her the lead rope.
“Nay,” he said. “I have a good deal to do, but I want you to ask Lady Hereford if you may remain in the chamber she loaned us for the time being, since you have no tent or shelter to return to. Ride the girls around the bailey until they are tired of it and then retreat to the chamber. Stay where I can find you. Will you do this for me?”
“I will do anything for you,” Catalina said, great sincerity in her expression. “I will go now.”
“Good,” Essien said. “Go straight through the gatehouse and summon Lady Hereford. I will come to you later.”
Catalina simply nodded. Blowing Essien a kiss, she turned the pony around and headed in the direction of Lioncross’s bailey.
Essien and Addax followed along behind her at a distance until they saw her pass through the gatehouse and into the bailey.
Once she was safely inside, Addax turned to his brother.
“Now,” he said quietly, “what is going on?”
Essien wasn’t even sure where to start. “It has all happened so fast,” he said.
“When I left you with the girls and returned to Catalina, before I even reached the tent, I heard her screaming. When I ran inside, I found her father dead on the floor and her father’s former knight, Lance le Kerque, bending over the man.
Naturally, I thought the worst, so I thrashed le Kerque. ”
Addax’s mouth was hanging open. “My God,” he said. “Le Kerque killed de Efford?”
Essien shook his head. “Not intentionally, I’ve discovered,” he said.
“It seems that de Efford returned to the tent and found le Kerque with my wife, alone, and he must have thought that the man was trying to assault her, so he attacked him—only le Kerque dodged out of the way and de Efford impaled himself on some weapons in a stand. The action killed him.”
Addax was shocked. “Oh, Es,” he said, hand over his heart in a gesture of sincerity. “I am so sorry. This is a terrible way to start off a marriage.”
Essien snorted ironically. “More than you know,” he said. “According to Catalina, Lance was there because he wanted to show her something.”
“What?”
“A relic she gave her first husband, Alfred, before he went to France.”
Addax’s brow furrowed in bewilderment. “A relic?” he repeated. “But… but how did le Kerque have it?”
“Because there is a man here, at the tournament, who brought it,” Essien said.
“Le Kerque saw the man yesterday and thought he was a thief because he was lurking around, but he was evidently looking for Catalina. He gave le Kerque the cross and asked him to have her identify it. Ad… she thinks the man is her first husband. She thinks he has returned.”
That statement brought a universe of horrific implications with it, and not one of them was lost on Addax.
He watched the face of his brother, a man who was usually passionate about life and almost always happy, but in this case, he was pale and full of sorrow.
The man’s eyes were virtually dead at the potential of losing the woman he’d just married. A woman he was clearly mad about.