Chapter Ten
Edenthorpe Castle
“CeeCee, it is wonderful to see you again,” Amata said, hugging her cousin in a flagrantly insincere gesture. “Papa is finally feeling much better, so I thought I would come and visit you. It has been such a long time since we were last together.”
Dacia, as always, was thrilled to see her cousin. She didn’t care if the woman was being insincere or not. She was just glad to have the company, as always.
“I am so glad you have come,” Dacia said happily. “It has been a very long time, indeed. I am having something special prepared for your day of birth next week. We must make this visit a celebration!”
She had Amata by the hand, pulling the woman towards the keep as Amata’s escort unloaded her capcases and disbanded the horses and wagon. Several Doncaster men were lending a hand.
But Amata seemed to be looking everywhere but at her cousin, who she had allegedly come to visit. As Dacia pulled her across the bailey, her head was on a swivel.
“And we shall,” Amata said, spying an unfamiliar knight over by an outbuilding that housed male visitors. “We shall make it a great celebration. But let us talk of that later. Tell me of your activities since I last saw you, CeeCee. Have you had any unexpected visitors? Have you been well?”
Dacia nodded. “Very well,” she said. “Grandfather has been well, too. You did not contract what your father had, did you?”
Amata shook her head. “Nay,” she said. “Whatever Papa had is something recurring. He just seems to come down with a cough he cannot shake, and then it goes away. But he is quite well now.”
Dacia smiled. “That is good,” she said. “But you must send for me the next time he becomes ill. I may have something to help him. Mayhap I can even cure him.”
Amata squeezed her hand but she still wasn’t looking at her. “Dear CeeCee,” she said, using a nickname Dacia had since childhood. “You are always so good and kind. So willing to help.”
“It is no trouble.”
“Then you’ve not had any exciting visitors since the last time I was here?”
It was a reminder of an earlier question that Dacia had failed to answer, but where Amata was concerned, that wasn’t unusual. Amata always wanted to know everything that had gone on in her absence, demanding every little last detail. She was nosy that way.
“Nay,” Dacia said, but quickly recanted. “Wait, that is not true. We had three of Edward’s knights visit us yesterday and last night, Edenthorpe was attacked.”
Amata looked at her sharply. “Attacked?” she repeated fearfully. “By whom?”
Dacia pulled her along. “By Lord Hagg,” she said quietly. “That’s what I was told. You know he wants that land to the south that Grandfather is mining. Last night, he decided to harass us.”
Amata didn’t look any too soothed. “That is terrible,” she said. “Was there any damage?”
Dacia shook her head. “None,” she said. “Fortunately, the king’s knights were still here and they helped protect the castle.”
“Are the king’s knights still here this morning?”
“Aye,” Dacia said. “I was told that Grandfather asked them to remain a little while. He wants their help with Lord Hagg.”
Amata’s head resumed its eager swiveling. “Where are they?”
Dacia shrugged as they passed the great hall, with the keep directly ahead. “I am not sure,” she said. “But you will meet them at some point. I know how eager you are to meet fine, young knights.”
Amata gasped. “CeeCee!” she scolded softly. “You make it sound as if I lust for them constantly.”
“Don’t you?”
Dacia turned to look at her, seeing an unhappy expression on her cousin’s face. But Amata couldn’t keep it up for very long. She cracked a smile and looked away.
“Well… not constantly,” she said, giggling. “But it would be nice to meet a knight to marry and take me away from this place. I do so long to see the big cities and meet interesting people. I…”
She suddenly came to a halt, her gaze on the great hall.
Dacia was forced to stop as well, turning in time to see Cassius emerging from the hall entry.
He had Argos with him, catching sight of the young women immediately.
It was difficult not to see them because they were right in his path.
Amata lifted a hand and waved it furiously.
“Greetings, Sir Cassius!” she called. “It is agreeable to see you again!”
Dacia looked at her cousin in surprise. “You know him?”
Amata couldn’t take her eyes from him. “He came through town during the Lords of Misrule feast,” she said excitedly. “Yesterday, in fact. He’s so handsome, CeeCee. The most handsome man I have ever seen. Don’t you think so?”
Bewildered, Dacia looked at Cassius as he came upon the pair, his expression bordering on unfriendly as he looked at Amata. Still, he politely bowed.
“Lady Amata,” he said with a hint of disapproval in his tone. “What brings you to Edenthorpe?”
Amata was beside herself with glee. “You, silly,” she said. “You would not come to me, so I have come to you. Are you surprised?”
Cassius just looked at her. “It would have been best had you sent word ahead to ask for permission to visit,” he said, avoiding her question. “We had some trouble here last night and it may not be safe for you to travel.”
Amata sensed a rebuke, but it didn’t spoil her enthusiasm.
“If you had trouble last night, then surely you and your powerful knights chased them away,” she said, letting go of Dacia and looping her hands through Cassius’ elbow in a possessive gesture.
“I am positive Lord Hagg took one look at you and fled. How could he not?”
She was clinging to him, something he was clearly displeased with. “There is a little more to it than that,” he said. “If you will excuse me, I must be along my way.”
He started to move away from her, but she held fast. “Please do not go,” she said.
“I have come all the way to Edenthorpe to see you. Will you not sit with me and talk a while? I never did thank you for the dances yesterday. You are a wonderful dancer, by the way. I have never seen finer. You made me feel lighter than air when you lifted me in your powerful arms.”
Cassius had about all he could take of her sappy adoration, but before he could shoo her away, Dacia spoke up.
“You… you two danced yesterday?” she said, looking between Amata and Cassius. “Where?”
“At the Lords of Misrule feast,” Amata said. “I told you that was where I met him. Sir Cassius and I were crowned the king and queen of the feast. Well, almost. But he had to leave because he had business to attend to with Cousin Vincent. Still, it was great fun while it lasted.”
Now, Dacia’s focus was on her cousin. For a moment, she just looked at her, processing the foolish words that were coming from her mouth and coming to understand that Amata’s visit here was no casual happenstance.
She had a motive.
Perhaps it was jealousy or perhaps it was disappointment, but Dacia did something at that moment that she wouldn’t normally do.
She confronted Amata.
“Then you came today because you knew he was here,” she finally said. “It was not to visit me at all. It was to see Sir Cassius.”
Amata looked at her as if suddenly realizing she’d given away her entire reason for coming. “I… I knew he would be here, that is true,” she said quickly. “But I very much wanted to see you, CeeCee. Seeing Sir Cassius is just a happy coincidence.”
It was a lie.
Dacia knew it was a lie and she felt like a fool.
A silly, duped fool. Everything Edie had ever said about Amata came tumbling down on her.
Although in the back of her mind she’d always known that her cousin only used her, she had always been willing to overlook it.
But no longer. That selfishness had never been more apparent than it was now.
And Cassius… the only man who had ever shown Dacia any attention had evidently done the same with Amata.
There had been nothing special in the compliments he’d paid her because he’d done it before – with a young woman who didn’t have the handicap of freckles all over her face, and perhaps a thousand others, too.
It wasn’t just her.
God… she felt like an idiot.
“Then please visit with him since you came to see him,” she said, lowering her gaze and backing away. “I will not interfere.”
At that point, she was already turning around, heading for the keep, but Cassius called out to her.
“Lady Dacia,” he said. “Wait, please.”
Dacia kept going. Cassius called to her again and she started to run, all the way up the stairs and disappearing into Edenthorpe’s keep.
Cassius watched her go with a heavy heart.
“I wonder what’s the matter with her?” Amata asked as if she didn’t really care. “It is of little matter, I suppose. I shall find out later. Will you come into the hall with me, Sir Cassius?”
Cassius turned to look at her. Then, he pulled his arm away from her grabbing hands, stilling them rather firmly when she tried to grab him again.
“Nay,” he said steadily. “I shall not go into the hall with you. You came to see your cousin, so go see her.”
Amata’s face fell. “But… but we had such a nice time yesterday,” she said. “I thought you would be glad to see me.”
“I have no time for a visit, my lady.”
Amata was starting to look hurt. “What have I done to make you cross with me, Sir Cassius? Please tell me so that I might make amends.”
He looked at her, seeing the petty, vain, and spoiled girl he’d suspected from the start.
She had been pretty to him, once, when he’d first met her.
But her manner and her personality had cancelled out any beauty he thought she might have had.
The disappointment on Dacia’s face when she had realized why her cousin had really come had sealed that opinion.
Cassius didn’t do very well with petty, vain women.
He’d seen too many of them in his lifetime.