Chapter Seven #6
He did nothing more than open the door for her.
Carington went inside and he closed the door softly behind her.
Now the tears came as she turned to the closed door, knowing Creed was on the other side and feeling such anguish that she could hardly describe it.
She could feel the sobs coming and she knew he would hear them.
She did not want him charging into the chapel demanding to know what the matter was.
Her eyes fell on the old iron bolt and she threw it just as the first sob sprang forth.
On the other side of the door, Creed heard the bolt slide just as sounds of weeping filled his ears. His hand went to the old iron door latch, jigging it and realizing that Carington had locked herself inside.
“Lady Carington?” he did not want to draw attention and rattled the latch quietly. “Unlatch the door. What is wrong?”
Her response was to weep loudly. Puzzled, Creed began to grow concerned. “Cari, what’s happened?” he pounded on the door softly. “Open the door and let me in.”
Inside the brightly lit chapel with the sun streaming through its many-colored glass panes, Carington wept openly.
Her back was to the door; she could feel Creed rattling it.
She sank to her buttocks on the cold stone floor, her face in her hands, feeling days of confusion and anxiety gnaw at her.
First she was forced to leave her home, then her beloved Bress was killed.
Now Creed was apparently not the man of honor and chivalry that she believed him to be; she simply couldn’t take anymore.
Creed listened to her weep with deepening concern.
She would not answer him and he truly could not fathom what the problem was.
But women were confusing creatures he had never been able to decipher.
He may have been a stellar knight, but he was not a particularly good mind reader when it came to the opposite sex.
Strange thing was that he wanted to read Carington’s mind very much.
She was upset and he had an overwhelming desire to know why.
But his hand remained on the door latch, uncertain what to do.
“Sir Creed?”
A soft female voice met his ears. Creed looked over his shoulder, down the stone steps that led into the bailey, and saw Lady Kristina standing at the base. Her pale face and big blue eyes were laced with apprehension.
“My lady?” he stepped away from the door; he did not want her coming up the stairs and hearing the weeping. “How can I be of service?”
Kristina took the first two steps; Creed descended half the flight before she took another step to prevent her from ascending any further.
“I came to tell you…,” Kristina paused when she saw how close he had come; very properly, she traced her steps back down the stairs and stood at the bottom, putting distance between them.
“I wanted to tell you that I fear our Lady Carington has heard… well, she has heard gossip and I thought to forewarn you. Since you have been acting as her protector, you have a right to know.”
Creed’s expression did not change except to cock a dark eyebrow. “Know what?”
Kristina swallowed; Creed intimidated her even though he had never been anything other than kind to her. She began to wring her hands. “She… she has been told of your trip with Queen Isabella. It may have frightened her.”
Suddenly, a great deal made sense; Creed glanced over his shoulder at the bolted chapel door before refocusing on Kristina. The girl was uneasy; he could read it in her face. But he had known her for several years and she was not the malicious type. Her companion, however, was.
He sighed heavily. “Lady Julia.”
It was a statement, not a question. Kristina nodded reluctantly.
“She told her. I tried to stop her, but she would not listen.” She took a step towards him, her blue eyes wide and honest. “We all know how Julia feels about you, Sir Creed. She is not threatened by me because she knows I am pledged to another, but Lady Carington is new and exciting and blindingly beautiful, and I can already see that Julia is sharpening her claws.”
Creed’s gaze was steady on her. “Then Lady Julia is in for a beating. Lady Carington will tear her down to size and never think twice about it. If I were you, I would warn your friend to retract her claws and her tongue before she finds herself in a dire predicament.”
Kristina lifted her slender shoulders. “She will not listen to me, my lord.”
“Then she will listen to me.”
Kristina shook her head vigorously. “Nay, my lord, please do not. If you do, she will know I have told you. And I must live with her.”
Creed understood. Though he felt nothing but irritation at the moment for what Lady Julia had done, he nonetheless forced a smile for Kristina’s sake. She was a good girl and tried to do the right thing.
“As you say, my lady,” he said quietly. “And thank you for telling me the truth.”
Kristina bobbed a curtsy and fled, her blond hair wagging in the breeze as she walked briskly in the direction of the keep. Creed’s gaze lingered on her a moment before he made his way back up the steps to the chapel. Putting his ear against the door, he could hear sniffling.
He did the only thing he could do. He went for Ryton.