Chapter Eight #5
“Very well,” the priest cleared his throat softly.
“Six months ago, you led the escort that brought Isabella of Angouleme to England’s shores.
She was, at the time, unmarried to the king.
That occurred two months later. It is a fact that the queen is now six months pregnant, which means that she conceived before her marriage to the king.
Now, you must understand that I am not here on behalf of the king.
It is well known that you were rumored to have had an affair with the queen and fled London to escape the king’s wrath.
I am here on behalf of the church that would ensure the child the queen carries is of royal blood.
Only a royal must ascend the throne and I must know the truth, Sir Creed.
I must know what happened between you and the queen as it pertains to her pregnancy. ”
Creed’s gaze was steady. “Who told you to seek me out?”
“All of London knows the rumors regarding you and the queen.”
“Who told you?”
“It does not matter. Suffice it to say that the rumor was confirmed by several different sources.”
“I would know who told you.”
Massimo sighed. “Does it matter?”
“It does. It is my right to know.”
“Then the queen herself told me.”
It was Creed’s turn to sigh. But his gaze never left the priest. “What, exactly, did she tell you?”
“That you seduced her and begot her with child.”
“So she told you that the child was mine?”
“She did. From her own lips, she did.”
Creed was not particularly surprised but he was growing increasingly angry.
It was becoming a struggle for him to keep his normally-dormant temper down.
He leaned forward in the chair, resting his elbows on his knees as he mulled over the priest’s words.
After a moment, he simply lifted his massive shoulders.
“It would do no good for me to refute her,” he said. “It would be my word against hers and we clearly know who would be believed. Even if she is a lying, petty, spoiled child, by the respect due her royal blood, she will be believed in all things.”
The priest shook his head. “Not necessarily.”
Creed gave the man a disbelieving look. “Would it do any good for me to tell you that it is a well-known fact that Isabella has not been a virgin since she was a child?” his eyebrows lifted in emphasis.
“As you so callously claim that everyone knows of the rumors regarding my association with her, can you also deny the rumors that Isabella has seduced as many men as the king has seduced women? She lists her own uncle as a conquest, for God’s sake.
Everyone in France is aware of it and her adulterous ways are common knowledge.
When I escorted her to London, know that she set her sights on me nearly the moment we were introduced.
When I refused her, she flew into a rage and told anyone who would listen that I raped her.
She was a little girl spurned, my lord, and nothing more.
Now that she is pregnant with what I can only assume is another man’s child, she would seek to focus the blame away from her and onto me.
She seeks to destroy me for no other reason than that. ”
By this time, the priest was watching him intently. “Then you deny these allegations.”
“With all my heart.”
“You will burn in hell for lying to me, Sir Creed. Now tell me again; do you deny these allegations?”
“With my immortal soul at stake, I most certainly do.”
The priest gazed steadily at him as if trying to wordlessly persuade him into changing his story.
Surely he had enough power behind him to do just that.
But Creed held his gaze steady, the dusky blue eyes pure with truth and honor.
Massimo eventually lowered his gaze, rising from the small chair he was seated in.
“I do, in fact, know a little about you,” he said as he neared the hearth.
“It is my duty to educate myself whilst conducting tasks for the church. I know that you served Northumberland flawlessly for many years before going into the service of the king. I did, in fact, speak with most of the knights who accompanied you on your mission to escort Isabella from France.”
Creed watched the man pace. “And?”
Massimo paused to look at him. “They have all told me the exact same thing you did,” he began to pace again.
“Your friends are very loyal. In fact, their criticism of the queen was far stronger than your own. From them I learned that you conducted yourself with dignity and honor, even when she threw temper tantrums and hit you.”
Creed just looked at the man. Massimo studied the strong face of the knight before him, pacing thoughtfully around the room as he pondered.
“It would seem, Sir Knight, that the queen has a vendetta against you for spurning her advances,” he said as he watched his feet.
“But that does not erase the face that she is pregnant with what is presumably not the king’s child.
The king himself says he did not touch her until their wedding night. ”
Creed just shook his head and looked at his hands. Massimo paused a few feet away, watching the man’s body language.
“You disagree?” he asked quietly.
Creed cast him a long look. “Do you want the truth, my lord?”
“Of course.”
Creed sighed heavily and sat back against the chair.
“The night we delivered Isabella to the king, he took her into his chamber and we could clearly hear the sounds of lovemaking. It was brutal and loud and she screamed the entire way through it. So, in answer to your question, I strongly disagree with the king’s statement. It is simply not true.”
Massimo cocked a thoughtful eyebrow. “Your fellow escort party told me the same.”
Creed just shook his head and looked to his hands again. “The king’s word is law,” he muttered. “They can blame this on me all they wish. It simply isn’t true.”
Massimo watched him a moment before pulling up a chair beside him. He watched Creed’s lowered face carefully, feeling some empathy for the man. It was a vicious circumstance he found himself a part of.
“The king has a long and bitter history with the church,” Massimo muttered. “One more offense from him will not matter overly. But you, however, are in a bad position.”
Creed looked at the man. “Do you believe any of what I have told you?”
Massimo nodded slowly. “I believe all of it.”
Creed sighed slowly, wiping a weary hand over his face. It was the first time since entering the room that his guard went down.
“So now what?” he asked a question he had been dreading for six months. “What do I do?”
The priest sat back in his chair, his eyes moving to the fire gently crackling in the hearth. “The king wants you imprisoned.”
“I know.”
“He does not, as far as I can deduce, know where you are, but that will not hold true forever. He will eventually find out.”
“How did you find out where I was?”
“Your loyal friends told me, those who have staunchly defended your honor.”
Creed looked at the man, hating that he must face the realities that were intent on following him. He simply could not believe the nightmare was deepening.
“So I will ask you again,” he said. “What do I do? More specifically, what do you intend to do with me?”
Massimo scratched his unshaven chin. “I must report back to the papal legate in London,” he replied.
“I will tell him the truth; that I believe these allegations are untrue. In spite of what you may or may not think of the church, we do hold true to truth and justice. We reject tyranny. And we have indeed heard the rumors of Queen Isabella’s infidelity.
The rumors have run rampant since the day she arrived in England and we are quite certain she has had more lovers than you can count on your fingers and toes. ”
Creed could only shake his head in disgust. “Then why me?” he asked. “Why must she seek to destroy me if she has had so many lovers?”
Massimo smiled at him, displaying dingy teeth. “Because you were not a lover. You stood virtuous against her debauchery and she hates you for it. Had you caved into her demands, she probably would have forgotten all about you.”
“I was not going to cave into her demands.”
Massimo cracked a lop-sided smile. “I understand,” he stood up and moved back to the desk where he had laid his things.
“And in answer to your question as to what to do, I would say do nothing at the moment. I will return to London to discuss this with the papal legate and we will decide a course of action.”
For the first time in almost six months, Creed felt some relief from the situation. He rose on his thick legs, facing the priest. “Is the king actively looking for me? Someone is bound to know where I am.”
Massimo shook his head. “He is not as far as I am aware,” he replied. “He makes a good game of threatening talk but as far as I know, he has not sent out a search party. You will continue your service here in the wilds until such time as I contact you again.”
Creed’s jaw ticked faintly. “Understood, my lord.”
“Do not lose faith. Good always triumphs over evil.”
“Aye, my lord.”
The priest picked up his satchel from the desk. “Oh, I nearly forgot,” he moved towards Creed with his bag in his hand. “I understand that you have been assigned to protect a hostage of Prudhoe.”
Creed nodded. “A daughter of Kerr, our bitter enemy. I am her protection.”
The priest shook his head. “No longer,” he told him pointedly. “I do not want you involved with any young ladies until this matter is resolved. It would not be viewed, shall we say, favorably.”
Creed lifted an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”