Chapter Six #2
Chad’s smile faded as he remembered the tears he’d shed for his grandfather and grandmother.
He hadn’t been ready to let them go yet, still seeing them through the eyes of a child who believed they would live forever.
But the tears he shed had been in private, for he had to be strong for his father, who was truly devastated by his father’s passing.
Something about missing “the Daniel veins” that would pop out on David’s temples, but Chad never fully understood that joke, which seemed to be something only David and Daniel understood.
All Chad knew was that the entire family had been devastated by the passing of Christopher and David de Lohr, and then Dustin and Emilie, but the sword that David had given Chad was a link to his grandfather like nothing else ever could have been.
The silver sword.
Chad had forced himself from those reflections when Daniel had entered the stable, eager for his son to collect the lady and get started on the road to Isenhall. Perrin accompanied his father and when Daniel and Chad left the stable, Perrin was in charge of preparing a suitable mare for the lady.
As Daniel and Chad had headed across the bailey towards the knight quarters, Daniel had given Chad some last minute instructions.
“It will take you at least seven days to reach Coventry and Isenhall,” he had said, “six days if you move swiftly. The rains have been heavy to the north, so I have heard, so your travel may not be as quick as we had hoped.”
Chad understood. “Evesham came between storms, fortunately,” he’d said. “But riding to Coventry and the Marches may be different. The lady and I will do well enough.”
Daniel’s brother, Stefan, and his cousins had been gathering in the bailey near the knight quarters, waiting to see Chad and the lady off.
De Russe and du Bois were not there, instead, they were inside the knight quarters, still providing the lady with protection should Henry’s men decide to make a break for the structure and try to drag the lady away.
But that was impossible in any case because Henry’s Six were passed out like drunkards all over the small hall. The poppy potion had worked wonders so no one felt a huge sense of urgency, but there was no leisure mood, either. It was time to see the task well on its way.
As they neared the knight quarter, Daniel broke away from his son and moved swiftly into the structure to ensure that the lady was ready for her trip. Chad watched his father go before coming to a halt beside Chris and Stefan, engaging in small talk while Daniel went to fetch the lady.
For some odd reason, Chad was coming to feel edgy now and he wasn’t entirely sure why.
Henry’s Six would sleep for a day, his mother had said.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe her, for he did, but he knew from experience that even the best laid plans could be thwarted by something unexpected.
He glanced at the keep once, twice, as Stefan spoke beside him.
“Father is going to be truthful with de Serreaux when the man awakens,” he said. “If they want the lady, they’ll have to move on to Coventry, but Father intends to keep Henry’s Six here as long as he can. That should buy you at least a day and a half, if not more.”
Chad couldn’t explain his sense of uneasiness now. He found that he was quite eager for his father to emerge from the knight quarters with the lady. “Providing the weather and the roads hold,” he said. “I will certainly make every effort to reach Isenhall before the Six catch up with me.”
“What do you plan to do once you have delivered the lady over to Gallus and his brothers?” Chris wanted to know.
He had been standing close enough to hear.
“I told Uncle Daniel that we should ride with you to Isenhall but he seems to think you will travel faster with just the two of you. What are you going to do once you reach Isenhall?”
Chad shrugged. “Make sure the Lords of Thunder are not in need of me, I suppose,” he said. “I would expect they will not require my services so it is my sense that I will be heading for home fairly quickly. When are you and your brothers leaving for Lioncross?”
Daniel emerged from the knight quarters at that point, shouting out to Perrin, who was just coming around with the lady’s mare. Chris watched his uncle and cousin a moment before returning his focus to Chad.
“Right after you leave, I am sure,” he said. “I think Uncle Daniel wants us to remain here to see what the Six will do when they are told that you and the lady have left for Isenhall. I do not know if Uncle Daniel is expecting trouble, but we will wait and see.”
Chad was satisfied with the plan. In fact, he was glad his cousins were remaining to ensure that de Serreaux and his men didn’t turn violent when they were told the lady had slipped through their fingers yet again.
When obedient knights were carrying out the orders of the king, there was no telling how they would react, which only increased Chad’s sense of unease.
He very much wanted to depart as quickly as possible now.
The sooner they were away from Canterbury, the better.
Impatient, he struggled not to appear so.
But his impatience didn’t last long. His mother, his sister, and Alessandria suddenly emerged from the knight quarters with de Russe and du Bois behind them, and Chad felt a sense of relief at the sight of her.
That, and a distinct sense of pleasure; she was wearing a traveling outfit of dark green wool, durable and well made, clinging to a figure he didn’t know she had.
Though petite, she had a narrow waist and flaring hips, quite alluring and shapely.
In fact, he was rather shocked to realize she not only had an exquisite face but a body to match.
Through the wet wool and darkness of their travels, he’d never had the chance to notice.
But he wasn’t the only one who noticed; his brothers as well as his cousins were riveted to the lady, seeing an enchantress emerge into their midst. The dark auburn hair was braided, draping over one shoulder, and she had a kerchief wrapped around her head, tucked behind her ears and tied at the nape of her neck to keep her hair from blowing about or becoming unruly.
Veronica was trying to fix the billowing cloak, a cloak that was streaming behind Alessandria like a banner and allowing every man there a view of that marvelous figure.
The goddess was revealed.
“Finally!” Daniel exclaimed softly, holding out a hand to Alessandria as she approached. “Come along, my lady. There is no time to waste. You and my son must be along your way.”
Alessandria looked at Chad, standing by his horse, and Chad swore he could feel a jolt of warmth from her sea-colored eyes.
The sensation startled him and he wasn’t sure if he should smile, or say something, or simply mount his horse and ignore her.
He’d never spent a muddled day in his life but, at this moment, her warmth and charm and beauty had him muddled.
It truly did. As his father reached out to take the lady’s arm, he seemed to break from his bewilderment.
“My lady,” he greeted. “I see that my mother and sister have taken great care of you.”
Alessandria smiled shyly. “They have,” she agreed, looking at Liselotte. “My lady, I must thank you again for your kindness and generosity. I will take very good care of the items that you have loaned me and return them to you.”
Liselotte reached out to take Alessandria’s hand. “I would be hurt if you returned them,” she said. “They are a gift.”
Alessandria looked down at the beautiful traveling ensemble she was wearing. “I… I do not know if I will be able to wear this when I return to Newington,” she said. “I do not know if the nuns will allow it.”
Liselotte glanced up at her husband and son and, seeing their hesitant expressions, understood that the lady might never make it back to Newington, not with Henry after her. But it was clear the young woman didn’t understand that yet. Forcing a smile, Liselotte squeezed Alessandria’s hand.
“You can keep it until such time as you no longer need it,” she said. “Then, you may send it back to me if you wish.”
Alessandria smiled at the woman with the slight Germanic accent, a lady who had been kinder to her than any lady she had ever known.
In fact, the two hours she had spent with Lady de Lohr and her daughter had been quite eye opening.
She never knew women, at least outside of Newington, to be kind and pleasant to speak with.
That had been a strange experience but one she quickly grew to like.
Lady de Lohr and her daughter had been attentive and polite, and they’d worked very hard to scrub her skin of the red dye from the silk garment.
Lady de Lohr hadn’t been angry about the ruined silk in the least, which was surprising enough, and went out of her way to clean off the red stains with, of all things, buttermilk and a horsehair brush.
However she did it, it worked, leaving Alessandria’s skin a little sensitive but clean and very smooth.
In fact, Alessandria was quite sure she’d never been so clean in her entire life.
And she smelled good, too. After scrubbing the red splotches away, Veronica had rubbed her skin with oil that smelled of roses.
It was attention and treatment that Alessandria had never experienced and she found that when it was over, she didn’t want to leave.
She very much liked to be fussed over and treated as if she were something special, as if she mattered.
It was a glimpse of a world she wanted to be part of and in that realization, it was her first awareness that perhaps she didn’t want to join the cloister, after all.
She liked the comforts and pleasure of a kind family.
Of Chad’s family.