“Boys are like that,” Angelet said, thinking of how Henry used to run for hours, seemingly without tiring.
“I hope my little one will be more calm,” Cecily said, putting her hand to her belly again. “Or mayhap I don’t! What’s more delightful than watching a child be a child?”
“Your first?” Angelet asked.
Cecily nodded, bliss covering her features. “I cannot wait to meet him. Or her! I shall find out in June.”
“I wish you all happiness now,” Angelet said, “for I will be gone by then.”
“Where will you go? Where are you from?” Cecily asked, turning her attention to Angelet. “Your boy Goswin was a little vague on that point. And his own memory concerning the event seemed quite hazy. Very few people earn such loyalty as that boy has for you.”
“I’ve not earned it,” she said. “Goswin is naturally cautious, that’s all.”
“So what did happen? Surely you didn’t ride though the forest with only a page.”
“No. I was part of a much larger entourage. I had intended to go all the way to Basingwerke Abbey, near Sheffield. I was to be a postulant. But then our whole group was attacked on the road, and I fled…and now I am here.”
“This is a long way from the Nottinghamshire road.”
“I’m afraid my plan was not well thought out. Goswin probably was trying to protect me. If he told the story as it happened, I’d sound as if I wasn’t in my right mind.”
“Your wound was fresh, though. You were attacked again, closer to here?”
“Yes. Or at least, I don't think it was far. I’m afraid I am useless,” Angelet confessed. “I wish I could give you a better answer.”
“It’s understandable, considering what you’ve been through. All travel carries greater risk now. War is rupturing this country. We are lucky that the king has kept order here in Shropshire, more or less. But there is always the threat of violence. And then with the Welsh so close…” She looked at Angelet and gave her a sunny smile. “Not to fear though! My husband Alric is a knight by training, and he has made Cleobury the safest manor in England.”
“That is reassuring. I will have to repay you for your hospitality.”
“You may begin by recovering from your wound,” Cecily said. “I’ve prepared a tisane that will help you sleep.”
Behind Cecily, a maid approached, bearing a tray on which sat a little pot. From the top, fragrant steam wafted upwards in a languid curl. The smells of mint and apple and honey teased Angelet’s nose. Cecily poured a cup and served Angelet herself, behaving much more like a healer than a great lady. “Drink this. It will help you sleep. Don’t mind the bitterness.”
Angelet did detect a sharp note under the honey. “What is it?”
“Willow bark. Most pungent, but good for many ailments. Perhaps even your other affliction will be eased. Who knows?”
After she finished the drink, Angelet lay back down. Cecily pulled the shutters on the window closed, dimming the room. “Call out if you need anything. There’s always someone close by.”
Cecily left. In the ensuing silence, Angelet pondered the changes in her circumstances. She been sent away from one manor, attacked on the road, and barely escaped with her life thanks to Rafe. They then traveled for days in an attempt to retrieve her son and return to her childhood home, all the while growing dangerously close to one another. Angelet was even having second thoughts about her determination to go home. But before she could gauge Rafe’s feelings, that second attack came out of nowhere. And once again, Rafe had managed to save her from the worst fate, leading her to this new place that seemed as welcoming as Dryton had been cold. So why was Rafe unable to share the welcome? She wouldn’t know until she could speak to him. Maddening.
She lay against the pillow and closed her eyes, wishing he could be with her now.
Wherewashe?
* * * *
Rafe was tantalizingly close to Cleobury, able to see through the gate, but not willing to walk through it. Spring was advancing in this part of the country, and the leaves were bursting out on all the trees now. The undergrowth was even further along, which was fortunate, because the green wall created by the shrubs and vines gave Rafe somewhere to hide while he watched the walls. The manor bustled with activity from before dawn to after dusk. Merchants from the village came and went on errands, and the many residents of the manor were constantly passing through the gates as they went about their tasks. Workers marched out to the farm fields and gardens outside. Women washed clothing and gathered water from the nearby stream. Some people even had work to do in the forest, and Rafe was careful to avoid them in particular.
Only Goswin knew where he was. For the past three days, the boy had come out to the woods to tell Rafe how Angelet fared. Rafe couldn’t rest till the time Goswin told him that Angelet seemed to be recovering. According to the boy, she was now awake and seemed in good spirits. Hearing the news secondhand wasn’t good enough for Rafe.
“Where is she? You say you were in her chamber. Where precisely in the manor house is it located?”
Goswin looked alarmed. “You can’t go in there! You said so yourself.”
“I need to see she’s well with my own eyes.”
“You’ll get lost. I can’t describe it well enough.”
