Lara opened her mouth to say, what?That her reaction to seeing the captain in his breechcloth everynight was anything but childlike?That she dreamed of his low,resonant voice and piercing eyes when she did sleep?That she foundherself dwelling on his masculine good looks and raw maleness whenshe was pacing the chamber they shared because she couldn’t sleep?She clamped her mouth shut.
“For me then,” Sophiesaid.“Do this for me.”
“But Tante.”Lara wassuddenly, ridiculously, close to tears.“Lidi?I cannot.Not tohim.”
“Better to him thanothers.”
Lara shook her head.Adamant.She mayhave been an orphan and likely a bastard, but she was freeborn.“Better to none.”
“I can’t argue that,”Sophie admitted, making sense at last.“Yet you’ve given Nithardhis chance at you, and he won’t let it go.I can only protect youso much from him in this.”She laid her gnarled hand on Lara’s arm.The hand that had raised, comforted, and chastised her but hadnever pointed her wrong.“What I propose is this.Stay.Stay andbelidito thecaptain, a good, hardworkinglidiwho does not trouble her master.”
Lara chuffed.“Your plan has alreadyfailed.He thinks me troublesome to the core.”
“Tell him to talk with me,then,” Sophie said.“He’s only had fourteen days of you, I’ve hadnigh on twenty-three years of your troublesome ways.”
A man went into a coughing fit outsidethe tent, and Sophie’s grip on Lara’s arm tightened.
“God and nature did notmake you so strong-limbed and hardheaded for naught.Work hard, beobedient, earn your master’s respect, and I will be making lovepotions galore to sell to the valley’s women intent on catchingthemselves a strapping soldier.”
“Love potions?”Their lovepotion was the only false tincture they knowingly sold.“A summer’sworth of good coin, to be sure, but three hundred solidiworth?”
“We’ll figure it out as wego.Until the captain proves other than right and honorable, I wantyou to swear you will stay under his protection.He dislikes theseMidereds and makes little effort to hide it.As long as you don’tanger him too much, he’ll stand between you and them as he didtoday.”
The instinctive sense ofsafety Lara had felt when he’d done so couldn’t be forgotten.Howhe’d stopped Ranulf from showing her legs.How he’d gone againstthe count and saved Wolf’s life.“You’re right enough about thecaptain not liking those lying snake Midereds.”She took a deep,slow breath in and let it out.If Sophie wanted her to do this,there was a reason.This much she’d learned living with Sophie theSixth.“All right.I’ll stay and belidito Captain Guiscard and try notto anger him too much.”
“Good.”Sophie patted herarm.“’Tis good.Much depends on this, you know.Onyou.”
“No, I don’t know.”Lararubbed her temples, which had begun to throb.“Always you tell memuch, but never what.You speak in your seer’s riddles, and my headis near to splitting so that I can’t think straight.”
“There will come a timewhen you’ll know what.”Sophie took Lara by the hand and sat herdown on a bedroll.“Until then, you need to rest.The captain willbe supping with the count, and you should try to get somesleep.”
“You’ll stay with me?”Lara was bone tired and weary.
Sophie sat down beside her.“I’ll staywith you, child.”
Laying her head on Sophie’s lap, Laraclosed her eyes with a sigh, content to be Sophie’s child for awhile longer.
***
Talon
Talon gave Lara as much time to restand himself to think as he could without offending Count Nithard byarriving late to sup with his household.He considered not havingher attend with him, but the day’s events and her conversation withSophie in the tent, of which he’d heard every word, had raised morequestions than they’d answered.Talon didn’t like unansweredquestions, especially ones he found himself in the middleof.
It’d been obvious almost as soon asthe count and his son had taken their seats at Mallus that Nithardhad it out for Lara.And almost as obvious that he feared Sophiethe Sixth, whose calm stares and half smiles had visibly unnervedhim.In fact, if it hadn’t been for Sophie and Talon standingbeside Lara, he’d have wagered coin on Nithard sentencing her todeath along with Wolf.He didn’t know the cause of the enmitybetween the healers and the count, but he was determined to find itout.Lara had been right when she’d called Ranulf a snake, and hisfather was as clever and sneaky as a weasel.The best way Talonknew how to draw either out of their holes was with bait, and Larawas the best bait he had.
He entered his tent, where she laywith her head on Sophie’s lap, awake and watching him with her warycat eyes, Wolf curled up beside her.
“You will sup with me andmy men at the count’s table, Lara,” he told her.“Ready yourself.”He looked to Sophie.“You’re welcome to join us.”
“No.”The old healer shookher head.“I would be anything but welcome at the count’s table.I’ll return home and take Wolf with me.”
Talon nodded.“That’d probably bebest.”
He waited outside the tent as Laramade her preparations, then as she stepped out with her hairfreshly combed and braided, her gown of dusty blue skimming thewomanly curves of her body, she caught him off guard.He tried notto envision her strong, sleekly muscled and tanned legs, legsRanulf had apparently seen as well, the knowledge of which left abitter taste in his mouth.He clenched his scarred hand, all tooaware of the similarities between Ranulf’s story of meeting her inthe river and his own.Even so, Talon was man enough to admit he’ddeserved his slice, and he’d wager coin Ranulf had deserved his aswell.“Come on,” he said brusquely.“We don’t want to insult CountNithard by arriving late.”
They entered the dininghall as the company was being called to table, and Talon acceptedthe seat offered him beside the count’s daughter, a pretty, petite,dark-haired, dark-eyed young woman who sat to her father’s left andRanulf to his father’s right.Talon indicated that Lara should takethe seat to his left, and Tree to hers.Phillipe and Dardinel mixedin with the stewards and their families, whose daughters wereinstantly batting lashes and flashing quick, flirty smiles at them.Talon recalled Sophie’s plans for her love potions and smiled tohimself.Perhaps his purse would be filled with three hundred goldsolidi after all, and his tight-lipped, stone-facedlidiwould be free ofhim, and him of her, a thought that turned his smiledour.
“Where is the witch’shound, Guiscard?”
