St. Alban knew it was foolish. He’d spent the better part of the past hour concocting this scheme, listening to Brogan weep and piecing together a course of action. For a man who had been useless for years, he felt more alive, more powerful, than he ever had. It was his youth returned, even for a futile cause. But he was determined.
He smiled weakly. “Have you ever been to Merseyside?”
“Merseyside?” Thel repeated. “Why do you ask?”
St. Alban put his arm around Thel’s shoulder and pulled her into the dim, smelly chamber. Before the door closed softly behind them, quiet words could be heard into the corridor.
“There is a party from the Tower leaving for Merseyside at some point this morning. Can you be ready?”
The door was almost closed. “Be ready for what?” Thel could be heard saying.
The panel snapped shut.
*
They were onthe road north before noon. Avalyn had decided against riding her big bay colt, the very same horse that had caused her introduction to Brogan, instead choosing to ride in a small cab that was a gift from her future husband. Pulled by a matching team of white horses, it was rather confined but comfortable. Moreover, it gave her an excuse not to ride next to her intended. She wanted to be alone with her thoughts and didnot want to have to be a part of Aubrey’s attempts, though kind, to come to know her better. She just wanted to be left to herself.
Strangely, that sentiment didn’t seem to extend to William. Her uncle had agreed to allow Inglesbatch to accompany her and she kept him around her like a shield, watching him puff up every time Aubrey’s captain came around. Though most of what Avalyn knew of Barton St. John was his hair-pulling and interrogation tactics, he seemed almost cordial as the party bound for Merseyside completed its assembly. Charles, of course, couldn’t seem to do enough for the lady as they prepared to leave. He was very nearly groveling at her feet the entire time and Avalyn was very quickly coming to feel some distaste for him; he was coming across as weak and spineless, though his behavior during her interrogation told her otherwise. Having thrown himself between St. John and William when the men started fighting, she knew that Charles was stronger, and more fierce, than he let on.
But it still did nothing to erase her distaste of him from her lips. When the party was complete, all trunks loaded and a contingent of forty de Neville men in place for the lady’s comfort, Charles mounted his fat gray Belgian warmblood and the party moved out.
Avalyn was not surprised that her family had not come out to bid her farewell. Perhaps it was a last note at their displeasure in her actions; she suspected it was her uncle’s decision alone as a show of his disapproval. With all she had meant to the man, for as close as they had been, she found his absence stinging. Glazing up in the windows of the apartments, she saw Isobel and young Anne with their faces pressed against the windows, tears on their faces. They waved wildly when they saw they had Avalyn’s attention. She waved back and blew kisses. Standing next to Isobel was her aunt; the woman gazed emotionlessly back at her niece as the carriage began to pull away. Just whenAvalyn was nearly out of eyeshot, her aunt blew her a gentle kiss. That gesture alone caused Avalyn to crumble completely. Even if Richard would shun her, Anne would not.
Sobbing softly into her kerchief, she noticed little as the cab pulled out of the tower and traveled the road that would take them to the main highway north and west. As the party paralleled the Thames, she gazed over the water, watching the cloudy sunlight play off of the ripples. It was spring and the ground was just coming to life after a particularly hard winter; patches of green dotted the gray landscape, grew in gutters and on patches on thatched roofs. Somehow, the weather reminded her of her feelings; mostly gray with patches of green. There was hope among the desolation. Something deep inside her had sprouted and would not give up without a fight. No matter how gray the world looked at the moment, she had to cling to that hope.
She didn’t know how long a thick red charger was walking next to her. It seemed as if it had always been there but she was just coming to notice it. She could see a big red neck and head. Peering out of the window, she gazed up into Inglesbatch’s strong, round face. His big blue eyes gazed at her steadily through his raised visor.
“Does my lady require anything?” he asked pleasantly.
She shook her head. “I just wanted to see if you were there.”
“I am.”
“Where are we stopping for the night?”
William’s gaze moved to the head of the column where St. John and Aubrey rode. “Beaconfield. Perhaps even as far as Wyecomb if the weather and stamina hold out. But I believe your fiancé is concerned with your health and will leave the decision to you.”
“Has Aubrey said anything to you about my disappearance this morning?”
He shook his head. “No more than he said to your uncle.”
Avalyn thought back to that moment a few hours ago. She and William had barely made it back to the Tower when Aubrey happened upon them, sitting on a carved bench in the courtyard of the White Tower. It had been a good cover; they made it seem as if they had been sitting there, talking, for quite some time and Aubrey hadn’t been the wiser. “What more could he say when he found us sitting in the courtyard of the Tower speaking of the weather?” she asked rhetorically.
“Nothing.”
“Do you think my uncle suspects you?”
“My trust with your uncle has been long established. I hope that he would believe that I found you in the courtyard and kept you with me to prevent you from doing anything foolish.”
“Do you think that’s why he agreed to let you accompany me to Guerdley Cross?”
“You told your aunt that you were afraid of St. John. I believe it was Lady Anne that convinced him to send me for your protection.”
Avalyn fell silent a moment, thinking how much William had done for her over the past day. He had always been loyal. But his behavior over the past several hours went beyond normal loyalty. She had no idea how she could ever thank the man.
“Just as long as you are not suspect,” she said quietly. “That is all I am concerned with at this moment.”
William lifted an eyebrow. “Perhaps I am not suspect, but all eyes are still on you. Even if Lord Aubrey is willing to overlook your behavior where it pertains to d’Aurilliac, St. John isn’t. The man is no fool.”
