Page 43 of Retribution

“I know that you get into bed with a man who hates the king,” he said. “That is all I know for certain.”

He would have done less damage had he slapped her. Cleodora stared at him, her recent tears completely gone, replaced by shock and disappointment. She was so hurt by his words that it was a struggle for her to maintain her composure.

Maybe there wasn’t anyone in this world who would help her.

Maybe she’d been a fool to think so.

“Then I apologize for having wasted your time,” she said, her voice trembling as she moved around him, heading for the door. “But before I leave you, know this—I did not have a choice with being a Jewel. I was chosen by King Henry and, as you know, one does not disobey the king. I was given over to Cambridge because Henry wished to keep a viper sated with a gift of the finest flesh England had to offer. I was a peace offering. I did not choose to go with Cambridge. If you must know, I hate the man. He feeds my father money and poppy juice to keep him under control, and he locks me in a chamber nearly all day and all night to keep me under control. He abuses me with his threats and cruel words, withholds food when he feels like punishing me for any reason, but also spends a knight’s full salary on a garment I wear to a king’s feast because he wants to show the world what a rich man he is. He is vain and selfish and petty. And you think I want to kill for this man? If you do, then you are out of your damnable mind, good sir. You truly are.”

With that, she threw the door open, barely giving Aidric time to move out of the way so de Baume wouldn’t see him standing in the chamber. He was over near the small door that Adelie had gone through and quickly knocked on it, bringing the woman forth and gesturing toward the open door so she would realize Cleodora had left the room. As the older woman dashed out, Aidric shut the door behind her.

“There,” he said to the men behind the wardrobe. “Have you heard enough?”

Gerard was the first to emerge. “You played her well.”

Britt came out after him, shaking his head at what he’d heard. “Truthfully?” he said. “I do not think she was lying, Aidric. I know why you were cruel to her, to see if she’d show her true face, but she did not. She did not change her story.”

Aidric was upset at what he’d done, upset at himself, at the situation in general. The look of disappointment on her face when she left the chamber had almost been more than he could bear. He looked at Gerard.

“And you?” he said. “What do you think now that you’ve heard her?”

Gerard drew in a long, deep breath. “I do not know,” he said. “If she is lying to you and she does intend to get close to Edward, then she’s going to have to do it another way. And what happened to your using her against Cambridge? I thought you were going to turn the tables on her?”

Aidric shook his head and turned away. “I have no enthusiasm for that any longer,” he said. “The problem is that I believe her, Gerard. I believe her and I just cruelly told the woman she’ll not receive my help and I do not care what happens to her. Frankly, I do not care about eliminating Cambridge any longer. If you want to do it, go ahead, but leave me out of it.”

“I cannot leave you out of it,” Gerard said pointedly. “You are in command of the king’s personal guard. You must be involved in his protection.”

“I am,” Aidric nearly exploded, trying not to raise his voice but furious at Gerard’s insinuation. “I capably protect Edward, as I capably protected his father for years. Years, de Velt. Mayhap I was not an Executioner Knight, hiding in shadows and doing dirty deeds in the name of protecting the monarchy, but every damn day I put my life on the line protecting a king whom many would like to see dead. If someone attacks him, who do you think his human shield is? It’s not you. It’s me. Me and five other men who would gladly die for him. We are the Guard of Six and you’ll not lecture me on the king’s protection. I live it every day.”

By this time, Britt had put himself between Aidric and Gerard before Aidric decided to physically demonstrate his frustration, gently pushing him away. Gerard, however, had no intention of throwing a punch or otherwise attacking Aidric, mostly because he understood that he’d crossed the line a little. He was trying to pull Aidric into the Executioner Knights’ dark world of intrigue, asking the man to become an operative, when there was far more at stake than a simple matter of manipulating a frightened young woman.

“I did not mean to intimate that you do not do your job well,” he said, backing down a little. “I know you do your job well, else you would not be in command.”

Aidric wasn’t ready to be soothed yet. “Go back out the way you came,” he said, throwing a careless hand toward the windows. “I do not wish to discuss this right now.”

With that, he went through the door that led to the adjoining chamber, heading back into the shop where he could escape from the rear and not be seen by the Cambridge escort in the front. He was in a long, cluttered chamber at the back of the shop and beyond was the yard where there were broken barrels, furniture, and other bits of rubbish from the shop and surrounding businesses. He was just heading out of the back door when he happened to glance over to his right. There was a corridor and a series of adjoining chambers, but in his direct line of sight was Cleodora, sitting on a chair in a chamber and weeping into her hand.

He came to a halt.

With a heavy sigh, he headed in her direction.

She seemed to be quite alone. De Baume was nowhere to be seen, which Aidric found strange, but it also put him on his guard. The last thing he wanted was for Cambridge’s knight to see him with the Jewel. He had to pass through a narrow corridor before entering the chamber where Cleodora was sitting, so he looked both ways to see that it was empty before proceeding.

Cleodora had her head down and he could hear her soft sobs. Perhaps he was being stupid, but he didn’t think so. A woman trying to manipulate him wouldn’t be weeping into her hands like this. She’d be off trying to figure out how to force him to do what she wanted him to do. She wouldn’t be lamenting this way.

As if her heart was broken.

As if he’d hurt her terribly.

“I am sorry,” he finally whispered. “I did not mean what I said. I did not mean to offend you so, my lady. Please know that I am… sorry.”

She jumped at the sound of his voice, leaping to her feet. She was across the chamber by the time he finished, pressed back against the way and looking at him with startled eyes. But that shock quickly turned to suspicion and anger.

“Go away,” she spat. “You have said what you needed to say. I do not need to hear your empty apologies.”

He was genuinely remorseful. “They are not empty, I assure you,” he said. “My lady, you must understand something. The men we serve are enemies. Anyone loyal to the man they serve would do what was asked of him, or her, and do it any way he or she could. I do not know you. I have only just met you. Mayhap I have earned your trust by protecting you from the robbers the other day, but you have earned no such trust with me. Does that make sense? You did not save me from any robbers.”

She was still edgy, angry, but his words had calmed her somewhat with their reason. “I suppose not,” she said. “But there is no way for me to do that for you. There is no way for me to establish trust. I do not know what else to do if my honesty has not been enough.”