Page 224

Adam nodded. “For all intent and purposes, yes. He thought father was foolish for all of the alliances he had built up when Northwood herself was so powerful,” he said, shaking his head. “He simply did not understand. The only thing Alexander had ever cared about was money and power, and to hell with the reality of how those things are achieved. He believed our king to be a stupid old man and unworthy to be his liege. I think he was bordering on madness.”

William nodded grimly. “Alexander was always on the brink of insanity. But this is far beyond what I believed him capable of.”

Adam sighed. “When I tried to talk to him, to reason with him, he would become enraged and throw things at me. He was mad, I tell you, and it soon became apparent that he did not want me around.”

William sat silently, watching the young man’s agony. His appearance, as well as his manner, told William a great deal. First to lose his father and then to kill his brother, it was creating a tremendous sense of confusion within him.

The young earl took a drink from the cup at his hand and continued. “I began to fear for my life, although Paris and the other knights swore they would protect me.” He shook his head, his eyes dull at the irony. “Protect me from my brother. Then it came one night. We had a fearsome argument over Northwood’s alliance to Langton. Alexander accused me of treason and all sorts of horrible things, and before I realized it he was coming at me with a dagger. God, it all happened so fast. I drew my sword and cut him down. I killed him.”

“You defended yourself,” William said softly. “Alexander would have murdered you and you simply defended yourself. ’Tis no shame in that, Adam.”

Adam looked miserable. “But I am a knight. With all of my training, I should have been able to disarm him instead of kill him. I should have thought before I swung my sword.”

“Had you thought, you most likely would have died,” William said. “Adam, simply because you have been trained and knighted does not necessarily mean that you instantly achieve experience. To become a seasoned warrior takes time. You are blaming yourself for following your training and you should not.”

Adam looked at the earl, thinking on his words. “But I killed my brother.”

“Would you rather have died?” William shot back gently. “Why do you torture yourself for protecting your own life?”

Adam lowered his gaze, looking very weary. Half of his agony was caused by the fact that he truly didn’t know his brother. He had only recently returned home and had not the chance to get acquainted with him, and even though he had been told such, he didn’t want to believe his brother was an utterly evil person. All of the knights at Northwood who had served John de Longley knew exactly what kind of person Alexander was. Adam simply did not want to believe ill of his only brother, even when the man came at him with a knife.

He sighed. “Thank you, my lord. I value your words.”

William rose from the chair. “And never forget, young earl, that I am never wrong,” he said, half-jesting. “If I may be so bold, ’tis time you come to grips with what has happened and get on with your life. You are the Earl of Teviot now, and a great responsibility has fallen on you. You have a great legacy to uphold.”

Adam looked up at him, doubt and hope hand and hand in his expression. “I will do my best.”

William put a hand on the young man’s shoulders. “That will be enough.”

He quit the room, hoping he had done some good to ease the lad’s mind. But it was something Adam would have to deal with himself, no matter what anyone said. He felt it would be best if Adam delved back into the battle clean-up to clear his mind, but he would not suggest it until the morrow. Let the new earl get a good night’s sleep first, which was exactly what he was planning to do.

He was home.

*

Nearly three weeks had passed since William had left London for the great wild north. Jordan ached for him every minute of the day, every time she held one of her sons. But the nights were the worst, sleeping alone in the great bed in the strange London apartments. She wanted to go home to Northwood desperately.

In spite of her loneliness, she had somewhat enjoyed her stay at Windsor. Court life was busy and exciting, and Analiese had thrust herself into the mainstream of the bustle and came home every evening with scads of gossip. Watching Analiese at court made Jordan think that the woman had finally found her niche in life. She had blossomed in personality and character, although she had begun to keep strange company with some wildly painted women.

Jordan, to fight off the boredom, had taken to gathering with Analiese and her new friends as well, attending church with them as well as various social functions. Word soon got around that the exquisite new woman was none other than The Wolf’s wife, and with William gone on the king’s work, Jordan soon found herself besieged with male admirers.

At first she had ignored the attention and endured a great deal of teasing from Analiese. But soon, her patience was beginning to wear thin, as was the tolerance of Analiese’s new friends. Jealousy had begun to blossom for the beautiful Scot, but they dared not insult her, for fear of offending her husband.

One of Jordan’s chief admirers was none other than Baron de Troiu. He had come to London on business and remained by request of the king. The earl’s troops had been involved in the battle for Northwood, but the man did not take a personal interest in leading his troops, and he was unconcerned with Captain Brockenhurst leading his men. Moreover, his support of Northwood made Jordan feel as if she had a friend in him, and she kept fairly steady company with him simply because she was lonely and he was a friendly, familiar face.

She thought nothing of the cozy meals they would take together in her rooms or of the walks through the palace gardens. He was witty and wise and she liked to talk to him. He seemed very interested in what she had to say, much like William, and keeping company with the baron eased her aching heart and made her deeply long for her husband at the same time. It was a strange paradox.

Jordan’s first mistake was her innocence. Never having been to court before, she had no knowledge of the intrigue that went on. Gossip was something fairly new to her, never once imagining that she would become the subject of some of the hottest rumors to hit Windsor in years. She thought Baron de Troiu to be her friend, and a friend only. To imagine having a liaison with him in William’s absence had never entered her mind.

It was late in the morning and Jordan had been up since before dawn. Scott had the colic and she had spent hours walking trying to comfort the babe. Finally, he went back to sleep and she took the opportunity to bathe and wash her hair. She sat in front of her huge bronze dressing mirror, drying her hair in the warm room air, wondering how William was faring. Sweet Jesu,’ she missed him.

On the dressing table was a note from de Troiu, requesting her presence for a ride later on that day. She thought it might be nice to get out in the air after the hellish night she’d had with Scott, but had yet to reply to the note. She suspected Daniel would be around to see her later that morning, as he usually did.

Analiese entered the room, carrying an armful of freshly washed linens for the babies. She deposited them on the bed, wandering over to Jordan and taking the brush from her hands, taking over the job of drying Jordan’s hair.

“I heard the baby this morn,” she said casually. “Thank God he sleeps.”

Jordan nodded, watching her hair as it tumbled down around her shoulders with each stroke. “Aye,” she yawned. “I am exhausted. Scott is colicky most of the time, but Troy is a dream. And he even eats more than his brother.”