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“As you command, my lord.”

Paris turned to his friend when the knight was gone. “You do not blame her, do you?”

William shook his head. “Nay, Paris, I think I know my wife well enough to know that whatever she might have done to encourage him, she was completely innocent. Hell, you said yourself he was after her at the wedding. Even Michael commented on it.” He shook the dust and splinters from his hair. “Jordan is so damn trusting. She sees only the good in people and overlooks their flaws, which in de Troiu’s case is the fact that he is a rake. She probably just enjoyed having someone she knew to talk to.”

“And de Troiu took advantage of her trusting nature,” Paris growled. “The man is a goddamn vulture.”

William went into the antechamber, pouring water in the basin to clean the cuts on his hands. Paris followed him, pouring himself a cup of wine.

“I suppose what made me the most angry is that I am not there to defend my wife,” William said after a few moments. “She is living in Sodom and I am not there to protect her from people like de Troiu. Now everyone, including the king, most likely thinks ill of her, when it simply isn’t true.”

Paris sipped his wine. “I have no doubt that you will set them all straight when you return,” he said. “But you had absolutely no choice whether or not to leave her in London. She had just given birth and could not be moved, and you were mobilizing an army. ’Twas bad circumstances.”

William looked up at his friend, pain deep in the hazel-gold depths. “I want her back here with me,” he said quietly. “I miss her, Paris. I miss my children. De Troiu is going to die for the slander he has caused, I swear it.”

Paris set down the cup. “I know,” he said, then brushed at the dirt on William’s shoulder. “Hell, man, you’d better take a bath. You look like a peasant with all of that dirt. And you smell bad, too.”

William cocked an eyebrow at him. “I am surprised you can smell me over yourself,” he quipped, once again feeling in control of himself.

He took the longest bath he could ever remember taking.

*

Nearly two weeks after the first attack was launched, Northwood finally began digging out from beneath the rubble. The weather actually cleared a bit, but it was still freezing and blustery as soldiers and knights and peasants worked side by side to repair their once-proud fortress.

William had spent the morning in conference with William Payton-Forrester and Captain Brockenhurst, relaying the contents of the missive from his wife and listening to their varied advice. With the Scots subdued for the moment, Payton-Forrester insisted William should ride to London himself with the full complement of Northwood knights to retrieve his wife. He and Brockenhurst could remain until they returned, but William was reluctant.

“If I return myself, Henry will demand I stay,” William told the men.

Payton-Forrester sat on the edge of the huge oak table, tossing his long blond hair over his shoulders. “Tell old Henry that you must return your wife safely to Northwood and remain there should the Scots act up again.”

“That’s right,” Brockenhurst put in. “Simply tell Henry that the battle is not over yet. Northwood must be protected until she can be rebuilt, which could take months.”

William glanced at his friends, mulling over their words. “Then what would justify me bringing my wife and children back to a compromised fortress when they could just as easily remain within the safety of Windsor?” he asked softly. “Do I tell Henry that I fear for my wife’s reputation? That I must have her with me at all costs, even if it jeopardizes her life? If the battle with the Scots is not over, then she should not be here. It is logical that she remain in London.”

“Henry has heard the rumors, William,” Payton-Forrester said pointedly. “He would not fault you for wanting to remove your wife for your own peace of mind.”

The man had a valid point. The more he thought about it, the more convinced he was that he should take all of his knights and retrieve his wife.

Yet his only real concern was the words of Thomas Scott, the attacking army had been using Jordan as a whipping post for their hate. If indeed the battle was not over yet, then could he truly risk her safety by bringing her here? God help him, what if the worst happened and the Scots overran Northwood on their second attempt and got a hold of his wife? He shook himself; that simply would not happen. Jordan was as safe here as if God himself protected her.

He stood up. “Very well,” he said. “You gentle men have convinced me that only I should withdraw my wife. ’Tis my duty as her husband. I think I will take my knights, as well as Northwood’s, including Paris. William, can you spare me your second?”

Payton-Forrester nodded. “Gainsborough? Of course. Steven and I can hold Northwood until you return.”

“I shall leave de Moray here and the entire army, so I doubt you will have any problems while I am gone,” William said. “I will, however, take one hundred men-at-arms with me as well, and with John Gainsborough I will have ten knights. With Lewis dead and Adam the new earl, I am down two.”

He walked from the room flanked by his two friends.

“I should like to go with you as well, William,” Payton-Forrester grinned. “To see de Troiu’s face when he sees you have come for Jordan would be worth the hard ride tenfold.”

“As would I,” Brockenhurst agreed solemnly. De Troiu was his liege. “William, I do not know what to say about the earl’s actions except he is a man with little morals and even less subtlety. I am deeply ashamed by his actions.”

“You serve the man, Steven, you do not control him,” William said. “Whatever he has done does not affect my friendship with you.”

Relieved, Steven simply nodded silently as the three men continued out into the bailey.

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX