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Prologue
1035 – Folkestone Abbey, Kent, England
“Robert! Robert,le Magnifique! My love, where are you? Our son needs you.” Duchess Eloise of Normandy was delirious and ranting while on the birthing bed in the abbey.
“Your Grace, all will be well,” Abbess Murdina said as she placed a cold compress on Eloise’s brow.
“Robert! Why have you abandoned me here?Abbaye de la Trinité de Fécamp est froide,”Eloise shouted while reaching out into thin air as if her husband were there.
“What is she saying, Abbess?” Sister Bissett asked.
“She believes she is still atFécamp Abbey. She complains of the cold. It is not a good sign, Sister.”
The duchess was perspiring profusely. She clasped Murdina’s hand and said, “Has something happened to Robert? What if he dies in the holy land? What will William do to my son?” She collapsed back onto the bed, muttering indecipherable words.
Murdina knew what the duchess spoke of. It was known far and wide that Robert the Duke of Normandy had formally named his illegitimate son William as his heir. It was typical of Robert to refuse to marry his mistresses yet claim his illegitimate children. Except this time, he married Eloise and only a few were privy to it. But Murdina knew because she was present at the wedding in France.
Murdina shook her head at the complication this would cause should the child live.
She did all she could to sooth and calm the duchess while she and Sister Bissett frantically worked throughout the night trying to save both mother and child.
Eloise suddenly clutched Murdina’s arm and demanded, “Promise me you will keep him safe until Robert returns?”
“Aye, I promise I will keep your bairn safe.”
“It is a boy, I can feel it. We must name him, ‘Edmund’, that’s what Robert wanted. Edmund is a nice name,oui?”
“Aye, it is a strong name.”
The duchess visibly relaxed, then her body shuddered as if wracked with pain. She bore down, letting out a piercing scream.
Sister Bissett exchanged a worried glance and whispered, “There’s too much blood.”
Murdina said, “Pray, Sister and dinnae give up.”
The sisters worked hard to save the pair, but their efforts were in vain, and the fates unkind. By midnight all was quiet except for the cry of a tiny babe. A babe whose first breath was taken just as his mother breathed her last.
Murdina cradled the tiny baby boy and mourned the loss of his mother.
She whispered, “Welcome to the world, Edmund, tis sorry I am that your life has begun with loss. But we shall make the best of it.”
The babe seemed to settle as the abbess soothed him.
Sister Bissett asked, “What happens now? Should we send for the duke?”
Murdina replied, “Robert is dead. He perished on the journey back from Jerusalem, just outside of Nicaea. William is the Duke of Normandy now. I did not have the heart to tell the duchess. The missive arrived this morning.”
“Oh Abbess, what a tragedy,” Sister Bissett said as she made the sign of the cross.
“Arrange a proper burial and notify her family.”
“And what of the bairn?” Sister Bissett asked.
This abbey is a denizen ofNormandy.We will take him with us. Send a missive to Brother Mateo for his assistance and a message to theOrder. The child will need parents,” Murdina replied.
“Aye, it shall be done. Did the duke make any provisions for his family?”
“He did. A parcel of land, some coin and an annuity for the duchess should he pass before her. It will be held in trust until Edmund reaches majority.”
