Blind Impulse (30 page)

“
I don’t want the barony,” Juliana cried.
She stood next to Simon, clutching his arm for support.  “If I am baroness then I cannot marry Sir Renwick.”

Alyna blinked, realizing Juliana was exactly right.  If she became baroness, the king would have to approve her marriage.  Simon was too low in ra
nk.

“
You see,
Chause
,” Garin said between clenched teeth.  “Your foolishness threatens to destroy two families, not just one.”

“
I’m sure the king will find a more suitable lord for her than just a common knight.”  He gazed at Garin as if he were a leper. 
“You are to enter into church custody at once.” 
Chause
motioned to two burly ecclesiastical guards.  They stepped forward quickly.

Alyna lunged to Garin’s side, absolutely terrified.  “You can’t do this,” she said hoarsely.  “He is my husband.”

Her father
and the baronial knights bolted to their feet and drew their weapons.  They surged forward to protect their baron but the two guards reached him first.

Garin shoved Alyna behind him.

One guard grabbed Garin’s arm.  In the blink of an eye, Garin twisted ag
ainst the hold, relieved the man of his sword, and tossed him to the ground.  Alyna heard a soft pop and
the man howled in pain. She
knew instantly, Garin had broken his arm.

The second guard slammed his fist into Garin’s jaw.  Garin’s head snapped back and he staggered but quickly r
egained his balance and surged forward.  Alyna saw metal flash in the guard’s hand.

“
Garin, dagger!” she screamed.

Garin slid to a stop, just out of arms reach.  He crouched in his fighting stance, clenching and unclenching his fists.

Suddenly Simon steppe
d before Garin, his sword at the ready.  “Touch my baron and you will die,” he growled, his face dark with rage.

“
Stay that weapon!”
Chause
bellowed.  “Sir Renwick, if you harm one of my guards, you will face charges for crimes against the church.”

Simon b
lanched, his throat working as he swallowed but he did not move.

Alyna remained rooted, shaking like a leaf.  If charged with a severe enough crime, Simon might be excommunicated.

The baronial knights, only a pace away from the combatants hesitated.

“
Are y
ou all daft?”
Chause
roared.  “Swein’s fate is already sealed.”  He gestured toward the baronial knights.  “But the next person who moves will pay for their disobedience to the Holy Mother Church.”

Alyna’s heart stalled as her father curled his lip and rel
axed his sword arm.  “Nay,” she whispered, her voice strained.  “Father--”

Geoff locked her in his gaze, his eyes blazing.  Alyna swallowed hard, understanding that look from childhood. 
Be silent.
  Abruptly he sheathed his sword. 
“Baron Swein,” he said,
his voice low and powerful.  “I strongly suggest you stand down.  There is another way.”

Garin’s face drained of all color.  “Geoff....” he whispered, as if shocked his best knight would betray him.

“
Your father,” Geoff said sternly, “trusted me to guard h
is life during the worst melees.  I never once failed him.  I give you my word as a knight, I will not fail you and neither will my daughter.”

Garin’s shoulders slumped in defeat.  He reached up and touched Simon’s arm.  “Put away your weapon, my friend. 
This fight cannot be won by the sword.”

Simon stared at Garin, his eyes wide and his face pale.  He glanced at Geoff who gave him a curt nod.  Slowly he returned his sword and stepped back.  The guard grabbed Garin’s arm.

Simon
turn
ed
his back,
his expression twisted in anguish, and his body quivering.  He was helpless to defend his brother in arms and that helplessness would never sit well with a man like Simon.

The guard pulled Garin forward.

Furious tears streamed down Alyna’s cheeks.  “Wait,
” she cried and rushed forward.

Garin stiffened as the guard turned on her.  “Alyna, nay!”

She slid to a stop.  “Please,” she whispered, sobs threatening to choke her.  “Just let me say goodbye.”

The guard looked to
Chause
whose jaw tightened.

“
Please,” sh
e said again, before
Chause
could deny her.  “By annulling this marriage, the c
hurch says it never happened b
ut that does not truly change the past.  At least let me say goodbye to the man
I love
.”

Out of the corner of her eye,
she saw Garin flinch and lower his head, his eyes squeezed shut in agony.

Chause
studied her a long moment then curtly nodded.  “As long as Swein promises no foolishness.”

“
No foolishness,” he replied.

The guard stepped back and Alyna threw herself into Ga
rin’s arms, fighting to control her bitter sobs but failing miserably.

Garin crushed her to him and she returned his embrace with all of her strength.  He buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply, then his lips brushed her ear.  “What am I to do?” he
whispered, his voice thick, conveying the deep power of his heartbreak.  “How can I live behind walls, denied you?  Being baron doesn’t matter
anymore
, I don’t care if they take that from me.  But now they are taking you and my child from me.  They have
not only destroyed my life but my soul.”

A sob twisted from her throat and she fought to reclaim her voice.  “Father has a plan, the fight is not over.”

“
Alyna we fought for months and failed.”

“
It is not over!” She choked again.  “You asked how you can li
ve without me b
ut how can I live without you?  How can I raise our child?”

“
You will find a good man,” he replied but she clearly heard the bitterness in his
voice.

“
Nay,” she said and cupped his face in her hands, only now feeling the dampness on his ch
eeks.  “The church may have annulled our marriage, but that cannot change my heart.  I will never know another man, Garin.  I will raise our babe in the love and warmth Salkeld Hall.  Our son or daughter will want for nothing.”  Abruptly her sobs returned.
  “Except for a father.”

Garin recoiled as if she had hit him in the gut.  “I can’t....”  He sucked in a ragged breath.  “I can’t bear this.  I can’t lose you, Alyna.”

“
Come now,”
Chause
barked.  “Enough is enough.”

Alyna was certain he could not hear thei
r whispered conversation. 
Chause
simply reacted to the time they were taking.  “I love you, Garin Swein,” she said.

“
And I love you.”  Abruptly he moved and his mouth closed on hers.  Uncaring of what anyone thought, Garin’s kiss was anything but chaste.
Alyna returned it with all she possessed.

“
Enough!  Take him.”

Still in the midst of their kiss, the guard grabbed Garin’s arm, twisting it behind him, and hauled him brutally away from her.

Alyna tried to move after him but her father gently gripped her
shoulder.

“
Nay,” she moaned.

The guard shoved Garin to his knees, but the fight was gone from her beloved husband.  Three more guards stepped forward.  One helped the guard with the broken arm and the other two viciously hauled Garin’s arms behind his back
, locking him in manacles.

“
No, please don’t!” Alyna cried, trying to lunge forward.  “You don’t need to chain him.”

“
Sir Salkeld,”
Chause
barked.  “Rein in your errant daughter before I bring the wrath of the Holy Mother Church against you and yours.”

“
Be
silent, Alyna,” her father hissed in her ear.  “We have lost this battle but there remains the war to be fought.  We cannot win it if
Chause
rings our nose
s
like a bull.”

Her heart breaking in agony, Alyna fell to her knees, sobbing.  “Garin, I love you!”

“
And I love you, my
wildefyr
,” he said as the guards hauled him to his feet and out the door.  The terrible noise of the chains rattling in her ears.

Her father pulled her in a tight embrace.  “’Twill be all right, Alyna.”

She only cried harder.

Chapter Seventeen

The guards hauled Garin into the bailey, the sound of Alyna’s agonizing sobs haunting him.  He wanted to throw his head back and howl his rage.  He wanted to break the chains with the strength of Samson and ki
ll those around him.

Abruptly Garin snorted, Samson ended his life in chains and blinded too.  The guards relieved him of his dagger, baronial circlet, and any adornment.  But he noticed they forgot his wedding ring.  Garin gave thanks for that small favor
.  They shoved him into a wagon. 

Garin quickly realized it was completely enclosed.  He heard the keys rattling in the lock.  Moments later, the wagon lurched forward, knocking Garin into the straw.  He lay still, despair threatening to overwhelm him.  H
e had lost everything.

How could they do this to him?  How could they take his wife and child away from him?

My sweet Alyna, my beloved wildefyr.

He prayed Geoff’s plan would work, although he had no idea what to expect. 

The wagon moved steadily away fro
m Kirkoswald.  It wasn’t very long before it came to a stop and the guards hauled Garin out.  They must have taken him to the
Croglin
Rectory.  It wasn’t very far from Kirkoswald, perhaps Alyna could visit him on occasion.

An awful pain rose within him, dr
iving the air from his lungs.  He heard the clatter of boots echoing off thick stone walls.  The sound of heated voices reached him.  Father Thomas argued with
Chause
but Garin could not make out what they said.

The guards shoved Garin forward, then unlock
ed his chains.  Two other men, Garin assumed they were monks since they did not wear armor, stripped his clothes away, leaving only his braies.

Muttering under his breath, Father Thomas entered.  He stood still for a long moment and sighed.  “Garin, I am s
orry.”

Garin only kept his jaw clamped shut.

Thomas sighed again.  “Would you like me to hear your confession and administer communion before....” his voice faded.

Before what?  Garin shrugged and dropped to his knees.  “Aye,” he replied tightly.

It didn’t
take long and soon Garin was once again escorted down the hall.  Father Thomas led them, the two monks flanked him.  But Garin also heard the rustle of mail and the thunk of hard soled boots - the guards hovered right behind, in case Garin decided to figh
t.

The sound of a heavy door opening reached him, the hinges squeaking painfully.  Someone shoved him from behind and he pitched headfirst into the stone floor.  The huge door boomed shut and he heard keys turning the heavy lock.

Panic arose within him as
Garin felt damp, moldy rushes on the floor.  He had expected to be treated as one of the brethren, a novice perhaps, not locked away like an animal.  He lurched to his feet, his hands outstretched, as he quickly explored the room.

Thick stone walls formed
a small circle around him which he could cross in three paces.  He found a cot with a moth eaten blanket and a chamber pot on the floor.  His fingers slid across the stone as he made a full circuit. No windows, only a small barred opening in the door which
had a wooden shutter. 

Dear God, what had they done to him?  He was cursed to see only darkness and now he had to live in it, never feeling the warmth of sunshine on his face.  A terrible moldy stench assailed him, he would never breathe the fresh air of
a fine spring day - or know the gentle scent of lavender.

He would never see Alyna again.

Fury and pain rose within him, anguish threatened to rip him apart.  Something within his heart crumbled like a broken dam before a flood.  Garin roared in agony and
threw his body mercilessly against the heavy oak door.

****

Weeks passed with Alyna wandering the castle grounds, lost and confused.  Her heart had shattered and would never be made whole again.  Every night she cried herself to sleep, clutching Garin’s
pillow to her chest. 

Juliana refused to claim her inheritance and would not hear of Alyna leaving the solar.  Eleanor resumed the duties of baroness since Juliana would not.

Geoff sent and received many mysterious scrolls through a nondescript messenger
.  He did not tell her of his supposed plan, only that he had written letters to enact it.  She finally gave up asking, deciding her father had said only what he did so Garin would not be killed.

She had requested repeatedly to visit Garin, which her fathe
r agreed, but
Chause
adamantly refused her, saying women were not allowed in the rectory.  She had even tried sending baskets of food or small gifts to Garin, always with a dried sprig of lavender, but they were returned.

She wrote a letter to Father Thoma
s, asking if she sent letters to Garin, would Father Thomas read them to him.  He replied it was not his decision to make but if
Chause
allowed it, then he would be glad to read the letters to Garin.

Alyna didn’t even bother to write
Chause
because she kne
w what his answer would be.  Fortunately, Father Thomas did reply to her various inquiries to Garin’s health, saying he was doing well but adjusting slowly.

One morning, Alyna rose woodenly and dressed. She descended into the hall, surprised to see her fat
her speaking with an ecclesiastical herald.  Next to him stood Juliana and Simon.  Alyna blinked, by the man’s fine clothing she surmised he was of very high rank.

Geoff looked up from the scroll he read.  “Alyna, this is Johannes of Kent.  Johannes, this
is my daughter Alyna Swein.”

She blinked at her father use of her married name.

“
My lady,” the herald said with a bright smile.  He bowed deeply.  He was a tall man, lean and whip-cord thin.  His face was handsome with short dark hair and bright green eyes
. 

Alyna curtsied.  “Well met, my lord.”

“
Alyna,” her father said.  “Might I suggest we gather in the solar over some fine wine?  I’m sure Johannes is parched with his journey from London.”

“
London?” she asked
,
astonished
,
then abruptly recovered her wits.
Where were her manners?  “Of course,” she said quickly.  She summoned a servant to bring wine, bread and cheese, then led the four up to the solar.

“
Sir Salkeld,” Johannes said.  “I will have need of those manuscripts.”

“
Of course
.”
H
e handed the scroll c
ase to Johannes.  “I’ll be right back.”

They settled in the solar and Alyna waited impatiently while a servant filled their cups.  Johannes drank deeply and sighed.  “My thanks to you, lady, I was indeed parched,” he said and handed her the scroll case.

Sh
e took it, battling to read.  She had gone so long in a numb fog that she found it almost impossible to start thinking again.  Abruptly she rubbed her eyes.  “Forgive me, but I am spent.  These past weeks have been exceptionally difficult.”

“
Not to mention
the breeding sickness has hit you particularly hard,” Juliana said, gripping her shoulder.

Johannes gazed at her, his expression compassionate.  “I understand, my lady.  I am a law cleric in service to Bishop Frances of London.  He received your father’s
letter and does indeed believe there is a possibility of corruption in this situation.  He sent me as his representative to make a decision on the case.”

“
In other words,” her father said, pushing his way through the door with an armload of scrolls and man
uscripts.  “Johannes has the power of a bishop in this matter which is very important to us.”

“
How so?” Alyna asked, rising to help him pile the scrolls on the table.

Geoff’s lips quirked upward.  “You see, Alyna, in matters of war, I am
well-schooled
, but
not in the matters of the church.  I thought
Chause
overstepped his bounds and Juliana verified I was right.  Only the bishop or clergy of higher rank can annul a marriage - not an arch-deacon.”

Juliana picked up one of the scrolls.  “Your father has been
in contact with Thomas.  Thomas also believed
Chause
acted irresponsibly but as you know,
Croglin
is small and does not have an extensive library. 
Chause
has to approve requests for documents from other libraries and of course refused Thomas.”

“
So,” Geof
f said.  “Thomas put me in touch with Johannes who
sen
t
the documents to me.  Juliana, Simon, and I studied them and she was the one who discovered the
decretal
.  I composed a letter to the bishop telling him about the situation and Johannes was a
lso able to brief him on the letters I had previously sent.”

“
And that is why I am here,” Johannes said.  “The scroll in your hand gives my mark the authority of the bishop’s in this case.”

Alyna stared at her father in shock.  “But why didn’t you tell me?
  I could have helped.”

He looked at her, his expression grave.  “I wanted to, Alyna, but I feared what this might do to you if we failed.  I knew you would work yourself to death over these scrolls and with your breeding illness striking so hard, I worrie
d for your health.”  He paused and took a deep breath.  “I see much of your mother in you with this breeding, forgive me if I decide to err on the side of caution.”

She couldn’t find it in her heart to be angry with him.

“
But now,” Johannes said.  “We will
need your help.  I cannot arrive and arbitrarily decide to overturn
Chause’s
decision.  I must write a
decretal
on the matter which means finding the facts that despite his blindness Garin Swein is fit to be a husband and a baron.  Ultimately, the bishop
will hold me accountable for my work and if I do not present myself well he will flay my hide.”

“
Could the bishop overrule your decision?” Alyna asked.

“
He could, but so could higher clergy.  That is why I must write the
decretal
as solidly as possible.  I
f I do my work well then it is unlikely anyone would try.”  He sat back and
steepled
his fingers in front of him.  “So, lady, I need to you to prove to me your husband’s abilities.”

Bitter tears burned in her eyes.  “How can I?  He proved it for six months
but was ignored and now he’s not here.”

“
Worry not, my lady.  I will be speaking to various peop
le, their testimony will be
enough.”

“
We’ve recalled the knights,” her father said.  “They will be arriving soon.”

Alyna propped her elbows on the table a
nd put her head in her hands.  “Not again,” she groaned.  “Our kitchens cannot take much more.”

Her father chuckled and gripped her shoulder.  “Worry not, it won’t be as difficult to manage as it was for the siege.”

She rubbed her eyes, wondering if she sc
arcely dared hope or if she would return to the agony of defeat and disappointment.  But she thought of the life growing within her.
Please God, please let this work.  I need Garin back.

“
I can’t give up, not now.”

“
That’s my girl,” her father said with a
smile.  “Now, Johannes, where do you want to start?”

****

Alyna quickly discovered Johannes was serious about producing his best work.  She gave him the small library in which to conduct his interviews and research.  Alyna spoke with him several times. 
She found herself distinctly uncomfortable when they addressed some details of her married life, but she saw Johannes trying only to make certain she was truly happy with Garin.

She told him in detail of her work with Garin to conquer his blindness and Joh
annes also spoke several times with Roger, even watching him ply his trade in the workshop Garin had granted him.

Johannes interviewed at length every knight who served under Garin during the siege.  He called Simon and listened intently to the tales of ba
ttle in the Holy Land.  Through it all, Johannes was kind, polite, and professional.  But the worst interview came when he talked with Juliana about her actions regarding Peter Naworth.

The two had been in the study for hours, with Simon pacing before the
door.  Alyna sat in the great hall, reading manuscripts with her father, and watching the door discreetly.  Suddenly it flung open and Juliana rushed out, crying bitterly.