Janna Mysteries 1 & 2 Bindup (45 page)

T
HE MOMENT OF
peace and thanksgiving was quickly over as Hugh leapt off his destrier and hurried over to check for himself that Hamo was alive and safe. Not wasting any more time, he pulled Hamo up onto Arrow and galloped back to the manor house with him. A joyful pealing of bells told of their safe return. Meanwhile Hugh’s men at arms fashioned a litter and carried Serlo’s body home, stashing it safely in a barn to await burial. He had escaped justice on earth, he’d cheated the gallows, but he would have to account for his actions in the highest court of all. Janna hoped that he would be condemned to hellfire for ever.

Hugh had summoned Janna and Godric into the solar and now they sat in comfort, with a hot bowl of pottage and a meat pie to bring new warmth and life to their tired bodies, and a jug of ale to wash it down. Hugh had expressed his thanks, as well as the gratitude of Dame Alice, and had then set to questioning them about the night’s events and what had gone before. Between them, Janna and Godric had given him a full account of all that had led up to this moment. But Hugh had still more questions for them.

‘What made you suspect Serlo in the first place?’ He looked to Janna to answer his question.

Janna paused mid-chew. ‘Lots of little things,’ she said indistinctly, then hastily swallowed her mouthful. ‘When we first came here, when he saved Edwin and me from the forester, he talked about “my sheep”.’

‘Saved you from the forester?’ Hugh quirked an eyebrow.

‘It’s a long story,’ Janna said, continuing hurriedly, ‘I thought, from Master Serlo’s words, that the manor belonged to him.’ She gazed up at Hugh, blushing slightly and hating herself for it. ‘I didn’t know it belonged to you. I wouldn’t have stopped here if I’d known that.’

Hugh’s eyebrow rose higher.

‘I also saw the way Serlo looked at Mistress Gytha, and the way she looked at you.’

‘Me?’ Hugh spluttered. ‘But Gytha is just a child!’

‘She’s old enough to wed – and she has a certain amount of ambition in your direction,’ Janna commented dryly.

Hugh shook his head in wonder. ‘I had no idea her thoughts lay with me. Although I must confess I had … er … noticed lately that she was … er …’

He could hardly have failed to notice what Gytha had been so determined to display! Janna hid a sly smile.

‘… but I thought, when the time came, that Gytha might make a match of it with Serlo,’ Hugh stammered on.

Janna interrupted his musing. ‘And Serlo was desperate to have her. But he understood her ambition only too well. He knew he had to improve his station if he was to have a chance with her, and it was to be done at your expense.’

‘Hence the spate of so-called “accidents”?’ Hugh ventured.

Janna nodded. ‘But it went further than that. He was stockpiling goods to sell at St Edith’s fair at Wiltune, or perhaps even at Winchestre. Mistress Tova told me he takes several cartloads to the fair every year, your produce as well as his own. You’ll see the quantity of chests, barrels and fleeces which he has stored in his cellar. There’s far more than he could have come by through honest toil.’

‘I certainly knew nothing about them,’ Hugh said grimly, ‘but I should have questioned Serlo earlier. Although we’ve had fair seasons for some time now, the manor farm has not been as productive as I’d expected. I had no idea Serlo was robbing me blind.’ He shook his head and growled in anger.

No wonder you were so keen to visit your aunt and make yourself agreeable, Janna thought. She wondered if the dame had asked questions of Hugh, if she’d been having second thoughts about leaving him in charge of what should be a profitable manor.

‘It’s a hard lesson to learn, but I will be less trusting and I’ll take more of the reeve’s duties on my shoulder in the future,’ Hugh continued.

‘The woollen cloth and silver goblets Serlo accused me of stealing are also down in the cellar,’ Janna added, anxious to clear both her and Edwin’s name. ‘My guess is that Serlo planned to sell them as well.’

‘I see now how his mind worked.’ said Hugh. ‘With Hamo gone and me discredited, my aunt would have been anxious to cast off this manor with all its unhappy memories.’

Janna nodded in agreement. ‘Serlo couldn’t have known that Hamo would visit you, but once Hamo vanished the first time he saw how a second disappearance might work in his favour. I think he snatched Hamo with the intention of drowning him, but he was unable to carry out the deed because Mistress Cecily was so quick to raise the alarm. With so many villeins out searching, he knew he’d be noticed. So instead, he decided to keep Hamo alive for a little while longer. My guess is that he planned to take him away in one of the carts with all his goods for sale, and drown him somewhere along the journey, past where anyone might have searched the river for him before. Once Hamo’s body was found, he could then approach ma dame with his offer.’

Hugh’s lips tightened. He muttered a savage oath against his once-trusted reeve.

‘I’m sorry Serlo is dead and that you cannot bring him to an accounting for his deeds,’ Godric ventured. ‘I would not have thrown my knife at him by choice, but I knew that if I let him get away with Janna, he would have killed her rather than let her go free to speak the truth about him. I have never killed a man before but if I had to, I would make that choice again.’

‘You made the right decision. I am glad that you were there,’ Hugh reassured him. ‘I only wish it had never come to this. If I’d read the signs right from the start, all this might have been avoided.’ He looked at Janna. ‘Why did Serlo leave rue at the scenes of his crimes? What was he thinking?’

‘I didn’t understand, until the cook told me how Serlo’s family had once owned this manor. It seems they were forced into servitude after the Conquest. The rue was both his curse and his message to your family to repent that theft.’ Janna didn’t add that she felt a sneaking sympathy with the reeve’s grievance, although she could never condone what he had done.

Hugh nodded thoughtfully. ‘You have all my gratitude for finding Hamo and opening my eyes to Serlo’s true nature.’

‘Don’t forget Gabriel … Urk,’ Janna said quickly. ‘But for him, we would have died in that cellar. If he hadn’t come in search of Bones, and then faithfully conveyed Godric’s message to you …’ She shuddered, marvelling at how narrowly they had all escaped death.

‘Urk will be rewarded, as will his family. But for my part, I am indebted to you for rescuing Hamo not once but twice, and bringing him home alive.’ His warm smile encompassed both Janna and Godric. ‘Please be assured that you have a home here for as long as you like, and for ever if you wish it.’

Janna’s mouth went dry. She couldn’t find the words to answer him. But Godric spoke up.

‘I thank you, my lord, and I would indeed like to stay here.’ He shot a quick glance at Janna, then said hurriedly, ‘But I am tied to Dame Alice’s manor. I cannot leave without her permission.’

‘You can leave my aunt to me,’ Hugh said confidently. ‘I have lost my most trusted reeve. Although the villagers will elect a new one, I’d like to have an honest man by my side, if you’ll agree to it, Godric?’ A mischievous smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. ‘I venture to suggest that you would be far more to young Gytha’s taste than Master Serlo ever was.’

Speechless, Godric and Janna exchanged glances.

Godric found his voice first. ‘I have my own cot and land at Babestoche, sire,’ he said. ‘If I came to you – ’

‘You would not lose by it.’ Hugh cut him off. ‘Master Serlo’s cottage and lands lie vacant now. They are yours, as my reward to you for saving Hamo’s life.’

‘That … that is very generous of you, my lord.’ As Godric absorbed the full extent of Hugh’s generosity, his face blazed alight with hope and high expectation. He turned to Janna, but before he could say anything, Hugh addressed her directly.

‘And Edwin?’ he queried. ‘What has become of him? Has he had a hand in any of this business with Serlo?’

‘No, sire! He planned to stay in hiding until your visitors left the manor and it was safe for him to come out. But if you wish to speak to him, you’ll find him sheltering with Bertha, the carpenter’s daughter.’

Hugh tilted his head to study Janna. ‘And will he want to stay here with you, do you think?’

‘Not with me, my lord. He wants to stay here with Bertha.’

‘And so he shall.’ Hugh’s mouth curved into a wide grin. ‘What about you, Johanna? How can I reward you for your deeds this day?’

Janna gazed up at him, at a loss for words. A reward? It was something she hadn’t looked for, didn’t want. Unless Hugh could help her find her father? Could she ask him to do that?

‘I must confess, I would like you to stay on at the manor, but in a lady’s attire if you please,’ Hugh continued. ‘I cannot get used to you in the guise of a man.’ His gaze narrowed slightly as he looked more closely at Janna’s smock and breeches. ‘Where did you find those clothes you wear?’ he asked.

Janna was thrown by the unexpected question. She blushed deep as she wrestled with her conscience. ‘I … I stole them, sire,’ she confessed.

‘From the barn that burned down so suddenly on my aunt’s demesne?’

Janna pondered what to say. It had been an act of defiance to set fire to the barn, to pay back Robert of Babestoche something in kind for his evil deeds. But she’d also wanted to hide the evidence she’d used to deduce his true nature, as well as the evidence of her theft. She could explain all that to Hugh, but would he understand? Worse, would he tell his aunt? If she was charged in a manorial court for her misdeed, the penalty would be heavy indeed.

She was saved from having to answer as the door from Hugh’s bedchamber was suddenly flung open. Dame Alice bustled into the solar, closely followed by her husband.

At the sight of Robert, Janna quickly turned aside. She bowed her head as she hastily rose to make her obeisance.

‘Please, sit down and finish your supper.’ In spite of her red eyes and obvious exhaustion, Dame Alice’s face shone radiant with relief. She took a handful of silver coins from her purse and set them down on the table in front of Janna and Godric. ‘This is your reward for bringing my son home safely,’ she said, her voice trembling with emotion. ‘But no silver, or words, or anything I can do, can ever convey to you my most heartfelt gratitude.’ She took Janna’s and Godric’s hands and held them tight. ‘Thank you,’ she said huskily.

‘It was a pleasure to serve you, ma dame.’ Godric spoke for both of them. Janna was desperately racking her brains for an excuse to flee the room. Had Hamo spoken her name? Did they already know who she was, or had Hamo remembered to keep her secret?

‘I know you, of course, Godric, but I don’t know your companion. John, is it?’ Unexpectedly, the dame reached out and took Janna’s chin, raising her face towards the soft candlelight that bathed the solar. Janna had no choice but to look at her, and also at Robert, who was standing behind his wife.

The dame sucked in her breath in a sudden hiss. ‘Could it be … are you really Johanna?’ she asked, in a tone of wonder.

‘His name’s John,’ Hugh said harshly, suddenly awake to the danger Janna faced. ‘And if you’ve finished your supper, John, you can go now.’

‘Not so hasty, Hugh!’ the dame protested. But Hugh’s words came too late to save Janna. As she’d looked at the dame, so had she seen realisation dawning on Robert’s face: a flash of involuntary fear, followed by an expression of fierce resolve that told Janna he would not be intimidated by her knowledge, and that he would kill her rather than risk his affair with Cecily and his role in her own mother’s death being found out. She was in mortal danger once more.

‘Come, John. Come with me.’ Hugh grasped Janna’s arm and marched her out of the solar and into the hall. Godric snatched up the silver coins and followed them.

‘I’m so sorry,’ Hugh apologised, once they were safely out of hearing. ‘I didn’t tell them you were here. I thought they would stay in my bedchamber with Hamo.’

‘The lord Robert knows who I am. He recognised me,’ Janna whispered. She was shaking with fright. She had never before encountered such anger, such vicious hatred. Now that Robert knew she was alive, he would have to act to silence her. She was filled with dread at the very thought of it.

Hugh looked thoughtful. Then he said, ‘They’ll be going home soon, and probably taking Hamo with them. There’ll be no danger to you then, Johanna. In the meantime, I am sure I – and Godric – can keep you safe.’

Beside Janna, Godric stiffened. ‘I can look after Janna perfectly well on my own, sire,’ he muttered.

‘But I don’t want to be looked after by anyone!’ Janna retorted angrily. ‘How can I live any sort of life if I’m constantly watching over my shoulder just in case the lord Robert returns here to visit?’

‘You would be safe with me if we were wed,’ Godric said eagerly. ‘I have a cottage and land of my own here now. I have more than enough to support a wife.’

Hugh’s glance swivelled quickly from Godric to Janna. He seemed suddenly unsure of himself.

Janna took a moment to consider. She’d hurt Godric’s feelings once before on this matter; she must not do so again. Marrying him would not answer her problem, but how could she explain that to him? How could she explain to both of them the idea that had been forming in her mind ever since Hugh had told her of the abbess’s knowledge of her mother, the idea that now seemed absolutely perfect? It would keep her safe from Robert’s wrath. It was the answer to everything.

‘Even if we were wed, Godric, that would not keep me from harm,’ she said steadily. ‘I still know my lord Robert’s secrets.’ She stole a quick glance at Hugh. He did not know what Janna knew: that Robert had murdered her mother and also the reason why. Nor must he find out, for it was Cecily’s secret. But Godric knew everything and he was the one Janna was anxious to convince. ‘While I live, I am a threat to him, and he knows it. I had thought, by pretending my death and changing my identity, to keep myself safe. My strategy has come to naught. All that’s left for me now is to find a place of refuge, of safety, where my lord Robert will not be able to touch me.’

She tilted her chin and faced them both. ‘I have decided to seek shelter at the abbey at Wiltune.’