Kingdom Come (22 page)

Kieran had apparently told the shop keeper that they were traveling so the man packed them an enormous amount of food, mostly breads and those wonderfully salty pork rinds all wrapped up in some kind of sea grass.  Rory wasn’t sure what it was but she kept smelling it, finally licking it to see what it tasted like. It was very salty.  Kieran paid the man and with wrapped food in both hands, Rory quit the bread shop with Kieran behind her.  The day outside was mild and sunny, and she inhaled deeply.  She felt good and for the first time since arriving in this place in time, she was actually eager and excited to be here.

“So now what?” she turned to him. “Are we leaving?”

He nodded, taking the wrapped food from her because it took both of her arms to hold it.   With the food in one enormous arm, he took her with his other hand.

“Come with me,” he said softly.

She held on to him as they crossed behind the bakery to the livery that was part of the inn’s complex.   When they entered the structure that smelled very strongly of animal dung and hay, Liberator saw Kieran and nickered softly.   Kieran clucked to the horse but when Rory walked near the beast, he began bobbing his head up and down wildly, finally sticking his big thick neck out and pushing her with his nose.  Rory teetered off balance but caught herself. Scowling, she let go of Kieran and faced the horse with her hands on her hips.

“All right, buddy,” she scolded. “You and I are going to come to an agreement or there’s going to be blood shed and it isn’t going to be mine.  I want you to stop pushing me around. Got it?”

She was wagging a finger at the horse by the time she was finished.  Liberator responded by barring his teeth and bobbing his head up and down.  He tried to stick his neck out and push her again, but she moved back, thumping him on his big soft nose when he tried.  The horse didn’t take kindly to that and began to snort and shake his head again.

“Stop it,” Rory demanded, “or there will be more where that came from.”

Kieran was standing next to her, watching the exchange. “He does not want to stop,” he said as if she was fighting a losing game. “He apparently finds it great fun to push you about.”

She turned her nose up at the horse and at Kieran. “Then he’s going to get shoved back.”

“At least he is not attempting to bite you.”

“He’s trying to stomp me.”

Kieran laughed softly, taking her arm again and pulling her away from her nemesis.  He took her back into a corner of the stable.  When they neared the last stall, two good-sized ponies suddenly came into view.  They were tethered to the wall, munching on hay, and their big black eyes blinked at the humans who intruded into their space.  Kieran pointed at them.

“Here,” he said, suddenly moving away from her as he spoke. “You said that you would be more comfortable if you were not on the back of a horse, so I purchased these for you.”

She was about to ask what when he suddenly lifted a cart out of the stall opposite the ponies.  It was a fairly large cart but with Kieran’s size and strength, it looked like he was handling a child’s toy.  He set the cart down and Rory gasped with both surprise and pleasure; the cart had a bench seat that would fit two women, or one larger man, and a flat bed in the back for baggage.  It was made out of some kind of dark wood, although Rory wasn’t sure what kind, and the wheels were of sturdy iron and wood.  With the two ponies to drive, it would make a delightful little ride.  She was thrilled.

“It’s wonderful!” she exclaimed, inspecting it closely. “You bought this for me?”

He smiled, pleased with her excitement. “Do you like it?”

She nodded eagerly. “I love it,” she moved back to the two ponies; a big white one and a big orange one.  She scratched their heads as they ate like pigs. “They’re adorable. I love them.”

“I am glad you are pleased.”

She suddenly whirled around and threw her arms around his neck, nearly knocking him off balance. “You’re so wonderful,” she kissed him. “You’re the best husband in the world and I love you madly.”

He returned her kisses and set her to her feet. “Which reminds me,” he said. “We have an appointment to keep.”

“Appointment?” she looked puzzled as he took her hand and began to lead her out of the livery. “What appointment?

“Come along,” he said steadily.

She looked back at her ponies and the cart. “But what about my pony cart? Don’t I get to drive it?”

“In good time. Come along.”

“But I want to drive it.”

“You sound like a petulant child. You can drive it later.”

“I don’t want to drive it later; I want to drive it now.”

“Shut up.”

She pinched him.

***

Marriage in the abbey of St. Victor was all Rory imagined it would be. The place was massive, smelling of ghosts, with a vast sanctuary and no pews. It was like a giant auditorium with uneven dirt floors and one could hear whispers from every corner. It acted like a giant megaphone, magnifying sounds.  She was awed from the moment she walked in until the dirty priest appeared.

It was her first good look at a Medieval Catholic priest and she wasn’t surprised to see just how raw and dirty the man was. There were stains all over his robes, which were not the beautiful ritual gowns she had grown accustomed to but plain brown wool, layers upon layers of it.  He had sores on his face and hands. He looked like a leper and she looked at Kieran with disgust when the man appeared to perform their mass.  Kieran stoically pulled her to her knees and crossed himself as the priest began the ceremony

It was performed in Latin, as Rory knew it would be. She was very familiar with Latin on paper and was able to understand most of what was being said.  The priest was helped during the mass with three very young boys, basically dressed in rags.  Rory found herself watching the boys more than listening to the mass, noticing that two of them had pretty serious bruises on what flesh she could see.

One little boy, no more than five years old, had a black eye. In fact, that particular child had welts on his lower legs and a few bloodied toes. He looked as if he had been severely thrashed. More than that, he was terribly skinny.  She watched the child throughout the mass, growing increasingly concerned.  When the priest finished the ceremony, Kieran chastely kissed Rory on the forehead and smiled at her.

“Lady Hage,” his brown eyes twinkled. “Now we are official in the eyes of God.”

She smiled back at him, watching as he negotiated the mass donation with the priest and paid the man.  Meanwhile, her attention was back at the boys, the smallest one in particular with the black eye.  He was an adorable child with brown hair and big blue eyes.  She watched him carefully collect the items that the priest used during the mass, only to receive a sharp shove by the older altar boy, causing him to drop a cup.  The priest turned around and cuffed the kid on the side of the head. He teetered but didn’t fall down. Rory was livid.

“Did you see that?” she turned to Kieran angrily. “The priest hit that little boy for no reason.”

Kieran was pulling his big leather gloves on; he glanced around, trying to see what she was so outraged about. “I did not see,” he said, rather carelessly. “Come along, sweetheart.  We should be along our way.”

She couldn’t believe he was so cold; on the other hand, abused children during this time period were not unusual. Still, she couldn’t stand by while a child was obviously abused.  She knew she couldn’t save every child.  But she just couldn’t seem walk away from this one.

“Not yet,” she told him, more calmly, knowing it would do no good to go crazy about it. “I want you to do something for me.”

His mind was already on their travels ahead and he was preoccupied. “What is that?”

“I want you to go and get that little altar boy and bring him with us.”

He stopped fiddling with his gloves and looked at her. “What?” his brow flickered with confusion. “What are you saying?”

She was firm and controlled. “Look,” she lowered her voice. “That little boy is obviously abused. I know that’s no big deal in this time, but in my time, it’s a huge deal. We don’t allow children to be abused and I just can’t walk away from that little boy without trying to help him. I want to take him out of this place. He’s all covered with bruises.”

Kieran just stared at her, processing what she was staying.  It was obvious that he was fighting down his irritation as he put his enormous hands on her shoulders. “Sweetheart,” he tried to stay patient. “What happens to that child is not our business. He belongs to the church.”

She pulled away from him. “That doesn’t give them the right to abuse him,” she said, increasingly hot. “Do you approve of beating a child?”

He hissed, looking for an answer that wouldn’t throw her over the edge. “I would not beat my own child if that is what you mean.”

“It’s not what I mean,” she said, exasperated. “Look, Kieran; I listened to you when you told me never to stray from you for my own safety. I listened to you when you wouldn’t let me take a closer look at the brothels along the waterfront. I’ve been listening to you since we arrived. But this time, I really want you to listen to me for once. Abuse is not right, on any level, and I just can’t walk away from that poor little kid who’s so obviously beat up.”

He stared at her before exhaling sharply like a man who knows when he has already lost the battle. “What do you want me to do?” he asked irritably.

She pointed in the direction that the priest and the boys had just disappeared.  “I want you to go and see if that boy is an orphan. If he is, I want you to bring him with us.”

His eyebrows flew up in outrage at her ridiculous statement. “What did you say?”

“You heard me. If he doesn’t have any family, then he’s coming with us.”

He was trying to keep his mouth from hanging open in shock. “And if he is not an orphan?”

“Then there’s not much we can do other than to tell the priest to stop hitting him.  Threaten to punch the priest if he hits the boy again.”

“I am not threatening a priest.”

She knew he wouldn’t but she was passionate about her feelings. “Whatever,” she waved her hand at him as if to erase the threat request. “But if he has no parents, I want him.”

Kieran regarded her. “For what purpose?”

She threw up her arms. “So we can take him out of this abusive environment. He can be a little servant for us or something.  Anything to get him out of here. I just can’t leave that child behind knowing that they’re beating him. Can’t you understand?”

Kieran’s gaze lingered on her a moment longer before he walked away, disappearing into the shadows of St. Victor’s.  Rory waited for him patiently, finding interest in her surroundings as she wait.  There was a massive supporting pillar a few feet away and she went to it, inspecting it, running her fingers along the stone.  All the while, however, her mind was with Kieran wherever he was.  She was extremely fortunate and she knew it; the man would do anything for her. But, then again, she would do anything for him as well.   The more time she spent with him, the luckier and more blessed she felt.

It was some time before Kieran reappeared. Rory was leaning against the pillar when he entered the church again and she immediately straightened at the sight of him.  As he emerged from the shadows, a small boy emerged with him.  It was the beaten little boy.