Mystique (10 page)

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that I shall honor my vows of betrothal.
From the moment Alice puts herself in my keeping, I shall fulfill all of my obligations to her.”

“But that would mean marrying her,” Benedict protested. “And she does not wish to marry you.”

“That is her problem, is it not?”

Benedict looked baffled. “I do not comprehend you, sir. Surely you do not mean that you actually intend to wed her?”

“Your sister is content with the bargain. I fear you must be satisfied with that much for now. All I can offer you is my oath that I will take proper care of her.”

“But, my lord—”

“I said, you have my oath on the matter,” Hugh repeated softly. “‘Tis generally considered more than an adequate bond.”

Benedict’s face turned a deeper shade of dull red. “Aye, my lord.”

“You will say naught of your suspicions to your uncle, do you comprehend me? ‘Twould be of no use. Sir Ralf will not listen to you and Alice will be most upset.” Hugh smiled. “To say nothing of my own reaction.”

Benedict hesitated. Then his mouth thinned in mute surrender. “Aye, Sir Hugh. I comprehend you very well.”

“Try not to be too anxious, Benedict. I am very good at stratagems. This one will work.”

“I just wish I knew exactly what your stratagem is,” Benedict grumbled.

T
hree hours later Alice experienced a strange rush of expectancy as Hugh assisted her into the saddle. Her plan had worked. She and Benedict were free of Sir Ralf at last.

Suddenly, for the first time in months, the future seemed fraught with promise. A crisp breeze stirred the folds of her traveling cloak. Her gray palfrey tossed its shaggy head as though eager to begin the journey.

Out of the corner of her eye Alice saw her brother mount his horse. Although hampered by his bad leg and encumbered by the staff, Benedict had taught himself a surprisingly efficient, if somewhat odd, method for getting
into the saddle without assistance. Those who knew him had long since learned not to offer a helping hand.

Alice saw Hugh watch with concealed interest as Benedict climbed atop his horse. For a moment she feared Hugh might order one of his men to help her brother. She was relieved when he did not do so.

Hugh glanced at her at that moment and raised his brows slightly as though to say he had comprehended her thoughts. She gave him a grateful smile. He nodded and vaulted lightly into his own saddle.

Hugh understood. The small, silent exchange sent a curious wave of warmth through Alice.

She was only too well aware that Benedict was not happy with the sudden change in their fortunes. He was as eager as she to escape Lingwood Manor but he was convinced that they might very well have leaped from the hot cook pot into the fire.

Alice took a far more optimistic view. Everything was going along quite nicely, she told herself.

All of her worldly possessions, together with Benedict’s, were safely stowed in one of Hugh’s baggage wagons. There had been a few minutes of concern early on when Sir Dunstan had complained forcefully about her chests of stones and equipment, but that had soon been settled. Alice was not entirely certain why the obstinate Dunstan had ceased railing about her baggage but she was content with the results.

The vows of betrothal had taken mere minutes to repeat in front of the village priest. A strange shiver of sensation had shot through Alice when Ralf had placed her hand in Hugh’s, but she attributed the feeling to her excited state and to the fact that she was not accustomed to a man’s touch.

Just as she was not accustomed to a man’s kiss, she reminded herself. In spite of the coolness of the day, her body heated at the memory of Hugh’s embrace.

“Well, lady?” Hugh looked at her as he took up the reins. The edge of his cloak was thrown back, revealing the hilt of his sword. Sunlight gleamed on his black onyx ring. “The time has come for you to begin to fulfill your part of our bargain. What is our destination?”

Alice took a deep breath. “To Ipstoke, my lord, where a joust and fair are to be held in a day’s time.”

“Ipstoke?” Hugh frowned. “That is less than two days’ ride from here.”

“Aye, my lord. A troubadour named Gilbert stole my green crystal. I believe he will attend the fair.”

“A troubadour stole the stone? You are certain of this?”

“Aye, sir. Gilbert stayed in my uncle’s hall for a time.” Alice tightened her lips. “He was a rogue and a fool. While he was here he tried to seduce every female servant he could find. His songs were poor and he could not even play a decent game of chess.”

“A poor troubadour, indeed.” Hugh studied her with a disturbingly intent gaze.

“Aye. He was also a thief. He made an excuse to visit my study chamber and he saw the green stone. He asked me about it. Shortly after he left Lingwood Manor, I noticed that the stone had disappeared.”

“What makes you think he will have taken it to the Ipstoke fair?”

Alice smiled, quite satisfied with the logic of her deduction. “One evening, while deep in his wine, he mumbled something about going to Ipstoke to play his foolish songs for the knights who will have gathered for the jousts.”

“I see.”

“There is no reason to doubt it. It is a perfectly reasonable thing for a troubadour to do. There will be a number of knights seeking sport at Ipstoke, will there not?”

“Aye,” Hugh said quietly. “If a joust is to be held, there will be no shortage of knights and men-at-arms present.”

“Precisely.” Alice gave him a complacent smile. “And where there are knights seeking sport and the chance to make money from ransoms on the jousting field, there are troubadours seeking to entertain them. Is that not true?”

“Aye.”

“In addition to an opportunity to earn coin for his songs, I suspect that Gilbert plans to sell my crystal at the fair.”

Hugh was silent for a moment. Then he nodded. “Your logic is sound, lady. Very well, Ipstoke it is.”

“‘Tis likely that Gilbert does not yet know that you are in pursuit of my stone,” Alice said. “But if he chances to discover that you are on his trail, he may not remain long at Ipstoke.”

“Then we shall take care that he does not learn that I am after it until it is too late for him to flee. There is just one more thing, lady.”

“Aye?”

“You seem to have formed the habit of forgetting that I am the true owner of the green stone.”

Alice blushed. “That is still a matter of opinion, my lord.”

“Nay, madam. Tis a matter of fact. The stone is mine. Our bargain is sealed.” Hugh lifted his hand in a signal to his men.

Alice glanced back over her shoulder as the company clattered through the gates of Lingwood Hall. She saw Ralf and her cousins standing on the hall steps. She waved at Gervase, the only one for whom she had felt some attachment. He raised a hand to bid her farewell.

As Alice started to turn her head, she noticed that Ralf was smiling. Her uncle appeared vastly pleased with himself. An uneasy suspicion went through her.

“I trust the rumor I heard about my dowry was mere gossip,” she said to Hugh as he guided his large black stallion into place beside her palfrey.

“Personally, I do not pay much attention to gossip.”

She slanted him an assessing glance. “You will not credit this, sir, but there was a tale going round the hall to the effect that you actually promised my uncle two chests of spices.”

“Two?”

“Aye, one of pepper and one of ginger.” Alice chuckled at that outrageous piece of nonsense. “I am well aware that such overblown gossip is clearly false, my lord. Nevertheless, I am concerned that you may have been cheated. What, precisely, did you give Sir Ralf as a dowry?”

“Do not concern yourself with such details, lady. ‘Tis of no great import.”

“I would not want to think that you were fleeced, my lord.”

Hugh’s mouth curved faintly at one corner. “Never fear. I am a man of business. I long ago learned to get my money’s worth out of every transaction.”

I
pstoke was a crowded, colorful scene. Even Benedict’s sullen mood lightened at the sight of the bright banners and striped tents that dotted the grounds outside the old keep walls. Peddlers and pie-sellers of all descriptions mingled with acrobats, jongleurs, knights, men-at-arms, and farmers. Children ran hither and yon, shouting with glee.

Massive war-horses towered over long-eared asses and sturdy dray ponies. Baggage wagons laden with armor lumbered along next to carts filled with vegetables and wool. Troubadours and minstrels wandered through the crowds.

“I vow, I have never seen so many people in one place in my whole life.” Benedict gazed about in wonder. “One could well imagine that everyone in the whole of England is here today.”

“Not quite,” Alice said. She stood with Benedict on the gentle rise of ground where Hugh had decreed that his somber black tent be pitched. Black banners flapped in the air above her head. Hugh’s choice of color formed a stark contrast to the vivid reds, yellows, and greens of the neighboring tents and banners. “I expect that when you travel
to Paris and Bologna you will encounter far more wonderful sights than this.”

Some of the excitement dimmed in Benedict’s eyes. “Alice, I wish you would not talk about my going off to Paris and Bologna as though it were a certainty.”

“Nonsense.” Alice smiled. “‘Tis very much a certainty now. Sir Hugh will see to it. ‘Tis part of our bargain and everyone assures me that he always honors his bargains.”

“I do not care for this bargain you have made with him. I was not overfond of our uncle but ‘tis better to deal with the devil you know than one with a reputation such as that of Hugh the Relentless.”

Alice scowled. “His name is Hugh of Scarcliffe now. Do not refer to him as
Relentless.”

“Why not? ‘Tis what his own men call him. I have been talking with Sir Dunstan. He tells me that Hugh is well named. They say he never abandons a quest.”

“They also say that his oath is as strong as a chain fashioned of Spanish steel, and that is all that is important to me.” Alice brushed the matter aside with a wave of her hand. “Enough of this chatter. I must see to my end of the bargain.”

Benedict glanced at her in astonishment. “What do you mean? You have brought Sir Hugh here to Ipstoke and you gave him the name of the troubadour who stole the green crystal. You need do nothing more.”

“‘Twill not be quite so simple as all that. You are forgetting that you and I are the only ones who can identify Gilbert the troubadour. No one else in Hugh’s company of men-at-arms has ever seen him.”

Benedict shrugged. “Sir Hugh will make inquiries. Gilbert will soon be found.”

“What if Gilbert is using another name?”

“Why would he do that?” Benedict demanded. “He has no way of knowing that Sir Hugh has come here in search of him.”

“We cannot be certain of that.” Alice considered the matter for a moment. “Nay, the quickest way to find Gilbert is for me to wander into the crowd and seek him out. He is bound to be here somewhere. I can only hope that he
has not yet sold my green stone. That might complicate matters.”

Benedict stared at her. “You’re going to search for Gilbert by yourself?”

“You can accompany me, if you like.”

“That’s not the point. Have you discussed this scheme with Sir Hugh?”

“Nay, but I do not see that it matters overmuch.” Alice broke off as Dunstan walked across a patch of grass to join them.

She could not help but notice that Dunstan appeared far more cheerful at that moment than she had yet seen him. His normally dour countenance was enlivened with an expression of enthusiasm and anticipation. His stride was jaunty. He was wearing his hauberk and carried a recently polished helm under one arm.

“My lady.” Dunstan greeted Alice with brusque formality. It was rapidly becoming clear that he did not like her very much.

“Sir Dunstan,” she murmured. “You look as though you are going off to war.”

“Nothing so tame. A jousting match.”

Alice was surprised. “You are going to participate in a joust? But we are here on a matter of business.”

“Plans have changed.”

“Changed!
“Alice stared at him in amazement. “Does Sir Hugh know of this change?”

“Who do you think changed the plans?” Dunstan asked dryly. He turned to Benedict. “We could use some assistance with the armor and horses. Sir Hugh suggested that you give us a hand.”

“Me?” Benedict was startled.

Alice frowned. “My brother has not been trained to handle armor and weapons and war-horses.”

Dunstan clapped Benedict on the shoulder. “Sir Hugh says ‘tis time he is trained in such manly matters.”

Benedict staggered and caught his balance with the aid of his staff. “I am not particularly interested in learning about those things.”

Dunstan grinned. “I have news for you, young Benedict. You are Sir Hugh’s man now and your new lord believes
that ‘tis not efficient to have men in his household who are not properly trained and who cannot be counted upon in a siege.”

“A siege.” Alice was horrified. “Now hold a moment here. I will not have my brother exposed to harm.”