The Marriage Prize (11 page)

rows of beer kegs. Autumn weeds grew up around every

building, giving the place an unkempt look and showing wil ful

neglect.

Sir Rodger swung down from his saddle, awaiting his squire's

arrival. When Griffin rode in with Nan behind him, Rod handed

him the reins of his stal ion, Stygian. "Look after the ladies for me." He took a gauntlet from his saddlebag and strode into

the stables. Rod's nostrils flared at the stench of the place. A

barrel-chested stableman set down a horn of ale and

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lumbered to his feet. De Leyburn's eyes narrowed as he took

the man's measure, then he pul ed on his gauntlet and closed

the distance between them. He stopped thirty inches in front of

the brute and, without uttering one word, smashed his fist into

the man's red face. The stableman dropped like a dead

horse, and Leyburn placed a spurred and booted foot on his

gut. "I trust you're the man who likes black eyes, since you'l

have two by nightfal ... and by nightfal I wil have a clean

stable." Rod picked up a shovel and thrust it into the beefy fist.

"Use this to muck out every stal , or use it to dig your own

grave ... the choice is yours."

Sir Rodger strode from the stables to find Rosamond and Nan

sitting atop their luggage while Griffin watered the horses.

"Help yourself to the fodder in the stable, but tether them here

in the bailey for now," he instructed his squire. "The stableman begs our patience until he can make the place spotless."

Young Ned, who had just arrived on foot, eagerly asked what

he could do to help.

"Just fol ow me and bring the baggage. Come, ladies, I think

you wil benefit from the warmth of a good fire." He removed

the bloody gauntlet and held out his hand to Rosamond. When

she lifted her eyes to meet his, Rod made her a silent promise

that she need have no fear. Rosamond took his hand and

arose from her perch, then walked at his side as he led her

back into Pershore.

Dymock stepped forward officiously, eyeing the swarthy

knight. Sir Rodger walked past him into the hal without any

acknowledgment. He led Rosamond to a padded bench

acknowledgment. He led Rosamond to a padded bench

beside the roaring fire, then waited until she sat down. He

nodded permission for Nan to sit beside her mistress, then he

turned his ful attention upon the steward. "State your name."

"I am Dymock, master of Pershore. Who are you?"

Rod placed his bloody gauntlet on the table before him, then

he withdrew his broadsword from its sheath and laid it beside

the steel glove. "There is only one master of Pershore—Sir

Rodger de Leyburn. I am he." He watched Dymock's eyelids

hood his eyes, a protective gesture that showed fear. Rod

knew that in any encounter between two people, one

dominated, the other submitted.

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"I was appointed steward by the Earl of Gloucester three

years ago. He has had no reason to complain."

Leyburn pierced him with an icy green glare. "Sir Rodger," he prompted.

"Gloucester has had no reason to complain, Sir Rodger."

"Then Gloucester is an imbecile. Fortunately, he has no official

authority here at Pershore. The lady who now graces this hal

with her presence is betrothed to me. She wil very shortly be

Lady Rosamond Marshal de Leyburn. I suggest you go now

and bid her welcome."

Dymock immediately acted upon the suggestion. He

approached the lady and with the greatest show of respect,

bowed and welcomed her to Pershore.

Rosamond nodded once in acknowledgment of his words.

Reluctantly Dymock returned to stand before the mail-clad

knight, whose squire was now beside him.

"My lady's horses wil be restored to Pershore today," Sir

Rodger stated. Silence stretched between them until the

steward nodded his understanding; only then did Sir Rodger

continue. "Summon the household servants, then bring me

Pershore's account books."

Fear flickered in the steward's eyes as he licked lips gone

bone dry. "Wil that be al , my lord?"

Sir Rodger raised incredulous black brows. "Al ? That is only

the start. I am not in the habit of explaining my intentions to

underlings, but in your case I wil make an exception. With al

possible speed, you wil do your utmost to restore Pershore

from the pigsty it has become." Again he waited until the

steward nodded his understanding.

"And then, my lord? "

"And then I shal hang you," Sir Rodger said quietly.

S i x

"My lord, may I speak with you?" Rosamond got to her feet,

alarmed at Sir Rodger's threat. Dymock had been insufferably

insolent to her, but that was not reason enough to forfeit his

life. She did not wish to be responsible for his death.

"We wil speak later in private," Sir Rodger said firmly.

He had rescued her and her servants, and Rosamond was

profoundly grateful. Moreover, he was putting the steward in

his place and forcing him to obey, so she knew she must not

interrupt and undermine his authority. Wisely, Rosamond

remained silent.

Rod spoke to his squire in a soft voice so that he could not be

overheard. "Griffin, Dymock is your prisoner. Don't al ow him

to get farther than pissing distance from you. Once he has

made arrangements to get the horses back and turned over

Pershore's account books, make sure you lock him up

securely."

The household servants gathered uncertainly in the hal . The

tal , dark knight clad in chain mail was an authority figure they

dared not disobey. When he beckoned to her, Rosamond

traversed the room to stand beside him as he addressed the

people of Pershore. "I am Sir Rodger de Leyburn, royal

steward to Lord Edward, heir to the throne. It is an honor and

a privilege to present Rosamond Marshal, the lady who owns

Pershore, and who is soon to be Lady de Leyburn. You wil

obey her in al things. Her wish must be your command. You

wil strive to please her every moment of every day, in every

way. Together we wil not only restore Pershore to its former

glory, we shal make it the envy of the whole county."

glory, we shal make it the envy of the whole county."

Though she smiled, Rosamond clenched her teeth when he

announced so cavalierly that she was soon to become Lady

de Leyburn.

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She wanted to kick his shins for such barefaced arrogance,

but restrained her impulse to attack him until they could be

alone.

As her eyes traveled over the servants, Rosamond thought

them a sorry lot compared with Kenilworth's clean, industrious

staff. When her glance fel upon the red-faced cook, she

raised her chin. "I am so pleased to see you up and about,

madam," she said. "I shal come to inspect Pershore's kitchen in an hour's time, and trust you wil have the evening meal wel

under way by then. Until I choose a replacement for you, I am

afraid you'l have to manage without Edna. She wil be

assisting my tiring-woman with my personal things."

Rosamond's glance dismissed the cook and she raised her

eyes to the others. "The rest of you can start cleaning.

Pershore needs stripping and scouring, chamber by chamber.

If your work pleases me, I may retain your services; otherwise

you wil be turned out." She looked pointedly at two male

servants. "I want a fire lit in every room. Thank you, that wil be al for now."

After they al filed out, Nan picked up a bag and indicated that

Edna do the same. "We'l return these to the chamber you

chose last night."

chose last night."

When Rosamond and Sir Rodger were completely alone,

Rosamond tossed her hair back over her shoulder in a

gesture of defiance, though she spoke with exaggerated

meekness. "I beg your permission to speak, my lord."

Rod's eyes fil ed with laughter. "I might intimidate the rest of

them, but not you, my Rosebud. I warrant now that we are

alone, you wil speak your mind whether I give you permission

or not."

"Wel , since I am so soon to become Lady de Leyburn, I might

as wel start out as I mean to carry on." Her sarcasm was tart.

"If I am to have ful authority and have them obey my orders,

and ultimately yours, you know ful wel I had to inform them I

would be the new master here."

Rosamond said with mock solemnity, "If your work pleases

me, I may retain your services; otherwise you wil be turned

off."

"You were magnificent," he said with a grin.

She suddenly wished he had seen her yesterday when she

had swept the dishes from the table and threatened to maim

the cook with

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the copper ladle. "I realize now that you had to threaten the

steward with hanging to make him obey."

The amusement left his eyes. "No, Rosamond, that was no

threat. I do intend to hang Dymock."

"I won't have his death on my conscience, not for insolence!"

He led her back to the padded settle before the fire, then

leaned against the mantelpiece. "My orders are on my

conscience, not yours. But perhaps it is best that you hold your

own court and try him legal y. That way the verdict wil be the

same, but your conscience wil be clear."

She searched his face. "I don't understand."

Rod hesitated for a fraction of a second, loathing to strip away

her innocence, then decided he had little choice but to begin

her education. "Rosamond, the management of Pershore and

its lands has been left in the hands of a corrupt steward whose

sole purpose has been to enrich himself at the expense of not

only you, but your tenants. You know the despair you felt at his

hands, but can you imagine the horror he has imposed upon

those who work your land?"

"Oh, no! How negligent I have been."

"You were not to know; it is Gloucester who has been

negligent. Lord Edward and I were guilty of the same sort of

laxity. When we returned from the Continent and began visiting

his royal castles, we discovered a number of the stewards

had been enriching themselves by making slaves of the

tenants. Not only were they being worked to death, they also

were being starved, beaten, raped, and even hanged at the

whim of the men in charge. It is no wonder that so many

people in England hate their king and his family and are

turning to Simon de Montfort for their salvation."

"Were you able to right the wrongs of these corrupt stewards?

"

"Yes. Before we embarked on the Welsh campaign, I spent an

entire year traveling to Edward's royal holdings, appointing

trustworthy men to positions of authority, and meting out just

punishment to those who had committed unconscionable

crimes."

"Sir Rodger, wil you do that here at Pershore?"

"My lady, I am honor-bound."

Rosamond remembered the last time he had said those

words to her, and how coldly she had rejected him. She knew

it would be ungra-

62

cious of her if she did not thank him. "Sir Rodger, I appreciate

your help in bringing the Pershore staff under control." She

doubted that he was helping her because he cared for her.

Most likely he wanted to improve the value of the property he

would gain through marriage to her. Clearly, he had become

an authority figure to the servants, but Rosamond did not want

him to try to assume authority over her, for she was certainly

not wil ing to submit to his wishes. She lifted her chin,

determined to show him they were equals. "There is no

reason why we cannot be friends, my lord," she said loftily.

Rod smiled at her, but he was careful not to touch her. Before

he was done, she would crave his touch. He silently vowed

they would be far more than friends, more even than husband

and wife; they would be lovers. "Later today, once your horses

have been recovered and Dymock is safely locked up, I wil

ride to Worcester Castle, which is only seven or eight miles

from Pershore, and bring back a staff who wil soon have your

household restored and running efficiently. I wil also bring

men-at-arms who wil guard your property and hold it secure in

your name."

"Sir Rodger, are you sure Worcester wil lend us their people?

"

Rod laughed. "Worcester is a royal castle, and I am a royal

steward. I have the authority to use Worcester's resources as I

see fit."

"Forgive my ignorance, my lord." The tone of her voice

deliberately held an edge. "Wil it be possible for you to return today?" Rosamond did not wish to reveal the anxiety she felt

at the thought of staying at Pershore without him.

"I wil leave Griffin with you—you may entrust him with your life, and I promise to return today, no matter how late the hour."

Relief washed over her, but determined to hide it, Rosamond

said cool y, "Thank you, my lord. I sincerely appreciate your

aid in this matter."

******************

anxiety of his own. Rumors were beginning to reach him that

King Henry had no intention of returning to England in time for