There Your Heart Will Be Also (26 page)

When
the crazed men jumped from the bushes earlier, Wilt had run
,
leaving the stuttering priest
behind
.
He'd hidden in the trees and watched as robed men poured from the stone church and lifted swords.

After the short skirmish ended and explanations were given, the Scots looked for him. However
,
i
t didn't take long for the
m
to give up their search. When
they left the church Wilt snuck back to the side of the building
.
Around and around he looked. The muscles in his face twitched.
Where was Sarra?

When he couldn't find her, Wilt
sent out a whistle. Within a few moments
he
retrieved
his
horse
and headed back toward
Greenbriar.
Along the way he stopped
and hunkered down into a ditch
.

Waiting by the road, Wilt whittled a stick.
When he was a child he'd been able to create beautiful things with a knife and wood, but now nothing came to him.
Angry
,
he threw the stick upon the ground and stood.

Stretching out his tired muscles, he heard the snort of horses.
Ducking
down behind a bush, Wilt arched his neck above the foliage in time to see a group of four horses.
Scots.
Four
of them
.
What luck! It was t
he very same men who'd jumped him before he could carry out his plan to marry Sarra.

Each horse carried one overly large kilted man.
One horse carried a man and a woman.
Sarra.
So the lass had survived.
Good.

Wilt allowed the group to get ahead of him.
Racing back to his own waiting mount, he threw himself astride and followed
behind
at
a
great distance.
He had
no doubt of their destination.
Greenbriar
keep.
The group had
no reason to go anywhere else.
Now all
Wilt
had to do was bide his time and wait to take Sarra again.
This time nothing would get in his way.

****

The day
s
before the wedding passed in a complete blur.
Sarra walked around the keep in a daze.
She'd yet to tell Cedric how she felt or about her
true
identity.
Because of her silence
,
Cedric and Charism had continued to plan their wedding.

Although they weren't in Scotland, and many of the Scottish wedding traditions wouldn't be followed, the couple agreed to start the wedding celebration a day early.
The day before the wedding would be filled with feasting, drinking, and lots of dancing.

Today was the day of the pre-wedding festivities.
A secret message had circulated amongst the villagers, warning them not to speak the mistress' name.
Everyone was to be called by their
name
, no titles.
This
,
of course
,
was bound to make
the people curious.
A
s the villagers
entered
into the hall
,
they
glanced
around.

Sarra and Charism had made certain nothing was out of place.
The great table was pushed to the wall and piled high with delicacies.
W
ooden chairs lined the walls to give dancers a place to rest th
eir weary feet.

A glance
around the room revealed
to Sarra that
a
ll the villagers
had
come
out in their finest clothes for the event.
Since there was nothing of consequence, only a party to enjoy, everything but the event was forgotten.

As Sarra studied the crowd, she noticed some of the villagers.
Angus and
a
friend strode in
wearing
their finest clothes.
Not meaning to
eavesdrop
, she couldn't help but overhear their conversation.

“Well
,
I guess ye cannot be expecting to find a
lass
for
yer
boy in this heap of bodies can ye?”

“Well I was thinking along those lines, Angus.
My son is a fine
man
and he needs a fine woman.”

“I believe ye
r
boy is hung up too much on hisself.”

“Not my boy.
He is fine.”

As Sarra studied the room she saw the
boy
they spoke of
. Said boy
had dressed in his finest breeks
,
which
just so
happened to be smeared with mud.
His shirt contained rips
which
had
no doubt
been repaired multiple times by his ma.
His
dark brown
hair h
el
d a greasy cast
, which probably hadn't been washed
.
But according to his father, he was the best the village had to offer.

Sarra hid her smile behind a goblet as
Angus
mumbled something about Gertrude's prospects looking grim
.

Not wishing to be rude,
Sarra moved away from the two men and came closer to Megean. She
sat in a dark corner and sipped at her ale.

Sarra sat down beside her and asked,
“How are you Megean?”

“Ah, mis
—
Sarra, I'm well.”

“You appear distracted.”

The woman fidgeted and twisted her hands.

“Would you like to talk about it?”

“Ah, I don't need to be ruinin' the festivities for ye.”

“Nay, please. Maybe I can help.”

“Do ye see me children?”

“Aye, I do.”

“Ah, to be like the young. To dance around without a care in the world.
Alas,
I
wish
I
was in the same shape.
Stewart,
me
husband,
came
home.
And he is
none too happy with
me
decision to take on a boarder.
But
his attitude did change a mite
when
I
told him
how
Cedric had saved
ye, I mean
the mistress
.
He had a
change
of heart, he did
.
Ca
me into
the main room
,
prop
ped
up his feet, ma
de
himself at home
and
said
Cedric
could
stay until the wedding was over
, if he so desired
.

“
Stewart
even invited
Duncan and the others
into
our
home.
Fortunately the group declined.
I hate to admit it but me
tired body couldn't have been happier
they decided to stay away
.
But I'm glad to have Stewart back home.”

Megean spotted her husband and waved him over. Once he was settled, Sarra excused herself from the happy couple.

****

Sir Henry and Charism moved aroun
d the dance floor
switching partners
as the bagpipes played.
A servant had discovered some bagpipes while cleaning in the library and told Sarra about them.

Sarra suggested one of the visiting Scotsmen
could
use them during the wedding ceremony.
Duncan willingly volunteered but said he would need some practice before the wedding.
So he was
playing
at the pre-wedding festivities.
Duncan
swore his
playing was rusty,
but
Charism and Sir Henry floated again and again across the floor
anyway
.
Charism seemed to be pretty spry for an old woman and Sir Henry was out of breath when the dance was finished.

“I didn't know you could move like
so gracefully
my lady,”
he said
with a mischievous glint in his eye
.
H
e added, “Especially since the famine and the pox got a hold of
you
.”

Charism lifted a shy hand and
pushed
her flying hairs away from her face.
“Aye, I can move pretty well.
Fortunate for ye
the
famine didna completely lay me up.”

Sir Henry and Charism laughed together.
They
moved
to the table and filled up a plate of food before sitting down to enjoy the meal and a brief rest.

Cook and the other household servants took turns filling the table with the food provided by the villagers.
B
etween their turns, they enjoyed themselves by partaking of the
food
or dancing.

Cook grabbed Ella around the waist and took her for a twirl around the floor.
She was giggling so hard at the attention
she bumped into
one of the guests
.

“Oh, pardon me
,
sir.”

“Watch where you are going, you twit.”

Ella glanced at
the man
with a disgusted look, then shrugged and went on dancing.

****

Wilt
had donned
a
n inconspicuous
costume
of w
ool breeks and a dark blue shirt.
R
aid
ing a nearby
hut
had
provided
him with
a used
wig
, and he'd taken
s
pecial care to make
the
wig look greasy and unkempt.
He had also made sure his body odor was strong.
I
f anyone got
too
close to him
,
it was to be hoped
they would soon depart.

His
mood
was not appropriate
for a wedding feast, but the object of his desire twirled in front of him.
He couldn't keep his eyes off
Sarra
.
She was dazzling tonight
,
a
rriving in a
blue
silk gown
which
seemed to be a little too low in the front, but
that
suited him just fine.

H
er hair
had been braided
down her back and little strands of pearls and green leaf sprigs
had been woven
throughout
the dark mass
.
He quite honestly couldn't wait to take her as a wife.
He would let her live until he got tired of her, of course.

Sarra's
laughter carried to him across the room.
Wilt twisted his hands, imagining her throat within them.
He must
get
control of himself.
His time had almost come.
All he needed to do was get the lass alone and take her away without anyone being the wiser.
Once they were married then nothing could change his claim.

****

While Charism was detained by Sir Henry,
Cedric and Sarra danced in each other's arms.
They took short breaks to refresh themselves.
Cedric
wasn't the only man she danced with.
In fact
, she had taken the arm of
every
man
in the house at one time or another.
S
arra shared a smile with all of them
,
making Cedric
's ire rise
.

After a few hours of afternoon merrymaking,
the parson arrived.
Grunting with disapproval at the
sight
before him,
he sought out Sarra.
“I see you are honoring the Scottish traditions of a pre-wedding celebration.”

“Aye, we are.
Charism thought it best.
”

The parson nodded.
“Now I have you seated and alone, I would like to ask what you
plan to do for
the ceremony tomorrow?”

“Alas,
Charism and
I have not discussed wedding details.”
Sarra
face flushed
.

“
Hmm.
My child you know this will never do
.”

Sarra
heard the parson's words as
she
watched Cedric lift Charism off her feet and sl
i
ng her around the room in a mock dance.
Her
face was flushed and exuberant.
Cedric set a teetering Charism down and then pick
ed
up a small child and d
id
the same.

The little blond
e-
headed girl squealed with delight as her dress flared out around her.

Sarra
returned her attention to the parson seated before her
.
“You know, in the beginning I didn't want to get married.
Not to anyone.
I felt threatened by a man in the keep.
But now
,
since
I
'
ve had the opportunity to know
certain people
…
”
S
he grunted and shifted
from her discomfort
before continuing, “
…
I am looking forward to being a wife.”

The parson seemed
elated with this information
.
“
S
plendid news.
When will you tell the lad the truth about your identity?
”

“
I
will tell him
.
”
B
ut when
,
s
he didn't know
.

While the parson took his leave, Sarra continued to sit
and rest
.
She'd filled her belly full
,
yet a
tankard of ale
rested upon
the table beside her
and a block of cheese
was
in
her
hand
as she watched
Cedric enjoy himself
.

Shelly
ran up to her with a sense of urgency.
“My lady, my lady, there is
—t
here is a man asking for ye.”

Sarra frowned
.
“Very well, who is it?”

“He didn't say, must be a villager because he is here for the wedding, and there is one other thing.”

Shelly
's secretiveness was becoming old.
“
Shelly
, what is it?”

“Forgive me
.
B
ut he smells.”

Sarra watched as
Shelly
wrinkle
d
her nose
.
“Smells.
H
ow?”

“Bad.”

“
Y
ou are telling me a bad smelling villager wishes to speak with me, right?”

“Aye.”

“
W
here is he?”

“He is in front of the library, waiting in the alcove.”

“Very well, I will go see him.”

“Are ye sure?”

“
Shelly
,
go
help with serving the food
.
I will be fine.”

Sarra
walked to the alcove and sure enough there awaited a smelly man.
His odor was so foul she didn't know if she would be able to get close enough to speak with him.
Upon approach a husky voice asked
, “Sarra?”

She walked closer, pinching her nose closed
.
Why did the voice sound so familiar?
Sarra stopped
,
worry setting her heart to racing
.

“
C
an you come closer?”
came a hoarse whisper.

“
Sir,
I will be honest
.
I would like to come closer but your stench is preventing me.”

There was a shuffling of movement.
“Very well, I will clean up and m
e
et you later.”

Sarra
wrinkled her nose
as she watched
the figure
slip away.
What an odd encounter. With a
shrug and
a shake of her head, she
went back to sit on her chair.

When Cedric finally came to rest, he fell down beside her.
“Are ye enjoying yourself
,
maid Sarra
?”

“Oh, Cedric this was a grand idea.
I think Charism and the others are having a wonderful time
.”

Cedric
face was swathed in a happy expression
.
Sarra
fidgeted with her gown
as c
uriosity pull
ed
at her.
She
had asked about Cedric's family once before
,
but
only in the vaguest of terms and even then,
had
not
received
many answers
.

Because of
her
newly
discovered
feelings
,
Sarra
wanted to know everything about his life from before.
What was driving him to come here and commandeer her land?
Why would he marry Charism, a woman by all accounts old enough to be his grandmother, for nothing more than property?
Sarra needed to know if there was an underlying reason.
Why did he deserve a
chance
to know
her true identity
?

“Cedric
,
would you mind telling me why you are marrying an English woman at the behest of the English king
,
instead of marrying a Scottish lass from your own village?”

Cedric hesitated a little too long with his answer.
Sarra got the feeling he didn't want to answer
,
so she interrupted his thoughts
.
“I am sorry, I guess I shouldn't have asked you such a personal question.
I
'
m glad circumstances led you to me
, I mean us
.
You are the first man I have ever met
who
has
captured my hea
—I mean you have captured Charism's heart
,” she said quietly bowing her head in embarrassment.

The desire
to tell him she was falling in love with him
was
staggering
.
Oh,
to tell him the truth.
But not at the risk of being hurt.
Tomorrow
the stranger
would stand before the parson, and the villagers, and marry Charism.
When the wedding was over, Sarra would tell him the truth.
He was sure to be irate.
By then h
e will have married Charism for naught.
What would
happen
then?
Would he become furious and burn down the keep?
Would he throw Sarra over his shoulder like a caveman of old and haul her off into the woods until she married him?

Of course he would leave posthaste and have his marriage to Charism annulled.
The
K
ing would be on his side
,
having granted the land to Cedric
in the first place
.
Though
the King would be on his side, h
e would no doubt
still
be the laughingstock of London.

Who was she kidding?
There was no way Charism would marry Cedric. The woman had clearly told her as much.
Sarra was surprised she'd agreed to go ahead with the wedding festivities. She probably believed the celebration would change Sarra's mind and drive her to tell her secret.

Over the rim of Sarra's cup she peered at the Scotsmen. Even if the wedding went
on
, all those thoughts about Cedric would never come to pass. He wasn't like
any man she'd ever known
.
Perhaps the tru
th
was the best option. If she told him now then he would
…
what? Would he still leave Greenbriar in anger? Would he ever be able to trust her again? Either way it went
she
could
lose someone
whom she
was coming to respect,
and
love.