An Earthly Knight Read online

  “Your temper is much improved, little one. You seem more like yourself than you did when we returned from Lilliesleaf.“

  Jenny was glad La Rose was behind Bravura, so her father could not see her face. What he said was certainly true, but she did not want to consider why. It was only the dress, she told herself. The dress made all the difference.

  They rode up a steep path that edged the ditch beside the bailey wall. Even from here, Jenny could tell that Marchmont was the finest place she had ever visited. By now, Earl William had probably forgotten his rash invitation at Lilliesleaf. But even if Jenny should be ignored again, she would not have missed this trip for the world.

  The main gate appeared abruptly at the crest of the hill. Once in the bailey, Jenny was glad to slide from La Rose. Her father’s small, bedraggled entourage must have compared poorly with others coming for the tournament, but servants took the horses to the stables immediately, and a well-dressed man came to greet them.

  “I am Brice,” he said, “the steward of this house. My lord is sorry he cannot be here to welcome his visitors. This weather has thrown our plans for the tournament awry. Come this way, sir. We have set aside one of the bays in the hall for all the young ladies. There are so many, it seemed best to keep them together. Your daughter may make herself comfortable there.”

  Jenny had not expected this. Who were these other girls?

  The great hall seemed chilly after the open air, and somehow damper than the rain. Jenny began to shiver. On either side of the main hall, she saw large bays that were almost rooms in themselves. Ahead, one was curtained off. She heard the other girls before she saw them.

  “We leave the young lady here, my lord. I will show you where the men are quartered. At the top of the hall is the court, where you may eat at any time. With parties arriving at all hours, it seemed useless to try to keep mealtimes today.“

  Jenny did not want to leave her father. She knew no girls her own age aside from Isabel. Would these other girls be unkind?

  Her father seemed to read the apprehension in her eyes. “Go now, little one, make friends with the other ladies. The servants will bring your trunk presently.” And he was gone.

  Jenny looked at her maid. Galiene would have swept into the thick of everything and claimed a place for her lady, but Hilde stood wringing her hands.

  “Have you my combs?” Jenny whispered. “Aye, my lady.” The girl looked miserable.

  Jenny realized she was probably remembering the way she had railed against her at Lilliesleaf, and she blushed at the memory. Hilde was little more than a child. Why had she been so unkind to her?

  “Come then,” she said.

  There were at least a dozen young noblewomen, most with mothers, all with servants. Jenny could see they had established a pecking order, as chickens would. The most forceful were ringed around a brazier that had been set up for warmth. These girls regarded Jenny, in her muddy clothes, with frank disdain. There was no hope of a place at that inner circle. Jenny looked around. A pretty girl with blond hair smiled from a corner. That one spark of encouragement was all Jenny needed.

  “Come, Hilde,” she said, and she set her course for that timid smile.

  “Is there room here?” Jenny asked, but only to be polite. This dark corner of the bay was almost empty.

  “I think so,” the girl replied. “My name is Adèle,” she added quickly. “Lady Adèle de Montgommeri of Maxwell, to be proper. Who are you?”

  Jenny breathed a sigh of relief. This girl put on no airs. “Lady Jeanette Avenel of Langknowes.”

  “You may use my table if you wish, until your things arrive,” Adèle said, “and my mirror. “Jenny accepted the offer gratefully. She had neither table nor mirror. Adèle must come from a fine family to travel with both.

  “Hilde,” she said, “you may comb my hair.” Hilde produced the fine walrus ivory combs that Isabel had again lent Jenny. Adèle admired them greatly and insisted on sending her own maid to the kitchen to fetch warm water. She sighed. “I find it hard to be here without my mother,” she said. “I would certainly fare better in her care. But she just had another child and is still in her bed. Even nurse stayed home to care for them. Is your mother ill too?”

  When Jenny told Adèle she had no mother, the girl’s eyes filled with tears, as if Jenny’s mother had just died. “Then we must care for one another.”

  None of the other girls had made a move toward Jenny. Adèle’s generosity warmed her like a flame. Jenny smiled. “We shall,” she said.

  When Jenny’s clothes arrived, she put on her good wool tunic, leaving the special dress hidden at the bottom of the chest. Then she sat on the chest, facing her new friend.

  “You look lovely,” Adèle said. She leaned closer and whispered, “Tell me, who are you here for?”

  Jenny did not understand at first, then she realized all these young noblewomen were here to be courted. But how many had been invited by royalty? She raised her chin as she replied, “Earl William de Warenne, the king’s brother.” To Jenny’s satisfaction, Adèle’s mouth formed a small O of pure surprise.

  “And who are you here for?” Jenny asked. She could not keep a slight condescension from her voice.

  Adèle dropped her eyes and blushed. “I have come,” she said, “for the king himself.”

  “But how can that be?” Jenny’s voice was louder than she had intended. She moved closer to Adèle to deflect the attention she had attracted and whispered, “How can that be? The king has sworn to take no wife.”

  Adèle nodded. “Yes, but his mother does not accept that. My mother says it is Lady Ada’s duty to put young women in his way, hoping one may tempt him into marriage, as befits a king.” Adèle lowered her voice until Jenny had to strain to hear her. “My mother says it is my duty to be one such woman.” Jenny began to think it was lucky Adèle’s mother had been unable to make the journey. Adèle looked as if she would cry. “I fear the king will not even glance at me.”

  Jenny’s false pride vanished in the light of such honesty. “To be truthful, Earl William paid no court to me at all the last time we met. I am sure he cares more for his horses than he does for me. You are very pretty, Adèle. If anyone could tempt King Malcolm to relent his vow, it would be you.” Adèle smiled through her tears. “Take heart, now,” Jenny continued, sounding much bolder than she felt. “We will face this together. Perhaps we should snub the king and his brother ourselves.” Adèle ducked her head and giggled. Jenny guessed no one had ever made such a scandalous suggestion to her. “Tell me, Adèle, do you know how things are to go? We were told nothing when we arrived.”

  Adèle nodded. “Four of my brothers have come for the hastiludes, and the old earl is a great friend of father’s. The tournament was to begin tonight with a procession to the lists, and then some hastiludes for show. The vespers, they call it. But in this weather, that seems unlikely. When we arrived, everyone was rushing about, making plans to keep the knights amused if they cannot tourney, so they will not quarrel among themselves.

  “Tomorrow, if the rain stops, they will joust all morning, then fight a great mêlée in the afternoon. We may watch from the platforms at the top of the bailey wall.”

  Jenny was taken aback. “That is all? We watch from a distance while they play at war?”

  “They say it is not safe for women to be closer.”

  Adèle giggled. “The mêlée is dangerous, but my brothers joust at home. We could watch beside the lists without fear. They pretend to be concerned for our welfare, but I think they wish to use language not fit for our ears.”

  Jenny sighed. “We will have a dreary time of it, watching little figures tourney in the distance.”

  “But it will not be so dull as that. There will be a banquet and amusements, of course. And the town is hosting a fair, I hear.”

  Jenny remembered how Tam’s eyes had shone when he spoke of Roxburg. “Oh, Adèle, we should see the fair. Roxburg is not distant.”

  “But we could
never go without escort. And who would leave the spectacle of the tournament to accompany us?”

  Ranulf. He would be going to Roxburg. But Jenny almost winced, remembering the way she had treated him. She could not bring herself to ask a favour of him yet. Still, to see Roxburg, to share that with Tam. She took a deep breath. “I will find a way.” Jenny’s stomach growled. “Are you hungry, Adèle?”

  “Yes. Father said he would send for me, but I fear he has forgotten. He often does when there are friends about. Mother rages at him sometimes.”

  Jenny stood. “I have had nothing since breakfast. Let us find the food.”

  Adèle nodded. “I will faint if I wait for Father. He will not mind when he realizes he forgot.”

  None of the other women even glanced at them as they left. Jenny knew that would change when they learned why she and Adèle were here. But then it would be her turn to snub them. How lucky she was to have found a sincere friend like Adèle.

  When they were out of the women’s bay, Adèle took Jenny’s hand. “You can see the court ahead. Behind it is the solar, the earl’s private rooms.”

  They passed bays that housed dozens of men who had come for the tournament. Adèle kept her eyes down out of modesty, but Jenny could not resist looking around. No one was bold enough to speak to them, but a few winked, and one leered almost indecently. Jenny realized how sheltered her life was. Adèle was right. Any trip outside would require an escort.

  In the court, Jenny saw her father almost immediately, sitting with some other men, but her new friend held on to her hand.

  “Oh good. I see Father,” Adèle said. “I was afraid he might be hiding in the solar.” She made straight for the head table with Jenny in tow, stopping before two elderly men at the very centre.

  “Adèle, my child,” one said, “I forgot you once again. You must forgive me.” He certainly looked too old to be the father of a newborn child, but Jenny was only mildly surprised. Nobles often took much younger brides. “You remember my daughter, my lord,” he said to the other man. Jenny knew this could only be the Earl of Roxburg. His silver hair parted just like Tam’s and his eyes held the same gentle humour.

  “Indeed,” he said, “Lady Adèle has flowered into young womanhood since last I saw her.” Even his voice sounded like Tam’s. Jenny could hardly take her eyes off him.

  Adèle’s father sighed. “Lady Ada herself summoned the child. And where is the lady? I have not seen her today.”

  The Earl of Roxburg glanced behind him in a way that, in a lesser man, might have seemed almost fearful. “She is in the solar, in council with her sons,” he said. Then he corrected himself. “Rather, the king is in council with his mother and his brother.” He seemed embarrassed by his slip, but Adèle’s father was not.

  “Well, what mother is pleased when her sons refuse to marry? The lady has good reason to be cross with them. Lady Ada and my good wife wish Adèle to entice the king into thoughts of marriage. A fool’s errand, I fear.” He was just as open as his daughter.

  The Earl of Roxburg laughed at his honesty. “‘We may hope not. Such a pretty child. King Malcolm may yet relent and take a wife.”

  The Comte de Montgommeri noticed Jenny. “And you have found yourself a friend, my dear.” Adèle smiled and introduced Jenny.

  “Who would have guessed so many young ladies would come to a tournament?” the Earl of Roxburg said.

  “The knights like to have the ladies watch their feats of valour, I think,” the comte replied.

  The earl sighed. “Well, jousting may be fit to watch, but I fear the mêlée is too rough.”

  Jenny saw her chance. “My lord, Lady Adèle and I would like to visit the fair in Roxburg tomorrow if you would allow. Perhaps while the mêlée is held?”

  “Yes,” Adèle broke in. “We really would. Please, Father?”

  Her father laughed. “Of course, child. This trip will be tedious enough for you, I fear.”

  “They will need an escort,” the earl said. “I will send a man with them tomorrow afternoon, if the weather ever breaks.” The earl cast an anxious glance at a window, still dripping with rain. Then he turned to Jenny. “So you are the daughter of the Vicomte Avenel. Where is your father, my child? I find myself in his debt.”

  Jenny hoped the earl would think she was blushing out of shyness as she led him to her father. She knew he was referring to Tam. She liked the earl at once and had no wish to lie to him, but she had a promise to keep. As soon as the earl shook her father’s hand she hurried back to Adèle, barely speaking. She hoped to seem timid rather than rude.

  When they had eaten and were returning to the dreary ladies’ bay, Jenny saw a figure far down the hall. Without stopping to explain, she sprinted away from Adèle, straight into his arms. Eudo lifted her high above his head, then wrapped his arms around her. When they had finished hugging and laughing, she turned to find Adèle looking shocked and shy.

  “Lady Adèle de Montgommeri, this is Sir Eudo Avenel, my brother.”

  “Oh,” Adèle said. “Your brother. I should have guessed.”

  Eudo was suddenly speechless. Jenny had to nudge him. “Yes,” he said, “I have been for sixteen years now. Her brother, I mean. Since she was born. I am older, of course.”

  Jenny stared at him. He was babbling. Adèle put a hand to her mouth and giggled.

  Eudo blushed. “Do you know where Father is?” he asked.

  Jenny took his arm. “I will show you. Do you tourney tomorrow? Papa will be so pleased. Adèle, I will join you shortly.”

  Eudo took his eyes from Adèle only with difficulty. “She is a beauty,” he whispered when they were out of earshot. “Is she here for anyone?”

  Jenny nodded, surprised that her brother would know so much. “The king himself,” she said. “That is to say, in the eyes of everyone but the king himself.”

  “Then I dare not even speak to her.”

  The disappointment in his voice surprised Jenny. Until that very moment, she had never thought to picture Eudo with a wife.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Dark grey clouds glowered the next morning, but the rain held off. The brisk wind carried enough of a chill to make Jenny glad of her cloak as she stood by the top of the bailey wall. She and Adèle had taken a corner for themselves. The other women would certainly have been friendlier now if Jenny had given them an opening, but she took some pleasure in rebuffing them.

  “I believe these knights will tourney today, even if it pours,” Jenny said.

  “I hope so,” Adèle replied. “Nothing else will deliver us from their foul tempers.”

  Jenny only nodded. After the vespers had been cancelled because of the rain, last night’s gathering had soured. The royal family stayed in the solar. All the young men had avoided Jenny and Adèle, for the sake of the king and his brother, Jenny supposed. But even Adèle’s brothers and Eudo had acted like strangers. As the night wore on, insults were traded around the fire more often than jokes. Finally, a fistfight broke out. The Earl of Roxburg declared the evening over and ordered everyone to their lodgings. It was dismal.

  Now, the mounted knights appeared to be milling around aimlessly in the lists. “What do you suppose they are doing down there?” Jenny asked Adèle.

  “If the joust is well ordered, the outsiders, the venants, may choose the men they wish to joust against by touching the shields of knights from the home company, the tenants.”

  “But which are venants and which are tenants?”

  “A good question. When one earl’s men meet another’s, you always know. But here, all are the king’s men. They may group as they please. You can be sure that some of the surliness we saw last night had to do with the drawing of those lines.”

  “You know a great deal about this, Adèle,” Jenny said.

  Her friend sighed. “I have six brothers—no, seven now. The baby has not yet taken his knight’s spurs, though he howls in a most warlike way. My brothers visit often, and my father takes any number of you
ng men to live with us. They seem to think hastiludes are the only fit topic for conversation. My mother says my knowledge of the tournaments is most unladylike. If I had a sister, we might turn the talk to other things, but I am overwhelmed.”

  Jenny smiled to picture Adèle in a household full of men. Down by the river, the knights were moving out of the lists.

  “But how will we know who is jousting?” Jenny asked.

  Adèle frowned. “In France, they say, households dress in colours so everyone knows whose men are jousting, if they wish to be known. Here we are not so splendid. We may not even know who is fighting.”

  She proved to be right. They spent the morning watching mostly anonymous knights tilt at one another with blunted lances. When one was unhorsed, the men crowded into the lists to watch the fight. Then Adèle and Jenny could see nothing at all.

  Jenny did recognize Eudo when he took position with his charger. “There is my brother,” she said. Her heart pounded. Eudo unhorsed the knight who stood against him on the second charge. “Is he winning?” she cried as the crowd obscured the view. She clutched Adèle’s arm.

  Their father would be hard-pressed to replace Eudo’s horse and armour should he lose it.

  When the crowd cleared, Jenny saw her father hugging Eudo while other knights slapped him on the back. She sighed in relief. “He must have won.”

  Adèle looked puzzled. “The knights are gentle today. Even if he lost, he would not be harmed.” Jenny realized such a loss would mean little in Adèle’s household. Adèle craned her neck. “He is handsome, Jeanette. Is he betrothed?”

  Jenny remembered how Adèle’s beauty had reduced Eudo to an idiot when they met. “He is not,” she said, “and he will have my father’s lands one day. He would make a good husband for some lady, once she has spurned the offers of the king.”

  Adèle blushed scarlet, laughing. Then she frowned. “My mother means to marry me to a powerful man. She thinks it her life’s work.”

  Jenny pictured Adèle with her brother. They would make a fine match. But poor Adèle might easily end up with a man closer to her father’s age. “I wish,” Jenny said, “that we were free to marry men of our own choosing, just like the common lassies. Do you ever wish that, Adèle? To marry a man just because you liked the sound of his voice and the way he smiles? To marry a man who would make your troubles seem to vanish simply by listening to them?”