Here Be Dragons - 1 (36 page)

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talking with a stranger, iu im,.
Rhvs Adam would have run him through ... or tried to. You can cuwavstell ^ a man ke handy with weapons, and Rhys had that look about him So when he started toward me, I scrambled off the oxwain, fled into the weaver's. I was terrified that he might follow me in. He did not, but he was still there when Adam and I
came out. Fortunately, he did not say anything; he just looked at me. I could feel his eyes on me all the while Adam was joking with Will, was never so aware of anyone in all my life as I suddenly was of Rhys."
"Yes," Joanna said softly. "I do know the feeling. When did you see him next?"
"Adam had to return the following day, and I coaxed him into letting me go with him. I did not truly expect Rhys to be there again, but he wasalmost as if he was waiting for me. Much later I learned he was; Will had told him Adam would be coming back that afternoon. What followed was the most unnerving, exciting hour of my life. I knew what a dangerous game we were playing, for at any moment Adam might take notice. But I could not help myself. I sat there on the cart, and each time our eyes met, it became harder and harder to look away. And then Adam's business was done, we were on our way home, and I knew
I'd never see him again. I did not even know his name, had never exchanged a single word with him, but I cried half the night. Does that sound foolish to you?"
Joanna shook her head.
"I thought of him every waking moment in the days that followed.
What I did not know was that he was keeping a close watch all the while
°n Middleton, waiting for the chance to find me alone. He later con-
essed he'd even thought of riding up to the manor house, asking my fa*her for me. Thank Jesus he did not, for there'd have been a killing for certes.
'I gave him his opportunity at week's end. It was a Saturday, just at
^usk, as hot as Hades, and I decided that, whilst the light held, I'd walk
0 the spring, wash my hair. I brought my towel, hairbrush, and a sliver
° soap, sat down in the grass to unbraid my hair. I never heard a sound, °* even a twig snap, not until he was behind me, put his hand over my
°uth. I've ever been an utter coward, Joanna; I made it very easy for mi*. fainted dead away!
im *

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"When I came to, I was all trussed up in a blanket, being held before him on his saddle." Catherine's smile faded; she said quietly, "j was terrified, and with reason. It is common enough to abduct an heiress, to force her into an unwanted marriage. What woman does not know that?"
Joanna nodded. "Even so great a lady as my grandmother, Queen Eleanor, was held to be fair game. Two such attempts were made upon her after she divorced the French King."
"But you see, Joanna, I was no heiress. I was a bailiff's daughter, had nothing to offer a man except my body. And yet, if he had rape in mind, why did he not just take me there by the spring? The more I tried to make sense of it, the more fearful I became. I must have made some sound, whimpered or sobbed, for he realized I'd recovered my senses, at once sought to comfort me.
He knew my name, called me Catrin, swore he'd not hurt me, that I had no cause for fear. That might have helped some, had it not been for 'Catrin.' For as soon as I knew he was Welsh, I was even more terrified; all knew the Welsh were half-wild, capable of any madness.
"It was full dark by then. Not that I could see a blessed thing; I could barely breathe, wrapped in that blanket like a cocoon. I've no idea how long we rode; after a time we stopped and he lifted me from the saddle. Know you what a hafod is? It is a summer hut, used by the Welsh herdsmen when they move their flocks to higher ground for pasturing. It was to a hafod that he took me, empty now since it was September, a most convenient place for a ... a tryst. It was too dark inside to see much; I just lay there shivering on the blanket. He'd already laid in firewood, and it took but a moment to get a fire going. He lit a candle from the flames, carried it back to me, and for the first time, I saw his face."
"You had not known it was Rhys?" Joanna interrupted, startled, and Catherine shook her head.
"No, not till he lit the candle; how could I? He sat beside me on the blanketsyou'll find no proper bed in a hafodand touched my hair, very gently.
Then he began to talk. He told me he'd known from that first moment in Blanc
Minster that I was his and only his, but I must not fear, for he did not mean to dishonor me, would have me for his wife, had taken me by force only because he'd known no other way."
Catherine's voice had softened. Her eyes were no longer acknowledging Joanna, were gazing into a private vista of her own. Joanna suddenly had the fanciful thought that, if she but leaned forward, she could see captured in the pupils of Catherine's eyes the firelit image of a fifteen-year-old girl and a nineteen-year-old boy upon a pile of blankets in a summer hafod.

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She hesitated; as candid as Catherine had been, it somehow seemed rong t°
question her now, an unwelcome intrusion into a past not for haring- At last she said shyly, "Catherine . . . when did you stop being fraid? Do you remember?"
Catherine's eyes shifted to her face, no longer clouded, remote. "Oh, yes, I
rememberwhen Rhys first struck that candle."
She glanced down at her wedding ring; it was of an unusual, almost primitive design, a heavy gold studded with gemstones. "We sent the priest who married us to my family. My father swore he'd never forgive me. But within a year
Llewelyn had won that brilliant, bloody victory at the mouth of the Conwy, had laid claim to half of Gwynedd, and Rhys was ever at his right handwas his right hand. My father died nigh on ten years ago, but he lived to see his first grandson. And my brothers come often to Tregarnedd."
"You've been very lucky," Joanna said slowly.
Catherine's smile was radiant, innocent. "I know," she said.
Joanna found herself looking, too, at Catherine's wedding band. It did not surprise her in the least that Catherine should have been so easily seduced.
What girl would have chosen an aging, ungainly neighbor over a reckless, lovestruck youth with the nerve of a highwayman and the face of a dark angel?
But beneath the undeniably romantic appeal of Catherine's tale, Joanna felt the tug of common sense. What if Catherine had, indeed, cared for her greying knight? If she had resented being carried off as a prize of war? What might have happened then?
No, for all that Catherine had obviously found all she'd ever wanted in that deserted hafod, Joanna could not but think Catherine's luck had been stretched to the very limit and then some. And yet she was aware of an undercurrent of envy. For Catherine had one treasure beyond value, had what she'd have given anything in the world to have herselfthe rare and precious certainty that her husband loved her, not for what she could bring to his coffers, not for castles or bloodlines or connections, but for herself alone.

18
RHOSYR, NORTH WALES
November 1206
"C
v./*
VATRIN, my love!" Llewelyn turned, swept Catherine up in a lover's embrace, then gave her a chaste kiss on the forehead. Laughing, she hugged him back
"Have you some moments to spare? I need to talk, Llewelyn." "For you, always .
. . day or night." As he led her toward the window seat, it occurred to
Catherine that her relationship with Llewelynteasing, affectionate, mildly flirtatiouswas one an insecure, jealous young wife might possibly misconstrue.
She would, she thought regretfully, have to strive for greater decorum. A
pity, for as much as she liked to flirt, that was a game she dared play with
Llewelyn alone. Having led an all but cloistered life prior to her marriage, she'd then made the belated discovery that it could be fun to talk and tease and coqueta littlewith other men, to her an innocent diversion that did not in the least diminish her love for Rhys. But she'd also discovered that her husband was intensely possessive, begrudged her any and all male cornpanionship, no matter how innocent . . . save only for Ednyved and
Llewelyn. Ednyved was little inclined to flattery, even less so to gallantry, but in Llewelyn, Catherine had found a kindred spirit, and they'd established a rapport from their first meeting. In the beginning, an unsettling misgiving had imperiled Catherine's peace, the suspicion that if her husband tolerated
Llewelyn's banter and familiarity while bristling if another man so much as glanced in her direction, it must be that Rhys trusted Llewelyn but did not truly trust her. That was so disturbinga thought, however, that Catherine had swiftly buried it deep; hers was not a nature to probe for that which she'd rather not know. "How is my godson and namesake?"
"As much of a hellion as you were at his age . . . and still are." "Do not be cruel, Catrin," Llewelyn said and grinned. "It is good to

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you back at court. Joanna tells me your newest babe is as beautiful hg her mother; how does she?"
3 "Gwenifer is fine." Catherine paused. "I just wish I could say as much for Joanna."
"What do you mean?"
Catherine did not reply at once. Having already plunged into the ater, it was no ^me now *° ^"e worrying if she'd gotten in over her head. But she could not suppress a nervous qualm or two. As fond as
Llewelyn was of her, he was not likely to thank her for pointing out all his shortcomings as a husband.
"We've been friends for nigh on thirteen years. I must hope that our friendship does give me the right to speak plainly . . . about Joanna and you.
You've not done right by her, Llewelyn; I know no other way to say it than that."
"Indeed?" Llewelyn was both surprised and annoyed. Leaning back in the seat, he gave her a distinctly cool look. "I do not know to whom you've been listening, Catrin, but you are wrong. I think I've been very good to Joanna.
Even ere we were married. I spared no expense in having her chamber made ready for her. Nor have I denied her anything since we've been wed, have given her whatever she asks for, have made sure that none do speak disparagingly of her father in her hearing, that she's accorded the respect due her as my wife.
I've been patient, too, keeping in mind her youth, have not forced her against her will, and I've taken care that my liaison with Cristyn should not cause her hurt. Now if that is not doing right by her, what more would you have me do?"
Catherine bit her lip. Rhys had an unfortunate and infuriating tendency to stalk out whenever he was irked with her; she felt sure that even if he refused to act upon her advice, Llewelyn would at least hear her out. But she was not getting off to the best of starts; the last thing she'd wanted was to put him on the defensive.
"I did not mean you've been unkind," she said hastily. "I was speaking rather of sins of omission. I do not deny what you've done for her, but Llewelyn, do you ever think of Joanna, truly think of her as a woman, as your wife? Do you know how unhappy she is? How homesick? Do you know that she has been trying for months now to befriend your children, but to no avail? Or that she did turn fifteen more than two months ago?"
Llewelyn was listening intently, his face thoughtful now rather "an irritated, and Catherine gathered up her courage, concluded luntly, "I suspect. . . and please do not take this amiss; I do not mean it ^s a criticism, for I know how heavy your burdens be. But I suspect you Or8et about Joanna altogether when she's not right there in front of y°u- And then she held her breath, waiting.

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"Yes," he said at last, "I suppose there is some truth in what say. I am fond of the lass, Catrin, but she's not all that often on you
H\y mind, I admit. Is she truly as unhappy as that? I thought she'd adjust time
..."
"She tries, wants so much to do what is expected of her. But she' very young, and very alone. She speaks no Welsh, and how many at your court do speak
French? She cannot even communicate with he maid, and with you so often away, there are days when she has no one at all to talk to. She's lonely and homesick, finds herself an alien in a land not her own. Can you not imagine how that would be?"
Llewelyn drew an audible breath. "Yes," he said slowly. "I cat) imagine quite well; I've been there."
Catherine leaned over, kissed him on the cheek. "Joanna is a lucky girl, and someday I shall tell her so," she said, smiled at him. The puzzle lacked but one piece now, and since he'd been the first to make mention of it, she felt no compunctions in saying, "You said you were being patient with Joanna, because of her youth. Then that is why you've not yet bedded her?"
Llewelyn nodded. "Why else? I knew, of course, that she was fourteen. But to tell you true, Catrin, it came as rather a shock to find out just how very young a fourteen she was." He gave a rueful laugh, thinking back upon his wedding night. "Not having a taste for rape, I thought it best to give her time" He broke off abruptly. "Surely you do not think I was wrong?"
"Indeed not! I think your forbearance was much for the best, was as clever as it was kind. But as fearful and reluctant as Joanna may have been on her wedding night, Llewelyn, that was over six months ago. How long do you mean to wait?"
She saw amusement in his eyes, saw sudden interest, too. "Did Joanna speak to you of"
"No!" she interrupted, quite indignantly. "Do you truly think I'd betray her confidence if she had? I would never tell you what she'd confided to me in trust; you ought to know that. It is because she did not that I felt free to come to you like this, to tell you what I think."
"Which is?"
"That Joanna is not the child you think her to be. And I'd venture to guess that if you were to stop neglecting the girl and pay her some longoverdue attention, you might be pleasantly surprised!"
PUTTING down Richard's letter, Joanna began to reread her father's. These were the first letters she'd had since their departure for La Rochelle in late May.
She'd expected such a silence, for John would have

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tie time for letter-writing in the midst of a campaign, Isabelle was a lously pOOr correspondent, and Richard had not the funds to en n e a couner of his own It had been a long, lonely wait, but the news s good, was all she could have hoped to hear Her father was coming home
Reaching for her mantle, Joanna hastened from her chambers, out nto the bailey She knew Llewelyn was conferring that morning with lorwerth ap
Madog, the lawyer he'd chosen to compile the ancient law ode of Hywel the Good, and she headed for the great hall Catching sight of her husband in the window seat, she started toward him
"Llewelyn, I've had a letter from my father1 He" Coming to an abrupt halt, stanng at Catherine
THE window was covered with oiled linen, casting the seat into sun and shadow
Llewelyn positioned a cushion behind Joanna's back, sat down beside her He was so close that she felt his breath upon her cheek as he leaned over to unfasten her mantle, so close that she could think of nothing else, sitting in silence until he prompted, "Are you not going to tell me what your father wrote, Joanna7"
"He he has won signal victories against the French, did take Montauban Castle in just fifteen days " Joanna raised her eyes to Llewelyn's, found she could not look away "He writes that he has secured his hold upon Poitou, that he and
Philip have agreed to a two-year truce "
"It does sound as if his campaign was indeed a success," Llewelyn agreed politely, forbearing to tarnish John's triumph by pointing out that he may have regained Poitou, but Normandy was still lost to Philip
Joanna nodded "Not even Charlemagne could take Montauban, but Papa did," she said proudly "He took Angers, too " She hesitated then, before saying with studied casualness, "What were you and Cathenne talking about7"
Llewelyn had, however, caught her inadvertent look of dismay at sight of them together Having long ago learned that a half-truth was often far more effective than an outright denial in allaying suspicions, he said, with equal nonchalance, "As it happens, we were talking of you Catnn was taking me to task for having forgotten your birthday "
"Oh," Joanna said, much relieved She was not sure what she'd feared, for even had Catherine repeated verbatim every one of their conversations this month past, would that have been so dreadful, after all? Actually, she was glad that
Catherine had told him about the missed hrthday, she wanted him to know
"I expect it's best that you find out the truth about me early on " Llewelyn's smile was wry "You see, love, I do have an appalling mem-