Strangclyf Secret (14 page)

Bernon surveyed the filth
and rubble, seeing what he would expect to see in ruins, except
everything was pushed to one side of the room. Dirt had been
scrubbed and chipped from the wall to his right and part of the
ceiling. The grime crusted on the other walls and the rest of the
ceiling appeared close to a fourth-inch thick. A whetstone, cleaned
and oiled, graced the area at the far corner near the clean wall
next to a pile of blades waiting for sharpening. The scrubbed wall
held ten cleaned, sharpened, and oiled Roman short swords, twelve
daggers, an axe, six round shields, and two spears. A decrepit
makeshift ladder, with two broken rungs and a dirty cloth hanging
over one rung, leaned against the far wall beside a bucket, a pile
of cleaning brushes, and rags. Several large piles of assorted
weapons spread over the floor on the left side of the room, waiting
for restoration. A pile of long straight branches lay beside the
door.

“
Have you ever seen such
filth?” Matilda exclaimed, walking into the chamber. The men
appeared speechless.

Barwolf wrung her hands.
“I apologize. I decided to do this room last because ‘twas not as
bad as the others. I got sidetracked restoring the weapons, because
‘twas more fun than cleaning walls, and then my ladder broke. I got
branches to fix it but never did because of my most special
project. After you secure the keep, I’ll come back and finish the
chamber toni—”

“
Did you say this was the
cleanest?” Bernon asked incredulously, cutting off her
rambling.

She gave him a forlorn
nod. “Except for my room and the bath. I cleaned those when I was
ten.”

Geno frowned. “Did you say
your room is down here and not in the main keep?”

“
I have one above too,” she
admitted in a wary tone. “I just do not use it when we have guests
or when my father’s men get rambunctious, which seems to be most of
the time. I do not like sleeping with a dagger, because I cut
myself once. ‘Tis easier to just come down here, and Aurick said
‘twas best for me.”

“
Why were you sleeping with
a dagger?” Bernon asked in a dangerously calm voice, sure he wasn’t
going to like her answer.

She took a defensive step
back and her eyes shuttered. “So I could stab the men who came to
me when I was trying to sleep.”

“
Why did you not bar your
door?” he demanded.

Barwolf bowed her head.
“My father said I was not old enough for a barred
chamber.”

“
And he did nothing to
protect you?” Bernon asked in a voice that could freeze hell’s
flames.

“
He was one of the ones I
stabbed.” She jerked her finger through her locks. “Can we please
hurry? I would like to finish cleaning this before morning.
Tomorrow is Tuesday and I have much to do on Tuesdays.”

Bernon knew she was
nervous and suppressed his rage against her father. He cupped her
chin, forcing her look at him. “You are not cleaning this chamber
tonight and I want a straight answer to my next question. What
happened after you stabbed your father?”

Unconsciously she raised
her hand and rubbed her left ear. “He knocked me upside my head and
told me that I was his baggage and ‘twas his right to paw me to
death if he wanted. Aurick came into my room and threw my father
against the wall and said he would kill the lecher if he ever again
so much as looked at me like he wanted to paw me. Then Aurick took
me to his chamber and guarded me for the rest of the night. The
next morning he asked me if I remembered the secret and I told him
aye. He told me ‘twould be safer to sleep down here from now on, so
most of the time I do.”

‘
Twas a miracle she had
come to him for help after receiving such despicable treatment from
men—and her own father. “Where?”

“
Sometimes on the pelts in
the chamber where we talked earlier but mostly in the bath. Can we
not talk about this anymore, please? Remembering that night always
gives me nightmares and I am very tired. If you are not going to
let me clean, then I would like to sleep tonight without my father
haunting me.”

“
The axe looks
interesting,” William said, shifting back to current concerns. He
crossed the room and hefted the weapon from the wall. “I cannot
believe the wood in the handle did not decay.”

“’
Tis petrified,” Barwolf
explained, relaxing with the topic change. “So is the wood in the
two spears that hang. I have branches to remake the
others.”

Geno chose a sword and a
spear. “You did a fine job restoring and sharpening these, little
wolf. I think I will take a dagger too.”

He reached for the one
hanging nearest him.

“
Nay! Not that one! ‘Tis
for Bernon.” She rushed forward and took the dagger. “Please
forgive my rudeness, Geno. This dagger is special.”

Geno looked at the weapon
in her hands and smiled. “No need to apologize, little wolf. I can
see how special.”

Barwolf procured another
dagger with a sapphire set into an ebony and silver handle and
offered the weapon to Geno. “Why do you not use this one? The stone
matches your lovely blue eyes.”

Bernon scowled at the pair
as Geno accepted the blade, flashing his roguish grin that had
seduced most of the ladies in William’s court. “Thank you, little
wolf. I am sure ‘twill bring me luck because you picked
it.”

“
But you do not need luck.
You are a bastard,” she said, smiling and patting his
arm.

“
What!” William bellowed,
turning red-faced.

She turned a startled
expression upon the king then her hands fisted at her sides. “I
just said—”

“
We heard what you said,”
Bernon curtly interrupted, glowering down at her. “Do you seek to
insult all four of the men in this room out of ignorance or on
purpose?”

“’
Twas a compliment I gave,
not an insult.” Her brows tugged with confusion. “My father told me
that you are a bastard, Bernon, so surely you of all people should
know this truth.”

“
What truth?” William
demanded in a grinding voice.

“
Bastards are superior to
other men. Aurick explained this to me after my father told me that
Aurick was a bastard. ‘Tis because for a bastard to live beyond the
age of ten, he must work harder, think sharper, and do everything
twice as well as someone who is legitimate. So when my father
called Aurick a bastard, ‘twas a great compliment that only a true
bastard could appreciate. And for me to say Geno has no need for
luck lets him know I recognize his superior abilities.”

Bernon clenched his jaw to
keep his chin from dangling. He had spent his entire life plagued
by a dark stigma and his little bride considered bastards superior.
Had he done some good deed in his past to merit a bride with such a
perspective? Surely no other woman in the world had this attitude,
except maybe his queen.

Barwolf bowed her head and
clasped her hands around the dagger she held. “I am sorry to all of
you. I truly meant no offense.”

Matilda burst into
laughter. “I cannot wait to meet Aurick. I am growing rather fond
of the fellow.”

“
Save your fondness for
your own bastard,” William gruffly ordered with a twinkle in his
eyes. “Though I have to admit, I am looking forward to meeting him
myself.”

“
Who is this Aurick?”
Medwyn asked. “You mentioned him before.”

“
He is my uncle and my
second favorite person in the world,” Barwolf replied on a relieved
sigh. “Merciful heavens, you Normans change moods faster than a
boar can charge.”

Bernon raised a brow. “And
who is your favorite person?”

“
My husband,” she answered
without a pause. “’Tis the way of things. If you will finish
selecting your weapons, we should go. Hadwyn and his men will wake
soon, and ‘twould be best if we surprised them.”

William grinned smugly at
Bernon. “Lady Strangclyf, give your favorite person the dagger you
want him to have and I will let my favorite person pick one for
me.”

As Matilda walked to the
wall and selected a dagger for the king, Barwolf slowly crossed
over and stood in front of Bernon, offering him the dagger. He
accepted the weapon and stared at the black hilt with inlaid gold
filigree work detailing a fighting bear. He recognized the pattern
as the one she used for his tunic. “You found this
here?”

“
I found it in another
chamber when I was nine. ‘Twas under some dirt and rubble. I knew
‘twas special, so I slept with it and told myself I was safe,
because I had a bear to protect me. After I used it on my father,
Aurick saw it and told me to hide it, because my father would take
the dagger away from me if he saw it. I got one with a plain handle
and Aurick carved a lamb on the grip for me. ‘Twas the one I lost
in London.”

“
Would you like to keep
this for yourself?” he asked in a gentle tone.

“
Thank you, but I do not
need it anymore.” She pat his arm. “I have the fine blade you gave
me and a real bear to protect me now, though I may need help
remembering.”

He noticed an impish
glimmer in her eyes and felt pleased. She was actually jesting with
him. A slow smile rolled along his lips. “I will remind you
often.”

“
Are you ready, Bernon?”
the king called, wearing the arrogant grin of a monarch who knew he
had arranged an excellent match.

“
Aye, William.” Bernon
slipped an arm around Barwolf’s shoulders. “Come, my dear, lead the
way.”

~ * ~

After Geno entered the
hall, Barwolf sneaked into the ale room, leaned around the screen,
and watched the fight. William fought his way from the hearth to
the adjacent screen, which separated the buttery from the hall,
leaving a trail of bodies in his wake. Medwyn remained near the
stairs, hacking those unlucky enough to come within striking
distance of his blade. With a smile and a hum, Geno danced his way
into the center of the fray, goading the Saxons then killing all
who dared approach. His laughter floated about the hall amid the
clang of steel and screams of falling men.

Bernon had not arrived and
Barwolf worried. What could have happened to delay him? Then she
wondered about the three Norman warriors fighting the near forty
Saxons in the hall. The Saxons appeared outmatched. A glint of
sunlight from the hall’s upper windows reflected from metal in the
gallery above the opposite wall and caught Barwolf’s notice. She
saw a dark figure that somehow looked familiar in the shadows. The
blackguard took aim at William’s back.
Zut!
She had to save her king.
Without a thought for her welfare, Barwolf left the safety of the
ale room. raced over behind William, and caught a dagger before the
blade could enter his back.

Then she threw the blade
at a man rushing toward her with a raised sword. Without waiting to
see if she hit her mark, she slipped back behind the screen into
the ale room.

Barwolf almost reached the
wall with the lever to the maze and heard a noise behind her.
Whirling around, she saw Hadwyn. Oh Lord, she’d never make it to
the panel and gain access to the maze. She froze.

“
You ruined my plans, you
little bitch, but you will taste death before I do!” Hadwyn
bellowed as he raced toward her, his sword high in the air. He
abruptly stopped with a shocked expression then crumpled
face-forward upon the ground. His sword clattered on the stones at
her feet, and Intrepid protruded from his back.

She looked up—not quite
sure if this were really happening or if she was having a
nightmare. She saw Bernon at the other end of the ale room wearing
a furious expression that made her think of Last Rites.

“
Are you all right?” he
asked, his tone as sharp as Intrepid.

She couldn’t get her
throat to work and ended up nodding while she looked at him through
wide eyes and tried to tighten her slack jaw.

“
We will discuss your
disobedience later,” he said in a voice that shivered down her
spine. “Now get back into the maze until ‘tis safe for you to come
out.” Without another glance at her, he pulled Intrepid from
Hadwyn’s body and left the ale room.

Blinking back tears,
Barwolf opened the panel and pulled the lever. As the wall opened,
a resounding cheer filled the hall. Padarn rushed out of the maze
into the ale room. “Thank the Almighty that is over. I do not mind
telling you, milady, I didn’t like being in there one bit. My
tallow burned out. I swear I heard some ‘o them bones reconnectin’
and risin’ up in the dark.”

Barwolf bowed her head, so
Padarn wouldn’t see her distress. She entered the maze and reached
for the lever.

“
Where do you go, milady?”
the wiry Saxon asked in jubilant tones.

“
To lead our queen out of
the maze,” she replied quietly and sniffed. “I will return shortly.
Thank you again for your help.”

~ * ~

After the battle, Bernon
stood with King Willaim, Geno, and Medwyn near the high table, A
thin man of moderate height and pronounced limp entered from the
aleroom with a barrel of ale hefted upon his shoulder. He grabbed a
spigot and goblet, and began whistling a cheerful tune as he
approached Bernon and held out the goblet to his new lord. “Welcome
home to Strangclyf, milord, and have a drink to your
victory.”