The Copper Sign (68 page)

“No, I am pregnant!”

“Ellenweore! That’s such wonderful news!” Isaac exclaimed happily, taking her in his arms and twirling her around. “I had already given up hope that the Lord would bless us with another child!”

Winter had finally arrived, quite unexpectedly. The sky was milky white, and it looked like snow. Ellen was freezing, so she pulled the fur vest tighter around her as she hurried across the yard to the workshop. Just before she reached the shop she heard hoofbeats.

“Baudouin! What a pleasure!” she said, greeting him as he came closer. He hadn’t visited them for a long time, and Ellen was sincerely happy to see him.

“How are you all?”

Baudouin leaped from his horse and tied it up. “The Young King needs you! You must come along with me to Limoges,” he announced.

Ellen looked at him, frightened. “But I can’t just get up and leave here.”

Baudouin shrugged sympathetically. “When the king calls, it is better not to refuse. It’s a matter of honor!”

Ellen felt a tightening in her chest. “Will I be away long? I am going to have a child,” she explained, looking down at her belly.

“Oh, when?” Baudouin looked carefully at her midsection.

“In the summer.”

He grinned with relief. “Either you’ll be back in time, or your child will be born on the other side of the Channel. Would that be so bad?” Ellen didn’t reply. “You have to be ready to leave by tomorrow morning.”

“So soon?” Ellen looked at him in consternation.

“It’s a long way, and you do want to get back soon! I’ll pick you up right after sunrise.” Baudouin jumped onto his horse and rode off.

“He can ask you, just like that, to leave?” Isaac was furious and ran back and forth angrily.

“A call from the king is like a command, Baudouin said! I have to go, I have no other choice! But I’ll do my best to be back for the summer,” she said, trying to console him.

But Isaac just kept grumbling incoherently and turned away.

Ellen felt something like a hot flash passing through her. Baudouin had also said that it was an honor to be summoned by the king. And this honor was given to her, not to Isaac. She interpreted Isaac’s anger as jealousy and was disappointed that he didn’t approve. He was a successful sword polisher and had been an indispensable advisor to her. For this reason it hurt her all the more that he was so opposed to the idea.

They did not speak another word before her departure.

Rose urged Ellen not to leave on bad terms, but Ellen remained obstinate.

Rose shook her head in disbelief and disapproval, saying “I hope neither of you will regret this. In any case, I’d never let my Jean go away like this!”

Baudouin arrived at the smithy before sunrise, accompanied by a young knight and two squires. Ellen said farewell to Jean, Rose, and the children.

Only Isaac was nowhere to be found.

“I know you will carry on the work in the smithy the way I would,” Ellen said in a choked voice.

“Good heavens, that sounds like you’re never coming back! Hopefully you’ll be back again before the end of summer!” Jean embraced her warmly. They had spent so many years together, and naturally he was concerned about her. “You and Isaac were meant for each other!” he whispered in her ear. “Go and say good-bye to him!”

Ellen’s eyes narrowed.

“As you can see, he’s not here, and only because he’s jealous of me!”

Jean took her by both shoulders and looked her straight in the eye. “What in the world makes you think that? You know yourself how happy he is with you and his work! I think he’s afraid you will succumb to William’s charms again. If you could only see what you look like as soon as the Marshal appears!” There was a touch of disapproval in Jean’s voice.

Ellen felt cut to the quick. Had she in fact come to terms with her departure so easily because she hoped to see William again?

“I am really sorry to bother you,” Baudouin interrupted, “but we must leave!”

Ellen chased away thoughts about Isaac and William.

“I’m coming!” she replied with a forced smile and had Jean help her up onto the horse.

The night had been freezing cold. Trees, bushes, and grass were all covered with a layer of ice, and the breath of both men and animals rose up like clouds of vapor. Everything looked sad and grey. Even the sun looked like nothing more than a dull silver disk in a greyish sky.

Dead…everything looks dead
, Ellen thought and cursed the Young King because he had sent for her. She spoke not a word all morning, and Baudouin, too, remained quiet.

Not until they had stopped in the early afternoon for a brief rest did he tell her almost offhandedly that William had left the king’s court.

She turned to look at him in astonishment and noticed that he avoided her gaze.

“A man with so much success both in tournaments and with the Young King is much envied.” Baudouin sighed. “I’ll admit, William can be a bit of a braggart, but he remains the most loyal friend and knight of the Young King.” Baudouin turned to one of the squires. “Can you finish with the horses? I’m as hungry as a bear.” The squire nodded and rushed to finish up.

Ellen watched as he left and wondered whether Baudouin had intentionally put off telling her before they left that William would not be at King Henry’s court when they arrived.

“His enemies have left nothing untried; they even asserted that the Marshal had an affair with the queen!” The young squire gave Baudouin a wineskin. He nodded with satisfaction and handed it to Ellen. “Of course there is no truth in that story!” he quickly affirmed.

Ellen took a long drink and had to cough—the wine was bitter and rough going down. She much preferred cider or light beer.

“I think that some of the closest confidants of the Young King are responsible for this lie—Thomas de Coulonces probably, and I think also Thibault de Tournai, though he tries very hard to stay in the background.”

“Thibault?” Ellen shuddered and her voice sounded tinny.

Baudouin looked at her startled. “You will catch your death of cold in this weather.” Quickly he fetched a blanket and placed it over her shoulders. “Do you know Thibault de Tournai?”

Ellen gave an almost imperceptible nod.

“Ah, yes, probably from Tancarville!” Baudouin thought he understood and elaborated a bit on his thoughts. “Rumors are circulating that the king did not order the sword that you made for him.” Baudouin paused for a moment as if he expected a confirmation.

“Where did you get such a silly idea?” she replied indignantly.

“When the king received the sword, he seemed as happy as a child getting a present. It really didn’t look like he had known anything about it!” Baudouin said.

“Surely William…” Her heart was pounding.

“No, William didn’t know anything about it either! That’s just it! He also wondered who had given the order for the sword. He was, after all, responsible for the young king’s funds. He would have noticed if such a sum was missing. Anyway, Henry’s coffers are always empty.” Baudouin paused for a moment to think. “There is something strange about this. A sword everyone says they did not order, but somehow was paid for, and then this intrigue against William.” He shook his head uneasily. “This has not only hurt William, but more importantly the Young King. He has lost his most thoughtful and experienced adviser, at a time like this when there are problems between himself, his brothers, and their father. There is something rotten here, and it smells of treason!”

Ellen stared at him, horrified.

“I must know who ordered the sword from you!” Baudouin pleaded with her.

“He didn’t give his name, and I didn’t ask. He was wearing the king’s colors and coat of arms, and that was enough for me.” Ellen felt a bit foolish.

“Is that all?” Baudouin asked, disappointed.

“The knight gave me jewels, gold, and a few instructions,” she said with a shrug.

“Instructions?”

“We were to tell no one about the order and give the sword to no one but himself.”

“You were not supposed to bring it to the king?” Baudouin asked again, just to make sure he had heard right.

Ellen shook her head apologetically. “When I heard the king was encamped near St. Edmundsbury, I ignored this instruction. I wanted to see his eyes when he held the sword in his hands for the first time,” she said rather sheepishly.

Unexpectedly, Baudouin’s face brightened. “At first I thought someone wanted to use the sword to curry favor with Henry, and I always wondered who that could be. But now it looks like the deceiver has been deceived himself!”

Ellen looked at him in astonishment.

“Well, it appears the sword was not really intended for the Young King.”

“But that’s what the messenger said! And the jewels, the gold?” Ellen was so angry, confused, and hurt now that she was positively shouting. Evidently, William was not the one who had recommended her, and now it appeared that the sword wasn’t even intended for the king!

“If I could only make sense out of all of that!” Baudouin said. “Thomas de Coulonces and Thibault never could stand one another, but recently they have been the best of friends. I’m sure that Adam d’Yqueboeuf is somehow involved in all of this. He envied William more than anyone else for the position he held.”

A hot flashed passed through Ellen’s head.

“What did you say his name was?” she asked, suddenly fully alert.

“Who? Adam? Adam d’Yqueboeuf! Why do you ask? Do you perhaps know him from Tancarville?”

Ellen shook her head. “No, I can’t remember him. But Rose…the poor girl was very disturbed when the knight ordered the sword. I asked her why she was so pale, and she just mumbled, ‘Yqueboeuf.’ I had no idea what that meant, but now that you said the name I remember and understand what was troubling her. She no doubt feared he would recognize her and tell Thibault where she was.”

“This is getting more and more complicated. Do you mean Thibault de Tournai? What does he have to do with Rose?”

“She was his lover for years and ran away from him.”

Baudouin shook his head in disbelief. “You saved my life once, you have a son by William, and your sister-in-law was Thibault’s lover?” he exclaimed in disbelief.

“She is not my sister-in-law, just a good friend,” Ellen corrected him.

“Well, it doesn’t matter—it’s all very strange. Are there more complications I should know about?” he asked.

Ellen hesitated and tried to avoid his glance.

“I can see, there is more…” Baudouin sighed but didn’t ask for any further explanation.

Henry, the Young King, was involved in a dispute with his brother, Richard the Lionheart. As always, it was about land, fealty, and vanity. The old king had ordered Henry to cede the Duchy of Aquitaine to Richard. But Henry was furious at Richard because, shortly before, he had fortified the castle at Clairvaux, although this castle had always belonged to the count of Anjou. Since that time, Henry had strengthened his connections with the barons of Aquitaine and had given his word to them. But in order not to anger his father, he promised to do what the king demanded on the condition that Richard would pledge allegiance to him. But Richard firmly rejected recognizing his own brother as his master. He thought that since they were of the same flesh and blood, neither of them should stand above the other. He recognized that it was just for Henry, as the eldest, to receive his father’s heritage, but as far as his mother’s holdings were concerned, Richard demanded to be treated as an heir with equal rights. Since Queen Eleanor had brought more than just Aquitaine into the marriage, however, the old king was furious about it. He warned Richard that his brother would raise an army against him in order to curb his pride and greed, and ordered his other son, Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany, to stand by Henry, his brother and feudal lord. But the Young King was also concerned about the welfare of Poitou that had long been oppressed and plundered by Richard, and the barons had called on him for help.

But young Henry was not yet ready to make that decision on his own. He needed the Marshal. He had always been able to rely on him. Adam d’Yqueboeuf and the other men in his entourage could not take William’s place, as they lacked experience. It was this special combination of ferocity and courage, ambition, confidence, and calculation that made William so indispensable to him—and at the same time that had made him the envy of so many.

Thibault was sitting in his room staring into the fire. It was uncomfortably cold in Limoges Castle, but Thibault scarcely noticed. He had come a long way toward realizing his goal of finally getting William out of the way once and for all. Now he was waiting for Adam d’Yqueboeuf. In the Marshal’s absence, Adam had been gaining influence, so Thibault had kept his part of the agreement. Only Adam had failed, for the sword Henry proudly displayed was still not in Thibault’s hands. Thibault pounded angrily on the arm of the heavy oaken chair he was sitting in. Suddenly there was a knock, and Adam d’Yqueboeuf hurriedly slipped through the door and into the room.

“The old king has lost his mind. He’s doing everything differently than planned. It was his idea to bring Richard to his senses!” he exclaimed furiously, falling into a chair. “So where do we stand now? Without William, Henry won’t get anywhere with his father!” Adam spat angrily into the brass spittoon next to him. “I’ll have a heart-to-heart talk with Henry. He must reconcile himself with his father!”

“I hope you can convince him. He listens more to you than to anyone else. Don’t forget, if he loses, he’ll never do anything again without William!” Thibault warned him.

Adam d’Yqueboeuf grumbled crossly. “I know, and that’s not my intent,” he said angrily, then jumped up and walked out.