Timeless Tales of Honor (64 page)

Arissa had grown up knowing the man before her, loving him with all of her heart, and knowing that he would never lie to her. If he said she was Henry's daughter, then she would accept it. Everything he was telling her made perfect sense.

Richmond broke in to her gently rolling thoughts. "Whenever I went away, it was under Henry's direct orders," he said. "Literally, I was forced to react. Usually it was because he wanted first-hand knowledge of your wellbeing or, within the past few years, to fight for his throne."

Absently, she touched a black tendril of damp hair in lingering thought. "I.... I do not look anything like him. I saw him once, when I was young. He’s fair."

"You favor your mother."

"Do you know who my mother is?"

He cleared his throat quietly, thinking. He was not sure it would be a wise thing to tell her every circumstance of her birth, at least not now. "I met her the night I took you to Lambourn. I have not seen her since, and I have no knowledge of her whereabouts."

More than the mere revelation of being Henry's daughter, Arissa's face softened at the thought of the faceless, unknown mother who had been forced to give her up those years ago. Even though she had never birthed a child, she instinctively knew how badly the woman must have hurt to have been forced to relinquish her flesh and blood. Unless.... unless she had been willing to discard the unwanted royal bastard.

A stab of sorrow pierced her heart at the thought that she had been deliberately cast-off. Mayhap the woman had simply turned over the fragile little girl without a second thought on the matter.

"Why do you look like that?" Richmond broke into her thoughts yet again, kissing her hand again tenderly.

She hadn't been aware of her furrowed brow, her distant expression. Looking to Richmond, she simply shook her head. "'Tis nothing. I supposed I am simply overwhelmed by all of this."

He smiled faintly. "I must say, you are far calmer than I imagined you would be. I am very proud of you, Riss. This cannot be easy for you."

She shrugged. "Mayhap I am calm simply because I am so shocked. Mayhap in an hour or two, the reality will settle and I shall become a quivering wreck. Truthfully, so much has happened since yesterday I believe I have become numb to it all."

His lips drifted over her fingers tenderly. "Do not say that. I do not want you to be numb to anything."

She glanced at him, catching his implication and blushing furiously. "You are incorrigible," she whispered bashfully.

His teeth nibbled on her fingers. "Nay, lady, I am simply overcome with my feelings for you. Pray be kind."

Her eyes were riveted to his white teeth as they nipped her flesh, feeling bolts of excitement surging through her veins. Were Mossy not in the room, she would have been extremely eager for another encounter. The old man, however, dampened her enthusiasm.

Struggling to divert her wicked emotions, a far-flung thought came to mind. "Richmond,” she turned to him thoughtfully, “if I am Henry's daughter, then it was he who pledged me to Whitby?"

"Aye."

Her brow furrowed as she pondered the information. "Then you will have to discuss our marriage with him?"

"Aye. Gladly."

She paused a moment, watching his teeth on her thumb. "But if I am of royal blood, will he allow you to marry me? As a mere knight?"

He stopped, his eyes intense. He was amazed at how astute she was. She heard him sigh, faint and long. "I told you it will not matter. I will marry you with or without his consent."

"But we were speaking of my father.... I mean, the earl when you made that particular declaration," her gaze was suddenly soft, imploring. "You would defy the king for my hand?"

His stare was scorching, his expression blazing with sincerity and intent. When he spoke, his tone was almost unnaturally commanding. "My lady, I would defy God himself."

Outside in the corridor, soft voices gradually became louder and Richmond stood, knowing that The Horde had returned. He slanted Arissa a final, if not firm, glance. "Not a word, Riss, about any of this. What we have discussed must not go any further, at least not now."

She nodded solemnly, a bit unsteadily. "In faith, I would not know where to begin."

Giving her a confident wink, he moved for the door and opened it in time to see Emma and Lady Livia in the corridor, their arms laden with towels.

Richmond's brows drew together. "Where are Penelope and Regine?"

"We found them in the foyer, sobbing hysterically," Lady Livia explained. "I was only able to understand that you required towels for Lady Arissa. When we agreed to tend the duty, they fled to Lady Maude's solar, I believe."

"God's Teeth," Richmond muttered, passing a glance at Mossy. "Regine is going to tell her mother before I have had the chance."

"Waste no time," Mossy waved him on. "We shall take good care of Arissa."

Arissa, her wide eyes filled with new tears of grief as she was reminded of her brother's mortal injury, sat huddled in the tub. Knowing she would be well tended, Richmond decided to make his way to Maude's solar to control the damage Regine had undoubtedly inflicted as best he could. As long as Arissa was safe and whole, he was better able to concentrate on more immediate matters.

"Very well," he grumbled, collecting his helm. "I shall return later to see how my lady fares."

Emma and her mother were already into the room, busying themselves eagerly. "She will be fine, my lord," Lady Livia said, smiling fondly at Arissa.

Leaving his lady to the care of others, Richmond struck out across the labyrinth of Lambourn in search of a hysterical young girl and, he was sure, her equally hysterical mother.

L
ady Maude had swooned
the moment she had heard of her son's impending death and, with few exceptions, had yet to become fully lucid. Penelope and Lady Maxine, dealing with the death of Carlton, had taken to their chambers in the throes of grief. While Emma remained with Arissa, Regine and Lady Livia had retreated to Lady Maude's bower to offer their comfort.

Twice already, Lady Maude had pleaded for a dagger to end her miserable life as Mossy returned to his sanctuary to remain by Bartholomew's side until death claimed him. In all, a chaotic situation had descended upon the inhabitants of Lambourn and Richmond was at his wit's end trying his best to minimize the damage. He seemed to be the only sane person left.

As dusk drew nigh, Daniel and Gavan managed to chase away the last remnants of de Rydal's army. Immediately, the various houses who had been fearfully residing within the walls of Lambourn packed their belongings and set out for home.

It did not seem to matter that the rain was fiercer than before, or that traveling at night was foolish and dangerous. The only factor of concern was leaving the battered but relatively intact bastion of Lambourn. Indeed, the Lady Arissa de Lohr's party had been an affair to remember and in parting, her guests managed to exhale a sharp sigh of relief. Far too much excitement and surprise for their tastes.

As the bailey vacated the last noble visitors, William, Gavan, Daniel and Richmond settled wearily in the earl's small solar for a debriefing conference. The talks, however, were limited to Gavan, Daniel and Richmond; since learning of his son's mortal wound, William had been a numbed soul, clouded with grief.

The earl sat in his great carved chair, unfeeling and unblinking, drinking himself ill and staring into the depths of space as the world around him went along its way. It was not the mere fact that his son was dying; more than that, it was the fact that Lambourn was losing her heir. An eccentric heir was better than none at all as the de Lohr legacy loomed towards extinction.

After nearly an hour of small, weary talk and basic information, Mossy joined the group to inform them that Bartholomew was still hovering one step above death. Upon delivering the news to the catatonic earl, the old man wearily took a seat and helped himself to a large chalice of wine. Richmond eyed the aged crone, glad for the silent support as he prepared to delve into the true core of the situation.

"Although there is no doubt that Ovid attacked Lambourn in retaliation for Tad's ambush, of which I am completely innocent, you should also know that something far more concerning has happened."

William was still staring into the wall. Richmond braced his balled fists against the table, leaning on his arms as he focused on the earl. "William, you must hear me. Owen Glendower has discovered Arissa's true identity. While we were preoccupied with de Rydal's assault, two of his spies used it as a convenient cover to abduct Arissa. That was why Bartholomew was mortally injured; he was attempting to protect her from the Welshmen who had come to abduct her.

William appeared as if he hadn't comprehended a single word. Daniel's eyes widened while Gavan, in complete understanding, clenched his teeth with fury. When it became apparent that William was to remain non-responsive, Richmond opened his mouth in a final attempt to force the man to understand that there was far more going on than his son's death impending death.

But William never gave him a chance. As if the impact of Richmond's words settled deep, he leapt from his chair in a fit of shock and astonishment.

"Bart.... Bart was
defending
her?" he roared.

Even Richmond was taken aback by the tone, although he did not outwardly react. His gaze held steady. "Mossy witnessed the event. Bart was extremely brave, but badly outnumbered." He did not bother to mention the fact that Lambourn's heir lacked the necessary skills, too. Such a point was of no consequence at the moment.

William, however, did not seem the least bit mollified by the explanation. If anything, his face mottled a deeper shade of red. Spittle formed on his lips. As the men in the room watched, the Earl of Berkshire transformed from an intelligent, rational man into a being of unrestrained madness.

"Owen.... Owen came for Arissa and killed my son," he muttered, nearly tripping over his chair as he moved away from the table. "And Ovid.... this is all her fault, Richmond. All of Tad's actions were a direct result of his attraction for her and now my son is killed while trying to protect her from Henry's enemies." He raked his fingers through his thinning hair, his eyes wild as if everything suddenly became clear. "Everything that has happened this day has been her fault!"

Richmond faced him, his usually expressionless features gaining a degree of hostility. "That is simply untrue. Listen to yourself, William; your grief is speaking."

"Nay!" William boomed, smashing his empty wine flask to splinters. "'Tis not madness in the least. Henry's bastard has taken my son from me, as she’s very nearly destroyed my keep as well! This is all her doing!"

Richmond's body was tense; Gavan rose from his chair, eyeing his liege warily. He'd never seen Richmond react in such a hostile fashion; the man had been issued endless challenges, verbal insults and the like, and had never once showed an outward reaction. To see his body coiled like a spring in the face of the earl's ravings was disturbing to say the least.

"She had nothing to do with any of it," Richmond's calm voice did not betray his tight manner. "I forbid you to blame this catastrophe on her."

"You
forbid
me?"

William was rapidly spinning out of control, his fatigue and grief decaying his sanity. He kicked at an unfortunate chair that happened to be in his path, reaching down to pick up the broken pieces and smashing them into kindling. Daniel was on his feet, flanking Richmond with an astonished expression as William descended into the darkened realm of madness. Even though the earl had never been particularly adept at controlling his emotions, he had never raged out of control as he was doing now. And all of it aimed at Arissa.

Richmond well knew that the earl's rantings were that of a man gone temporarily insane, but he was nonetheless apprehensive of his attitude. William was using Arissa as a convenient excuse for his life suddenly gone wrong, the cause of his pain and sorrow because he had no one else to blame. His insanity was irrational and confusing.

But it did not excuse the insults dealt. As the candles burned slowly and the log fire crackled, the strain in the room grew to snapping proportions.

"William, calm yourself before you hurt someone," Richmond said as steadily as he could manage. "You are not thinking clearly."

William was in the process of snapping a piece of wood, grunting and huffing as he twisted and pulled. When the wood snapped sharply, he tossed it to the floor and stomped on it like a spoiled child.

"I always knew what could happen should Henry's enemies discover her whereabouts," he rasped, spreading his hands in a display of disbelief, imploring those present for answers to his agony. "Ovid supported Richard, for God sake. Do not you see? He’s siding with the Welsh rebellion. But you knew this else you would not have attacked Tad!"

Richmond's jaw ticked. "I did not ambush Tad."

"You did!” he accused. “Henry ordered you to disable his unfaithful, and you started with the de Rydal heir in hopes of wiping out the entire barony. With Tad gone, the legacy dies. All of this talk about defending Arissa's honor was a ploy, a ploy invented by you to convince me that Tad de Rydal was a dishonorable man," he suddenly stopped in the midst of his ravings and jabbed a thick finger at Richmond. "You wanted me to throw Tad from Lambourn so that you could do away with him and make it look as an ambush.
You
are to blame for this, Richmond. You have brought Henry's war down upon us."

Richmond sighed, passing a long glance at Gavan. The situation was moving from bad to worse, the rantings of a man far gone with grief clouding the issues. The further he spouted, the more apprehensive Richmond became.

"You are mad, William. I shall not listen to this nonsense any longer."

William, his teeth clenched tightly, threw himself in Richmond's path as the knight attempted to quit the solar. His chest was heaving with emotion and pure dementia, his foul breath cloaking the air.

"You and that bitch are to blame for my son's death," he rasped. "I shall gladly allow the Welsh bastards to have her so long as they leave us in peace."