Fire and Ice (2 page)

As
de Gant and his men disappeared from view a great feeling of relief came over Juliana and she entered the Hall with a lighter step, returning to her bedchamber to think over the past few weeks.  She could not bear to think of her father’s death, as to dwell on this matter would be too painful, her temper would rise and then all would be lost.  Her mother had told her that she had inherited her father’s red hair, green eyes and temper and since a child had been stubborn and wilful.

After
her father’s burial they had gone back to the Great Hall they called home which stood behind the small church on the rise.  Her father had built it from stone and unlike most, had erected it with two floors so that most of the bedchambers were away from the animals.  It was topped by a thick thatch and had a good strong English oak door so they were horrified when they found a new Norman lord had taken possession.  This of course was Richard de Gant and Juliana hated him with all the venom of all the poisonous snakes in the world.  At first his men denied their entry but after seeing them, and Juliana in particular, he decided he would take her as his prize, a bounty she vowed he would live to regret.  She remembered the lust and greed reflecting in his dark brown eyes and her mother’s attempts to shield her from him until in his frustration he threw her mother to one side, knocking her senseless against the stone walls of the hall.  Juliana watched in fear and loathing, thinking he had killed her beloved mother as she lay inert against the wall, but he grabbed Juliana’s wrists and with his superior strength held her fast against his foul-smelling body.  He had been drinking her father’s wine and ale and dragged her to the long table which was in the middle of the room in front of the large stone fireplace and pushed her into a seat next to his.  Until now she had not uttered a word but relied upon her scornful expression to speak of her feelings.  He called for more wine for himself and thrust a cup into her hand which she knocked over in defiance.  He immediately stood and dragged her up by her hair to stand beside him, calling to the servants in broken English to refill their cups which they had no choice but to do.  His raven black hair flopped forward as he laughed drunkenly and forced the wine goblet to her mouth.  She took a good gulp of the liquid but then spat it into his filthy face, daring him with her eyes to try and force her again.  She remembered the words he had uttered in his foreign tongue as he pulled her even closer to his body,

“Take care,
my lady.   That is the last time you will dishonour your new lord. I am Richard de Gant, knight of William, King of all England. Tonight I will teach you a lesson you will never forget.”

She
looked away pretending not to understand his words, but her mother had seen to it that she was educated by the monks from the monastery at Barrow, arguing that her daughter should have these skills just as Aldred had.  She knew French and Latin as well as a smattering of Norse
and
she could read and write, but her wits told her not to let him know any of these things.  She looked around when she heard her mother stirring and was relieved when two of their most trusted servants went to help her to her feet.  They led her away to her bedchamber to tend her wounds.  Food was brought to the table but Juliana had little appetite, not only due to the lumbering, ill-mannered pig sitting next to her, but that day she had also buried her beloved father and mourned his passing in silent agony.

By the time evening came
de Gant was incapable of speech let alone anything else and Juliana was relieved when his men put him in a downstairs room to sleep off the excesses of the day.  If it had been up to Juliana she would have thrown him down to sleep with the dogs but at least she was safe for one more night.  Her mother had visited her chamber and she was pleased to see that she looked normal again except for a couple of bruises on her cheeks. Her mother warned her of what she might expect if she continued to displease this new lord.  Juliana’s temper, she said, would get them all into trouble so she must be careful and think before she acted. 

Juliana
took heed of her warnings and the next day made sure she was up and awake early to help her mother with her duties in the village.  Some of the men-folk had died protecting her father so she visited their families, giving coins and a promise of food from their stores.  The men who had been wounded were also recompensed and their gratitude was heartbreaking when they spoke of her father’s care for them during his lifetime.  For a few days she found work to do with the servants away from the Hall and kept herself far from home and out of de Gant’s sight as much as possible, sneaking in when he was drunk enough not to see her and going out early to help sow seed for the next harvest.  Thanks to de Gant setting fire to some of the barley fields the current harvest would be scant.

Chapter 2

             
For the first few days after de Gant had left, Juliana and her mother enjoyed a freedom they had not known in weeks.  They decided to visit her mother’s old friend Sara who lived near the Ings and who was clever at making potions from herbs and fungi.  Sitting in front of the fire in her hut, Sara and her mother spoke in hushed tones about her father and what they would like to do to the Normans who now defiled their home but Juliana made excuses and went outside to enjoy the warmth of the new spring.  Sara was what the villagers called a healer and could often be seen visiting huts where illness abided in order to treat their suffering.  Outsiders called her a witch but she ignored them and waited until they too needed her to work her ‘magic’.

Juliana
stretched in the sunlight, raising her hands in thanks to the Lord Jesus for this respite from their troubles.  She looked out across the river and saw occasional ships passing by but then her eyes became fixed on a figure waving to her from far along the bank. She looked again but could not make out who it was but the figure began to run towards her and eventually she recognised Erik, whom they all thought had died with her brother.  She ran towards him and he caught her in his arms and swung her round and round. 

“Put me do
wn, Erik, I beg of you, you’re making me dizzy,” she said breathlessly.

“And I,
Juliana, am dizzy with delight at seeing you again.  I thought I’d never get home.  How are you and your mother and father?  I hope you’re happy to see me.”

“Of course I’m happy to see you.  We thought you had died with my brother at Senlac.”

His eyes clouded with sorrow, “Aldred is dead?  I didn’t know, Juliana.  I was injured but not mortally, so I made my way back on foot.  My horse was lost to me and I had to rely upon loyal Saxons to feed me until I was well enough to travel.  I managed to get a ship to bring me this far but you were the last person I expected to see here.  I haven’t even been home to see my own mother and father yet.”

She
looked into his deep blue eyes, and compassion filled her so much she could hardly speak, but he needed to know what had happened in the past months and of course about her father’s death.  She choked out her story but did not mention de Gant and saw the conflict of emotions pass across Erik’s face as he listened.  His eyes filled with tears when she took him by the hand and led him back to Sara’s hut where she decided she would tell him about the new lord and his expectations.  When they arrived her mother was at the door looking out.  Her eyes widened with surprise and delight at Erik’s return and Sara insisted he come inside and stay with her away from de Gant’s men, some of whom were still at the Hall. 

“Who is this
de Gant, Juliana?” he asked suddenly.

She
looked at the floor unable to look him in the eye and confess the awful reality. She shook her head so her mother answered for her.

“He’
s the new lord of Bertone.  His name is Richard de Gant, sent by his Norman king to take possession of the land and everyone in it.  He’s decided he’ll take Juliana too - as his prize.”

Eri
k jumped up and stared at her.  “You mean you’ve given yourself to this man, Juliana?”

“
N...n...No!” she stammered, her throat blocked with emotion.

“Eri
k,” Hilde soothed, “sit down and I will tell you what has happened.  It’s too difficult for my daughter.”

Erik listened to
their news and began pacing the floor, shaking his fair hair and muttering dire threats on all Normans.  “This cannot be, Juliana.  We must find the priest to marry us immediately.  We’ll see then how this de Gant reacts.”

“We must not anger him, Erik,” she
replied.  “He is quite capable of killing us both.”

“I would rather be dead than live to see you taken against your will.”

“Please,” she asked in earnest, “Spend a while here with Sara and listen to her wisdom before coming to the Hall.  Sir Richard will be away for at least another week.”

“I’
ll stay here, Juliana, but only to plan revenge on this Norman lord who would turn you into a whore.”

Her
eyes widened in horror as he spoke and she knew he was telling the truth but was helpless to know what to do about it.  His eyes told her he was sorry for being so abrupt and held out his arms to her but she didn’t walk into them as he wanted, so he said, “We must think of somewhere to run away to then.  We will leave tonight and...”

“No!
” Juliana interrupted, “I won’t leave my mother and the townspeople to suffer at Sir Richard’s hands through any action of mine.  You don’t know what we’re dealing with, Erik.  Wait a few days then come to the Hall and we’ll see what’s to be done, but don’t do
anything
to bring this knight’s wrath on our people.”

Erik looked suitably chastened and bowed to
her mother before turning his back on them all. 

They
said goodbye to Sara who followed them outside whispering that she would look after Erik and try to calm him down.  She handed a pouch to Hilde and they returned silently to the Hall.

As they
entered the yard at the back of the Hall they were horrified to find more Normans milling around shouting to the servants to stable their horses and feed them.  Hilde’s face was white with apprehension so Juliana looked around for someone in authority.  One man who appeared taller than average with wide shoulders and wearing a fine-linked hauberk, was sitting astride his large war horse deep in conversation with a blond-haired man who had not yet dismounted. The blond man saw the two women approaching and nodded to the first, who turned and watched them thoughtfully.

As
the women approached he slid down from the saddle with practiced ease and bowed politely.

“Good afternoon, m
other, my lady.”  His English was good but deferred to Hilde in the Norse manner. 

They
curtsied and waited for him to speak again, not daring to say a word in case Sir Richard’s men reported back to him.  He looked around the yard seeming satisfied that his orders had been carried out as far as stabling and his men were concerned then looked back to the women.  He was a good head and shoulders bigger than the hateful de Gant and had an air of authority which charmed rather than threatened, but he was still a Norman Juliana reminded herself.

“I am Ulfric
, knight of King William and have been endowed with this Hall and lands by the King himself.”

His
statement surprised them since de Gant had claimed the Hall and town as his own, but they didn’t refute it.  Hilde seemed unwilling to respond so Juliana answered for her, “My mother is the lady of this Hall, her name is Hilde and I’m her daughter, Juliana.”

“I am honoured to meet you,” he turned and bowed to
her mother again who looked at him suspiciously, but he laughed and indicated the blond man who had now dismounted.  “This is Thorvald, we are as close as brothers can be without actually being of the same blood.  He watches my back at all times.”  He looked closely at them as he said this and they were left in no doubt that he knew they had no love for the Normans.  “Now, where is your father, I understand he is a reasonable man and we have much to discuss.”

Whether it was the shock of hearing him speak of
her father, or whether the frustrations of the day were just too much, she didn’t know, but her temper rose as she spat, “I’ll show you my lord knight where my father is!” She tried to drag him by the arm to the church wall but he was immovable so she pointed to the oak tree.  “My father is dead, Sir Knight, he lies there speared by a Norman sword when provoked beyond reason.  Do not sully his name by speaking of him with your Norman tongue!”

Ulfric
looked at Thorvald who shrugged his shoulders, then returned his gaze to them, “I wasn’t aware of this.  Sir Richard de Gant was sent here to take possession of the town for me until I could get the Title sealed by the King.  There was no reason for anyone’s death – there’s been enough.”

“Well, someone should have told
him
that.  His men came looking for trouble and did not leave until my father was dead.  Sir Richard rode in afterwards to claim the town as his.”

A growl exploded
from Ulfric’s throat which made them step back in alarm but he spoke quickly and quietly to Thorvald.  By the time he turned back to them he had composed himself and strode purposefully into the Hall.  The servants had been busy cleaning away the remaining detritus of de Gant’s men and had swept the floors, strewing fresh rushes and removing the dogs for exercise.  Ulfric looked around and nodded seeming satisfied that all was as it should be.  Sitting at the table he called for ale and food to be provided for the newcomers and Hilde went to help the servants, she seemed afraid to be in his presence for too long.