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Authors: Merry Farmer

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BOOK: The Faithful Heart
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Ethan’s new vassals, or so he viewed them,
were a crafty people, to be sure, but their skills were put to use
robbing travelers on the road as much as to planting gardens in the
forest. But it was the women that set Toby’s nerves on edge. The
moment Ethan realized Aubrey didn’t want him, never would want him,
he wanted every woman that he saw.

Toby raised his hands halfway to his ears as
the commotion in the tent continued. He lowered them to his sides
and straightened, clearing his throat, when he saw Tom and Roderick
approaching across the circular common. He put on his best stern
face, an expression that looked out of place on his soft
features.

Tom Tanner frowned at the noise coming from
the tent as they approached. “Is he still at it?” he asked, just as
unable to look at the tent as Toby.

“Yes.” Toby held his chin up with pride in
his office even as the pride in his master dwindled. He flicked a
sideways glance to Roderick, who wore a hideous grin as he stared
at the tent’s flap. He cleared his throat and glanced back to Tom,
fumbling for something to say. “How’s the well coming along?”

Tom turned his back on the tent. “We’re
having to dig deeper than we first thought.” Toby nodded as he
focused his attention on Tom while the moaning in the tent reached
its climax in a final ecstatic cry of “Yes!” from the woman. Tom
cleared his throat and went on. “It’s still better than having to
haul water up from the creek.”

“Well, yes, that goes without saying,” Toby
raised his voice as the tent grew quiet. “I’m sure it will help
with the care of the horses.”

“I guess it will.”

The rough-and-tumble forest people had taken
more than strongboxes and jewels from the caravans they had
waylaid. Ethan had insisted that they take horses too, and as the
number of horses in their corral grew so did the number of mounted
men working with them.

They were spared the embarrassment of trying
to think of other pointless things to say and plunged into a deeper
embarrassment when the tent flap flew open and Ethan stepped out
into the morning sunlight, smug grin on his face. He finished
shrugging on the dark green tunic one of his bits of fun had made,
then stretched his arms wide, yawning in satisfaction, before
walking up between Tom and Toby and throwing an arm around each of
their shoulders. “Beautiful morning, lads, isn’t it.” Roderick’s
toothy grin dropped when he wasn’t included in the trio.

“Yes, my lord.” Toby failed to meet his
eyes.

Ethan leaned on his friends. “The sun is
shining, the air is getting warmer every day, and we’re free and
alive!” He straightened himself and slapped his friends on the
back, nearly knocking Toby flat. Toby exchanged a wary glance with
Tom as Ethan noticed Roderick. “Roderick, what are you doing here?”
He took the boy’s hand and reached around to thump him on the back.
“How’s life treating you?”

“Good, my lord,” Roderick forced a smile. He
shot a wolfish glance to Tom and Toby. “I was just-”

Ethan ignored him as the tent flap opened
behind them and his companion of the night stepped out. Roderick’s
eyes widened before narrowing in suspicion. The woman had golden
blonde hair that spilled over her shoulders in a silky curtain. She
glanced to Ethan, a saucy grin on her curving lips. He swept her
into his arms. “You, Lydia, are beautiful.” He pulled her obscenely
close and kissed her eager mouth.

Toby snapped his head away and blinked up at
the canopy of trees above them.

“And you,” Lydia purred back, “certainly do
know how to show a girl a good time.”

“What a lucky coincidence that your carriage
was traveling through our neck of the woods.” Toby turned in time
to see his master grab a handful of Lydia’s behind before snapping
his head away again. “Come back and visit next time you’re on your
way to Derby.”

“Oh, I will,” Lydia hummed back, reaching for
the bulge in Ethan’s chausses and giving it a squeeze. “How could I
resist?”

Ethan leaned in to suck on her lips some more
but Tom cut him off with, “Sir!” He cleared his throat when Ethan
leaned away from Lydia and glared at him. “Ethan, there’s something
you need to hear about.”

Ethan sighed as he broke away from Lydia and
faced business. “Can it wait until after I’ve had my
breakfast?”

Toby caught a flash of alarm from Lydia. He
followed her glance to see what had caused it. Roderick scowled
back at her. Toby’s eyes shot to Lydia again. Her face had
undergone a transformation, flattening into a scowl. He watched as
the woman and the boy stared each other down, an itching coldness
spreading down his spine.

“It shouldn’t wait, sir,” Tom shuffled. “The
earl has sent a letter to Lord John of Kedleridge.”

“Kedleridge?” Lydia blinked in surprise.

Ethan’s face hardened into a scowl. “Jack
sent us a letter?”

“Who’s Jack?” Lydia planted a hand on her
curving hip.

“He’s a traitor,” Ethan spat.

“He’s my brother,” Tom mumbled. “And no, he
didn’t send us a letter. We intercepted a summons sent by the
earl.”

Ethan’s jaw twitched. “The earl should know
better. I doubt the peasant upstart can read.”

“Peasant?” Lydia interrupted again. “Jack?
Hold on, didn’t you just say Lord John of … of Kedleridge?”

“He’s lying, traitorous peasant scum,” Ethan
growled.

“Jack Tanner was granted the lands and title
of Kedleridge by Prince John,” Roderick imitated Ethan’s
distain.

“Kedleridge? But I thought-” Lydia started
then snapped her mouth shut. She met Roderick’s eyes for half a
second before focusing on Ethan.

“What did the letter say, Tom?” Ethan went
on.

“It was a dispatch from Huntingdon, calling
Jack to Derby castle with all due haste. An emissary from London is
arriving in Derby today.”

“An emissary?” Ethan’s scowl flickered to
curiosity. “From the crown?”

“It appears so,” Tom nodded.

To Toby’s surprise, Ethan’s face brightened.
“Then this is our chance!”

“Our chance for what, my lord?” Toby
asked.

“For revenge.” Ethan turned to march toward
the corral and the tent where the weapons were stored. Roderick
jumped after him.

“My lord!” Toby cleared his throat and chased
them. “Don’t tell me you’re going to Derby.”

“Fine.” Ethan pivoted and walked backwards.
“I won’t tell you.”

“But why, my lord? Huntingdon let us go,
although heaven only knows why. You can’t risk getting caught
again. We won’t be so lucky next time.”

Ethan stopped and Toby came close to plowing
into him. “Huntingdon ruined my life.” Ethan poked a finger into
Toby’s chest. “He took my land, took my woman, and made me look
like a fool. Him and his little lapdog Jack.”

Tom jogged to catch up with them and the
woman Lydia followed, eyes sparkling as she eavesdropped. “Wait,
who is this Huntingdon?” she asked.

“He’s the new Earl of Derby and the Sheriff
of the shire,” Tom answered.

“I thought Buxton was the Sheriff.”

Tom shook his head. “Huntingdon killed
him.”

“And this Huntingdon has favor with Prince
John?” Tom nodded. “And the new lord of Kedleridge whose name is
either Jack or John has won the prince’s favor as well?”

“He has,” Tom seethed. “Not that he deserved
it, the traitorous pillock.”

“I won’t let them get away with it!” Ethan
shouted. “If an emissary is coming from London I want him to see
just how big of a mistake Prince John made putting his faith in
those two losers.”

“But my lord-”

“If Derbyshire descends into lawlessness then
when King Richard comes home he’ll overturn Prince John’s
appointments,” Ethan went on.

“Let’s see how he likes being homeless and
alone!” Tom added. All eyes turned to him. There was no need to ask
who he meant.

“But my lord,” Toby all but wept in
frustration, “what if you are caught?”

“We won’t get caught. Not this time.” He
stormed off towards the horses.

“Too right,” Tom muttered, jogging after him,
Roderick in tow.

Toby sighed. “Here we go again.” He cast a
disapproving look at Lydia.

“I mean, I heard that Lord Hugh of Kedleridge
was dead,” she went on as though still having the conversation,
“but I always assumed….” She shut her mouth, her eyes glazing over
with thought.

Toby waited but she didn’t go on. “Yes, well,
it would be best if you were on your way.” He gestured to shoo her
away, turning to chase after Ethan.

“It certainly would.” Lydia rushed off in a
different direction.

 

Chapter Two

Derby Castle should have struck dread into
Madeline’s heart considering she had been locked in a room at the
top of the High Tower with Sister Bernadette for weeks last summer.
But as she slogged the final mile towards the city, her feet and
back aching, covered in the dust of a long, tiresome road, the
sight of the castle was enough to bring her to tears. Jack might be
there now, waiting for her to come home to him. The memory of him
scaling the tower and hanging outside her window just to make sure
she was alright sent her heart twirling in her chest.

She doubled her pace, wiping her streaming
eyes with the sleeve of the shapeless peasant dress she’d traded
her hassock for more than a week ago. The city was buzzing with
activity. More than a few of the merchants, minor nobles, and even
a few peasants stared at her with upturned noses as she rushed
past. She knew she looked a fright. She hadn’t bathed since leaving
the convent for fear of being discovered or having her clothes
stolen. Her cropped hair was matted and sticking up in places,
colorless with dirt, and her face was as grubby as a beggar.

“Just where do you think you’re going, boy.”
The guard at the castle gate mistook her entirely.

“I… well, I….” Madeline shuffled under the
guard’s intimidating glare. She dropped her head and wrung her
hands. This was not how her reunion with Jack was supposed to
happen. “I’m here to see … Jack?” She risked a glance up at the
guard.

“Who?” The burly man sighed as if she was
wasting his time.

“J-Jack,” she stammered.

“Jack who?”

“Jack Tanner?”

“Don’t know no Jack Tanner,” the guard
sniffed.

She second-guessed all the rumors she’d heard
about Jack working for Sir Crispin and Buxton, everything Aubrey
had said in the one letter she’d sent last summer. Aubrey. She
blinked and looked up at the guard with renewed purpose.

“Is Lady Aubrey here?”

The guard huffed and shifted his weight.
“It’s Derby Castle, boy, what do you think?”

Madeline chewed her lip, deciding to take the
answer as a yes. “Is … is she available?”

The impatient guard was on the verge of
shoving her off when the call of, “Don’t worry, Adam, he’s probably
just one of the new pages that got lost,” saved her. A tall, thin
man in black and silver livery strode across the castle courtyard
towards her. Madeline recognized Livingston, Derby Castle’s
steward, from her days as a prisoner. “I’ll take him where he needs
to go.”

“Right, sir.” The guard snapped
straighter.

“Come along, boy.”

Madeline gasped as Livingston grabbed her arm
and yanked her into the courtyard and up towards the castle. She
was too shocked to open her mouth and identify herself. “Filling
the castle up with children of God only knows who,” Livingston
muttered, “Training any and every child in the shire to be pages
and house servants and God only knows what else. And grown men too!
Who did that lot think they were, sneaking in here like they owned
the place, smelling like the forest? And you, boy!” He raised his
voice and shook Madeline’s arm. “You stink. See that you have a
bath before you report to Mistress Joanna for instructions.”

He let go of her when they reached a cool,
dark hallway that lead from the castle garden to the kitchen. She
couldn’t think of anything to do or say other than, “Yes, sir,” and
lower her head.

Livingston sniffed then strode off. Madeline
looked up and found herself at the edge of Derby Castle’s great
kitchen. Three cooks and more than half a dozen servants and pages
rushed every which way preparing a feast. The aromas of cooking
meat and baking bread were enough to make her light-headed. She
couldn’t remember the last time she’d had more than a heel of
begged bread to eat. She leaned against the wall, her knees giving
way.

“You!” one of the cooks shouted at her. “What
are you standing there for?”

With a yelp Madeline straightened and bolted
for the door leading into the castle hallways. She made it to the
end of the hall, turned a corner, then gasped and jumped back as a
group of men in plain clothes crossed in front of her.

She blinked. “Ethan?”

When she craned her neck to look back into
the hallway the men were gone. Now she was seeing things. Hunger
and exhaustion were taking a toll on her.

She sighed, clutching a hand over her
pounding heart. Sense slipped its way back into her mind and she
rushed on, turning a corner and climbing the stairs to the main
hallway of Derby Castle. She took a deep breath and forced her back
straight. She had to find Aubrey.

 

Lady Aubrey Huntingdon descended the last
flight of stairs from the High Tower to the main hallway and
stopped, rubbing her round belly with a heavy sigh. There was never
anything for her to do at the castle. At Windale she was in charge
of running things, but at the castle Livingston and the staff took
care of it all. Though by the look of the scraggly page she passed
at the top of the stairs leading to the kitchen Livingston’s
standards had gone way down.

She figured the best place to distract
herself from her boredom and itchy stomach was to be in the place
where the most people were. She strode into the Great Hall by way
of the gallery and looked out over the buzz of activity. The room
was being scrubbed from floor to ceiling, including the windows
which had needed to be cleaned for years. She drew in a breath.
There was no need to worry just because London had sent an
emissary. Crispin had done everything Prince John could have wished
of him and more. Derbyshire’s nobles would back him up if it came
to it … wouldn’t they?

BOOK: The Faithful Heart
2.71Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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