Secret Heart (34 page)

“
I never
knew of it, Giles. Walderon never told me. But now Lord Garit
thinks I am to blame for Chantal’s death.”

“
I didn’t
say you are to blame,” Garit corrected her. “We all know full well
that Walderon is to blame. I merely wanted to know if you ever had
any suspicions, and if so, what you did about them.”

“
I have
told him and told him,” Sanal cried, looking around at all of them.
“I did not – did not—” She dissolved into tears against Lord
Giles’s chest.

“
Garit,”
Lord Giles said, “I think you may believe Lady Sanal. I knew her
years ago, when she was yet unmarried, and she was honest then.
What she has endured as Walderon’s wife cannot have altered her
essential character.”

“
If you
vouch for her,” Roarke said, “then I will accept her version of
events as she understood them.”

“
So will
I,” Garit added. “I recognize Walderon for the lying villain he is
and you, Lord Giles, know Lady Sanal better than I do. My lady, I
apologize for upsetting you. I fear I am not entirely myself at the
moment. I accosted you because Walderon is not here for me to
challenge. I would like to meet him at the end of my
sword.”

“
You will
soon have your wish,” Lord Giles told him, “though I would advise
you to control your anger and keep Walderon alive. Only he can
explain his actions and his motives, for both are far removed from
what decent men would consider reasonable. I promise you he will
explain, and most likely with little urging. It’s my experience
from the few villains I have known that they almost always try to
justify themselves and their wicked deeds. They enjoy impressing
others with their cleverness.”

“
There
can be no justification for what Walderon has done,” Garit
stated.

“
What did
you mean when you said Garit will soon have his wish?” Roarke
asked.

“
Ah, yes.
That’s why I was looking for you,” Lord Giles said. “The
man-at-arms whom we sent last night to carry our message to
Walderon has returned. He says he encountered a bit of difficulty
in getting away from Walderon, who wanted to keep him close by in
case the message was a trick. Walderon is no fool. But our man did
escape and then he rode so fast that he nearly foundered his poor
horse getting here. He wanted us to have as much warning as
possible.”

“
Warning?” Garit repeated, a slow and wicked grin spreading
across his somber features. “Does that mean what I
think?”

“
Indeed,”
Lord Giles told him. “Just as we hoped would happen, Walderon has
decided to postpone his visit to Calean City. He is returning to
Thury to make certain all is well here. He’s traveling slowly
because of his large entourage, which our man reports amounts to a
small army. He estimates Walderon should be at the castle gates by
mid morning tomorrow, mid afternoon at the latest.”

“
He will
find the gates closed and barred,” Garit declared, his teeth
showing in a fierce grimace. “We will force him to fight in the
open, where he can employ no treachery against us. We have you to
counter his corrupt Power if he tries to use it against
us.”

“
Well,
then, we need to begin preparing for a nasty battle,” Lord Giles
said with a sigh. “I will speak to my squires.”

“
Wait a
moment.” Roarke held up one hand.

Garit and Lord Giles had started for the
stairs leading to the great hall below, but both men paused to
listen to their friend.

“
If half
of what I’ve been hearing is true, Walderon is a harsh master,”
Roarke said. “That’s why the castle folk came over to us so easily.
But now, we cannot depend on them to take their chances with us
against Walderon. They are likely to fear his reprisals if he
should win any battle against us. Because of their fears, we may
have to deal with treachery inside these walls. Don’t forget, many
of the servants know about those secret passageways. A solution
that doesn’t depend on open warfare seems preferable to
me.”

“
You make
a fair argument,” Lord Giles said. “What do you
suggest?”

“
A bit of
trickery,” Roarke responded, his dark eyes lighting with a
mischievous fire. “Lady Sanal, will you help us?”

“
If I can
be free of Walderon, I’ll do anything you want,” Sanal told him. “I
am sick of his cruelty and his ambition.” She looked frightened,
but resolute.

“
Thank
you.” Roarke flashed a quick smile at her before he turned to
Jenia. “Will you pretend to be Chantal just one more time?” he
asked.

“
Roarke,
exactly what are you planning?” Garit demanded.

“
If we
can confuse Walderon and lure him inside, we can hold him as
hostage to prevent his men from attacking while we question him,”
Roarke said.

“
Only
tell me what you require of me and I will do it,” Jenia said.
“Uncle Walderon expects to be rewarded for his secret crimes. I
want to see those crimes revealed and see him punished for
them.”

“
So do
I,” Garit declared stoutly. “Roarke, even if your plan means I
won’t have the chance to meet him in man-to-man combat, if we can
capture him and take him before King Henryk for justice, then I
will be content.”

“
Good.”
Lord Giles nodded his approval of Garit’s sentiment. “I’m glad to
hear you say that, my boy. I’m old enough to think the less blood
we shed, the better. Let us keep our men inside these walls. The
squires won’t thank me for denying them a taste of battle, but the
older men-at-arms will agree with me.”

“
Are any
of Chantal’s gowns still here at Thury?” Roarke asked, looking from
Jenia to Sanal.

“
Yes,”
Sanal replied. “When she departed for Calean the last time, she
left some of her clothing here. I gather you intend for Jenia to
wear one of those gowns. But she is much thinner than Chantal
was.”

“
One does
tend to lose weight while imprisoned,” Jenia retorted in a quiet
voice that did not entirely hide the anger she was
feeling.

“
Walderon
knows where you were,” Roarke pointed out. “He won’t be surprised
by the change in Chantal. Remember, according to what Lady Sanal
told us, Walderon still thinks Chantal was the woman taken aboard
that ship, and he believes it was Chantal who jumped over the side.
You can stay close to the truth, Jenia. Tell him you reached shore
and then found Garit. With Garit’s help, and that of his friends,
you seized Thury for yourself. You have sent word to King Henryk,
asking him to confirm your possession of it.”

“
Furthermore,” Garit put in, his expression grim, “having
received permission to wed Chantal from both King Audemar and King
Henryk, I intend to do so at once. Should Walderon question my
word, I can produce the letters. I carry them next to my heart.”
For a moment his large hand rested upon his chest.

“
Oh,
Garit, no.” Jenia touched his arm. “We can eliminate that part of
the story. I know how sorely King Audemar’s belated permission
grieves you.”

“
His
permission is the one detail that will certainly draw Walderon into
the castle against the advice of his men, who may well prefer an
open battle,” Garit said. “Walderon cannot allow Chantal to marry
me. It would mean the end of his hopes of taking Thury for
himself.”

“
Lord
Garit is right,” Sanal said. “But please, consider that Walderon is
sure to try his own kind of trickery. He won’t give up easily;
he’ll devise some plan to prevent Chantal from marrying. To make
certain his scheme succeeds, he’ll need to be inside the castle
walls. So Roarke’s plan will work at first. But Jenia, this plan
could prove dangerous for you. Never forget, Walderon is capable of
working dark magic.”

“
I don’t
care,” Jenia said. “I owe it to Chantal to bring her murderer to
justice. My only doubt lies with whether Walderon will believe I am
Chantal.”

“
You will
convince him,” Roarke said. “I know you will.”

“
Lady
Sanal tells me you have decided on a gown for tomorrow,” Roarke
said, standing just inside the doorway of Jenia’s
chamber.

The room
boasted a pair of small windows. Jenia had opened the shutters to
let in the crisp, autumn air and the last rays of sun lit Roarke’s
face. He was so handsome and so manly that Jenia caught her
breath.

“
Yes,”
she said, holding up a brilliant blue dress. The fine silk
shimmered in the mellow evening light and the heavy gold embroidery
decorating the neck and wrists glittered. Jenia spread the dress
out to show him how long the loose sleeves were and to let him
judge the surprisingly low curve of the neckline. “Will this be
acceptable? Will it bedazzle Walderon enough to make him believe me
when I claim to be Chantal? I could employ what little magic I can
work, to confuse the issue, as I occasionally did at Calean when we
changed places, but I’m afraid Walderon will be on guard against
such a deception, notice what I am doing, and guess the truth. I
don’t want to alert him to a trick, so I think it’ll be wiser not
to resort to Power. Chantal possessed none at all, you
see.”

“
In that
case, don’t use yours.” Roarke advanced a few paces into the room.
He looked closer at the blue silk and frowned. “I know little about
women’s clothing. Would Chantal choose that color?”

“
She did
choose it. The gown is hers. Aunt Sanal thinks Uncle Walderon will
recognize it because he complained bitterly over the cost of the
silk.”

“
Then
wear it. He will certainly have no trouble noticing you, especially
if the sun is shining.”

“
You
don’t like it.” Puzzled by his expression of distaste, Jenia folded
the gown neatly and placed it atop Chantal’s low, wooden clothing
chest.

“
I don’t
have to like it,” Roarke said. “The thing is merely a costume
suitable for our purposes. It appears garish to me, but then, it’s
a court dress, not an ordinary gown.”

“
I cannot
fault you for not liking it. It’s Chantal’s, not mine, and I wish I
didn’t have to put it on. Even the fabric smells of her lavender
perfume.” Jenia blinked away a few tears.

“
I know
the impersonation will be difficult for you,” Roarke
said.

“
But well
worth my effort if the ruse succeeds.”

“
When I
think of you,” he said, coming closer, “I see you wearing russet
brown, or perhaps a golden-green silk to make your amber eyes shine
and your skin glow.”

“
And you
claim to know nothing of women’s fashion,” she teased, trying to
smile because she was growing tense at his continued nearness. The
attempt at humor failed, so she resorted to honesty. “In truth,
Roarke, I would prefer to wear brown or green, with no decoration.
My one court gown was made of fine orange-red wool and it was quite
plain. But tomorrow, I am to be Chantal, so my preferences don’t
matter.”

“
Where is
that gown of yours?” he asked.

“
Ruined
the first time I wore it,” she answered. “A drunken knight spilled
an oily sauce on it. I tried to clean it, but when the wool dried
it reeked of rancid sauce and the color was sadly blotched. Aunt
Sanal refused to let me wear it again, so I gave it to a beggar
woman, thinking she’d be so glad of the warmth that she’d not mind
the smell, or the odd colors.”

“
Walderon
should have provided you with another gown to replace it. Or Sanal
should have.”

“
Uncle
Walderon was too busy scheming to marry Chantal off to Lord Malin,
and Aunt Sanal was too afraid of him to make a fuss about my
needs,” Jenia said. “I was only my uncle’s poorer niece, a girl
with just a small castle and an insignificant piece of land for my
dowry. I thought myself fortunate to escape his notice.”

“
I’m glad
you did.” Roarke’s calloused hand stroked along her cheek, the
rough texture sending chills down Jenia’s spine. “If Walderon had
considered you as worthy of his notice as Chantal, you might be
dead, too. And I would be grieving for you and missing you as Garit
is grieving over Chantal.”

“
How
could you?” she asked, her voice a bit shaky because his hand was
resting on her shoulder and one finger was rubbing against the skin
of her neck. “If I was as important to Uncle Walderon’s schemes as
Chantal was, you and I would not have met.”

“
Then I’d
spend the rest of my life bewailing the girl I never met and the
sweetness I never tasted.”

“
You
wouldn’t know what you missed.”

“
Yes,” he
murmured, his lips just a sigh away from hers. “Yes, I would know.
My soul would feel the lack of you.”

“
Roarke.”

“
I felt
it already, before we met,” he said. “My heart was empty and my
life was filled with shadows. I am ashamed to say now how
bone-weary I was of the mission King Henryk had assigned to me and
how annoyed by Garit’s unending insistence that we must find
Chantal. Then I saw you stumbling along the beach and I understood
my heart’s yearning. You are the sunlight and warmth I was
missing.”

“
But-”

His mouth met hers and the question Jenia
intended to ask vanished in the heat of his kiss. His arms enfolded
her and she felt her breasts crushed against his hard chest.