Strangclyf Secret (26 page)

Hell, he had a sea fleet!
Why in perdition had William left out that bit of information?
“Medwyn, go with Padarn and find this Claud. Then go out with him,
so he can bring the ship to dock.”

“
Aye, Bernon,” the warrior
said, turning away, still smiling over the morning’s
jest.

“
And, Medwyn, when my wife
wakes, you will stay with her and watch out for vultures and
snakes. She is not to do any work either.”

“
I’ll see to it. Are you
going to be around?”

“
I’m going to get Geno and
some men, so we can hunt for the meat we’ll need to feed all these
extra mouths.” Bernon headed toward the stables and called over his
shoulder, “Tell Balen and Damon to get their stories straight about
how they lost my wife before I return.”

~ * ~

Sleep hesitated to release
its hold on Barwolf. She snuggled under the covers with a delicious
smile on her lips and hugged Bernon tighter. He sure felt soft this
morning. Slitting open her eyes, she pulled the covers from her
head and saw the pillow in her arms. Warm rays of light streamed
into the chamber. She blinked at the brightness then looked around
and saw she was alone. From the look of the light she determined
‘twas well past the nooning.

Zut! Zut! Zut!
She never slept this late. How could she ever
hope to please Bernon if she couldn’t get her lazy bottom out of
bed? And why hadn’t Ardith or one of the children warned her she
was sleeping the daylight hours away? She’d never get all her
chores done.

Barwolf kicked the covers
back and groaned as a throb pounded a stinging rhythm between her
legs. She needed a warm bath to soak her agonized
privates.

A fiery blush heated her
entire body as she remembered just how her unmentionables got in
this condition. How could she ever get past her embarrassment and
face Bernon again?

Nay, she would not be
embarrassed. He had said she pleased him. Did he really mean it?
The man made her feel like she was a treasure instead of a burden.
What if he wanted to work more magic when he saw her? She groaned
and buried her face in the pillow. She would die if he did. Would
he be displeased with her if she didn’t cooperate?

Well,
zut!
He was bound to be upset with
her if she didn’t get her slothful self out of bed and get her
chores done. She gritted her teeth, rose, and made her way down to
the bath, taking tiny steps and cursing in three different
languages.

After soaking her tender
self for three quarters of an hour, she dried off and donned her
gold shift and a black kirtle. She retrieved her pouch from
Jupiter’s Hall and fastened the black and gold braided girdle
around her, so it rested against the tilt of her hips. Then she
secured the pearl-handled dagger in a loop on her
girdle.

She gathered the used bath
sheets into a basket and carried the laundry with her up to the
master chamber. She would have to visit Mae and borrow one of her
aprons from the kitchen, so she could protect her fine new clothes
while doing her chores. Heading down to the hall with her load, she
stopped in the foyer just inside the tower and stared. Who were all
these people and what were they doing at Strangclyf?

She spotted Balen and
Damon in the throng and realized William’s court had followed the
king.
Zut
and a
half! Now she would have even more mouths to feed. Just how was she
supposed to fit hunting into her schedule of chores on a Tuesday
when she had already slept most of the day away? Oh Lord, she
should probably apologize to Balen and Damon, but she didn’t want
to face them.

Ardith crossed the hall
and joined her. “Good day, milady. ‘Tis good to see you rested and
looking so grand in your finery. I’ll take that,” she said,
reaching for the basket. “You’ll not want to be spoiling your
beautiful clothes.”

“
Are you sure you have
time, Ardith?” Barwolf asked, relinquishing her load. “I know my
sleeping late must have put you behind schedule too.”

“
Don’t you be frettin’ for
me. I’m doing fine.” Ardith settled the basket against her hip,
holding it in place with one arm.

“
I forgot to tell you
yesterday how much I love you.”

“
Ah, lamb,” Ardith said,
caressing Barwolf’s cheek. “You told me with your eyes, and ‘tis
best not to be sayin’ the words anymore. ‘Tis time you learn you’re
more than a servant and too good to be lovin’ the likes of me.”
Ardith drew back her hand and blinked against tears. “We have
almost a full staff now from aleman to serving maid, and Mae has a
full staff too.”

“
Bernon is really letting
us have help then?” Barwolf asked then grinned. “Never mind. I knew
he would. Did I not say everything would work out?”

“
Aye. Now why don’t you
come with me, and I’ll see about getting you something to break
your fast?”

“’
Tis no need, Ardith. I’ll
just visit Mae and get something from her.” Barwolf frowned at the
crowd and shook her head. “I need to find out how she is set with
meat, so I’ll know how much to hunt for tonight’s
celebration.”

“
No need for you to bother.
Lord Strangclyf’s out hunting now.”

“
Then I had better get over
to the stables, or I’ll—”

“
Nay, milady. His lordship
says you’re not to do any work without his permission. You’re to
rest today.” Ardith nodded once, showing her approval of the
decree.

“
But what about all my
chores?” Barwolf raked her fingers through her hair. “I’m already
so far behind that I’ll never catch up.”

“
All your chores have been
reassigned. You have none.”

“
He took away all my
duties?” she asked in a choked voice.

“
Aye.” Ardith smiled,
seemingly oblivious to Barwolf’s distress. “He has even got some of
the women sewing new wardrobes for you and the
children.”

“
I’m not even allowed to
sew?” she whispered, clasping her hands together to hide their
trembling. What had she done to anger Bernon so?

“
Nay, milady. And Lori is
tending to the children. Lord Strangclyf says you’re to rest and he
has asked Medwyn to keep an eye on you so you do not
work.”

“
Please excuse me, Ardith.
I forgot something upstairs.” Barwolf turned and dashed up the
steps to the lord’s tower.

Tears spilled down
Barwolf’s cheeks as she closed the chamber door. She ran across the
room, threw herself facedown across the bed, and wept into her
arms.

Bernon must think her
useless to have taken all her duties away. How could she ever prove
herself to him? And how was she supposed to fill her days now? She
had no purpose. She didn’t fit in with all the noble court people
and couldn’t endure the thought of facing them without Bernon at
her side. ‘Twas too bad Aurick wasn’t home. He would help her make
Bernon understand that she was valuable, rare, and
precious.

Zut!
She sniffed back her tears and wiped her cheeks on her
sleeve. Crying served no purpose. She had never been so emotional
in the past. Of course, she had never had time to be. She needed to
find something to occupy her that Medwyn would not consider work.
That irked. Bernon had put a watchdog on her trail. He didn’t even
trust her to follow his orders.

Well, if her husband
ordered her not to work, then she would show him. She would become
lazier than an old fat woman on a hot, humid day. Aye, she would
slack off, sit around, eat sweetmeats, and grow plump. She would
start now by staying right here in this bed.

After a quarter of an
hour, Barwolf decided lounging in bed was boring. There had to be
something she could do that Bernon wouldn’t construe as
work.

The call of the seagulls
beckoned of a sudden and anticipation lifted her spirits. She had
always wanted to spend a day sailing without any cares in the
world. Today would be the perfect opportunity for her to raise her
sail, lounge in her boat, and drink in the sunshine while a crisp
spring breeze carried her out to sea and back.

She frowned, remembering
her watchdog. She wanted to go alone. Barwolf crossed the room and
opened the wall by the hearth. She took the maze to the stream
where she had docked with the queen on the previous day. Finding
another boat docked beside hers surprised her and she decided one
of the fishermen probably came home for the nooning and wanted to
dock closer to home. An unusual practice, but nothing else made
sense and she didn’t have time to ponder it. She was going to have
fun.

After checking her boat
from stem to stern as Uncle Aurick had taught her, she pushed off
from the bank with an oar and settled herself in the nine-foot
craft that her uncle helped her build. Excitement curved her lips.
Wasn’t this going to be the most enjoyable day she ever
had?

She hummed a jaunty tune
and paddled toward the sea. As she neared the wide mouth of the
river that flowed into the North Sea, dampness seeped through her
slippers. Glancing down, she saw about an inch of water sloshing
over her feet and gasped. Her end of the craft was riding lower
than usual. She found a hole chipped out in the wood near the
bottom of the boat under the tiller. How did that happen? Nothing
in the boat appeared suitable for baling the water, which seemed to
be flowing in faster.

She turned the boat and
rowed toward the bank. The currents gained in strength and battled
against her. The water soon covered her ankles.
Zut!
She would never reach shore.
Other than the two oars, nothing else in the boat would float,
including her. Could the oars handle her weight?
Zut!
She would have to
cut off the bottom of her fine new gown if she wanted even a chance
at not sinking.

Taking a deep breath to
calm herself, Barwolf pulled the oars into the boat and unfastened
her girdle. She doffed her kirtle then cut off the bottom of her
shift, so the garment reached only mid thigh. She used her dagger
to cut a long strip from the kirtle. Placing one oar on top of the
other, she tied them together with the strip, replaced her dagger,
and clenched the oars on her lap.

Now was probably a good
time to pray, so she murmured a quick
Ave
Maria.

Zut!
Her end of the boat was almost under water. What should she
do now? The answer came to her. Barwolf stood up and screamed at
the top of her lungs.

The water covered her
calves, so she waded to the stem of the boat, which was higher. She
tossed out a
Pater Noster
in case the Blessed Mother hadn’t had a chance to
talk to her Son about this urgent problem yet. An Act of Contrition
might be a good idea right now too. She lumped all her sins
together, told God she was really sorry, and pointed out she would
have had time for penance if Bernon hadn’t made her rest, because
she would be doing her chores instead of drowning.

The boat dipped. Merciful
Heavens! She was about to lose her foothold. She didn’t want to die
today, but she was about to, and ‘twas all Bernon’s fault for not
letting her work.

“
Bernon!” she bellowed,
putting all her rage, anguish, and fear into the cry.

She heard a splash from
behind, turned too fast, and lost her balance. Her back slammed
against the water and she lost her grips on the oars. Currents
swirled and surged, forcing her downward. The pressure in her lungs
felt near to bursting. She started moving upward and bumped into
the hull of the boat. Out of nowhere, an arm snaked around her and
pulled her against something hard. Her head soon cleared the
surface. She coughed and sputtered, gulping in cool salty air and
clutching at her savior’s neck.

~ * ~

“
Don’t panic and take a
couple of deep even breaths,” Bernon ordered, shaking water from
his head and thanking the Almighty she was alive. Then he began
counting, so he wouldn’t strangle her.

She nodded her
understanding and followed his angry order. “Thank you for saving
me, Bernon. Someone carved a hole in my boat.” She finally peeked
up at his furious face. “Bernon, I did not—”

“
Do not say another word
until we get to the bank,” Bernon ordered through clenched teeth.
“Move around to my back while I fight these currents and swim you
ashore. And hold on tight, damn it.”

Hearing the fury in his
voice, she complied. Geno broke the surface of the water. He
reached the bank about the same time she and Bernon did. Her heart
still hadn’t quit pounding and she couldn’t seem to catch her
breath. Bernon set her trembling frame on the bank then stood with
hands on hips and glowered at her.

“
What in perdition were you
doing in a boat when you can’t swim and I left orders for you to
rest?” he bellowed. His heart lurched at the thought of what would
have happened to her if he hadn’t gotten to her in time. God’s
bones, he would have lost her.

Hugging her arms tightly
around her waist, she bowed her head and let silent sobs wrack her
body.

Bernon wiped a hand over
his face in an exasperated move.