Page 19 of The Forsaken
“No, I wish to help.”
Kate followed Joan inside. Despite the unwelcoming appearance of the keep, the interior wasn’t as dark and dreary as Kate had imagined. Several sconces burned along the passage, lighting the way, and the room they passed was decorated with a tapestry and looked to be comfortably furnished, with fresh rushes on the floor and a fire burning in the grate. William de Rosel’s widow was seated by the fire, her hands folded in her lap and her head bowed in sorrow. Hugh wasn’t with her. He must have gone to do Joan’s bidding and see to his brother.
Joan led Kate into a cavernous kitchen. A huge hearth took up the far wall, and a long, scarred table dominated the center. Two benches flanked the table, and several shelves held an assortment of bowls and jugs. A girl of about fourteen sat at thetable, slicing turnips. She looked up and nodded but didn’t say anything. Joan made some elaborate gestures with her hands and the girl nodded again, more vigorously this time.
“Aileen’s Jed’s sister. That’s the stable boy,” Joan explained as she began to set the table. “The poor bairn’s as deaf as a post. His lordship took the two of them into the household after their parents died a few years back. Kind he was, my William. And generous. He promised Jed his own parcel of land to work when he came of age, on account of letting other tenants work his father’s farm since Jed and Aileen couldn’t possibly manage on their own.”
Joan set a plate of sliced pork, a wedge of cheese, and some brown bread on the table, and added a jug of ale. “That will do them for now. Had I known they’d be back today, I’d have prepared a hot meal, but Eleanor hasn’t been eating much and we are all right with bread, cheese, and ale for our supper.”
Joan grew silent and Aileen watched in horror as Walter and Alf carried William’s body through the kitchen and into an adjacent chamber.
“Close the door,” Joan barked at Alf, who was the last one out. “And Walter, wash yer hands before ye sit down to sup.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
A few minutes later, Hugh and Walter came into the kitchen. They’d washed their faces and hands, but must have been too hungry and tired to bother changing their clothes. Aileen vacated her seat at the table and took the turnips with her, retreating to the corner. Walter nodded to her, but Hugh paid her no mind, as if she weren’t even there. He reached for the food and served himself first before passing the plate of pork to Walter. Both men looked up at Kate, as though expecting her to join them at the table.
“I’ll eat something later, if I may,” Kate said. “I’d like to see to Guy first.”
“All right then. Come with me,” Joan said.
Kate was famished, but she couldn’t sit down and eat while Guy lay alone on the stone floor of his bedchamber. She couldn’t understand why Joan wanted him laid on the floor but didn’t question her methods. Joan seemed like a woman who knew what she was about, and even if she didn’t, she didn’t seem likely to welcome advice from Kate.
She followed Joan down a narrow corridor toward a stone staircase. The stairs were dark and spiraled upward, but Joan knew her way by heart and didn’t seem to require a candle. She led Kate to the uppermost floor and then walked to a door at the end of the passage. A single sconce burned in the corridor, casting shadows onto the stone walls and a low arched doorway that probably led to the roof. There was one more room, situated across from Guy’s chamber, but its door was firmly shut.
Guy lay by the fire, his face flushed from the heat. His eyes were closed, but Kate suspected he was awake. A basin of water and some towels had been placed on a small table by the great bed, likely provided by Aileen.Poor girl, Kate thought as she waited to see what Joan planned to do. How awful it must be to live in a world of silence, a world in which she couldn’t hear anything but her own thoughts. Kate wondered if Aileen had been born unable to hear, or been rendered deaf by an illness or an accident. It had been kind of William de Rosel to take in the children and guarantee Jed a future rather than keep him on as a groom for the rest of his days. Kate hoped William’s heir would honor that promise.
“Come now, me boy, let’s get ye cleaned up,” Joan said as she extracted a small knife from her pocket and sliced through Guy’s blood-crusted tunic. She did the same to his breeches, leaving him completely naked. Kate looked away, embarrassed, but not before she saw his muscular chest, flat belly, and long, graceful legs.
“Give me a hand, Catherine,” Joan said, handing Kate one of the towels. “Wet the towel and start at the bottom, with his feet.”
Kate’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment as her gaze traveled along Guy’s torso toward a thicket of dark hair between his legs. She’d never seen an unclothed man before, and it was a revelation. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but it wasn’t the innocent-looking bit of flesh nestled there. How on earth did men beget children with that thing? Kate wondered as she soaped Guy’s calves.
Joan gave her a pointed look and went to work on Guy’s face and neck. She spoke gently to him, telling him of local happenings and promising to get him back on his feet as she washed the rest of him. Guy’s eyes fluttered open when she touched his wounded arm.
“It burns, Nurse,” he muttered.
“I know, me lamb, I know,” Joan replied as she deftly lifted his upper body and pulled a clean shirt over his head. “But Hugh did the right thing. Ye’ll be on the mend now. I just know it.”
“Where’s Kate?”
“I’m here,” Kate answered and moved closer so that Guy could see her. Joan’s disapproving look spoke volumes when Guy referred to her as Kate instead of Catherine, but the nurse said nothing and carried on.
“Don’t leave me, Kate,” Guy mumbled. “Stay with me until I sleep.”
“Of course I’ll stay,” Kate replied. “Can you eat something?”
“I’ll try.”
“I have some broth,” Joan interjected. “Broth is the best thing for him right now. Catherine, help me get him into bed.”
“I think I’d best summon Hugh. He’s too heavy for us.”
“Nonsense. You just grab his legs.” Joan lifted Guy off the floor as if he were no heavier than a child. Kate grabbed his legsand helped Joan lay him on the clean sheets. Joan pulled the counterpane over him and smoothed back his hair. “How do you feel, pet?”
“Better,” Guy replied. He grimaced with pain, but seemed afraid of offending his nurse, so put on a brave face. Perhaps her determination was exactly what he needed to recover from his injury.
“I’ll get ye that broth. Ye stay with him, Catherine,” Joan snapped, clearly annoyed that Guy preferred Kate to her.
