Page 74 of Wolfehound
Bria nodded. “In my lessons, I have,” she said. “I was educated by the priests from St. Andrews. That parish is not far from here. Because Gwenllian is part of local lore, I know about her. She is at Sempringham and everyone knows that. Is that not correct, Papa?”
Carlton nodded. “She was taken there, aye.”
Tyrus’ focus shifted to Carlton. “And you know this for certain, my lord?”
Carlton nodded. “As certain as I can be, though I did not take her myself,” he said. “The Earl of Warenton sent his sons to deliver her. That is all I know.”
Tyrus listened carefully before switching his focus to Scott. “You are one of William de Wolfe’s sons,” he said. “Did you deliver the princess, my lord?”
It was clear that Scott had no patience for the interrogation. He was leaning forward on his elbows, listening to theconversation, but when attention shifted to him, he was clearly displeased.
“As I told you earlier,” he said, “this is not an interrogation. I will politely answer your questions and that will be the end of it.”
Tyrus nodded his head. “If you would not mind, my lord,” he said. “I would like to hear it from you.”
Scott cocked an eyebrow at the man, perhaps to emphasize he was not to question him further once he answered. “My brothers delivered the infant we brought from Wales,” he said. “I was part of the escort that brought her here. While de Royans and the majority of the escort stopped at Folkingham, my brothers continued on to Sempringham and delivered the infant Gwenllian, as ordered. Now, you said that the woman you interviewed was not the princess based on physical characteristics you were told about. Did it ever occur to you that Sempringham was responsible for that?”
Tyrus’ brow furrowed. “How do you mean, my lord?”
“I mean thattheycould have replaced the princess,” Scott said. “It makes much more sense than the crime you are trying to accuse honorable men of.”
“I still do not understand.”
“Think on it this way,” Scott said. “If the princess was delivered, yet became ill and died at some point, Sempringham could have replaced her with a child of their own to continue the illusion that she was still alive, still under their protection. Edward was giving them money for her care, and I’m sure it is a goodly amount, so not wanting to lose that money, and not wanting to be blamed for the death of the princess, they found a child to replace her. That makes the most sense to me. And your mystery is solved.”
A new pebble of controversy was thrown into a pond that was already rippling with facts and speculation. The waters were being muddied by Scott’s statement. Tyrus had come toFolkingham with a firm direction, but now he didn’t know at all. He’d met the woman de Royans had allegedly raised and now Warenton was suggesting it wasn’t a mystery at all, but a cover-up perpetrated by Sempringham itself. Certainly, he was facing more than just a simple case.
This one was getting out of hand.
Quite honestly, he wasn’t sure there was anything more he could do here.
“I suppose anything is possible,” he said after a moment. “In any case, please understand it was not my intention to come here and insult legendary men or their sons. I am simply a knight carrying out my orders. I am trying to get to the bottom of things. I will return to Canterbury with my findings and he will decide how to proceed.”
“The only way to proceed is to punish Sempringham if the woman said to be the princess is, in fact, an imposter,” Scott said. He gestured to Bria. “Just because de Royans brought a child back from Wales and gave her a home, that does not mean he stole a Welsh princess.”
Bria smiled at the men at the end of the table. “But what if Iwerea princess in disguise?” she said excitedly. “How romantic! But I should want her money and her jewels. She must be very rich, don’t you think? Aren’t all princesses?”
Scott held up a hand to her. “Not this princess,” he said. “And not this family. Be glad you are a de Royans daughter, my lady. You have had a much better life than a Welsh princess kept as a hostage.”
“And you will have a much better life as Lady Herringthorpe,” Liam said, taking her by the hand and pulling her up from the chair. “I believe you must continue packing, so I will leave you to it. Thank you for coming and putting le Mon’s mind at ease.”
Bria smiled prettily for Tyrus. “I hope you find your princess, my lord,” she said. “I am sorry it was not me.”
Tyrus simply nodded, feeling some disappointment at the course the conversation had taken. Bria skipped over to Carlton and kissed him on the cheek before skipping happily out of the hall. The silence she left in her wake was deafening as all eyes turned toward le Mon.
It was over.
For now.
“Well?” Liam said, leaning forward and bracing himself on the table with his big arms. “Satisfied?”
Tyrus looked at the man, clearly displeased. “I suppose I shall have to be,” he said. He stood up and collected his sword, turning from the table. But he paused. “I am satisfied for now, but that does not mean forever. There is something amiss about this situation and I will discover what it is. Thank you for your time, my lords. It was an… interesting discussion.”
With that, he headed out of the hall, perhaps not moving very quickly because of his last comment. He was convinced that there was more to the situation, but for now, there was nothing he could do.
That was good enough for Liam.
All he wanted was the bastard out of Folkingham. Let him get back to London and figure out what to do, because that would give Liam and Cambria plenty of time to go north and find a hiding place until the situation blew over. That was all Liam wanted.
