Page 89 of While Angels Slept
“Invite me to the wedding,” he said rather saucily as he turned away. “Perhaps I will wear one of the fine garments your lady left behind. And if you do not understand what I mean, ask your lady. I believe she knows.”
“She knows. She told me.”
Gillywiss paused, an eyebrow cocked. “What did she tell you?”
“That you like her clothes more than she does, so she left them for you as a gift.”
Gillywiss wasn’t quite sure what to make of the statement so he laughed. Then he laughed again, that crazy wild-eyed laugh that he wasso capable of. He was still laughing as he moved back down the road and mounted the weary bay stallion. The group closed in around him and they began to move off down the rocky road, into the dawn that was growing brighter by the moment. Tevin just stood there, staring at the fading figures, until Myles caught his attention.
“Tevin,” he said quietly. “What do you want to do with her?”
Tevin turned around, seeing that Myles as well as John and Simon were clustered around the ox cart, gazing at the dusty, dirty figure on the bed. Tevin walked up beside Myles, gazing down at the unconscious woman, before replacing his gloves. Then, he rolled her onto her back so her face was fully in view. The more he looked at her, the more he knew the face.
“Simon?” he muttered. “You knew Louisa. Is this her?”
Simon sighed heavily as he gazed down at the slip of a woman. After several long moments, he nodded his head.
“I believe it is,” he confirmed. “I can hardly believe it, but I believe it is.”
Tevin took his hands off the woman, still staring at her. “God’s Blood,” he hissed. “This is something I never thought I would see again. After all of these years… and in such bizarre circumstances. It does not seem possible.”
Simon could only shake his head, as stunned as his lord was, while Myles seemed a bit more logical about the entire thing. Unlike the others, he’d never met the woman and didn’t have an over amount of emotional investment in the situation.
“I will ask the question again,” he looked at Tevin. “What do you want to do with her?”
Tevin sighed heavily. “If she is ill, I will again reiterate that I do not want her infecting the entire castle.”
“But if she has the French disease, it does not spread like the Plague. We can still bring her inside and keep her isolated.”
Tevin was still resistant but he didn’t have much choice. It wasn’t as if they could leave the woman outside the walls, tucked away in the oldox cart, until they decided what to do with her. He looked at Simon.
“Have her brought inside and find a place where she can be kept well away from everyone,” he ordered. “Have a couple of serving women clean her up and make her comfortable. Make sure they clean themselves after they have touched her, for I do not want her disease spread through them. Furthermore, have the physic exam her. I will speak with the man for his opinion on her condition when all of this is accomplished.”
Simon nodded, already moving to carry out Tevin’s orders. He was snapping his fingers at some of the soldiers lingering outside the gates to have them move the ox cart inside. As the old cart began to slowly move towards the gates, towed by a few soldiers, Myles turned to Tevin.
“What are you going to tell Cantia?” he asked quietly.
Tevin drew in a long, thoughtful breath. “For the moment, nothing,” he said. “I am not sure at the moment. When this woman is in better spirits, I will speak with her to see what can be determined.”
“And if it is Louisa?”
He lowered his gaze, contemplating his answer. After a moment, he shook his head. “Anything I say will sound harsh and ugly,” he said, lifting his eyes to Myles. “The truth is that I am relieved. I am relieved if it is Louisa and the fact that she is very sick and more than likely dying. It means that she will soon no longer be an issue and I can marry Cantia as God and the laws of Nature intended. If that is a horrible statement, then I am horrible. I feel guilty for even thinking such things. But I will overcome that guilt the first time I take Cantia in my arms and call her my wife. Cruelty such as this will seem trivial.”
Myles wriggled his eyebrows in sympathy. “I do not disagree,” he replied. “But I should at least tell Val.”
“Why?”
“Because she can read my mind. She has already learned this skill and we have only been married two months. If I do not tell her, she will beat it out of me.”
Tevin gave him a half-grin. “Then it would be wise to tell her,” hesaid. “Moreover, she knew Louisa. If anyone can confirm the woman’s identity, Val can.”
“I am not entirely sure I want my wife around a sick woman until we can determine whatever she has cannot be spread.”
“Agreed. Make sure the physic examines her in short order so we know what we are dealing with.”
Myles simply nodded and the pair of them watched the ox cart, which was now lumbering beneath the yawning portcullis as it made entrance into the enclosure of Rochester.
With wonder, disbelief, and perhaps some fear, they followed.
