She was trying to, but her confusion was making her doubt everything she’d always believed in, and that bewilderment came across in her manner. “Lord Hereford, when you and I first spoke yesterday, you were honest,” she said. “You were not particularly kind at times, but you were honest. More than that, you treated me with respect. I thought you were viewing my royal blood as a prize, something to be used and bartered with, but it occurred to me later that you were simply showing me respect because of my father. Am I wrong in this?”
Christopher shook his head. “You are not wrong,” he said. “You are a Welsh princess, my lady. I am sorry if no one has ever shown you the respect you deserve.”
“But that’s just it,” she said, becoming emotional. “You have all shown me respect, and even though I am your prisoner, I have never had anyone be as kind to me as you and Sir Curtishave been. The food, the soap, the bath, the clothing… It seems so inconsequential, but it isn’t. No one in my entire life has been as kind to me as you have, and it made me suspicious. I was suspicious of your motives. But the truth is that the life I’ve had is not one I should be mourning if the only people who ever showed me kindness were the men who defeated me in battle. Does that make sense?”
Christopher nodded faintly. “It does,” he said. “In spite of what you have been taught, the English are not all bad.”
“Nay, they are not,” she said quickly. “But the innate evil of the English is something that has been etched into me. Hatred is in my brain and in my heart, yet you have all been so kind to me. It is horribly confusing because I cannot reconcile this hatred I am expected to feel. Is there such a world where I should actually befriend my enemy?”
Christopher smiled. “We would like that, very much,” he said. “As Curtis’ wife, you have a very important role, one that will bring you love and respect if you will only not be suspicious of it. Wewantto like you, my lady.”
Elle hung her head. “He said he is going to annul the marriage,” she said miserably. “He does not wish to be married to me, and I do not blame him. He has tried so hard to be kind, and all I have done is mistrust his motives. He called me petty and foolish, and he is right. I am. But he has made me think very carefully on what kind of life I want—do I want to go back to living in rags and in damp castles or the forests, rebelling against the English and living a life of ineffective transiency? Or do I want to live a life where my husband and his family are kind to me, even if they are English? Can I help Wales that way? Whatever happens, I will always be Welsh, but I do not always have to hate. I understand that much.”
Christopher’s eyes glimmered with warmth. “I would say that is a very big step in your progress, my lady,” he said. “The factthat you are even asking these questions means you are seeing a new perspective.”
“Mayhap,” she said. “But Sir Curtis has told me to be gone by morning. I do not know the man well, but I suspect he means it.”
“He probably did at the time, but I would wager to say that he regrets it now,” Peter said. “I know my brother, my lady. He can be more forgiving than most. But you do not know this, so you should be aware of what kind of man he is. Shall I tell you?”
Elle looked at the blond man with the intense, dark eyes. “I think I know a little about him,” she said. “His behavior since yesterday shows me that he has understanding and patience. But I would like to know more.”
“Like what?” Peter asked.
“For example, must he always win an argument?”
Peter and Alexander burst out laughing. “That is a de Lohr trait,” Peter said. “Curt does not always have to win an argument, but he usually does because he is usually right. I think if you look back on the conversations you have had with him, you will agree with me.”
Elle was reluctant to admit it, but she forced herself. Her guard was down, and it didn’t matter if she admitted Curtis had been correct, in every way. Even so, it was kicking and screaming, metaphorically speaking, all the way. For a woman of considerable pride, it was a difficult thing for her to acknowledge it.
“I did not say he was wrong,” she said. “I just asked if he had to win every single argument. He seems to be a man with all of the answers.”
“He is,” Peter said. “But he is also humble, quiet at times, and more focused and driven than anyone you will ever meet. Curtis is a man of war, my lady. That is what he knows, and that is what he does well. He is meticulous, he is clever, and he is educated. He also has a great deal of patience, as you have noted.”
Elle sighed heavily. “I have pushed him beyond his endurance,” she said. “I do not suppose he would be forgiving.”
“I think he probably already has.”
“Then why does he not come back?” she asked. “Will he truly stay away all night?”
Peter shrugged. “If you had just had an argument with your husband and he exasperated you, would you stay away all night just to make him sick with worry, so sick that he would forgive any quarrel he had with you?”
Elle’s eyes widened. “Is that what he is doing?” she said. “Making it so I will be remorseful?”
Christopher held up a hand before the conversation veered out of control, because he didn’t want the lady to think Curtis was playing games somehow. “He went away so he would not say anything he could not take back,” he said. “He is staying away to cool his temper, which can be fearsome when aroused. Did he say where he was going?”
Elle nodded her head. “He said that he was going into Presteigne.”
“Then I will fetch him,” Peter said, standing up. “It should not take too—”
“Nay,” Elle said, standing up quickly. “You must not go. He will think I have run to his brothers and father to shame him for leaving. Please do not go.”
“She is right,” Christopher said, waving a hand at Peter. “Sit back down. I fear it will only make him more furious if you find him and try to bring him back. The only person who should bring him back is the lady.”
Elle nodded. “It started with me,” she said. “It should also end with me. Do you think he meant the nearest English town?”
Christopher nodded. “That would be my guess,” he said. “Peter can escort you there. You will bring him back, my lady.”
She nodded, but her courage was wavering. “What should I say?”
