It was enough to give him a bad taste in his mouth.
Robin dutifully sent a servant for Mathis and Pryce, informing them that they would be escorting him and Lady Cheltenham to Lioncross Abbey on the morrow, to the wedding of their daughter. Leaving Eddard in command of Cicadia, Robin intended to take a hundred men with him in show of support for his new de Lohr in-laws. He gave normal orders for a normal event, giving no hint of what lay beneath.
But a good deal lay beneath.
The beginning of the end of Roi de Lohr.
CHAPTER TEN
“Have you seenDiara?”
It was after sunset at Lioncross Abbey, and Roi was back in the ladies’ solar. His mother and eldest sister were there, too, with the lit tapers creating a warm glow against the backdrop of the neat but crowded solar as they both worked on garments.
Dustin looked up from the fabric in her hands.
“Nay,” she said. “She never returned, so I assumed she had gone somewhere with you.”
Roi shook his head. “She did not,” he said. “I left her to go to your chamber, but I’ve not seen her since. I thought she was with you.”
Dustin lowered her sewing into her lap. “I am sure she is around somewhere,” she said. “Mayhap she was weary and lay down to rest. The past few days have been very busy for her.”
Roi nodded. “Possibly,” he said. “I will go and see.”
“Everyone is gathering in the hall, Roi,” Dustin called after him as he headed to the door. “Find her and bring her to sup. Your marriage is tomorrow, after all. We will want to celebrate tonight with you both.”
Roi paused at the door. “There is a good deal to celebrate,” he said. “But there is also a good deal to mourn. I find myself in a peculiar position.”
Dustin wasn’t unsympathetic. “I know,” she said. “We will mourn Beckett forever. But you will only marry Diara once, so I do not think your son would mind if you celebrate your union tonight.”
Roi thought on that. “You are right, of course,” he said. “But I still feel as if something is missing.”
“Somethingismissing, sweetheart,” Dustin said softly. “But only in body. In spirit, he will be sitting next to you.”
Roi nodded, but then he chuckled ironically. “That will be a little strange, considering I am marrying his betrothed.”
“He would want you to be happy, and if it is with Diara, I do not think he would mind.”
Roi hoped that was the case. Even if his son hadn’t been interested in marrying, he still wondered how he would have felt about his father marrying the woman intended for him—and liking her.
His pale eyes glittered at his mother.
“You like her, don’t you?” he asked.
Both Dustin and Christin, sitting next to her, nodded. “I do,” Dustin said. “She is a sweet lass and she is eager to please. She will be good for you, Roi.”
“She knows how to play chess,” Christin said, a twinkle in her eye. “She brought the board in here from Papa’s solar yesterday and was trying to teach the little girls. Have you played with her yet?”
“Nay.”
“I suspect she might make a formidable opponent.”
Roi simply grinned at his sister, indicating his joy at the prospect. They all knew how competitive he was, so a new wife who could play board games would be of particular delight. Withthat, he left his mother’s solar and headed to the wing where female and married couple visitors were housed. Single men were always kept in the knights’ quarters or in another part of the house, and he made his way up the stairs to the level above.
A search of several chambers on that level, including the one that Iris was staying in, failed to produce Diara. Iris, now nursing a head cold, had no idea where Diara was but offered to help search. Roi declined the ill woman’s offer because he wasn’t particularly concerned, but he ended up searching other parts of the keep simply to see if she’d wandered around or was sidetracked by something. The entire third floor was void of her presence, as was the top floor.
He went back down to the entry level.
By now, he was becoming a little concerned, but not too terribly. He knew that she was somewhere on the grounds. He simply had to find her. But when a search of the entire keep and the abbey failed to turn her up, he went outside, into the night, to commandeer the help of a few soldiers. They knew what she looked like, so before the hour was up, Roi had about fifteen soldiers helping him search for her.
