“The priest said she had come to the door, telling him that she was in trouble,” Gaston replied steadily. “Other than that, I cannot tell you any more. The only person who can supply all of the answers is your wife. But she did say something strange to me.”
Matthew looked at Gaston with his red-rimmed eyes. “She spoke to you?”
“Aye. Long enough to tell me that she could not come home.”
Matthew’s pale brows drew together. “She could not comehome?What nonsense is that?”
Gaston shrugged. “Perhaps only the ramblings of a sick woman,” he said. Then he peered more closely at Matthew. “The two of you did not have a row, did you?”
“Never.”
Gaston had no reason to doubt him. He looked back at the lady on the bed. “Then it must have been her sick mind talking.”
Matthew was still in his armor. He began removing pieces, tossing them against the wall with a clatter and bangs. He was fatigued and drawn, but the sight of Alixandrea brought renewed vigor to him.
There was an odd sense of urgency to his movements and Caroline had to jump aside at one point or risk being struck by a flying piece of armor. It smacked against the wall, leaving a gouge in Aunt Livia’s wall covering that she had ordered from Paris. French artisans had carefully plastered the painted linen to the walls. It was the first of its kind in the area, now with a black mark on it.
But Matthew hardly cared. He ripped off his mail and let his weapons fall where they may. He ended up in his soiled linen tunic and leather breeches. He could not get his greaves off without removing his boots, and he had no mind to do that yet. He simply wanted to be near his wife without all of the fortified protection. He kicked aside a piece of shoulder armor that was in his way, an unusual action from a man who normally took great care of his expensive protection.
“Perhaps you should sit and eat something,” Caroline had been watching his sharp movements and it concerned her. “You look as if you could use a bit of sustenance.”
Matthew shook his head. “I am not hungry.”
“Please, Matt.”
He picked up his mail hauberk from where it had fallen and tossed it back against the wall with the rest of his armor. “Perhaps later.”
Caroline looked at Gaston, who merely shook his head. They both watched as Matthew went back over to the bed and sat his bulk upon a small stool that the physic had been using. Taking one of Alixandrea’s hands into his great palm, he brought it tohis lips and sat, staring at her, as if afraid she were going to disappear. Caroline went back to her task of placing cooling rags on Alixandrea. Gaston stood there a moment, knowing there was nothing further he could do.
“Matt,” he said quietly. “I shall be outside if you need me.”
Matthew turned to look at him. He had an expression on his face that Gaston had never seen before.
“I haven’t the words to thank you,” he said quietly. “Without you… she would not be here.”
Gaston’s lips twitched into an exhausted smile. “You would have done the same for me.”
“Without question. But I still cannot adequately express my gratitude.”
“No need. But I will say one thing.”
“What is that?”
“She is worth every effort.”
He quit the room, leaving Matthew flattered and oddly jealous at the same time.
*
It was snowing.At least, that was what Alixandrea thought. In her dream, it was freezing. There was snow on the roof of the keep at Whitewell and snow inside as well. It was in her bed. She dreamt that she could not find anything to wrap up in. It was so cold that she was shaking. And when the stark reality of consciousness claimed her, she was shaking so badly that her teeth were smacking together.
But the chill wasn’t the reason she had awoken. Someone was talking to her, speaking in tones that could only be described as agonized. Her eyes slowly opened, moving unsteadily to the source of the sounds.
He was hobbling because one leg was broken and he was leaning heavily on crutches that his youngest son had fashioned for him. He shouldn’t have been out of bed much less attempting to walk. But Adam Wellesbourne was nonetheless standing beside Alixandrea’s bed, one hand clutching her clammy fingers as he offered soft prayers to a God he had forsaken long ago.
“…and I swear that if you allow this woman to live, I promise I will never again attempt to take my life as I have so often sworn to do,” he murmured. “She has brought life back to the House of Wellesbourne. ’Twould be a cruel thing to do to Matthew if you were to take her from him. From all of us. Please, God, hear my prayers. Let this woman live. Alixandrea,you must live!”
It took her a moment to realize that she was not looking at a ghost. Shocked, she opened her mouth to speak when something buzzed loudly in her right ear.
