The older soldier, a man with a dirty face and a bushy beard, simply shook his head. “We were not there, my lord, and did not see the men who killed the archbishop,” he said. “All I can tell you is what witnesses have told us.”
“Then how did you know it was de Nerra?”
“A crimson and white tunic with a gold lion, my lord. It was identified by Owen Hampton as a de Nerra standard, as he has many dealings with the Itinerant Justice of Hampshire because of the close proximity of Hampshire’s jurisdiction to Canterbury.”
Tevin stared at the man a moment, realizing the identification had been true. He knew de Nerra’s colors and they were as the soldier said. He was starting to get a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach as he looked at Henry.
“This makes no sense, my lord,” he said. “You know that Val de Nerra would not have done such a thing unless you ordered it. He is not an unreasonable man. He would not act on his own in such matters.”
Henry was still trembling, still red in the face. His dark-eyed gaze was on the soldiers who had come bearing such awful news but, after a moment, he turned away, a desolate mood that had him staggering.
“My God,” Henry breathed. “It is possible? Is it truly possible that my brother has been murdered by a rogue knight?”
It was clear from his words that he was not considering Tevin’s words about de Nerra. He didn’t want to entertain logic at the moment, only facts. As he wandered aimlessly, men moved away from him. No one wanted to be near when the legendary Plantagenet temper let loose. No matter what the differences between Henry and his former friend, anassassination somehow made men forget about their quarrels. It only brought forth the realization that apologies and reconciliations would never come. It was the moment that men such as Henry would live with regrets of a relationship and brother lost.
Tevin knew that; he’d seen men lose brothers and suffer for it. But he didn’t want a possibly innocent man to be accused of such a terrible crime, especially a man he didn’t believe capable of such a thing. There had to be another truth behind all of this.
“My lord, allow me to question the witnesses myself,” Tevin implored. “I must go to my home at Rochester and it is very close to Canterbury. Permit me to get to the bottom of this situation and seek justice for all.”
Henry had wandered to a lancet window, his gaze moving across the bailey of Winchester as the lines of grief crept into his face. “Val has been identified, Tevin,” he said with unusual calm. “Men saw his colors and identified him.”
Tevin watched the king as the man leaned against the window. In truth, Henry was showing far too much calm for Tevin’s taste. It made him nervous.
“But you cannot believe de Nerra is behind this,” he said. “That is not the Val you know and love; it is not the Val any of us knows. There are a hundred other men I would suspect of an assassination before I would suspect Val de Nerra.”
The redness to Henry’s cheeks seemed to be fading as the reality of the situation settled in. More than anything, he seemed to be particularly shaken above all– not angry, not wildly grief stricken. Simply shaken.
“Then mayhap the questions you have should not be for the witnesses,” he said. “Mayhap they should be for Val. In fact, I want to ask him myself. I want to find out why he killed my old friend.”
Tevin was starting to think that there may not be justice for Val de Nerra at all. His colors had been identified at the scene and Henry seemed to be fixed on it, but the Val de Nerra they all knew, including Tevin, was a man of supreme character and restraint, a seasoned knight with great wisdom. That was why Henry appointed him as his itinerant justice. What the Canterbury soldiers were telling them just didn’t seem to make sense.
“Let me speak with him before you bring him here, my lord,” Tevin asked. “If I feel he is guilty, then I shall bring him back to Winchester myself.”
Henry acted as if he didn’t hear him. “Send my knights for him,” he said. “Where is de Morville, in fact? He did not accompany us in our hunting and I’ve not seen him since my return to Winchester. Whereisthe man?”
Tevin didn’t know the answer to that but he turned to one of Henry’s knights who had, in fact, remained behind in command of Winchester while the king was away. Sir Dacian d’Vant, a tall and competent man, was standing near the entrance to the solar.
“D’Vant,” Tevin said sharply. “Where is de Morville?”
D’Vant shook his head. “In truth, he and FitzUrse, le Breton, and de Tracy disappeared after our stay at Saltwood Castle,” he said. “We did not realize that until a few days later. At first I thought they had gone on ahead to Winchester, but they did not and no one has seen them. I have sent men to look for them.”
Tevin’s brow furrowed as he pondered that, turning to Henry with a rather puzzled expression. “That seems odd,” he said. “De Morville is quite loyal to you, my lord, as are the others. They are most wanting for royal favor. So it seems very strange that they would simply disappear.”
Henry wasn’t particularly interested in four missing knights. At the moment, he was fighting off crippling grief.
“Mayhap, they have been murdered as well,” he said. “Mayhap, they have fallen victim to de Nerra’s sword. My God, du Reims, what if de Nerra is systematically attempting to destroy everything that is precious to me? What if I am next? Send men to bring him to me immediately. If I have a viper within my household, then I would know of it.”
Tevin knew he couldn’t disobey a direct order from the king. He could see that Henry was becoming paranoid in his grief and that would not be a healthy thing for anyone. But rather than argue with him about it, he simply agreed.
He had to find out what really happened before the king did.
“Aye, my lord,” he said. “I shall see to it personally.”
Henry didn’t even respond; the grief he’d been struggling against overwhelmed him and he slumped against the window, a hand over his face. Tevin chose that moment to quit the chamber, but not before pausing to pull d’Vant along with him. He had something to say to the man. Once they were alone in the corridor outside the solar, he came to a halt.
“Listen to me,” he hissed at Dacian. “Give me a day before you gather your army to bring Val de Nerra to Henry. Something is not right about this entire situation and I must speak to Val before Henry’s men throw him in chains and drag him to Winchester. Will you do this?”
Dacian nodded, his fair face tight with concern. “I know Val,” he muttered. “He is not capable of doing what he has been accused of. He is a decent man, more than most.”
