Arthur’s head tilted in Vera’s direction, but she kept her eyes on the man. He wore a crooked, one-sided smirk that didn’t reach his eyes and read of smug satisfaction. He was only slightly less unattractive without the smear of manure across his face, because his cruelty was a permanent feature.
It was the man from the stable, and, as promised, it appeared he was ready to bring his grievance before the king.
Vera leaned toward Arthur. He mirrored the gesture, inclining in her direction on the arm of his chair.
“This is probably about me,” she murmured, moving her mouth as little as possible.
“Are you sure?” Arthur asked.
“Erm … yes.”
The nobleman found his place and stood there expectantly.
“Welcome, Lord Wulfstan.” Arthur greeted him cordially, divulging nothing of Vera’s whispers. “This is a surprise. You’ve never attended court while in Camelot for trade before.”
“I’ve never had cause before now, Your Majesty,” Lord Wulfstan said. Now that he addressed the king, a show of reverence replaced his smirk, all pious concern with his conceit well-concealed.
Shit. A nobleman in the business of trade and barter would know how to manipulate a situation well. Vera should have told Arthur what happened before (as if she’d had a chance). She’d been foolish to believe her actions would stand on their merit and her word alone.
“Tell me what troubles you,” Arthur said.
Lord Wulfstan licked his lips, and vengeful glee flashed through his expression as he shot a glare at Vera. “I regret to inform Your Majesty that, on my departure from the royal stables concluding my last visit, I was treated with disrespect and disregard by your stable boy.”
His audacity had Vera gripping the arms of her chair so tightly that her knuckles were white, and the edges of the wood dug into her palms. She knew the fury would be written on her face. Vera clenched her teeth to keep from outright snarling as she listened.
“And most appalling of all,” the brazen, awful man continued, “was my encounter with Her Majesty the queen, and the vulgar language she used. It pains me to say it, having traded with her father in the Northland for many years. He would be appalled.”
Vera momentarily forgot her anger. For the years she’d spent searching for her birth parents in vain, it hadn’t occurred to her that she might be able to know them here. She’d have to come back to this because Lord Wulfstan charged onward.
“Her Majesty told me, and forgive my language as I quote her directly, that I had,” he paused dramatically, “horse shit on my face.”
The room and all in it were more still, and the silence deeper than any other time at court. Vera imagined she could feel Merlin’s eyes on her back.
Arthur looked at her without speaking. When Vera met his gaze, his eyebrow quirked upward. She gave the tiniest indication of a nod in confirmation.
A single laugh burst from behind her, convincingly covered with a cough. Had it not been Lancelot, whose laugh she knew so well, Vera would have been fooled.
Arthur’s face revealed nothing at all. The control he exhibited was masterful as he turned his attention back to Lord Wulfstan.
“And did you have horse shit on your face?” he asked evenly.
It was the last thing Vera had expected Arthur to say. She barely managed to contain her reaction to just her wide eyes. Lord Wulfstan, on the other hand, had gone from composed to having cheeks the color of a ripe tomato. He huffed loud breaths through his nose.
Finally, he replied with a curt “Yes,” hissed through his teeth.
Arthur turned to Vera. “What exactly happened?”
If she didn’t tell it all and tell it right now, there likely wouldn’t be another chance. Her chest tightened, but she forced herself to find her voice. She told him all that she could remember. The foul insults Wulfstan hurled, the way he’d not listened when Grady tried to explain that he was with the queen, and how hard he’d struck the boy. She would not be intimidated by the man before her.
“I demanded his apology to the young man,” Vera said. “And … I have no qualms about how Lord Wulfstan told my part in the rest of the story. His portrayal of my language is accurate.”
The silence that followed was thick as Arthur studied Wulfstan. Someone shifted in a seat behind Vera, and Merlin’s voice chimed in. “I might offer, sir, that the queen has been recovering from—”
Arthur held up a hand to stop him, his unreadable stare focused on Wulfstan. Vera’s heart slammed against the inside of her chest. She didn’t know what to expect or even what outcome to hope for. Arthur let the hush linger for longer than was comfortable before lowering his hand.
“While I cannot say if I would have addressed the manner in the same language as Lady Guinevere, I share the queen’s sentiment.”
Vera sat up straighter, her eyes shooting to Arthur. Fuck yeah.
