Stephen laughed heartily. “Aye, my Elizabeth, you always must confer with a bride when you can.” He nudged Rufus, who looked inclined to intervene. “Women’s tales, no doubt, the better to prepare the lady for events after your nuptials.” He winked broadly and Evangeline knew that Rufus held his ground with an effort.
“But I, of course, should escort the lady,” Rufus protested, earning a wave from Stephen.
“Indulge my lady wife, I beg of you, sir. Why, we have not attended a wedding in more than a year. Doubtless she has compiled sufficient advice to keep the pair of them occupied for days. I daresay, though, that naught she could say would compel your betrothed to miss the nuptials!” He laughed heartily, then tapped Ramsay’s crossbow, hanging from the saddle of Rufus’ destrier. “This is a matter I would prefer to discuss,” he said and Rufus straightened, as if in wariness. “What a fine weapon this is! Is that an inlay of ivory?”
“I believe as much,” Rufus acknowledged.
“You are too modest. You must be certain of its merits.” Undeterred by Rufus’ manner, Lord Haynesdale seized the weapon, balancing its weight then holding it up as if he would take aim. “Is it a fine piece? In my experience, the prettiest weapons are often the least accurate, which is truly a shame.”
“It is accurate,” Rufus said, his gaze locked upon Evangeline as Lady Elizabeth led her slowly away.
“I cannot believe it,” Lord Haynesdale said. “Indeed, I must assure myself of it. You have guests arriving and a forest abounding in wildlife. I thought to hunt on the morrow to do my share in ensuring your hospitality.”
“That is unnecessary, Lord Haynesdale…”
“Ah! Do not be so proud, boy. With you so recently returned from your travels, the larder must be nigh bare. I could not let Lawrence’s memory suffer at all in the view of Dunhaven’s hospitality. I will hunt on the morrow, try your crossbow, and with all good fortune, return with a buck!”
“Your offer is fine, Lord Haynesdale, but I cannot surrender the weapon to another. It was a gift…”
“And a fine one.” The older man chastised him gently. “Rufus, Rufus, your father would have trusted me with the keys to his treasury, or even his wife!” He laughed again. “You will have it back tomorrow eve, I warrant as much to you.”
And with that, Lord Haynesdale strode back to his tent, moving with a speed Evangeline would never have anticipated of him. In the meantime, Lady Haynesdale ushered Evangeline through the gates and into the keep, hustling her up the stairs.
’Twas almost as if the pair of them had a scheme.
“Where is your chamber, my dear?” Lady Haynesdale demanded at the top of the stairs.
Evangeline pointed and they were within the chamber in the blink of an eye, Lady Haynesdale’s back against the door. Naught had changed in the chamber, save that her trunks had apparently been opened and their contents scattered. Evangeline had left several kirtles behind, mercifully.
Lady Haynesdale’s manner was utterly serious. “We have not long before you are pursued,” she said in an undertone. Her gaze became intent. “Tell me whether ’tis true that you saw him push Lawrence.”
Evangeline gasped, for there were few ways the lady could have known that detail.
They both looked up at the sound of footfalls on the stairs then their gazes met again. Evangeline nodded agreement, for she dared not say aught else.
Lady Haynesdale’s lips thinned, then she raised her voice. “Fear not, my lady. A bride always frets overmuch about her wardrobe, but this blue kirtle is most fine. I am certain that you will be radiant at the board this night. Let me comb your hair while you tell me of your siblings. You have an older brother, do you not, being groomed by the Hawk of Inverfyre to take his place? What is his name now? I fear I have forgotten.”
“Nigel,” Evangeline said. “He is named for my mother’s father.”
“And is that not a fine way to continue a legacy.” The woman’s voice dropped to a whisper. “Have you a name chosen for your first son? I have in mind that it might be Lawrence. Or will it be Michael, for your own father? Oh, and what if you bear a daughter first? Goodness, there is so much to consider!”
Evangeline sank onto a trunk and closed her eyes with relief. She could not explain it fully but she felt as if she been granted a reprieve by this lady.
What did Lady Haynesdale know? Had she spoken to Ramsay? How could Evangeline find out without imperiling them both?
She heard Ramsay’s murmured words in her thoughts once again, as clearly as if he stood beside her.
Trust me.
Chapter 13
Hidden within the tents of Lord and Lady Haynesdale and defended by their entourage, an exhausted knight and his faithful squire slept, preparing for the moment of reckoning.
And the knight dreamed of a long-ago challenge, one planned but never delivered, based on no more than a suspicion—a suspicion he now knew to be true.
“For a manso keen of wit and so enamored of strategic choice, you have made an uncommon challenge,” Otto said, clearly intent upon granting a lecture. He raised his brows to eye Ramsay. “But they do say that love addles a man’s wits.”
“’Tis not love,” Ramsay protested. “’Tis a question of honor. The lady is missing and I fear Rufus has ensured her hasty departure.”
