Kevin knew that. God help him, he knew that. Jaw ticking with fury, with frustration that threatened to rot out his very guts, he pushed himself off of Piers and stood up. But he hovered over the man, even as Piers climbed wearily to his feet.
“Get out of here,” Kevin snarled. He was now joined by Adonis, who also recognized Piers on sight. But Kevin didn’t look at Adonis to see the man’s reaction to all of this. He kepthis focus on his prey. “If I ever see you again, I will kill you. If I ever hear of you lurking anywhere near me or near the House of Dorset, I will seek you out and I will kill you. Is that in any way unclear?”
Piers brushed the mud off his gloved hands. “You should reconsider that,” he said. “I wonder how Salisbury would feel to know that you killed his son? I am assuming he does not know it is you. If he did, you would not be standing here and he would not be cheering you from the lists.”
Kevin’s expression remained impassive even though inside, he was wild with shock and concern.How could he possibly know that?Still, he would not give his thoughts away. He would not confirm what he hoped was only speculation on Piers’ part. Still, it was an effort not to rush at him and snap his foolish neck.
“Get out,” he repeated. “Get out of here before I kill you and worry about the consequences later.”
Piers simply grinned; an annoying, deadly grin. Winking boldly at Kevin, he turned and ran off the field, heading towards the town and losing himself in the cluster of structures. Kevin and Adonis watched the man go even as the marshals came out to speak with Kevin and usher him from the field. He had dismounted, and was therefore disqualified, but Kevin didn’t care about any of that. He still had horses he’d won and men he planned to ransom. In all, it had been a very successful bout even if he hadn’t been the eventual winner. That title, after unseating young Fen de Lohr, eventually went to Gorsedd de Bretagne.
For Kevin, however, the competition had been over and done with the moment he set eyes on Piers de Evereux. At that moment, the stakes of the game, and of his very existence, grew much higher. Now, he knew what danger lurked about him and he would need all of his wits to survive it.
And to protect Annavieve.
*
Having left thelists only a few minutes before, Annavieve was already overwhelmed with the sights and sounds of the town. There were so many people who had come from neighboring bergs to see the tournament that the streets were literally jammed with bodies.
Vietta had sent out a soldier to track down the location of the food vendors and as the group of ladies and guards headed into the main part of town, the soldier returned with information on some food stalls. They ended up following the man to the opposite side of the big, squat church, to a street that was filled with a myriad of heavenly smells. Vietta was already on the prowl, rushing up to the very first food stall she came across.
Being that it was fall, there was an abundance of pumpkin and squash products as well as baked apples with honey and cinnamon, pears with clove, a variety of meats including rabbit and fowl, cooked on sticks, and puddings that were sold in hollowed-out gourds. They even came across a woman who made cakes and cheeses with honey.
Vietta was poisoned by selection, wanting all of it, but her strict nurse told her that she could only have a few of the delicacies. Pouting, Vietta stood in one of the stalls, negotiating with the proprietor on the price he would charge for a feast of roasted pigeon, baked apples, and honey cakes. Annavieve stood back with the nurse and the rest of the guard, waiting for the word on when they could eat.
But the wait became excessive as Vietta negotiated and Annavieve’s mind began to wander. For some reason, her grief for Magda began to make a resurgence and it was difficult to fight back the tears. She wished she could have shared all of this with the woman but she knew that, in the same breath, Magda would have disapproved of all of it. It made her smile to thinkon what Kevin had said earlier;pretend you have outsmarted her and are attending the tournament she didn’t want you to attend.No doubt, Magda would have been very much against it.
With thoughts of Magda heavy on her mind, Annavieve glanced at the nurse standing next to her. Seeing the old woman brought even more thoughts of Magda, but she fought them. Now was not the time to grieve, as no one would understand. To distract herself, she made simple conversation with the old woman standing next to her.
“Do you travel with Lady Vietta to every tournament?” she asked politely.
The woman, pale, with hazel eyes, looked at Annavieve. “Every tournament, my lady,” she assured her. “She is like a squirrel. If she is not watched constantly, she will run off and get into trouble.”
Annavieve giggled. “She is very sweet and friendly,” she said. “Have you been with her all of her life?”
The woman nodded. “All of her life, my lady.”
Annavieve smiled faintly. “I would assume you have nursed all of the de Lohr children?”
Again, the woman nodded. “Lady Vietta has a younger sister and an older brother,” she said. “I have nursed all three of the de Lohr offspring.”
“The younger sister did not come?”
The woman shook her head. “She is fostering at Somerhill Castle in the north,” she replied. “Lady Mavia is fourteen years of age. She is not as flighty as this one.”
She nodded her head at Vietta, who was still trying to negotiate a good price for the food. Annavieve chuckled when she realized that Vietta was becoming frustrated with her inability to convince the man to sell her the food for less than what he wanted for it.
“She certainly seems to know a great deal about tournaments,” she said, unwilling to comment on the alleged flighty nature of her friend. “You and I have not been properly introduced, by the way. I am Lady de Ferrers. I told Vietta that she may call me by my name, Annavieve. You may call me by my name also if you wish.”
The old woman simply stared at her. “An-Annavieve?”
Annavieve nodded. Then, she cocked her head thoughtfully. Perhaps this old nurse would remember a young lady in the de Lohr household, long ago. Perhaps she would even know what had become of her. Both Kevin and Lord William had said that they would send word to the House of de Lohr to see if Lady Alys was still with them, but Annavieve thought she could find out for herself– who better to know such things than old household servants?
“In fact, mayhap you can help me,” she said to the old woman. “I… I was wondering if you know of a Lady Alys Marshal. She served in the House of de Lohr many years ago. Can you tell me if she is still there?”
The old woman was still staring at her. Annavieve didn’t notice that the woman was beginning to sweat, nor did she notice that the woman’s pallor had gone from pale to a sickly sallow. Before the woman could answer her, Vietta emerged from the vendor’s stall and their attention was diverted.
“Finally!” Vietta crowed. “I have procured a feast fit for a duchess, my lady. Mayhap we can find a shaded area to eat it.”
