Kevin sat down on the big chair beneath the open window. “Christ,” he muttered. “One lie to cover up another.”
“Would you rather confess everything to her and take your chances?”
Kevin rolled his eyes miserably. “Probably not,” he said. “My instincts tell me to do precisely that, but I intend to keep Wybren indefinitely. I cannot establish my presence here with everyone thinking my word is not to be trusted.”
Bannon shrugged. “Then tell her one last lie and never do it again,” he said. “Tell her that her father has died in the vault andshe may take him home for burial any time she wishes. But you had better do it sooner rather than later– he is in the vault, and it is quite cold down there so he is well preserved, but that will not last forever. She must not have a reasonable doubt that her father’s death was recent.”
Kevin hated himself for even considering such a thing, but he was desperate. This wasn’t something he was used to, weaving a tapestry of lies that he was fearful would unravel and expose him. God, he didn’t want to fail at this.
He didn’t want to hurt a woman he was desperately attracted to.
“I’ll consider it,” he said after a moment. “I appreciate the advice.”
Bannon simply nodded, pushing himself off the wall. “Any time, my lord,” he said. “But I did come here for another reason. Cal has several pieces of weaponry set aside for you to examine. Will you come?”
“Where is Gareth?”
“He’s gone into Pool with the blacksmith because the man needs to buy some raw material.”
Kevin nodded. He really wasn’t doing anything in his tower room other than watching Juliandra, so it was time to get on with his duties. He followed Bannon from the chamber, listening to the man curse and groan as he navigated the narrow stairs, but not before he caught a final glimpse of Juliandra from the window.
He couldn’t help the feeling that he was sinking deeper and deeper into something that was going to change, or end, his entire life.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Juliandra knew hewas around, somewhere, because he always seemed to be lurking.
Not that she minded.
Kevin was around somewhere because she could feel it. Two weeks with the man and she had come to the point where she knew his routine and could sense his mood within the first few words of a conversation. It was odd because she’d never had this kind of a rapport with anyone.
But she liked it.
The lightning she felt when she looked at him had turned into a smoldering burn. Every time she saw him, it burned in the pit of her belly. It was a thrilling sensation, making her the least bit giddy and she felt like a horrible person for it. She was here to do her duty and have her father released.
It was coming so she didn’t want to be released at all.
She rather liked it at Wybren with Kevin.
Still, she couldn’t remain. She knew that. Even if Kevin wanted to marry her, to which her giddy self would be more than agreeable, her father would never permit it. It was a disappointing thought, one of many thoughts on her mind these days.
She was a woman torn.
Juliandra had been out in the kitchen yard all day, boiling linens because there seemed to be an infestation of some kind in them, and in the entire keep. Every bed had bugs in it that bit and drew blood, so she put the servants on boiling everything, from the coverlets to the mattresses. Every chamber was being scrubbed with lye and then wiped down with cloths soaked in vinegar. If she couldn’t kill the bugs, then she would at least drive them away. It made for a very smelly keep.
Kevin had permitted her to bring on more servants over the past two weeks because Wybren was a large place and she needed the help to properly maintain it. Therefore, she had a small army of servants scrubbing chambers and boiling linens while still others were working in the kitchens, preparing the meals.
That had become her domain.
The majordomo, as it turned out, didn’t do much. He was left over from the last Lord of Breidden and he mostly yelled at people and then retreated into his chamber to drink, so at Juliandra’s recommendation, Kevin released the man from his service. That meant that Juliandra was now in charge of everything and, much as she did with The Neath, she ensured that Wybren was run most efficiently.
Among other things, that meant two meals a day were prepared, one at sunrise and one after sunset. The morning meals were usually the warmed-over remains of the evening’s meal, and the evening’s meal was always some kind of boiled meat or stew because it was easier to prepare plentiful foodfor the masses by making something that could be stretched by adding a little water, if needed.
On this night, they were having boiled beef, having butchered a cow from Wybren’s herd of hairy, long-horned cattle. Two big cauldrons were bubbling away in the kitchen yard, cooking pieces of butchered beef, while a second simmering cauldron contained carrots and turnips. The ovens of Wybren were going full-bore and the smell of baking bread filled the entire yard and inner bailey.
After the sun set, men began to fill the great hall, greeted by bread and butter and drink. In Wales, it wasn’t usual for men to drink wine, as it was expensive and had to be imported, so they drank what they had– fermented fruit drink, such as cider made from apples or even pears, or mead, which was fermented honey. Wybren, like most castles, had their own brew wives, and they brewed a pear cider that was delicious and had a powerful kick. They watered it down for those who became drunk too easily, but there was also the full-strength version which was much loved by the knights.
All of this was waiting for the men as they filtered into the hall and began their meal, while out in the kitchen yard, Juliandra was overseeing the final process on the beef and vegetables. Stacks of stale trenchers, broken into two pieces so there were more to go around, were being loaded with food as Juliandra headed inside to see to the meal.
