“T’would no doubt disturb the poor priest to hear them.” Reaching behind his head he neatly pinched out the candle. “Time for rest, wife. The morrow will be a long day, even if it will bring an end to this journey.”
“Are you sure you should attempt it? Mayhap you should rest a day.”
“I can rest when we reach Riverfall.”
Opening her mouth to argue, she then closed it, recognizing the unswervable steel behind his words. “Will you at least take the journey carefully?”
“What? Ride in the cart like some fine, soft lady? Well, mayhap I will if the choice comes to that or halting before we reach Riverfall. Now, do not frown. I know this battered body well, know to what lengths I can take it. I am not such a fool as to push myself past return. Even now, with the title and land I fought for in my hands, I have need of this sword arm. You need not worry I would risk sapping its strength forever. So”—he brushed a kiss over her forehead—“get your rest.”
Poorly smothering a large yawn, she murmured, “That is an order I shall find easy to obey.” She rubbed her cheek against his chest. “And we will reach River-fall at day’s end?”
“Aye, we will.” Silently he prayed they would find Riverfall in far better condition than they had Saitun Manor.
Chapter Seven
“Ah, I see you are still hale and hearty, Janet.” Gytha bit back a grin as she greeted the hefty woman by the wash house.
“’Tis early yet, m’lady. I might still take a bad chill.”
Gytha rolled her eyes in a gesture of mild exasperation even as she laughed. Riverfall had been a pleasant surprise. It had needed little work to make it livable, although it was plain. She did not really mind that plainness. It would be enjoyable to add her own touches.
However, the workers and people around Riverfall had been in sore need of a good scrubbing. She had ignored the howls, waved aside the fears of taking a fatal chill from a bath, and set about seeing to it that her people held to the same rules of cleanliness she did. Most of the complaints and fears had stilled as time passed and no one died from losing his thick coat of dirt. Some, like Janet, even felt free enough to jest and tease. Gytha hoped she would not have as great a struggle in two days’ time when she enforced the rule of scrubbing body and home once a week.
“Well, in two days’ time we shall try again,” she teased Janet back as she briefly inspected the washing. “I see young Bek has been leaping on his bed linen with muddied feet.”
Laughing as she continued to scrub away at the heavily begrimed linen, Janet agreed. “Aye, he seems a quick, lively lad.”
“That may be, but I shall speak to him about this. He must learn not to heedlessly make extra work for others. If a talk fails to teach him, I daresay having to scrub his own linens will work.” She smiled faintly at Janet’s hearty laugh, then continued on her rounds.
In the short time she had been at Riverfall, she had found little that needed correcting. The people may have been lax in their personal cleanliness, but they shirked little else. All worked hard and competently. She wondered if that contributed to the deep sense of belonging she experienced at Riverfall. If she were to have a choice of residence, she would prefer Riverfall, but she was not sure how she could convey that to Thayer. Saitun Manor was, after all, his family seat.
Espying Bek, she moved towards him. He watched the men practice their skills as he stood by his father. Thayer’s presence at the boy’s side made her pause briefly. Bek was his son—not hers. Shaking her head, she continued on. They were to be a family. If that was to work, she had to treat Bek as if he were her own. She just prayed that Thayer would understand and agree. Matters could become painfully complicated if he did not.
Thayer smiled at Gytha as she joined him and Bek. “We have found some skilled fighters here. Your father manned the place well.”
“He sent those men here who seemed—well, bored with the relative peace at home.”
“A good choice. They found enough to keep them busy here, yet not as much as rumor would have us believe.”
“That is a great comfort.” She exchanged a brief smile with Thayer.
“Can I do something for you?” Thayer asked when he noticed the seriousness of her expression.
“Actually, I came to have a word with Bek.” She looked at the boy, who gave her a wary smile.
“You want me to help you with something?” The boy forced his attention away from the men.
“In a way, Bek. It appears you neglect to clean your feet before you climb into your bed. In truth, your linen looks as if you run and jump the length of the bed with very muddy feet.”
Frowning, Bek shrugged. “The linen is washed. The women do it.”
“Therein lies the problem. You dirty them so badly it takes the women much longer to clean yours than any of the others.”
“It is their place to clean things.”
“I know, but that does not mean we can be so careless as to make their work even harder.” She watched a scowl blacken the boy’s beautiful face and inwardly sighed. “I would like you to be sure you are clean before you crawl into bed, to think a little more about those who must clean up after you. Bek?” she pressed when he simply glared at her.
“Aye.” He walked away.
