"Doyou think they know that?"
"Howcan they not know? William is a Norman and he will try to make England likeNormandy. One does not have to believe in omens and prophesies to knowthat."
Drogonodded then gave her one short, fierce kiss and walked away. Eada stood, unableto move or speak, as she watched him mount Faramond and ride away with his men.She bit her tongue until it hurt to stop herself from calling after him,begging him to return.
Whena pale, tight-lipped May, holding a cooing Alwyn close to her chest, stepped upbeside her and took her hand, Eada clung to her tightly. Despite the sounds ofthousands of men preparing to do battle that drifted back to them, the camp wasstrangely quiet. Norman and Saxon alike were subdued and tensely awaited thebattle and its outcome. If the Normans lost, they would all have to flee orfight the victorious Saxons, who would overrun the camp looking for bounty andrevenge. Eada suspected she was the only one who had no doubt about the outcomeof the battle.
"SirDrogo will be safe, mistress," May said, awkwardly patting Eada on theshoulder.
"Yourwords might be more of a comfort if you did not look so afraid," Eadadrawled, smiling faintly at May's discomfort.
"Iconfess that I am not sure what I am afraid of. The men we ride with appear tobe strong, skillful knights, all the protection any woman could need. I do notreally tremble with fear for their lives, yet tremble I do." She shook herhead and gave Eada a furtive, faintly embarrassed glance. "My man is noteven riding into battle."
"Thereis a lot to fear today, May, even if Ivo does not carry a weapon. I, too,tremble yet I feel certain that the Normans will win. Today is a day scribeswill write about until we are all dust. The importance of the battle may bewhat makes its all tremble. This will decide who rules this land and we havenever been a part of such a weighty decision before." Eada reached out tolightly pat little Alwyn's back. "Do you have any family who may suffer onthis day?"
"Nonethat I know of. I was left alone and taken as a bond-servant while still achild. There may be a Saxon warrior or two who is kinsman to me, but I know himnot and I doubt he knows of me. You have family—"
"OldEdith believed that my mother, brother, and sister would survive."
"Thentry to be at ease, mistress. Ones such as we do not have the power to end thebloodshed. We can only save ourselves. And you have already saved others. Thissweet babe, young Godwin, and probably the babes he cares for all owe theirlives to you. Let that be enough."
BeforeEada could reply, an ashen-faced Godwin rushed up and grabbed her by the arm,clutching her tightly as he said, "You must come with me, mistress."
"Iam not sure I should enter Sir Guy's camp."
"Heis not there. He has left his captives alone." Godwin's brief smile waslittle more than a bitter twisting of his lips. "Where can we go when weare surrounded by Normans and a battle lurks but a short walk away? Please, youmust come with me."
Evenas she allowed him to tug her toward Sir Guy's camp, she asked, "What doyou need me for?"
"WhenSir Guy left, I entered his tent to clean it and I found poor Hilde."
"PoorHilde?" asked May as she hurried along behind Godwin and Eada.
Godwindid not reply, simply lifted the flap to Sir Guy's tent and nudged the twowomen inside. Eada softly echoed May's cry of horror. Hilde lay sprawled on thesmoothed dirt floor inside the tent, staring sightlessly up at the dawn throughthe hole that allowed the fire's smoke out. Her wrists had been slashed and theknife she had used lay in the pool of blood surrounding her lifeless body. Shewas naked and the bruises marring her pale body revealed that her final dayshad not been easy to endure. Eada was not sure which horrified her more, thesight of a woman who had committed the grave sin of suicide or that Sir Guycould be so cruel that he could push a woman to put her immortal soul at riskjust to escape him.
"Hasanyone else seen this?" she demanded of Godwin as she took a deep,steadying breath and warily approached the body.
"No.Elga has not returned from the camp of the Norman who won her favors with atoss of the dice and I have kept the children away." Godwin shook hishead. "Suicide is a mortal sin. I did not know what to do. Shall I fetch apriest? There are plenty of them wandering about."
"Donot fetch a priest until we have Hilde cleaned and readied for burial."
"Nowthat I think, a priest will not attend one who died by her own hand."
“Onewill attend to Hilde for we arenotgoing to let anyone know that shekilled herself," Eada said as she grabbed a blanket from a pile in the farcorner of the tent.
"Butshe cannot be buried in consecrated ground."
"TodayI think only Normans who are killed in battle will rest in consecrated groundand probably not all of them. Most of the men who die today will be hastilyburied or left to rot upon the battlefield. I do not think a priest willtrouble himself to ask too many questions about one poor Saxon captive."Eada spread the blanket out on a clean part of the dirt floor then moved backto Hilde's side.
Godwinhelped Eada lift Hilde off the blood-soaked dirt and lay her face-down upon theclean blanket. "She should not be tended to by a priest, Eada," hesaid, "for she died by her own hand, unshriven."
"Ido not see this as a suicide but as a murder."
"Ireally do not think that Sir Guy cut her wrists."
"Hemight as well have." Eada looked at Godwin. "It was because of whatSir Guy did to her that poor Hilde did this. She probably thought that her soulwas already so steeped in sin that committing this grave one made nodifference."
"Butif we lie to a priest, do we not risk our own souls?" asked May.
