She flinched at his curt tone. Maybe it was too late. Maybe he’d lost interest in her. Maybe it really had only been a game.
“All right.” She tried to hide her disappointment, but she feared she looked just as wounded as she sounded.
“It’s not like that.” He took a step toward her before he stopped himself. “Ah hell.” He muttered another oath, dragging his fingers through his hair. “There is a lot happening right now. I have many things on my mind.”
Things he wasn’t going to talk to her about. “I understand,” she said, even though she didn’t. “You are busy preparing for war.” And women.
“Aye.”
But that wasn’t all of it. She was sure of it. Something was bothering him. What was he keeping from her?
“Edward will be coming north soon. I’ve spoken with Sir Adam, and I think it is time.”
“Time?” she echoed.
“For you to leave the castle.”
Mary froze, her senses struck numb. “You are sending me away?” Her voice sounded as ragged and dry as it felt.
He wouldn’t meet her stricken gaze. “The child,” he said. “You won’t be able to hide the babe much longer. There will be less talk this way.”
She didn’t say anything. Tears were burning at the back of her throat, and she feared they would escape if she opened her mouth. He was right—her attendants had guessed her secret weeks ago—but she knew it was also an excuse.
“This was always the plan, Mary.” She met his gaze. “I’m trying to protect you.”
“When?” she said dully.
“After the Easter celebration. It won’t be for long, and you will be only a few miles away. Sir Adam has given us the use of Huntlywood Castle while he is in France. You can bring your attendants. It has all been arranged.”
But no matter what he said, they both knew he was sending her away.
“How considerate of you both. Did you even contemplate taking my wishes into consideration?”
Why should he? She was his to do with as he pleased.
He didn’t answer, but moved to the door. “I know you don’t understand right now, but it will be for the best.”
The best? Mary no longer knew what that was. But that didn’t mean she didn’t want a chance to decide for herself. “How thoughtful of you to decide that for me.”
If he heard her sarcasm, she didn’t know. She wasn’t looking at him. She thought he hesitated as he passed her on the way to the door, but whatever he felt, it wasn’t enough to stop him.
Not long after he left, Mary donned her cloak and headed for the stables. Her heart might be breaking, lying in pieces and stomped on, but she wasn’t going to allow the first possible lead on her sister slip by.
She’d planned to arrange for a few of Percy’s men to accompany her, but Sir John happened to see her as she was leaving and insisted on escorting her into town himself. Perhaps because she knew how much it would anger her husband, she didn’t try to dissuade him.
She quickly regretted the moment of pique. By his manner, Sir John made it clear that he did not see her marriage as an impediment to his courtship. He implied a number of times—too many for her to be mistaken—that if something were to happen to Kenneth or if things “did not proceed as she expected,” he would be there for her.Andher son. Needless to say, her pregnancy had little to do with the uncomfortable ride.
Then, when they arrived at the church and she learned that neither the monk nor the nun could be found—indeed, the abbess told her they’d had no visitors the past few days other than the Bishop of St. Andrews and that the monk must have been mistaken—her disappointment had been such that she would have welcomed the quiet and peace of her own thoughts.
Darkness had fallen while she was in the church, and as they rode down the hill into town Mary started to pay more attention to their surroundings. She’d never been in town this late at night, and there was an unsavory element that seemed to have replaced the merchants and tradesmen of the day.
Sir John must have sensed her unease. “You have nothing to fear. You are safe with me. No one would dare attack the king’s men.”
Mary wasn’t so sure. Many of the rough-looking men they passed looked as if they would dare quite a lot. But she was somewhat relieved to see a number of women in the crowd as well.
The crowds were getting thicker on the high street. It was almost as if something big were about to happen. A performance, perhaps? Some kind of festivity?
Her suspicions were confirmed when she heard a large cry go up, the roar of a crowd exploding in applause. “What is that?” she asked.
