“You need not worry the king has anything planned for you to embarrass you. He merely wants to reward excellence in service to the crown.”
Fin’s demeanor, which was usually light and jovial, had taken a turn toward somber. His gaze was cast downward and his normal smile disappeared.
“The king has always had our full support. He need not fear that changing. Has something happened?”
“Not yet,” he said.
William sat up straighter. “Has there been some kind of threat?”
“I promised the king I would let him tell you himself,” Fin said, now wringing his hands.
“Then you shall obey your king and understand I will say nothing to him unless he says so to me.”
“Thank you, my lord. I know I can depend on you, and the king knows that as well.”
With that he left the chamber, leaving William with more questions than answers. It was no secret the king had enemies near and far. All the previous kings had, and he supposed that would be true anywhere. But in all the years he’d known Fin, he’d never seen the man without a smile or a kind word. Normally so full of life, he was now almost afraid. This threat must have serious grounds.
He would find out soon enough once he met with the king on the morrow. For now, he sat back in the tub and enjoyed the heat. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes, thinking of all the known enemies of the king and all the ways they could harm him in the middle of a festival.
William woke with a start a time later as the water had cooled significantly. He stepped out of the tub and dried himself off enough and then slipped in between the cool sheets. The heavy quilts on the bed pulled him back to slumber within seconds. His last thought was of the king.
Chapter Two
Agnes couldn’t helpbut grin as she poked her head out of the carriage window to feast her eyes on Stirling Castle in the distance. To say her journey with her uncle had been strange was an understatement. Instead of telling her all about the gentry, he spent more time giving her a history lesson about the previous king and how the current one had betrayed him over some such thing.
Most of the time she tuned him out when he’d go on and on about loyalty. Och, she was more interested in the ladies’ fashions and who was expected to court whom. Now with the castle in sight, a small knot formed in her stomach as she did not feel prepared at all for what was before her. She was well aware of the basics, but not knowing how many other ladies would attend the queen or from whence they hailed was disconcerting.
“Remember what I told you,” her uncle said riding up alongside the carriage.
He’d told her many things, most of which she considered useless. “Aye, Uncle, I remember.” No, she didn’t.
“Agnes, ’tis imperative you remember everything I said. Do you vow it?”
She couldn’t tell if he really expected her to recall all the things he’d said over the last several days while she was trying to enjoy her journey and grow some excitement for the adventure before her.
“Say it with me one time.”
Say what?
“Loyalty is everything,” he said.
She recalled then. Something he’d said last eve at the inn where they stayed near Inverness.Your actions will always reveal where your loyalties lie. Loyalty is everything.It was some kind of motto for these men he kept mentioning. The knot in her stomach grew and not because of any concern she had for meeting new people or what fashion they might prefer.
“Say it.” His words drew her back to the present. His eyes narrowed and his mouth drew into a thin line. He glared at her hard in a way no one in her life ever had. Hair prickled at her nape.
She blinked at him a couple times then whispered, “Loyalty is everything.”
The words were dirty in her mouth, yet she did not have a reason for why they felt wrong. There was something about the way his mouth curled when she said them that made her want to turn the carriage around and return to Grinigoe Castle.
But she would not let her uncle take away her first memories of Stirling Castle and her introduction to the king and queen.
As the carriage drew to a halt, a footman quickly opened her door and offered his hand to assist.
The moment her foot touched ground, another man stepped up to offer her his arm. “Lady Agnes,” he said. “My name is Fin and I am the chamberlain here at Stirling Castle.” His smile was warm and kind. “I trust your journey was uneventful.”
“I will escort Lady Agnes to her chamber,” her uncle interjected and held out his arm in an expectant way.
“That is very kind, sir, but the king himself insisted I see to Lady Agnes’s every comfort as she prepares to meet Her Majesty.”
