It didn’t make Kress feel any better at all. In fact, it only made him feel worse. The way Alexander said it made it seem so… final.
“Where is her priest?” he asked.
Alexander gestured out in the direction of the street, puzzled at the change of subject. “In the Summerlin carriage,” he said. “Why?”
Kress looked at him, pointedly. “Do you know what he is doing?”
Alexander lifted his shoulders. “I am not certain,” he said. “He has his writing implements in the carriage with him and a bible, I think. Why?”
“I know what he is doing,” Achilles said. “He is making prayer cards for Lady Cadelyn. That is what Susanna told me.”
Kress almost laughed. “That is not entirely true,” he said. “Do you recall the card Lady Cadelyn handed to me in Lynn, the one with the lewd poem on it?”
The three of them nodded. “Aye,” Alexander said.
“The priest is making those cards. And he is not a priest, either. He is a simple cleric and he makes them for profit.”
Three sets of eyes looked at him in surprise. “What?” Alexander said, aghast. “That… thatclericproduces those shocking poems?”
Kress nodded. “Lady Cadelyn writes them and the cleric produces the cards,” he said, watching even more shock fill his friends. He did laugh, then. “Do not look so surprised. She is very industrious. She sells the cards for two pence each and she splits that with the cleric. She is bringing him with her to The Paladin so he can continue producing those cards and she can continue making money. She is a very astute businesswoman.”
The three knights were looking at each other in astonishment. “How long have you known?” Achilles demanded.
Kress was grinning as he looked to him. “Almost from the start,” he said. “I caught her sneaking into Lynn to speak to the cleric about coming with her to The Paladin and she was forced to confess to me.”
“And youletthe cleric come along?”
Kress shrugged. “Why not?’ he said. “It is not as if they are hurting anyone. It’s not subversive or rebellious, even if it is a little naughty.”
Achilles was beside himself. “Don’t tell me that you actually approve of this?”
Achilles was the most pious one out of the group so, naturally, his outrage was more than the others. He looked at the man.
“Achilles, it is not as if she is plotting to murder someone,” he said. “She is not drinking to excess or beating her servants. She likes to write titillating poetry and if it makes her happy, so be it. She could have worse vices.”
Achilles frowned but he didn’t argue with him. “When you put it like that, I suppose there is nothing more I can say,” he said. “But why did you tell us this?”
Kress’ smile faded. “Because she will want to keep the cleric with her when she goes to The Paladin and I want you to know why,” he said. “Do not let them deny her the man she calls her personal priest. She is going to be miserable enough married to a man she does not know. Do not let them take that bit of comfort away from her. Please.”
It sounded very sad the way he said it. He was looking out for her, wanting her to be happy even if he couldn’t be with her. That told every man at that table that he was beyond smitten with the woman. If he was thinking of her first, and putting her happiness first, then it had to be something more than a whim.
There was deeper emotion involved.
Love.
“I shall do my best,” Alexander said. Then, he looked to Bric. “Go and knock on the lady’s door. Tell her… tell her that her betrothed has arrived and we shall send for her when we are ready.”
Bric stood up and headed up the stairs to the floor above. As he walked away, Alexander signaled Jude, standing over by the kitchens, for some drink. As the innkeeper’s daughter went about preparing refreshment for her patrons, whom she had come to know a little, Alexander turned to the entry door which, so far, had not moved.
“And now,” he muttered. “We wait.”
Not surprisingly, it wasn’t a long one.
As the three knights sat in silence, simply looking at each other and knowing what was to come, the door to the inn lurched open. Blinding white light from outside spilled into the darkened common room as figures began to enter inside, silhouetted by the light behind them.
Kress, Alexander, and Achilles looked up and they could see black forms making their way into the dimness of the chamber. Kress was on his feet first, followed by Alexander and Achilles in short succession.
The moment had arrived.
