Here Be Dragons - 1 Sharon Penman (paper ebook reader .TXT) 📖

Will. I know you did what you thought you had to do."There was an awkward pause, and then Ela stepped forward, kissed Joanna on the cheek. Will wanted to do likewise, but felt too discomfited. He patted his niece on the shoulder, then made haste to lead his wife from the nave.

Joanna moved on into the choir, toward her father's tomb. Llewelyn followed more slowly. The irony did not escape him that he of all men should find himself cast as John's defender, but he did not have to strive for conviction;for once, he thought John truly deserved the benefit of the doubt. "Breila, Ido not believe Will. I'm sure your Aunt Ela is a good, pious woman, but Icannot see her as a siren. John was no fool, would not risk so much for so little. From what you've told me, his women were invariably young and fair to look upon, and Will's Ela is no Eve.""You need not seek to persuade me, Llewelyn. I know it's not true. I saw it onEla's face." Joanna's smile was sad, tremulous, but still a smile °f sorts."You're right; Ela is no Eve. But she is the mother of eight children. If she could salvage her family's future with a lie, I daresay she thought that a small price to pay. And how can I blame her? For loving her children? If my father had not earned himself such a vile reputation, men would not have been so quick to suspect the worst of him, and Will c°uld never have convinced himself that Ela spoke true. What you said />out Will was right; he is a weak man. But he's a decent man, too, and e deserves some peace of mind."She reached up, kissed him softly on the mouth. "Thank you for jPeaking up for me, beloved. Now I want to light a candle for my father. y°u do not mind, I'd rather do it alone."Llewelyn watched as she turned away. If you can forgive Will,

518breila, why can you not forgive yourself? But the question was a silent one.They could not talk about John; that was a terrain too fraught with pitfalls and remembered pain. It troubled him, though, that Joanna seemed unable to talk about her father with anyone at all, even Catrin or Richard. At first he'd thought she only needed time to be able to come to terms with John's death. But he was beginning to realize that her grieving was interwoven with guiltguilt she would not even acknowledgethat the normal healing process was ineffectual. Her grief was still raw, and he did not know how to help her.He glanced down at John's coffin, and his mouth twisted in a bitter smile.John had been no easy foe to defeat, and as a ghost he was even more formidable, defying all attempts at exorcism. In death he was causing as much pain and turmoil as ever he had in his accursed lifetime. Joanna was not his only victim. Gruffydd, too, was one, Gruffydd who could not outrun his memories of English prisons.THE talk in Worcester was all of the coming crusade to capture the Egyptian city of Damietta. Both in England and in France, an impressive roster of wellborn barons had taken the cross, among them Robert Fitz Walter, Saer deQuincy and his eldest son, John's illegitimate son Oliver Fitz Royeven Hugh deLusignan. But the plans of one crusader in particular interested Llewelyn, and he deliberately set about encountering the Earl of Chester alone on the east walkway of the priory cloisters.They greeted each other with the wary regard that men reserve for adversaries worthy of respect. Llewelyn at once came to the point. "I hear you mean to join the crusade. Is that true?"Chester nodded. "I took the cross with King John, received a dispensation until the French were defeated. Now that the realm is at peace, I can fulfill my vow.""Tell me," Llewelyn said with a faint smile, "have you no qualms about leaving your holdings in Cheshire? With you in the Holy Land, men might see your manors and estates as fruit ripe for the picking.'Chester thought Llewelyn's jest a rather dubious one, but he made a polite attempt to reply in kind, saying wryly, "It is good of you to be so concerned on my behalf. Of course, if you truly want to ease my mind/ you can always offer a truce for the length of my absence."As he expected, Llewelyn laughed and shook his head. But then^ said, "Actually, what I had in mind was not a truce, but an alliance.Chester stopped dead in the walkway. "Are you serious?""Very// have"We've been enemies for most of our lives. Yet now, when y°u n

T529Qpportumty to raid into Cheshire with impunity, you are offering to make peace? Why?""I'll not deny that your absence would enable me to seize an advantage But lf would be short-lived You're right, we have been enemies, but by geography, not by choice We each wield a great deal of power If we joined together, how much greater that power might be, great enough to protect our common interests, to give us a formidable say in the King's council ""Yes," Chester said slowly, "it would indeed "Although he was sure he already knew the answer, Llewelyn took care to observe the formalities, asking, "Well7 What do you think7""I think," Chester said, "that we ought to talk "GRUFFYDD was utterly wretched at Worcester The suffocating sensations of confinement had come back to haunt his sleep He awoke in an English bed, craving Senena's warmth, dreading the daylight hours when he must mingle with men he despised, speak their alien tongue, watch as his father humbled himself before John's sonAs he crossed from sun into shadow, he paused, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the loss of light He was not sure what drew him so often to the priory church, but on three different occasions he'd found himself standing before the High Altar, before the