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

of real fear. It was not that he expected the horse to throw itself backward. For all the folklore he'd heard of outlaw stallions that deliberately sought to crush their riders, he'd never encountered such a rogue killer, did not know a man who had. What he feared now was not so much the stallion's intentions as the muddy bailey; the ground had not had time to dry, was still slippery and rainsoaked. He slackened the reins, leaned forward, but the stallion was already scrambling, starting to slide. For several terrifying seconds the animal struggled to keep its balance, and then it was going over backward and Llewelyn kicked his feet free of the stirrups, flung himself sideways as the stallion fell.The ground was soft, but Llewelyn landed at an awkward angle, his e8 twisting under him. He lay stunned for several moments, conscious ut dazed, aware at first only of pain. There was mud in his mouth; he^Pat it out, started to sit up. But the bailey began to spin, and he lay. a°k, closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Joanna was kneel-n§ beside him, cradling his head as he'd done for Rhys. He recognized"er faces now, Davydd and Ednyved and Gruffydd, faces white and

578taut, the faces of men looking into an open coffin, and he swallowed said, "How is the horse?"They stared at him and then burst into unsteady laughter. Joanna laughed, too, or perhaps she sobbed; he could not tell which, for she was leaning forward, had begun to cover his mud-streaked face with kisses. Llewelyn braced himself on his elbow, started to sit up again Now that his head had cleared, he was concerned that he might have broken a bone, and it was with some trepidation that he ran his hand over his throbbing left leg. Once he concluded that he'd done no more than pull a muscle, he closed his eyes again, silently giving thanks to the Virgin for protecting him on this, the holiest of her days. As he turned his head, he saw that the stallion had regained its feet. It, too, seemed to have been accorded a measure of divine mercy, for it had also escaped serious injury. It was standing quietly, sides heaving, head down, lookingfor the moment at leastlike the most docile of palfreys.Llewelyn looked from the horse to his eldest son. "Somewhat skittish, Gruffydd?" He said it with deliberate wryness, as if it were a jest, and a number of people laughed. But Gruffydd did not. Nor did Davydd."Before God, Papa, I did not know he was so wild. And I did try to discourage you from riding him ..."Llewelyn heard Davydd draw a sharp, hissing breath. But he kept his eyes uponGruffydd, saw the color mount in the younger man's face. At last he said abruptly, "Help me up, Davydd." It was painful to bear weight upon his left leg, but not enough for alarm. He glanced down at himself and grimaced, for his tunic was soaked with sweat and caked with mud. "See to the stallion for me, Gruffydd. Right now I need a long, hot bath. And whilst I soak, I shall try to decide who best deserves to own such a remarkable beast. Pembroke's a possibility, but I'm more inclined to offer it to Hubert de Burgh."As he expected, that got a laugh, gave him the opportunity to make an unhurried, graceful exit. But Joanna was not deceived; she knew him too well, knew he was playing to their audience, that only when they were alone would she find out the full extent of his injuries.ENTERING their bedchamber, Joanna discovered that Llewelyn had not bothered to summon his squires; he had simply flung himself dovvfl upon the bed. She moved toward him, stopping several feet away, have to tell you," she said slowly."That was one of the most foolhardy things you've ever done."Llewelyn's mouth twitched. "No, breila. That was the most to hardy."

V579He held out his hand and Joanna caught it between her own. "Let jj,e summon a doctor, Llewelyn. I'll not rest easy until I hear him say you are well and truly unhurt.""If you must. But not now, not yet." He allowed Joanna to help him strip off his runic and his muddy boots; then he lay back against the pillows, his eyes closing again. She stroked his hair, pressed her lips to the pulse in his throat. He was drenched in perspiration; she could hear the rapid pounding of his heart, and her own took up a quicker cadence, put he did not seem to be in great discomfort; she read exhaustion in his face more than pain."You look so ... remote, so far away. What are you thinking of?""A day twenty years past, the day I gave Gruffydd that white palfrey." His eyes remained closed, but he seemed to sigh. "What a twisted road we've traveled since then ...""Llewelyn ... do you believe Gruffydd? That he truly did not know the stallion was so wild?""He knew." Llewelyn turned his head on the pillow, met her eyes. "He wanted to see me take a fall," he said softly. "To see me fail."Joanna's suspicions were uglier than his. But she said nothing, for she knew now that he'd not walked away unscathed, after all. Knowing that he'd insist upon eating in the great hall, she said, "I'll go to the kitchens, instruct the cooks to delay dinner. Try to rest, beloved; I'll be back."Ednyved was waiting for her on the outer stairway of the Great Tower. "How does he, in truth?""He has no hurts you can see. Where is Gruffydd?"USUALLY, grooms had to resort to a lip twitch in order to handle the white stallion. But this time it had submitted meekly, too shaken by its fall to summon up a spirit of defiance.Gruffydd was still shaken, too. He lingered in the stable long after we grooms had gone, slumping down on a large bale of hay. It was9uiet, and