“You didn’t die.”
“No, I did not. We are at Sedgewick, Eloise?”
“Aye, my father brought you and Lord Severin here. My father was worried when you did not wake up. Lord Severin yelled and screamed, but it did no good. My father merely cuffed him with his sword. But now you are awake. I will call Marjorie.”
“Eloise?”
The child turned slowly, as if she didn’t want to.
“Your father is planning to kill Lord Severin and—”
“Ah, Hastings, you are awake and already trying to talk someone over to your side. Eloise, my sweeting, fetch a cup of milk from the kitchen. It will clean out Hastings’s insides. Your father doesn’t want her to die just yet.”
“Marjorie, how pleasant to see you.”
“Be quiet, Hastings.” Marjorie said nothing more until Eloise was gone from the small bedchamber. “Listen to me. I did not realize what Richard planned. I merely wanted you gone so that I could have Severin. But Richard wants Oxborough and the only way he can gain all that wealth is to wed you.”
Hastings marveled at her. “That makes no sense, Marjorie. You knew that de Luci wanted Oxborough. The only way he could have it was to kill Severin. You would have realized that if you had but used that brain of yours that must lie beneath that beautiful hair.”
Marjorie was silent for a very long time. Finally, she nodded, saying, “Aye, I suppose I did know it, but you see, he promised me, Hastings. He promised he wouldn’t kill Severin. He promised he would give Severin to me and a lot of gold so that we could live in France.”
“But Severin would still be the lord of Oxborough.”
“Not if—”
“De Luci will kill him. I care not about myself. If you can, save Severin. Take him to France. Take him anywhere, just save him.”
Marjorie gave her a twisted smile. “You are weak, Hastings, begging me to save Severin. I doubt he would beg me to save you. Have you not seen that men are greedy creatures? They think only of themselves, only how to make themselves more important. But Severin, I had believed he was different. Aye, he wanted all your father’s possessions, but only because he wanted to save his father’s devastated lands and keep and take care of that miserable mad mother of his.
“But now
I see that he has changed. He has grown accustomed to the power that wedding you brought him. He will become as greedy and selfish as the rest of them.”
“He is not selfish and you know it, Marjorie. Now, why did you not tell de Luci that I carried Severin’s child?”
Marjorie shrugged. “I started to, then changed my mind. It is something he doesn’t know. Perhaps I will find a way to make use of it. I don’t have much of anything, but that is something. I know you will not tell him.”
“Stop this blindness, Marjorie. Just stop it. De Luci intends to kill Severin. If he doesn’t, then he will have no chance of ever gaining anything.”
“Do not be too certain of that,” Marjorie said. “There are other ways.”
Hastings started to demand what she meant when Ibac suddenly appeared in the doorway. “The child fetched me. My lord told me the moment Lady Hastings recovered she was to come to the great hall.” He gave Hastings a worried look. “Can you walk? Shall I carry you?”
Hastings shook her head and slowly, very slowly, rose, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. She was dizzy, but it was passing. She felt weak and wondered how long she had been unconscious. Eloise appeared in the doorway, a goblet in her hand.
Marjorie took the goblet and gave it to Hastings. “It will give you strength. Drink it.”
“More poison, Marjorie?”
Ibac sucked in his breath, staring at the beautiful silver-haired woman with consternation. Like every other man-at-arms, he’d looked at her as he would look at a statue of the Virgin Mary, with reverent awe. What was this about poison? No, surely the Lady Hastings was wrong.
Marjorie said nothing, merely smiled as Hastings drank from the goblet. It was goat’s milk, sweet and strong. She felt strength flowing back into her body. Trist, who had been lying beside her, now jumped onto her shoulder.
Ibac stayed close, his hand up, ready to steady her, but Hastings wasn’t going to collapse. No, she was thinking furiously. Severin had to be all right. She had to think of a way to save him.
The great hall of Sedgewick had blackened beams, greasy, scarred trestle tables, benches that were so filthy she didn’t want to sit on one. The rushes smelled stale. The vague odor of urine hung in the air. A half dozen wolfhounds lay in the matted rushes near the huge fireplace. How long had Richard de Luci been here? More than a week, she guessed, for everything to be so filthy and neglected. Sir Alan would have never allowed that.
In the lord’s chair sat Richard de Luci.