Queen Of Knights (6 page)

It was Miles.  When she
r
eturned her gaze to the first knight, she saw the deep
b
or
d
er of his surcoat.  Slowly, her eyes traced the faded coat of arms emblazoned within its center.

The king! Even as she recognized Richard’s trappings, her grandfather stood and began to shout orders to the servants
,
but she could not will her feet to move.  Finally, after a long
,
agonizing moment, Gwendolyn forced her muscles to obey and she started to retreat up the stairs.

At that instant, Miles turned and looked at the staircase.

His eyes bored into hers, and all thoughts of fleeing vanished.  He smiled, showing strong white teeth, and Gwendolyn could do nothing but return the smile.

Drawing in a deep breath, Gwendolyn descended the remaining steps and walked toward the three men.  When she was within proper distance of the king, she dropped to one
.
knee and bowed her head low.  Richard extended his hand, and Gwendolyn took it
. 
She lifted his rough
-
edged hand to her lips and kissed the large ring on his forefinger
.

“Rise
,
Lady Gwendolyn,” Richard commanded in a deep voice.  Gwendolyn rose gracefully and gazed at her monarch.

Rather than trust her voice
,
she looked from the king to Mi
l
es.  Their eyes locked, and the message that passed between them was c
l
early seen by Richard.  He smiled as he turned
t
o Sir Hughes.

“Your granddaughter is even
l
ovelier than I had been led to believe.  I congratulate you
.
”

“Thank you, my lord,” Hughes said in his gravelly voice
.

Gwendo
l
yn realized her grandfather was staring at her with a strange expression.  When her mind began to work again, she thought about what Richard had just said, and understood the look on her grandfather’s face.  She a
l
most laughed, but stopped herself.  The Duke of Devonshire was thinking of a match with the king!

“Your Majesty
...
Sir Mi
l
es, if you wil
l
excuse me, I will check on our servants’ progress,” she said as she looked pointedly at her grandfather.

“Yes
,
” Hughes agreed.  He guided Richard, Miles, and several other knights through the hall and into the great hall that was now being readied to receive them.

Gwendolyn watched the men leave.  Her heart was racing, but she did not let her emotions show
. 
When the kn
i
ghts passed from sight, she turned, her mind galvanizing her body to action.  She went into the kitchen
,
issuing order after order
. 
The smoke-filled room was a beehive of activity as the cooks tried valiantly to make a banquet fit for a king without any notice in advance.  Everyone worked madly, and the on
l
y person who seemed relaxed was the tall, blonde woman who continually told everyone what to do.

When enough food was ready, Gwendolyn breathed a sigh of relief
. 
The servants began to bring out tray after tray, and even at this late hour, the feast was begun.

Two hours later, Gwendolyn entered the hall
. 
For the rest of her life, the memory of what she saw would live within her mind
.

The stone walls were alive with glowing tapers.  Servants streamed in and out
,
carrying cask after cask of mead and ale.  Seated at the center of the high table was King Richard, looking every bit the majestic warrior of whom so many tales were told.  To his right, in the position of honor
,
was her grandfather, and to Richard
’
s left sat Miles.  Along the tables set beneath theirs, was a mixture of Hughes’s and Richard’s knights, ten of them to each table.  Behind the king stood his squire, and behind each of the knights stood theirs.  Gwendolyn noticed that only one of the twin squires stood behind Miles.  As was fitting, the squires were dressed in the colors of their lords.

Gwendolyn realized that the most powerful man in the world graced her grandfather’s table.  She knew it would be a night that would be spoken of in Kildrake for years to come.

Stepping completely into the room, Gwendolyn walked toward the table
. 
Conversation froze when she neared the men.  Finally, when she was within speaking distance of the king, she stopped.

“I pray everything was satisfactory, your Majesty,” she said.

“Would that all my subjects feted me in this manner,” he replied.

“Thank you.” Gwendolyn bowed low before the king.

“Chambers have been prepared for you and your knights, Sire, and pallets have been laid for your squires.  I pray you enjoy our home.  Good-night, your Majesty.”

Rising, Gwendolyn nodded to Miles, turned, and started gracefully from the room, her heart pounding with each step.  She sensed something important would happen tonight, and hoped it would happen before she left the room.

“Lady Gwendolyn
,
” Richard called out.  Turning, Gwendolyn stared at her king.  “Please join us for a moment.”

“Your Majesty.” Gwendolyn blushed as she gazed at her grandfather and waited.  Although the king had commanded her, it was still her grandfather’s castle, and he, not Richard, was lord of the manor.  Gwendolyn knew that Richard
’
s request should be obeyed by both her and Sir Hughes, but the request itself was fil
l
ed with impropriety.  This was not a public feast where men and women sat together.  She stood still for a moment, glancing at her grandfather.

Hughes, because of his expansive mood, nodded and smiled at Gwendolyn.  She returned to the table and sat directly across from
t
he king.

After she was seated, Richard exchanged a quick look with Miles.  He lifted his hand to tug at his beard before continuing.  “I have been king only a short time, and in that time, I have fought more battles than I had thought possible.  Soon I will have to return to the Holy Land and fulfi
l
l my commitment to the pope.  Before that, I want to unite my kingdom.”

Gwendolyn listened to Richard while she gazed at the knights sitting at the other tables.  They all seemed entranced by their warrior-king and listened to his every word.

“It is with this in mind that I have ridden here, to Kildrake.”

“Sire, you wish me to renew my pledge to you?” Hughes asked.  It was not unheard of for a king to seek out individual members of the nobility and ask for a renewal of their oaths.

“Nay, Hughes, we have no doubt of your loyalty to us.  I am here for another purpose.  I am here on behalf of Sir Miles.”

“Sire!” Miles cut in, his voice hard as he looked at the king.  Suddenly the smoky air of the hall grew tight with tension.  Not even the sound of the squires’ feet on the rush-covered floor could be heard as the boys themselves stood frozen.  The knights stared at Miles and the king, and Gwendolyn’s breath once again froze in her chest.

“Very well, Sir Miles Delong, speak your piece!” Richard ordered with a sardonic smile.

An uneasy silence lingered across the boards when Miles gazed directly at the old duke.  He stared steadily at him for several seconds before glancing at Gwendolyn.  When his eyes swept across her features, his face eased the harsh planes.

“Sir Hughes,” Miles said in a clear voice for all to hear, “I have come to ask you for your granddaughter’s hand in marriage.  “

Hughes stared at Miles silently for several seconds before looking at the king.  Finally, Sir Hughes, Duke of Devonshire, understood the reason for this unexpected visit.  He shook his head sadly.  “I wish it could be.  The uniting of KiIdrake and Radstock would be of great benefit to England, but Gwendolyn is betrothed to Morgan of Guildswood.  The contracts have been signed.  I am powerless to stop it.”

“We appreciate the lawfulness of what you say,” Richard
interrupted as he lifted a cup and drank, “but I am your king, and I can order the betrothal ended.”

“Your Majesty, I am an old man.  I have fought alongside your father and have defended my country and my honor equally.  I have never broken an oath, and will not willingly do so now!” Hughes declared, his eyes challenging the new king boldly.

Gwendolyn felt a swelling of pride within her as she listened to her grandfather stand against Richard
. 
Although she wanted to be free of Morgan, she did not want this at the expense of her grandfather’s honor.

“Hughes, I am your king and Morgan of Guildswood’s also.  You are both honor
-
bound to accept what I order
. 
I shall issue a royal decree, compelling this marriage for the best interest of England
. 
Such an edict will absolve you from both your pledge and from any wrongdoing
.
”

Gwendolyn’s heart beat faster as she listened to the words
. 
Miles had kept his promise! He had succeeded in gaining her hand.  But uneasiness clouded her happiness.  There would be trouble.  Morgan would not give in readily.  She knew what would happen in the years to come.  She gazed at her grandfather’s pained expression and knew she was right.  He, too, saw the problems to be faced
.

“Your Majesty, you cannot do that,” Gwendolyn said.  Several gasps were heard, and Gwendolyn saw the look of fury her grandfather directed at her
. 
But she knew she must speak
. 
Her eyes remained fixed on the king’s, and, ignoring the warning within them, she continued.

“To issue this decree would be wrong, and would hurt you in your efforts to rule England peacefully and totally.”

Richard’s face ran a gamut of expressions until finally there was only a tolerant smile on his lips
. 
“Continue,” he said with a disdainful wave of his hand.

“Sire,
my
grandfather’s word as a knight is sacred, and thus it should not be put aside by royal decree.  However, because of the code of chivalry, the very foundation that makes such oaths sacred, it would be possible to have this betrothal set aside.” Ignoring the open
-
mouthed stares of the knights, she bravely continued.  “It is possible by using the very code that has made England so strong.”

“And what would you suggest, my lady?” Richard asked indulgently
.

“A simple thing.  If Sir Miles is of the ilk that he thinks himself, issue your command, my lord, but allow Sir Morgan the right to challenge.  A joust would be fitting
,
” Gwendolyn declared
. 
She breathed deeply while she watched Richard
,
hoping that all she had heard of his
l
ove of fighting and ceremony was true
. 
She had no doubts of Miles’s ability, on
l
y of her own in manipulating a king who did not like women
.

“So it is blood and death you seek,” Richard commented as he favored her with a penetrating look.

Gwendolyn blushed again, not from embarrassment, but from anger.  When ‘she spoke, her vo
i
ce betrayed no emotions
. 
“No, my lord, even should it be so, I would not take a knight from you
,
nor would I have the death of either man upon my shoulders.  A joust, with blunted lances and dull-edged swords only, would suffice to uphold both men’s knightly honor.
”

The
t
able erup
t
ed with laughter and cheers at her words, and Gwendolyn allowed herself to smile as her eyes locked with Miles’s
. 
She read a new respect in them, and her heartbeat slowed to normal
.

“
By damn!” Richard cried,
l
ooking from M
i
les to Hughes
.

“Do you agree?” he asked.  Both men nodded
. 
“Then it shall be as the Lady Gwendolyn has said.  By damn!” he repeated
,
giving Gwendolyn a long, appraising look of respect
.

A few m
i
nutes later Gwendolyn rose and bid everyone good-night, purposely avoiding a too long look into Miles’s face.  When she bowed before Richard again, she smiled.  “Thank you, Sire,” she whispered.

Richard cupped her chin with his calloused fingers and made her look him in the eye
. 
“You have much faith in his ability.”