A Dishonorable Knight - By Morrison, Michelle Page 0,138
shown her, Catherine, undeniable partiality of late. Catherine had rambled on a great deal about the questions that were arising concerning Elena's good name after having spent so much time alone with a man. She had also made it quite clear that she felt she was infinitely more suited to being the earl's wife than was Elena. Elena had long ago learned the value of keeping her mouth shut on certain topics and she knew that should she say anything regarding her reluctance to wed the earl--especially to Catherine--the words would quickly find their way into Richard's ear.
Elena would have liked nothing better than to see Catherine wed to the repugnant man instead of herself, but considering Richard's mood of late, she knew that she must be very careful about how she broached the subject of her betrothal lest he grow enraged and wed her to Brackley immediately out of spite.
Her hands shaky at the thought of the earl, Elena stabbed her thumb with her needle as she took a stitch.
"Damn!" she exclaimed, dropping the thread and squeezing the offended digit. A bright red drop of blood welled out of the prick and she moved instinctively to put her thumb in her mouth. She paused, hand in midair as she remembered her mother telling her that blood from a seamstress's hand rubbed into a seam brought good luck to the wearer of the garment. Elena found a bright red flower on the tapestry and rubbed her thumb on it. The cloth would not be worn, but perhaps if hung in her room, would bring her good luck. At this point, she reflected, she needed all the good luck she could get.
A knock at the door was quickly followed by a page who brought word that the new Countess of Salisbury was in residence and King Richard charged his ladies-in-waiting to attend her on a horseback ride about the castle grounds.
Elena left her needlework and the privacy of the large sewing room to quickly change her clothes and join the small group of women gathered in the great hall. Amongst the women were Richard and another well-dressed man Elena assumed was the Earl of Salisbury. Presently they were joined by a regal looking woman of perhaps thirty who was closely attended by a smug looking Catherine. Elena wondered again when Catherine had grown so cocky but with a mental shrug of her shoulders, attributed it to life in the court. Thank my stars I have never been so worried about my position in Richard's court, she thought, with only a touch of irony.
Richard presented the small group of ladies to the Countess and Elena suppressed an instinctual feeling of danger when Richard merely mentioned her name to the countess and moved on to the next lady. Every other time Elena had attended his noble guests, Richard had made a special emphasis when introducing her. He had told this Duchess or that Lord that Elena was his prized attendant, or that as they were his favorite vassal, so must they have his favorite lady attend them. As a result, Elena had been showered with gifts and had been privy to many conversations she would have otherwise been excluded from had Richard not made a point to recognize her value and importance. That he was now ranking her with the group of ladies who were only trusted to prepare trays of edibles and help arrange skirts was unnerving.
As the ladies were helped onto their horses and began riding around the bailey, Elena ignored Catherine's inane chatter to the countess. She instead mulled over the loss of her status as the king's favorite. To her surprise, she found it did not bother her, but she did worry at Richard's reasons for it. Had he merely grown weary of her or were there greater reasons for his recent coldness towards her. Elena was not oblivious to the fact that people disappeared from court, never to be seen again. She was also aware that if Richard thought she had gained any sympathies to Henry Tudor during her stay in Wales, if he had somehow found out that she was in the very house where Tudor plans were being laid, her life would be very short indeed. All her protestations of innocence, all her vows of loyalty would mean nothing, for Richard dealt quickly and harshly with those suspected of betraying him from his highest advisor to the lowest serf.