A Dishonorable Knight - By Morrison, Michelle Page 0,78

the beach.

"I think he just uses hunting as a way to make himself look strong and powerful in front of his nobles. You'd think his success at achieving the throne would have made him confident enough in his power, but he seems to be constantly trying to prove himself."

"Maybe that's because he knows he doesn't belong there." Gareth said.

"His claim is a strong as any others. I think he's just nervous by nature. He's always fiddling with his dagger or his cuffs. Always smoothing his hair. It's too bad his wife died. She always had a calming influence on him." Elena bent to pick up a shell. "If it hadn't been for Anne, I don't think Richard would have ever succeeded in his bid for the throne."

"Perhaps that would have been for the best." Gareth felt as if he were walking on the rocky beach barefooted, so carefully was he trying to tread.

"Why? One man on the throne is as good as another. There is really very little difference between kings."

"How can you say that?" Gareth burst out.

Elena laughed at the outraged look on his face. "Come now, Gareth. How is Richard really any different from all of the previous kings?"

"Well, he ignores the rest of England while he lavishes attention and money on the northern part of the country where his cronies live."

"And that is worse than Henry VI's lunacy or his father's outrageous justifications for laying siege on France?"

Gareth paused, all thought of his original purpose forgotten for the moment. "Elena, how old are you?"

"What? That is not a very chivalrous question to ask, Sir Knight."

"Twenty?" he guessed.

"I think not," Elena answered indignantly. "I am barely nineteen."

"All in all, that's not very old."

"Why thank you," Elena said drolly.

"No, what I mean is, that is awfully young to be so cynical about the world and it's leaders."

In the pale moonlight, Gareth could see Elena frown, the creases in her forehead the only flaw in her otherwise perfect face. "I don't think of myself as cynical," she responded slowly.

"'One man on the throne or another, there really is no difference between them' isn't cynical?"

"I'm not a cynic. I'm a pragmatist. I merely like to look at situations realistically so I can benefit the most from them. Now before you give me your holier-than-thou lecture, let me remind you that women do not carry a tremendous amount of clout in this world. The most we can hope for out of life is to marry a husband of means who will keep us from starving and provide shelter and clothing. If he does not beat us, we are considered most fortunate. Can you honestly disagree with me?"

"Yes. In Wales--" Gareth began.

"I don't live in Wales, I live in England. Now answer me. Is there a better life for women in England than what I just mentioned?"

Gareth frowned and shook his head. "No, I suppose not."

"Very well. Now, given those circumstances, I don't think you can accuse me of being cynical merely because I try to better my life as I can. King Richard has provided me with many luxuries for very little work in return. My mother had already given birth to two stillborn children and was locked away in my father's manor; completely cut off from the social life she loved by the time she was my age. Can you blame me for wanting something different and doing what I can to get it?"

Gareth felt deflated. "Of course not." Although everything she had said was true, he was disappointed. Disappointed because when they returned to England they would see no more of each other. They would not meet to exchange information, they would not await Henry Tudor's landing and word of the location of the battle, they would not be able to walk along the beaches of southern England. He would not be able to admire the creamy perfection of her skin by moonlight. Once they returned to Richard's court, she would return to her life as a lady-in-waiting and he would be nothing more than a spy trying to sneak information about his sovereign to the enemy. There was no way he could expect her to help him and Henry Tudor, not when it would mean she would lose her position in court, not when it would mean she would lose everything she had worked for, even if he, Gareth, could not understand the appeal of formal feasts and overdressed courtiers. Once Henry took the throne, everyone in Richard's court