Reckless (Age of Conquest #5) - Tamara Leigh Page 0,138

Nicola and I will visit you and Lady Hawisa in her chamber,” he said.

Chanson smiled. “We have another game to play, children. Come.”

“I play, too!” Zed began scrambling off his father’s lap.

“What of our kisses?” Nicola asked.

He grunted, gripped his father’s beard and pulled his face near, and smacked a kiss on Vitalis’s cheek. Then he turned to his mother and offered puckered lips. Three kisses he gave her—on the nose, the mouth, and the cheek.

“I have more,” he said and held up a hand. “But later.”

Then he was running after Ardith and Chanson, swinging his imaginary sword as he fought imaginary foes up the stairs.

“What of Richard’s dagger?” Nicola asked.

She spoke of the first of those wrought for the young men who completed their training at Wulfen.

“As it was fashioned for him, we shall send it to his sire.”

“After a time,” she suggested.

“After a time.”

“As Hawisa is near to giving my brother another child, I wish we did not have to tell her, Vitalis. She will need all the strength of her heart, and these tidings will take a piece of it—nay two, for she will feel Eberhard’s loss.”

The Lady of Wulfen, more than any, had resisted William’s son, but it was hard to dislike one who liked you—more, who liked your child and was good to him.

“It is not possible to keep it from her, Nicola. She will wish to see Eberhard while he is here, and when she looks upon him, she will know something terrible has happened.”

Nicola raised moist eyes to his. “Why Richard? Of all William’s sons, why his family’s greatest hope?”

Vitalis put an arm around her, and when she set her head beneath his chin, said, “I ask the same.”

“And the answer?”

“I fear there is none—at least, none we can know now. But what I do know and am determined to hold near, are the blessings of this day that are many with you. And God willing”—he set a hand on her belly—“many more to come.”

“I love you, Vitalis.”

“I love you, Nicola.” Then as never before done, he added, “Boursier.”

Dear Reader,

Thank you for spending time with my Saxon warrior, Vitalis, and Lady Nicola. If you enjoyed the fifth Wulfrith origins tale, I would appreciate a review of RECKLESS at your online retailer—just a sentence or two, more if you have time.

What’s next in the AGE OF CONQUEST series? That would be BOUNDLESS, the tale of Sir Theriot D’Argent and Lady Marguerite. Watch for its release early winter 2020/2021.

Author’s Note

Dear Readers,

It is true. The second son of William the Conqueror died sometime between the years 1069 and 1075. The 12th-century chronicler, Orderic Vitalis (might those names sound familiar?) wrote of Prince Richard’s death: “…a youth who had not yet received the belt of knighthood, had gone hunting in the New Forest and whilst he was galloping in pursuit of a wild beast he had been crushed between a strong hazel branch and the pommel of his saddle, and mortally injured.”

Since very little is known about this second son lost to William and his wife, I let my writer’s imagination loose on who he was and what he might have become with proper guidance and training. As for the eldest son being passed over to ascend the throne, it is true as well. The conqueror left the duchy of Normandy to his firstborn son, the kingdom of England to his third son (also named William), and money to his fourth son, Henry. See, you can’t make this stuff up. Well, actually you can, but that work was done for me.

Here’s something else I did not make up. Guess who promptly plopped himself on the throne when William II also lost his life in a hunting accident (by way of a suspiciously stray arrow). You got it—the fourth son, Henry, grandfather of Henry II who dashes in and out of my Age of Faith series. Ah, history! Glorious. Hideous. Fascinating.

Before we part, allow me to address the name Boursier which King William foisted on Vitalis. Those who read The Feud series will recognize it as belonging to my red-headed hero of Baron of Godsmere. So here another truth—this author could not pass on the opportunity to make her mighty Saxon warrior the ancestor of Baron Bayard Boursier. I hope you enjoy yet another branch on the Wulfrith family tree. Worthy!

Excerpt: Boundless

THE WULFRITHS. IT ALL BEGAN WITH A WOMAN

From USA Today Bestselling author Tamara Leigh, the sixth book in a new series set in the 11th century during