Belaset's Daughter - By Feona J Hamilton Page 0,109

expression of polite interest.

"You know my lord?" said Jervis.

"How should I? A wise woman, as you are kind enough to call me, and living here in this . .?" She waved her hand around the hut, but it was clear that she was ill-at-ease with the question. Jervis probed no more on that subject, but made a mental note to pursue the matter back in his quarters. Truly, there was some mystery here. Green Gerda was not a simple wise woman, born of peasant stock, and left to her own devices, he was sure. Her BOSON BOOKS

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bearing and her gown dilapidated though that now was showed breeding, whether she was aware of it or not. He turned and made ready to leave.

"Well, Green Gerda," he said, lightly. "Now that I have solved one mystery, I must pursue the other. There is a man my lord wishes to find and I have determined that I will be the one to find him. Good day to you!"

"Stay, Master FitzHugh!" said Gerda, putting out her hand to touch his arm. "Tell me whom you seek and if I see him on my wanderings, I will get word to you. It is clear that the fair young man is not he, but I may have seen him already many times men pass me without realising I am there."

Jervis hesitated.

"I ask so that I may help you, not that I may warn him," said Gerda.

"You have seen my thoughts again, madam," said Jervis. "And for some reason, I find myself trusting you, for all your mystery. Very well. I seek a small, dark man, with a sour expression on his face. If you see him, do not speak to him. How will you get a message to me?"

Gerda shook her head.

"I cannot tell you that but, never fear, you will be told if I, or any other dweller in these woods, should see this man."

"Another mystery!" said Jervis. "I would not discomfit you by insisting you tell me."

"Indeed, indeed," said Gerda, with sadness in her voice. "Perhaps one day I can tell you the answer to the mysteries but not yet."

Jervis nodded and left the hut. As he rounded the tree to return to where he had left his horse, he turned for a final look at her. She had vanished completely.

* * *

He did not catch up with the rest of the participants in that day’s sport until he reached the Abbey gates in Battle, where Henry had based himself, his Court and all their men these past weeks. The Abbey was in uproar, from the kitchens to the Abbot’s lodgings, as it tried to cope with the return of men and their spoils from the hunt. None of this disturbance would improve the already poor relations between the King’s men and the monks who normally lived so peacefully within its buildings. The crude behaviour of the soldiers, the looting and vandalising of the Abbey and the town, and the despoiling of any female within their range would not be forgiven for a long time.

Jervis rode in through the Abbey gatehouse as quietly as he could, dismounted, and led his horse to its stall himself. A stableboy came and took the reins from his hands, and set about removing them and everything else from the horse. He rubbed it down with some BOSON BOOKS

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wisps of straw, as Jervis stood watching, then settled it with a good bundle of fresh hay and some water. He glanced once at Jervis, who said nothing, then the boy shrugged and walked off, leaving him standing there in front of the stall, lost in thought.

He had lost the trail of the mysterious dark man for now, he thought. Best to report what he had seen, then prepare himself for the feasting which always followed a hunt.

The idea of eating made him suddenly ravenous, and he swung round and walked away from the stables, and towards the guest house where de Warenne and the closest members of his retinue had been quartered.

He pushed open the door into the building, suddenly feeling a great weariness descend on him. The day’s events were beginning to take their toll, and the effort of walking felt almost too much. He could feel his knees trembling and had to pause and steady himself with a hand on the wall, as the waves of fatigue washed over him, dizzyingly. His vision blurred suddenly, with dark shapes swirling before his eyes, and he felt his