faithfully. You are a free woman, Arwydd, and so you are free to make your own decisions. I offer you a place in my household if you will come with me. It will not be easy at first. You betrayed the Ashlin folk. They will not allow you to forget it, for they have long memories, especially my Ida. But I will intercede for you with them if you truly give me your loyalty. In time they will forgive you, for they are good folk at heart.'
Arwydd fell to her knees and, lifting the hem of Elf’s skirt, kissed it fervently. 'Lady, oh, lady! Your kindness has saved me! Gladly will I come. I will bear whatever I must, for in truth I did grievous wrong to the Ashlin folk. I will beg their forgiveness upon my knees! I swear upon the Blessed Virgin’s name to serve you honorably and faithfully all of my days!'
Elf raised the girl up. 'Then it is settled,' she said calmly. 'Come, for we are due in the hall. The lord of Gwynfr is about to free me, and I am eager to begin our journey home.'
They descended into the hall, where the morning meal was already in progress. Seating herself at the high board, Elf ate heartily of the hard-boiled eggs, cheese, butter, and bread she was served. She quenched her thirst with a watered wine. She saw Sim at a trestle below and, smiling, nodded to him. Then Merin ap Owen stood, and spoke.
'I am an honorable man, as you can all attest. The lord of Ashlin manor has delivered the ransom I requested for the return of his wife. The fact the ransom was stolen from me is not his fault. For me to continue to hold the lady Eleanore as my captive would be a dishonorable act. I will therefore release her into the custody of her man-at-arms, Sim of Ashlin. They will leave Gwynfr in peace. And when they have gone, we will depart to seek out the vicious vixen who has stolen my gold. Go, and prepare yourselves to leave. I know not how long we will be away, for I cannot even say in which direction the bitch has gone, but we will run her to the ground, lads. And after…' He laughed darkly.
The sound sent a chill up Elf’s spine. The man she knew had disappeared once again, even as the man they all feared returned in his place. She arose and, without another word, walked down from the high board to where Sim now stood anxiously waiting for her. 'Let us go home, Sim,' she said, and he nodded wordlessly.
Without a backward glance they departed the hall and walked out into the courtyard, where Arwydd stood holding the horses.
'She is a good girl, Sim,' Elf said firmly. 'Besides, I will not leave her here. She will serve me loyally. You will see.'
Sim thought his mistress mad, but he would not question her, for it was not his place to do so. Besides, the lord would send the deceitful witch packing as soon as he laid eyes on her. He helped the two women to mount their beasts, then climbed atop his own horse, and they were off. They rode slowly down the hill away from Gwynfr and onto the narrow track that led them toward the verge, and England.
The day was unusually beautiful, the sky above them a clear blue, the sun shining brightly, the air warm with a definite feeling of spring. It was the first time in days that Elf could remember the sun shining. She considered it a wonderful omen, although perhaps not for Isleen de Warenne, who was to be hunted down. Where had she gone? Elf wondered. But no matter. If Merin ap Owen did not catch her and kill her, she would still have to face God’s judgment for her wickedness. She put Isleen from her mind.
'Merin ap Owen thought my lord might be near, Sim. Do you think it is so?' Elf asked her man.
'Aye, lady, he is. I am surprised we have not come upon him yet,' Sim answered her. 'I thought surely he would be at Gwynfr’s gates by dawn, but, perhaps finding me gone off the verge yesterday, he divined my purpose and is waiting a reasonable time for my return.'
They rode on for a short time, and then over a hill they saw a party of riders coming. Elf strained to see, and then with a whoop she kicked her mare into a gallop, riding straight for the oncoming men. Sim immediately recognized his Ashlin companions and smiled. His lord moved out in front, pressing his own mount forward at a faster pace until the two parties came face-to-face, and the mingling horses skidded to a stop.
Ranulf de Glandeville was off his horse in a flash. Reaching up, he pulled his wife from her mare and wrapped her in a hard embrace. 'I love you,' he whispered fiercely into her ear.
Breathless, Elf finally pulled away from the kiss, looking up at him, her face filled with pure joy. 'Why did you not tell me this before,' she demanded. 'I ached to hear you say those words, for I love you so damned desperately, I thought I would die from it!'
'Aye, I love you, you big oaf! How could I not love a man who treated me with such delicacy and gentleness?'
'Then, why did you not say it?'
'Because I thought a sophisticated man of the world such as yourself would scorn such words. I feared you would feel obligated by them, and despise me for a romantic fool. I had gained your respect and your trust. I did not want to lose them by softly prattling of love,' Elf told him. 'Why did you hesitate to say these words to me until now?'
'I did not think you could love a man who took you from the life you loved and had always thought you would live,' he admitted. 'But, Eleanore, I think I loved you from the first moment I saw you in the hall at Ashlin, so kind and so thoughtful, seeking so desperately to save your brother’s life. I never thought to have a real home or a sweet woman to care for me and bear my children. Then there was the king giving me this incredible gift of you. I feared if I told you of what was in my heart, you would not believe me. I feared you would disdain me, think me a fool who but attempted to gull you so I might more easily have your body. I feared the loss of your friendship, petite.' His knuckles lightly grazed her cheek, brushing away the single crystal tear upon it. 'Do not cry, petite. We are together once more. I shall never allow you to be in danger again. You will continue on to Ashlin while I go to Gwynfr to destroy it. Merin ap Owen shall not pillage the countryside this year, or in any other year to come.'
'Nay,' Elf told him, her hand on his arm.
'Have I cause for jealousy, then?'
'Walk with me, my lord, and allow me to explain,' Elf said. 'I am not certain whether I should be flattered by your jealousy, or offended that you would think me unfaithful to you, Ranulf. Come.' She took his hand, and they moved off across the fields while she spoke earnestly to him, explaining that it had been Isleen de Warenne who had been the instigator of the plot to kidnap her. 'Make no mistake, my lord, Merin ap Owen is deserving of his reputation, yet he treated me with courtesy, and aye, even kindness while I was in his charge. He protected me from Isleen’s attempts to harm me. In his own way he is an honorable man. Isleen, disguised as Merin ap Owen’s courier, yesterday took the ransom from Sim and has disappeared. That is why I was not returned to you then. Sim is very brave, Ranulf. As it grew near sunset, he rode on to Gwynfr. It was then the deception was discovered. Yet this morning Merin ap Owen freed me to return to you. He is not all wicked,
'You believe him?'
'Aye, I do,' Elf said quietly. 'You must trust me in this, Ranulf. I was Merin ap Owen’s captive for four months. There is a side to him he does not show to others, except perhaps his longtime servant, Gwyll, who looked after me. There is goodness in him, Ranulf. I slept in an alcove off his bedchamber all those months because he feared that Isleen would hurt me given the chance. His apartments, however, were not open to anyone but Gwyll. I was safe there. Not once did this man attempt to accost me in a lewd manner. I could have been back at St. Frideswide's, for that matter, I was so safe in his charge.'
Her words troubled him, but Ranulf knew his wife would not lie to him. It simply was not in Eleanore’s nature to lie. 'What did you do during the day?' he asked her, curious.
'Gwyll and I found an old loom and a tapestry frame. We put them by
