‘Which could be sometime never.’ Baldwin sounded disgusted. ‘What do I do all day?’
‘You sound like your brother.’
‘For the first time in our lives then.’
‘Well, as lord you have a duty to attend the funeral rites for your village healer. You can be in the church with the lady, and everyone else present, because I will be at your side and my man Walkelin will be upon the other.’
‘Do not tell me my duty.’
‘I certainly should not need to do so. I expect the priest will wait until young Hild and her oldmother are finished with the birth, since they are closest in kinship to the dead, but the grave was dug yesterday afternoon and is ready, as I heard.’
‘You do not mind me going to the kitchen and finding something to break my fast, then?’
‘Not at all. By all means go.’ Bradecote gave the permission airily, knowing it would irritate the more, and smiled as the man stalked away.
‘You enjoyed that, my lord, don’t say as you didn’t,’ remarked Walkelin, entirely forgetting his place, and grinning. Bradecote turned to look at him, coolly, and Walkelin gulped. ‘Not that I, er, I mean …’
The undersheriff’s lips twitched, and then he gave in.
‘You are quite right, Walkelin, and I want you to be outside the kitchen and follow him about for a while. I do not see him attacking Fulk the Steward in the barn in front of the whole village, and I will see if the lady has risen, or indeed is in a condition to leave her bed this day. I think if she is able, she would like to attend church. He needs to know he is watched, however.’
‘Yes, my lord.’
Walkelin dutifully went to stand before the kitchen, and Bradecote went back into the hall and knocked upon the solar door. A maidservant came and opened it, rather to his relief.
‘My lord?’ she bobbed in obeisance.
‘Will you tell your lady that the Mother Winflaed is likely to be buried this morning, if she feels she could rise and attend.’
‘Yes, my lord. The lady is awake but …’ the maid’s voice dropped to a whisper, ‘I think she is afeard of what everyone will say.’
‘What they will say is that the lord Baldwin gets ideas in his head and will not let them go, whether right or wrong, and has the Devil’s temper.’
‘True, my lord. Would you have me say that too?’
‘Yes.’ He turned away, since he was not sure the maid would close the door in his face, and went out of both hall and bailey. As he did so he saw the girl Hild emerge from Gytha’s cott, and her oldmother followed and put an arm about her sagging shoulders. His heart sank. Had it gone badly? He went towards them and then saw Hild smile, wearily.
‘Mornin’, my lord. I was wrong. This babe came later than the sunrise after all. Mind you it came not only slow but earsling, and them as comes out wrong way round will spend their lives looking behind ’em, so said Mother Winflaed,’ at which Hild crossed herself.
‘And the mother, she is recovering?’
‘Aye, my lord. Most women does from the moment the babe is laid to the breast. They forgets the half of what passed. Mind you, Gytha is eased of more than the birthing pangs, for her son has a fine scalp of red hair.’
Bradecote smiled. Edmund need not go through life wondering, or worse, knowing, his son was not his own.
‘You look worn,’ he noted. ‘When Mother Winflaed has been laid in the earth, you get some sleep for Lench cannot have you ill.’
‘For I am Hild the Healer,’ beamed the girl with a little more confidence than a day before. There would be failures and setbacks but her reputation would be founded upon this first, and not easy, birthing.
‘For you are indeed Hild the Healer.’ Whilst there was no need for it, none at all, Bradecote reached into his scrip, took out a silver penny and presented it to her. Coin was not something used much unless folk went into Evesham, and he did not suppose she had held many pennies of her own, if any.
‘My lord?’
‘That is a mark of respect from me, the lord Undersheriff, for your aid when I called upon you here, and because this was your first challenge and you did well.’
The girl blushed pink and turned the penny over in her hand.
‘My lord, I would not spend this. I would have it strung so as I can wear it about my neck. That ways I can touch it and remember what you said. Thank you, my lord.’ She stifled a yawn, and her oldmother told her to go and change her shift, which was soiled, and the girl nodded, bobbed her obeisance to Bradecote and went to do as bidden. The old woman smiled after her.
‘She did well, my lord, and I am right proud of her. O’ course others have experience with women in their hours of trial, but my sister was the best, and if things did not run smoothly, ah, then she came into her own. My girl kept her head when the babe showed wrong way about, and it does her credit. What you said, and did also, will stay with her and help her, for there will be days when folk see the girl’s years and not her skills.’ She sighed. ‘Winflaed would be proud too. She said as she would see Hild take her place and be even better. Pity it is she did not, and the day came so swift.’
‘You too must need rest. It was a long night.’
‘Once Winflaed has hers, I will do as Hild and lay down my head then, my lord. You know, wyrd is strange. When we were girls, little ones, it was me as thought to follow as the Healer, but first time I went with my
