Page 49 of Promises Made at Midnight
“We cannot change our decisions, unfortunately, Bridgette. We are here now, and we will do our duty by paying homage to our king,” Ulrick said, before lifting her chin and kissing her lips.
“The king? I am to meet the king?” Shock gripped her innards right down to the very tips of her medieval boots. “I can’t meet the king, Ulrick!”
“Aye, you can and you will. ’Twill be expected of you, my lady. Be certain to remember to watch your manner of speech whilst you are here. There are those who would like nothing more than to cut us to the quick if ’twill make them appear far more favorable in the eyes of His Majesty.”
“I think I’m going to be sick,” Bridgette groaned. “You mentioned nothing about us meeting with the king, only that Dristan had been summoned.”
“Since I am to take over my lands and you are my Countess, we are required to submit to the king’s rule. Hopefully, the amount of coinage I have will be sufficient that I will not need to be a part of whatever plans he has for the army he has amassed outside of his gates.”
“I’m never going to be able to pull this off with a court full of people, Ulrick.” She cast leery eyes around at the people wandering through the courtyard.
He took both her cheeks in the palms of his hands. Their warmth seeped into her soul giving her the comfort she stood in need of. “Aye, you will, wife. I have seen for myself your courage and strength during our time together. You will not falter in your resolve to firmly place yourself in this time and place.”
His words were like an order for her to get her act together but also a balm to the part of her that was scared to death. She could do this. She really didn’t have much of a choice. She gave him a brief nod, words having left her, and he took her acceptance of her fate in this life.
Offering her his arm, she grasped at the life support as if he were the anchor she needed to keep her grounded. He placed his other hand over her own while she moved her thumb back and forth across fabric beneath her fingertips. Each step brought her closer to the stairs leading up into the keep and whatever new challenge she was about to face.
The wooden portal opened before them as if by magic. Dristan’s entourage continued to file into the building and, as Bridgette entered the keep, a servant gave them a brief nod. The Great Hall came into view, its timbered ceiling high above their heads. Walls were covered in intricate tapestries and Bridgette couldn’t even begin to imagine how long it must have taken someone to create such masterpieces. A huge fireplace was inlaid into one wall and Bridgette was certain she would have been able to stand upright in the hearth, it was that big. She gave a brief sigh of relief but was still a little surprised the room wasn’t filled with people. She looked up at Ulrick and he nodded to the far end of the hall where another room containing a throne sat empty. Since the king wasn’t in attendance, she assumed other courtiers were seeing to their own amusements until they were called upon.
Ulrick squeezed her hand. “We will be shown to a room where we can rest after our journey. I am certain we will be called to attend the king with the evening meal.”
As they moved forward toward a nearby turret, Dristan raised his hand to halt their progress. “Nay. We shall use the other stairs in another wing,” he replied to the servant leading them to their rooms.
“As you wish, my lord,” the man answered before moving down another passageway while Dristan’s men began to follow.
Ulrick and Bridgette looked upon each other as they brought up the rear of their group. When they moved near the turret stairs, a slight rumbling beneath their feet halted them from continuing. Bridgette gazed into the turret and she swore she saw modern day lights along with a soft twinkling glow. She grasped Ulrick’s arm in a tighter grip even as he pulled her closer into his side.
“Ulrick,” Dristan called out. “You would be wise to keep yourself and your lady away from that turret in particular if you understand my meaning.”
“Aye, Lord Dristan,” Ulrick replied before he pulled Bridgette away from the stairwell.
Curiosity got the better of her when she turned back to look at the place where the modern world waited for her return. A sucking sound diminished the lit turret and once more a torch was placed in a sconce at the entrance.
“We need to get the hell out of here, Ulrick.” He lengthened his stride as though he now understood her need to leave Bamburgh, while Bridgette raced to keep up with her taller husband.
“Aye,” he murmured. “As soon as ’tis permissible, we shall leave and never step foot here again,” he replied, while raising her hand to his lips.
Bridgette could only pray that their time here at Bamburgh would be brief. She had no intention of allowingTimeto take her from the man who meant everything to her!
CHAPTER34
Ulrick stood near the steps leading up to the area where the king now resided, Bridgette fidgeting at his side. He linked his fingertips through hers, hoping to try and calm his wife. When he glanced down upon her, she appeared as though she was about to flee from the room, and he could hardly blame her. Dristan and his men held the attention of all those who now filled Bamburgh’s Great Hall. ’Twas not often the Devil’s Dragon was summoned to court, and jealousy leaked from these people like water from a spout.
Ulrick listened intently to the reason the king required Dristan and the small contingent of men he had brought with him to Bamburgh. Henry the Young King, the eldest son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, had been waging a campaign against his father in France. Ulrick knew a bit of the young man’s history. At the age of fifteen summers, Henry the Young King had been crowned during his father’s reign. However, he had apparently grown frustrated by his father’s refusal to grant him meaningful self-ruling power. Ulrick had not been aware that father and son had fallen out with one another in the year of our Lord’s Grace 1173, around the same time as the siege of Berwyck. However, they reconciled after the capture of his mother and the failure of the rebellion.
Henry the Young King then spent many years in his enthusiasm for attending and competing in tournaments until last year when he fell out with William Marshal, the leader of his tournamentmesnée. Now, he had been waging another campaign against his father and brother Richard in Limousin, France, and had been pillaging local monasteries to raise coinage to pay his mercenaries. Henry II wanted reinforcements from his noblemen.
Ulrick watched when Dristan bowed before their king before striding backwards a respectable distance. He then made his way to stand on the other side of Ulrick’s wife, so that Bridgette stood between the two towering men. He heard her give a heavy sigh, as if the added reinforcement of the Devil’s Dragon next to her gave her the extra bit of comfort she needed. Ulrick took her hand and placed it at his elbow, knowing what would come shortly.
“I will be heading to France with most of the men,” Dristan began whilst peering straight ahead. “Luckily, I left Bertram and Killian at Berwyck with enough guards to see to its protection, but I am not happy that the king would not listen to my petition for me to return home.”
“’Tis hardly surprising, Dristan,” Ulrick exclaimed. “The king wants his best men on this campaign, and you are one of his fiercest warriors.”
“Aye. My reputation still stands in place no matter the years since I have had to defend it. I suppose there is an advantage to having made a name for myself in my younger years.”
Bridgette chuckled. “You are hardly old, Lord Dristan. However, I must admit that seeing all your personal guardsmen together is quite the site to behold. Did you all realize how much you have in common with your similar long black hair and your garments that look like they’ve been given to you by the Devil himself after a trip to hell?”
The two men laughed together and a looked passed between them before Dristan crossed his arms over his chest. “’Twas not intentional but, as knights began to follow me from one tourney to another, it became a requirement in order to show our unison, I suppose. I think those days are long gone now, with Sir Godfrey joining our ranks.”
