The Deadly Favour (The Woldsheart Chronicles Book 1) by Ruth Danes

Book excerpt

I smiled at the priest who had visited my guardian with view to arranging a second marriage for me. I tried to look agreeable and unconcerned whilst my heart beat furiously and my spirit was revolted by what was unnatural to me.

“Of course. I agree with you, father. I have been widowed for over two years, and whilst I still miss Horace, I know I need to do my duty and marry again. I only ask that I get to know any prospective bridegroom well.”

I need to bide my time.

The priest and my guardian nodded. The latter now spoke of his other ward.

“Hawise should enter a convent. There is no point in attempting to arrange another marriage for her. I have discussed this with her, and she said she would consider it. I think the Convent of the New Moon would be best. It is not too near. She needs a fresh start.”

I need to swap places with her. This is my one chance of happiness. True, her behaviour has not always been impeccable, and she should leave local society, for a while, at least, but she has not technically done anything wrong. No. I am sure that a marriage could be arranged for her. Just not with anyone too judgmental or from the neighbourhood.

“Well, if both you ladies consent,” the priest concluded, “I can start making enquiries on your behalves. I know the abbess of the Convent of the New Moon well and am often called to see her on church business. Indeed, I am due to meet her on Thursday. I can discuss the possibility of Lady Hawise entering her convent then, although I cannot imagine there will be any problems. The convent has barely half the nuns and novices it had ten years ago.”

“Ah, the effects of war,” my guardian sighed. He pulled himself out of his sad reverie and continued the conversation. “Regarding Bessy, I will speak with my wife about a possible match with her sister’s son. When you see the abbess, can you ask about her nephew and her godson? Are they still free or have they made second marriages?”

He turned to me.

“Bessy, you know we would never force you to do anything you truly did not like, but I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that you cannot remain a widow forever. We all know it is your duty to marry again and to try for children once more. Our house has been depleted by the war. We need to carry on the bloodline and raise the next generation. Assuming all three of the young men we have mentioned are still unattached, you may choose whichever one you please. Indeed, if you know of a fourth single nobleman whom you like, let me or your aunt know, and we will approach his family regarding a match.”

I nodded.

It’s a single noblewoman that I’m interested in. One who entered the Convent of the New Moon three weeks ago. Hawise must swap places with me. I must be with Jennet. We are soulmates. Surely, there must be a man somewhere, someone of noble blood and either of our house or an ally of ours, who could overlook her self-indulgent behaviour? She did stay a virgin until she was married; she just made up for lost time after her wedding to Adam and in her widowhood to a greater degree than most. Besides, she is pretty, sparklingly bright, if a little lazy, and she has the biggest heart in the world.

The priest made his farewells, and I went to find Hawise, trying to look calm and unruffled. I knew my dearest friend well. She would do anything for me, just as I would do anything for her, but my plan needed to be in her interests as much as mine.

It is in her best interests to marry rather than to become a nun. Hawise loves men like I love women, and she has a greater carnal appetite than me, a greater appetite than any other woman I know. She is also fonder of luxury and less devout than me. A convent, with Jennet, would suit me very well, but she would do better to marry again.

I saw my friend sitting alone under a tree by the lake. She had been sewing, but her hands were now empty as she contemplated the idyllic view before her. She smiled upon seeing me.

I smiled back and made my way to her, noting her looks. She was decidedly pretty; short, with a curvy figure, a round face with features that harmonised well together and clear, fair skin. As I got nearer, I could also see her bright blue eyes, shining blonde hair and pink cheeks.

Even when she was fat, people still called her good-looking. She should easily be able to attract a second husband. Besides, she is witty and fun to be around. She is only three months older than me and should easily conceive. She is not two months past her twenty-third birthday and comes from fertile stock. It was the war and bad luck that took her siblings and parents, not poor health. Just like the war took my ma and pa and Horace. Just like bad luck took Adam.

I swallowed. I had to trust in a better world to come and make the best of the one in which I lived for the present. “What is it, Bessy? You look nervous.”

I sat down beside my friend and told her what had passed and what I thought we should do about it.

“Father Gudarro has just spoken with Uncle Piers. Our guardians’ suggestions that I marry again and you become a nun are turning into reality. Father Gudarro will make enquiries about possible matches for me and a place at the New Moon for you. Uncle Piers will also speak with Aunt Illustra about the possibility of me marrying Aunt Ankarette’s youngest boy.”

My friend blanched.

“Oh Gods! Can’t we put this off for a bit longer?”

“I don’t think so. I am as unsuited to marrying a man as you are to celibacy. My heart is tied to Jennet, who is already at the New Moon. What I suggest we do is swap places. I go to the convent, and you marry.”

Hawise’s pale face turned decidedly rosy.

“A good plan, but…well, I’ve rather messed things up there, haven’t I? I have slept with too many men and been too brazen about it. I’ve acquired a reputation for being overly light-hearted and fickle. I know how I’m seen. Fun to flirt with, good to lie with and agreeable to spend time with but not the right sort of woman to settle down with. No, it’s alright, Bessy. Goddess knows I’ve enjoyed myself, but Goddess knows I will soon be paying for it. No sensible man will propose to me, and few people take me seriously.”

We sat in silence for a while, listening to the distant sound of birdsong and the nearer sounds of the breeze in the trees and our thoughts.

At length Hawise spoke again.

“I have cousins who live in the Kingdom of the Franks. I could ask them if they know any suitable men for me. My Frankish is not good, we both know how little attention I gave to my lessons, but it’s worth a try. They might speak our language whilst I try to become fluent in Frankish.”

“You could travel by boat, we’re not five miles from Port Ness. We would be parted, however.”

A lump rose in my throat.

She looked at me with sad eyes.

“Ah, my friend, we will be parted whatever we do, all in the name of duty. Duty we have both been avoiding.

I could not deny it. Duty had brought us to our guardians over a dozen years ago when we both lost our parents. Their duty to their dead friends had turned into a love for us, a love that we returned. Duty had then compelled us to marry, me at sixteen and her at seventeen. We both tried to love our husbands out of duty, and we had both failed but for different reasons. I could not feel the lust for Horace that he felt for me. I could only put myself through the motions with a fixed smile on my face and be glad that his job as a warrior often kept us apart.

I was also glad that I had never conceived because I was not in the least bit maternal, shocking though this was to admit. Either I was barren, he was infertile or we had not spent sufficient time in each other’s company. I was sorry when he died in battle, an arrow pierced his lung, and guilty that I had not been the wife he needed and deserved. Yet I could not help also feeling a sense of relief, relief that I would never have to open my legs to him again, accept his slimy kisses again or try to look enthusiastic whilst my heart was sinking again. This had only added to my guilt.

Hawise had fared better with Adam. They had certainly been in lust, but I doubted they were ever a couple in love. They enjoyed each other’s company in a shallow sort of way, glad to see each other providing it was not for too long and they did not have to talk of anything deep and meaningful, but the bond between them was not strong. Both he and she openly took lovers and were very civil about it. Due to his position as a diplomat, he was away almost as often as Horace was. When he died of food poisoning at a faraway castle, almost a year before I became a widow, she had grieved wholeheartedly, but she knew she had not lost the love of her life. She was able to partially distract herself with food, wine, dancing and men. Indeed, she had grieved more deeply for the baby she miscarried; she managed to conceive once during her interrupted marriage.

My grief had been less painful and more quietly expressed. I met Jennet which helped enormously. She was my opposite in both her looks and personality, but we got on extremely well together. She was now eighteen years of age, albino and tiny with hair as smooth and straight as Hawise’s. Her features were a little too big for her face, but in my eyes she was perfection. I was of medium size and had been praised as classically beautiful on more than one occasion. My skin was as clear as Hawise’s but the colour of a roasted coffee bean, and my black hair grew in spirals and in every direction but down.

Our personalities were the opposite of the other. I was steady, she was impulsive. I applied myself, she saw no point in flogging a dead horse. She loved to talk, and I could listen to her for hours. We had to be together. We had both agreed to enter the same convent in order to do so before my guardians asked me if I was ready to marry again.

Hawise looked at me with her customary optimism.

“Don’t look so glum, we’ll think of a nobleman who might take a chance on me and find a way to get you to your Jennet. Something will come up. And we will stay in touch. Come what may, we will never lose sight of each other.”

To my surprise, she was correct. An unexpected event did occur that very night, and when we learned of it the next morning, it seemed to be the answer to our prayers.