No one was near, so Rose began, “Something happened after I left the cathedral this morning. A man—”
“Hey, Gebehart! Ludwig!” Lord Rupert shouted, staring past her. He motioned with his hand and two men started toward them. “Where are the rest?”
Lord Rupert took a couple of steps away from her to converse with the two men. He motioned toward the castle, and the men started off in that direction. He turned back to Rose.
“Now what did you say? Something happened?”
He reached a hand toward her face, but she pulled back, not willing to let him caress her cheek in public. “Can I tell you about this later?”
“Of course.”
With a sinking feeling in her stomach, she followed him toward the door at the center of the castle. She wasn’t sure what she had expected from him—perhaps some concern?
She took a deep breath. She would tell him later, when he wasn’t distracted. After he had heard her story, he would be furious that someone had done such a thing to her. She imagined him overcome with emotion, vowing to keep her safe from this day forward.
The Great Hall was even more ornately decorated than it had been for the last feast. Colorful banners hung from the rafters, and flowers bloomed in every available space. The room buzzed with activity. Servants stood just inside the doorway holding the pitchers and bowls of herb-scented water for the guests to dip their hands into. Lukas, who apparently had been snatched from his stable duties to help with the feast, stood with a towel to dry their hands.
They took their places, Lord Rupert leading her to the seat beside him. As she watched the rest of the guests find their way to their places, she felt small. She almost wished she were in her bed, curled up under the covers. Peter Brunckhorst’s horrible face kept thrusting itself into her thoughts. Maybe no one would talk to her. Or better yet, perhaps Lady Osanna would sit beside her again. Rose might even tell her what happened. Lady Osanna would be properly horrified and perhaps would say something comforting and sympathetic.
Rose’s heart sank when Lady Anne sat beside her, separating her from Lady Osanna, who sat on Anne’s other side. She forced herself to smile and greet her. Lady Anne responded in kind, then turned to Osanna. A glance in another direction showed Duchess Katheryn glowering at her. The duchess immediately looked away.
Serving girls filled their tankards with wine, and two servant boys carried in a large boar on a platter. The animal was complete with head and tusks, its skin decorated with designs painted in red dye. Spicy gravy was served with the meat, along with honeyed rice pudding. Other servants offered sliced chicken and pheasant and an assortment of cooked fruit in thick sauces. Rose accepted the food offered her, even though she wasn’t sure she would be able to eat it. She was still feeling too nervous from her incident with Peter Brunckhorst.
Lord Rupert didn’t seem to notice that she wasn’t eating. He pointed to the boar. “I wonder if this is the beast who ripped into Wilhelm.” He chuckled.
Rose felt weak at the thought. She wanted to rebuke him for the comment. Instead, she looked away.
“Oh, Rose, I was only jesting.” He took a long drink of wine. “A note came from Wilhelm yesterday. He thinks he’s on Moncore’s trail, and he may be away for several more months, until the onset of winter.”
Rose nodded, trying to look properly interested without showing too much concern. But the news made her feel even more like running away to be alone.
At the end of the first course, the servants brought out a subtlety in the shape of a castle. Everyone clapped and shouted their approval of the sculptor’s skill. After it had been paraded around for all the guests to get a close look, Lord Rupert said, “I will get a piece for you.”
“I don’t like marzipan.”
“Oh, come. Eat some. It’s the festive thing to do.”
The servant brought the marzipan castle—an exact replica of Hagenheim Castle, perfectly proportioned, with its five towers—around to their table again. It seemed a shame to destroy something so intricate, but Lord Rupert took the knife and sliced off the biggest tower.
“For you.”
Rose took it from his hand. He looked like Wolfie when he’d killed a rabbit and laid it at her feet. She smiled and took a bite to please him.
“Now you’re ready for my surprise.”
A group of men and women entered the minstrels’ gallery at the opposite end of the hall. There must have been over a dozen people, each holding a musical instrument—a lute, harp, recorder, viol, drum, or hurdy-gurdy. The noisy conversation in the Great Hall ceased.
So this was her surprise—professional musicians performing for the guests. She recognized two of them as the men Lord Rupert had been talking to in the courtyard just before the feast.
He smiled down at her, so obviously proud of his gift to her.
She smiled back at him, genuinely impressed and pleased.