Fire and Ice

Chapter 14



Erik did not have far to go to find Thorvald who was standing in the woods leaning over Sam and showing him how to draw the bow and nock an arrow. The young lad had been given a bow which was easy to draw and was aiming at a particular tree already marked out by Thorvald. Erik waited for Sam to let the arrow fly before interrupting them.

“Thorvald, we need to talk about Giselle,” he began when Sam ran to recover his arrow which had narrowly missed the tree and fallen in the leaves.

“Oh, not again,” Thorvald groaned pulling a face of despair. “Is it impossible to find any peace? I’ve already spoken with Father Matthew earlier and he’s gone to Goxhill to speak with the nuns. What else do you want me to do?”

“She’s deliberately pushed Juliana into the fire and she has burned her arm quite badly. This can’t continue. Ulfric would be beside himself if he knew; which he will do soon as we’re expecting him back any day.”

Thorvald bit his lip and quickly made up his mind. “Come on, Sam. We need to go back to the Hall. I’ve important things to do. We’ll carry on with your lessons another day.”

Sam’s face was a picture of disappointment but he did not argue, just gave a deep sigh and went to gather his things. They led the horse back to the Hall where Thorvald listened to Juliana’s story.

“I think the time has come when we must let you in on our plan.”

“What plan?” she asked.

“Does she really need to know?” Erik asked, worried that Juliana might refuse to go along with it.

“Yes,” was the short reply from Thorvald.

They huddled together and Juliana heard about the plan that had been conceived months ago.

“And you say Ulfric has full knowledge of this?” she asked wide-eyed when all had been revealed.

“Yes, but he wanted to give her one more chance, but she’s had a lot more than that and I for one think enough is enough,” answered Erik and Thorvald nodded.

“How are you going to get her to Goxhill without her kicking up a fuss?” Juliana asked.

“Have you any of that sleeping powder that Sara gave you?” Erik asked.

“Yes, I think so. There should be some in my mother’s room.”

“That’s the answer then. I’ll put some in her wine tonight and the next thing she’ll see is the inside of the nunnery. First though, I need to speak to Father Matthew to see if all is well and that the nuns will accept her.”

“I’ll go and see if he’s back yet,” Erik said, and went to walk round to the church. As he was passing the dogs he stopped and turned, “Where’s Kyle, Juliana?”

Juliana stood up quickly and looked around the room, “He must be with my mother. I’ll go and check.” Her slippered feet flew up the stairs and just as quickly flew down them again. “He’s not in there. He must be outside, maybe in the stables.”

Thorvald returned from the stables shaking his head, “No, he’s not there either.”

“Who’s not where?” Giselle asked as she breezed back in the Hall.

“Kyle, we can’t find him,” Erik answered, “Have you seen him?”

“What would I want with that mongrel?” she asked innocently.

“Giselle, if you’ve seen the dog please tell us now,” Thorvald warned.

“I’ve told you I haven’t seen it, and if it’s run away good riddance I say.”

Tears gathered in Juliana’s eyes and Erik felt her pain. She had always been fond of animals and had kept many pets since she was a child. “I have to go and speak to Father Matthew. I’ll go and look for him after that,” he said, trying to comfort her.

“Thank you,” she sniffed.

Father Matthew confirmed that the nuns were ready to accept Giselle at any hour and was not surprised when Erik told him of their plans for that evening. Having seen the damage she had done to Juliana’s arm he had told the nuns that Giselle suffered from some kind of madness but they were convinced that their prayers would help and calm her spirit.

An hour later, Erik had searched every corner of the town looking for Kyle and entered the hall forlornly hoping to find the dog had returned of his own volition. He was disappointed because as soon as he saw Juliana’s face he knew her pet had not come back.

Thorvald forced a laugh, “He’s probably found a girlfriend somewhere in the town. He’s a young dog and is likely exploring looking for excitement. He’ll be on the doorstep tomorrow you’ll see, Juliana, and you’ll be able to scold him as only you can.”

Juliana smiled but was not convinced. She also knew that their plan to get Giselle out of the way must go ahead if there was to be any peace at all in the Hall.

Darkness had fallen and wisps of fog played around the rooftops as the occupants of the Hall ate their evening meal. Meat, peas and vegetables with lots of gravy was consumed by everyone except Juliana, who watched as the others mopped up their plates with thick wedges of bread. She nibbled at her bread but consumed very little, wondering where Kyle could have disappeared to and resolved to go looking for him when everyone else was busy with Giselle. She had given the sleeping herbs to Erik who had already asked Sam to put aside a flagon of mead and then proceeded to crumble the herbs into it. He had been coerced into paying Giselle a lot more attention than he normally would and had decided that flattery would be his weapon of choice and she fell for his ploy totally. Sam brought the mead to the table and put it by Erik’s right arm and he filled his goblet before offering some to Giselle.

“You’re looking extremely beautiful tonight, Giselle, is that a new gown?” he said with all the charm he could muster.

“Why, thank you, Erik. Er... Yes, the gown is fairly new.”

Erik had to bite his tongue because he had seen Hilde wearing that very gown on special occasions and here was this upstart of a Norman she-dog parading herself around in stolen clothes.

“It becomes you very well. Here let me pour you some more mead.” The evening continued and he drank from his horn of ale while his cup of mead stayed untouched, but Giselle had a liking for the sweet drink and consumed more and more. “Have you done your hair differently, Giselle?” he asked as he noticed her eyes starting to drop.

“Hair - hair did you say?” she mumbled in reply, her tongue seeming to trip over every word.

“Yes, your hair is really beautiful. So black and...” Erik saw her eyes had closed and she began to sway until she slid sideways against his shoulder.

“Thank heavens!” he said with feeling, “I thought she was going to last all night. Quick, Thorvald. Get her cloak and bring the wagon round.”

Thorvald jumped up and grabbed Giselle’s cloak and threw it towards Erik then disappeared swiftly out of the door. Juliana helped Erik wrap Giselle in the cloak and he lifted her thin body easily, depositing her with some rough glee into the back of the wagon where Thorvald was waiting for them outside.

“Get into the wagon and we’ll go and get Father Matthew. He can explain to the nuns why she’s asleep.”

Within minutes and not caring which servants were watching they drove away from the Hall and Juliana heaved a huge sigh. At last she was in control of her home again but still she had a feeling of foreboding, especially as Kyle had still not returned. She went to get her thickest cloak from the chest in her chamber and also pulled out a thin-linked chain which fitted around her waist and hips. It had been a present from her father but the main item was the small bejewelled dagger which dangled from the chain. She was aware that she would need some kind of protection going out late at night and this would be perfect. The servants had mostly retired for the night and no one noticed her leaving the Hall.



***



Sara’s home was small but comfortable and on a chilly night like this one she was glad to get back to the fireside. The hut was in darkness but the driftwood she burned was still glowing with a low light. The hearth was made up of a circle of stones in the middle of the room with a pit dug into the floor which held the wood. Any smoke would filter out of the thatched roof and she rubbed her hands in front of the embers before adding a few more handfuls of wood which she had stored in one corner. The new kindling which she had just collected would dry out in a few days and be consumed by the fire within the week. The slight wind had picked up and sent the fog rolling over the Humber and tumbling it over the banks onto the land like ghostly waves and she shivered hugging herself, pleased that she would not have to go out again that night. The metal tripod hung over the fire and she filled the pot with water ready to cook her meal. Using two sticks she expertly lifted rounded cobbles which had been sitting in the fire all day and dropped them into the water causing the heat from the stones to boil the water quicker. She was just about to throw in some vegetables when she heard a howling outside. Ignoring the sound for a while she eventually became distracted by it, wondering if it could be wolves. She ate her meal of vegetables and barley then put aside her dishes to wash later. Her curiosity got the better of her and she peeked out of her door to see a cloaked figure running down the track towards the water’s edge.

Sara donned her own cloak and pulled the hood over her head, determined to find out what was going on, but knew she would have to be careful. Thieves and vagabonds roamed the shores at night and she had no wish to fall into their hands. She followed in the direction the cloaked figure had taken, but keeping to her own track which she knew better than most. This took her to a ditch in the marshy ground where she could watch unseen as figures moved to and fro and the howling became louder. Sounds of a struggle came to her and her heart skipped a beat when a voice she knew very well pierced the mists.

“Sir Richard, I beg of you - don’t hurt my dog. He was a gift from the King himself and he would not take it lightly if you killed him.” Juliana’s voice was unmistakable.

“I won’t kill him, sweet lady, but the water might,” he laughed unpleasantly. “Now get into the boat and I’ll give him a fighting chance.”

“Where are you taking me?” Juliana tried to sound angry but her voice wobbled with fear.

“Over the water to a new land, sweetness, where you will at last be mine.”

“But... Ulfric! He’ll come after us and kill you.”

“No, he has his hands full at the moment and won’t give you another thought. My sister told me to use this dog as a trap for you and she was right.”

“Giselle! No, she’s...” but Juliana’s next words remained unspoken.

“Get into the boat or I’ll throw you in!” Sir Richard sounded as if he was in no mood for prevarication and Sara watched as he scooped Juliana into his arms and lowered her into the small narrow boat. “The tide is on its way out and your dog will stay here. If the water comes back in before anyone finds him then you have only yourself to blame.”

He pulled the boat out into the estuary and started rowing. The Humber was muddy with treacherous undercurrents and Sara had never seen Juliana so frightened in her life. She clung onto the sides of the boat, her eyes wild with unshed tears.

Sara watched the boat disappear from view and went to collect Kyle who was whining for his mistress. The mud sank up to her ankles as she pulled the leather strap free from the wooden stake to which he had been tethered.

“Come on, dog. You can come with me to the Hall. Thorvald and Erik will bring your mistress back.

When she arrived at the Hall there was no one there to report to and any servants still around had no idea where the men were. She fell asleep by the fire waiting for them. Thorvald and Erik returned in the early hours of the morning and went straight to their chambers, Sara going unnoticed in her chair.