Fire and Ice

Chapter 26



The sun beat down from the deepest blue sky. It was high summer and the fair had arrived in Bertone bringing with it a sense of freedom and relaxation for everyone. The servants and the townspeople gathered together and laughed as the tumblers leapt and fell head-over-heels for their amusement. Stalls were busy selling trinkets and offering games of chance for anyone who had enough coin to join in. The aromas of roasting pig, and game floated through the air tempting people to buy slabs of meat, pies and bread to mop up the gravy. Fires burned and smoke billowed into the clear sky while troubadours played lutes and pipes and children danced around them.

The only person who did not raise a smile was Giselle. She sighed deeply and Sir Baldwin and Luke tried to distract her from her grief but she was having none of it. In the end the older man tried a firmer stand, “Giselle, please try to be happy again. I know you are still grieving for your brother, but what is done is done. He was always a trouble to me in his youth and his behaviour on the battlefield was less than honourable. His abduction of the lady Juliana was also his undoing so please let go of his death and join in the celebrations.

Giselle looked at her father with loathing in her eyes and half-turned away from him, “Yes, that’s right, spoil my memories of my brother. You never loved us, either of us - you were always wrapped up in your protégé, Ulfric.” She almost spat his last name.

Sir Baldwin was taken aback by the force of her venom. “That’s not true, Giselle. I always treated you both as I did Ulfric and Thorvald. They entered the same academy and learned the same skills and you were afforded every comfort.”

“Don’t lie. You always favoured Ulfric and even his pet Norseman more than us and you’re probably glad that my dear Richard is dead. At least he won’t be a problem anymore.”

Sir Baldwin shook his head and moved away, leaving Giselle with Luke who was staring at her as if he had never seen her before.

“What are you looking at me like that for?” she demanded.

“I really don’t know you at all, Giselle, do I?” he asked in wonder.

“Don’t be so stupid,” she snapped in return.

“Giselle, come and sit with me, let’s talk about this. I’m beginning to be afraid for your sanity.”

“My sanity?” she repeated astonished at his lack of understanding. “My heart is broken, Luke, shattered into the smallest pieces. My brother was the only person who loved me.”

Luke put his arm around her and they left the laughter behind them until they came to a small wooded quarry. “That’s not true, Giselle. Now sit down, my love and tell me about Richard.”

“What can I tell you?” she began miserably. “He was my brother and I loved him. He always believed in me and we had the same ideas. We plotted together many times, sometimes for fun but sometimes in earnest, especially to get rid of that interloper, Ulfric.”

“Ulfric has given us a home, a roof over our heads and food to fill our bellies. What has he done that is so terrible?”

“He took away my father’s love. He was a doting father until his precious Ulfric turned up. We were forced to play with him and Thorvald, share our things with them and treat them as if they were part of our family. But they weren’t!”

“Can’t you let go of the past now, Giselle, for me?”

“Let go of my memories, for you? Why? Who do you think you are that I should part with the best part of my life when Richard and I were allies?” Giselle got to her feet confronting him, “You are nothing to me - do you hear? Nothing!”

“But... Giselle, we are to be married. I didn’t give up the church for nothing. I love you.”

“Love? You don’t know the meaning of the word. Go! Go back to Barrow and the monastery if they’ll have you. I have no further use for you.”

Luke got to his feet and reached out for her but she dipped out of the way. As he reached to catch her his foot slipped on the dry earth at the edge of the quarry and he fell backwards grasping at thin air. He cried her name begging for help but she stood unmoving and watched him fall. Over and over he went down the quarry side, banging his head and body on stones and tree roots until he came to rest against a large elm. All was quiet when the dust settled leaving Giselle peering over the edge looking at the broken body of the handsome young man she had duped. Feeling nothing at all she walked away without looking back.



***



Juliana had excused herself to move away from the crowd as Kristen was crying for her feed. Ulfric watched her walk to a more secluded place and as she turned to wave she noticed he was admiring the swish of her skirts as she walked. She smiled to herself wondering where such happiness came from. She had been very wrong to doubt her beloved husband and she knew that he loved her with all his heart as she did him. She settled herself down and began to feed Kristen noticing Giselle wandering back to the fair and wondered where she had been and why Luke was not with her.

The tension between the two women had not eased greatly and Juliana was careful not to leave Kristen alone with Giselle. If anyone was to look after her for a while then Juliana would seek out her mother who was only too glad to be in charge of her granddaughter. Since hearing about her brother’s death Giselle had become morose and bad tempered, taking it out on anyone she came across and bearing in mind her previous conflicts with her, Juliana was always wary. She would be glad when Sir Baldwin took her back to Normandy.

When Juliana had finished nursing Kristen she lay back on the grassy slope and enjoyed the sunshine, cuddling her baby close. The sounds of the fair receded and became echoes in her mind as she dozed peacefully. How long she lay there she had no idea but she suddenly became aware of a shadow blocking out the sun. She opened her eyes and saw Giselle standing next to her holding Kristen in her arms. Juliana shot up onto her feet and made a grab for her daughter but Giselle was too quick for her and pulled the babe roughly to her body.

“Not so confident now are you, bitch?” Giselle’s voice was low and menacing.

“Give me my baby,” Juliana tried to smile but it wobbled on her mouth and never quite succeeded.

“What’s the matter, Saxon? Are you afraid?” Giselle taunted.

“Do I need to be?” Juliana gasped, knowing what the other woman was capable of.

“Let’s go for a walk, just you, me and your brat.”

Juliana walked slowly at the side of Giselle who kept the baby on the opposite side of her body just out of reach. They approached the side of the quarry and Juliana’s heart sank with thoughts of what might happen next.

“Please, don’t hurt my baby.” Juliana was crying now.

“You say ‘please’ to me now, do you? What do you think I’m going to do? Throw her over the edge?”

“Please – you’re a woman as am I. You must know that this child has done nothing to you. She is innocent in all this,” she begged.

They arrived at the edge of the quarry and Juliana made a grab for Kristen but Giselle was expecting it and turned aside. Juliana looked down into the quarry and saw a man lying at the bottom, still as the grave. She watched Giselle closely to make sure she didn’t move nearer to the edge and looked again at the broken figure below. It was Luke. Horrified she turned to Giselle.

“Did you do that to Luke? He loved you, Giselle. Why did you do that?” Juliana’s heart was racing. Giselle was inhuman, she had no feelings whatsoever for anyone but herself.

“He was getting to be a nuisance. He had outlived his usefulness, but he slipped, I didn’t push him,” she stated without feeling.

Juliana risked a glance over her shoulder and saw Ulfric and Sir Baldwin striding in their direction with Kyle at their side. Giselle had her back to them and knew nothing of their approach so Juliana moved carefully around Giselle hoping to grab the child who was still sleeping.

With a little more confidence than she felt, Juliana said, “Give Kristen to me, Giselle. We can go back to the Hall and talk about Luke and Richard and what your plans are now.”

“I can’t do that,” Giselle’s voice was calm and even. Her mind seemed to be in another place and another time. “Richard has gone and it’s your fault; I loved my brother and you took him from me. You need to pay for what you’ve done.”

“Me? But... Giselle don’t you remember he was the one who kidnapped me! He paid the price for his scheming and dishonour. Please... give me my baby.” She lunged at Giselle and managed to get one hand on Kristen’s leg but Giselle yanked her away again, causing the baby to wake up crying.

“Now look what you’ve done,” Giselle shouted, causing the baby to cry even more. “I can’t stand screaming brats.”

She held Kristen out over the quarry but was stopped in her tracks by shouts from Ulfric and Sir Baldwin and suddenly Kyle was at her feet, snarling and drooling. The dog frightened her more than she would admit when she imagined those teeth sinking into her flesh. The dog snapped again and tugged at the hem of her gown pulling her away from the edge

“Juliana!” Ulfric shouted and broke into a run.

Giselle’s eyes, dark and wide darted from Juliana to the approaching men and back again.

“Daughter! You will put that child down or I will take off your head!” Sir Baldwin bellowed.

Giselle held the baby out and Juliana snatched the child from her grasp. Ulfric arrived, threw his arms around his wife and child and moved them away from a trembling Giselle. Through her sobs Juliana heard the unmistakable sound of a sword being drawn from its scabbard.

“You! You are an abomination of womanhood and no child of mine,” came Sir Baldwin’s voice.

Giselle’s eyes fixed on Juliana. “Bitch!” she spat. “May you rot in Hell!”

Giselle spun round to face her approaching Father, the quarry’s edge crumbling at her heels.

“Giselle! Step away!” her Father shouted. With tears coursing down her cheeks, Giselle closed her eyes and fell backwards disappearing into the void to join her lover - and brother - wherever he was now. She landed heavily on the sides of the quarry and bounced and rolled over and over coming to stop beside Luke’s body, her head hanging at an awkward angle.

Juliana turned away, hugging Kristen to her and shushing her cries, she walked away from the edge of the precipice. Ulfric and Sir Baldwin arrived in seconds and peered over the edge staring down upon the stillness of the two broken bodies.

“I’m sorry, Sir Baldwin,” Juliana whispered. “She must have decided that life without Richard was too much for her. I’m just glad that she didn’t take Kristen with her.”

Ulfric led Juliana away while Sir Baldwin stared into the quarry. “Where did I go wrong?” he asked to no one in particular, his gaze blank with disbelief.

“We’ll organise someone to go down there and get them and take them to the church,” Ulfric said shortly.

They turned their backs on the quarry and moved back to the fair where the festivities were still in full swing. Ulfric spoke quietly to Thorvald who gathered some men together to bring Luke and Giselle up. The others made their way quietly back to the Hall.



***



Sir Baldwin de Gant returned to Normandy after the burial of his daughter. He was a broken man but needed to return home to settle his estates and bring some normality back to his life.

Ulfric and Juliana with a wriggling Kristen walked onto the high ground in Bertone. Kyle ran ahead of them seeming to know where they were going.

“William has told me to build a castle here to defend the town,” Ulfric announced as they looked around at the countryside stretching out below them. “It’s not too far away from the town so in times of trouble the people will come into the castle and will be safe. Did you hear that he has commissioned a book recording every village and town in the country together with what each town holds and who it belongs to? Bertone will be in that book, Juliana. I don’t think the castle will be ready for a few years but I hope you’ll enjoy living there once it is.”

“A castle? Here in Bertone?” Juliana was amazed.

“Yes, don’t forget I’m now the Earl of Lindsey and I have a huge responsibility to its people and to the King. How will you like living in a castle, my wife?” he asked grinning at her.

“I don’t know. I’ve always loved living in the Hall but it holds so many bad memories for me now so I think I would like a change.”

“I’m organising stone masons and carpenters to come to the town and I’ve plans to bring wealth and status to the townspeople. I haven’t told Erik yet but he is to be the Alderman for the area. That will keep him busy and hopefully he’ll find a woman to settle down with. It’s about time he got over you.”

Juliana laughed out loud. “I think the next marriage here will be Thorvald and Sam’s mother. I’ve seen them wandering off together and he already thinks of Sam as his son. Perhaps they could stay in the Hall if they want to.”

“Excellent idea, my love, we will put it to them when we get back.”

They strolled home together arms entwined both confident in their love for each other and their child. Kyle spotted Thorvald in the distance and ran off to intercept him.

Juliana paused their walk and turned her husband to face her. She reached up and stroked the flop of hair from his eyes. “I have something to tell you, Ulfric.”

“Yes, wife. What is it?”

“I believe I’m with child again.”

Juliana laughed at the expression on Ulfric’s face as they turned towards home.



The End