“I can and you will not stop me.”
Jathan, beside himself, rushed at her from behind when she tried to walk away again and tackled her, grabbing her around the waist and picking her up from the ground. Gaetan had given him permission to tie her to the bed, which was exactly what he intended to do. But Ghislaine had other ideas. The moment he grabbed her, she threw an elbow back and caught him on the side of the head.
Startled from the painful blow, Jathan dropped her, but it was fortunate she didn’t land on her bad leg. She plopped right down onto her left foot and she began to run, as fast as she was able with her stiff and sore thigh. But Jathan, with a bloodied ear, caught up to her again and the fight was on.
People began to come out of their cottages to watch the lady fighting off the priest who kept trying to grab her. Ghislaine didn’t want to hurt the man but she was quickly growing irritated with his attempts to restrain her. She lost her patience completely when he accidentally grabbed her braid and pulled her hair, so she kicked him right in the groin with her bad leg. It was the only way she could do it since she couldn’t very well balance on her right leg; therefore, it became her kicking leg. Jathan fell to the ground in anguish when she made contact.
Realizing they were attracting an audience, Ghislaine ran as fast as she could towards the convening hall in the hopes of finding Antillius. She didn’t know where else to look for him. She was nearly to the long stone structure when the door to the convening hall opened and men poured forth, Antillius included. There were men by his side, speaking to him, but they quieted when they saw the lady approach.
“My lady?” Antillius went to her quickly. “What has happened? I have been told by one of my men that your priest attacked you!”
Ghislaine shook her head. “He did not attack me,” she said. “He was attempting to stop me from following Gaetan and his men. My lord, did you know they had left?”
Antillius nodded. “I did, indeed,” he said. “They left a few hours ago. Not long, really. Why? What is the matter?”
Ghislaine was already shaking her head, feeling a tremendous sense of urgency. She didn’t have time to explain her fears but if she didn’t explain them, Antillius might try to keep her here, too, and it was imperative that she follow the Normans. Therefore, she tried to remain calm as she spoke.
“I do not know how much Gaetan told you of him and his men, but they are Norman knights,” she said, breathlessly. “They, and thousands of their countrymen, came to the shores of England a few weeks ago and engaged in a battle with Harold Godwinson, who was my sister’s husband. I speak of him in the past because he was killed by the Normans.”
Antillius and his men were looking at her with increasing shock. “Godwinson is dead?”
“Aye. Gaetan did not tell you?”
“He did not.”
“I am sure he had his reasons, but it is true. Harold is dead.”
Antillius glanced at his nervous men before replying. “Then who rules now?”
Ghislaine could see the shock reflected in their eyes at the news. She felt rather badly for telling them, as if she was essentially calling Gaetan a liar for withholding such vital information, but the reality was that she needed something from them. She was trying to lay a foundation for her argument.
“The Duke of Normandy lays claim to the throne of England now,” she said. “You would have found out sooner or later and I am sure Gaetan did not tell you because he did not want to frighten you. Do not think poorly of him; he is not an unjust man. You must believe that.”
Antillius still had doubt and shock in his expression. “He told us that he had come to England to reclaim a man who had been kidnapped by your brother.”
She nodded. “That is true,” she said. “My brother, Alary, kidnapped Gaetan’s knight after the battle. That is why they are here – to reclaim their man. It is not to take your lands from you or kill your people. Right now, all they want to do is reclaim their knight. I was their guide, directing them through these new lands to help them find their man.”
Antillius’ shock was fading somewhat, although the news still had him shaken. “Did your brother, Edwin, send you with them? He has no love for Alary.”
Ghislaine shook her head. “Edwin has never met Gaetan or his men, nor was he at the battle where Harold lost his life,” she said. “This has nothing to do with Edwin. My lord, I know you consider Edwin an enemy and I am sure that you have difficulty trusting me as well, but I must beg a favor from you.”
“What?”
“You must help me save Gaetan’s life.”
Antillius’ brow furrowed in confusion. “He does not need your help,” he said. “I saw him fight off hordes of the Men of Bones last night. He and his men are the most powerful warriors I have ever seen.”
Ghislaine wasn’t sure how she could explain her fears to him, but she had to try. She truly felt Gaetan’s life depended on it.
“Norman knights are like nothing you have ever seen on the field of battle,” she said. “They are stronger, better equipped, and more skilled than anything on this earth. But that is in open battle; when it comes to the warfare our people conduct – in trees, in hiding, or covertly – Normans are extremely vulnerable. They fight head-on because that is what they know. But our people – your people, my people – do not fight that way. Right now, Gaetan has taken eight men with him and they intend to stop my brother and rescue their man. My lord, Alary has two hundred men with him who fight in this fashion. I am terrified that Gaetan and his men will walk straight into their deaths.”
Antillius was listening carefully. “Surely they are not that foolish,” he said. “Men like that do not live as long as they have by being foolish. I think you underestimate him.”
Ghislaine tried not to appear too contrite. “I do not mean to underestimate him,” she said, “and as long as I was accompanying them, I knew I could advise them on the way our people fight. This wound in my leg? I received it when we were passing through the shadowlands, south of Worcester. Knowing what I know of the people in that area, I was able to draw them out and avert an ambush. Now… now I must avert another terrible clash, or at least try. But I have no horse and no weapons. I am asking if you will provide me with these things so I can at least help them. Please, my lord, I beseech you.”
Antillius was over his shock of the situation for the most part. Now, he was pensive as he pondered her words. “If I let you go, I cannot imagine that de Wolfe would be too pleased with me,” he said. “He told your priest to keep you here. Lygia told me so. Now you are asking me to let you follow him?”