An Uncertain Choice(11)

At the clank of metal behind me, I raised my head and peered over my shoulder to the open door of the chapel. There stood the duke in his surcoat, and next to him, covered from head to toe in his plate armor, was one of his three knights.

With a nod at the knight, the duke stepped just outside the doorway so that in the darkness of the hallway his outline showed him standing guard.

After a moment’s hesitation, the young knight started toward the altar, toward me, the steel plates of his armor jangling with each step.

I rose and brushed down my gown, my heart tapping a strange rhythm in anticipation of having a conversation with a man who wasn’t one of my servants or the abbot.

“My lady,” came the whisper of the knight from behind his helmet. “Please forgive me for disturbing your prayers.”

“There’s naught to forgive. I was almost done.”

He stopped several feet away. Though his helmet was raised, in the dim light coming from the candle on the altar, I couldn’t see past the shadows to glimpse his eyes.

“You’re not at the feast along with the others?” I asked, trying to untie my tongue.

“No, my lady. I’ve just returned from visiting the bailiff as well as the sheriff.” He spoke so softly that I had to quiet my thudding heart to hear him. “And I’ve discovered more information about this morning’s torture.”

At his news, my self-consciousness fell away. “You’ve visited my bailiff and sheriff?”

He nodded, his armor clinking again. “It was obvious that you hadn’t ordered the boiling or the stretching upon the rack. That you, in fact, were opposed to torture. And after gaining the duke’s permission, I took the liberty to investigate the matter further.”


Was he the knight who had rescued the criminals earlier in the day? I wanted to command him to come closer, to reveal his face, to let me gaze on him. But he was keeping a respectable distance, and ordering him closer would surely be too brazen.

“Go on, sir,” I whispered. “Please share anything you’ve learned.”

He nodded and continued in a low voice. “I rode to the sheriff’s estate and . . . let myself in.”

I held back a smile at the knight’s chosen words. It was well known in my land that the sheriff kept a tight watch over his estate, the grand home my father had awarded him after he’d saved my life from the peasant with the Plague. With a heavy guard and vicious dogs, letting oneself in to the sheriff’s manor was tantamount to breaching the walls of a well-fortified castle.

“I’m surprised you weren’t torn to pieces in spite of your armor,” I whispered, eyeing him for any signs of distress.

“I have a special way with dogs, my lady.” His voice hinted at humor.

“You must.”

“And I also have a special way of extracting information from sheriffs who decide to play mute.” Again the humor in his tone belied the danger of the situation. I had no doubt he’d put his own life in peril to retrieve information about the sheriff’s use of torture.

“You’re a brave knight.”

“Apparently, news of my expertise with various weapons had reached him ahead of me, so ’twas not difficult to gain his cooperation when he saw my fingers upon my dagger.”

Not difficult? I studied him again through the dim lighting, wishing I could see him clearly. But in his armor, I could no more see him now than I could the knight earlier in the day. “And what did my sheriff reveal, sir?”

The knight held himself stiffly. “He said that once you’re in the convent, he’ll finally be able to do his job the way it’s meant to be done, that he’ll be able to handle criminals any way he wants without a girl telling him what to do.”

At the bitter bite of the words, I sucked in a sharp breath. “And you agree with him?”

“Not in the least,” the knight protested harshly. “Man or woman, you’re his ruler and he ought to obey your orders whether he agrees or not.”

I should have punished the sheriff earlier for his insolence. By showing him compassion, I’d apparently proven myself weak. “Once I’m of age, he’ll learn soon enough that I’ll rule as strongly and rightly as my father before me.”

The young knight bowed. “I’m sorry that I had to bring you such news, my lady. I regret that I had to cause you even the slightest distress.”

“You were noble to investigate the matter further, and I thank you.”

I would need to speak with my sheriff again, although the idea of another confrontation filled me with dread. What would truly happen once I turned eighteen? I’d always thought I’d be able to rule just as my father had, even if it was from afar. But what if the sheriff did indeed have different plans? How would I be able to stop him if I was confined to the abbey?

If the sheriff felt that my power would decrease even though I’d come of age, how many more of my people felt the same way?

The duke had moved back into the chapel. He cocked his head at the door, signaling his young knight. The man bowed toward me and began to withdraw.

As he strode across the chapel, I called after him. “Wait.” He stopped and turned.

“Thank you,” I said. “You’ve done a hard thing in uncovering and bearing this news. And I admire you for your courage.”