Here Be Dragons - 1 by Sharon Penman (best inspirational books txt) 📕

man she knows well, only to be told she's to wed a total stranger."Aymer reflected upon this in silence, then gave John an oblique smile. "Your concern for my daughter is commendable." He rose as John did, made a perfunctory obeisance, and suddenly burst into malicious laughter. "Damn me if de Lusignan's not going to look a right proper fool when word gets out!""Yes," John agreed complacently. "I expect he will."He waited till they were alone, but no longer, at once turning to Will and demanding, "Well? What think you?""It is brilliant, John," Will said admiringly, "in truth, it is. That marriage would have been a disaster for us, and you've hit upon the one way you could stop it. But. . . but would it not be better to let Hugh de Lusignan save face? You need not do it this way, could let Aymer end the betrothal, then wait a discreet interval ere you claimed the girl. I fear that if you steal her out from under Hugh's nose" John was smiling and Will stopped in mid-sentence. It had baffled him that a man as bright as his brother could be so blind to consequences; now John's sardonic smile brought it all into focus for him. "You want to humiliate Hugh de Lusignan, do you not?" he said slowly."Fully as much as you want the girl, if not more. John . . . are you sure you've thought this through, that the game be worth the candle?""Shall I tell you, Will, why you always lose to me when we play at hazards or tables? Because you're so cautious it damned near cripple5 you! Poor Will, just once in your life have you never wanted to risk all upon one throw of the dice?" John moved back to the table, gestured for Will to pour them wine."Only one thing does puzzle me," he confessed. "Aymer is right

121, no fool. So why, then, did he agree to a plight troth? Why did he not insist upon a wedding?"OM Bordeaux, John moved south into Gascony, and then began a slow circuit back into Poitou. On Wednesday, August 24, he crossed the River Charente, and the next morning was welcomed into the walled capital city of Angouleme.The great hall of Aymer's ancient castle had been swept clean, strewn with fresh rushes and sweet-smelling herbs, hung with embroidered wall hangings of red, green, and gold. Aymer's Countess, a striking, statuesque woman who bore no resemblance to her cousin the French King, insisted upon personally acting as John's guide, proudly pointing out her favorites among the hangings: theFive Joys of the Blessed Mary, and the Story of Paris and Helen. John made the proper admiring responses, but he was impatient to see the girl he'd one day be taking to wife and, sensing that, the Lady Alice excused herself, went to fetch Isabelle."You have told her, I assume?" John asked, and Aymer nodded."But of course. She was both awed and honored that Your Grace should think her worthy of a crown, and she vowed that you should never repent your choice."John gave Aymer a skeptical smile, and winked at Will. He had enough experience with children to know that no twelve-year-old was likely to harbor such lofty sentiments, much less express them aloud. He only hoped the girl was truly reconciled to the plight troth; England must seem as distant asCathay to a girl who'd never been anywhere but Angouleme and Valence. Will's littla Ela had been a twelve-year-old bride, too, and remembering how fearful she had been, approaching the altar like a lamb led to the slaughter, John hoped Isabelle would be of sturdier stock. But the memory of Ela's unease gave him an idea, and he beckoned to Will. "What say you we send the lass to Ela atSalisbury?"Will beamed. "An excellent thought. I daresay she'd be less homesick with Ela and me than at your court. She'd be good company for Ela, too . . ."He stopped, for John was no longer listening. He'd taken an involuntary step forward; Will heard him murmur, "Good God." Turning to see what had so transfixed his brother, Will found himself staring, too, at the girl coming toward them. His mouth dropped open; the shock was all the greater because he'd instinctively cast Isabelle in Ela's image. Expecting an endearing, coltish clumsiness, bitten nails, and shy, sidelong glances, he saw, instead, a slender vision in turquoise and silver silk, a delicate oval face framed in a cascade of shimmering light. Will

222had occasionally seen young girls who'd matured too early, overly ripe and knowing beyond their years. Isabelle d'Angouleme was not one of these, had not forfeited the touching and poignant appeal of innocence. And yet she held the eye of every man in the hall. It was the first time in his life that Will had ever seen a woman who could truly be called "unforgettable," and it was with a vague sense of shame that he acknowledged the sheer physical impact of the girl, reminding himself hastily that she was not a womanwas, for all her startling beauty, still a child of twelve.What amazed him even more than her appearance was her poise. She approachedJohn without a trace of nervousness, sank down before him in an eye-pleasing curtsy. But after a moment to reflect, Will realized why; no girl who looked as this one did could long remain ignorant of her advantages. For the first time he glanced toward his brother. John was staring at Isabelle so avidly that Will decided John, too, needed to be reminded of Isabelle's extreme youth."Your Grace," she said, her French attractively enhanced by the soft accents of Provencal, the langue d'oc spoken throughout Eleanor's domains."No, darling, the grace is yours," John said huskily. "I'd have you call meJohn."Aymer had been standing to one side, watching with an odd little smile, oneWill had seen once before, that July night at Lusignan Castle. Stepping forward now, he said, "I