Page 17 of Forbidden: Claude

Chapter 5

“My lady, how much longer will we be in England?” Evelina’s guard, Augustin, asked her in the courtyard the next day, speaking French.

“Shh,” said Evelina, looking over her shoulder at the crowd of people gathered around the gate. The lord of the castle and Lady Rose’s husband were leaving along with a good amount of men to pay their service to the king today. “Augustin, ne m’adressez pas en tant que dame,” she said, telling him not to call her lady. “Someone might hear you.” She pulled him into the shadows behind the mews to talk to him in private. They continued to speak in French.

“We’ve been here for a fortnight now,” complained Augustin. “I need more money if you want me to stay here much longer.”

“I’ve paid you well, and you are also getting paid to work as Lord Conlin’s guard,” she reminded him.

“I am a mercenary. I could be making twice as much back in France.”

“We can’t leave yet. I haven’t found the man I want to marry.”

“If you want me to stay to protect you and also keep your secret, you will have to give me more money.”

She let out a deep sigh, reaching into her pouch for the few coins she had left in her possession. “D’accord. Je te paierai plus d’argent,” she told him, agreeing to pay him more money. She slipped the coins out of her pouch and dropped them into Augustin’s hand.

Claude roundedthe mews with his squire right behind him. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Evelina half-hidden in the shadows, giving a mercenary money. Felix crashed into the back of him since he stopped so suddenly.

“My lord. I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were stopping,” said Felix.

“Felix, look! I told you something was deceiving about that woman.” He pulled Felix back out of sight, and they peeked around the side of the mews. “Did you see that?”

“See what?” asked Felix, stepping out to look, but Claude pulled him back into the shadows again. The mercenary went back up to the battlements while Evelina hurried to Rose’s side at the front gate. “I can’t see a thing,” complained Felix, trying to see over Claude’s shoulder.

“It was Evelina. I saw her giving that mercenary money.”

“What mercenary?” asked Felix.

“Egads, Squire, try to keep up.” Claude pointed at the mercenary climbing the battlements. “That one. She paid him coins.”

“She did?”

“I also heard them speaking in French, which tells me they were trying to keep others from hearing their conversation.”

“What did they say?” Felix stretched his neck, trying to get a look at the mercenary.

“I heard something about a secret. Then I thought I heard Evelina say she was going to pay him more money.”

“What does that mean?” asked Felix. “Is she a whore?”

“Highly unlikely. If so, the mercenary would be paying her instead. Keep an eye on the mercenary and try to find out all you can. See if he’ll tell you where he came from or why Evelina was giving him coins.”

“Aye, my lord,” said Felix, taking off at a brisk pace for the battlements.

Claude turned the corner of the mews and crashed into Evelina. He put out his hands and caught her by the shoulders.

“Watch where you’re going, my lord,” she said snidely.

“What were you doing behind the mews?” he asked.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I was with my squire, coming to see the men off on their trip.”

“What squire?” She looked around him but, of course, Felix was already gone. He didn’t want to tell her he sent the boy to spy on the mercenary, so he decided to ignore her altogether.

“Lady Rose,” he called out, leaving Evelina, hurrying to Rose’s side.