Page 3 of Silent Knight: Alexander

Chapter 2

“Lady Summer, it is so kind of you to invite us to your Christmas celebration.” Lady Charlotte Ashworth of Manchester did her best to act grateful but felt as if this were naught but an act of pity arranged by her meddling mother. After all, Charlotte was a widow, barren, and getting up in age. Nay, she wouldn’t show her true feelings in front of everyone in the great hall.

She took in her surroundings of Framlingham Castle as the servants hurried around, decorating the great hall for Christmas. Long strands of holly were draped from beam to beam overhead. And from strings coming from the rafters dangled balls of mistletoe with lit candles attached in the middle. The room held the scent of pine and frankincense from the beeswax candles. The musicians played a cheerful tune from the gallery. Servants draped cloths dyed red and green over the long trestle tables preparing for the Christmas feast.

“I think it’ll be fun,” said Lady Summer, holding on to the arm of her husband, Lord Warren Mowbray. “After all, we are hoping to find a suitable man to whom we can betroth our daughter, Claire, before this is all over.”

“But Claire is only eight and ten years of age,” said Charlotte, already feeling doomed since she was seven years older. Nobody would choose a twenty-five-year-old woman to marry over an eighteen-year-old girl. Plus, Charlotte wasn’t a virgin. Once the men found out she was barren and had most of her good childbearing years already behind her, they would break a leg running in the opposite direction.

If only her father hadn’t kept her living at the abbey since her husband passed away seven years ago, she might be married by now. Perhaps it was a blessing that her mother decided to pull her out of the convent now that her father had passed on. But unfortunately, she would end up with an old, fat knight if she even found a knight who wanted her at all.

“There will be plenty of eligible men here who might want to marry you,” Summer told her.

“Oh, do you really think so?” Charlotte’s mother, Ann, stood up straighter and cocked her head, listening intently. “After all, she is five and twenty years old now, and has been raised by nuns for the past seven years.”

“Mother,” mumbled Charlotte under her breath, noticing people around them starting to stare. Her face was probably turning as red as the holly berries from her embarrassment.

“A lady who lived with nuns that long and is looking for a husband has got to be a conversation starter,” said Lord Warren with a low chuckle. His wife scowled at him.

“Warren, perhaps you should go see if Dominick and Robert have arrived yet.” Summer smiled sweetly and gave him a slight push in the opposite direction.

“Right,” said Warren clearing his throat and heading away.

“Who are Dominick and Robert?” asked Ann. “Is it possible they might want to marry my daughter?”

“Mother,” Charlotte said under her breath, wishing the woman would ease up already.

“Dominick is my son,” Summer told them. “And Robert is my grandson. He is the cutest five-year-old boy you’ll ever see. I swear he thinks he is at least ten.”

“Oh, so Dominick is married,” said Charlotte, only so her mother would stop pushing.

“Nay. His wife died in childbirth. He hasn’t remarried,” explained Summer.

“He hasn’t?” asked Charlotte. “How old did you say he is?” Perhaps, this was an option. A widower might want her since he already had a child and wouldn’t require too many more from her. At her age, Charlotte didn’t know how many babies she would have, or if she’d have any at all. She heard that Lady Summer lost several babies through the years. Her last one had been a little boy that she never got over losing.

“My brother is five and twenty years of age,” said a young woman joining them.

“That’s my age,” said Charlotte, liking what she heard.

“Dominick never got over losing his wife and swore he would never marry again, so don’t count on him,” said the blond girl.

“Lady Charlotte, Lady Ann, I’d like you to meet my daughter, Claire,” Summer introduced them.

Charlotte groaned inwardly. While Charlotte was plain-looking, Claire was a vision of beauty, just like her mother. Long, blond curls peeked out from under her jeweled headpiece, framing her heart-shaped face. A little, button nose and big, turquoise eyes only accented her long lashes and full lips. Her body was curvy but petite. Her waist was tiny.

“So, you are interested in marrying as well?” asked Charlotte, almost hoping the girl’s parents would change their minds and wait another year to betroth Claire.

“Aye, I’m going to have all the men fighting over me,” said Claire, brushing a speck off her sleeve.

“Claire, what did I tell you about acting haughty?” asked her mother.

“I’m not haughty,” said Claire. “I’m just in a hurry to marry because I don’t want to end up old and single. I want to have lots and lots of babies.” Claire looked at Charlotte when she said it, only making Charlotte feel worse.

“Oh, look. Here come Dominick and the baby now,” said Summer, glancing across the great hall. “Lady Regina is with them. You three girls will have a good time sharing a room during the length of the festivities.”

“Mother,” said Claire, rolling her eyes. “I’m not sharing a room with . . . them,” she said in a soft voice.

“Claire, Lady Charlotte is our guest,” Summer reminded her. “Her mother will be staying in my chamber during their visit, and Charlotte and Regina will be with you.”

“Fine,” said Claire, letting out a frustrated breath. “But can’t Regina sleep with the servants where she belongs? After all, sharing a room with a nun is bad enough.”

“Claire! That’s enough from you. Now let’s go and greet your brother. Excuse us,” said Lady Summer, nodding to her guests. She took her daughter by the arm and led her away, reprimanding her quietly as they walked.

“Who is Lady Regina and why does Claire want her to sleep with the servants?” asked Charlotte.

Her mother leaned over and whispered behind her hand. “Regina was raised as Summer’s stepdaughter at the death of the girl’s mother. Rumor has it that Regina’s father was the late Baron Mowbray, and her mother was naught but Lady Summer’s handmaid. Can you believe it?”

Charlotte peered across the hall perusing Lady Regina. She looked to be a few years older than Claire and a few years younger than herself. The girl seemed shy and also overweight. She wasn’t comely at all. Charlotte’s heart went out to her. She knew how it felt to be unwanted. After all, she’d heard the rumor that the whole reason she was sent to a nunnery, to begin with, was that her father thought she wasn’t his child. She’d asked her mother about it, but the woman swore it wasn’t true.

“I’d like to meet Lady Regina,” said Charlotte, picking up her skirts and heading across the hall. Perhaps, her own situation wasn’t nearly as bad as she thought. After all, Regina wasn’t married either, and no one said a word about finding her a husband. Mayhap, Charlotte would have a chance to wed again after all.