*Thank you.'

*I hope that you don't regret coming with us.'

*No,' she said, rallying slightly. *For the most part, it's been very exciting. I am simply in need of a long rest now. I shall sleep very soundly tonight.'

*So will we all.'

The closer they got to Norwich, the more able they were to appreciate its size and character. It was the princ.i.p.al town in one of the most populous counties in the entire kingdom. The soil was rich, the harvest plentiful and the rivers stocked with fish. Larger boats ventured out to sea in search of even bigger catches. Extensive deposits of salt supported a flourishing trade and there were dozens of other occupations in what was the fourth largest county in England. Much of the country was plagued with drought that summer, but Norfolk seemed to have suffered less from its effects than some of the other areas through which they had travelled. Sheep and cows grazed in the fields. Pigs could be heard in patches of woodland. There was an abiding sense of contentment.

It disappeared the moment they rode into Norwich. Eustace Coureton's description of the place was accurate. It bore the scars of war as blatantly as Alstan bore the mementoes of his whipping. Almost ninety buildings had been destroyed to make way for the castle, creating a huge hole in the fabric of the city. Of those that remained, the best part of two hundred houses were unoccupied, abandoned by owners who had fled for a variety of reasons. The streets were full and the market was busy, but there was no zest about Norwich. Its indigenous population had yet fully to accept that it was now under Norman control. When Ralph Delchard led his party towards the castle, they gathered the usual mixture of hostile stares and muttered resentment.

Riding beside her husband, Golde was grateful for their safe arrival. *The journey didn't take as long as I'd feared,' she said.

Ralph grimaced. *The best road in Norfolk is the one that takes us out of it.'

*Aren't you looking forward to our stay here?'

*No, Golde. I'd rather be at home with my lovely wife.'

*Travel adds body to a marriage.'

*You sound like the brewer you once were,' he remarked with a grin. *What did you add to your ale to give it some sparkle?'

*That's a closely guarded secret.'

*Even from your loving husband?'

*Especially from you, Ralph,' she pointed out. *When you were in Hereford, you refused to touch my ale. You're a true Norman. Wine is all that you'll drink.'

*I'm glad you mention Hereford, my love.'

*Why is that?'

*Do you recall your ill-fated earl?'

*Of course.'

*Well, this is where he sacrificed his earldom,' said Ralph, pointing to the castle ahead of them. *My namesake, Ralph Guader, was earl of Norfolk, a man of mixed parentage and uncertain temper. He decided to marry Emma, sister of Roger, earl of Hereford.'

*You don't need to remind me of that. It was the talk of the town. We could not understand why the wedding was not held in Hereford cathedral. Had the ceremony occurred there, I might have been engaged to provide ale for the table. Not all the guests were as fond of wine as you are.'

*It was not only drink that flowed at the wedding, Golde. Blood was up and pa.s.sions ran high. The n.o.ble earl of Hereford conspired with Ralph Guader and with Waltheof, earl of Northumberland, to overthrow the King with the help of Danish invaders. A doomed enterprise from the start,' he said with contempt. *It robbed Waltheof of his life and both Norfolk and Herefordshire of an earldom. This is where the plot was first hatched. Norwich has much to answer for.'

*That was well over ten years ago, Ralph.'

*You still see the effects, my love. Look around you. Much of the destruction here came as a result of Earl Ralph's forfeitures. His supporters quit the city in fear. Houses that were not burned to the ground still stand empty.'

Golde gazed around her. *I'd certainly prefer to live in Hereford.'

*Are you not happy in our home?'

*On the few occasions when we actually spend time there,' she said with a teasing smile. *But at this moment, after a long day in the saddle, I have to confess that I am delighted to be here in Norwich.'

*So am I.'

*What kind of welcome may we expect?'

*A cordial one, I hope.'

No sooner had he spoken than a man came riding out of the castle at a reckless speed, heedless of what lay ahead and jabbing his spurs hard into his horse's flanks. Richard de Fontenel was in no mood to bid the commissioners welcome. Face dark and teeth gritted, he rode straight at the cavalcade, scattering it uncaringly as he headed for the city gate. Ralph had grabbed the reins of Golde's palfrey to pull it out of the way of the galloping stranger who missed others in the party by a matter of inches and went hurtling on to send the townspeople scurrying for safety. There was great commotion in his wake. Everyone turned to look in bewilderment after the furious rider.

It was left to Ralph Delchard to put their thoughts into words.

*Who the devil was that!' he exclaimed.

Chapter Two.

Mauger Livarot arrived at her manor house with an escort of six knights. When he was admitted to the parlour, the lady Adelaide could not resist teasing him.

*Have you come to arrest me, my lord?' she said, feigning apprehension.

*In a manner of speaking.'

*Does it take seven men to overpower one woman?'

*We've been hunting,' he explained, indicating the mounted riders who could be seen through the open shutters. *Since our way home led directly past your house, I felt it only courteous to call on you.'

*You are always welcome here.'

*More welcome than Richard de Fontenel?'

Her smile was calculated. *Both of you are equally welcome.'

*How long will you keep us on the same footing?'

*Only time will tell.'

*You're as evasive as ever, my lady.'

*Would you be interested in a woman who submitted without any delay?'

Livarot grinned. *There's only one woman who excites my interest.'

She waved him to a seat, then lowered herself on to an oak bench with her back straight and her hands folded in her lap. His gaze never left her. A tall, thin, angular man with a long face that tapered down to a pointed chin, he was now in his late forties, the once attractive features ravaged by a life of excess. The lady Adelaide would never have chosen him as a husband on the strength of his appearance. It was his other a.s.sets that appealed to her. Livarot was a wealthy man with estates in England and Normandy. He was also a skilful politician, employed by the King on occasional diplomatic missions abroad and, it was rumoured, destined for high office in the fullness of time. His bride might find that she had wed a future sheriff.

*I hear that the lord Richard is having domestic problems,' he said, complacently.

*You have keen ears, my lord.'

*Little that happens in Norwich escapes me.'

*Then you'll know the circ.u.mstances in which the robbery took place.'

*I can guess at them.'

*Go on.'

*Richard de Fontenel acquired some costly gifts in the hope that they might make you look more favourably upon his ugly visage. Exactly what they were I don't know, but they seem to have disappeared.' Another grin surfaced. *I must confess that I regard the theft as an act of G.o.d.'

*Can crime ever be providential?'

*This one is.'

*Evil can surely never come out of good.'

*To steal from such a confirmed thief as the lord Richard is not exactly an evil act. He's spent the last twenty years grabbing land at will from those too weak to defend themselves. The loss of a little gold is small retribution for his misappropriations.'

*They were elephants, my lord.'

*Elephants?'

*Fashioned out of gold. Objects of great beauty.'

*He'll need more than two elephants to plead his case.'

*They were powerful advocates,' she admitted. *I coveted them.'

*Then I'll have something similar made for you.'

*Why bother when the originals may soon be recovered?'

*Whatever he offers you,' said Livarot, jealousy flickering, *I'll match. Remember that, my lady. There's no gift that the lord Richard can dangle in front of you that I'll not give you as well. Simply name it and it's yours.'

*There's nothing I want.'

*You wanted those gold elephants.'

*I was tempted by them,' she corrected, *but the animals did not, alas, come alone. They bore the lord Richard on their backs. His gift was conditional upon my accepting his hand in marriage.'

*That would be a disaster for you.'

*Not necessarily.'

*Look at his reputation,' he urged, leaning forward to gesticulate. The man is a household tyrant. He's already buried two wives and their deaths were a blessed release from a bullying husband. Do you wish to be his third victim?'

*You've been married yourself,' she noted, bluntly, *and that union was scarcely an example of wedded bliss.'

Livarot was stung. *My wife and I were reasonably happy together.'

*Reasonably?'

*We had no more unhappiness than most marriages.'

*Then why did she try to flee back to Normandy?'

*She didn't, my lady,' he retorted, smarting at the accusation. *That was a wicked lie put about by the lord Richard. Judith was a good wife to me and bore two fine sons. But she could never settle in England. Judith missed her parents sorely. That was why she longed to return to Normandy.' He sat back with a sigh. *Her death came as a great shock to me. I mourn her still.'

*I didn't mean to offend you,' she said, adopting a more conciliatory tone. *Only those involved in a marriage know its true nature. But I must warn you that you'll not win my hand by speaking ill of the lord Richard. He is just as harsh in his judgement of you and it does him no good. If you must woo me, do so by telling me about your own virtues and not about the supposed vices of others.'

*The lord Richard's vices are established fact.'

*I'm already aware of them.'

Mauger Livarot pursed his lips to hold in any further comment. Taking a deep breath, he spread his hands in a gesture of apology. The lady Adelaide was right. He would make more headway by emphasising the positive aspects of his own character than by listing the negative attributes of his rival. Long before his wife died, the marriage had crumbled, not least because of his repeated infidelity and his long absences abroad. Though there were mercenary instincts involved as well, he saw a union with the lady Adelaide as a means of atoning for the mistakes of his first marriage. She would be altogether more outspoken and self-possessed than her predecessor. As he now reminded himself once again, she was also considerably more beautiful and gracious. Infidelity would no longer be a factor.

*I offer everything that I have, my lady,' he said. *And everything that I am.'

She was direct. *I'd look for more honesty than you've so far shown.'

*Honesty?'

*Yes, my lord,' she continued, pointing towards the window. *You claim that you're on your way home from a day's hunting yet none of your men have any carca.s.ses with them. You travel empty-handed. Was it such a poor day in the forest or am I the only prey you seek?'

*You're no prey,' he a.s.sured her.

*Then why invent this tale about hunting?'

*It was no invention. The truth is that we hunted this morning. I thought it a pretty excuse to gain admission to your home. Forgive me, Adelaide. It was a small deception.'

*Small deceptions hold the seeds of larger ones.'

*You'll have no cause to doubt my honesty.'

*None at all?'

*You have my word on it,' he said, rising to his feet. *Put me to the test.'

*I will,' she replied, watching him closely. *When you first arrived, you said that you'd heard about the theft from the lord Richard's house but you didn't know exactly what was taken. A little later, you mentioned that gold had been stolen and, when I told you about the elephants, you knew that they were two in number. How?'

Mauger Livarot weighed his words carefully before replying. *If you want a straight answer, my lady, you shall have one.'

*I'd appreciate that.'

*My steward's name is Drogo,' he said airily. *He's a resourceful man who acts as my eyes and ears. Drogo has a friend who's employed in the household of Richard de Fontenel. By that means, I get to know almost everything that occurs under his roof. In short,' he added with a smirk, *I follow the rules of combat.'

*Combat?'

*I keep a spy in the enemy camp.'