Chapter 20
“Sir Brandel—what is the meaning of this?”
One of the knights approached Brandel.
“With such strict control—why order the people not to step outside at all?”
Brandel only curled his lip in response. When he frowned, the ridge of his once-broken nose stood out more harshly.
“Is this because of the attack on His Lordship?”
“As long as we carry out the order, that is enough. Lambert, don’t dig any deeper.”
At the curt reply, the young knight grimaced.
“To threaten beheading anyone who steps outside…”
He muttered to himself. Two hours earlier, messengers had ridden through Coventry’s market square proclaiming the lord’s command. It made little sense to him, and he clicked his tongue in confusion.
Brandel paid him no mind, staring straight ahead. He was uneasy that his lord had gone alone. The wounds from the attack had not fully healed. Even now, the look in his lord’s eyes lingered in his chest like a blade. He could not tell what desperate resolve lay there—only that, as a loyal vassal, it troubled him deeply.
“Hey—stop there!”
A trader had attempted to enter Coventry just then. As Lambert moved to intercept him, Brandel turned his horse.
* * *
“Miss…”
The street looked like something abandoned by the living. Not a single human shadow appeared; not even a stray dog could be seen. Only bright sunlight poured down, and silence reigned.
This was Coventry’s busiest and most crowded quarter. At noon, it should have been overflowing with people. Yet no one stood there.
“Good heavens… there’s not a soul, Miss. This must be God’s protection.”
The nanny cried out, her voice thick with tears. Though she had gone to the head of the merchants’ guild in desperation, she had not expected much. How thousands had managed to move as one heart—she could scarcely believe it even seeing it with her own eyes.
Godiva simply lifted her head. Moisture shimmered in her violet eyes.
Lord…
Even the warm sunlight of May and the gentle breeze that brushed her cheeks felt unwelcome. Window shutters were lowered, doors closed, curtains drawn tight. Nothing remained in the streets but the wind. Not a single gaze sought to spy upon her.
“Miss, before anyone comes out, quickly make your circuit and—”
The nanny’s voice broke. Things she had never understood before were now taking shape in her heart. At last she began to grasp what her young mistress had long grieved for, what she had pitied so deeply.
Clop. Clop.
Clop, clop.
The white horse bearing Godiva and the dappled mount beneath the nanny moved side by side down the empty street. The nanny no longer spoke. She lowered her head in solemn reverence.
Leofric.
Though he could not hear her, Godiva called her husband’s name. Anyone else might say she ought to hate him. But at this moment, only his name came to her.
Leofric.
Like an incantation, she repeated it silently.
Leofric.
Eve, once she knew good and evil, first knew shame—and Godiva knew it too. Whether anyone watched or not, riding bare through the streets was an agony that pierced to the bone. But she had to go on.
Clop, clop.
The white horse dipped its head.
Her golden hair, like fine threads of silk, veiled her delicate form.
* * *
“Come on, what harm would it do to take a look?”
Tom, the tailor from the King’s Head Inn, smirked crudely. Since early morning his friend Greg had shuttered his window, and Tom thought him the biggest fool alive. Ever since being summoned to Coventry Castle, Greg the barber had been acting like a man undone.
“Who would know? You think the great lord would actually post soldiers to watch?”
No matter how Tom prodded, Greg kept his lips pressed shut.
“Would he even tolerate his own men looking? Maybe he’s set guards to spy? Let’s just crack the window a little.”
Greg Barber was in love. The object of it was Lady Godiva, and it was driving him nearly mad. Tom’s words disgusted him—and yet they echoed what warred inside him.
The desire to open the window and glimpse her beauty. The desire to protect her pride, lofty and radiant… Two opposing urges tore him apart. But no matter what stirred in his heart, he could not allow Tom to dishonor her.
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