A Chosen Love - Book 1 The Frencolian Chronicles (complete)

Chapter Thirty-seven

Elissa descended the front steps. David had brought the news that knights and soldiers were riding into the manor grounds.

    She beheld a courtyard pulsing with mounted knights and soldiers. More were outside the walls and on the road. As eyes recognized Lady Elissa, for whom they had been searching, a great shout rang out, followed by cheers and applause. Felix hurried to her, a knight at his side.

    "Lady Elissa, meet Sir Thorbert," Felix introduced.

    "We've met, thank you, Felix. Is Sir Louis here, Sir Thorbert?"

    "No, Lady Elissa, he commissioned us to search for you between Frencberg and Chanoine."

    "Have you captured Dagan?" Elissa perceived Sir Thorbert's confusion as he looked from her to Felix and back again. "We'd better talk about it," she urged. "With the numbers of men you have here Sir, you should be able to capture Dagan!"

    They moved inside and sat in the smaller hall. Elissa was deeply perturbed to know people at Kings Castle believed she had run away.

    She asked, in amazement, "Sir Louis believed I ran away? We're betrothed. I said, in front of everyone, that I chose him. Why would I run away? I'm to be married to him, the day after tomorrow! How could he think I'd run away from him now?"

    "You must tell us which way Dagan went," Thorbert said, his face red. He knew he must keep his mind upon capturing Dagan. The pigeon should arrive in Frencberg soon, and Louis would know the news about Dagan. Praise and approval would be reward enough, if they were able to present the criminal in chains to Sir Louis when he arrived.

    Elissa gave the names of the four soldiers who had remained on guard with her and she described the position of the thicket, not far from the waterfall.

    As Thorbert stood to leave, another knight strode into the Hall.

    Elissa recognized this man too, one of her brother's knights.    "Sir Viktor!" She asked, "Is my brother, Dorai, here?" From his blank stare she knew that he wasn't. Dorai wasn't going to be on speaking terms, she remembered. "Dorai doesn't think I ran away does he?" she asked. When he didn't reply, she murmured, half to herself, "He probably thinks I killed myself."

    His face as solemn as an undertaker, Victor placed two blood-marked arrows on the table, followed by Dagan's curved sword.

    "Felix said —you —knocked the sword out of Dagan's hand with your fist, Lady Elissa." Viktor's deep voice held disbelief, but his tone invited her comment.

    "Yes, I did do that." Elissa recalled the confrontation on the wall... the terror she had suffered, her pounding heart, the urging of her child-mind that she played a stick-game with her brother, that she could knock the 'stick' out of Dagan's hand as she had knocked it from her brother's —it all flooded back like a tidal wave and she realized how desperately she had wanted to survive; her prayer...

    She confessed, "I've given up the idea of dying before it's my time. The God of the Gospel Book took care of me." She knew that the men would puzzle over the matter of Dagan's sword. The deed would likely be stretched far beyond the truth. They would say next that she threw Dagan over into the moat. Her face broke into a broad smile at the thought.

     As though reading her mind, Viktor exclaimed, "Well, someone was looking after you, Elissa Jane Dorai! It's amazing that the diabolical Dagan did not drown you..."

    "He was too weak from the three arrows he took. It was I who almost drowned him." She laughed at the sight of the men's serious faces, and said, "He's such a little man."

    She explained how he had dragged himself from the moat after she ducked him several times. Describing Dagan's effort to wrench the arrows from his body, Elissa continued, "He must be made of wood! He still had an arrow in his back when he went across the field. I don't think he'll have been able to run very far."

    "He likely had horses and men waiting for him. Felix reported that he rode in here with four men. That leaves three unaccounted for, but he may have brought others with him," Viktor said, shaking his head gravely at Dorai's sister and saying, "You've narrowly escaped from death on more than one count!"

    Elissa ignored his words and said, "Some of the soldiers might have been injured when they fought in the thicket, not far from the waterfall..."

    "We'll go and check it out." Sir Thorbert turned to Felix and Sir Viktor, "I'll leave a contingent of my men to assist with the guard here. It'll be best to keep the back gate closed and at least one, if not both, the front ones."

    The men moved away, discussing their plans and Elissa was left alone in the hall. However, Mavis entered soon after the men moved out of hearing and Elissa suspected that the servant had eavesdropped on the conversation.

    It's the same as at home, she mused, the servants have a need to be in the 'know'.

    She spoke cheerfully, "Mavis, I want to meet all the staff here at the manor house. Then we'll organize them to prepare enough food for the extra men who'll be here by this evening. It will be too late to ride back to Frencberg tonight. I've no desire to be on the roads until after they've captured Dagan. Later, I'll have you take me on a tour of the manor house." 

    Elissa wanted to inspect this delightful old home before she returned to Frencberg. Mavis agreed with Elissa's requests and said they could start on the inspection now.

    Elissa discovered she slept the previous night in the bed that had last belonged to Sir Louis' mother, the bedchamber next to the master's.

    There were ten guest chambers as well as a large nursery chamber and six children's bedrooms, a small library, a small office, and a sitting room.

    Downstairs the great hall was central to a rectangular corridor feeding into different chambers; a large sitting room; a family dining hall; the master office; and a small reception room and a library. Out past the one large kitchen were the storerooms and servant's quarters.

    Mavis pointed to the side of the main building where a high square tower stood with an 'L' shaped building beneath. Mavis called this the 'bulwark'. This was where visiting knights and soldiers stayed and it was the domicile for uniforms and weapons. The bulwark contained separate kitchen and dining hall facilities, which were used on the rare occasions several large companies were in residence. Although Elissa already knew these facilities were 'men only', Mavis went into a long discourse about the fact that she could not take Elissa there.

    "They be off-limits to all, other than the master and his knights, soldiers and their men-servants," she said as though imparting first-hand information.

    Elissa had Mavis set the smaller table in the family dining room, which, she learned, was called the 'small hall'.

    She hoped Louis would cooperate with her idea of just the two of them taking the evening meal together here. There was so much to discuss, and Elissa wanted time alone with her betrothed.

    I've never been alone with him, she thought. Likely we will leave early tomorrow morning for Frencberg and the coronation, followed by our marriage ceremony.

    To her surprise, she looked forward to the wedding now, but only so she could return soon and live here.

    Already, Elissa felt comfortably at home. As she toured the manor house, she whispered a prayer of thanks for this place —her place.

    Her mind sank as she considered the huge castle at Frencberg. Must she ever return there? I'm happy to find resolution for all my troubles by staying here. Thank you God.

Elissa brightened even more as she thought of her imminent wedding, and began to wonder what she would wear? I hope Louis comes soon... I'm sure he'll be pleased to see me alive and well...