‘So that’s what all this is about, is it?’ said Ralph. ‘Now, I understand.’
Gervase Bret was pleased with what he had learned from his visit to Richard de Fontenel but disappointed that Ralph Delchard was not at the castle to hear about it. He repaired to his apartment in the keep and was delighted to find both Alys and Golde there, deep in conversation about their own visit that morning. He settled down on a bench.
‘How were you received by the lady Adelaide?’ he asked.
‘Very warmly,’ said Alys. ‘She was glad to see us.’
‘But not for the reason we thought,’ added Golde.
‘Why not?’ he said.
‘I thought that we’d be questioning her, Gervase, but we were the ones providing all the answers. The lady Adelaide showed a very keen interest in your work.’
‘Did she?’
‘Yes. She was very subtle about it, but it was almost as if she were trying to wheedle something out of us for her own advantage.’
‘Will she be appearing before you in any dispute?’ said Alys.
‘No, my love,’ he replied. ‘But two friends of hers will.’
‘Lady Adelaide’s two suitors?’
‘I wonder which one of them put her up to it?’
‘Neither, in my view,’ decided Golde. ‘The lady Adelaide is a person who knows how to look out for herself. And she likes to flaunt her wealth, doesn’t she, Alys?’
‘Oh, yes! Her house was a small palace.’
‘No wonder she has two men after her,’ observed Gervase.
Golde raised an eyebrow. ‘They’re not only interested in her house.’
Helped by Alys, she gave him a detailed account of their visit, admitting that she could not entirely make up her mind about the lady Adelaide. Of the latter’s essential kindness and intelligence there could be no doubt, but Golde suspected that there might be a darker side to the woman.
‘She was using us, Gervase.’
‘To what end?’
‘That’s what I couldn’t quite understand. But we felt manipulated.’
‘I felt overwhelmed,’ said Alys. ‘I’ve never been in a house like that before.’
‘You’re staying in a castle,’ teased Gervase. ‘What could be grander than this?’
‘It wasn’t just a question of size. It was the way that the lady Adelaide lived. Wherever we looked, we saw the woman’s touch. She has that house exactly the way that she wants it, doesn’t she, Golde?’
‘Yes. I can’t see her giving it up to marry either the lord Richard or the lord Mauger. She belongs there. It fits her so snugly.’
‘The lady Adelaide would hardly invite a husband to join her there,’ said Gervase. ‘If any house were surrendered, it would naturally have to be hers.’ He became pensive. ‘Did she say anything about the theft of the elephants?’
‘No more than we’ve already told you.’
‘Yet she was in the lord Richard’s house when they were stolen.’
‘She’s very conscious of that.’
‘What she did say was that she had an obsession about gold,’ recalled Alys. ‘If I had the opportunity, I dare say that I’d be the same.’ She beamed at her husband. ‘Would you buy a pair of gold elephants for me?’
‘Not this particular pair, my love,’ he said. ‘They’re too troublesome.’
‘But if you had the money, you’d spoil me, wouldn’t you?’
‘He already has,’ said Golde, fondly. ‘Gervase married you.’
‘Yes. That’s better than any amount of gold.’
He grinned shyly. ‘I’m very flattered, Alys, but it doesn’t get us anywhere nearer to solving either of these crimes. I’m still thinking about the fact that the lady Adelaide was with the lord Richard at the exact moment they and Hermer disappeared.’
‘So?’
‘Could it be that she was deliberately keeping him occupied?’
‘You mean that she was party to the crime, Gervase? Oh, no!’
‘I’m not so sure,’ said Golde, ruminating. ‘The lady Adelaide would certainly not be involved in murder but I fancy that she’d go to any lengths to acquire something whose sparkle attracted her enough. She’s very single-minded.’
‘She must be,’ said Gervase, ‘to be able to keep men like the lord Richard and the lord Mauger at bay. There’s more than singlemindedness in action there. The lady Adelaide is not easily dismayed, either. Brother Daniel was shocked to the core when he chanced on that dead body but the murder didn’t put the lady Adelaide off her food. She was also the one person who remained calm when Richard de Fontenel burst in.’
Alys shivered. ‘That was terrifying,’ she said. ‘Is it always like this when you visit a city as a royal commissioner, Gervase? Theft, murder, violence and heaven knows what else? Is this what usually happens?’
‘Our work is never entirely without incident, my love.’
‘That’s putting it mildly,’ said Golde. ‘What will you do next?’
‘Nothing at all until I’ve spoken to Ralph. And I’ll want a word with the sheriff to see if he has any news about Starculf’s whereabouts. Beyond that, I’m not sure, to be honest.’ He got to his feet. ‘I know what I’d like to do.’
‘What’s that?’
‘Pay a second visit to Olova.’
‘Is she the lady in the Henstead hundred?’ said Alys.
‘Yes, my love,’ he said, touching her shoulder. ‘It was wrong of me to ride there with the lord Eustace and an armed escort. Olova was a Saxon lady who’s suffered much at the hands of Norman soldiers. I just couldn’t get through to her properly.’
‘Do you think it was important to do so?’
‘Very important, Alys. I’m certain that Olova knew more than she told me.’
Golde smiled. ‘Would you like me to speak to her?’ she offered.
Drogo the Steward was annoyed when he reached the appointed place and saw no sign of either the man or his horse. It was so untypical of Clamahoc. He was always very punctual. Drogo made sure of that. The servant had been corrupted by a judicious mixture of threat and money. He was too involved to turn back, too frightened of the consequences. Drogo resolved to instil his own brand of fear when the man finally arrived. His spy would be roundly chastised for his lateness. Dismounting from his horse, the steward tethered it to one of the bushes. He and Clamahoc always met near that copse, taking advantage of its cover and its convenient position midway between the two estates. In the shade of the trees, much invaluable information had been passed between them.
No more would be forthcoming. Drogo had the odd sensation that he was not alone. When a muted groan came from the heart of the copse, he reached for his dagger. A second groan gave him some idea of where to go and he pushed his way cautiously through the undergrowth. It did not take him long to find him. Clamahoc had been punctual, after all. Lying face down on the ground, he squirmed and twitched in agony, his bare back crisscrossed with lacerations and smeared with dried blood. A savage punishment had taken him close to death.
Drogo let out a cry of alarm then used a tentative foot to turn the man over. ‘Who did this to you?’ he demanded.
But his spy imparted no useful information this time. His tongue had been cut out.
Chapter Ten
Ralph Delchard studied the animal with intense interest. Holding the wooden elephant in his hand, he turned it slowly around to examine it from all angles. Eustace Coureton was equally fascinated. The carving was crude and unfinished but the main features of the elephant’s physiognomy were all there. Jocelyn Vavasour had vanished into his hut. When he reappeared, he brandished an earlier attempt at woodcarving.
‘This is the first one that I did,’ he said, passing it to Ralph. ‘It will give you a clearer idea of what an elephant looks like.’
Ralph was intrigued. ‘Look at the size of that trunk!’ ‘And those ears!’ said Coureton, reaching out to touch them. ‘So large and yet so smooth. You’ve got a rare talent, Jocelyn.’
‘No,’ said the other modestly. ‘They’re poor copies of the originals.’
‘At least, they give us an idea of what we’re looking for.’