“Are you lost?” Victoria suppressed a grin.
“I thought I would ask that question of you, m’lady.” The knight bowed his head while sitting atop his mount.
Victoria burst out in laughter, not being able to control it, after hearing his speech patterns. He spoke with an English accent, but it wasn’t modern in the least.
“Okay, you’re not at the faire anymore. You can give up the pretense. I’m not a damsel in distress. Who are you?”
“I am Sir William of Conrad, m’lady.” He bowed his head again, ever so slightly and glanced at her as if waiting for something in return. “And you are?”
“I’m Victoria Budroix and I’m tiring of this charade. Do you have a cell phone?”
Sir William stared at her as if she was speaking in a foreign language.
“Cell phone? Do you have one?”
“I am sorry, I have never heard of such a thing. I do see by your attire that you are a lady of good breeding. From whence do you hail?”
“Okay, enough! I can see that I’m getting nowhere, so I’m going home.”
With that, Victoria grabbed Raven by a shock of her mane, hiked her dress up and swung up onto the horse’s back. She ignored the audible gasp from Sir William and adjusted herself on Raven’s back, pulling her tunic down to her knees.
“M’lady, I must protest your appearance! Please cover up your legs. You can’t be seen riding around like a commoner.”
Victoria began to think maybe this guy’s chain mail was on too tight. He was taking this medieval thing a little too far and she wasn’t in the mood for any more of his antics. She nudged Raven with her heels and set off at a canter down the path. But as she rounded the curve, she caught a glimpse of an unbelievable sight. In the distance, where her ranch should be, loomed an immense, stone castle.
Victoria pulled up on the reins and stopped to stare at the sight before her. The stones holding it together were old, and there was moss and ivy climbing up the walls. A large tower arose from one corner and the outer walls sported round turrets filled with soldiers. Her head was spinning as she tried to make some sense out of this obvious hallucination.
I must have hit my head hard when I fell and I’m still asleep. The last thing she had been thinking about was writing a story about medieval adventures.
Hoof beats sounded behind her
Was this Conrad castle? And did that make the knight…Sir William of Conrad?
No wonder her knight didn’t know what a cell phone was. She must be dreaming about medieval days.
I really need to wake up!
Sir William caught up to her and brought his horse alongside hers. He wasn’t smiling as he reached over and grabbed the reins out of Victoria’s hand.
“M’lady, I must insist! You must stay with me until you are in a better humor.”
Victoria instantly tugged back on the reins and jerked them out of Sir William’s hands. “No one takes the reins from me while I’m riding! And I don’t see myself getting in a humorous mood any time soon! So don’t expect any chuckles from me, Sir William!”
She wondered at her own extreme reaction, even for a dream. But the odd thing was, everything felt so real. The smells, the colors, even the sounds from the forest.
“M’lady, you are acting shamefully. I’m trying to tell you that you are not well. You are ill-humored from falling off your horse.” With that Sir William looped a spare rope around Raven’s neck and began leading her towards the castle.
Victoria started to protest again, but then decided it might be interesting to see what her imagination had conjured up for the inside of a castle. As they neared the structure, Victoria saw the drawbridge being lowered on heavy iron chains, with clanking sounds of metal on metal and a heavy thud as it landed in place. While they crossed the wooden drawbridge, she could see the murky water below. It let off a stench of rotting logs and all kinds of disposed of waste.
She swallowed hard and tried not to breathe through her nose until they passed through the gatehouse and reached the courtyard inside the walls. Here there were all types of people; farmers, craftsmen and men selling vegetables. The women were scurrying children from one place to another or gathering supplies for preparing the meals.
“Where are we?” Victoria asked breathlessly.
Sir William eyed her carefully. “You don’t know?”
“No. I wouldn’t ask you if I knew.” She was getting impatient and wanted some answers. Because now she knew that this was real. No dream could be this vivid with the smells coming from the moat. She wrinkled her nose as the wind blew another reminder to her. She was awake, but she had no idea where she was or how she got here. And the only one who was helping her was a man she kept butting heads with.
“You are in Conrad castle. This is my father’s shire. You are now under my protection as long as is needed, or until your clan come for you and claim you.”
“Claim me? No one needs to claim me. I’m my own person. I take responsibility for myself!” Victoria was white with rage. The audacity of this man to say she needed his protection.
We shall see about that.
Victoria dismounted from her horse before Sir William could get from his horse to help her. He handed the reins of the horses to a stable boy and led Victoria inside the castle keep. A large room, with high ceilings, greeted them. The walls were adorned with tapestries and in one corner a page stood waiting for orders. Sir William waved to the page.
“Send for my mother, at once.”
Victoria turned to Sir William. “I want to make my position clear. I would like to stay here for the night.”
“We shall see what Lord Conrad has to say.” Sir William observed with a quirky smile. “In the meantime, I shall leave you with the ladies of the castle so you can be refreshed and relax after your ordeal.”
Victoria still didn’t see what the big ordeal was, but according to Sir William, a woman who was out in the forest by herself would be totally distraught and helpless. She thought that sounded ridiculous until she met the ladies with which she was to stay.
* * *
“Lady Victoria, I’d like you to meet my mother, Lady Adelaide. I’ve explained what happened to you and that you’ll be staying with us until Lord Conrad decides what must be done.”
“Welcome, Lady Victoria, please come with me and I’ll see to your needs.” Lady Adelaide appeared to be a kind woman, with a gracious air about her. She wore a fine linen tunic and her hair was braided tight up underneath a cap like the one Rose had been wearing at the faire. Victoria nodded to her, but wanted to address Sir William before he left.
“Sir William! Wait. What do you mean about Lord Conrad deciding what must be done?”
“Your disposition, m’lady. Since you refuse my protection, then we must find someone with whom you will abide by. You can go with them to their shire and reside there until your clan returns for you.”
“But I don’t want to be under anyone’s protection. I can take care of myself.”
Sir William threw back his head and laughed heartily. “Lady Victoria, you can’t even find your way back to your own shire without falling off your horse and knocking yourself out.”
Victoria stood with her hands on her hips, shaking her head as Lady Adelaide patted her on the arm, trying to comfort her. She looked at Lady Adelaide. “What do I do now?”
“Well, my dear, when I have a problem, I find needlepoint very relaxing. Or perhaps you’d like to stroll around the grounds. We have some lovely gardens. Or…” She glanced up and down Victoria’s attire. , “Perhaps you’d like a bath?”
“What I’d really like to do is check on my horse. I want to make sure that she’s getting food and water.”
Lady Adelaide nodded her head. “Let me reassure you that Raven is being well cared for and after the noon meal I will escort you down to the stables. Right now, there were some other ladies that want to meet you and they have influence with the lords of the castle.” <
br />
So, Victoria acquiesced and they went into a large sunny room that was filled with tapestries and sewing hoops.
“This is where we like to come to do our sewing and needlepoint. And this…” Lady Adelaide motioned to a woman about Victoria’s age. ”"This is Lady Emeline. She is to be betrothed to Sir William soon.”
Lady Emeline offered a passive smile, held her hand out and slightly touched Victoria’s fingers. Her hand was cold and she seemed unfriendly. But Victoria chalked it up to the fact that her soon to be fiancé had returned home with another woman.
“And this is Lady Mirabell. She is so useful to us all with her talents.”
“Hello, Lady Mirabel. And what talents do you have?” Victoria asked politely.
All the ladies in the room erupted in titters of laughter at her question and Lady Mirabel threw her hands up, as she laughed loudly.
But it was Lady Adelaide who explained, “Lady Mirabel knows everything about everyone in this castle. If you ever have any questions about someone, she is the one to ask.”
Lady Mirabell cut in enthusiastically. “Welcome, Lady Victoria! I couldn’t wait to meet you when I heard how you got here. What a fascinating tale we’ll get to hear. Imagine being out in the forest overnight all by yourself. You must tell me the whole story.”
“Yes, imagine…” Victoria smiled but caught the glare from Lady Emeline out of the corner of her eye.
I’m going to have to watch her very carefully.
The ladies sat silent for some time in between periods of chatter and laughter, all the while working on their sewing and needlepoint. Victoria was not interested in sewing, besides, they were using medieval tools which were different and the bone she had for a needle was much too large. They brought her back to the question of: where was she and what time was it?
She was certain Rose was aware of her disappearance by now. With Victoria and Raven gone, someone had to be looking for her. She turned to Lady Adelaide.
“Lady Adelaide…” she began, trying to remember the importance of titles to these people. “Can you tell me the date?”
“Let me think. It is two months and two days past Easter Day, the year of our Lord twelve-hundred and ten.” Lady Adelaide did not miss a stitch on her tapestry as they talked, but Victoria was stunned. She must have heard her wrong. She put down the needle and thread she had been trying to work with and stared at Lady Adelaide.
“Could you say that again?” She whispered, her voice shaking.
“Is something wrong, my dear?”
But Victoria did not answer. She lay unconscious on the floor.
Chapter 4
Victoria awoke in a large room containing an oversized four poster bed, a side table with a wash basin on it and an armoire filled with brightly colored kirtles and tunics. She was underneath a down featherbed, which she pushed aside as she sat up to look around. Someone had undressed her and laid her clothes carefully on the side table, but her blue brooch wasn’t in sight.
She slid down off the high bed and started examining all the nooks and crannies, but it wasn’t in the room. It angered her that she couldn’t find it. It was one of the few things she had right now to tie her to her real home and her real time. In fact, she had an idea that somehow, the brooch had something to do with how she got here.
She stopped and sat on the bed. What was she going to do? She couldn’t tell these people that she was from the twenty first century. They would lock her up and throw away the key. Or, would they think she was some kind of sorceress for claiming special knowledge about the future?
History was never her best subject, but she knew enough to know about thirteenth century England. She would have to be very careful about what she said or did from now on, especially around Lady Emeline. The lady obviously did not like her and was watching and listening to her a little too carefully. Victoria could walk into a trap if she wasn’t mindful of herself.
Breaking her train of thought, a small rapping sounded on the heavy oak door. Victoria pulled on her dressing gown and tied the sash.
“Come in.” Victoria waited for her caller. A young servant girl entered with a pitcher of steaming water. She wore the plain attire of a servant and didn’t speak a word as she went about the duty of filling the wash basin. Victoria watched as the girl poured steaming hot water into the bowl and laid out fresh towels next to the pitcher.
Victoria smiled at her. “Thank you for the hot water. Tell me, what is your name?”
The girl paled and glanced around the room frantically. “Caron, m’lady.” She bowed her head, curtsied and hastily continued with her job.
“Do you think you could help me find a blue brooch that’s missing?” Victoria asked, casually.
The girl stiffened as if shot by an arrow. “I don’t know ‘bout a blue brooch that’s gone missin’ mi’lady. Honest! I didn’t take nothin’!” She spun and ran out of the room with tears streaming down her face.
Victoria blinked in surprise at her reaction. She jumped off the bed and tried to follow her, but she wasn’t dressed properly and Caron was gone in a flash through some passageway that probably led back to the servant’s quarters. Victoria shook her head and wondered what she had done to make the poor girl react that way.
A few moments later, Lady Adelaide, the cook and the young girl Caron were all standing in Victoria’s bedroom. Lady Adelaide was acting as a mediator for the shouting cook and a crying Caron. They all stared at Victoria’s scant attire in embarrassment.
“I apologize that we are disturbing you before you have had a chance to dress.” Lady Adelaide said.
Victoria shrugged and a bare shoulder appeared. “It’s alright, really.”
But the red faces of the maid and the cook meant that she was apparently not supposed to be seen like this. Victoria adjusted her gown again, but the flap in the front fell open.
The cook gasped. “Excuse me m’lady. Should we leave and come back later?”
Victoria saw the tears still running down the maid’s face. “No, please stay.”
Lady Adelaide went on to explain the problem, all the while trying not to look at Victoria’s bare skin. “Apparently, by asking Caron to find the missing object, it was implied that she had taken it and needed to return it. This is the usual case in this household.”
“I assure you, I wasn’t accusing Caron of anything. She’s not guilty and needs no punishment.”
“That is fortunate, because the punishment would have been quite severe.” Lady Adelaide said.
Lady Adelaide, the cook, Caron and Victoria were all relieved that this incident was finished. Lady Adelaide dismissed the cook and made her own farewell.
“I shall see you in the drawing room later, my dear, after you are properly attired.”
After everyone else had gone, Caron continued to bow and thank Victoria and she promised to help find out who took the brooch. They decided to do it very quietly, so the culprit wouldn’t suspect anything.
***
Lady Victoria Budroix is invited to share the evening meal in the company of Lord Conrad and his household. This will be held in the main hall of Conrad Castle. You will be presented to Lord Conrad prior to the meal.
Victoria was officially summoned to meet Lord Conrad before the evening meal. She shook with fright. What if I slip up in front of him? I can’t let him find out my secret.
Victoria spent the next half hour rummaging through the armoire to find the most exquisite ensemble and she secretly thanked Rose for the lessons she’d passed on in medieval customs and etiquette. Finding a white, full tunic swirled with embroidered gold patterns and a soft cotton blouse to go under it, Victoria began to dress for the evening’s events. Lady Adelaide returned to help her finish getting dressed and touch up her hair.
“I do hope you will be staying with us, my dear.” Lady Adelaide smiled and squeezed her arm. “It would be nice to have you as an addition to my household.”
“I’m afraid I may have sa
id the wrong thing and your son thinks I do not want to stay.” Victoria said sadly. She thought about her missing brooch. “Although I do want to stay.”
“Why don’t you just tell William that you want his protection? I’m sure he would never deny you.”
There it was again, the insistence that she be under a man’s protection. Of all the people to be trapped in a medieval society, it had to be an independent woman who chooses to stand up for herself. Unfortunately, in this society, a woman did not have any rights. She was a second class citizen, useful only in providing heirs and marriages aimed at furthering alliances. Victoria groaned and gave a deep sigh. But Lady Adelaide gave her a nod of the head, and put her hands together, smiling kindly.
“I know what you’re thinking, my dear. I used to feel the same way before I married Lord Conrad. Ours was an arranged marriage to cement a treaty between my father’s shire and this one. Had we not been married, there would have been war for many years and much loss of life on both sides. I was the one thing that could prevent that war. A noble thing for a woman, don’t you think?
“But you married a complete stranger.” Victoria shivered and thought about her own disastrous marriage. She had married a man who claimed to love her, but only wanted someone to cook and clean for him. He became brutally hostile at her independence and their marriage ended when he struck her, demanding obedience.
“I have come to love and respect Sir Conrad. By all appearances, it may look like I have no say, but you’ll find that a wife who is attentive and clever in private needs to say very little in places that would otherwise upstage her husband.” Lady Adelaide gave a serene smile and patted her on the hand. “That’s just a little something to remember, my dear.”
“I think it’s a little late for marriage counseling.” Victoria offered.
“Are you married?”
“No. And I’m not going to be, either.”
“My dear, you should always consider the most unusual possibilities as being more probable than you think, in these fast moving times. One can hope for the ideal in their life, but alas, we must allow latitude for change.”
“In other words, hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst?”
“Yes and no. Hope for the best, but allow for all the rest.”