Earning the Love of a Princess-Chapter 207: Pockets

"You’re not angry for keeping from you that I was meeting with Ned?" Camilla raised herself on one elbow to look into his eyes.

"I’m not exactly thrilled to discover my wife has been spending parts of her days in another man’s company." William’s tone and his smile were both wry. "But I know there was nothing deceptive about it. And if I’d thrown one of my tantrums and forbidden you to meet with him, we wouldn’t know what we know now about the marquis. So I guess it was all for the best."

"What do you plan to do now? About Lord Michal, I mean."

"You mean besides immediately telling the king all that you’ve discovered? Nothing, really. I can’t confront him with no evidence." William twirled his fingers around a lock of her hair absently. "I doubt my uncle will be quick to move either. With his elder son dead and a peace treaty signed between Islia and Moraigth, Lord Michal is no great threat to the House of Devon anymore. Short of executing him, there’s no punishment we can impose that will cause him greater suffering than losing his son, wouldn’t you agree?"

"But what he did is treason. I can’t see your uncle letting that go unpunished."

William gave a short laugh. "I’ve no doubt the king will take him down one of these days. But for now, I think...if Lord Michal is imprisoned or executed now, the noble title has to pass to Ned. And you’ve said so yourself, Ned doesn’t want to be Marquis of Niarnol." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"There’s nothing he wants to avoid more." Camilla agreed. "Ned swears he has other plans for his future."

"And the fact is, the crown needs a competent man as marquis, one with the experience and ability to keep everything on an even keel. Lord Michal can continue to be that man for now, until my uncle decides to eventually do away with him. Which I’m sure he will, in the not too distant future. But for now, we may as well let the arrogant dog keep working for us and make himself useful, right? Especially since he’s now lost his bite."

"What do you think will the king eventually do?" Camilla knew King Edward wasn’t one to ever show mercy to an enemy.

"Honestly? Probably behead him as a traitor. But likely not until he has another son to be his heir, or unless Ned changes his mind and is willing to accept the Marquessate and work for the good of the crown. And the truth is, a marquis of such important lands who’s weak and unskilled, will only create more headaches for the king."

Camilla shook her head. "I don’t think Ned will ever change his mind about the title. He’d crack under that yoke. He craves his freedom too much."

"Well then, Lord Michal needs to pray his wife takes a very long time to give him another boy." William chuckled humourlessly. "Life is rich in irony, isn’t it? That poor, fat fool is probably on his knees every night, praying for a son. And it’s now that very lack of a son that will keep his head on his neck. If he weren’t the only option to manage the Marquessate adequately, I’d be happy for the bastard to be executed tomorrow."

"I suppose that makes sense." Camilla muttered, the entire conversation leaving her feeling unsettled. "I guess it just feels like the marquis escapes punishment for now."

"I know, pretty girl. Sometimes justice is served out slower than it should be. Let me speak with my uncle and tell him everything. He may wish to approach all this in another manner."

William seemed to sense her inner turmoil because he didn’t say anything more. Instead, he held her against him in silence, stroking her back until she eventually fell into a restless slumber.

- - -

The following day dawned crisp and clear. It was finally the morning scheduled for the Islian royal party to depart and begin their journey to Magdaline Castle.

Camilla’s heart bubbled with joy at the prospect of rejoining the court and being with her little boy again. She watched as Bonnie made one final tally of the possessions packed in the trunk, to make sure nothing was at risk of being left behind at Ferrenthor. The only thing dampening Camilla’s excitement was that she hadn’t been able to say goodbye to Ned yet.

After sharing one last awkward meal with the marquis and marchioness in their luxurious but soulless dining hall, William and Camilla mounted their horses, along with the rest of their travelling companions.

Camilla kept craning her neck on the lookout for Ned, hoping to see his curly head and cheeky, friendly face one last time. He was nowhere in sight.

Lord Michal looked up at Camilla on her horse and bobbed his head politely. She was sorely tempted to kick his stupid, pompous face. Instead, she managed to find a chilly smile for him.

Lord Michal’s brow creased briefly at her expression but he quickly focused his attention to William. "Your Grace, it has been a true honour and privilege to host you in my home these past days. I pray you’ll remember everything that we discussed and will share my thoughts with His Majesty."

William cocked his head. "Mmm." The noncommittal nature of reply was evident to all, as was his cool tone.

At that, the marquis started to look genuinely worried. William gave him no chance to reply however, turning his steed away from Lord Michal and toward the courtyard entry.

"Let us depart." William said abruptly and began leading his party forward.

Camilla followed, glancing around the courtyard and the grand house one last time. There was no sign of Ned, just a nervous looking marquis, standing awkwardly and looking up at William with a silent plea on his face.

Camilla then ended up locking eyes with Sarai.

The marchioness stood a little apart from her husband, wearing her usual extravagant lace veil. She stared up at Camilla with hostility and Camilla stared back equally hard, tipping her chin upwards ever so slightly. She was rarely one to pull rank, but to do so now over Sarai gave her petty satisfaction.

"Come on, my love! Let’s go to see our boy." William’s voice called out from the edge of the courtyard.

Feeling a genuine smile spreading across her face, Camilla looked away from Sarai and steered her mare to follow her husband and exit the courtyard.

Soon, the quiet countryside passed by them in a blur as they cantered along. Camilla found herself quietly contemplating the previous days’ events. Her thoughts however, were eventually interrupted by the sound of a faint horn. She slowed her horse down and looked behind her.

William did the same, obviously hearing the sound as well. Their small group watched as a distant figure on horseback approached them, growing bigger and bigger as they closed the distance.

Eventually, the rider reached them. He was dressed in the grey tunic of a Ferrenthor servant. The man bowed his head in deference and silently handed William a folded parchment before he turned and started riding back towards the manor house.

William took the note and unfolded it. His eyes skimmed the parchment and Camilla saw his jaw clench.

It clearly wasn’t good news. She pulled her mare next to William, so she could speak with him without the rest of their group overhearing. "What has happened?"

"They found Ned Michal at dawn." William’s voice was flat as he glanced at his wife. "They fished out his corpse from a creek not far from Ferrenthor. He’d filled the pockets of his tunic and trousers full of rocks."

The hope that had briefly bloomed in Camilla’s heart when William mentioned Ned had been found, quickly shriveled. It was replaced by a wave of genuine grief. She crossed herself as tears prickled behind her eyelids. "Dammit, Ned."

William looked at her sympathetically. "I’m sorry I don’t have better news. You grew quite fond of him, didn’t you?"

Camilla nodded as she tried to swallow an enormous lump in her throat. "He was a genuinely sweet soul. I don’t care that everyone thought he’d make a terrible marquis. He was a good man."

"Well, now even I feel sorry for the marchioness." William crumpled the note in his hand. "Poor Sarai will be under even more pressure to bear a son as quickly as possible. Preferably two, just in case."

"Why does Lord Michal need two sons? So he can neglect the second one again?" Camilla could tell William was surprised by the sudden vehemence in her voice. "It’s his own fault Ned was considered a poor replacement for his older brother. If you don’t bother giving a boy any attention or bother educating him, you then have no right to complain that he’s not the heir you wished for."

William reached out and squeezed her hand briefly, his voice soft. "I suspect you’re right, my love. This is a mess of Lord Michal’s own making and he’ll have to find a way to fix it. As for Ned..."

"Ned, at least, is finally free." Camilla finished firmly, able to manage a tiny smile despite her sorrow. "He’s where he’s wished to be all along."