The Holding - Book 1 in The Medieval Knights Series by Claudia Dain Read Free Book Online Page A

find it, I will determine its condition and do what is necessary."
    "Also," she said, plowing on, "Greneforde village, as you know, is no more. It was ravaged repeatedly in recent years and vanished completely two years ago. The survivors live inside the curtain wall."
    "Though there are few to feed, Greneforde's food stores are dangerously low," Rowland interjected softly.
    Cathryn stood as straight and slim as a seedling before a gathering wind as she faced the men across the bloodred table that separated them. She stood alone, yet she did not falter. Her next words resonated in the space for all their brevity.
    "It has been a hard year for Greneforde."
    "So it has been if you have lost all of your household knights in the last months," William said.
    Despite the evidence, he could not believe that Greneforde Tower had stood unmanned for so many weeks in a land overrun by wandering mercenaries who answered to no one. Especially in light of Rowland's observation; where had the food gone with so few people to consume it?
    Cathryn did not voice an answer to William's observation, but stood silent and still. It was Father Godfrey who directed the conversation back to the marriage contract.
    "Is there anything else included in your dower, Lady Cathryn?"
    Her composure unbroken, Cathryn answered directly to William, her eyes not leaving his.
    "There is no coin, no jewels, no plate. What my father did not take with him on pilgrimage, the years of war have eaten."
    She brought little in the way of liquid wealth to the bond, but she brought what William desired most: a home and land. Looking at her, straight-backed and clear-eyed, he could not but feel pride at her honor and her dignity in telling them of Greneforde's poverty.
    Father Godfrey looked now at William, checking first to see that George had recorded Cathryn's portion.
    "And now an accounting of what William le Brouillard brings to the union."
    Cathryn took a slight step forward, her eyes intent on William's. Noting her tension, William thought he had a glimpse into the workings of her mind. By law, their portions must be of equal value. If his portion did not equal hers, the marriage could be canceled. With a large measure of pride and a deep breath, he held her eyes and began.
    "For my portion I claim a dinner service of hammered silver, twelve plates of gold, five hundred gold pieces, a trunk of spice, a trunk of woven cloth from the East, twelve warhorses, a small bag of gems with settings of gold and silver, and a bag of seed."
    At the mention of the seed, and only of the seed, Cathryn's eyes lit with dark fire and she looked at William hungrily. So she cared little for his gold and much for his seed. They had that, at least, in common, and he remarked upon it, "These seeds I have gathered from many lands to someday enrich my own land," he said warmly. "We share an interest in agriculture, it seems."
    Cathryn tried to ignore the warmth of his tone and the way his eyes suddenly shone upon her like fine silver plate.
    "You bring many fine and costly gifts to our marriage, my lord, but the prospect of food when one is hungry is most welcome." Smiling politely, she added, "I am certain that I will appreciate the golden plate when my stomach is full of roasted goose."
    William had known hunger as too close a companion not to appreciate her sentiment; he had known great hunger, endless hunger, following the Way. He smiled fully in agreement.
    And Cathryn forgot about the seed.
    Never before had she seen such dazzling beauty in a man. His smile lit the world as the sun never had, and she wondered why the intensity of it did not blind her.
    The world shrank to only him. All sound ceased. All thought fled. He was consuming her and she stood motionless, unable to breathe. A stillness unlike any she had experienced rose from within her—not a self-imposed control of emotion, but a frozen stillness that came from the center of her and cascaded out, almost freezing the very air