Free A Tapestry of Dreams by Roberta Gellis Page B

true, my lord,” Hugh agreed eagerly. “They do not love the Scots and will be quick to join you if they are able. So, if your army comes before the lesser keeps are taken, David will have little hold on the land.”
    “And if King David starts with Jernaeve,” Bruno put in, smiling grimly, “he will need his whole army, and it will be long before he is free to turn elsewhere.”
    Stephen looked at Bruno with surprise and doubt, and the man flushed slightly. Hugh had a sudden feeling of recognition—not that he knew Bruno personally, but the signs he had noted subconsciously had suddenly fallen into place. Although he was well beyond the age for knighting, no “Sir” had preceded Bruno’s name, and not even a place name, like “Bruno of Jernaeve,” had followed it. Yet Bruno’s speech was the language of the nobility, fluent French, pure of accent, and his clothing, like Hugh’s own, was far better than that of any ordinary man-at-arms. What Hugh recognized was a condition similar to his own: a man who was a part of the ruling class and yet had no recognized place in it. A wave of fellow feeling made Hugh want to offer support.
    “That is no idle boast,” Hugh said. “I have never been in Jernaeve, but I have seen it. It is very strong, and my lord will testify to Sir Oliver’s tenacity in holding his lands.”
    “They are not his,” Bruno pointed out. “Jernaeve belongs to Sir Oliver’s niece, Demoiselle Audris.”
    “His niece?” Stephen repeated, interested. “Is the lady free to wed? Has she an heir—other than her uncle?”
    “She is a maiden,” Bruno answered.
    Hugh cared nothing about the lordship of Jernaeve, and he saw that Stephen’s interest had made Bruno uneasy. “If Jernaeve holds until you arrive, Sire,” he put in, trying to bring Stephen back to the Scottish invasion, “King David will be in evil case. His army must be smaller than yours. He will have to retreat from Jernaeve and any other keeps that are under attack to protect what he has already taken. Yet, if he puts his men into the keeps yielded to him, he will have no army with which to oppose yours and will himself be in danger of being taken prisoner. If he musters his men into an army, the keeps will fall back into your hands easily, either through being undermanned or by a change of heart of the garrison when they see your power. And all will be more fixed in their loyalty to you, seeing that you came so swiftly in strength to their support.”
    Stephen nodded. “So I think also. And I have not forgotten your part—or Bruno’s—in adding to my chances of success. I can use men of proven loyalty and hardiness of body. Will you both come into my household?”
    “No!”
    “Yes, my lord.”
    The voices mingled, but there was no doubt about who had agreed and who had denied the invitation. Bruno’s dark eyes shone with relief and pleasure; Hugh’s had widened in shocked dismay. Before Stephen could add anything, Bruno had dropped to one knee before the king’s chair.
    “Thank you, my lord!” he exclaimed. “I will serve you faithfully, I swear. When Alnwick yielded, those of us who were unwilling to accept the terms were given leave to go, and I lost my place. Thus, I am free to give my service where I will.”
    “You owe no fealty to Sir Oliver?” Stephen asked.
    Bruno shook his head. “I was born in Jernaeve and trained there by Sir Oliver’s kindness, for which I am grateful, so I rode to warn him of the coming of the Scots. But I have no place in Jernaeve.”
    Bruno’s quality, age, and lack of position had not escaped Stephen’s notice any more than it had escaped Hugh’s. “Are you Sir Oliver’s son?” the king asked.
    “No, I am not,” Bruno replied flatly and without hesitation, but then he flushed and an expression of anxiety crossed his face. “I swear I am not Sir Oliver’s get,” he added, “although we are said to look much alike.”
    Stephen nodded kindly. “I will not press you,