Free The Squire’s Tale by Margaret Frazer Page B

south gate, became a street and opened out among the houses and shops into the marketplace with its finely wrought Eleanor cross and, more to the present necessity, a choice of inns for their dinner. Lady Blaunche had been happy enough with the Green Lion on her way to St. Frideswide’s to return there now and the meal they were served at one of the long tables in its main room justified her choice though Frevisse and Dame Claire perforce made do with ale and bread and a simple pease pottage meant for servants. But it was a new brewing of ale, and the bread, though rye, was satisfyingly crusty outside and soft—for rye bread—within. They had to refuse butter on it and as the tormenting smell of the other women’s mutton stew reached them Dame Claire said aside to Frevisse, “This is not going to be easy”; but no one had stinted on the herbs in the pease pottage and it was savory enough that all in all they did none so badly.
     
    Trouble only came at the meal’s end, when Lady Blaunche was paying the host and he asked where they were bound for and she answered, “North into Warwickshire.”
     
    To that he frowned worriedly and asked, “By the direct way, my lady?”
     
    She frowned back at him. “Of course by the direct way. Why?”
     
    ‘The northward bridge into Warwickshire is out. Yesterday’s rains did for it, seems like.“
     
    ‘It’s out?“ Lady Blaunche’s voice rose. ”I crossed it yesterday. It can’t be out!“
     
    ‘It is, my lady. Two different carters have been in here today, not half angry about having to turn back and take another road.“
     
    ‘But I have to go that way,“ Lady Blaunche said. ”That’s the road I want to take!“
     
    ‘I can’t help you there, my lady.“ The man was regretful but too used to travellers and their upsets at what he could not change to be much bothered by this present one.
     
    ‘What about fording anywhere that way?“ one of the men asked.
     
    ‘Shouldn’t have much hope of any ford,“ the host said. ”Not if the water’s been bad enough to take that bridge out. Your best hope is east over the Cherwell bridge here. It’s—“
     
    ‘I don’t want to go east!“ Lady Blaunche protested.
     
    ‘Or else try westward to the first bridge upriver. There’s no trouble that way that I’ve heard.“
     
    He withdrew across the room then, leaving Lady Blaunche speechlessly near to distraught and no one knowing what to say, until she sat herself abruptly down onto a bench and said at no one in particular, “I don’t want to go that way.”
     
    ‘My lady,“ Mistress Avys tried soothingly, ”it’s not that great a matter to be upsetting yourself for it.“
     
    ‘I
have
to go that way,“ Lady Blaunche repeated.
     
    ‘But you can’t,“ one of the men dared. ”There’s not point in even trying, what with the bridge out. Best we can do is go straight for the first bridge upriver and be done with it.“
     
    Lady Blaunche shot angrily to her feet. “But that puts us on a whole different road to home!”
     
    ‘It makes no odds, my lady,“ Mistress Avys said, beginning to be distressed with her. ”We’ll be a little later home is all. Isn’t that so, Jack?“
     
    ‘By tomorrow eventide, sure. Only a little more riding that would have been,“ the man Jack agreed.
     
    Mistress Avys made to pat Lady Blaunche’s arm. “See? There’s naught—”
     
    Lady Blaunche flung her hand aside, exclaiming at her, “That isn’t the point! That…”
     
    ‘What
is
the point, my lady?“ Katherine asked in an oddly careful voice.
     
    Lady Blaunche spun around to face her but stopped short of answering and after the barest pause said instead of whatever she had been going to, “The point is where are we going to stay tonight? I don’t know anywhere on the way you’re all wanting me to go. What will we do if there’s nowhere?”
     
    ‘There’ll be somewhere,“ Jack assured her. ”There’s always somewhere.“
     
    Between