“Madame Isoult, trust your man to me. I will leave Cavendish and a guard here. They shall clear out these shambles. And to-morrow you shall see our faces again.”
She looked Knollys steadily in the eyes.
“Yes, I trust you. But this man of mine has not slept.”
Fulk laughed.
“What is a night without a bed to a forester? Knollys, I am with you. Our horses are in the stable.”
“You shall take Cavendish’s. It will save time, and we can get fresh mounts on the road. I blow like a north wind when my blood is up. Come.”
He took Isoult’s hand, lifted it to his lips, and then turned towards the door.
“Take her in your arms, lad. A brave woman is worth all the good wine in the world.”
CHAPTER XXXIX
It was late in the afternoon when they saw William of Wykeham’s tower rising above the trees like a casket of rose-red marble. The track ran near the river, and a long curve of placid water ended in the great castle set upon its hill. It was lush country, and very green, and pleasant to behold, and in some of the meadows men were making hay.