Justin de Quincy 2 Cruel as the Grave by Sharon Kay Penman

Author:Sharon Kay Penman
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2010-04-14T09:18:49+00:00

Sharon Kay Penman ogy to John's concubine for his bad manners. Her own manners were in need of mending, for she ignored him utterly, devoting all of her attention to her chicken. When Justin glanced back at John, he saw amusement in the other man's eyes. Unlike Durand, John was not hostile. He seemed curious, almost friendly, as if welcoming a distraction midst the monotony of the siege. The Prince of Darkness. Justin wondered suddenly if John knew about Claudine's private jest. He suspected that John would have been flattered, not offended. He must not let down his guard with this man. John could as easily doom him with a smile as with a curse. John was gnawing on a chicken leg, watching Justin all the while. "Are you ready now," he said, "to tell me why my mother sent you to spy on me? What guilty secrets did she hope that you'd unearth at Windsor?" "I was not sent here to spy upon you, my lord." "Durand says he found you ransacking my tower chamber. What were you doing, then, if not spying?" "That never happened. I was not searching your chamber." "You are saying that Durand lied?" Justin's mouth was dry and he paused to take a swallow of wine and draw a bracing breath now that the moment was at hand. "Do you speak English, my lord?" John shook his head in bafflement. "No, I do not... why?" "As English is unknown to you, so is the truth an alien tongue to Durand." John laughed. "I'll not quarrel with that. But Durand does nothing without a reason. So why would he lie to me about your spying?" "So you'd hang me." John considered that for a moment and then grinned again. "Ah, I am remembering now .. . the two of you got into a brawl over the Lady Claudine a few weeks back. I'd already left the 168 CRUEL AS THE GRAVE hall, was sorry I missed it. So he still bears you a grudge, does he? Well, I suppose it would be ungallant to suggest Claudine's charms are not worth dying for, so let's say you're speaking the truth. If you are not here to spy, why, then?" "The queen hoped that I could convince you to surrender the castle." "Did she, now?" John's affability had vanished; his face was a mask, impossible to read. "And how were you to do that?" "She wanted me to tell you that she is willing to offer you more generous terms. If you agree to yield up Windsor, Wallingford, and the Peak, she will see to it that you keep control of your castles at Nottingham and Tickhill." "Why did you not come in under a flag of truce, then?" "The other justiciars do not know of this offer, my lord," Justin said, and then held his breath, waiting to see if John would take the bait. Something flickered in those tawny gold eyes, too quickly to catch. Justin ate some of his chicken; even under such stressful circumstances, it tasted delicious.

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