The Splendid Hour by Kathryn Le Veque
CHAPTER FIVE
Peter was up early.
He knew the markets in London were open before dawn, so he was up before the sun rose, heading into London along a cold, dark road that began to turn shades of blue and purple as the sun peeked over the horizon. The road was surrounded by trees, so the birds were up early, making noise and swooping down into the grass along the side of the road in search of a meal.
Not strangely, Peter had lain awake most of the night, wrought with anticipation. He’d pretended to be asleep when his family returned late from Hollyhock House and his mother even checked on him to make sure he was well. He pretended that she had awakened him, assuring her that he was quite well before pretending to go back to sleep.
But he didn’t.
He lay awake most of the night, thinking about that magnificent woman with the raven-black hair and the blue eyes, thinking more and more about the Jewish religion and what he didn’t know about it. History was rife with persecution of the Jews – he knew that from his early education from the priests in the village of Somerhill where he fostered – but beyond being told they had “killed Christ”, he just didn’t know that much about them. All he knew was that they were perceived as being different and that didn’t sit well with him. When he looked at Liora, he saw a beautiful woman and nothing more. He’d called her a Jewess as one would call him a Christian. It was simply an identifier of religion and culture.
Something he was becoming increasingly interested in.
Of course, he’d only just met the woman. It wasn’t like he was determined to marry her tomorrow. But he could only imagine how proud he would be with a magnificent wife like Liora who, according to custom and protocol, wasn’t even afforded the honorary address of “lady”. That was only reserved for the Christian nobility, not the Jews. He’d called her “Demoiselle” as a polite form of address, but that was the limit of what he could call her.
Somehow, it didn’t seem fair.
Liora had told him that she would be back home after her shopping trip this morning, but he couldn’t wait that long, hence his trip into London in the early morning hours. He knew that the Jewish market was on Poultry Street, something he’d never been to but, knowing London as he did, he was aware of the districts. It was his intention to head over to Poultry Street and see if he could spy the woman with hair as dark as night. Perhaps the mystery of her had his attention just as much as her beautiful face.
In any case, he was eager to see her.
Peter reached Poultry Street as the sun continued its ascent, bathing the land in its golden glow. Poultry Street, as he immediately saw, was packed with people at this early morning hour as shoppers and vendors converged. It was quite the madhouse and Peter paused at the edge of the lane, knowing he couldn’t take his warhorse through the crowd. It would be awkward and perhaps even dangerous for anyone who came too close to the horse, who was battle-trained. Strangers were the enemy. Quickly, he went in search of a livery and found one two blocks away. Paying the man well, he left his horse tethered in a stall as he ran back over to Poultry Street to begin his hunt.
Because the avenue was so jammed with people, Peter made his way to a small alleyway behind the businesses on the west side of the street. He knew he stuck out like the proverbial sore thumb in a district full of people of different dress and religion. The alley was mostly void of people except for a few vendors throwing aside crates or baskets. The southern end of the market was full of livestock and poultry, but only cows and goats, chickens and turkeys. There were no pigs that he could see. That portion of the road was sectioned off from the rest of the street by a small pathway, and to the north of the pathway were things like vegetables and fruits, and further up towards Catte Street were things like cheese and other food items.
Peter kept a sharp eye out for that dark-haired beauty as he made his way up the rear of the stalls. He kept peering around corners or through slats in the walls, looking at all of the people making their purchases for the day. There were a lot of children running about and as he reached the midway point on the street, he thought he saw Asa with some bigger boys running through the crowds.
Sensing that Liora must be close by, he continued making his way up the street by way of the back alley. When he reached a spice vendor, with the very air filled with the heady smell of a thousand different spices, he thought he caught sight of black-haired lady. He snuck around the spice vendor’s shack only to see that, indeed, it was Liora.
His heart leapt at the sight of her.
The sun was rising in the sky and the area was better illuminated now. Liora was with an older woman whose head was wrapped in a tight wimple and another much older woman who was clad in a variety of veils, all of them black. There was a servant following them around, carrying two big baskets that were already half-filled with items. They were heading south, towards the area with the cows and chickens, and Peter followed.
He began to stalk her.
Peter ignored the odd stares he was getting from the people around him as he followed Liora and her little group. He was waiting for just the right moment to reveal himself when he felt a sting to his neck. Something told him that Asa and his boy gang had found him and he whirled around, seeing the boys and their peashooters made from hollow pieces of straw.
Immediately, he set out after them.
When the boys saw the enormous knight bolting in their direction, they scattered. Asa was too slow to move, however, but he managed to release a scream as he slipped in the dirt, regained his footing, and then tore off as fast as he could. Peter was in motion, running around people in the crowd, as he bent over and scooped up some pebbles in the gutter all while he was still running. He managed to fire off three or four of the pebbles at the bigger boys who were running from him before firing off the last one at Asa’s head.
“Ow!” Asa yelled as the rock hit him on the back of the neck.
They had just rounded the corner on Catte Street and the boys were running at top speed. Peter came to a halt, watching them dash down the street.
“If I catch you, I will hang you by your feet and throw rocks at your heads!” he shouted after them. “You had better keep running, you foolish whelps!”
They shouted something at him but were too far away to be heard. One of them came to a halt and stuck his tongue out at Peter before continuing on. When they disappeared from view, Peter shook his head with disapproval at the naughty boys and returned to Poultry Street. He could only hope those little ruffians hadn’t caused him to lose sight of Liora.
He hurried back to where he had seen her and was relieved to see she hadn’t gotten far. She was by herself now, looking in the baskets of a vegetable stall while the women she was with were down the lane a short distance, looking at other things.
Peter saw his chance.
“Psst!”
He poked his head around the stall and hissed at her. He did it twice and the second time, she lifted her head, looking around to see where the sound was coming from. She didn’t see him, so she looked at her vegetables again until he hissed a third time, loudly, and her head snapped up. She looked right at him and their gazes locked.
Peter smiled broadly and crooked a finger at her.
Surprised, Liora’s eyes widened at the sight of him and she looked around to make sure the women she’d come with weren’t watching her. Hesitantly, she came around the stall and into the small alleyway behind it where Peter was hiding. She looked at him, shaking her head, perhaps in disapproval.
“What on earth are you doing here?” she said. “I told you that I would be home in a little while. You could have come to the kitchen yard later.”
He was smiling at her. In fact, he couldn’t seem to stop smiling at her. “I just had to see you,” he said. “I did not want to wait. Since I am sure you have no time to speak right now, I was wondering… there is a lovely meadow outside of Cripplegate. Do you know it?”
She cocked her head. “The meadow?” she said. “I do not think so, but I know where Cripplegate is. Why?”
The smile never left his face. “Because I was hoping… my lady, I beg you with all that I am, to meet me at Cripplegate this afternoon and we can take a walk in the meadow and talk.” His features were alive with sincerity. “I have so enjoyed speaking to you and that is not usual for me. It is rare that I meet a woman I feel comfortable with conversing and mayhap you will think that I am foolish, but I was hoping we could simply talk. Mayhap you will tell me about your life and how you live it. I am very interested in it. In you. Will you do me the honor?”
Liora was hesitant. That much was clear, but he had asked so sweetly. It wasn’t often that she had such a lovely request, from a handsome young knight no less. In fact, it had really never happened and the romantic in her, the young woman who was burdened with a rigid life and little joy, was both intrigued and touched by it.
Truth be told, she had been looking forward to seeing him today, too.
But it was wrong. She knew it was wrong. He was a Christian and she was a Jew, and in that aspect, what he was asking wasn’t proper. It was simply a harmless little flirtation between them until he came back for more. Liora was a young woman ruled by reason because it had been drilled into her from a very young age. Reason, responsibility, faith, and duty. That was all she’d ever lived by. But a sweet, handsome knight was appealing to the part of her that longed for something beyond her narrow world.
So much of her wanted to go with him.
“I… I do not know,” she finally said. “It is so kind of you to pay attention to me, but mayhap I should not have encouraged you to come and see me again. It was wrong.”
The smile faded from his lips. “Why is it wrong?”
She looked around nervously, making sure her mother and grandmother weren’t hunting for her. “Sir Peter,” she said plainly. “You are an utter delight. When you stumbled into my kitchen yard, I was quite happy to talk to you. It was an enjoyable experience, and when you asked me if you could see me today, I should not have given you encouragement. You realize that we cannot do anything more than we already have. We cannot become… friends. You do know that?”
Peter could see that this was going to end before it really got started and that wasn’t what he wanted at all. In fact, the mere thought was disappointing him far more than he realized it would.
“Why?” he said. “Because you are a Jewess? All I see is a beautiful woman I want to know better. Whether or not you are Jewish is of no matter to me but, clearly, it matters to you. Given our conversation yesterday and how you behaved towards me, it did not occur to me that it would. I thought you saw the man, not the armor.”
Liora could see that she’d offended him. “I did,” she said. “I do not care if you are Christian, Jewish, or Muslim. I do not see your religion, Peter, but my parents would see it, as your parents would see mine. So would those around us.”
Peter looked at her, realizing that she was trying to force him to see something he didn’t want to see. Deep down, he knew that he was being ridiculously blind to it, but he didn’t care.
All he saw was a woman he wanted to know.
“Don’t you think it only matters what we think?” he asked.
She sighed softly, a look of genuine regret on her face. “I wish it were that simple.”
“It is if we say it is.”
“I think you know that is not true.”
He did, only he refused to admit it. He’d never met a woman that he was attracted to that he couldn’t have. He was coming to wonder if her forbidden status might make her even more attractive to him. Men always wanted what they could not have but, in this case, he didn’t think her forbidden fruit was sweeter. It simply made him more disappointed that it wasn’t meant for him.
… or was it?
“Will you do something for me?” he said after a moment. “It will be painless, I assure you.”
Liora couldn’t look into that face and continue to refuse him. But she couldn’t seem to make herself walk away. “What is it?”
“For a moment,” he said softly. “For a brief and glorious moment, can we simply be a man and a woman, and have a lovely conversation? It is clear that we can get along well. We saw that yesterday. It is obvious that I am attracted to you and when I want something, I usually get it. Will you put aside your religion for just an hour? Just one hour is all I ask. Let us pretend there are no obstacles at all. I am willing if you are.”
She grunted hesitantly. “Sir Peter, I…”
He cut her off, though it was not harshly. “Please, listen to me,” he said, lowering his voice. “I told you that my father is the Earl of Hereford and Worcester. At the moment, he is leading the opposition against King John and I am at his right hand. Do you know what that means? I have seen battle after battle as of late and even now, my family is packing up Lonsdale so that we can return to the Marches. My future, at the moment, is nothing but death and war. There is nothing pleasurable that I have to look forward to. If you would simply give me a memory of something sweet and innocent and delightful, something to look upon when the days are dark and the nights darker, then I would be grateful. My world is nothing but warfare, Demoiselle. Will you at least give me a little light to shine upon it, if only for a moment?”
Her hesitation was gone. Of course, he was a knight. She knew that. She’d also known his father was a great earl but hearing him describe the life he lived was heartbreaking. This sweet, handsome man was facing gloom and doom. She barely knew him but, already, she didn’t like the idea of what he was facing. The danger he would be in. She knew from her father that the king and his barons were at war against each other, but this was the first time she’d had a face put to that war.
That face was Peter de Lohr.
“At Cripplegate?” she said softly.
A smile tugged at his lips. “Aye,” he said. “I will be there at midday. If you will come… I will be there. And if you do not, then I thank you for at least considering it.”
She smiled at him, briefly, and quickly turned away, hurrying to find her mother and grandmother before they realized she was gone and tracked her down. Peter watched her go, wondering if he’d be waiting by himself all afternoon or if she’d make the decision to meet him. At this point, it was all up to her.
He could only wait and see.
