“I think he was killed because he did not surrender it. Edmund holds his tongue because he not only knows the villain, but fears him.”
“The villain must be close to him, then.”
“Within the very walls of Marnis.” Amaury nodded once. “It has to be Mallory.”
“The brother of Lady Faydide.”
“What do you know of him?”
“Little enough. He is Faydide’s half-brother. They share a sire in the Duke of Sancerre, but he was the product of the duke’s first marriage. He did seem to be in the confidence of the Lord de Marnis.”
“Have you ever spoken with him?”
Roland shook his head. “I know he is feared in Marnis village, but not why.”
Amaury nodded at the approaching company. Even at a distance, he recognized the count’s insignia on the banners. “The count may have tidings to share with us on that matter. It will give us a topic of conversation as we return to Montvieux.”
Even as he spoke, Amaury wondered what Isabella knew of her uncle. He thought she would tell him anything she thought to be of import, but there might be a small detail she would not think to share. He was beyond glad that she was safely away from Marnis, for he did not share her conviction that he had been the intended target of that bolt.
“I still believewe should have conferred with Amaury,” Thierry complained as he rode alongside Isabella. “You might have told him of this scheme before his departure this morn.”
“He would have insisted upon escorting me and he would have been killed,” she replied with authority.
She felt the knight’s sidelong glance as keenly as his surprise. “You expect to be intercepted.”
“I expect to be followed,” Isabella agreed. Her heart was skipping, for the patch of forest where Denis had died loomed ahead. Within moments, she would know the truth, and likely be powerless to do much about it.
She tugged the cord from beneath her chemise, gathered it in her hand and lifted it over her head. The keys strung upon it shone in the sunlight and she knew Thierry saw them. She wound the cord into a coil so it could be hidden in one hand.
“You are going to aid me to dismount,” she said, as if she felt more calm than she did in truth. “When you do, I will slip this into your glove, though neither of us will give any outward sign of the transaction.”
“I see,” he murmured, and she knew he studied the shadows ahead of them. “I believe we are watched, my lady.”
Isabella nodded. “My brother loved to hide his treasures in this forest. I remembered as much last night, for I had forgotten. And he had a place he favored above all others, one he used for his greatest prizes.”
“You think there is something there.”
“I think that what he took from my father’s treasury is there, and if I am right, then one of these keys might open the lockupon it.” She frowned down at them. “I would guess the smallest of them, for it is one that fit no lock I could find.”
“What do you think is there?”
“The treasure that must be found.” She raised a hand before Thierry could protest. “So long as it remains hidden and I am believed to be the sole one who knows its location, I should be sufficiently safe.”
The knight made a growl beneath his breath. “And I am the one who must confess as much to Amaury. I may not survive that errand, my lady.”
She smiled at him. “You will, for he is not unjust.”
Thierry’s brows rose but he said no more. “Will you tell me of our destination?”
“It is on the far side of Marnis village. My mother is buried in the graveyard there. You will leave me there and ride away.”
“But…”
“You will ride back to Montvieux and you will neither halt nor turn around.” Isabella took a breath. “Then later, when the forest is deserted again, you will return. Later today or early on the morrow. You cannot leave it too long.”
“Because they will wrest the truth from you,” her companion guessed grimly. “My lady, you should not take this risk…”
“They will not kill me so long as they believe I know something they do not,” she insisted, hoping it were true. She dared not recall that long-ago day when her father had willfully injured her, for she might lose her resolve. “And if they learn of my brother’s hiding spot but then find it empty, I will strive to convince them that they have been betrayed from within.” Isabella was not certain it could be done, but she would try. “If I am deemed to be worthless, there is no reason to stain their hands. They will send me to the convent.” She hoped this was true, but she had to convince Thierry to leave her.