The Black Knight of Ashfern

Chapter 9

The master suite was by no means grander than the room Nan had been staying in; its furnishings and coloring were much the same. A writing desk sat against the far wall beneath a window framed by thick stone slabs; a large wardrobe of polished mahogany took up nearly a third of the wall adjacent the desk; a canopy bed with dark patterned velvet curtains lay stripped of its bedding in the center to Nan's right and a fire burned merrily in the fireplace to her left, a covered frame mounted over the mantel and two high back chairs covered in sheets separated by a small circular in-table, also covered, sat before the fire. The walls were again much as they had been in Sir William's chamber, half covered in dark wooden panels and patterned wallpaper. The only real difference Nan could see was the size. It was easily twice that of Sir William's room.

Nan took in the room with a mild sort of curiosity, enjoying the fact that the roof overhead did not leak, that the fire did not hiss and waver with a wind that whistled through walls far too thin to still be called walls. And while the room was indeed dark and cold from disuse, it was still far more welcome than a hastily made bed of rags, empty crates, and damp hay. Yet, the temporary nature of her new position gave Nan little comfort as to how long the luxuries Sir William forced upon her would last.

She did not like such uncertainties in her life. However, she could recall a time when she would have smiled and believed everything would come out in her favor because she had never had any call to think otherwise. How naive she had been. Now, she knew better. She knew the folly of hoping and wishing, even praying. They alone did not guarantee a thing done, nor did they serve to protect one from things done to them. Even a man of God would have a difficult time convincing her of that. No, Nan would not be so foolish, so blind, again. If she were to be stuck with Sir William at his leisure, then she would find a way to protect herself when he was done with her. She would have to learn his game and hopefully learn to play it better than him. Something she wasn't entirely certain she could do as of yet, but her options to do anything else were nonexistent.

As Nan examined her new chamber, she walked over to the covered chairs by the fire, carefully tossing the ends of each sheet in on itself to trap any dust that might have settled on the furniture from traveling about the room.

"You've cleaned before." Came a friendly feminine voice from the doorway, pulling Nan's attention from the chair before her to a slender woman somewhat past her prime as she walked into the room. She wore a dark blue uniform, her hair a stony gray with curls that refused to stay confined, even by the severity of her bun atop her head. She had, by far, the warmest smile Nan had yet to see from any member of Sir William's staff.

"A little," Nan admitted. "I wasn't very good at it." She added, receiving another warm smile from the woman.

"Well, you know well enough to keep the dust wrapped up and not send it flying about the room in one tug." The woman stated matter-of-factly as she entered the room, folded linens and a few thick dark blankets filling her arms.

"Probably, the only thing I remember." Nan nodded. "I'm Nan Harris."

"Aye, the Master's Mistress." The woman nodded, her smile unwavering; though Nan was not certain if she should have been relieved the woman was still smiling or concerned that she knew why Nan was here and smiled nonetheless.

"That was only agreed to a few hours ago," Nan admitted her voice a whisper as her eyes fell to the floor in surprise. She knew eventually, Sir William's staff would draw their own conclusions about her being there, though she had not thought it would happen so soon or that she would be confronted with it so openly.

"There's naught to be ashamed of lass. Given your options, I'd of—"

"I'm not ashamed." Nan broke in, "I'm...frustrated." her eyes flashed about the room, like an animal looking for a way out of its cage.