Footsteps in Time (The After Cilmeri Series Book 1)

Footsteps in Time (Chapter Twenty-one)

Anna

The battlements of every castle Anna had lived in since she came to Wales were her favorite places. She could stand on them and see for miles in four directions, feel the wind and the weather, and be alone with her thoughts. Looking down, she had a bird's eye view of the activity in the courtyards, and a detachment from her surroundings that she treasured. With Math beside her being protective, Anna climbed the battlements of Dinas Bran once again to watch David and his company wind their way up the long road to the castle gate. They always had warning when visitors were arriving, which was a good thing when David and his men came. They'd be hungry.

"I don't see Papa's banners," Anna said. "Mom will be disappointed."

"Dafydd doesn't ride Taranis," Math said. "What other changes are in the wind?" They walked down the stairs to greet the riders as they crossed under the gatehouse.

"Oh, don't look at me that way," Anna said.

"You're huge! Amazingly huge!" David said before he'd even dismounted, open-mouthed with astonishment.

"I'm not that fat."

"I didn't say you were fat!" He hugged Anna from a distance, given the size of her belly.

Math and Bevyn consulted about the disposition of David's men, while Anna brought David inside, pleased that he was here again after the upheaval of his last visit. It didn't take long, though, to learn what 'changes' Math was talking about.

"I'll be meeting Edward without Dad."

"Why?" Mom said. "Surely this will make Edward more angry than he already is."

"The prince talked with his lords," Carew said. "They agreed that they couldn't risk both the father and the son. The journey is too far into English territory for safety. It's one thing for King Alexander to go—Edward has acknowledged him as king long since. It's quite another for Prince Llywelyn to make that journey. Edward sees him as an upstart."

Mom was appalled. "So Llywelyn thinks to sacrifice David instead?"

Aaron turned to her, his expression gentle. "He does no such thing. One of them must attend, but I think David will be the first to admit that he's not yet ready to assume the responsibilities of rule if something were to happen to his father."

"Absolutely." David nodded. "I'm happy to go. If we take the sea route, we can't be ambushed on the road."

Mom didn't appear convinced. "It was bad enough when you were gallivanting about the countryside these last few weeks. At least you were in Wales, among your fellow countrymen, with access to aid and comfort if need be. In England you'll be dependent entirely on your own resources."

"That's the way it has to be," David said.

Mom ground her teeth and muttered under her breath.

"It's okay, Mom," Anna said, in an aside to her. "He's done well so far."

"I want to put my foot down and say he can't go," Mom said, "but I don't think I can tell him what he can or cannot do, anymore."

And I suspect that's a painful thing for a mother to admit. Anna touched her belly, feeling the baby move and wondering if it was a boy or a girl. Mom still tells me what to do. It was curious that she didn't feel as able to tell David.

David wasn't listening to either of them, having turned to Aaron to find out what he'd been up to.

"I know little of what went on in the conference," Aaron said. "Word spread throughout the city, however, of King Edward's anger at your father. Given your successes in the past few weeks, Edward's Marcher lords will be calling for your blood."