Brother Cadfael 14: The Hermit of Eyton Forest

us, think better of it now and confess it. You shall not be punished for it. Whatever else, it would seem that you have been misused, abducted and intimidated, and that shall excuse you. I would remind Sir Fulke of these circumstances. But if you do not tell truth now, Richard, then you do incur punishment.'
    'I have told truth,' said Richard stoutly, jutting his very respectable chin and meeting the awesome eyes without blinking. 'I am telling truth. I swear it! I did what they demanded of me because I knew then that the hermit is not a priest, and a marriage made by him would be no marriage.'
    'How did you know?' cried Fulke furiously, stirring out of his confusion. 'Who told you so? My lord, this is all a childish ruse, and a spiteful one. He is lying!'
    'Well? You may answer those questions,' said Radulfus, never taking his eyes from Richard's. 'How did you know? Who told you?'
    But these were the very questions Richard could not answer without betraying Hyacinth, and bringing the hunt on to his trail with renewed vigour. He said with wincing gallantry: 'Father, I will tell you, but not here, only to you. Please believe me, I am not lying.'
    'I do believe you,' said the abbot, abruptly releasing him from the scrutiny which had made him tremble. 'I believe you are saying what you have been told, and what you believe to be true. But this is a more serious matter than you can understand, and it must be cleared up. A man against whom such an accusation has been made has the right to speak up for himself, and prove his good faith. I shall go myself, tomorrow early, and ask the hermit whether he is or is not a priest, and who ordained him, and where, and when. These things can be proven, and should be. You will surely have an equal interest, my lord, in finding out, once for all, whether this was indeed a marriage. Though I must warn you,' he added firmly, 'that even if it is it can be annulled, seeing it cannot have been consummated.'
    'Make the attempt,' retorted Astley, somewhat recovering his composure, 'and it will be contested to the limit. But I acknowledge that truth must out. We cannot have such doubts lingering.'
    'Then will you not meet with me at the hermitage, as early as may be after Prime? It is fair we should both hear what Cuthred has to say. I am well sure,' he said with truth, having seen the effect of Richard's outburst, 'that you believed implicitly the man was a priest, with full rights to marry and bury. That is not in dispute. Richard has cause to hold to the contrary. Let us put it to the test.'
    There was nothing Astley could object to in that, nor, thought Cadfael, had he any wish to avoid the issue. He had certainly been profoundly shocked by the suggestion of deceit, and wanted the damaging doubt removed. But he did make one more attempt to regain his hold meantime on the boy. He advanced a hand to Richard's shoulder. 'I will come to that meeting,' he said, 'and see this deluded child proved wrong. But for this night I still hold he stands as my son, and should go with me.'
    The hand closed on Richard's arm, and the boy started and tore himself away. Brother Paul could no longer restrain himself, he hurried forward out of the staring ranks and drew the truant close to his side.
    'Richard stays here,' said Radulfus firmly. 'His father entrusted him to me, and I set no limit on his stay with us. But whose son by law and whose husband the child is we must and will examine.'
    Fulke was growing purple in the face again with suppressed anger. He had come so near to capturing the imp, and now to be thwarted, and the whole structure of his and Dionisia's territorial plans put in jeopardy. He would not give up so easily.
    'You take much upon yourself, my lord abbot,' he began, 'in denying rights to his kin, you who have no blood claim upon him. And I think you are not without designs upon his lands and goods in keeping him here. You want no marriage for the boy, but rather to school him here until he knows no other world, and will enter tamely into his novitiate, and your house into his inheritance... '
    He was so intent on his accusations, and all those about him so stricken into wonder at his daring, that no one had yet observed the new arrival at the gatehouse. All eyes were on Astley, and all mouths agape in amazement, and Hugh had tethered his horse at the gate and entered on foot, making no noise. He had taken but ten paces into the court when his eye fell first on the grey horse and the black