The Queen's Vow: A Novel of Isabella of Castile (25 page)

At my side Inés said, “I’d give anything to see Mencia’s face when she returns from her rendezvous to find our rooms empty and us gone.”

I glanced at her; as her smile lit up her eyes, I found myself abruptly on the verge of laughter as well. “We can only hope it’ll prove as upsetting to her as she’s been to us.” I took a last look at my palace. “After all, it’s just walls, chairs, tables, and beds. We can always buy new ones.”

We followed the men out. The streets were deserted. A light rain drifted from the black sky. As we approached the city gates I had to remind myself that no one expected me to make my escape, certainly not today or at this hour. Villena had ordered the town surrounded and, to his mind, made enough noise to frighten a cornered princess and her attendants into submission. His guards would be lax, thinking me well in hand. But if anyone did try to detain us, Carrillo had warned me to break into a gallop and not stop until I reached Valladolid.

Three sentries were posted in a makeshift shelter by the gates, huddled with a wineskin over a smoking brazier. They looked up with ill-humored frowns as we neared.

“Didn’t we just let you in?” one of them said suspiciously, looking at Chacón.

My steward replied, “You did, and now we are leaving. As we explained, this lady’s father is gravely ill at our monastery and he has asked to see her.”

The sentry glanced past Cárdenas and Carrillo at me and Inés. I lowered my head, avoiding his stare. “I see two ladies. Are both their fathers dying in your monastery?”

Carrillo growled, “The lady has a maid with her, of course. Or haven’t you ever seen a lady with a maid before, you ignorant son of a swine?”

I tightened my hold on my reins as I saw the sentry’s face harden. It was not the right thing to say, I knew at once. By asserting his authority, Carrillo had only managed to insult the man and rouse suspicion.

“Look here,” the sentry said, “I just follow my orders. His lordship the marquis of Villena commanded that these gates stay closed from sunset to sunrise. I let you in once, against my better judgment—”

“You were paid,” interrupted Chacón, “and quite well, as I recall.”

“To open the gates once.” The sentry exchanged a wink with the others, whose leather-gloved hands had dropped to their swords. It would be hard to draw the weapons from the scabbards; even I knew that much. The cold tended to make blades stick. Still, a pitched fight in the middle of the night by the gates wouldn’t do us any favors, nor was I looking forward to riding over these men, and possibly risking injury to our horses.

“Now, if suitable arrangements can be made I’ll gladly open the gates again,” the sentry added, and though he sounded jovial in his thievery, I detected the threat underneath. Unless we complied, he was not going to touch those bolts, and, what’s more, he was likely to call for reinforcements.

Without warning, I kicked my horse forth and came before him. He stared up at me, startled and momentarily confused. I reached upward, and ignoring Carrillo’s stifled gasp, pulled back my hood. The sentry went still, except for his mouth, which gaped wide as if he suddenly found himself short of air.

“Do you know who I am?” I asked quietly.

He nodded, still without moving. I couldn’t tell whether he was truly so astonished he’d yet to formulate a reaction or already gauging
this sudden twist in the situation, weighing the potential benefits and drawbacks.

“You should raise the alarm,” I said, “but as your future queen, though, God willing, it be many years hence, I know you will not. And in return, my good man, I shall not forget how you helped me on this night.” I reached into my saddlebag, retrieved and dropped a velvet purse at his feet. It clinked satisfactorily as it hit the cold ground.

The sound startled him into movement. He quickly bent over and retrieved it; a leer spread across his face when he drew back the purse’s cords to peer inside. He glanced over his shoulder at the others, who stood regarding us with wide eyes. “That’s more like it,” he said, and he made a little flourish toward me before barking at his men, “Go on, you heard the lady. Open the gates.”

The bolts were drawn back; we rode out quickly, into the dark open countryside. As soon as we had cleared the walls, Carrillo said testily, “That was hardly the moment to go and prove your rank. We could have been arrested.”

“Yes, we could have,” I replied. “But we weren’t. And the story will spread, hopefully right to Villena’s ears, of how I eluded his snare. Let him shiver in his boots, for a change.”

Chacón let out a rare gruff laugh. Ines whispered to me, “Were those your jewels?”

“Yes,” I whispered back. “As I said, we can buy new ones.”

And we spurred forth, to Valladolid.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

S
ituated in the north-central part of Castile, Valladolid was a beautiful city on the Pisuerga River famous for rich wines, fertile croplands, and the splendid Gothic Church of Santa María the Ancient, with its thick Romanesque tower.

I took up residence in the palace of the Vivero clan, a grandee family loyal to the admiral. I was saddle sore from our three-day trip over treacherous back roads and through woodlands; we’d avoided any thoroughfares where royal patrols were likely to be searching, as we were under no delusion that my disappearance would go unreported. Mencia would have doubtless raised the alarm as soon as she returned to our deserted palace. But we depended on the fact that while messengers were dispatched to Enrique and Villena in Andalucía, and their outraged responses returned, we would have enough time to send our own embassy to Aragón with the signed betrothal documents. Within a few weeks at most, Fernando would be in Castile; he and I would wed. And not even Villena, for all his wiles, could sunder those whom God had joined.

I had barely settled in when Fernando’s grandfather Don Fadrique Enríquez, Lord of Medina and Admiral of Castile, came to see me. In the painted
sala
, he bowed over my hand—a short, trim man with a completely bald pate and a kindly myopic gaze, dressed in the somber black damask favored by the kingdom’s elite. As one of the most powerful grandees in the land, the admiral had remained aloof from the internecine struggles of the court, because his eldest daughter had been Fernando’s mother, Juan II of Aragón’s beloved queen, and that made him a target of Villena’s ceaseless machinations.

I took one look at him, and I knew he did not bring good news. I
also noted that he appeared taken aback to see only Ines at my side. As a rule, a princess usually had a retinue shadowing her every move.

“My lord the Archbishop Carrillo has taken up lodgings in the Convent of the Agustinas,” I explained, as the admiral was too polite to voice his concern. “He’s been busy with various matters pertaining to the betrothal.” I motioned to two high-backed carved chairs set before the greenery-filled hearth. “Have you broken your fast yet? Shall I fetch bread and cheese? We have fresh figs, as well.”

He shook his head. “No, no, Your Highness. Thank you. That will not be necessary.”

I smiled as he perched on the chair. I was prepared for almost anything, given the circumstances, and still when he spoke I had to stop myself from flinching.

“King Enrique has issued a warrant for your arrest. He claims you left Ocaña against his command, though you promised you would not. His men have been instructed to take you to the alcazar of Madrid, where you’ll be imprisoned. He plans to make his way back from Andalucía as soon as he can raise his siege on Cádiz’s city of Trujillo.”

I focused on maintaining my composure. Was my lot in life never to know more than a few days’ respite from pursuit?

“Your Highness has nothing to fear as yet,” the admiral went on, misinterpreting my silence. “Between us, the archbishop and I have more than eight hundred men at our disposal. Villena’s soldiers will not easily apprehend you. But I thought you’d want to know that the king is apprised of your actions and has every intention of stopping you.” He lowered his voice, despite the fact that we were quite alone save for Inés. “It goes without saying that he has declared numerous times that your union with Fernando of Aragón is strictly forbidden, and should you disobey him, he will consider it an act of treason.”

It was a shock to hear the words, though I couldn’t reasonably claim I hadn’t expected this. “Yes,” I said quietly, “thank you. I am indebted to you for your diligence.”

“Oh, it’s not diligence that brought me here,” he said, with sudden levity in his tone. He rose and moved to where he had deposited his cloak. From it he withdrew a shallow case covered in azure velvet. As he
handed it to me, his smile deepened, enhancing the laugh lines at the sides of his eyes.

“A birthday gift,” he said. “From my grandson, His Highness of Aragón.”

Nestled within the case upon a lining of snow-white satin was the most magnificent ruby collar I’d ever seen. The blood-rich tabled stones exuded light as if tiny suns shone in their depths, and from the gold links in between each stone dangled large pink-gray pearls.

“It’s … breathtaking,” I said, in awe.

“And rather convenient,” piped Inés. “Her Highness was fresh out of jewels, as it turns out. It’ll come in quite handy for the wedding.”

As I saw the admiral’s smile fade, I closed the case. “I would prefer to thank Prince Fernando in person for his gift, but I see by your expression that I’ll not have that pleasure quite as soon as I hoped.”

He released a troubled sigh. “There are complications. The French have overrun the city of Girona. By virtue of his position as heir, Fernando must head the defense.” From his doublet he removed a sealed paper. “He asked me to deliver this to you.”

I took the paper in disbelief. Complications? I understood Aragón was besieged, but what was I supposed to do in the meantime? How was I to survive? Surely Fernando must realize I could not hold out indefinitely, that even now Enrique and Villena were moving against me, against
us
.

“You’ll naturally want to read the letter in private,” said the admiral. He bowed. “By your leave I’ll now go pay my respects to Carrillo. Perhaps later, we might dine together?”

I nodded, hiding my distress. “Yes, of course. I … I would be honored.”

“The honor is all mine,” he replied, with a gallantry that went straight to my heart. “Your Highness must not lose faith. My grandson will find his way to you, even if he has to cut through every man in the French army to get here.”

Inés accompanied him out. Alone in the
sala
, I cracked the letter’s seal. His calligraphy leapt at me, stark black on the paper, ink splotches denoting frustration with a poorly trimmed quill.

There was no signature; there was no need. I let my tears come. I let them fall down my face and wash away my disappointment, my fear and anxiety and corrosive doubt.

I would wait. I would wait even if I had to lead an army myself. Fernando and I were destined for each other; we would find a way to be together, no matter the odds.

And once we united, nothing would part us, save death.

I CELEBRATED MY
eighteenth birthday without fanfare. The news from Aragón had dampened my spirits and rumors came almost daily of some new menace to my person. Nothing concrete had materialized thus far but we knew Enrique’s southern exploit was not going well and, for the moment, threats were all he could issue. His men in Castile were disinclined to march into Valladolid to engage the admiral’s forces. But I had no doubt that as soon as the situation in Andalucía resolved, Villena and his wolves would come after me.