The Fatal Crown(9)

The street seemed to go on forever until finally she was forced to stop and catch her breath. She had no idea how far she had come, or where she was going. Her only thought had been to escape from the palace and find Aldyth. Ahead she could see heavy iron gates and guards pacing back and forth atop the thick stone walls. This must be the entrance to the city. While she watched, the gates creaked open; a troop of mounted knights, similar to the ones she had passed earlier, trotted through. They were followed by a majestic litter, whose curtains were partially open, drawn by four black stallions. Behind the litter rode another troop of knights.

The procession turned down the narrow street and Maud tried to flatten herself against the closed door of one of the houses so she would not be noticed. The knights trotted by; the litter approached and passed her. Then she heard a sharp command and the litter shuddered to a swaying halt. The leather curtains were pushed farther open, and a figure leaned out and beckoned to her.

Slowly Maud walked over to the litter. She saw an older man of indeterminate age, younger than her father though, she quickly decided, wrapped in a richly embroidered blue mantle lined with white fur. Under a velvet cap set with pearls, lank brown hair fell straight to his shoulders. His face was sallow, its expression austere, like a cleric’s, but his heavy-lidded eyes held a look of amused interest.

He said something to her in German and pointed to the cross she wore. Maud shook her head and replied in her own language that she could not understand. He raised his eyebrows and gave her a considering look.

“Well, mein Kind,’ he said, in heavily accented Norman French, “you are far from home, nicht?”

She nodded, her eyes starting to brim with tears when he said the word home. Her lower lip trembled as she fought to hold them back.

“There is no shame in crying,” he said, observing her struggle. “As long as you do not make a habit of it. Such behavior is not uncommon among little girls, so I’m told.”

Maud drew herself up proudly and lifted her head. “I am not just any little girl. I’m a Norman princess, a granddaughter of William the Conqueror.”

“Ah, well, of course, that is quite another matter.” He motioned her closer. “I think you had better get in, don’t you?”

She hesitated, her heart pounding, then got in beside him. He closed the curtains and examined her with frank curiosity. “Suppose you tell me what you were doing wandering around Mainz by yourself?”

His voice was unexpectedly gentle and Maud found herself telling him the whole story from the moment she had arrived at the palace last night. “And I hoped to find Aldyth,” she concluded, “and then somehow get back to England. I won’t stay where everyone treats me so badly. I’m a granddaughter of the—”

“Conqueror. So you have said,” he interjected, his lips twitching. “You have an unusual sense of your own value. But then you have an unusual heritage. It’s not every upstart Norman adventurer who manages to found a royal dynasty.”

Shocked, Maud was about to protest, but he held up a languid hand, ringed on every finger but his thumb.

“No, no, you must not take offense. On the contrary, I highly approve of your attitude. It’s entirely fitting for the future consort of an emperor.” He gave her a courtly nod.

Maud looked down and saw lying on the man’s lap a curious board of inlaid wood covered with squares of silver and gilt. On several of the squares stood heavy ivory figures: a knight on horseback, a bishop with his crozier, a king and queen in ceremonial robes and crowns. They were so lifelike she could not resist touching the queen with a curious finger.

“Are these toys?”

“England is more of a backwater than I thought. No, this is a very special game called chess. It requires great skill.”

Maud said nothing but slowly raised her head.

“I bought it for my future bride,” he continued, watching her carefully. “Provided, of course, she remains in the Empire and proves intelligent enough to learn the game. As far as her English retinue is concerned, the Graf was right. They must all go.” He paused. “With the exception of the woman, what is her name?”

“Aldyth.”

“Yes, Aldyth may stay. On condition my bride learns basic German within four months. If not, the nurse must leave as well.”

There was a brief pause. Their eyes met. Maud gave a tiny nod. The Emperor, for she had known almost at once who he was, inclined his head in acknowledgment.

“I’m pleased to see you wearing my gift.” At her puzzled look he pointed to the cross she wore.

“I’m most grateful—” She paused. What should she call him? Your Grace? She was horrified to realize she did not even know his first name, for he had always been referred to as “the Emperor.”