Once she was able to talk again, Katherine had agreed to marriage with Gifford. In the end what choice did she have?
Gifford was to travel to Nottingham the next day and the wedding would take place immediately.
Now Katherine was, once again, locked in her room. Waiting.
Guy wandered around the castle like a wounded beast. There was no hope, no comforting thought that this nightmare event would not take place. Now he could not keep his mind from imagining what Gifford would do to her. He had no pity left for himself anymore, he thought only of what Katherine would have to endure.
How would she bear what was to happen to her? How would he?
A sudden vision of her heavy with Gifford's child flooded his mind and he had to steady himself against the wall with his hand.
‘If only you had been kinder to her, gentler with her, gone more slowly, she could have been your wife by now.’ The thought gnawed at his brain.
He found himself once again nearing her room. How many times today had he come this way and turned around knowing he would never be admitted?
But he thought of her sitting, waiting in there all alone, dreading that moment when the door would open tomorrow and she would be taken to the Chapel.
He walked up to the guards and just stood there. They eyed him uneasily. They had their orders not to let anyone pass, but Gisborne was likely to stab them if they did not obey him, and what good were orders when you were dead?
Guy's natural inclination was to threaten them, but he suddenly thought of how Katherine would deal with such a situation. He smiled at the men.
This succeeded in really disturbing them.
‘You both have daughters don't you?’ he said, gently.
They nodded. Soulsby's girls were lively, noisy, all under ten. Turner's was just an infant. The men looked uneasily at each other.
‘Imagine what it would be like to see them ending up with somebody like Gifford,’ Guy said.
Soulsby imagined and didn't like it, but then he thought that ending up with Gisborne could be almost as bad. Turner just refused to think about it.
Neither men spoke.
Guy tried a new tactic.
‘I've seen your daughters Soulsby,’ he said, ‘pretty little things. Expensive too, I'll warrant … dresses, ribbons, that kind of thing.’
Soulsby nodded slowly in agreement.
‘And a new baby Turner, needing many things I expect.’
Turner nodded too.
Guy extracted a small leather bag from his jacket and poured some coins into his hand. Both men did a quick calculation – a couple of months' pay at least, even divided between them.
‘What do you want?’ Soulsby said, nervously.
‘I want you to let me into this room and I want you to warn me if Vasey comes here whilst I'm inside.’
‘We get the money before you go in?’ Turner asked.
‘Half now, half when I come out.’
It was a deal. The men took the money and Soulsby wandered off to keep watch at the top of the stairs whilst Turner let Guy into Katherine's room.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * ** * * *
At first he could not see her and then he saw she was sitting huddled on the floor between the bed and the wall. An empty wine flagon and a goblet were lying close by.
