Wine of Violence

Chapter Twenty-Two

“My foot is fine, sister.”

Eleanor’s ankle still hurt, but she was quickly becoming intolerant of the inactivity forced on her by the injury. She had accepted the help of Gytha on the walk to the village to buy her donkey, but now that she was back in her chambers, she was both exhausted from the pain and frustrated by restlessness.

Sister Anne was gently rewinding the ankle. “Need I remind you, my lady, that lying is a sin. Your entire foot is now swollen twice its size from the walk.”

Eleanor sighed. Most assuredly, Prioress Felicia would have reprimanded Anne for such bluntness. Rank did demand due courtesy. On the other hand, respect must be earned else it would be as hollow and short-lived as prayers said without faith. Something her aunt had taught. Nay, she preferred the honesty, Eleanor decided. Anne did not present a false face to her and that was refreshing. Besides, she was growing quite fond of this nun whose bluntness never held malice in it. “Had you been born a man, I would have wanted you to be my confessor,” she said. “Yet I would have little to confess, for you would have already seen all my faults.”

Anne patted the finished wrapping and stood. “Had I been a man, I would have ordered you to stay in your chambers and not allowed you to go shopping for a donkey. A donkey, of all things!” The gruffness of her rebuke was spoiled by her laugh.

“I like Adam. He is a sweet donkey. I hope he is happy in his new home.”

Anne rose with a slight creak in her knees and walked over to the window. Eleanor noticed that the nun stretched her shoulders as if they were stiff. Over Anne’s head she could see mounds of great clouds rushing across the sky pushed by a moist wind. A rain, chill with the hints of coming autumn, would arrive soon, she thought.

“Most likely he is eating,” Anne said, turning back to face her prioress. “Brother Thomas took him to the stable as soon as we got back. He seems quite competent with four-legged creatures.”

“And how is he with his two-legged charges?”

“He shows great compassion with the suffering in the hospital. Brother Andrew also commented on that the other day.”

“Well and good. I was concerned about choosing someone no one knew anything about to replace Brother Rupert. It was Brother Simeon’s suggestion, and it seems to have been a good one. By the way, our good receiver was not pleased with my decision to consider a partnership with Tostig on the ale business. Did I err?”

“No, I do not think so. Tostig is a good man. Brother Simeon would not be happy with the concept, however. He has never thought the villagers any better than animals, and finds some animals superior to the villagers. The idea of joining with Tostig on making ale quite interests me, however. May I ask what in specific you had in mind?”

“I wanted him to join with us in the making of it instead of competing against us. If we can produce more but he makes it better, I thought he might first teach us how he makes it and then monitor our process to guarantee the product was consistently good. For this I would suggest giving him a high percentage of the profit. We would gain by increased sales, and he would lose nothing, probably even gain from our mutual success.”

“Brother Simeon would never be pleased with a man from the village telling Normans, albeit monks, what to do. Our receiver aside, however, I do not think most of the monks and certainly none of the local lay brothers would have any problem with the arrangement. Tostig is well respected here.”

“Then Brother Simeon needs to be reminded that Saxons are not beneath us. Fontevraud has taken in monks and nuns of all ranks and origins, including prostitutes, as Jesus did Mary Magdalene. And after all these years of doing as he pleased, the good brother also seems to have forgotten that it is the prioress who makes the final decisions about the running of the priory. If he does not approve, he should ask to leave the Order and become, perhaps, a Cistercian.”

“If I may say so, my lady, the practices of which you speak have been true at the mother house, but, except for the primacy of the prioress, we have seen little of the rest of it in England.”

“Are you not a physician’s daughter?”

“And I have never been accepted by Brother Simeon, nor, indeed, have I been fully accepted by some of the sisters here.”

“Until they are ill, I would think.”

Anne smiled.

“We shall see what Tostig thinks of my idea. Perhaps he will object himself to being under the authority of a woman while he works with the monks. Do you know if he has a woman sharing his life?”

“I do not believe he is married, my lady.”

“Sister, not all relationships are as the lords of the Church would prefer. Does he have any woman to comfort him and tend to his needs?”

“Not to my knowledge.”

“Then he is unaccustomed to being ruled by one of us. He may not know what he is getting himself into with me.”

There was a fond warmth in Anne’s smile as she replied, “I will not argue with you on that, my lady.”

“Now tell me about our crowner. You know him well. He has made no progress in finding either the murderer or the one who attacked Brother Thomas, yet I feel he is a capable man. He quickly found the bloody garment and the knife hilt.”

The nun blinked and turned her face away from Eleanor.

“Speak freely, sister. I need honesty. But if the subject brings you grief…”

“Ralf is both kind and competent, my lady, but he grew up wild. He was a frail child at birth, the last of those his parents bore, and his older brothers tormented him. He found his comfort more with the villagers than with his kin. He has great contempt for the courtly life his elder brother, the sheriff, loves; and, unlike his brother, Ralf is respected here as a diligent and just man.”

“And he has contempt, I think, for the Church as well.”

“There is no question of his faith…”

“Nor was I suggesting otherwise. There may be as many ways of showing faith as there are honest believers. The contempt I heard was reserved for those men and women who have taken vows.”

“He respects you, my lady.”

Eleanor sat back and, in silence, studied the nun in front of her. Anne’s head was still bowed and her face turned away. “Sister, you are protecting the man from something. Should I know the reason?”

When Anne looked up, Eleanor saw tiny rivulets of tears flowing down her cheeks. “I grieve for Ralf, my lady, but my feelings for him are chaste. As a sister, I love him. As a sister, I want to protect him for his spirit is in much pain. There is nothing more.”

“You still fear answering my question about his contempt for those dedicated to a religious life?”

“If I may be so bold, my lady, your views and ways are very different from those of Prioress Felicia. The change will take some getting used to. Plain speech, while not punished in the past, was not often welcome.”

“As I told Gytha, sister, I respect honesty without malice. If I do not like what I hear, I try to reflect and pray on it, not condemn out of hand. Now, please, answer me.”

“Ralf’s second eldest brother is high in the Church, my lady. He is known more for his acceptance of bribes in matters of canon law brought before him than justice. This and his brother’s childhood cruelty to him have colored his view of men in the Church.”

Eleanor sighed. “I hope we may one day teach your Ralf that we are not all corrupt.”

“I believe you have begun, my lady,” Anne said. She wiped her cheeks dry.

“I would return to Adam, the donkey.” For I have asked enough of you for one day, Eleanor thought. “Do you think he’s lonely?”

Anne tilted her head in puzzlement.

“Might we consider whether to get a fellow for him?”

“Why?” Anne frowned.

“In case I need someone to ride in attendance when I go abroad.” Eleanor smiled with mischievous delight.

“Brother Simeon is much too large to ride on a donkey, my lady. And if he were not the one to attend you, then perhaps Brother John or Brother Andrew, but they are…”

“I was thinking of you.”

Anne’s eyes widened in shock. “Me? Why, surely if you need a nun to accompany you, Sister Ruth or…”

“Who but you would remind me of my failings when I needed it? Who but you would be comfortable outside the priory and would not mind being in the world when it was necessary?”

“You flatter me, my lady. I am grateful for your confidence and accept…”

“…out of duty, but will you come with some gladness of spirit as well?”

“With pleasure, but only if I can find and train a novice talented enough to learn about herbs and potions to replace me in my treatments at the hospital. Prioress Felicia would not allow me to do so. She was not completely convinced my methods were sanctioned by God, although Brother Rupert had so assured her many times.”

“You shall have a novice, more than one if you find others to your liking. Question them and select the most promising. You will have time to do the training. I am not planning any visits except to the local farms and tenants. Brother Simeon could ride his horse for those.”

“Then I agree with both gratitude and gladness, my lady.”

“Good. That gladness is a first between us then! Now I need Gytha to help me down the stairs. Weak ankle or not, I must see Sister Matilda about her former trips to the forest as I promised our good crowner.”

Anne looked at her with a frown, but, knowing she would lose this battle, gave in. “Just one question before I get Gytha, if I may?”

Eleanor nodded.

“Why did you name the donkey Adam?”

“After the first man.”

Anne bent and looked directly into Eleanor’s eyes. “And?”

Eleanor laughed. “My father. As my newly chosen beast was roped, he dug his hooves into the earth and brayed in loud protest. I was reminded that those who are enemies of my lord father claim he can be bloody-minded in both action and speech. Those who love him concede that he is often strong-willed but with the speech and action of an honest man.”

“Just like his daughter, I’d say,” Anne replied with a grin and a glance at Eleanor’s wrapped foot.