Tender is the Knight by Kathryn Le Veque

not a happy creature in any case,” he lifted an eyebrow and watched her grin. “I gave him to Riston yesterday to tend and I am sure he has done his duty.”
    “Will you find him and ask him to bring my goat to me?”
    “I will not take the goat into town.”
    She half-shrugged, half-nodded. “Afterwards, then?”
    “I will find Riston and speak with him.”
    “Will you at least make sure that Bute is fed and tended? I want him to be comfortable.”
    “As I said, I will speak to Riston.”
    Satisfied, Ryan turned back to the trunk and began hunting around for something else as Dennis breathed a sigh of relief that she wasn’t demanding her goat at that moment. In fact, as she rummaged around in her trunk, he took the opportunity to tend to a small task.
    “Lock this door behind me,” he told her. “I shall return shortly.”
    He was gone so fast that Ryan didn’t have a chance to ask him where he was going.  As he slipped down the darkened corridor, he heard her throw the bolt on the door.  Taking the spiral stairs that led down into the hall, he headed out to the kitchen to find the old cook and explain to him what was about to occur.  He didn’t want the old man casually informing Ryan of what had become of her goat as she toured the kitchens.
    The old cook was rather startled at Dennis’ information but heartily agreed to keep silent about the goat.  He even went so far as to hide the head which had thus far been sitting out in plain sight.  Dennis then went on to locate Riston, who proved more difficult to find.  He eventually found the man in the knight’s quarters, a sturdy squat structure located near the outer wall that housed St. Austell’s knighted warriors.  Riston was in the small common room, strapping on pieces of plate armor, when Dennis came across him.
    “Where is Lady Lyla?” Dennis asked as he entered the dim, smelly room.
    Riston finished with the fasten. “I have her locked in my chamber,” he said, pointing to one of the two closed doors on the south side of the room. “Why?”
    Dennis glanced at the old oak door. “I am taking my wife to the port and she wishes for her cousin to accompany her,” he said. “ Furthermore, she wishes a tour of St. Austell and we must make sure she does not discover the fate of her goat.  I have already spoken to the cook about the matter and he will remain silent.”
    Riston nodded seriously. “She will not hear it from me,” he muttered. “Has she asked for him?”
    “She has.”
    “What did you tell her?”
    “That I entrusted the goat to you and that I was sure you had accomplished the task.  Then I changed the subject.”
    Riston rolled his eyes. “She is going to hate me forever when she finds out I allowed her goat to become tonight’s supper.”
    Dennis waved him off as he headed for Riston’s door. “Just stay out of sight for a while,” he told him. “If she sees you, she will want to ask you where the goat is, so just stay away from her until I can tell her what has happened.”
    As Riston nodded in resignation, Dennis knocked on the chamber door. “Lady Lyla?” he called. “It is Dennis. Please open the door.”
    The door flew open immediately and Lyla was standing there, eyes wide.  “What happened to Bute?” she demanded.
    Dennis could feel his heart sink a little. But rather than let Lyla see his reaction, he took the stern approach and cocked an eyebrow. “Were you listening to our conversation?”
    Lyla’s mouth flew open to argue but she quickly shut it, knowing she had been eavesdropping and had all but confessed her act. Caught, she struggled to recover.
    “It was difficult not to hear you,” she insisted. “The door… it is thin….”
    “The door is three inches thick,” Dennis pointed out. “You would have had to put your ear to the seam to hear what we were speaking of.”
    Lyla turned red and lowered her gaze.  Dennis took her by the elbow and pulled her from the chamber.
    “I will not