The White Lord of Wellesbourne by Kathryn Le Veque Page B

heard
everything.
     
    ***
     
    Her wedding dress had been her
mother’s.  It was a white confection of silk and linen, woven with strands of
real silver thread. Across her midsection was an elaborately embroidered belt
of crystals and silver beads, absolutely gorgeous and glistening. The neckline
was off the shoulder, the sleeves long, emphasizing her slender neck and
shapely torso.  Jezebel had pinned her hair up with silver pins and had braided
strips of white ribbon into the bronze curls.  If ever Alixandrea had looked
like an angel, today was the day.   As the sun set, the hour of Vespers quickly
approached and she sat in taut anticipation of the evening’s events.  The
arrangements were made, the hall readied, and there was naught else to do but
wait.
    Under her earlier supervision,
and with Caroline standing silently by, the great hall had been transformed
from a smelly room of dogs and dirt into a warm place with fresh rushes and a
blazing fire. 
    Although it still smelled of dogs
and probably would until the floors had been washed a few times, she was
moderately satisfied with its current state. It had taken a small army of house
servants to achieve it, some of whom now had a permanent job in keeping the
floors of the great hall clean.  Alixandrea wasn’t a heavy-handed chatelaine;
she preferred to accomplish her needs through positive encouragement and kind
directives. At least for the moment, it seemed to be working. 
    The dogs who populated the hall
were another problem altogether. Seven in all and a litter of pups, and they
seemed to like Alixandrea a good deal. The moment she walked into the room,
they were on her and continued to follow her around as if she held all the
answers to their doggie dreams.  She had resorted to tricking them to go
outside into the kitchen yard; when they followed her from the hall and out
into the yard, she dashed back inside the keep and slammed the heavy oak door.
She heard them whimpering outside but that was of no matter; dogs belonged
outside, in her opinion, and outside they were going to stay.
    It had been an interesting
afternoon to say the least.  She felt that she was becoming moderately
acquainted with the four story keep and she also felt that she was settling
comfortably into her position at Wellesbourne. Caroline had been company all
afternoon, following her around more than actually helping. Alixandrea could
see what Matthew had suggested of the woman; she wasn’t particularly strong
willed, and she definitely was not a leader. She was rather meek, a little
flighty, and a sweet simpleton as Alixandrea had observed earlier. There was no
way this woman could stand up against five grown men and a castle full of
soldiers.
    They had parted ways about a
couple of hours before Vespers so that each could dress for the ceremony. 
Jezebel had been nowhere to be found when Alixandrea arrived in her chamber,
but the maid made her appearance shortly thereafter with a big copper tub and
servants bearing hot water. After her mistress was bathed, she brought her
mistress honeyed wine in an effort to calm any nerves she might be feeling for
the evening’s events.
    The wine was very sweet.  Cup in
hand, Alixandrea stood in front of a large bronze mirror that she had brought
with her from Whitewell.  The reflection gazing back at her was confident,
relaxed.  She was rather pleased with the way she looked and hoped Matthew was
pleased also.
    “I wish my mother could see me,”
she murmured, smoothing at the skirt. “She would have been blissfully happy.
This was her gown, you know. She married my father in it.”
    “I know,” Jezebel watched her as
she twirled and posed. “Ye look lovely, m’lady.“
    “Do you think so?” Alixandrea put
the goblet down to fix a ribbon in her hair. “What do you think of the hall? I
had them clean it up. Does it look much better?”
    “It does, mlady.”
    “I hope Sir Matthew thinks so. I
hope he…”
    She was interrupted by