Ken Follett - World Without End

Ralph felt a thrill of pride as he rode through Tench. He had looked forward to this moment. The serfs bowed and their children stared. He was lord of every person and owner of every object in the place.

The house was set in a compound. Riding in, followed by a cart loaded with French loot, Ralph saw immediately that the defensive walls had long ago fallen into disrepair. He wondered whether he should restore them. The burgers of Normandy had neglected their defences, by and large, and that had made it relatively easy for Edward III to overrun them. On the other hand, the likelihood of an invasion of southern England was now very small. Early in the war, most of the French fleet had been wiped out at the port of Sluys, and thereafter the English had controlled the sea channel that separated the two countries. Apart from minor raids by freelance pirates, every battle since Sluys had been fought on French soil. On balance it hardly seemed worthwhile to rebuild the compound walls.

Several grooms appeared and took the horses. Ralph left Alan Fernhill to supervise the unloading, and walked towards his new house. He was limping: his injured leg always hurt after a long ride. Tench Hall was a stone-built manor house. It was impressive, he noted with satisfaction, though it needed repairs – not surprisingly, for it had remained unoccupied since Lady Matilda’s father died. However, it was modern in design. In old-fashioned houses, the lord’s private chamber was an afterthought stuck on to the end of the all-important great hall, but Ralph could see, from the outside, that here the domestic apartments took up half the building.

He entered the hall, and was annoyed to find Earl William there.

At the far end of the room was a large chair made of dark wood, elaborately carved with powerful symbols: angels and lions on the back and arms, snakes and monsters on the legs. It was obviously the chair of the lord of the manor. But William was sitting in it.

Much of Ralph’s pleasure evaporated. He could not enjoy his mastery of the new manor under the scrutiny of his own overlord. It would be like going to bed with a woman while her husband listened outside the door.

He masked his displeasure and formally greeted Earl William. The earl introduced the man standing next to him. “This is Daniel, who has been bailiff here for twenty years, and has taken good care of the place, on my father’s behalf, during Tilly’s minority.”

Ralph acknowledged the bailiff stiffly. William’s message was clear: he wanted Ralph to let Daniel continue in the job. But Daniel had been Earl Roland’s man and now he would be Earl William’s. Ralph had no intention of letting his domain be managed by the earl’s man. His bailiff would be loyal to him alone.

William waited expectantly for Ralph to say something about Daniel. However, Ralph was not going to have that discussion. Ten years ago he would have jumped feet first into an argument, but he had learned a lot in the time he had spent with the king. He was not obliged to get his earl’s approval for his choice of bailiff, so he would not seek it. He would say nothing until William had gone, then he would tell Daniel he was being assigned to other duties.

Both William and Ralph remained stubbornly silent for a few moments, then the deadlock was broken. A large door opened at the domestic end of the hall and the tall, elegant figure of Lady Philippa came in. It was many years since Ralph had seen her, but his youthful passion returned with a shock that felt like a punch, leaving him breathless. She was older – she had to be forty, he guessed – but she was in her prime. Perhaps she was a little heavier than he remembered, her hips more rounded, her breasts fuller, but that only added to her allure. She still walked like a queen. As always, the sight of her made him ask resentfully why he could not have a wife like that.

In the past she had barely deigned to notice his presence, but today she smiled and shook his hand and said: “Are you getting to know Daniel?”

She, too, wanted him to continue to employ the earl’s retainer – that was why she was being courteous. All the more reason to get rid of the man, he thought with secret relish. “I’ve just arrived,” he said noncommittally.

Philippa explained their presence. “We wanted to be here when you met young Tilly – she’s part of our family.”

Ralph had commanded the nuns of Kingsbridge Priory to bring his fiancee here to meet him today. Interfering busybodies, the nuns had obviously told Earl William what was happening. “Lady Matilda was the ward of Earl Roland, rest his soul,” Ralph said, emphasizing that the wardship had ended with Roland’s death.

“Yes – and I would have expected the king to transfer her wardship to my husband, as Roland’s heir.” Clearly Philippa would have preferred that.

“But he did not,” Ralph said. “He gave her to me to wed.” Although no ceremony had yet taken place, the girl had immediately become Ralph’s responsibility. Strictly speaking, William and Philippa had no business to invite themselves here today, as if playing the role of Tilly’s parents. But William was Ralph’s overlord, so he could visit whenever he pleased.

Ralph did not want to quarrel with William. It was too easy for William to make Ralph’s life difficult. On the other hand, the new earl was overreaching his authority here – probably under pressure from his wife. But Ralph was not going to be bullied. The last seven years had given him the confidence to defend such independence as he was entitled to.

Anyway, he was enjoying crossing swords with Philippa. It gave him an excuse to stare at her. He rested his gaze on the assertive line of her jaw and the fullness of her lips. Despite her hauteur, she was forced to engage with him. This was the longest conversation he had ever had with her.

“Tilly is very young,” said Philippa.

“She will be fourteen this year,” Ralph said. “That’s the age our queen was when she married our king – as the king himself pointed out, to me and to Earl William, after the battle of Crécy.”

“The aftermath of a battle is not necessarily the best moment to decide the fate of a young girl,” Philippa said in a lowered voice.

Ralph was not going to let that pass. “Speaking for myself, I feel obliged to comply with the decisions of his majesty.”

“As do we all,” she muttered.

Ralph felt he had vanquished her. It was a sexual feeling, almost as if he had lain with her. Satisfied, he turned to Daniel. “My wife-to-be should arrive in time for dinner,” he said. “Make sure we have a feast.”

Philippa said: “I have already seen to that.”

Ralph slowly turned his head until his eyes were on her again. She had overstepped the bounds of courtesy by going into his kitchen and giving orders.

She knew it, and reddened. “I didn’t know what time you would get here,” she said.

Ralph said nothing. She would not apologize, but he was content in having forced her to explain herself – a climbdown for a woman as proud as she.

For a short while there had been the noise of horses outside, and now Ralph’s parents came in. He had not seen them for some years, and he hurried to embrace them.

They were both in their fifties, but his mother had aged faster, it seemed to him. Her hair was white and her face was lined. She had the slight stoop of elderly women. His father seemed more vigorous. It was partly the excitement of the moment: he was flushed with pride, and shook Ralph’s hand as if pumping water from a well. But there was no grey in his red beard, and his slim figure still appeared spry. They were both wearing new clothes – Ralph had sent the money. Sir Gerald had a heavy wool surcoat and Lady Maud a fur cloak.