Fraser greeted them politely, but not with anywhere close to the zeal that he had greeted Isabella. As Lenore took him into the apartments to show him where Gilbert was to sleep, Barbara led Isalyn and Isabella up the stairs to the first floor.
Although Barbara seemed to be behaving herself, Isabella walked up the stairs behind Isalyn, remembering what had happened to Lady Violet. She was nervous that Barbara had put Isalyn on the upper floor, but it wasn’t as if she could say anything. She could only hope that Barbara wouldn’t maneuver Isalyn anywhere near the stairs for the duration of her stay. She simply didn’t trust her not to. In fact, Isabella was going to make sure her father knew of her concerns. Perhaps he could relay them to Tor.
Or perhaps not.
It wasn’t like Tor was apt to do anything about it.
As Isabella lost herself in memories of the women Barbara and Lenore had targeted in the past, Barbara led Isalyn into a large chamber on the northeast corner of the apartment block. It was quite roomy, with a big, fluffy bed and an enormous wardrobe against the wall.
“This is where you will sleep, my lady,” Barbara said, standing by the open door. “I will have servants bring fuel for the fire and a few lamps for light. You will notice that I closed the shutters that face the wall; soldiers are sometimes on the wall walk and they can look through the window if they try, so I thought it best to discourage them from peeking at you.”
By this time, Isalyn had moved to the bed, setting her satchel upon it. “That was thoughtful of you,” she said. “Thank you.”
Barbara gestured to the one open window. “That window faces north, so you will have excellent views all day,” she said. “It also faces the kitchen yard, so if it becomes too noisy, do not hesitate to inform me.”
Isalyn went to the window, which was a big one. To the north, she could see mostly the walls and treetops and the brilliant blue sky. It was a nice view. But that was only if one was looking straight ahead or up. Looking down gave the view of most of the kitchen yard and the pens where the goats and pigs were kept.
And then there was the smell.
Not wanting to complain, however, Isalyn didn’t say a word about it. She wondered if the placement was on purpose considering she felt there was something off about these women from the start. Still, she was gracious.
“It is quite fine,” she said. “Thank you again for your kind attention to my comfort.”
Barbara was still standing by the open door as Isabella went to look from the north window. Realizing the kitchen yard was right there, she frowned.
“Barbara, surely you did not have to give her the room that overlooks the pigsty,” she said. “There are seven other chambers in this block. Can she not have one of those?”
It was clear that Barbara didn’t like being questioned. She stiffened. “You and your father and your brother occupy three of them,” she said. “Lord de Featherstone was given the big, comfortable chamber on the ground floor. One of the smaller chambers on the first floor has been used for storage and the other two share a leaking roof, so this is the best and only place I can put Lady Isalyn unless you would like her to share your chamber.”
Isabella almost agreed but thought better of it. She had just met Isalyn and to insist she share her chamber might be a little too much, too soon. She had a good feeling about Isalyn but she didn’t want to force the woman to be her very best friend in the first day of knowing her, so she simply smiled and turned to Isalyn.
“You may take my chamber if you wish,” she said. “It does not overlook the pigsty.”
But Isalyn shook her head. “Do not worry so much,” she said. “Truly, this chamber is fine. I am most appreciative.”
“Are you certain?”
“I am. But you are very kind to worry so much.”
Isabella smiled at her, thinking that perhaps the woman might like to be left alone since she had spent all morning traveling. “I am sure you wish to rest now,” she said. “I will take my leave, but I look forward to seeing you tonight at the feast. You promised to tell me all about London.”
Isalyn smiled. “And I will,” she said. “I am looking forward to it as well, my lady. And, again… I cannot apologize enough for what my brother did. You are so very gracious not to bear a grudge.”
Isabella paused, lifting her slender shoulders. “My grandmother says that life is too short to live with regrets or grudges,” she said. “I suppose everything in life happens for a reason. Even having a prospective husband run away. I will see you this evening, my lady.”
“Please call me Isalyn.”
“And you will call me Isabella.”
With that, Isabella turned for the door, pausing to let Barbara pass through first before following her. Quietly, she shut the door behind her, leaving Isalyn alone in the vast, well-swept chamber.
Truthfully, Isalyn was glad to finally be alone. Not that she hadn’t liked becoming acquainted with Isabella, because she had. Very much. She was a sweet girl and Isalyn was feeling increasingly bad for what her brother had done to her, but Isabella seemed to be taking it very well. She had a mature outlook for one so young.
Isalyn liked that.
Feeling happy that she had come to Blackpool, Isalyn untied her satchel and began to unpack.
As she unrolled the garments that she had packed and went to hang them up on pegs inside the wardrobe, her thoughts begin to drift from Isabella to Tor. Isalyn had been as close to giddy as she had ever been in her life when they had first arrived at Blackpool and he had come out to greet them. The way he looked at her made her heart sing in a way she never realized it could. She had spent her entire life in London, around male friends of her aunt’s, and she had also spent time with her own friends, many of whom were actors. Never once had she had the same reaction to them as she had to Tor.
All Isalyn knew was that a look from him made her heart race. A word from him was like music to her ears. And when he smiled… that was when the moon and the stars and the heavens seemed to open up and all she was faced with was utter brilliance. What made it even better was that he seemed to be quite attentive to her also.
Was it possible that he was feeling the same giddy ardor that she was?
Isalyn was eager for the feast to begin that evening, but she also knew that feasts simply weren’t a meal. They were events. They would start in the evening and sometimes go all night, and if that was the case tonight, she wanted to enjoy every single minute of it. She wanted to stay up all night, talking to Tor and coming to know a remarkable man. Therefore, she knew that it would be wise for her to try and sleep this afternoon, just a little, so that she would have the ability to stay up all night and speak to the provincial knight who had quite ably captured her attention.
Therefore, she put away all of her belongings and stripped off the dark green traveling dress that she was wearing. Underneath it, she wore a very fine lamb’s wool shift that was both lightweight and warm. It was one of the finer garments that her father imported and she had a few of them. When he sold them in his stall in Carlisle, he could barely keep them in stock.
Stripped down to just the shift, Isalyn climbed into the big, fluffy bed only to realize that the mattress was not stuffed with feathers as she had hoped, but stuffed with straw. Stuffing a mattress with straw or dried grass or even rags was not unusual, but it was usually done in the poorer households. In a fortress like this, she had expected a little better, but she resigned herself to it and lay down, listening to the straw crackle and feeling it poke.