Read Online [The deBurghs 07] - Reynold De Burgh: The Dark Knight by Deborah Simmons - Free Book Online Page B

time when her heart was lighter. She might even pretend that the man beside her was here of his own volition.
    But one glance at her companion made her dismiss such fancies, for Reynold de Burgh was not a figure of romance. She could not see him dropping on one knee or prosing lyrical about a lady’s charms. In fact, the very thought made her smile. Lord de Burgh was a man’s man, and if not for her predicament, he would have no use for Sabina Sexton.
    Yet Sabina felt no dismay at that truth, for the taciturn figure at her side kept her fears at bay, while she basked in the day’s warmth. It was more than she had dreamed of in these past hard months, and she would ask for nothing else. Turning away from the deserted barn and dairy, Sabina led her companion toward the stone stable.
    ‘What happened to your cattle? Your horses? Your sheep?’ he asked, peering into the dark interior, where only his horses stood among the shadows of carts and harnesses.
    ‘Killed, driven away, disappeared,’ Sabina said.‘Perhaps they were eaten, or maybe they are still wandering.’
    Refusing to dwell on the past, Sabina walked on, skirting the tall grasses at the edge of the pond where she had played as a child. They were headed towards the road when Ursula called to them from behind. Sabina turned to see the older woman seated upon the Marking Stone.
    ‘You go on, and I will watch you from here,’ she said.
    Sabina lifted her brows in surprise, for Ursula was always frightened to go out, and now she would sit in the open? Mindful of her attendant’s fears, Sabina did not venture far, but paused in the dust of the track to point out the baker’s and the blacksmith’s. Then they crossed the road to wind their way through the scattered plots and abandoned homes that had once teemed with life, and Sabina felt her pleasure dim.
    As much as she might like to pretend differently, the changes in Grim’s End could not be ignored. The bustling village now stood empty and so silent that she felt her nerves stretch taut. It was not the place she had once known, but something eerie and frightening, and Sabina moved a little closer to the warrior who walked beside her.
    ‘What was there?’ Lord de Burgh asked, pointing across the road.
    Sabina lifted a hand to shade her eyes and blinked at the tumble of stones. ‘That’s all that remains of the original church, although it’s said to have been built on the site of one that was even older.’ The manor had replaced an earlier one, as well, though all traces of that building were gone.
    ‘You’ve seen the new church, of course,’ Sabina said, leading him toward the structure with a small measure of pride. ‘The Sextons have always been associated with the sanctuaries of Grim’s End. Long ago, my ancestors tended the first, and later, they helped build this one,’ Sabina said. She always felt a connection here, even now.
    Lord de Burgh walked around the exterior, stopping to look at the fine carving on the wall that faced the road. ‘Rather unusual depiction for a church, isn’t it?’ he asked, with a nod toward the dragon.
    ‘I’m sure there are others of saints slaying the beasts, especially George,’ Sabina said.
    ‘But this shows only the dragon, not the slayer.’
    Sabina shrugged. ‘I’ve heard that grim can mean worm or beast, so I think it represents our history, the founding of our village upon a great deed.’ What better place to remind its residents of their good fortune and the need for vigilance against evil? But had their vigilance grown slack? Sabina could think of no real reason for the dragon to awake, except perhaps…She shook her head.
    Lost in her thoughts, Sabina did not stir until she remembered her company. Then she glanced up to see Lord de Burgh standing not far away, waiting patiently. The man was sparing, of movement, of speech, of himself. But Sabina needed no reassurance of words or posturing, for she felt a security she had never known before,