Gwenhwyfar_ The White Spirit - Mercedes Lackey [134]
Silently thanking the goddesses, Epona in particular, Gwen strode cheerfully into her solar and headed for the doorway to the outer corridor, intent on getting to the stables and finding Rhys. She hadn’t seen either of her horses since she had arrived here, and of the two, Rhys was the one most inclined to be lazy when he got the chance. Probably stuffing himself on hay and congratulating himself on escaping exercise, the slothful beast, she thought happily. Time to wake him—
She pushed open the door, and at once was stopped by a bar to her exit. “Halt!” the guard at the door said, “Boy! What are you—”
“Boy?” Gwen slapped at the spear that had been lowered to stop her from going any further. “Alun ap Grwn, are you blind? I’m no more a boy than you are. Now enough with your nonsense. I’m going to the stables.”
The guard gaped at her, then snapped the spear back up. His usually stolid expression was gone, replaced with utter confusion. “Queen Gwenhwyfar, I—didn’t recognize—”
She waved the apology off. “Never mind. I’m going for a ride, and I suppose I will need an escort. Send for whoever of the Companions isn’t busy, will you, and direct him to the stable. Or better yet, go yourself.”
“Ride?” the man replied, looking dazed. “Stable? But, Queen Gwenhwyfar, you can’t—”
“I most certainly can,” she said sharply. “and I am going to. Now get one of the Companions to—”
“But—there’s no one here but Kai and Medraut,” the man stammered. “And I’m under orders from the King himself. You’re not to be disturbed, and on no account I am not to let you leave—”
The first part of his sentence was lost in the slap to the face that the second part was. She whirled on him. “What?” she exclaimed in outrage.
“I’m not to—let you leave—your rooms?” he faltered, as she put one hand to her belt knife and stared at him, eyes blazing with rage.
“We’ll see about that!” And with that, she headed off at an angry trot, outpacing him, as he tried to follow her, protesting every step of the way.
She was so angry that she just shut his words out. She headed straight for the King’s privy chambers, since it wasn’t yet time for the usual audiences, nor for the Companions to gather about that famous round table. Her blood boiled. He had said that he understood! How could he—how dared he—
Her chambers were separated from his by the courtyard; she passed along one side of it, the first time she had actually seen the sun and the open sky in days. Her breath steamed in the cold air; it felt good and clean after all the heat and perfume.
She stormed past the startled guards on his doors, the protesting Alun right behind. The first room, where he would usually have been, sitting at a desk, was empty. There were no maps on the desk, no discarded cloak, and the mosaic floor that imitated the pool of the courtyard outside had been swept immaculately clean.
The second room, where he usually lounged with Kai or others he considered close as kin, was also empty. The cushions were placed neatly on the Roman-style couches. There were no cups and horns waiting on the side table to be collected, no litter of food from breaking fast. And the small council chamber, with the frescos of Hercules defeating a lion, was just as empty. And his bedroom, as small as hers, was not only empty, but cold. Very empty, even of servants.
She turned on the guards, who had followed her in. “Where is he?” she shouted.
“G-g-gone, Queen Gw—l”
“I can see that! Where?” If he and the Companions had gone off hunting and left before she was awake so he had an excuse to leave her behind