The Bard's Daughter (A Gareth and Gwen Medieval Mystery) Read Online Free PDF

she was merely curious, instead of intensely interested.
    Ifan shrugged. “Right here. It’s where I always am.”
    “ Always?” Gwen said.
    Ifan stopped his whittling to look up at her again. He barked a laugh. “Are you accusing me of having something to do with Collen’s death?”
    “ We don’t know when Collen died exactly,” Gwen said. “Maybe you were the one to kill him. Maybe you’ve grown tired of being his servant.”
    “ I was like a son to him,” Ifan said. “Why would I wish for his death?”
    “ The cart, for one thing,” Gwen said, “and everything in it. With Collen’s death, you can strike out on your own.”
    Ifan shook his head. “No.” He spat on the ground. “Lord Cadfael told me just now that everything Collen owned belongs to either Collen’s partner or his widow. I get nothing. I don’t even own the clothes on my back, though I’ll go straight to hell before I let anyone take them from me.” The tears were gone and Ifan’s face had gone red as his temper had risen.
    Gwen decided it was time to divert the conversation. “I didn’t know Collen had a partner or a widow. He never spoke of them.”
    “ He kept his business to himself,” Ifan said.
    “ Do you know where either the partner or the widow live?” Gwen said. “Someone has to tell them that Collen is dead.”
    “ They already know,” Ifan said. “The widow, Eva, arrived at mid-day yesterday. The partner, Denis, met us on the road and entered Carreg Cennen when we did, three days ago.”
    Gwen and her family had spent the winter at Carreg Cennen Castle, so Gwen was surprised that she’d missed out on any talk or gossip about Collen. She’d not spoken to the man more than once or twice in passing since he arrived, but she was observant enough to note that he hadn’t sat with anyone in particular at the meal last night.
    Then again, as Ifan had pointed out, Collen kept his business to himself, except when he wanted something—like her father to smuggle goods for him. She believed her father when he’d told her that he’d turned Collen down, and that he hadn’t been angry. Could he have lied to her, even about something as important as this?
    And then she admonished herself for her naïveté, because of course he could. Her father had been stern and distant all through her growing up and at times she’d hated him for it. He’d always had his mind directed towards his own well-being, and that of Gwalchmai. Ever since Gwalchmai’s birth, and her mother’s death in birthing him, Meilyr’s only use for Gwen was as a child-minder. But he loved Gwalchmai and she believed him when he said that he would do nothing to jeopardize his future.
    “ May I look through Collen’s things?” Gwen said. “It might help us discover who murdered him.”
    “ Everyone knows who murdered him,” Ifan said. “Your father.”
    “ My father didn’t have anything to do with this,” Gwen said. “He couldn’t have.” She’d lost track of the number of times she’d said those words. And yet, in the face of everyone else’s staunch certainty, a wavering voice had begun in her head, wondering if it was others she was trying to convince—or herself.
    “ I heard he was found with the body. And I heard what he said to Collen last night.” Ifan sneered. “Wait until I tell Gruffydd of it. It will be the final nail in his coffin.”
    Gwen licked her lips. Her father hadn’t said anything about an open fight, and certainly not one that had been loud enough for Ifan to hear. But if Ifan knew of it, who else might speak of it to Gruffydd? “What did you hear? When? Please tell me.”
    “ It was last night.” Ifan stuck out his chin. “Collen and Meilyr were at each other’s throats in the stable.” He pointed with his knife towards the planks to his left that formed the side wall of the stable. “They didn’t shout, but their words were fierce. They wouldn’t have known I could hear them. People always think that a