The Fallen Princess Read Online Free PDF Page B

ownership, he was perilously close
to losing it. Enemies confronted him on all sides, and while he was
gaining experience every day, it wasn’t happening quickly
enough.
    Gareth was a good man—a good leader—but he
knew even less about governing a people than Hywel did. Ruling a
kingdom wasn’t the same as winning it. It was as if his father had
sailed with him in a boat halfway to Ireland and then shoved him
out of it, saying, “Swim.” By God, Hywel was swimming as hard as he
could, but Ceregidion wasn’t Gwynedd. The people there had spent
far too much time among Normans to understand how true Welshmen
lived and acted. The lesser lords plotted and connived, always
looking for a weakness.
    Hywel hadn’t known what real leadership was
until this year, and it terrified him to think he didn’t have it in
him. So far, Hywel’s father hadn’t said anything to him about the
men he’d lost or the money he was spending. He had to think that,
for now, his father believed that having Hywel in charge of
Ceredigion was better than having Cadwaladr, whom he was punishing.
But if Hywel didn’t get control of the cantref soon, he might find
himself yanked by the neck hairs back to Gwynedd.
    “My lord?” Evan approached the base of the
dune and looked up at Hywel with a concerned expression.
    “What is it?” Hywel glanced down at him,
hastily rearranging his thoughts and smoothing his expression in
case what was going on inside his head showed.
    “We await your orders, my lord.”
    “I’m coming now.” Hywel took a last look at
the view and then slid down the dune, holding his arms out for
balance so he wouldn’t land ignominiously on his rear. As he
reached level ground again, one of the guards who had departed with
Gwen returned.
    The man dismounted by the cart and went down
on one knee before Hywel, far more formally than was usual for his
men, but the occasion seemed to have touched everyone and demanded
it. “I am so sorry for your loss, my lord.”
    Hywel looked down at the man’s bowed head
and then snapped his fingers, indicating that he should rise. The
man was in his middle thirties and had served Hywel’s father before
transferring to Hywel’s company. “Thank you, Cynan. How do you know
I have experienced a loss?”
    Cynan straightened his back and looked at
Hywel, his expression confused. “Isn’t this the body of Princess
Tegwen?”
    “Did Gwen tell you that?”
    “No, my lord.” Cynan licked his lips. “I
apologize if I shouldn’t have looked at her while you were
examining her, but I did look.” He made a helpless gesture with one
hand. “She’s wearing Tegwen’s garnet and her cloak.”
    “It’s been five years since anyone has seen
her,” Hywel said. “How is it that you remember what she wore?”
    Color rose in Cynan’s face. “She was
beautiful, my lord, and full of life.”
    Evan had been listening to their exchange,
and now he stepped closer, bowing his head as Cynan had. When he
looked up, his face wore a stunned expression. “My lord, please. I
couldn’t help but overhear that you believe this is Tegwen. But it
can’t be. She ran away with a Dane.”
    “Apparently, she didn’t.” Hywel studied the
faces of his men, acknowledging that the body’s identity was no
longer a secret and he shouldn’t pretend his men didn’t know. “Does
anyone remember who it was that saw her sail away?”
    Dewi, the driver of the cart, raised his
hand. “I believe it was her maid.”
    Cynan’s brow furrowed. “I thought it was a
guard on duty at Bryn Euryn.”
    That was as Hywel remembered too. “Did you
speak of this to anyone at Aber just now, Cynan?”
    “No, my lord.” Cynan shook his head. “It was
my understanding that it was Gwen’s task to inform the king. I
delivered her to the castle and said nothing to anyone before
returning. It was what I thought you expected of me.”
    “Good man.” Hywel rested a hand briefly on
Cynan’s shoulder. “I would appreciate it if