She asked him nothing, and wondered at herself. But she had sworn it, and must be content. She called herself ‘fool’ a dozen times a day, and yet she did trust him. She could not believe, however much she remembered the words she had overheard, that he would hurt her. She could not believe it of him. Christmas came creeping nearer, bringing snow. Kathryn leaned more towards Sir Damien. He seemed to distract her from her worries, and she needed other distractions than the running of the household and the ordering of servants. They had stores enough to last them months, everything was ready. No one could get into the castle without a long siege and even then, surely, there would be time for an army to come to their rescue? And yet Richard seemed always busy. She saw him rarely, and longed more than ever that she had not been so stubborn when they first married, and let him be her husband in truth. The winter had brought hardship to many.
