Chapter 7

In the morning, King Henry quietly pushed the tarpaulin of his tent aside and stepped outside. Not without taking one last, almost longing look at his sleeping wife.

Catherine's sleep had been restless, at one point he even thought he had heard a soft whimper coming from her lips. Now, however, she seemed to have finally come to rest and lay there motionless, curled up into a small little ball under his fur.

So he decided to let her sleep as long as possible before they had to pack up their camp and move on. She would need every ounce of energy she could summon up for the exhausting journey that lay ahead of her.

He was greeted by the breathtaking view of the rising sun that bathed the mountain tops in a red and golden light and the cool morning air that blew away his tiredness. The moss at his feet shimmered slightly from morning dew.
Henry strechted with a loud yawn and watched the camp around him come to life.

"No one saw her leave his tent. So I assume she spent the night with him. Just imagine: A nun!" The voice Henry heard turned over with excitement while his eyes searched for the person who was without any doubt speaking about him and his wife.
"Well, as our King, he for sure enjoys certain privileges. After weeks of abstinence I most certainly wouldn't kick any woman out of my bed. Not even a nun."

Henry detected two rather young men near the horses who seemed to be unaware of his presence. And apparently, Catherine's attendance in his tent had already caused some gossip. Gossip he was going to stop right before their departure.
"Haven't you boys got anything better to do than chatting like a pair of vulgar fishwifes?" he barked angrily in their direction. The sharpness of his words caused them to flinch in alarm. Clearly feeling embarrassed, both men offered him a stammered apology.

But their lame excuses ricocheted from their monarch, who was already crossing the camp with long and angry steps in search of Cedric.
Henry found his friend at the fireplace, where some of the men were already preparing a simple yet nutritive breakfast.
"Cedric", Henry nodded at his companion in greeting.
"Good morning, my king."

Henry grabbed the older man's arm and indicated his friend to follow him.
The two men walked silently side by side for a few minutes before the king began to speak.
"We will leave within the hour. But before our departure I want you to round our men up. I will inform them about the change of plans and reveal the presence of their Queen. Because quite obviously Catherine's presence didn't go unnoticed. I will nip any weird rumour in the bud. Did you find her a proper dress? She can't possibly travel in her hideous habit."
"Yes, the dress has already been brought to your tent," replied his right-hand man, nodding in agreement.

"Good. I want you to captain the men staying and patroling this area, okay my friend?" Although his words sounded like a question, they both knew they were an order.
"Of course, your Majesty."

The moment the men returned to the fire, a nun appeared in their clearing. By all indications that had to be the young novice Mother Agnes had send to assist Catherine. Henry saw the girl taking a tentative step forward, all the while nervously gazing at his soldiers so he waved her over to brief her on her impending duties. Then one of the soldiers accompanied her to the royal tent to assist his wife getting ready for their departure.

After a restless, pain stricken night, Catherine found it difficult to bring herself to get out of the cot, no matter how uncomfortable it was.
The mere thought of spending another day at Henry's side, moreover in the saddle, robbed her of any energy she might have left. Besides the constant throbbing of her injured arm was a clear reminder that she was anything but fit to travel. How long would she be able to keep the full extent of her injury a secret from her husband?

And while she was looking rather clueless at the emerald green dress that had a simple cut yet still epitomised understated elegance, the tarpaulin of the tent was pushed aside. Catherine jerked around in alarm and instead of facing Henry or one of his soldiers, she was greeted with the sight of a young novice.

"Florence," she cried in surprise, but the girl just stood stock-still at the entrance of the tent until she finally dropped an awkward curtsey. Catherine saw the cheeks in her pale, freckled face redden with embarrassment.
"Your Majesty", Florence finally stammered, whereupon the Queen of France approached her slowly with an encouraging smile on her face .
"Catherine," she corrected her gently and with her uninjured hand she reached for the girl that had dedicatively cared for her in the weeks after that malicious assassination attempt. Florence had hardly left her side during the difficult time of her discovery.

"To be honest, I don't know what... um, how to behave, Your Ma... Catherine." The Queen's first name went only hesitantly over the novice's lips and Catherine saw how insecure the girl was.

The Medici didn't know much about her past, only that she didn't have a nice start in life and in spite of her youth she had already experienced a lot of terrible things. And yet Florence was one of the most gentle and selfless persons she had ever met.
"No different than before," she assured her and added humbly: "You've saved my life."

"A simple act of humanity. Even though I cannot deny feeling honored for having saved my queen from death", the girl quickly added and gave Catherine an insecure yet honest smile. A smile the monarch returned with motherly leniency.
"How come you know my true identity?" Catherine finally asked.
"Our Reverend Mother sent me to assist you on your upcoming journey after your husband's visit. And I'm also bringing you your ointment." Only now did she notice the small bag Florence was holding in her hand and nodded in relief.

Florence was truely a godsend. The girl would be able to help her hiding her handicap from Henry. She already knew the full extent of her injury and therefore she would be able to inconspicuously support Catherine without her husband or his soldiers noticing her physical impairment.
"Let me take care of your arm first, then I will help you getting dressed. The King will send you some breakfast shortly, afterwards we are going to depart."

After Catherine was dressed and saturated, the novice accompanied her outside. It was a strange feeling going back to wearing a normal dress after all those months in the convent, even though it was less pompous than her usual wardrobe. But the cut was extremely beneficial for her figure and the color was of such a beautiful emerald green that she gave in to her vanity for a short moment.

"Ah, there you are!" Henry hastened towards her with wide steps and reached out for her uninjured hand. "It's about time," he whispered into her ear. Before Catherine could wonder if he was meaning their imminent departure or something else, Henry directed her to his waiting soldiers and started to speak.

"Soldiers! Many of you may have wondered at the beginning of our mission what might have caused me - your King - to trade my comfortable sleeping chambers for a tent with an uncomfortable cot and the dust of the street, no less in a time of peace. Maybe some of you have even wondered if your King is slowly but surely losing his mind".

His words made Cedric and some of the men chuckle in amusement. And contrary to Catherine's expectation, Henry didn't react with annoyance, he rather winked at his longtime friend, while a waggish smile lighted up his handsome face.

"And you're right. I've lost something of great importance whose value I haven't always appreciated. Something, or rather someone I took for granted in my life." Her husband surprised her by pulling her closer and giving her an indefinable look that caused a hot shiver running down her spine and made the fine hair on the back of her neck stand up.
"My Queen," Henry suddenly shouted, tearing up their intertwined hands.

Catherine experience the rest of his speech through a heavy fog of confusion. His charismatic way of speaking irritated her, as did the way her husband was still holding on to her. What was Henry up to?
She had rather expected being dragged violently through the camp in order to teach her and his men a lesson about how he dealt with inconvenient problems.

But he did nothing of the sort, just reminded his soldiers that her safety was their main priority now and that the men rather treat her with the utmost respect since she was not only his wife but also their Queen.

And while she was still worried about his true motives, Henry gave his order to pack up their camp. Then he galantly offered his arm to his wife and accompanied her to the fireplace where some trunks served as seating. With a determinant gesture he ordered the novice to follow them.

"Stay with Catherine until we're ready to depart," he instructed the young girl who nodded confirmingly.
"As you wish, Your Majesty. Oh, before I forget, Mother Agnes gave me something for you," the novice said and took a small jar out of her bag.
The King of France thanked the girl, then he turned around and made an attempt to leave. After a few steps however, Henry turned around with a questioning look on his face, as if something important had occurred to him.

"Have you eaten?" he wanted to know and assessed her with watchful eyes, slowly reducing the distance between them. For the fraction of a second she considered giving him a snappish answer, but then Catherine reconsidered her situation.
She was forced to travel by his side for several weeks, not to forget they were going to spend their nights together in close quarters. But what convinced her in the end were his soulful eyes, where she saw sincere concern.

"Yes, I have," she replied in a calm voice and was surprised when Henry gently caressed her cheek hereupon.
"Good. I'll come and get you once we're done."
Then he disappeared between his soldiers.

My dear readers, thank you. Thank you for reading, for your reviews, for your patience and for your fidelity.
I actually have more than a dozen chapters up my sleeve for all my WIPs and I've even started a new story (Basherine)as well, but I still need to get them on my PC and translate them. Oh my gosh, I need a secretary. ;o)