Aethelwin was too busy on the loom to worry about the knocking. It was too late in the evening for visitors and she knew it would not be Eadred. Ailith went to open the door.

Aethelwin heard her yelp in fright and turned curiously. There was a haggard looking man in the doorway, looking back at them with startling blue eyes in a dirty black face. No wonder Ailith had been frightened. Aethelwin stood up.

“Leodgar?”

A small weary smile touched his lips.

“Didn’t you think I would come back?”

Where have you been? She wanted to scream. But she was so relieved to see him and confused by his awful appearance that she bit back her words. They brought him in to sit by the fire and for a few quiet moments they fussed around him with food and ale.

Then Eadred appeared at the door with two of his men.

“You have guts coming back here, after all you have stolen from me.”

Leodgar's head sagged into his hands, but Eadred had no compassion for his exhaustion. He turned his attention to Aethelwin.

“I thought I told you what would happen if he came back? Do you think you are so much better than your lord that you can do as you want?”

“Eadred, My Lord,” Leodgar stood with some effort, his hands out in supplication. “I have only just returned, Aethelwin does not know where I have been or what I have had to endure. She is blameless.”

From within his coat he drew out a long silver chain. Eadred’s eyes followed the shiny metal greedily until it lay securely in his large hands. He stared at it incredulously, until another chain was laid beside it. Leodgar pulled out a small bag and passed it over as well, giving Aethelwin an apologetic grimace. Aethelwin didn’t mind. She knew it was the only way to diffuse the situation. Besides, whether it came into her hands at all did not matter, sooner or later it all eventually went to Eadred anyway.

“I have made some contacts who will buy more before winter.”

That broke the spell for Eadred. His eyes sharpened as he quickly tied the bag to his belt.

“You want to take more? You’ve taken a whole year’s worth of fabric and come back with one bag of scraps. You’re either a poor negotiator or else someone here is being tricked. I don’t like being tricked, Leodgar.”

“It’s the war, My Lord.”

“The war, the war. It’s always the war. Once, a man could lead his men into battle and come back with as much loot as he could carry. Now we’re lucky to come back with the clothes on our back. You say it’s because of the war, Aelle says it’s because of the war. Well I don’t believe it. Gold and silver just don’t vanish into thin air, someone is getting plenty of it, aren’t they?”

“My contacts have plenty of it, Lord Eadred. Now they know we have quality products, they will buy. I promise you on my life, you will be rich.”

A cruel sneer slowly marred Eadred’s face. He weighed the bag of silver greedily, menacingly.

“You already owe me your life Leodgar, and a year’s worth of fabric. Either way, I will collect what is owed.”

He gave them both a quick suspicious look then left with his men.

As soon as they had gone, Leodgar visibly relaxed. He collapsed gratefully back into the chair, his head resting heavily in his hands. He seemed to have aged ten years in a matter of seconds.

“What happened?”

“Would you believe me if I said I had been robbed?”

Aethelwin looked him up and down.

“Is that a trick question?”

“By children?”

If he hadn’t looked so battered, bruised and miserable, she would have laughed. Poor Leodgar.

“It's true, believe me I wish it wasn’t. We had done so well, particularly in the larger towns. I thought if only I could get back here quick enough I might be able to collect some more to sell before the winter. I left early, before dawn, and then when I was near Aldborough on the other side of the River Ure, four boys accosted me,” he laughed ruefully, shaking his scraggly brown head at the memory. “Four boys, no more than half my age. They had come out of the woods there and within seconds I was laying face down on the track and they were going through my pockets. They took just about everything. I was desperate, I knew I couldn’t return empty handed so I chased after the little beggars. I caught up with one of the older ones. Thankfully he was a lot slower. I got the bag from him, gave him a bit of a hiding, and then ran off before his friends came back to his rescue.”

“And then you came back here?”

Leodgar nodded

“I can’t believe I got ruffled by children.”

“But where else did you go? You’ve been away for ages, Leodgar.”

“Everywhere. The entire length and breadth of Northumbria. I even went into Cumbria and Strathclyde.”

“You went north, as well? Where the fighting is?”

Reluctantly he nodded.

“It is that bad?”

“It's not the country you remember, Aethelwin. The churches have no money, the villagers are starving. The armies on both sides are eating into their winter supplies already. There are small bands of misfits who slip away from the main army and go raiding the towns and farms for food and money. I have seen terrible things happen to the women.”

Leodgar shuddered. He was making Aethelwin want to curl up in a ball and hide away from the world. She had never seen him so miserable.

“Surely, they were from Aelle's army?”

Leodgar gave Aethelwin a strange look, almost like pity. He carried on with his story.

“I went back south, with all my things. No-one was buying so I thought I would go to York. Perhaps the Archbishop was still rich. Luckily, the first day I arrived two Flemish traders bought everything I had. We did quite well actually. Their buyers are from the southern kingdoms and the continent which aren't affected as much from our civil war. I think we could have done quite well if it weren't for those boys.”

“We could get some men to go with you next time, as body guards. Eadred would agree if it meant keeping his earnings safe.”

“I prefer to be by myself, it’s easier to travel long distances. Besides, I think I was an easy target because of my clothes.”

Aethelwin winced as she took a closer look at the ripped and dirtied clothes, recognising the tunic she had made for him. Leodgar shrugged again.

“They were beautiful, but people knew I was a man of wealth before I even came near. If I were to turn up with a few men, even in my old clothes they will know. They might come back with the older boys, their fathers and uncles perhaps. People are desperate in these hard times.”

“So what will you do?”

“Go back. I’ll take what I can, see if I can get a good price.”

“But you’ve just returned. You’ve been tramping all over the country, Leodgar.”

Leodgar leaned forward wearily and grasped her hands in his. It was difficult to look away from his deep blue eyes, they captivated her. When he spoke he was as kind as ever, but there was an urgency that struck at her very centre.

“Aethelwin, we can't be complacent. We were both lucky today. Yes, Eadred was happy with what I salvaged from those boys, but he had not expected that. He had come with his men to take me away from here and make me disappear. You cannot believe for one moment that a few trinkets are going to appease him. He is a greedy man, you know this. He will want more.”

“Until when?” Aethelwin whispered, wondering why it sounded as though they had been feeding a monster. Leodgar's mouth was set into a grim line.

“I don’t know. But men like him don't like men like me, no matter how useful I may be. He will always be on the lookout for a way to trip me up. Any excuse to make me disappear.”

“So you think the answer is to give him what he wants, no matter what?”

“No. But until we think of some other plan, I think it is all we can do.”

Eadred had, in fact, been more impressed than he had led them both to believe. His seal of approval arrived in the form of his mistress, whom he insisted was to join them. Aethelwin was sure Leola had been sent in as a spy, but she didn’t dare question her husband or his motives. After the confrontation they had on Leodgar’s return, she judged it wise to do anything she could to keep him happy and onside. Hopefully, all going well, Eadred would soon be replacing Leola with herself, and she would not have to deal with her invading her plans.

Aethelwin’s positive outlook did not last very long. In a matter of days after this, it was announced that Leola was carrying Eadred’s bastard. Aethelwin bore the news as best as she could, but seeing her husband’s infidelity every day was testing her nerves. Leola complained throughout the day of the pains and joys of motherhood, seeking attention from everyone. She also had the jarring habit of talking about the Lord of Shepworth as if he were her own husband. She joked constantly of his habits, his thoughts on all sorts of topics, who were their favourites in the village and what improvements they had planned. She told them all how she and ‘her Eadred’ shared everything with each other. It was humiliating.

All through the winter they put up with Leola’s inane chattering and growing belly. By early April, she was only eight months pregnant, which was why they were all so shocked to hear one morning that she had gone into labour. The child was coming at least a month early, but Leola had by now grown so big that the midwife thought it was time anyway.

 As expected, Eadred was besotted with his little boy, who stared inquisitively at the man rubbing his little cheeks and patting his downy red hair.

Aethelwin hated the all consuming jealousy that she felt whenever she saw them together, especially as it was towards such an innocent creature. But Eadred’s son was now a living breathing reminder of how far away a child of her own now seemed.

The only thing that cheered her was the news that Aelle’s army had been forced to give up the lands that they had won that year. Their hold in the Teesdale Valley was always tentative and when the men had abandoned the fyrds to go home and bring in their crops before the winter, those lands north of the Tees had gladly capitulated back to Osbert. A whole year’s worth of fighting was undone in less than a few weeks. Aethelwin was glad that there were still those who opposed Aelle and had no qualms about giving him a decent fight. It was a demoralising turn of events for the supporters of the Usurper King.