Page 289 of The Evening and the Morning

The twins managed rough circles. Alain had trouble, but he was only two, and Ragna’s main purpose was to teach them that words were made of letters.

“What letter starts Hubert?” she said.

“I know, I know!” Osbert said again, and he drew a passableHin the snow. The twins copied it, more or less. Alain’s effort looked like three random sticks, but she praised it anyway.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ragna saw Wigelm. She cursed under her breath.

“What’s going on here?” Wigelm said.

Ragna invented something on the spur of the moment. Pointing at the circles she said: “The English are here, on these hills. And all around them...” She indicated the other scrawls. “The Vikings. What happens next, Wigelm?”

He looked at her with suspicion. “The Vikings attack the English,” he said.

Ragna said: “And who wins, boys?”

“The English!” they all shouted.

If only that were true, Ragna thought.

Then Alain gave the game away. Pointing at the rough circle Osbert had drawn he said: “That’s Osbert’s name.” He smiled proudly, and looked to his father for praise.

It was not forthcoming. Wigelm gave Ragna a hard look. “I’ve warned you.”

Ragna clapped her hands. “Let’s go inside and have breakfast,” she said.

The boys ran indoors and Wigelm stalked off.

Ragna followed the boys more slowly. How was she going to educate Alain? Living so close to Wigelm made it hard to deceive him. Twice now he had hinted that he would hand over the raising of Alain to someone else. Ragna cold not bear that. But neither could she bring Alain up to be an ignoramus, especially when his brothers were learning.

As they were finishing breakfast Prior Aldred came in. He had probably arrived from King’s Bridge yesterday and spent the night at Shiring Abbey. He accepted a cup of warm ale and sat on a bench.“I’m going to build a new church,” he said. “The old one is too small.”

“Congratulations! The priory must be prospering for you to plan such a project.”

“I think we’ll be able to afford it, God willing. But it would be a great help if you would continue to let us take stone from Outhenham free of charge.”

“I’ll be glad to.”

“Thank you.”

“But who will be your master builder?”

Aldred lowered his voice so that the servants could not hear. “I’ve sent messengers to Normandy to beg Edgar to come back.”

Ragna’s heart leaped. “I hope they can find him.”

“They’ll sail to Cherbourg and start by speaking to your father. Edgar told me he would ask Count Hubert where he might find work.”

Hope filled Ragna’s heart. Would Edgar really come home? He might not want to. She shook her head sadly. “He left because I married Wigelm—and I’m still married to Wigelm.”

Aldred said brightly: “I’m trusting that the prospect of designing and building his own church from scratch will be enough to tempt him.”

“It might be—he’d love that,” Ragna said with a smile. Then she thought of another possibility. “He might have met a girl there.”

“Perhaps.”

“He might even be married by now,” she said dismally.

“We must wait and see.”