The Maiden's Tale Read online



  The Maiden’s Tale

  Copyright 2013 Teresa Conrado

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  About Teresa Conrado

  Other books by Teresa Conrado

  Connect with Teresa Conrado

  Chapter One

  The year of our Lord 1282 held many wondrous times and yet many evil times. Chivalrous knights and taxing Lords. Beautiful maidens in distress and warring Kings.

  Yet, in a beautiful town by the glorious seaside, there lived a maiden of such beauty that only one other could rival her, the Lady Helen of Troy. Her name was that of Katherine of Avensdale, daughter to a carpenter and a house wife. Her father had betrothed her to the local barren’s son, Sir Edlebert of Clivensdale, hoping that once she were married their way of life would be far improved from the hard life of peasantry.

  Katherine was a lovely girl, petite with a smile that could melt any hard heart. She loved life and loved all of our Lord’s lovely creations. She could always be found helping the sick or caring for a wounded animal. And whenever she received a pence here or there, she would kindly give it to those she deemed poorer than she was poor.

  But, for all her beauty and all her loveliness, Katherine was not happy. Sir Edlebert was an evil man. He hunted and killed all creatures that Katherine held dear to her precious heart. He would heal the sick by having them “mercifully” killed. Everything he possessed was to show his royal background and the riches that he possessed. And so was Katherine to become, a trophy to attest to the evil barron-to-be’s vast wealth.

  Two weeks before the fated day of Katherine’s marriage, her father Darion the carpenter, went to Sir Edlebert’s castle to receive the details of where the wedding ceremony was to take place. But, before her father left, he asked a fellow carpenter, from the next town over, if his eldest son, Colla, would watch his wife and daughter while he was gone. Afterall, Katherine had a lot of suitors because of her great beauty and her lovely heart and Darion felt it best to protect her innocence from some “evil” male suitor that may try to take advantage of her giving heart in his absence. Darion’s friend permitted his eldest son, Colla, to do this great honor for his dear friend. So, Colla went to Katherine’s house to protect her and her mother, Mia, while Darion was gone.

  Darion was gone for one week at Sir Edlebert’s castle. In that week something magical happened to Katherine. She learned what true love was.

  When Colla first arrived, it was love at first sight between the two. Katherine knew that he was the man she had dreamed of for many years, the one that would rescue her from the evil Sir Edlebert. And when Colla looked into Katherine’s beautiful deep, brown eyes he knew this would be the woman that would love him with no boundaries.

  For the next week, Katherine and Colla were as inseparable as two star-crossed lovers. Katherine’s mother could see the love in their eyes as the two lovers gazed in one another’s eyes – and she felt great sorry at knowing her daughter couldn’t have her one true love. Mia prayed to the almighty Lord that her husband’s foolishness and Sir Edlebert’s greed would not bring an unhappy end to her precious daughter’s giving life. Mia prayed that fate would allow her daughter to marry Colla and leave them in peace and happiness forever more.

  But, was it to be?

  Chapter Two

  The day came when Katherine was to marry her betrothed, Sir Edlebert. Colla begged her father Darion to call it off and give Katherine’s hand to him instead. Yet, money and power were all Darion could think about and not his daughter’s happiness. Darion refused Colla’s proposal and called the guards to have him beheaded for treachery of the barron-to-be’s bride.

  When Colla was taken, Katherine wept and refused to leave her chambers. She refused to marry Sir Edlebert if her beloved was so brutally murdered. So, Sir Edlebert agreed to have Colla released under the agreeance that Colla would be exiled far away from his lands.

  Katherine wept greatly but would rather have her true love alive somewhere than buried in an unmarked, shallow grave. Knowing that he could live and breath and be somewhere would be enough for her to survive. She would be deeply saddened if she had to live knowing that it were because of she he died.

  Yet, Colla had plans of his own. And, so it seemed, Sir Edlebert had treacherous plans of his own.

  When Colla’s release was to take place, Sir Edlebert told his soldiers to take Colla out of the Town's borders as if they were going to set him free and then…have him killed. That way his trophy Katherine would still believe her lover was still alive and that he, Sir Edlebert, weren’t such an evil malicious man.

  Twelve noon, Colla’s guards came to take him from his cell. Katherine watched eagerly waiting to see one last glimpse of her doomed lover. Her heart skipped a beat as Colla’s raggedly clothed body appeared outside the dungeon’s gates. She made a small prayer that, somehow, some way the two would be rejoined again before their hour of death was upon their old bodies. Was an angel listening? Katherine could only hope.

  The guards proceeded with Colla outside the gates. As they were closed, Colla mouthed words of love to Katherine by saying to her, “Love knows no boundaries and nothing will stop me from coming back to you!”

  Katherine wept tears of joy at Colla’s vow to return to her someday. Little did Katherine know what was instore for she and Colla.

  But just as Sir Edlebert had ordered his guards, once they were outside the vision of the town, they prepared their swords. Colla had been prepared for treachery and just as the first sword was swung, Colla fell down arching his chained foot up to kick the guard’s sword from his arm. Then Colla swiftly came back up on his feet and upper cut that very guard as another prepared to swing. Guard one went down, and guard two received a swift kick to the knee as Colla wrapped his chains around the guard’s neck – careful not to kill him, just knock him out, afterall, this guard meant him no strife. He was just carrying out his orders. And then, finally guard three – who had been standing there in total shock and disbelief – lifted his sword. But then quickly decided to drop it and ran away.

  Colla got to his tired feet and dragged his exhausted body back to town and to Katherine.

  Chapter Three

  The wedding was being prepared in the throne room, as the feast was being prepared in the banquet hall. And in the west wing there stood an unhappy bride-to-be, as her brides’ maids dressed her for this, what would normally be, a joyous event. But, Colla was all she, Katherine of Avensdale daughter of Darion the carpenter and Mia. Lowly daughter of a carpenter that could not be betrothed to her true love, Colla, and had no say-so in just who she must give her heart too.

  Then, suddenly, Katherine heard screams of terror and shouts of angry knights. ‘What could this ruckus be?” she wondered.

  One of her brides’ maids went to see. Then, with a look of pure joy and excitement on her young face, she told Katherine that it was her beloved Colla. He had come to save her from her torture. His vow was his bond to her.

  He came into her chambers and took her hand. As they ran through the halls of the castle, fleeing sword-bearing knights and dodging unsuspecting wedding parishioners, Colla told Katherine of Sir Edlebert’s true intentions of his release and his battle with the guards.

  She was overjoyed at Colla’s near death escape and was angered that Sir Edlebert had not one kind bone in his lanky body. They made it just outside the castle walls as they heard the horns blow to signal the “prisoner escape” mode of the barony armory.

  Sir Edlebert was alerted to his bride’s escape with Colla and he deemed his trophy would not escape. He rounded up his men and his hounds, He would hunt her down and kill Colla himself.

&n
bsp; They ran.

  Katherine and Colla ran and ran, but Colla knew that since they weren’t on horseback they could not outrun Sir Edlebert and his seasoned knights. They were going to have to make a stand somewhere and Colla knew he was going to loose his life. Katherine knew, too, and wept at their terrible misfortune.

  Katherine told Colla to run to the old ruins near where the cliffs were that they had played at together as children. Colla agreed that if that was where they were to make a stand that it deemed the most strategic.

  Just as they made the cliffs, Sir Edlebert and his men reached them.

  “Katherine, how could you? You are my wife by rights of your father’s betrothal agreement with my father. Now Colla must die and you will be under constant guard.”

  “She will never be yours,” Colla answered. “She doesn’t love you and never will!”

  “Doesn’t matter, she is mine. And she will submit to me or she will be a prisoner in her own home.”

  “Will you release Colla?” cried out a desperate Katherine.

  “What!?” a surprised Colla shouted and a questioning Sir Edlebert wondered.

  “If you release him, I will go back to your castle and be your unhappy, unloving bride.”

  “No, Katherine!” cried out Colla.

  “Humm, let me see,” pondered Sir Edlebert. “I can’t do that because how can I trust that you will not run away with him…again.”

  “Then, I will die before I become your wife,” answered a defiant Katherine.

  “What are you saying, Katherine?” Colla asked, confused.

  “Colla, I love thee to much to torture thee or have thou die for me. So, in death I will love thee and be with thee since this mortal world shall not see us as one,” Katherine paused as she began to walk backwards towards the cliff’s edge. “Love knows no boundaries, not even death can hold us apart. We will meet again in the physical world. That is my vow to you, my love. Hold fast to that and nothing can harm you.”

  “Aye, my love, death will not keep us apart and I will search thee out whenst I return to this mortal coral,” replied Colla.

  They took each others hands and then kissed their first and last kiss. Sir Edlebert screamed no as the two star-crossed lovers jumped to their doom. Their vow of love laid them side by side on the rocky earth below as the sea swept their torn and tattered bodies away.

  It’s been 818 years since their time on earth began and passed with a love so deep that not even Romeo and Juliet could possess. Did the strength of their vow bring them back together? And if love is more powerful than death, can it also be more powerful than life and the enemies that life possess and embroiders on one’s soul? Only two star-crossed lovers can ever know the true power of love and the strength that it posses.

  About the Author

  Other books by this author

  Please visit your favorite ebook retailer to discover other books by Teresa K Conrado:

  The Kelnaria Chronicles: Book One: The Great Scrolls

  Book One (Coming in July 2014, available now on preorder at select retailers!)

  Connect with Teresa Conrado

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