August 1294. Kings Langley, England.
Edward rocked little Henry in his arms, the newborn boy opening and closing his mouth in a healthy little sigh. He had a fine weight, and a good size, with tiny little hands reaching forward in an attempt to touch his father. He had Yolande’s dark hair over a round little face, eyes still a muddled baby blue, though Edward imagined he would grow to look like his mother, as his sister Constance already showed herself to be becoming.
“He will be Earl of Kent,” Edward said, looking at Yolande, who was laying down in her bed. Her dark hair was twisted into a plait and there was a gentle smile on her face. “Once he survives infancy, I’ll name him such.”
Yolande beamed up at that. Edward handed Henry to a wet nurse and watched as the woman walked away with his son in her arms, bouncing him gently. He took in a deep breath and allowed himself to calm down. He had a second son, a spare. England and Édouard would be safe.
“He will be strong,” he said, overhearing his cries as he was taken from his father. The boy had a clear idea of what he wanted, and would not accept anything less. It made Edward smile. “A warrior.”
“Just like his father,” Yolande echoed in the bed. Edward looked at her.
“You must rest,” he told her. “Before night’s fall, I’ll ride back to Oxford and I expect you to meet me there as soon as you have been churched.”
“Will my lord Henry come with me?” she asked in a soft voice, blinking her large blue eyes up at him.
“He will stay and be joined by Lady Constance,” said Edward. He didn't miss how she hadn't asked the same question when their daughter was born. “The court is a festering pit for children so young. I'll not subject them to such intrigue.”
“Very well, my king,” she answered. Edward looked at her for a final time before he turned around and left the chambers of her confinement.
He was hardly out into the corridors when one of his knights accosted him, out of breath. Edward recognized him at once. He was Arnaud de Gabaston, a man who served him in Gascony. He was supposed to oversee the forty-day period where the French king would control his continental possessions. And if he was here…
“My king!” the man said, stopping suddenly before him. His cheeks were red with exertion and he was sweating beneath his velvets.
“Good grief, Arnaud,” said Edward. “What has happened? Breathe and speak.”
“I've ridden day and night to tell you this,” he said. “The French, my lord. They have refused to hand over Gascony as was agreed. More else, Crown Prince Louis has been legally betrothed to Mademoiselle Marguerite de Bourgogne, daughter of Duke Robert II.”
For a moment, Edward said nothing. His heart stuttered in his chest and he looked at Arnaud, his long and sun-kissed face.
“What is their reason for breaking our treaty?” Edward asked, careful, not letting the rage inside him burn through him.
“The failure of His Grace to appear before the King after the conflict with the fishermen last year, Sire,” said Arnaud. Edward nodded.
“Find yourself and a warm meal,” he said, handing the man a golden coin from his pocket. Arnaud nodded and left with a deep bow. When he was gone, Edward looked at the men around him, his other knights and servants who overheard what happened.
John St John met his eye. Before, John had served him loyally in Aquitaine and Gascony, strengthening his position and his holdings. Which meant that now, they were all in the hands of the French and he was sure they would defend it to the last man.
“Months ago, the French king invited me to his court to meet his wife,” Edward began. “I see now that this was merely a pretext to have me in his custody before the war started.” He shook his head, thankful that he had decided to stay in England until Yolande gave birth. “The King of France is a boy of six and twenty, old enough to be my son.” When he was still in swaddlings, Edward had gone on crusades already, and had defeated the barons who plagued his father’s reign. Now this boy intended on humiliating him before the world and take what was rightfully his. “Let us show him how men wage war.”