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protected and the prey of any man yet wanted the girl to be free to make a different choice if she desired. But that was no secret; Lord Ian had avowed as much, although he had phrased it so that breaking the betrothal would only follow if Joanna discovered she could not love Geoffrey. The only other thing Geoffrey could think of was that Lady Alinor had foreseen the conspiracy against John and expected it to be successful. If John fell, Salisbury would fall with him and doubtless Geoffrey with his father. Naturally, Lady Alinor would not wish to be tied in blood to him in that situation. |
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Geoffrey took his upper lip between his teeth and chewed it gently. He would not blame Lady Alinor for that; in fact, he would not wish to drag Joanna down with him. Then he shook his head. No harm could come of what he had done. Long before Lord Ian could return to England the immediate crisis would be over. If the majority of the army disbanded as the king ordered, there would be no chance of taking John by force and killing or deposing him. In that case, even if the worst should befall and an active rebellion should begin, there could be no question of a sudden fall from power to a state of outlawry for the king's adherents. There might be a long and bitter civil war, but the end of that was certainly no foregone conclusion. |
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Nor was there any doubt that Lady Alinor would be ranged with the king's adherents in such a war. It would not be by her choice. She would do her uttermost to remain neutral and separate from both king and rebels, but she would not succeed. Lady Alinor was a strong woman and in many things she had her way. In this matter, however, Lord Ian would be adamant. He had sworn to uphold the king. More than that, Ian truly believed that, however bad John was, he was better than the chaos that would follow any attempt to overturn him. Lady Alinor could only abandon the king's party by abandoning her husband, and, life or death, win or lose, she would never leave or hurt Lord Ian. |
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Thus, Lady Alinor could be no more involved in the king's fate if Joanna was married to the king's nephew than |
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