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Page 210
twitched, but he managed to remain grave and said, ''No, of course not."
In fact, Geoffrey did not think Simon addle-witted at all, merely apolitical. Simon liked Richard Marshal and did not like the king. That would have been reason enough for him. He did not need the fact of Henry's offense to insinuate himself into a war.
"Anyway," Geoffrey continued, "Upavon is not much more than twenty miles from Kingsclere, and Walter de Clare has been raiding in that area so that the king would get as little benefit as possible from having transferred Bassett's property to Maulay. Some of Waltees men appear to have wandered a bit astray and have encroached on a Kingsclere farm. Needless to say they were driven off and soundly drubbed. They ran for their base camp with"
"Not Sybelle! No, that is too much. I will have to talk seriously to that girl. She will never get a husband if she takes to"
"You will have to talk to her?" Geoffrey gasped. "Who taught her to be such a hoyden?"
"Not I!" Simon exclaimed indignantly. I always told her she should not be so wild. Whenever she got so dirty and her clothes in such a terrible state, I"
Geoffrey burst out laughing. "Yes, you told herafter leading her into the scrape in the first place. But this time it really was not her faultat least, I suppose she should have ordered the men not to give chase or should have gone back to the keep with a few while the others pursued the raiders. In any case, she was with the troop when they hit the camp, and she caught Walter de Clare withas the saying ishis chausses undone."
"You think that is funny?" Simon groaned.
"Do not you?" Geoffrey chortled. "You can imagine what she said to him."
"I certainly can," Simon agreed sourly. "Well, there is one marriage that will not be made."

 
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