Richard turned away from the Archbishop. His gaze found Livia once more. He gave her a slight bow.
Then he walked away. The crowd parted for him quickly. No one wished to become the next institution he took personally.
Livia watched him disappear beyond the Abbey court, her thoughts tangled in too many directions at once.
Richard had defended her. He had defended her right to marry Henry. That was perhaps the strangest part of all.
Livia turned back towards the Archbishop. Her eyes held some apology. "I am sure the king would have been worse," she offered.
To her surprise, the Archbishop gave a small smile. It was reluctant and quickly suppressed, but she saw it. Apparently even archbishops could appreciate the frightening possibility of Henry arriving instead of Richard. Richard had threatened scandal, and the public humiliation of the Church. Henry would probably have begun by asking which ancient law permitted him to replace an archbishop.
