Page 62 of Peregrine's Call
“I can’t believe he brought the cat.” She sighed. “It’s so sad.”
“It’s idiotic.”
“Well, it was poorly planned, yes. But it’s mostly sad.”
“Why?” Tav watched her now.
“Because it just shows that he has no one. He’s with two strangers and a cat. His enemies are chasing him. And his best chance for salvation lies with a king he never supported.”
“Don’t be tricked into pitying him.”
“It’s not a trick,” she said. “It’s a simple observation. Anyway, Pierce doesn’t want to be pitied—he wants to be feared. But no one fears him now, which is why he’s being such an ass.”
Tav gave a short laugh. “That part is true enough. If I have to live with his complaints for much longer, I may have to gag him.”
“I’d be quite comfortable with that,” she said.
Chapter 24
Despite a full day ofsleep, the trio was tired and quiet that evening. Two fresh rabbits provided the meal. They had two wineskins left, one of which Robin concealed in the supplies.
Tonight, Pierce didn’t complain about the quality of his meal and accommodations. In fact, he was uncharacteristically sedate. Robin was melancholy, and kept watching the flames leap in the small hearth.
After eating, Octavian stood and said he was going to check on the horses again, and then walk around the camp to ensure all was well. Robin nodded, grateful he was so alert.
After Tav left, Pierce looked over to her. “Who are you, truly, that you know this forest so well?”
“I already told you.” She looked up from the fire, giving him a smirk. “And as for who I am, you may call me Lady Robin of Ardenwood.”
“That’s no real title.”
“Titles are only as real as the power behind them,” she said. “Right now, I know where we are, how to stay alive, and how to get where we want to go. Whereas you have no money, no allies, and no sense of direction. Perhaps you’d better stop whining about titles and such.”
Pierce’s expression twisted into something dark for a moment, but then he sighed. “You make a sound argument…my lady.”
He looked into the fire, then said, “Where are we, specifically? How far are we from Willesden, or Malvern? How far from Hereford? Or Lincoln?”
“We’re well south and west of Malvern, as you can guess. Willesden is many leagues from here, though I think that by crossing all those rivers and streams as we did, it might as well be over the sea and in Ireland. Your pursuers won’t pick up our trail.”
“So we’re safe. We can ride out to a main road and ride to London tomorrow.”
“Not so fast, my lord. I said your pursuers won’t pick up our trail. But they will certainly guess our ultimate destination. If I were them, having lost my quarry, I’d reach the main road as fast as I could and then lie in wait, hoping to catch my quarry again.”
“We can’t hide here,” he protested in dismay.
“Of course not. We’ll continue toward London, but not by the expected path.”
“That will take too long,” he said.
“The other option is that you could telluswhat you know. What precious message do you have for the king? Tell Octavian and he could pass the message on within a few days.”
Pierce shook his head sharply. “No. I’m not a fool. If I give up what I know without a promise in return, I’ll have no leverage at all.”
“Telling what you know without expectation of reward would be a show of faith. You’d be rewarded for that.”
He grimaced. “You’re a naive little girl, aren’t you? Didn’t you hear how King Stephen rewards men who offer him aid? Do you not know of what happened to Ranulf himself?”
In truth, Robin had no idea. There were so many earls and barons involved in the war, it was hard to keep track. “What happened?”
