Page 63 of Peregrine's Call
“Last year, Earl Ranulf changed his allegiance from the empress to King Stephen. He went to Stephen and offered to share what he knew about Maud and her Welsh allies. In return, all he asked was for Stephen to allow him to retain Lincoln Castle.”
“It sounds as if you’ve a similar plan,” Robin noted.
“Yes, but I know that I must be more careful than Ranulf. You see, Stephen heard what Ranulf had to say. He used it to win against his enemies at Lincoln. But how did Stephen repay his new and loyal supporter? He imprisoned Ranulf, despite swearing an oath he would not. For months, Ranulf was at the mercy of the king, who accused him of treason.”
“But he was released,” Robin said.
“Only after his friends begged the king to do so. Stephen gave in after wringing the harshest terms from Ranulf. He was to surrender all his lands and castles—even Lincoln. He was to give hostages. And for the final touch, he had to take an oath not to resist the king in future.”
“Did Ranulf give such an oath?” asked Robin.
“He said the words, but his oath lasted less than a day after he was freed. He gathered his forces and attacked Lincoln, hoping to recover it for himself. He failed. But he is not finished. Stephen will regret crossing Ranulf.”
Robin frowned. She didn’t say what she was thinking, which was that both Ranulf and Pierce seemed to hold contradictory views on loyalty. They switched sides on a whim, yet frothed with rage when King Stephen himself showed any breach of trust. She sighed. “This war is so confusing. Is there any alliance that will last until the end?”
“All I know is that neither Maud nor Stephen think of others beneath them.” Pierce shrugged. “So I must think of myself and protect my life and my legacy as best I can.” He caught her skeptical look, and added, “It’s easy for you to sit in judgment, Lady Robin of Ardenwood. But tell me, have you ever been called into the presence of royalty and asked to give your lands or your funds or your men to the cause? Despite not knowing if that same royal figure would truly help you in return?”
Robin shook her head slowly. “I’m not important enough for any king or queen to care about. But I do know that it’s men like you, who change sides every season, who make kings and queens demand such oaths in the first place.”
“How important are you, Lady Robin?” Pierce asked curiously. “You’ve been very coy about your birth and your associations.”
“And I will continue to be so,” she snapped back. “All you need to know, my lord, is that you won’t want to marry me, and you won’t want to ransom me. Both of those things would end in great disappointment for you.” Robin had no political or monetary worth.
Pierce nodded, but didn’t look quite convinced. “You say that, yet you’re worth something to Sir Octavian, are you not?”
The memory of their kiss that afternoon flared up in her mind. But she responded cautiously. “Only in the sense that he is too honorable to leave me somewhere alone. But when he takes me back home, he’ll leave afterward. He must return to his own lord. That is how it is for knights, especially in a time of war.”
Pierce nodded. “We’re living in anarchy, and anarchy is kind to no one, unless you’re strong enough to make your own way. But you’re far stronger than you let on, Lady Robin.”
She glanced at him. “Was that a compliment?”
He smiled, a real smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners. In that moment, she understood how he got so many people to listen to him over the years. “A compliment, yes. But also the truth. And don’t think I’m not grateful for what you’ve done for me, getting me away from Willesden when I thought I’d be trapped there forever. I’ll remember that.”
She didn’t know what to say in response, and then Octavian entered, and she felt flustered.
“You both should sleep,” the knight said, his expression unreadable. “We’ll ride out tomorrow at dawn.”
In fact, Robin awoke well before dawn, eager to be on the road. The men woke and ate quickly. They saddled the horses and confined Govannon to his basket once again. To Robin’s surprise, the cat hadn’t run away in the night.
Octavian rode last in line, and he took the time to push the great wooden door of the outer stockade wall closed before he mounted up. The whole wall blended into the forest, nearly invisible. Tav’s action was likely a tactical decision to discourage anyone noticing the place and going in. But Robin felt her heart lurch a bit when the door shut, as if she’d never be able to get into the camp again.
Why would I want to?she asked herself. The camp was abandoned and slowly decaying, and there was no reason for her to return.
She shook off the feeling and directed the party through the deepest part of the Ardenwood. This was the area of the forest that people told stories about. Stories of lawless men who attacked travelers, monsters who dwelled in caves, fairies who snatched children away, and even stranger tales of spirits and ancient beings. The only common thread in the stories was the warning that the Ardenwood was dangerous.
Robin respected the message behind the stories, even though she didn’t believe most of them. She still rode carefully, keeping her eyes out for danger, and never letting herself fall into daydreaming, lest she lose the path.
They made good time for the first part of the day. They crossed countless little brooks and ridged hills, threading through the quiet woods. They startled a herd of deer, and were in turn startled by a fox dashing past the horses.
Cloud-covered skies meant that it was difficult to see exactly which direction they were going. Robin, using her knowledge of the area, kept turning to the south whenever she had the chance, but the twisting paths and the hills made it almost impossible for the others to know she was doing so.
Pierce called a halt at one point. “I need to piss, and I don’t need a guard along the way.”
“All right,” Tav said evenly.
“No objections? No warnings?”
“No objections…as long as you dismount and leave the horse with us.”
