Orphan of Destiny (5 page)

“Robard, please . . . stop . . . ,” I said, my voice tinged with exasperation.

Robard laughed in response. “Ha! We couldn’t have planned it better if we’d tried. Well, of course we could have hit Dover directly, I suppose, but still a remarkable feat of sailing, if I do say so myself. And if we can find horses, it’ll take us even less time to get there.”

“Get where?” Maryam asked groggily from the ground.

“Well, good morning, sunshine!” Robard nearly shouted.

“Ugh,” Maryam said, staring up at the sky, which was overcast and gray again. Rain would be coming later in the day. “Sunshine! Pfff. I’ve yet to see any of it since we landed here!” She sat up and stoked the fire, and soon had water boiling in a small pot she had procured somewhere.

At Robard’s mention of Dover, my mind raced.

“Dover,” I muttered to myself. “Not everyone I knew and trained with left for Outremer when our regimento did. There may be squires and even knights who remember me, and they might be willing to help. If I show them Sir Thomas’ letter . . .” My words trailed off. It felt like the best option. We were so close, it seemed foolish not to at least try.

“Okay,” Robard agreed. “There is a village not far north of here. We should be able to get horses there, or at least find someone in the nearby countryside who has them for sale. You two start walking. Follow the coast. As soon as I can find horses, I’ll catch up.”

“Isn’t it the first place Hugh would look?” Maryam asked. “And you,” she said, looking at Robard. “I don’t like you always disappearing into the woods and leaving us alone. How would we ever know if something happened to you?”

“I’m going to get the horses,” Robard said, “because I’m a native who didn’t grow up in a monastery and thus has no idea how to bargain. I’ve purchased stock before and know how to deal with horse traders. I’m less likely to be noticed. We’ve been waiting here for two days while Tristan recovered. We can’t take the chance Sir Hugh hasn’t put the word out about three wanted criminals traveling together. I’ll catch up to you with the horses, and I promise we won’t split up after that. At least then we’ll be on horseback and have a better chance of eluding capture.” Robard was trying hard to convince her. Maryam had woken up in a foul mood.

“I think Robard’s plan makes sense. But go quickly,” I said, removing the small bag of coins from the satchel and adding Sir Thomas’ ring to it. “We need good mounts, and this is all the money I have left. If you have to use the ring . . . I . . . would rather keep it, but if you must.”

Robard’s hand closed over the coin purse. “I’ll do my best,” he said.

He handed his bow and wallet to Maryam. As we had traveled through France, after escaping from Montségur, Robard had been teaching Maryam to shoot his longbow.

“Take care of these,” he said. “You’re becoming quite a proficient archer. Remember, shoulders steady, feet set and breathe out when you loose.”

“Robard! You might need it,” she exclaimed, pushing it back to him.

He shook his head. “No. Not this time. They’ll be searching for an archer fitting my description. So if I don’t fit the description . . . ,” he trailed off. “Besides, I have this!” He grasped the hilt of Sir Thomas’ battle sword hanging from his belt.

Maryam glanced at me with a pained expression. “Robard. Please don’t take this the wrong way . . . ,” she said.

“What?” he said, curious.

“You know you are a gifted archer,” she said.

“Of course.”

“Well, you are not so talented with the sword. In fact, you are a horrible swordsman. There, I said it,” she finished quickly.

“What? I am not! I can fight as well with a sword as anyone!” he nearly shouted.

He pulled the sword as if to make his case. It was a clumsy draw, though, and the point hung up on the scabbard. Then the blade became stuck and he had to push it back in and draw again. In all, about a half minute passed before the sword cleared.

“See what I mean?” Maryam said.

There was no need to let Robard’s temper get the best of him, so I jumped in. “You are right, Robard. Go and return as quickly as you can. Maryam and I will start out for Dover. I’m sure you’ll be able to track us. But if you lose us somehow, there is a well-trod road, called the traveler’s road, west of the city, about three leagues out. We will gather there if need be.” I even gave him a little salute.

“Right. Well, I’d best be on my way,” he said. He tried to return the sword to the scabbard and succeeded after three attempts. Please, God, I prayed. Keep him safe until he returns to us
.
I crossed myself and Maryam uttered a prayer to Allah. We watched until Robard disappeared from sight.

Angel whimpered, as she always did whenever we separated, but she rolled over onto her back and Maryam gave her a good belly rub. Satisfied, she sat up and sniffed the air. I took the opportunity to walk back and forth around the campsite, testing my wounded side. Each step brought a small wave of pain, but it was bearable, and slowly I worked at returning to full strength. I remembered my dream. Sir Thomas warned me danger was coming. I had no idea what he meant. Was it that the closer I got to Scotland, the more desperate Sir Hugh would become? Was the Queen Mother trying to find me as well? Or was it that some other as yet unseen or unrealized danger awaited? Knowing our luck thus far, I wouldn’t be surprised if a dragon awaited us over the next rise.

“How are you feeling?” Maryam asked, rising from her morning prayers.

“Better, thanks. Maryam, don’t worry. Robard will be fine. He knows a lot more than he ever lets on. He told me when we first met that he was a poor and simple farmer. But I’m finding him much more complex. I have no doubt he’ll return unharmed, with mounts for us. This will all be over soon, and you can return home.”

Maryam stared off in the distance. “Home. I dared not think of it,” she mumbled. But I knew she wasn’t thinking of home but rather how much she wished Robard had not left us alone. In France, Robard had decided to make it back to England on his own, separating from us for a short time. Every hour he was gone, Maryam was miserable, and her joy at our reunion a few days later was palpable. Watching them since, I’d seen how much closer they’d become. Robard would look at her and a small smile would cross his face. When she had been held captive by Sir Hugh in Calais, he had nearly gone mad in his desire to save her. Neither of them thought I noticed what was happening between them, but I did.

For some reason, Maryam’s worry over Robard made me think of Celia, the Cathar princess we had left behind at her mountain fortress in southern France. It had been one of the hardest things I’d ever done. On some level, I understood Maryam’s feelings, for I often wondered if Celia still remembered me. I tried to push her face and smile from my mind, for the thought that she might have forgotten me already was too horrible to bear.

“Maryam,” I asked. “Do you think . . .”

“What?” she prodded me. you think ... ”

“What?” she prodded me.

“Nothing.” Best I change the subject.

“I think Robard is right,” I said. “We should get moving and follow the coast. If we’re out in the open, we have less chance of walking into an ambush, plus we won’t get lost that way. If we come upon any settlements, we’ll turn inland and go around them. Robard will be able to track us easily, and the quicker we get to Dover, the better.” Taking the pot of tea off the fire with a stick, I kicked dirt over the coals.

“Why? Why not wait here for Robard to return? What do you think you’re going to find in Dover, Tristan?” she asked. I’d seldom seen Maryam like this. Robard’s absence made her uneasy. I was not sure whether it was because she felt safer when he was with us, or because her feelings for him had grown.

I thought of the Commandery, my months of living and training there, of the knights and squires and the controlled chaos of dinnertime in the main hall, of the hours of training on the fields and work, and the laughter from the squires’ barracks as we fell dead tired into our beds each night. They were some of my happiest memories. Someone had to be there who would remember Sir Thomas.

“Help,” I said. “I’m hoping I’ll find help.”

6

T
he way our luck had gone, we almost expected Robard to be captured by King’s Guards or Sir Hugh’sknights. Maryam and I, already on the road to Dover, would be forced to divert to where he was being held and attempt another rescue or offer Sir Hugh the Grail in exchange for his life.

However, our luck held. Maryam and I departed for Dover soon after Robard left. My wound made it impossible for us to maintain any sort of reasonable pace. Still, it was good to be on our way. Walking was exhausting, but I hoped the exercise would help me heal faster. Robard found us the following morning, camped a short distance inland from the coast.

Robard had procured two horses, both rouncies, a chestnut gelding and a roan mare. They appeared to be reasonably well trained and even tempered, though they were thin and small, unlikely to win any races.

“Only two?” Maryam asked.

“We’re lucky to have them,” Robard explained. “We only have a few crosslets left. But don’t worry, Assassin, you can ride with me.”

“Ha,” Maryam said, surprising us both by swinging up on the back of the mare. “You can ride with me!”

“I told the courser I was up from Portsmouth, seeking mounts for the retinue of my thane. He wasn’t much of a talker, but if he gets asked about any strangers, he’ll at least send them in the wrong direction,” Robard said, tossing me the money sack. I was relieved to find Sir Thomas’ ring still there. Robard helped me mount the gelding, then leapt easily behind Maryam on the mare and we were quickly under way.

Robard’s mood had improved greatly since we’d arrived in England. In Outremer and even in France he was often gruff and angry. Obviously he was more comfortable traveling here. And we discovered more about our friend every day. For someone who claimed to be a poor farmer, he knew his way around the world. He had left us, found a courser and returned quickly, ready for whatever next steps we needed to take. His eagerness was nearly infectious.

We sat astride our horses, gazing down at the city of Dover, having ridden in through the hills to the south. Though it had been less than a year since I’d left it, the change was dramatic. What had been a busy, bustling seaport was now eerily quiet.

“Does anyone know what today is?” I asked.

“No idea,” Robard and Maryam answered almost simultaneously.

“Why?” Robard asked.

“I just wondered. The town appears empty, as if it were Sunday, or a saints’ day, which might explain why it is so quiet,” I said.

My horse shifted under me and my eyes worked over the city below. When I’d first arrived in Dover, the marketplace was full of people and merchants. Now most of the carts and stalls stood empty, with perhaps a quarter of the merchants hawking their wares. I spotted the spire of St. Benedict’s, the church where I had left my horse Charlemagne upon first arriving here with Sir Thomas and the knights. Above the Commandery, the brown and white Templar banner flew, but the training fields behind it were empty.

“What next, Tristan?” Maryam asked.

“I’m not sure. Something has drastically changed. It is not the Dover I remember. It was lively, and full of travelers and merchants and soldiers. This Dover looks nearly dead.”

“Then I say we skip our way around it and head north to Scotland. The sooner you’re rid of that satchel, the better for all of us,” Robard said. We sat there in silence for a while, watching the town below. I knew they were both waiting for me to take action.

“Tristan? Have you figured this all the way through yet?” Maryam finally asked.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

For a moment I felt myself tense. Since I had regained my senses, I had yet to tell Maryam or Robard what the Queen Mother had said to me in the courtyard. But I wondered if they had overheard her or if in my delirium I had revealed something. I was keeping another secret from them. It wasn’t right.

“Sir Hugh. The Grail. He wants it at any cost. Do you really think handing it over to a priest in Scotland is going to stop him?” she asked.

“The Assassin is right,” Robard said. “He won’t stop. Even if you give it over to this Father William, he’ll try to capture you or one of us and hold us hostage until you tell him where it is or until you retrieve it and trade it to him in exchange for our lives. Getting your vase to Scotland is the least of your worries.”

“It’s not a vase,” I complained. But Robard was right. They both were.

“You understand what this means, don’t you?” Robard asked.

I did, but had no desire to say it.

“He will hurt anything and everything close to you until he has what he wants,” Robard went on. “It would almost be better if we found him and you let me kill him for you. He’s a despicable scoundrel and I wouldn’t mind.” Robard was trying to be light-hearted about it, but he was also serious in his offer.

“I’m trying not to kill anyone, Robard,” I said. Though my words sounded hollow, I doubted even a knight as honorable as Sir Thomas would fault me if Robard were able to put an arrow in Sir Hugh’s heart from a hundred paces. Without another word, I turned my horse west and took off at a trot, but I quickly slowed the horse to a walk when the pain in my side made it impossible to keep going. In a moment they caught up to me.