Why not? “We should make ourselves comfortable, if you wish to remain away from your camp until supper,” Emrys replied.
“And a fire would be a comfort,” she added. She walked so closely by him he could smell scent in her hair and rising from her skin. It seemed to wreathe his head and make the air foggy as they walked deeper into the forest.
THERE WERE MANY TIMES IN his life when Idris had been colder, only this cold leeched into his bones and ate at his muscles. As the sun sank and the nearest cooking fires warmed pots of meat and vegetables, his stomach rumbled. The hunger was nothing. The cold lingered in his mind, until it was all he could think about.
He tucked himself into a fold of the tree trunk, his back against the rough bark, and tried to convince himself the bark was warm to touch. Because he shivered, the bark scraped his arms and made his skin itch.
It was full dark when Nudd lifted his head. His eyes glowed in the dark as he turned his snout and peered into the trees and the black, silent shadows there.
Astonishingly, his tail thumped. He gave a soft whine.
“Shh…” Idris breathed.
Nudd fell silent. Instead, his tail shifted from side to side as he watched the shadows.
A smaller shadow detached from the thicker ones and flitted over the ground toward him.
Idris’ breath caught and held. He knew the shape of that shadow.
Rhiannon.
He had dreaded the moment when he must face her again. Now, though, only warmth and relief touched him. She had come. Deep in his heart, he had known she would.
Rhiannon dropped to the ground beside him. She dropped the fold of her cloak from her head and wrapped her arms around his neck. She was hot against him.
Idris sighed into her hair. The shivers rippled through him still, for there was not nearly enough of her to shield him from the cold. He put his free arm around her and held her tightly and closed his eyes.
She was here. She had come.
Rhiannon pressed her lips to his, in far too brief a kiss. She glanced to her left, toward the Lothian camp. Keeping her voice to a soft murmur, she said. “Can you get up? You must come with me.”
Something in his chest crumpled and withered. She still didn’t understand.
Idris pushed her from him, giving him enough room to raise his sword arm. The chain rattled softly.
Rhiannon closed her hands around the links which circled his wrist in a tight loop and moaned. She traced out the links, following the chain to the tree itself, then circling around it, all the way back to his wrist. She gripped the elongated lock hanging from the links, keeping the chain about his wrist. “Ector has one of these. He uses it to lock the few coins we have in Galleva in a box for safekeeping.” The contempt in her voice was thick. “It is never used on people.”
“I’m not a person,” Idris said. His voice shook as he shivered. “Haven’t they told you? I’m a slave.”
The new moon picked out her tears as they fell. “Not to me,” she whispered.
Then she moved swiftly, pulling her cloak from her and shaking it out. “Lean forward,” she whispered.
He obeyed.
She dropped the cloak behind him, then draped it around his shoulders and under his chin.
Heavenly warmth, smelling of her, enclosed him. He sighed and clutched the edges together with his spare hand.
The cloak was too small to cover him completely, although it was far better than no cloak at all.
She pressed her hand to the chain on his wrist, where he rested it on his knee. “I cannot do anything with this myself, but I know someone who can. I will bring them here.” She pressed her lips to his once more.
“Take Nudd,” he said quickly. “They used simple rope on him. You can untie it. He needs food and water, more than I do.”
She remained still for a moment. He wished he could see her face better and read her expressions. Then she sighed. “I will. You must hold on until I come back. It…it might take a while. I must…” She hesitated again. “I must ask a favor of someone who has no reason to grant me one.”
“Not for me—”
She covered his mouth with her hand. “Do not ever say such a thing again. Not to me.”
He nodded.
Rhiannon rested her head against his for a fleeting moment.
Then she moved over to Nudd and crouched beside him, murmuring soothing sounds and words as she worked on the knot of the rope around his neck. It took time, for Nudd had stretched the rope to its full extent, so he could get as close to Idris as possible. There were still three paces between them, yet the wolf had not moved away despite the strain on the rope at his neck.
The knot unwound and the rope dropped away. Nudd padded over to Idris and whined and shoved his nose against Idris’ throat.
“Go with her,” Idris told him softly.
“Nudd, to me,” Rhiannon called in an undertone.
Nudd moved over to her. She thrust her hand into the ruff at his neck. Then she ran for the trees, Nudd loping beside her.
Idris took a deep, deep breath and let his head fall back against the tree. He closed his eyes.
She had come.
She had not looked at him with contempt. She had said nothing which would remind him of his shame.
He was too awed and humbled to think what might happen next. The bleak pattern of his life had shifted. He didn’t have the courage to hope it might be broken for good.
Chapter Nineteen
Rhiannon found Cai and Emrys at the Galleva fire, as she had hoped they would be. Ector sat with them. From the tent, Rhiannon could hear her mother and father murmuring together.
Emrys lowered his bowl. His gaze shifted away from her.
Cai spotted Nudd. His jaw dropped open. “Is that…Idris’s wolf?”
“Yes,” Rhiannon said, thrusting her hand into Nudd’s ruff once more. “Sit by the fire,” she told the wolf, uncertain if he would understand the command.
Nudd moved over to the flames, while Ector and Cai and even Emrys watched the creature warily. Nudd folded his rear legs and sat. He looked at the three of them hopefully.
“Is there any dried meat at all? And water? Nudd has had neither all day.”
Ector swore. “Lot is up to his usual tricks, is he? Yes, there’s some to spare for certain.” He stalked over to the cart where the food supplies were kept.
Cai smiled at Rhiannon and patted the log he was sitting upon. “Shellfish stew,” he said. “Warms the belly.”
Rhiannon gave him a stiff smile and shook her head. “Not yet.”
Ector handed her a bag of the cured meat. “The stuff without the herbs. The dogs at home turn their noses up at herbs.”
“Thank you.” Rhiannon tore hunks of the meat from the big slices and put them on the stone on the edge of the fire, just in front of Nudd. The wolf sniffed, then gobbled every piece, as quickly as she could put them down. He panted in between, whining at her to hurry.
Rhiannon placed pieces until the bag was empty.
“Some water to wash it down with,” Ector said, handing her a bucket. “Only, it best be you who gives it to him.”
Rhiannon put the bucket beside Nudd and splashed her hand in the water. “Here, boy,” she said softly.
The wolf didn’t hesitate, this time. He buried his nose in the water and lapped steadily.
Rhiannon stepped around Ector and crouched beside Emrys. “I need your help.”
He didn’t look at her.
“Lot has Idris chained to a tree,” she said. “I can’t break the lock on my own.”
“Ask Cai, then,” Emrys said, his tone stiff. “He has the strength to break chains.”
“It has to be you, Emrys,” Rhiannon replied.
“Why?” He turned, almost knocking her off her balance with the sudden movement. “Why?” he demanded. “Do you want to open the wound a little deeper? Is that it?”
Rhiannon’s cheeks burned. “It has to be you, Arthur,” she said, deliberat
ely invoking his real name. “Lot would not dispute you taking away his property, while he could run Cai through and accuse him of thievery and no man could gainsay him.”
Ector sighed. “She’s right, boy.”
Emrys shook his head. “You ask too much of me.” His voice was strained.
Rhiannon stood and looked down at him. “Didn’t you say to me, only yesterday, that freedom is only true freedom if everyone is free? Slaves, servants, everyone, you said.”
Emrys jerked, as if she had hit him. In a way, she had. She was counting upon his basic honesty to pull him beyond the misery she had handed him today. “Don’t you see, Arthur?” she continued. “That freedom is in your hands. It isn’t the fanciful far away dream we thought it to be. It is something you have the power to create, now.”
Emrys drew in a slow breath, his blue eyes upon her face…only he wasn’t really looking at her. She could see his mind working, faster and faster. Now he realized the possibilities.
Emrys got to his feet. “Cai, bring the iron bar with you.”
“Coming,” Cai said, dropping the bowl of stew and leaping for the cart.
“I will come, too,” Ector said, and Cai pawed through the items on the cart.
Emrys put his hand on Ector’s shoulder. “No. You will stay here and swear we remained here all the time with you.”
Ector’s face took on one of his blustery expressions. Then he narrowed his eyes, studying Emrys. “Very well,” he said softly.
Emrys nodded. He unfurled his cloak and held it out to Rhiannon. “Show us where he is.”
IT TOOK TIME TO MAKE a great circle around the camp and approach the tree where Idris was bound from the opposite direction to the Lothian camp. The new moon shed little light and they could not carry a torch, so they moved slowly through the trees. It was too easy to turn an ankle or trip in these conditions.
At first they were silent, until Cai said in a low, angry voice. “They really have him chained like a dog?”
“Worse than a dog,” Rhiannon said. “They used rope on Nudd. Idris is bound to the tree with iron chain.”
“Where in the devil did Lot find chain long enough? I don’t think I’ve seen more than an arms’ length in my life. There’re no smiths left with the skill to make them,” Cai said, ever practical.
Rhiannon’s heart squeezed. She couldn’t speak of the horrible truth she suspected.
“He didn’t find the chain, Cai,” Emrys said gently.
Cai took several steps to figure it out. Then he halted and put his hands on his hips, the bar jutting from one of them. “You mean he brought it with him? Just to tie the bloody man up?”
Rhiannon lifted her hand to his mouth. “Shh! Quietly, Cai. Quietly.”
“We don’t treat even our Saxon prisoners that way,” Cai said, his voice dropping, yet still thick with rage.
“He is a slave, Cai,” Emrys said. “Lot can do with him what he wants. That is what it means to own a slave. They are your property.”
Cai breathed heavily. “I’d rather salt the earth and give my farm to the Saxons than own a slave, ever.” Distress colored his voice.
“As would I,” Emrys echoed. He moved back to where Cai stood and rested his hand on Cai’s shoulder. “So help me release this one now. Later, we can figure out a way to make sure there are no more slaves in Britain. Agreed?”
Cai took in a great breath and let it out. “That is a grand idea, Emrys.” He let Emrys shepherd him forward once more. “I mean, Arthur,” he added diffidently.
“This way,” Rhiannon urged them.
When they reached the last tree before the Lothian camp and the oak where Idris was tied, Emrys held them back, as he surveyed the area. “Cai, I’ll stand guard. You’re stronger than me. Use the bar to break a link in the chain—not around his wrist, but on this side of the tree. We’ll have the rest of the chain removed later, back at the camp, when we can see properly.” He loosened his sword and glanced at Rhiannon.
She bent and picked up a branch lying on the ground. It was as thick as her wrist and would serve as an adequate quarter staff. She nodded at Emrys.
They moved out into the open and over to the tree, picking their way so no twigs broke under their feet. It was too damp and cold for the leaves to crackle.
Idris watched them approach. “The guards checked a short while ago. They saw Nudd had gone and now they’re alert.” He spoke fast and softly.
Rhiannon crouched in front of him and turned his head, her fingers under his chin. Her gut tightened as she saw the fresh blood on his temple, covering the bruise which had already been there. “I will kill them…” she breathed.
“They fear Lot,” Idris said. “They fear what he will do to them when he learns Nudd has been let free.”
“We are here to free you. They should be afraid of that,” Emrys said, his voice soft. He stood with his back to them, watching the Lothian camp. From the other side of the tree, Rhiannon heard the clink of the chain and Cai’s grunts of effort. She felt the links hanging from Idris’ wrist shiver in response.
“Soon,” she whispered and moved around the tree to see if Cai needed help.
Cai took her arm. “Come and stand on the links,” he said, his voice low. “As I didn’t have the foresight to bring a vice or tongs with me, you’ll have to do. Pity you don’t have more meat on you.” He guided her to the place where he wanted her to stand.
She balanced on the chain, driving the links into the earth, until they came up against a buried root. She pressed her hand against the tree to maintain her weight on the links.
Cai stamped on the chain on the other side of where the iron bar was threaded through a single link. He twisted the bar, until the links clinked and wound up tightly, then took the strain and heaved.
She could see his effort in the way the tendons in his neck and arms stood out. He gritted his teeth, hissing. Then he paused, breathing hard. With another deep breath, he heaved on the two ends of the iron bar.
The link broadened and grew round. For long moments nothing else happened, even though Cai kept up the pressure. He released the bar with a heavy gasp and sucked at the webbing of flesh between his thumb and fingers, his eyes narrowed in concentration.
Then he nodded and looked at Rhiannon. “Give me an arm’s length to play with.”
She pulled up the chain, to give him the length he wanted. Behind her, the chain grew taut and strained against the tree.
“Now stand on it again,” Cai told her.
She obeyed.
He threaded the bar through the same distorted link. This time, he pulled the slack length of chain until it made a taut loop. He wound the bar until the length of chain was tight again, then rested the end of the bar against the tree itself and slid the link to the end. Then he levered the bar up, throwing his full weight into it.
Rhiannon fought to keep her end of the chain anchored. If she let it go, everything would unravel and Cai would have to start again.
The metal link groaned. Cai wound the bar one more time, slid the link to the end and heaved again.
With another groan, the link didn’t just separate, but actually broke in two places, a piece of the link slapping against the side of the tree.
Cai caught the ends of the chain as they slithered and dropped with a loud hiss of metal. He winced. “Too loud,” he breathed, and unhooked the broken link from both ends. “Hurry, hurry!”
They gathered up the length of chain as they moved back around the tree. From the Lothian camp came a sharp call.
“A sword fight will be like ringing a bell,” Cai said in warning, as Emrys pulled out his sword. He handed Idris the length of chain he had collected, as Idris climbed slowly to his feet. “Hold on to that.”
Rhiannon picked up the branch she had dropped and moved back around the tree and waited, her heart hammering. She could hear the guards running toward them, their boots thudding on the cold ground.
She edged around the tree until she saw them, the
n inched farther around as they drew closer, keeping herself hidden until they had passed her. The pair of guards launched themselves at Emrys and Cai, their swords up.
Both men gripped their sword arms and held them still, straining to contain them. Rhiannon moved up behind them and knocked the back of their heads with the branch.
They slithered to the ground and laid still.
She dropped the branch.
“Quickly and quietly. Back to camp,” Emrys said. He pushed on Idris’ shoulder. “Everyone,” he added.
WHEN THEY REACHED THE GALLEVA fire pit, Rhiannon’s mother, Anwen, stood over the flames, stirring the cooking pot and glancing worriedly at Nudd, who laid in front of the fire, asleep and contented.
Ector paused in his pacing, off to one side, to watch them approach, his eyes narrowing. “They really chained the man?” he asked Rhiannon, with a tone which said he had been worrying over this point since they had left.
Idris stopped before him and dropped the chains at his feet. They slithered and hissed and dangled from his still confined wrist.
Ector sighed and nodded.
“YOU CAN’T JUST…WELL, KEEP him, Arthur,” Ector said, still sounding distressed. “With no disrespect to you,” he added to Idris.
Idris nodded. He sat on the log which Cai had been using, his arm extended and the palm resting on one of the flat rocks Cai had hauled from the fire. Cai worked at breaking the padlock. Cai’s face and neck glowed damply as he worked, using a heavy hammer, the iron bar and the big pliers which were normally kept for fastening cart axel pins.
When Cai had asked him to hold out his wrist for Cai to work on it, Idris spoke in a low tone, his voice rumbling. “It is my sword arm. Do not break my wrist.”
Cai had begun to sweat, then.
“I don’t intend to keep Idris at all,” Emrys replied.
“You can’t just free him,” Ector said. “Lot has to do it, or it won’t be legal.”
“Legal!” Anwen breathed, her voice choked.
War Duke of Britain Page 20
