“It is too late to plan for Marfey,” interposed Falk dryly. “I already dispatched men to hunt down and hang the man before he reached one of his bought and paid for cardinals.”
“Truly, brother, my wife and I accept the spirit of your belated wedding gift,” said Gyrfalon, his eyes twinkling.
“I wasn’t planning on having his head brought to the Lady Annis on a plate, however,” said Falk firmly “She may not be squeamish over such things but I am.”
“I think you’re supposed to boil all the flesh off and mount with silver,” said Annis. “I’m a little hazy about the details but I’ve read about goblets made of skulls. I should think Marfey’s whole being would be too poisonous to drink out of anyway … Sorry Falk” as Falk made protesting noises. “It would not be so pretty an object methinks.”
“Fellow’s no real challenge anyway,” put in Foregrim, unmoved by his lady’s occasionally bloodthirsty tendencies “Even church knights ought to be able to manage that fat oaf easily. The slavers you want to move against, my lady, are another proposition. They are always on the move; and the places where they customarily stop are full of people either bribed or terrorised into compliance.”
Annis shrugged.
“They can in that case be outbribed and out terrorised,” she said coldly. “Gyrfalon has a certain reputation; let us use it. And as church knights are sworn to poverty, they will be happy to turn a portion of Marfey’s coffers over to the relief of distressed victims like his own.”
“My lady,” said Falk, astounded, “did anyone ever tell you how manipulative you can be?”
“Why yes, my brother, mine own dear husband tells me constantly!” she told him brightly.
“He’s right; you are a minx,” Falk had to laugh.
“We might set a trap,” said Jehanne, then coloured and dropped her eyes as the others turned to look at her.
“Continue, little sister,” Gyrfalon encouraged. “I believe I see what you are thinking, but go on.”
“What I thought was, that if their spies caught sight of Sylvia and me … but I’d be afraid to risk her….”
“But at a distance, where size were not as evident, I have the same hair,” said Annis, happily. An you were seen with Sylvia she could straight way be taken up on horse by one of our people hard enough to take care of her and cut down any slavers – Elissa say – and ride to safety; and I’d join you instead and lead them to a hiding place we set up that they would see a figure with the hair. I am smaller than you anyway so that too would add verisimilitude…..”
Gyrfalon’s knuckles had whitened on the edge of the table; and with a conscious effort he released their grip. His voice did not shake; and Falk, who had noticed his brother’s battle with himself admired Gyrfalon the more for that; admired a man that had learned to love well enough not to smother.
“And while you waited for the rest of us to spring the ambush, any that got ahead of themselves would find not two frightened children but a brave lass and a very competent swordswoman,” Gyrfalon said, apparently calmly.
Annis sighed with relief.
“I wondered if you were going to veto it, dear heart,” she said, smiling at him. He crooked a finger under her chin.
“I never win an argument with you, my wife. But you will promise me something,” his voice was steel; and willingly she nodded. Some tones of voice were unassailable. “You will not risk our child,” he said. She nodded again.
“We are only a little diversion to keep them occupied for you and Falk to have fun with,” she acknowledged. “See, I can be an obedient and dutiful wife!”
“When it suits you,” he growled, smiling at her.
Falk said,
“But we shall not catch the leader – only foot soldiers sent to do the dirty work.”
“They’ll talk,” said Annis firmly.
“I will not countenance the use of torture,” his voice was firm, his face stubborn.
Annis raised her eyebrows.
“Torture? Who needs such crudity?” she said scornfully “With potions I can loosen their tongues yet leave them quite unharmed for the hangman.”
Falk blinked.
“Truly? Then why do not heads of states use such methods?”
Annis chuckled.
“I suspect that they have expensive physicians of proper learning and more Latin than good sense; who have learned only such cures as be laid down in the classics. Such I learned from Sister Agatha – to some degree; but the nuns also use herbalism like unto that used by village wise women. And village wise women use more than the nuns, and you have to unravel from their cures the magic that may or may not work to get the truth, though our village wise woman was the daughter of a gypsy with good lore from yet another source. And the visiting sailor storyteller had tales of the cures of the Orient where ways are strange. By examining different ways I have learned the more and have more exotic lore at my disposal than a self satisfied little man in a robe with a degree from a university.”
Falk looked at her anew.
“Then you probably know more than many twice or thrice your age,” he acknowledged “You should write it down.”
“Some I have started to; I thought to do more as I got unwieldy in my pregnancy that it were something useful I could do. And I pass on knowledge too to those who are interested. I hope Sylvia may like to learn; Jehanne have not an interest,” she smiled. “So we need not worry about finding the leaders or any place there be slaves held that we might free them, for our prisoners will beg to tell us every detail of their revolting little lives.”
Gyrfalon grinned.
“My dear, I’m only surprised that you fled your father’s castle instead of poisoning your father.”
She regarded him gravely.
“It crossed my mind,” she said seriously. “But I could not bring myself to use the gifts God gave men to bring harm – and sink to his level. He killed my mother because she angered him and she was inconvenient. I was angry with him and I found him an inconvenience and I wanted not to act like him. This however is different. It may inconvenience the slavers I drug; and I care not how much they suffer; and it will help to save others.”
“Vixen, I recall you threatened – so delicately – to temporarily inconvenience me,” said Gyrfalon.
“Not at all, my lord; it was not a threat. It was merely a promise of what could happen if I were made miserable,” she said demurely.
“What?” Asked Falk, curious despite himself.
“Purgatives,” exclaimed Gyrfalon succinctly “Doubtless at both ends if she were feeling particularly vindictive.”
“Oh,” Falk half wished he hadn’t asked!
Annis just grinned!
Chapter 18
Jehanne held Sylvia’s hand firmly as she slipped into their old hut. It was already looking the worse for wear, some of the thatch slipping away and letting the rain, snow and hail in. She waited inside with her little sister, making a bundle to make it seem as though she had come back for some goods. And one thing indeed she meant to keep; their parents’ bed quilt, made of scraps of all kinds of fabric from clothes made and odd scraps bartered for from the tinker who would exchange fancier cloths he had got for good linen scraps to sell to paper makers. Jehanne waited long enough that someone might have noticed; then as they left she let the door bang as though by accident; and glanced nervously about before dragging Sylvia at a run towards the forest. Fortunately Sylvia had liked the idea of playing a game to catch the bad men and willingly followed her sister’s lead. Jehanne and Gyrfalon had been privily to see the local reeve, who had been terrified of the warlord, but glad the children had a place where they were at least better protected than with slavers; and on hearing Lord Gyrfalon’s desire to catch the slavers had been willing to tip them off that the girls had been seen around, that watchers be set.
Elissa waited out of sight to take the little girl up in front of her; and Annis emerged from her hiding place amongst the dry bracken beside Je
hanne. She nodded to Elissa; and the woman warrior rode off with the little girl, whose part had been enough to excite without scaring her.
“We must needs let any following see glimpses of mine hair,” said Annis. “One comes; I hear his footsteps. He is no countryman, he crashes through the brake like a billy goat after nannies and puffs and blows like leaky bellows.”
Jehanne swallowed and nodded; Annis’ levity helped overcome the dry terror in her throat and the tight knot of fear in her bowels. Reassuringly, Annis took the younger girl’s hand and they ran into the forest. Annis’ fine golden tresses streamed out behind her, enough to tantalise and draw any follower on to the lair they had carefully built the day before. It was in the middle of a huge gorse thicket on the edge of a clearing; a thicket old enough that the centre had died, leaving a ring. They had cut a tunnel into it and built a roof, thatched carefully so that a tall man looking could see it; as children might not be expected to realise. From this roof escaped a thin spiral of blue smoke supposedly coming from their cookfire. Gyrfalon’s men were hidden about the forest; the warlord himself and his brother were in the gorse lair waiting to spring the trap. Gyrfalon had made a dry comment about the narrow entrance; and Annis had shrugged.
“Two children would scarce be like to make an opening bigger than it had to be. And you have armour, my lord,” she declared unsympathetically.
Falk chuckled reminiscently.
“Gyrfalon, do you remember, we used to play at castles in these gorse fortresses? We would take turn to defend and attack and sustained awful scratches that we heeded not; or we would pretend that we held it against imaginary besiegers without… I recall I caused a fearful to-do because I fell asleep in one and no-one could find me; I’d gone to play on mine own because you had lessons.”
“I remember,” said Gyrfalon grimly “Your mother accused me of doing away with you or hiding you and demanded that I be beaten until I revealed where you were.”
“Father never did, surely?” Falk was aghast.
“I think he considered it; even with the word of the priest who taught me Latin that I had been with him, and he had seen you tell me to hurry up with my lessons ere I began … and then suddenly you appeared and demanded your evening meal because you were hungry” said Gyrfalon “I never quite made up my mind if I were just relieved to see you safe or wanted to give you the best spanking of your life for worrying me.”
“I’m sorry,” said Falk contritely. Gyrfalon shrugged.
“Boys,” he said succinctly. “And probably girls too,” he added reflectively. “As no doubt I shall find out when mine own children give me grey hairs by doing the sorts of things you and I did.”
Falk laughed and linked his arm into his brother’s.
“It was my mother, wasn’t it?” He said quietly “She started turning father against you, didn’t she? Because she felt jealous on my behalf, having a big boy not many years younger than her who was a rival to her own child.
“Aye; I’m afraid so,” he said. “But you may abuse a man’s sire, his wife and his children but I have heard it said you should never say a word against his mother or his horse.”
Falk laughed.
“Idiot,” he said. “I – I do not recall her well enough to have deep memories. I loved her; of course I did. But even as a small child it angered me that sometimes she was unfair to my brother” he sighed deeply “We have neither of us behaved totally well; but circumstances were not always helpful.”
“We have each other now,” said Gyrfalon “And the world may never recover from it.”
They grinned at each other; and suddenly looked more alike than either realised!
The two brothers were waiting in comradely silence as the two girls scrambled in through the entrance.
“We’ve a hunter behind us,” reported Annis. “He isn’t what you might term efficient.”
“Good,” said Gyrfalon. “Let’s hope he reports back to someone to claim his reward.”
Annis buckled on her sword in anticipation. The lair was deceptively rough; but left plenty of room for fighting.
It was but an hour’s wait before sounds of grunting, swearing and the shaking of branches heralded an intruder; and Falk and Gyrfalon stepped to the sides of the entrance quietly that they might remain unnoticed if, as they suspected there was more than one intruder.
The first unkempt head poked through. Jehanne gave a little involuntary gasp.
“Har, har, we has you wenches now!” chuckled the slaver “Cmon Lem, they’m both in here,” he heaved himself out of the tunnel and advanced on the girls. His companion, a fatter man, came slower and cursing; and Gyrfalon clenched his fists in impatience: for both must in for the trap to be sprung and none left to flee and warn their superiors. The first started to reach out a hand towards Annis; and his face was lascivious.
“Well, older’n I thought….very nice too,” he said.
Annis whipped out her sword; and her would-be assailant started laughing.
“Fight me would you, liddle girl?” he said. “”D’ye see that, Lem? The liddle girlie has a swordie! Well, I’ll not mark you up, but just disarm you!” He drew his own sword; and suddenly he was hard pressed for Annis advanced on him with determined tread and skilful economical movements and he found he had no breath to laugh any more! Gyrfalon had half an eye on her approvingly; and Falk watched astounded. He had not yet seen their practise bouts; for they had been too busy setting up this play to catch the slavers.
At last the second head appeared – it was but seconds after Annis drew blade but it seemed an eternity to Gyrfalon and Falk.
A hand on either side seized the villain by the scruff of his neck to drag him howling at the violence done to his person by the gorse as they did so. The other fists of his assailants hit him simultaneously on the sides of his head and he lost all further interest in the proceedings.
“We have swordies too,” said Gyrfalon coldly, nodding Jehanne to help deal with the man Lem as he strode, panther like to lay his own cold steel over the first man’s shoulder against his neck.
The man whinnied in sudden terror.
“I cede him to you to play with my lord,” said Annis sweetly, saluting her husband.
The fight was short and ugly and as Annis remarked to Jehanne of no instructive value since a swordsman battering an idiot was scarcely edifying.
Gyrfalon used the flat of his blade and the pommel to reduce the man to a gasping pile on the ground rather than follow his instincts to carve the man into little pieces.
He did make sure to hit him in as many painful places as he could however.
Soon both were tied.
Annis approached the prisoners with a stoppered flask. The fatter one had recovered his wits enough to groan by now.
“Be so good as to hold their nostrils closed, brother Falk,” Annis said briskly. Falk gave her a startled look; but complied, nipping the nose of the first man. His breathing restricted he was forced to open his mouth; and Annis poured a measure of her brew into it. He must perforce swallow or drown; and swallow he did, spluttering at the bitter draft. The performance was repeated on the other rogue, despite his voluble protests and attempts to gag. Annis explained,
“’Tis a method used with small children who refuse medicine. It causes no harm but has the desired result. It will be a few minutes before the drug has the desired effect. When their pupils dilate we can question them for then the effect will have become sufficiently profound.”
“What’s in it?” asked Falk curiously.
“Very small amounts of Henbane and Belladonna” she replied “Very dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. The preparation is crucial. Fortunately for them – although when we hang them they may disagree – I do know what I am doing.”
“Indeed!” said Falk, amazed once again by his tiny and implacable sister-in-law.
It was not long before the two precious villains were in a stupored state. Annis spoke in a soothing voice.
They grunted in vague assent.
“Now, where was it you said you’d meet him with the girls?”
One of the men shook his head in a dazed manner as though to clear his turgid thoughts.
“Di’ we say?” he queried dully.
“Of course. You wanted to tell me,” said Annis “But I just want to check I had it right.”
He nodded owlishly.
“At the river…. By the sign of the Green Goose. Mine host is a good friend or ours” he achieved a sleepy leer “He often puts up li’l guests ai y’know what I mean.”
“I know what you mean,” said Annis softly “And where are the slaves kept if they are not in the inn?”
“Oh, on ve barge…. There be a landing stage upstream f’om ve inn….” His lids drooped.
“You may both sleep now if you like,” said Annis. “I’m sure you’re tired.”
Drugged and suggestible their heads lolled.
Falk was shaking his head in amazement.
“You are one very dangerous young woman,” he said.
She shrugged.
“It’s taken you this long to work that out? I am your brother’s true match. And if you ask me. ‘tis a good thing, for we need dangerous people to act against scum like this,” she added crisply.
“My wife!” Gyrfalon dropped an arm around her shoulder, pride in his voice “There’s not another in the world like her, Falk,” he gave a lupine grin “A bit tough on you, but there it is. She saw me first.”
Annis grinned up at him.
“My lord is understandably biased. It may be that a man as virtuous as Lord Falk might find himself at a loss were there another such virago as you usually name me such as myself.”
“Good,” said Gyrfalon, savagely, kissing her.
Mine host at the sign of the Green Goose was very happy with the lucrative arrangement he had with the hard faced slaver. Olav Hardmann, the said slaver, was a competent warrior whose career as a mercenary had been damaged by the loss of his right lower arm; where now he sported a hook. That and the scarred, villainous looking visage he sported helped to cast terror into the hearts of the slaves he took, especially the children. Hardmann specialised in children; he might sample his own wares amongst the older girls but the children he kept frightened but innocent.
Falconburg Divided (The Falconburg Series Book 1) Page 24
