"Thank you, lad but there is no need to lead me around. I do not wish... that is, mayhap there is someone that could make selections for me based on my purchases?"

"Aye. The master's wife has a very good eye for quality, but she is thrifty also. You will get the best we have for the coin you can spend. Do you wish to speak with her? She can take your coin now or we can deliver and collect the coin then..."

The church bells began to chime Sext and she jumped at the first gong.

"I see that a lot. No church where you are from?"

"There is a chapel in the castle but that is two day's ride. We generally practice our devotional in the morning and make it a day of rest to think upon the Lord. The only bell within hearing is the one tied on the cow."

The lad laughed and she joined him, finally feeling herself again after her earlier scare. She would be safe...but just to be sure she wanted to find a way back without going near them again...

"I must needs return to Old Dog Inn to meet my brother and my husband. Is there a way that I might go other than the way which I came? I am not used to the crowds and I am so short that I cannot see where I am going when they press in around me. I am afraid I might get lost."

"I remember what you need. And I can take you as far as the baker's cart. But from there, you can see the rooftop of the Old Dog Inn. Well, it is the building across the street, but it will guide you even if the people crowd you."

"Thank you, that is very kind of you."

Gwyn followed but as luck would have it, they also passed the sword seller. The clank of the blacksmith's hammer sounded from somewhere unseen, but a rather impressive display of swords and daggers were for sale. A brutish man was watching the merchandise, but a well-dressed merchant was selling and he was talking to...she gasped but forced herself to keep going.

She reached down and scooped up Sofi.

"No Mama!" Sofi started to protest.

"Please be good. Put your head on my shoulder. There are men there who would hurt us..."

Sofi was an angel and complied at once without so much as a peep. She buried her nose in Gwyn's neck and hugged her tight. Shelba was inevitably partially pressed up into Gwyn's face but this time she did not mind at all. Keeping her eyes on the lad in front of her she forced her legs to move though her heart stopped when she heard the merchant addressing the Lord.

"Lord Neron, that is truly a fine choice..."

They were beyond the seller and she did not care much about the blade. The third man had a name now. Sir Jackson, Sir Oliver, and LORD Neron! The man was a noble! She had never heard of him, but that was no real surprise to her as she was never away from the farm. Erec would know. Berk or Gil might know. Now she had to get to them...

"Excuse me, Milady."

Gwyn pretended not to hear and kept going. Her heart started to beat again when she heard a woman answer.

"Lord Neron, how delightful to see you."

Her heart was thundering in her chest and she probably was choking Sofi from holding her so tightly. How she wished the boy would move faster...

"There you are Milady. See there, the baker's cart and beyond you will see the tallest roof. Keep it ahead of you and on our left. Old Dog Inn is directly across the street and will be on your right."

"Thank you so much. I shall add a little something for you when my items are delivered. Send them to my brother's room. Tell them the items are for Berk's sister and they shall know which room to collect from."

"Very good Milady. My master prides himself on his good service. You will have your delivery before day's end."

"Very good. I believe we will be leaving in a day or two, so that is very good. Thank you again. Oh, wait. What is your name? How shall I tell them to give you your coin?"

"I am Alleyne, Milady. I am the master's cousin. They will know me."

"And you are certain you will get the coin?"

"Aye. I will tell the master's wife when I ask for her assist with your purchases. She will see that I get the coin. She is a good woman."

"Very good. Thank you again Alleyne."

Alleyne smiled and gave a bow before he seemed to melt away into the crowd. Gwyn stared a moment too long before she came to her senses. The sword seller was much too close. She needed to hurry to get to Old Dog Inn...

---

"I tell you I am no spy. I am Sir Cameron. I am Captain of the King's Army. Release me at once! You are making a mistake."

"Who sent you?"

"I tell you again, I am Sir—"

"Sounds like they have company." Gil chuckled.

"Noble company. But he is most likely an imposter. We have seen it before. I and others who served with Erec are watching over the people until..."

"Berk!"

"Hawk!"

"We have a guest today. He claims to be the illustrious Sir Cameron. He is not dressed like a knight or the King's men even. He looks like a well-fed peasant but he fights well enough. It took three of us to subdue him and bring him in for questioning."

"What was he doing?"

"He was asking after the men who started the riots. Has anyone seen them? Where could he find them, and so on."

"I saw Sir Cameron when I was in the army, before my injury sent me home." Gil leaned on his crutch and determined to limp more. In truth, it ached when he was too long on his feet, so the limp was some welcome relief.

"Come this way then. You were a soldier, so I am confident you will not be ill at the sight of blood. We can solve the mystery once and for—"

"Sir Cameron!" Gil hurried forward on his crutch and the three men holding him stepped away.

Cameron shook his head and leaned forward on bracing his hands upon his knees. He spit blood on the ground and a moment later wiped his torn mouth on his sleeve to give Gil a bruised version of his usual smile.

"Sir Gil." Cameron smiled broadly but winced as it pulled at the cut on his lip. "It is good to see a friendly face. But where have you been? We found Lord Erec's grave but no sign of you or the others."

"They went into hiding. We decided that it was probably best to disappear. We did not have any reason to return to Kingstown or the garrison without Lord Erec. Sir John and Sir Thomas and Sir Drew only served this last campaign with him as brothers in arms. They were dismissed with the rest but would not leave Lord Erec."

"What of you and the other one I left to guard over the dying Lord?"

"We were both too injured to do battle again. Even if I tried to return, I cannot fight again. My leg did not heal right. I almost lost it. Dermot is a little better off, but his arm is far too weak to wield a blade for long. The muscles were severed..."

"Ah. He has use of the arm though?"

"Aye. But he will never fight in the army again. Neither of us are able. The others decided to retire to a place where no one knew them. Since they had only Lord Erec to keep them..."

"I am sad to hear it. Good men all. I could use a few men that I can trust."

"I heard that things are not going well in Kingstown. Or the Palace. But what of Bennett?"

"Like you and your friend, he will never fight again. He has returned to his family across the sea."

"Good for him. I wish him a long and happy life."

"As do I. He was a good man. I feared him lost, but he came around. He said he was not fit for heaven and he had no desire to meet the devil just yet."

"That sounds like Bennett." Gil chuckled.

"What brings you to Kingstown if it is so dangerous..."

"I brought my wife and daughter. She has never been to Kingstown and Berk here is her brother. The men were taken away, so my fields were left untended. I needed to find a few men to help work the fields anyway so..."

"Is she with you?" Cameron spat more blood and licked his lip, wincing. "No, I do not suppose she would be."

"Not for the reason you suppose. My wife is a healer. She is no stranger to injuries. She is the one I have to thank for being able to walk with my leg still attached. I would have lost it had she not taken care of me."

"Do you suppose she might be persuaded to see to..." he shrugged and pointed to his smashed-up face, displaying a few cuts on his hand and forearm as he did.

"Aye. She could see to the wounds and give stitches if needed. Might even have a potion or two to ease the pain a mite."

"No need. A bottomless tankard of ale...or mayhap an endless goblet of wine and I shall feel no pain."

"It may sting your lip thought...and you will most definitely feel the added pain of it in the morn."

"The man speaks true." Berk said. "Allow me to apologize for my friends. We served with Lord Erec once and have been watching over the people in his absence. We were afraid you might be looking to make more trouble."

"So, you do not know the maggots who are causing this ...decay in our society?"

"They would meet a fate worse than yours if we did. We are watchful, but they are wary and seem to vanish before we can arrive."

"That seems to be the way of it. Our informers bring word of one such ...speech maker...and by the time we return to arrest him, he has vanished and no one seems to know where."

"Come." Berk interrupted the two men. "Let us clean you up a bit. At least get the blood off and give you a fresh shirt." Berk gestured and someone disappeared only to return a moment later with a clean shirt and a belt with a dagger. "Yours I believe." Berk asked

Cameron smiled and winced, nodding instead. Cameron groaned as he pulled his shirt over his head.

Gil knew why as soon as he saw the bruises that already darkened his ribs. Cameron would be feeling that for weeks. Cameron reached for the clean shirt.

"Best wash up before you put on the clean one." Gil suggested with a wry smile.

"Good idea." Cameron gave a half smile that did not stretch his lip.

A lad arrived with a bucket of water and drying cloth draped over his shoulder just as the church bells sounded SEXT.

"Mary will be waiting for us. We shall leave here when you are finished."

"Mary is your wife, the healer?"

"Aye, but my daughter Sofi is with her. She is not so used to blood or to strangers. She is a shy one. I would appreciate if you would take a minute to make yourself presentable before we attend them. I would not have you frighten her unnecessarily."

"I have no wish to frighten a child, but I doubt I can help it. Even sans blood, these men have made a mess of my face. I was no pretty picture before if you recall..." Cameron winked.

Gil laughed. Cameron was what women would call handsome. And what is more, Cameron knew it.

---

"I was afraid of that." Cameron mumbled as he listened to Gil give his report while Gwyn worked on patching him up. "We received word from Kingsport that ships were unable to dock in Port Castle for several days. We worried they were busy fending off Axel."

"That is not the half of it."

"Are you referring to the mercenaries?" We have several dozen men in the castle dungeons now. They were on one of the ships bound for Port Castle when their captain chose to detour to Kingsport. They thought they might offer their services to Hugh II instead of Axel. Our king had other ideas for them."

"For once, I agree with his actions."

"I know that he has not made many wise decisions since his was crowned, but he is very young yet and was a younger brother. He was never meant to sit upon the throne and he was likely told so most of his youth until his elder brother was killed. He will stretch his new-found powers and test their limits. He probably feels a need to prove himself. I know that I would, were I in his shoes."

"You speak as though you know something about second sons."

"Third son. I will never see my father's title, wealth, or position. I will never own land, lest I earn it through Bocland. But to do so requires many years of service. I finally ended up with a reputation worthy of royal notice and have a place that I might earn that land. I am sorry that it was under such unhappy circumstance as Lord Erec's demise. He saved my life that day."

"He was a good man and will be missed by many."

"Least of all me. I owe him a debt that I can never repay."

"You are already doing more than you know. He was more than the Captain of the King's Army. He was the People's Champion and it seems that you have taken that role to heart as well."

"I can never replace him, but I want to do right by his memory."

"No one can replace him." Gwyn said with a sniffle.

"I am sorry. I recall you were oft in his company when we were at Brecken."

"You must never speak of it." Gil warned. "She will be in danger if it is known."

"Mary, wife of Gilbert, you may trust me. I would die before I betray your secret."

"I believe you." She said,swiping at her cheek with the back of her hand as her fingers were covered insalve.