Arab countries -- Fiction; Crusades -- Fiction; Great Britain -- History -- Medieval period, 1066-1485 -- Fiction
“Keep faith with yourself,” said Sinan, “who said that you accepted the
challenge of this knight and made no conditions, and when you have
proved upon his body that his quarrel is not just, then speak of my
faith with you. Nay, no more words; when this fight is done we will
speak again, and not before. Let him be led to the outer castle and
there given of our best. Let my great black horse be brought to him
that he may gallop it to and fro upon the bridge, or where he will
within the circuit of the walls, by day or by night; but see that he
has no speech with this lady whom he has betrayed into my power, or
with these knights his foes, nor suffer him to come into my presence. I
will not talk with a man who has been struck in the face until he has
washed away the blow in blood.”
As Masouda finished translating, and before Lozelle could answer, the
lord Sinan moved his head, whereon guards sprang forward and conducted
Lozelle from the terrace.
“Farewell, Sir Thief,” cried Wulf after him, “till we meet again upon
the narrow bridge and there settle our account. You have fought Godwin,
perhaps you will have better luck with Wulf.”
Lozelle glared back at him, and, finding no answer, went on his way.
“Your report,” said Sinan, addressing the tall _fedaï_ who all this
while had lain upon his face before him, still as the form that was
stretched upon the bier. “There should have been another prisoner, the
great emir Hassan. Also, where is the Frankish spy?”
The _fedaï_ rose and spoke.
“Lord,” he said, “I did your bidding. The knight who has gone steered
the ship into the bay, as had been arranged. I attacked with the
daylight. The soldiers of Salah-ed-din fought bravely, for the lady
here saw us, and gave them time to gather, and we lost many men. We
overcame and killed them all, except the prince Hassan, whom we took
prisoner. I left some men to watch the ship. The crew we spared, as
they were the servants of the Frank Lozelle, setting them loose upon
the beach, together with a Frankish woman, who was the servant of the
lady here, to find their way to the nearest city. This woman I would
have killed, but the lady your captive begged for her life, saying she
had come from the land of the Franks to seek her husband; so, having no
orders, let her go. Yesterday morning we started for Masyaf, the prince
Hassan riding in a litter together with that Frankish spy who was here
a while ago, and told you of the coming of the ship. At night they
slept in the same tent; I left the prince bound and set a guard, but in
the morning when we looked we found him gone—how, I know not—and lying
in the tent the Frankish spy, dead, with a knife-wound through his
heart. Behold!” and withdrawing the cloth from the stretcher he
revealed the stiff form of the spy Nicholas, who lay there dead, a look
of terror frozen on his face.
“At least this one has come to an end he deserved,” muttered Wulf to
Godwin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account