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From the sounds up the stairway, the fighting was over. Harald led them up, not down the stairs. He was
looking for something.
A considerable way north, most of a day later:
"Your Majesty. A bird just came in."
The King took the thin paper, read the message written in tiny letters. His face lit up. Twice Harald had
used them against him; now it was his turn. The southern provinces were loyal, birds for Southdale and
Goldfell in the tower. And . . .
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He turned to Philip. "Would Harald know we have birds in South Keep?"
The old man thought a minute.
"Doubt it. Here to the Vales was his worry, the rest of it ours."
The King sent a boy running for his captain. With luck, this time . . .
And either way, at least it would be over.
A day s ride short of South Keep the royal army, swelled by hasty levies, met the first sign of an enemy.
Off the road to the right, well out of arrowshot, a small cluster of mounted Ladies. Ahead, where the road
ran along the woods, a smaller cluster of cats. The King spoke to the captain at his right side, the captain
signaled. Gradually the army slowed to a halt. The King turned to his captain.
"Scouts? Catch them now, surprise later."
The captain nodded, stopped. Above the cats, the wind took the pennon on a lance point, blew it straight.
"That s Harald."
"What?"
"Next to his pennon man, gray horse."
"Gods." The King thought a moment, his face fierce.
The figure on the gray horse raised his bow, drew, shot. The King lifted his shield, saw no sign where the
arrow had gone. Southdale, riding at his left, spoke.
"Not even Harald can pick us off at four hundred yards, Majesty."
The King turned to him.
"Take the levies, lift the siege of South Keep. You ll want the infantry from Eston; they re behind us on
the road." The provincial lord nodded. The King turned to his captain.
"Send Mark and his men after them" a gesture right "he has light cavalry to run them down, heavies to
break them if they stand."
"He can t take on the whole Order, Majesty."
"The Order s a day south of here besieging South Keep. If he does run into trouble he can fall back on
Southdale and the main force. We take the rest of your company and go after Harald."
"Harald has a lot of tricks, Majesty."
"He can t be very tricky with fifteen men. His army, what there is of it, is at South Keep. He s been
fighting me with bluffs for a month. This is the last. Just remember we want a prisoner, not a corpse."
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An hour later the King had seen no reason to change his mind. The cats, charged by twenty times their
numbers, had shot a few arrows, then fallen back into the trees. The King s captain spread his men to
block any move back to the road and followed them. Occasional arrows through the trees were evidence
that they were still there; the valley walls beginning to rise on either side of them would slow any attempt
to break out of the trap.
The valley narrowed, the royal force thinned to a column moving through the trees and up. Ahead
sunlight. They broke out of the woods, surged forward, stopped. Somewhere behind them something fell
with an echoing crash.
The valley ahead was blocked by a wall of rocks and dirt a man s height and more. Above it massed
spears, a line of archers. Right and left the steep slope of the valley wall was scattered with cats on foot,
bows ready. At the King s left, horsemen surged forward, swords out, fell under a rain of arrows. The
King turned in his saddle, arms spread.
"Hold."
A man on foot, forcing his way through the packed horses to the captain s side.
"It s blocked; they ve brought down a big tree behind us, maybe more."
Looking up, the King saw Harald s pennon, Harald himself at the center of the wall, a tall Lady beside
him. The King hesitated a moment, moved forward, yelled up at him.
"If I yield, will you let my men go?"
"Dismount, arms and armor on the horses. We take the horses down to the plain, let them go; when we are
gone, your men follow on foot."
The King turned to his captain.
"Andrew is in the castle; tell him I ll make the best terms I am able, send word when I can."
He swung his horse sideways against the earth wall, drew his sword, held it hilt out. Harald leaned down,
took it, thrust it into the earth beside him, reached a hand down. The King caught the hand, one foot on the
saddle, the other against the earth wall, scrambled upwards.
At the top of the wall he stood, looked at Harald, the tall gray-haired woman beside him, froze. The blood
left his face.
"You re dead. You ve been dead for a year."
Harald broke the silence, took her hand.
"I can assure Your Majesty that the Lady Commander is with us in the flesh."
The King tore his eyes from Leonora s face, looked wildly around. Stopped. Looked back at her.
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