Sir?' the boy said nervously, offering Vexille the big tournament helm with its narrow eye slits.
Not that one,“ Vexille said. I'll take the bascinet and the coif.” He pointed to what he wanted. The big tournament helm gave very restricted vision and Vexille had learned to distrust it in battle for it prevented him seeing enemies at his flanks. It was a risk to face archers without any visor, but at least he could see them, and now he pulled the mail coif over his head so that it protected the nape of his neck and his ears, then took the bascinet from the boy. It was a simple helmet, with no rim and with no faceplate to constrict his vision. Go and look after your family,' he told the boy, and then he picked up his shield, its willow boards covered with boiled, hardened leather on which was painted the yale of the Vexilles carrying its Grail. He had no talisman, no charm. Few men went to battle without such a precaution, whether it was a lady's scarf or a piece of jewellery blessed by a priest, but Guy Vexille had only one talisman, and that was the Grail. And now he went to fetch it.
One of the coredors was the first to fall ill in the castle and by the night's end there were more than a score of men and women vomiting, sweating and shivering. Jake was one of them. The cross eyed archer dragged himself to a corner of the courtyard and propped his bow beside him and put a handful of arrows on his lap, and there he suffered. Thomas tried to persuade him to go upstairs, but Jake refused. I'll stay here. he insisted. I'll die in the open air.'
You won't die. Thomas said. Heaven won't take you and the devil doesn't need any competition.' The small joke failed to raise a smile on Jake's face, which was discoloured by small red lumps that were rapidly darkening to the colour of a bruise. He had taken down his breeches because he could not contain his bowels and the most he would let Thomas do for him was to bring him a bed of straw from the ruins of the stables.
Philin's son also had the sickness. His face was showing pink spots and he was shivering. The disease seemed to have come from nowhere, but Thomas assumed it had been brought on the east wind that had fanned the flames in the town before the rain killed the fires. Abbot Planchard had warned him of this, of a pestilence coming from Lombardy, and here it was and Thomas was helpless. We must find a priest. Philin said.
A physician,' Thomas said, though he knew of none and did not know how one could be got into the castle even if he could be found.
A priest. Philin insisted. If a child is touched by a consecrated wafer it cures him. It cures everything. Let me fetch a priest.“ It was then Thomas realized the gun had not fired and that no bored crossbowman had clattered a quarrel against the castle's stones, and so he let Philin go out of the ruined gateway in search of Father Medous or one of the other priests in the town. He did not expect to see the tall man again, yet Philin returned within half an hour to say that the town was as badly stricken as the castle and that Father Medous was anointing the sick and had no time to come to the enemy garrison. There was a dead woman in the street. Philin told Thomas, just lying there with her teeth clenched.”
Did Father Medous give you a wafer?'
Philin showed him a thick piece of bread, then carried it up to his son who was in the upper hall with most of the sick. A woman wept that her husband could not receive the last rites and so, to console her and to give hope to the ill, Genevieve carried the golden cup around the pallets and touched it to the hands of the sick and told them it would work a miracle.
We need a goddamned miracle. Sir Guillaume said to Thomas. What the hell is it?' The two had gone to the castle's tower from where, unthreatened by any crossbows, they gazed down at the abandoned gun.
There was a plague in Italy,“ Thomas said, and it must have come here.”
Jesus Christ,“ Sir Guillaurne said. What kind of plague?” God knows,“ Thomas said. A bad one.” For a moment he was assailed with the fear that the pestilence was a punishment for breaking the green glass Grail, then he remembered that Planchard had warned him of the disease long before he had found the cup. He watched a man wrapped in a bloody sheet stagger into the main street and fall down. He lay still, looking as though he were already in his winding sheet.
What in God's name is happening?“ Sir Guillaume asked, making the sign of the cross. Have you ever seen anything like it?”
It's God's wrath,“ Thomas said, punishing us.” For what?'
For being alive,“ Thomas said bitterly. He could hear wailing from the town, and he saw the people fleeing the pestilence. They had their goods in wheelbarrows or handcarts and they pushed past the gun, out of the gate, across the bridge and off to the west. Pray for snow,” Sir Guillaume said. I've often noticed that snow stops sickness. Don't know why.'
It doesn't snow here,' Thomas said.
Genevieve joined them, still holding the golden cup. I fed the fire,“ she said. It seems to help.”
Help?'
The sick,“ she said. They like the warmth. It's a huge fire.” She pointed to the smoke coming from the vent in the keep's side. Thomas put an arm around her and searched her face for any signs of the reddish spots, but her pale skin was clear. They stood watching the people cross the bridge and take the westwards road and, while they watched, they saw Joscelyn lead a stream of mounted men-at-arms away to the north. The new Count of Berat did not look back, he just rode as if the devil himself was on his heels.
And perhaps he was, Thomas thought, and he looked for any sign of his cousin among the disappearing horsemen, but did not see him. Perhaps Guy was dying?
Is the siege over?' Sir Guillaume wondered aloud. Not if my cousin lives. Thomas said.
How many archers do you have?'
Twelve who can pull a cord. Thomas said. Men-at-arms?“ Fifteen.” Sir Guillaume grimaced. The only consolation was that none of the garrison was tempted to flee for they were all stranded far from any friendly troops. Some of the coredors had gone when they learned from Philin that no besiegers were watching the castle, but Thomas did not regret their loss. So what do we do?' Sir Guillaume asked.
Stay here till our sick recover. Thomas said. Or till they die. he added. Then we go. He could not leave men like Jake to suffer alone. The least he could do was stay and keep them company on their passage to heaven or hell.
Then he saw that passage to the next world might come quicker than he expected, for men-at-arms were gathering at the foot of the street. They carried swords, axes and shields, and their appearance meant only one thing. They want the Grail. he said.
Jesus Christ, give it to them.“ Sir Guillaume said fervently. Give them all the pieces.”
You think that will satisfy them?'
No. Sir Guillaume admitted.
Thomas leaned over the battlements. Archers!' he shouted, then ran to pull on his mail coat and strap on his sword and gather his bow and arrow bag.
For the siege was not done.
Thirty-three knights and men-at-arms advanced up the street. The leading twelve, amongst whom was Guy Vexille, carried the pavises that should have sheltered the crossbowmen, but only six of those archers were left and Guy had ordered them to follow him, keeping a good ten paces behind, and so the vast crossbow shields, each taller than a man, served to protect his men-at-arms. They moved slowly, shuffling to keep close and to stay behind the thick, heavy pavises that were being pushed along the cobbles so that no arrow could fly beneath and pin a man's ankle. Guy Vexille waited for the thudding of the arrows striking the wood, then realized that Thomas had either lost all his archers or, far more likely, was waiting for the moment when the pavises were dropped.
They climbed through a town of the dying and the dead, a town stinking of fire and ordure. There was a man lying dead in a soiled sheet; they kicked his corpse aside and walked on. The men in the second rank held their shields aloft, protecting the three ranks from arrows shot from the castle's high keep, but still no missiles came. Guy wondered if everyone in the castle was dead and he imagined walking its empty halls like a knight of old, a Grail searcher come to his destiny, and he shuddered with pure ecstasy at the thought of claiming the relic; then the group of men were crossing the open space in front of the castle and Guy reminded them to stay close and to keep the pavises overlapping as they struggled over the mound of rubble thrown down by Hell Spitter. Christ is our companion,' he told his men, God is with us. We cannot lose.
The only sounds were the cries of women and children in the town, the scrape of pavises and the clanking of armoured feet. Guy Vexille moved one of the heavy shields aside and glimpsed a makeshift barricade stretching across the courtyard, but he also saw archers bunched at the top of the steps which led into the keep and one of those men drew back his string and Guy hastily closed up the chink between the shields. The arrow struck the
