Trail of Fate

“If you find you’ve lost your taste for battle, feel free to leave the field,” I replied calmly.

“You kill my men with flaming grease, squire? Are you a warrior or a cook?” he thundered as he spurred his horse forward, his hand going to the hilt of his sword as if he meant to draw it and strike me down. In an instant Jean-Luc and his men raised their crossbows and pointed them directly at him.

“Not another step, Sir Hugh,” I warned. “These men will kill you where you stand. You can’t win here. Withdraw. You have no chance. We can survive for months inside this fortress. We have plenty of food and water. There is no shortage of weapons.”

“I will have it, squire. I will have it! Do you hear me?” Sir Hugh reined his horse backward, in line with the other knights. Jean Luc’s men slowly lowered their crossbows, but Jean-Luc, apparently a good judge of character, kept his pointed at Sir Hugh’s chest.

“Mark this, squire. Your life is forfeit. I will see you and everyone in Montsegur dead. You will give me what I want or I will not stop until everyone inside your fortress is nothing but a pile of bones. I don’t care how long it takes. Do you understand me?”

“Sir Hugh, I’m tired of this. And tired of you and your empty threats,” I replied wearily. “Take my advice and withdraw from this place. If you try to take this fortress, we will make you pay and pay and pay again. We will not yield. With my last breath I will destroy what you seek before you lay eyes on it. Do you understand me?”

Sir Hugh’s face became a vision of anguish and frustration. The very thing he wanted more than anything in the world was within his reach, yet unattainable. He pursed his lips, and even over the distance between us and the noise of the wind, I could hear his breath coming hard and fast in tortured gasps. His gloved hands were knotted on the reins of his horse as if he might wring water from them. In contrast, the two knights with him sat atop their mounts as still as stones.

“However, in the interest of preventing further bloodshed, I will make you a deal, Sir Hugh,” I said.

He looked at me, his eyes hooded, but with just a glint of expectancy within them. He said nothing, waiting for me to speak.

“Leave the field, take your regimento and retire to the small hamlet that lies at the entrance of this valley. You must have passed through it on your way here. There is a small inn there. You leave this mountain and promise never to return, and in three days’ time I will meet you there and give you what you seek.”

Sir Hugh waved his hand at me and smirked.

“You must think me a fool, squire. The minute I withdraw, you vanish into the forest. No, I think not.”

“Where would I go?” I said, pointing to the mountains surrounding us. “We are on top of a mountain. The cliffs and peaks around us make the way north impossible. The only way out is through the valley below. With you and your men stationed there, it would be impossible for me to slip past.”

“No,” he said.

“Then I suggest you send your men against the walls again. Many more of them will die. How long do you think they’ll be willing to wait here?” I asked. “And how long do you think the High Counsel and his troops will remain here? You two appeared to be on poor terms.”

“They will remain here until I command them otherwise!” he spat. I shrugged, dismissing his outburst. Something was off about his response, and looking past him at the assembled forces, I figured it out. The High Counsel’s men were not in evidence. All I saw were Templar banners and tunics. There were none of the green- and-white markings of Father Renard’s men, and I wondered if he had slipped away or retreated.

“Is that right?” I asked him. “It would appear you have lost some of your forces. What happened? Did the High Counsel decide you were no longer friends?”

Sir Hugh waved his hand in the air dismissively, as if the whereabouts of the High Counsel were of no concern to him. I tried to keep him off balance.

“And your Templar comrades? Do you think they will tolerate such losses? If they were of your own regimento, maybe, but I’m sure you haven’t shared your reasons for being here with them. How long do you think it will be before they grow weary of your tactics?” In the eyes of one of the men behind Sir Hugh I caught something: fear mixed with hesitation. It told me that the moment might be closer than even Sir Hugh thought. If anything, he had repeatedly proven incapable of leading men in battle. His troops would quickly grow to resent him.

Sir Hugh raised and lowered himself in the stirrups of his saddle, a bundle of nervous energy. For several seconds he said nothing. Then a smile came to his face.

“Very well, squire. I accept your terms. We will withdraw and wait for you in the hamlet at the head of the valley. You have until noon three days hence to show up with the. . to show yourself there. If you are not there by noon, my regimento will put every one of the villagers in that hamlet to the sword. All of them, men, women and children, do you understand? They all die. Tell your princess those are my terms. See how far her hospitality extends then, squire. I will kill them all. Comprenez-vous?” he added for the benefit of Jean-Luc and his men-at-arms.

My heart sank, for I had made a terrible mistake, one I had no idea how to correct. I had hoped he would agree and I could escape down the mountain. But he had nearly struck down the High Counsel, and now his madness was overtaking him and he would kill everyone in his path if he thought it necessary. I tried to keep my face a mask, but wasn’t sure I did. Our first step was to free Celia and her people from Montsegur.

“I’ll be there, Sir Hugh,” I said. “In three days.”

“If you are not, then those people will die. Count on it.” Sir Hugh whipped his horse, riding back to the lines. One of the knights hesitated before following.

“Brother! Wait!” I called after him, but he did not stop, only turned to give me a brief glance.

We began the short trek back toward the castle. Jean-Luc walked beside me, his two men keeping an eye on the retreating knights.

“What you do now, Anglais?” he asked in his best English. I could tell from his tone that he knew what was happening and was worried, and I couldn’t blame him. He understood enough to know what Sir Hugh had said.

“I don’t know, Jean-Luc,” I said. “I must talk to Celia.”

Robard, Maryam and Celia had clustered around us, and Angel strolled up and sat on her haunches, staring at me.

“What did that pile of polecat dung have to say for himself?” Robard asked.

“I made a deal. He will quit the siege and meet me in the small village at the head of the valley in three days. You and your people will be free to go, Celia,” I said.

“What? No, you can’t do it! He’ll kill you!” Maryam cried.

“I don’t have a choice,” I said.

“Why not?” Celia asked, the tone in her voice saying she more than agreed with Maryam.

“You should have just let me shoot him,” Robard said.

Celia hushed him.

“Explain yourself, Templar,” she said.

“I. . made. . a mistake. . a miscalculation. I was so intent on getting Sir Hugh away from here and your people, I forgot who I was dealing with. He’ll withdraw and wait for us in the village, all right, but if I don’t show up, he’s threatened to kill everyone in the village. Even the women and children.”

“I see,” said Celia quietly. She put her hands on her hips and bowed her head, staring at the ground, lost in thought.

“I’m so sorry, Celia. I won’t let any harm come to those innocent-”

Celia paid no attention and called sharply for Jean-Luc. When he appeared, she spoke to him quickly and he darted off.

“Come with me, all of you,” she said.

We climbed back up to the battlement above the main gate and surveyed the ground. Sir Hugh and the regimento of Templars were retreating just as he had promised. They had carried little equipment, and those who weren’t already mounted were in the process of saddling their horses and moving out. Indeed, a line of them were already heading onto the trail and back down the mountain into the forest, toward the village.

Jean-Luc returned shortly with another one of the villagers, who carried a long horn made of brass. He put the horn to his lips and sounded several long, low notes through it. The sound echoed off the surrounding mountains.

“What is this? What are you doing?” I asked her.