‘She is in your tent. She has been well taken care of but has suffered two bad arrow wounds, one to her leg and one to her shoulder.’
‘I must go to her.’
‘Of course, but let her sleep — she needs to rest, and so do you. Try to get some sleep also. Edwin, have the Moor’s physician dress your wounds and those of our men.’
The Emir was talking to his men. He was a tall, dignified-looking man. His armour and weapons were more elaborately decorated than those of his men and he wore fine gold wristlets, gold rings on four of his fingers and a padded, pale-blue silk smock under his armour.
I was calmer now, but my anger was beginning to rise at the senseless violence of the attack.
‘Ibn Hamed, we are visitors to this land. You have attacked us for no reason and killed five of my men. What is your explanation?’
‘We are at war with the Normans. My family has ruled here for many generations, but now our home has been destroyed and many have been killed, including two of my sons. You look like Normans, act like them and speak like them. Even if, as you say, you are English, you are allied to the Normans and so are still our enemy.’
‘We are nobody’s enemy; we are knights in search of a new future away from our homeland. We too have lost many who are close to us. Tens of thousands of our people have died.’
‘I am sorry for your losses, both here and in your homeland. If you will accept, you may now enjoy our hospitality until your knights are healed.’
‘I accept, with gratitude. Adela will need time to recover. She cannot travel easily with those wounds, and there is the danger of infection.’
‘I think infection is probable. My physician is highly trained, but even he doesn’t know how to stop it — although he does know how to treat it. Tell me, why does the girl choose to be a knight?’
‘It is a long story, but there is no doubt she is a warrior.’
‘Has she no shame, living with men, exposing her body? In Islam, our holy book, the Quran, forbids it.’
‘Our Bible certainly doesn’t encourage women to fight, or to be naked! Adela is very unusual — but, I can assure you, she is worthy of your respect.’
‘And the boy, the one who fights so well? He killed three of my finest soldiers, veterans of many years’ service.’
‘Sweyn is an exceptional knight. He is highly disciplined and motivated, with the physique of a hunting dog. In a fight he is quicker and more agile than anyone I’ve ever seen.’
‘I look forward to getting to know them. Come, let us bury your dead; my imam will read over them. When the young woman is rested, we can travel to my camp. There you can meet my family and the survivors of our community.’
13. Mos Militum
The Emir’s camp was high in the heavily wooded Sicilian hills. It was a difficult ride for Adela, who could only manage it side-saddle on a sturdy Moorish saddle cushioned with sacks of straw and with heavy strapping to her shoulder. Ibn Hamed’s men showed enormous respect for her. They treated her like royal princess and helped her on and off her horse as if she were a piece of delicate pottery.
Sweyn watched over her like a hawk, still wary of our Muslim hosts. I now felt more like a guest than a captor, but Sweyn’s warrior instincts led him to be much more cautious. Edwin was also chary and had told our men to be vigilant — not that there was much we could have done, had the Saracens decided to do something untoward.
The camp, well hidden in a clearing in the forest, was home to about 250 people. They had clearly left their homes in a hurry, bringing with them only what they could carry. Although ordered and clean, the settlement was a ramshackle assortment of lean-to shelters, canvas tents and temporary wooden huts with palm roofs.
Children ran around wearing brightly coloured baggy trousers and shirts while their mothers, grandmothers and some older men sat around in groups preparing food, doing their chores or chatting idly.
At the top end of the camp, standing a little apart and surrounded by the neat rows of his soldiers’ bivouacs, was the large tent of the Emir. All men of military age appeared to be soldiers, and all were heavily armed, armoured and resolute. We were invited to make camp close to the Emir, and that night a feast was given to welcome us.
From that day forward, the hospitality shown to us was unprecedented. Sweyn and Adela became increasingly friendly with the young knights, and any anger about the ferocious welcome we had been given to Sicily was mollified by our acceptance of the simple fact that it was an understandable deduction on the Emir’s part that we were a Norman patrol in hostile territory and therefore fair game.
Sweyn became effusive in his praise of our hosts.
‘Most of Ibn Hamed’s knights adhere to the Mos Militum; they put courage, loyalty and honour above all things. They are fine soldiers and good men and accept Adela as an equal. Some of the older men do not accept the code and reject Adela, but they are few in number.’
I also liked and respected the Muslims, but advised caution.
‘We must be careful. We came here to join the campaigns of Count Roger. Now we are camped with his enemy.’
‘I know, my Lord, but it is hard to tell whether we are captives or guests.’
‘We are being well treated, but we must be clear about the fact that we were attacked by Ibn Hamed’s men and we are his prisoners.’
Edwin agreed.
‘Be careful, Sweyn. All seems at ease up here in the mountains, but these people are at war with the Normans — and, sooner or later, Count Roger will hunt them down.’
‘I understand, but I want to carry on training with them and, when she’s fit, so does Adela. Sire, do we have your permission?’
‘Very well — but remember, the same men you are becoming friendly with may one day oppose you in deadly combat.’
I felt increasingly ill at ease with the situation as time passed. The Emir’s hospitality seemed to be limitless, but Edwin and I felt we were abusing it, knowing that soon we must ask for permission to continue our journey to meet Count Roger.
Our honeymoon with Ibn Hamed ended when Adela was strong enough to travel.
She had made a good recovery and, although she still walked with a limp and moved her shoulder warily, she was able to ride in moderate comfort and mount and dismount from her horse without help. I was not looking forward to my conversation with the Emir, a proud and forthright leader of his people and a generous and sincere host. I had grown to respect and like him.
‘My Lord Emir, I know that in truth we are your prisoners here, but I must ask you for permission to move on. Your hospitality has been overwhelming and we will always be grateful to you.’
‘Prince Edgar, you are free to go whenever you wish. I would just ask for one act of kindness from you.’
‘Of course. It is the least I could do.’
‘I want to hold you to ransom.’
‘At what price?’
‘A parlay with Count Roger.’
‘And your objective in the parlay?’
‘To negotiate safe passage to the south. There are several of my Saracen brothers with much stronger defences in the south — at Enna in the mountains, and at Noto on the coast. If we can get there, we have a much better chance of resisting the Normans.’
‘Have you not considered submitting to Count Roger? I hear he is a man worthy of respect.’
‘I hear that also, but when he first came here with his brother, Robert Guiscard, they were dark days. Many were killed and Robert showed no mercy to anyone. My people are terrified of the Normans, and I am reluctant to trust Count Roger until I am convinced he is not like his brother.’
