'Did you sign it-this oath of loyalty?'

'We did,' Godfrey declared, 'and gladly.'

Baldwin frowned, but said nothing. There was no need to mention the unfortunate riot in the marketplace, and the resultant loss of fifty-six men.

'The Greeks are infamous for their treachery,' Bohemond observed. 'There is certain to be some deception in it. I will go to the devil before I pledge fealty to that black dog of an emperor.'

Godfrey glared at Bohemond, who stared back in fierce defiance, as if it was he and not Alexius insisting on the pledge.

'This hot, and it is but April,' complained Tancred, lifting his cup and draining it. Holding the empty vessel at arm's length, he instructed his steward to refill the cup and to keep the jug full and ready. 'At least,' he mused, returning the cup to his mouth, 'the emperor's wine is better than his reputation.'

Baldwin and some of the noblemen laughed, easing the strain of the moment.

'The duplicity of the Greeks is well known, of course,' sniffed Godfrey peevishly. 'But as we are only to remain in Byzantium a day or two longer at most, I saw no harm in signing the oath. He is the emperor, after all.'

'We have only just arrived,' Bohemond said imperiously. 'I have no intention of rushing off so soon. The men are exhausted, and the horses must be rested. We have been on the march continuously since Avlona. It will take more than a day or two before we can consider moving on.'

'The emperor is even now devising plans to help us move our armies across the Bosphorus where a camp has been prepared at Pelecanum,' Godfrey informed the prince, happy to see him squirm. 'Our armies have been waiting weeks now, and our men are more than ready to press on to the Holy Land.'

'Perhaps,' suggested Baldwin, 'you might persuade the emperor to allow you to wait until Count Raymond and Duke Robert arrive.'

'I wonder they are not here already,' Tancred mused. 'What the devil can have happened to them?'

'Ah,' Godfrey replied, 'I have it that they tarried a while in Rome at the pope's request. Apparently, Urban, despite his zeal for the success of the pilgrimage, is not well enough to undertake the journey himself. Thus, he has appointed a legate to lead the crusade in his stead.'

Bohemond stiffened. 'Do we know this legate?' wondered the prince in a slightly strained voice.

'We do not,' admitted Godfrey. 'But he is said to be a churchman-a bishop, I believe-of scrupulous honour and highest repute.'

'Well,' allowed the prince, growing easy once again, 'so long as he keeps his reputable nose out of affairs that do not concern him, I have no objection.' Raising his cup, he cried, 'God prosper us, my lords! Hey!'

'God prosper us!' replied the assembled noblemen. They all drank then, and the feast proceeded in good spirit-so good in fact, that the arrival of a messenger with a summons for Bohemond to attend the emperor went unremarked and unresented. The prince allowed himself to be conducted to Blachernae Palace alone and unaccompanied by any but Tancred and eight of his closest noblemen.

Alexius received the son of his former enemy in the Salamos Hall of Blachernae Palace from which he had removed all its portable furnishings and treasures. Any that could not be moved, he had hidden beneath tasteful, but not unduly ornate Damasc-cloth coverings. He desired the room to present a suitably imposing, yet somewhat austere display, so as not to inflame his visitor's notorious greed.

For the reception, the emperor arrayed himself in his best ceremonial robes, but added to the imperial purple his breastplate, sword, dagger, and greaves: not the high-polished gilt armour he used for formal occasions, but the battered pieces he wore on the field. Alexius remembered, and dreaded, Bohemond's superior size and height, and wished to even the scales as much as possible by showing himself a man of daring and action. Likewise, he commanded the full complement of palace excubitori to attend him in battle gear used in previous campaigns. In this way, he hoped to gently remind his rogue of a guest that the emperor was a commander of armies, and well-used to the harsh fortunes of war.

So, when the two latest arrivals and their vassal lords were brought into his presence, they found the emperor standing before his throne and looking as if he expected to mount his horse at any moment and charge into battle. His manner, like his surroundings, bespoke an able ruler in full command of his faculties, passions, and authority. Tancred decided, before he had moved a dozen paces into the room, that he would happily sign the oath of fealty to this emperor.

Bohemond, however, appeared impervious to Alexius' sly design. Ever the arrogant prince, he walked with his customary swagger across the marble floor to stand directly before the throne and look God's Ruler on Earth in the eye.

'So, Bohemond, here you are again,' said the emperor, unable to bring himself to utter words of false welcome. 'You always wished to gain entrance to our palace; at long last it would appear you have achieved your ambition-unlike the last time you were here.'

Bohemond's smile was broad and genuine. 'Hail, Alexius! God be good to you, I hope.' He looked around the room, filling his eyes with the grand and stately architecture; even in its subdued condition, the room was still far more magnificent than any royal apartment he had ever known. 'To think,' he said amiably, 'I have achieved in friendship what could not be gained by force of arms.'

'You call yourself our friend,' remarked Alexius. 'Do we discern a change of heart?'

'I stand before you, Lord Emperor, your humble servant,' replied Bohemond, spreading his empty hands before him. Alexius remarked how large were those hands, and how powerful those arms. 'As you see me, so I am.'

'We do see you, Prince Bohemond,' the emperor intoned, 'but the sight does not entirely expunge the memory of our last exchange.' Even as he spoke the words, Alexius judged the changes in the man before him; twelve years had done much for old Robert's son. A tall, rangy youth, he had put muscle to his lanky bones; broad of shoulder and narrow of hip, he stood on long sturdy legs, with not the least hint of meekness in his clear blue eyes. Both chin and cheek were smooth from the razor, and his hair, unlike that of so many Franks, was cut even to his shoulders. He moved easily, and with confidence, alert to all around him. If not for the fellow's insufferable arrogance, pride, and over-reaching ambition, Alexius might have found it in himself to befriend the top-lofty prince.

'But that was a long time ago, Lord Emperor,' Bohemond was saying, still smiling. 'Then, I was merely a vassal in the command of my father. Today, however, I come freely of my own volition, responding purely out of Christian duty to see our common enemy vanquished, and the lands hallowed by our Lord and Saviour returned to the rightful occupation and veneration of God's faithful people.'

'Be assured all Heaven rejoices to hear it,' Alexius replied, moving swiftly to the moment of anticipated difficulty. 'We are always glad to welcome men of such high-minded resolve into our confidence-in observance of which we have prepared a small token of our regard.' He lifted a hand to the magister officiorum, who stepped forward with a lacquered tray bearing two fine golden bowls set with rubies and sapphires.

Alexius allowed his guests to fill their eyes with the prizes, and then, with a nod to Theodosius, Logothete of the Symponus, who advanced bearing the parchment square containing the oath of loyalty which Hugh, Godfrey, and Baldwin had already signed, the emperor said, 'So that we may all be of one accord, and enjoy the benefits of our newfound friendship, it only remains for you to join your fellow pilgrims in the recognition of our imperial sovereignty.'