They waited; the knights’ horses stamped and snorted impatiently, tossing their heads and shaking their manes, eager to move on. But the wait was rewarded with the appearance of Lord Ameronis at the battlements.

“So, Theido, it is you!” Ameronis called down from his wall. “And is that Ronsard?”

“I want to speak to you, Ameronis. Face to face.”

“I am sorry, but it seems that the gates have been closed and fortified. I cannot open them for you.” Ameronis spoke with good humor, as if he would gladly forget that the men before him bore anything but friendship and goodwill.

“Then allow us to approach, for I have something to tell you that you should know before blood is spilled on either side.”

“You’re wasting your time,” muttered Ronsard. “The only thing this wolf understands is the broad side of a blade.”

“I know,” replied Theido. “But those with him are not of the same stamp. We may be able to sway them. See? Here they are.”

Ronsard saw several more heads join Ameronis to peer over the wall. “I do not see Lord Edfrith among them.”

“Perhaps he has had the good sense to withdraw before entangling himself further in this greedy one’s plots. That shows, at least, that this pack is not of one accord.”

“You may approach,” shouted Ameronis down to them. “I will listen to what you have to say.”

“I DO not like this, Ameronis,” said Lord Kelkin. “If it is true we hold the ransom for the King’s son, we must give it. I do not want the Prince’s blood on my head.”

The friends of Ameronis were gathered with him in his council chambers, a room high in the tower keep above the dungeon. The windows were open so that the breeze might stir the air, which lay still and heavy in the room. Ameronis sat on a sill gazing out across the escarpment toward where Theido and Ronsard had retreated only a few minutes before.

“You had stomach enough for it when we rode to the King himself,” said Lupollen. “I did not hear you complain then. If it is true that he who holds the sword is King, then here is our King!” He gestured to Ameronis, who placed his hands on the sill and rose, facing them, silhouetted in the narrow window.

Lord Denellon muttered beneath his breath, “If he is King, why are we hiding behind bolted doors, waiting for a fight?”

Ameronis ignored the remark. “Do you not see that this is exactly what they wanted?”

The others looked at him askance. “What do you mean?” demanded Gorloic. “Speak plainly.”

“Oh, but plain it is, sir. It is a trick of theirs to make us relinquish the sword without so much as an arrow exchanged. Theido is a crafty old fox; he knew this would cause dissension among us, and that is why he spread the lie.”

“You doubt him-after all that happened in Askelon?” asked Denellon.

“Oh, I do not doubt that the Prince was abducted-that is true enough. Most likely he was abducted by simple highwaymen who

“How is it with them?” asked the sandy-haired knight.

“You were right, my friend,” replied Theido hotly. “It is a jackal’s den. Though the others with him-Gorloic, Relkin, and Denellon-seem inclined to reason, they allow themselves to be led astray by his smooth tongue.”

“So the siege is begun.” Ronsard stared off at the castle rising before them. “Those walls will not be easy to breach. And we cannot starve them out. We must go over the top.”

“Perhaps it will come to that,” replied Theido, following Ronsard’s gaze. “But not yet. I want to examine that fourth side of the castle, the west wall on the river.”

“How do you propose to do that?”

“It will have to be tonight, under cover of darkness.”

“Very good. I will arrange a diversion as well; that will mask our true purpose. But what do you hope to find?”

“A postern gate. I have never yet been inside a castle that did not have a rear entrance of some kind. A man like Ameronis will have a secret gate if nothing else-if only we can find it.”

Ronsard nodded and added, “If only we can find it in time.”

For the rest of the afternoon and into the early evening, the camp bustled with activity. The woods nearby rang with the sound of axes as trees were felled and stripped of their branches; men combed the forest gathering dry pine needles by the armful; the forge and bellows of the smiths sent black smoke rolling up through the trees and into the sky.

By nightfall all was in readiness. A pale half-moon rose in the treetops, casting a glimmering light upon the escarpment, bleaching the castle walls and the granite outcroppings on the field white as dead men’s bones.

“All is in readiness,” said Ronsard. He came to stand beside Theido who was instructing a group of knights he had chosen for the night sortie.

“Good. We are ready here too.” Theido dismissed the men, saying, “Rest now. I will sound the call when it is time to go.” The knights departed into the darkness, leaving Theido and Ronsard alone with the embers of a slowly dying fire. “Now to wait. The moon will be well down in a few hours; it should be dark enough then to move without being seen.”

“Once we start in, not a soul in Ameron Castle will think to look for you. I will make certain of that”

“How long can you keep up the diversion?”

“As long as you require it. We are well-provided.” Theido sighed, “Ah, well, then all is ready. We may as well take some rest too. We must have our wits about us if we are to beard the lion in his den.”

AT THE edge of the wood the two parties assembled: one a force of two score men-at-arms, the other a dozen handpicked knights. The moon had climbed the night sky and sunk down behind the trees of Pelgrin, and full darkness lay upon the land. The castle rose before them on the slope, a massive black shape in the greater darkness. But for the blazing stars shining down like the fires of a celestial host encamped, the besiegers would not have had enough light to find their way.

“We will give you enough time to get into position,” said Ronsard. “You will know when the diversion starts, I daresay. With any luck the whole castle will soon be awakened to the alarm.”

Theido nodded. “We will be ready. Do not get careless, and stay well out of arrow range. There is no need for anyone to get hurt tonight. Yours is not the risk-at least not yet.”

“We will keep out of bowshot, never fear,” Ronsard assured him. “See that you do the same.”

With that the two men parted company, Theido leading his knights off into the woods, making for the river bank where the slow Sipleth flowed dark and silent. After walking what seemed a lifetime through the wood, the knights came upon Sipleth’s east bank. The sound of moving water eddying and curling as it slipped along its shores told them that they had reached the first stage of their journey.

Walking silently, their tools and weapons muffled to prevent any sound, the small force turned and filed along the river bank, proceeding toward the castle. Presently the river broadened, flattening as it bent around the castle rock. The bank rose to form a cliff above the black water, unseen except for the winking glint, here and there, of starlight on a ripple in the current.

The knights made their way up the rising cliffside, fighting through tangles of nettles and bramble thickets along the way. Their labors were rewarded when Theido at last halted their progress and passed the whispered word back along the file: “The castle is just ahead. We wait.”

Ahead, right to the very edge of the cliff, stood the west wall of Castle Ameron. The raiding party knelt down in the path to wait for the signal. It was not long in coming, for as the knights waited silently below the curtain, there came a shout from above, far-off. “Fire!” This call was echoed by another and another all along the battlements. Then the knights heard the clatter of feet racing along the high walls directly over their heads as the cry resounded, “Fire!”