‘You have something to tell me?’ asked Wulfgar.
The prisoner nodded. ‘Ingvar plans to lure you out of Drakensburgh with a ruse.’
‘What ruse?’
‘He means to divide his force. A small group will fire one of the hamlets and slay the inhabitants. While you and your men deal with that the rest of Ingvar’s force will close in. When you are dead he will take Drakensburgh.’
‘I see.’ Wulfgar’s gaze was cold. ‘And when was he planning to carry on this scheme?’
‘At the dark of the moon.’
Hermund frowned. ‘That’s just a few days away.’
‘What hamlet?’ demanded Wulfgar.
‘The one nearest the border with Beranhold,’ replied Sigurd.
‘If you’re lying…’ Hermund’s hand crept to the hilt of his dagger.
‘It’s the truth, I swear it.’
‘It had better be, Toadspawn.’
Wulfgar nodded. ‘We’ll keep him alive until we’ve tested the truth of his words. If he speaks false, the hounds can have him. If true, he may have a quick death.’
‘What do you want to do with him in the meantime?’ asked Hermund.
‘Chain him to yonder stake where we can see him.’ He nodded to the great post sunk into the ground some yards distant. When it was accomplished he took Hermund aside. ‘The time is short, but I mean to be ready for Ingvar.’
‘You have a plan, my lord?’
‘Not yet, but I will have.’
When he left Hermund, Wulfgar went to watch the practices, turning over various scenarios in his mind. The possibility, however small, of a traitor among the Drakensburgh force was an added complication. However, he couldn’t afford to ignore it. Thus far he’d had no cause for complaint. The Drakensburgh retainers had given no trouble. Indeed, there were some good men among them. The new recruits were shaping up well, too. Given time their combined number would be a formidable force to protect the estate. The problem was he no longer had time. His new recruits were about to be tested.
In the interim there were other people who needed to know what was afoot. Ina must be told as soon as might be, and then there was Anwyn. He would have liked to spare her the anxiety, but he had made a bargain with her and it must be met.
A servant came to the bower a short time later with a message requesting Anwyn’s presence in the hall.
‘Did Lord Wulfgar say what it was about?’ she asked.
‘No, my lady, only that he wished to speak with you.’
She laid aside the shirt she had been mending. ‘I will come directly.’
When she arrived it was to find him already there. He had his back to her, but, on hearing her step, turned to greet her with a smile that made her heart leap. She returned it, waiting.
‘Forgive the interruption, Anwyn,’ he said then, ‘but this is important.’
‘Has something happened?
Without preamble he summarised what he had learned from Sigurd. Her face revealed anxiety, but she held her composure.
‘What will you do, my lord?’
‘Play Ingvar at his own game.’
‘I had hoped to avoid bloodshed, but it cannot be avoided, can it?’
‘No,’ he replied.
‘Well, you did warn me.’
‘So I did, though in some part of me I also hoped it might not come to this.’ He grimaced. ‘A forlorn hope when the enemy is a man of Ingvar’s stamp. It will not end until one of us is dead.’ Then, seeing her face, he added, ‘And I do not intend to die.’
She managed a tremulous smile. ‘I pray you will not.’
Wulfgar drew her closer. ‘My motivation for living is greater than his.’
Anwyn looked up at him, her expression earnest. ‘Be extra vigilant, Wulfgar. We have borne witness to the extent of his treachery.’
‘He is ruled by jealousy and anger. They will cloud his judgement eventually.’
‘I hope you are right.’
‘I know I’m right.’ He bent and kissed her softly. ‘I have what he wants most.’
‘He would never have succeeded here,’ she replied.
‘And yet still I cannot pity the man.’
‘Neither should you. He tried to have you killed and I can never forgive him for it.’
He heard the quiet anger in her voice and withal the note of sincerity. It smote him hard. When first this bargain was made, he had not anticipated that she would come to feel so deeply for him, or that he would find an echoing response in himself. It both exhilarated and disturbed. He had no wish to hurt her, and she had always known that one day he would leave. Even so, this growing attraction was an added complication. Yet if he could change things, would he? Would he have missed what they now shared? It took but a moment to find the answer.
‘Now I do pity the man,’ he replied.
‘I was being serious, Wulfgar.’
‘So was I.’ He lifted her hand to his lips. ‘Don’t worry for me, my sweet. This matter will be seen through to its conclusion and Drakensburgh will emerge triumphant.’
Long after he left her Anwyn mulled over their conversation. Though he tended to make light of it, it was a serious matter. Ingvar was powerful and he was cunning. He would use any means to achieve his end. He was no different from Torstein, save in external appearance. A handsome face could not conceal a wicked heart.
Wulfgar walked apart awhile, wanting time to think. By the end of the morning he had formulated a plan that he thought might work. He knew the hamlet that Sigurd had identified as the bait in Ingvar’s intended trap, but the details of the place and the surrounding countryside were not yet familiar enough. Accordingly he summoned Hermund, Thrand and Asulf and they rode out together.
The hamlet was situated by the side of a stream. A small wood stood hard by, marking the boundary with Beranhold. The rest was open fields and low, rolling hillside. Wulfgar leaned on the saddle pommel, surveying it all keenly.
‘It’s my guess Ingvar’s main force will make use of the wood,’ he said. ‘He knows that one blazing house will bring our patrols to investigate, and that it will take a little time for them to ride back and report the attack.’
‘By which time he will have torched the entire place and slain all the villagers,’ replied Hermund.
‘We shall arrange for the villagers to be elsewhere. None of them will be harmed. Ingvar’s men will likely fire the houses—that part probably can’t be avoided.’
‘At least it’ll provide enough light for us to see them by,’ said Thrand.
‘We’ll bait the trap with part of our own force,’ Wulfgar went on, ‘and send them in to counter-attack. When Ingvar takes the bait and sends in his main force we’ll bring up the rest of our men and surround them.’
Thrand grinned. ‘They’ll be caught like rats, my lord.’
Wulfgar nodded, pointing to the hill some half a mile distant. ‘We’ll conceal our force back there. It’s far enough to remain unnoticed by the enemy, but near enough to the action to be able to support our own side when we need to.’
Asulf nodded slowly. ‘It’s a good plan, my lord.’
‘Aye, it is,’ replied Hermund. ‘The men who bait the trap are going to be hard pressed, though, until the main force can get here.’
‘That’s right,’ said Wulfgar. ‘So it’s going to need a group of seasoned warriors to keep their attention till Ingvar’s men are where we want them.’
Thrand’s eyes gleamed as he looked at Asulf. ‘Sounds like a job for us, doesn’t it?’
‘I reckon it’s got our names on it.’ Asulf turned to Wulfgar. ‘Let us choose the men, my lord, and we’ll hold Ingvar’s force as long as you like.’
Hermund’s lips quirked. ‘Let me think. Your chosen men wouldn’t happen to include the likes of Dag or Frodi or Snorri or Beorn, would it?’
‘Amongst others,’ replied Asulf. ‘How did you know?’
‘Call it an inspired guess.’
Thrand looked at Wulfgar. ‘So what do you say, my lord?’
He inclined his head. ‘All right, it’s yours. You’ve got the basis of a good team in those men.’
‘All the mad blighters,’ said Hermund.
Wulfgar smiled faintly. ‘We need mad blighters for this.’
‘Then they’re your men.’
‘Ideal, I’d say,’ replied Wulfgar.
Thrand and Asulf grinned.
‘One thing,’ Wulfgar continued. ‘No one outside of our own crewmen is to know anything about this until the time comes. I don’t want any hint of it getting back to Ingvar.’
‘We won’t say a word,’ replied Asulf.
‘Just get that smile off your face,’ said Hermund. ‘You look like the cat that swallowed the ruddy cream. It’s a dead give-away.’
Wulfgar waited until they were alone in the privacy of their chamber before he spoke to Anwyn of his plans. She listened attentively.