CHAPTER XVII
On the morning when Hugo and Humphrey were to start, the canon summonedthem to his presence, and his face was grave. "I have but now learned,"he said, "that the king is at Clipstone Palace. When the knaves thoudidst leave stunned in the fen discover it also, they will at oncerepair thither, and that maketh a new complication of troubles. Let usconsult together. I include the serving-man because he is such avaliant compeller." And the canon, forgetting his gravity, laughedheartily. And again he laughed. Then he grew grave again. "Pardon me,"he said to Hugo; "but one may laugh so seldom in these troublous times.And erstwhile I was fond of laughing, and glad to have a merry heart.Now merry hearts be few in England, for they who have not alreadygrief, have anxiety and dread for their portion." He paused and thenwent on: "The same hand that did send me news of the king'sneighborhood did add something more thereto. A fierce littleswaggering, strutting man did come upon the king at Newark and did tellhim that Josceline, meaning thee, had fled, and that he had beenpursuing thee. Didst thou know of it?"
"Yea," replied Hugo, with a smile. Then turning to the serving-man hesaid, "Humphrey, since the canon loveth to be merry, tell thou him ofthe hedgehog and the Isle of Axholme."
Humphrey did as he was requested, and was amply rewarded by theappreciation of his listener. "I see thou art worth a troop, my goodHumphrey," he said, when the serving-man had finished. "Lady DeAldithely did well to trust thee with this lad. But now to my news oncemore. The king, in his wrath, will scour the country roundabout, andthou mayest not escape from him as thou didst from thine otherpursuers. What dost thou elect to do?" And he looked at Hugo.
Hugo considered, and as he considered he grew pale. "I know not," hesaid at last. "It seemeth not safe to move."
"True," returned the canon. "Nor is it safe to remain here. The kingrespecteth no religious foundation. And when these stunned knaves inthe fen make report to him, it will be known that thou wert seen closeto Peterborough, and not an inch of the town will be left unsearched. Iwould my friend at Newark--but nay, I must not speak of that."
There was a brief silence, and Humphrey's was the most anxious face inthe room. Not for himself did he feel anxiety, but for Hugo. If thecanon hardly knew what to do, how could he hope to succeed inprotecting the lad?
The canon was the first to speak. "If it can be done," he said, "theknaves in the fen must be kept from the king. I will have in to ourconference Herebald and Bernulf." And rising, he summoned them.
They came in very promptly, and stood with cheerful faces before theirmaster. "I know thee, Herebald; I know thee, Bernulf," said the canon,shaking his head at them in pretended reproof. "Ye be sad knaves both.What! would ye leave the monastery and go forth into the fen on poniesand armed with your staves? And would ye seek out once more the knavesye did stun, and try to lead them astray, even down into the Broads?And all to keep them from the king?"
The two servants grinned.
"And would ye make believe to be on the trail of Hugo and Humphreyhere? And would ye lead them far from the trail? I see that ye would,knaves that ye are. I have discovered ye. And there is no restrainingye when once ye have set your minds upon a thing. Therefore get ye goneto the fen. No man can say that I did send ye thither. And here becoins for ye both, which, no doubt, ye will deserve later, if not now."
The two joyfully withdrew and shortly afterward were in the streets ofthe town jogging slowly along as if bent on a most unwelcome journey."See the Saxon sluggards!" commented a bystander. "Naught do they dobut eat, unless compelled."
But once outside the town, the ponies were put to a good pace as thetwo hastened eagerly into the fen to trace, if they might, Richard Woodand his men-at-arms. The camp where they had come up with them beforewas deserted, and Herebald and Bernulf now had for their task thediscovery of the direction the party had taken. Had they not beenfen-men they might not have succeeded. But by night they felt that theywere really on their trail. They had passed Peterborough and continuedon to the south, evidently going slowly, as became broken heads; andHerebald and Bernulf came up with them by the side of Whittlesea Mereearly on the following day. As they came into view Richard Woodevidently regarded the two Saxons with suspicion; but the men-at-armslooked at them with nothing but indifference.
Herebald and Bernulf appeared not to notice; but, withdrawing to alittle distance, seemed to confer together and examine narrowly theleaves and twigs and rushes to see if they were bent or broken by thepassage of a recent traveller. As they went earnestly about on allsides of the camp at the Mere, and keeping ever in sight of it, thecuriosity of Richard Wood overcame his suspicion, and he beckoned themto approach. His summons they at first seemed inclined to disregard,but, as he continued beckoning, they at last went toward him withapparent reluctance.
Richard Wood Beckoned the Saxons to Approach]
"What seek ye?" demanded Richard Wood.
The two Saxons kept silence, but exchanged a crafty look, as if to saythat they were not to be caught so easily.
"What seek ye?" repeated the spy.
"Hast thou seen aught of two runaways?" asked Herebald, gruffly. "Evena young lord who hath to his serving-man a Saxon?"
Then Richard Wood himself looked crafty. He did not like finding otherpursuers so near him who might claim part of the reward, at least, whenthe search was successfully ended. But reflection came to his aid andtold him that these Saxons were ignorant hinds who might be made usefulon the search, and afterward cheated of their share of the reward. Sohe said, "Ye be fen-men, I know, or ye would not look so narrowly for atrail nor would ye find it. Which way do ye go?" And he looked at themkeenly.
"Through the Broads toward Yarmouth," answered Herebald, slowly, aftera short pause, and speaking in a surly tone.
"And wherefore?" demanded Richard Wood.
"There is shipping to be got to France from thence, is there not?"
"Yea, verily," cried Richard Wood. "It had not before entered my mind.Thinkest thou they have gone thither?"
Herebald frowned. "Thou art too ready with thy questions," he growled."But this I will say, we go thither."
"Then we go with thee," said Richard Wood, firmly. "The way is open tous as well as to thee, and thou mayest not gainsay it."
"Oh, ay," returned Herebald, indifferently.
All that day Richard Wood kept a sharp eye on his new acquaintances."Watch them narrowly," he said to his men. "They will seek to make thiscatch without us and so obtain the reward. Therefore all that ye seethem do, do ye likewise, and I will also do the same."
Herebald and Bernulf saw and understood, and laughed together unseen."They have not good wit, or they would not be so led by us when we bestrangers," observed Herebald.
"It is ever thus with knaves," said Bernulf. "Though they seem sharp,there is a place where they be dull, and an honest man can often findit, and so outwit them."
Then they turned back to Richard Wood and his companions. "Go ye slowlyand softly," growled Herebald. "Ye go lunging and splashing so that yemay be heard a long way off. Moreover, ye have scared up all thewater-fowl hereabouts, and they go screaming over our heads. What thinkye? If there be travellers near will they not hide close in the reedstill ye and your noise be past?"
At this rebuke Richard Wood drew rein suddenly and gazed sharply abouthim on all sides. Then he said, "Your caution shall be obeyed." And hegave the command to his followers to be careful.
Herebald now returned to the side of Bernulf, and the two, gazing withmirthful eyes into each other's faces, separated themselves a littledistance and pretended to examine the way narrowly. It was not fornothing that they had served the merry Canon Thurstan for seven years.
That night, when all the camp was still, Bernulf slipped quietly forthin the darkness. He was gone three hours, and in that time he blazedsuch a trail as a madman might have taken. A bit of every fringe ofrush or reed he came to he broke; and he stamped with his foot in theslimy mud on the edges of ponds and pools. "These fools," said he,"kno
w naught of the fens or the Broads, and they will believe all thatthey see; for the broken bits and the footprints will speak to them ofthe young lord and his serving-man, and they will listen and hasten on.It is easy to lead a fool a chase."
The next morning Richard Wood was early awake, and, while all the restwere apparently asleep, he, in his turn, stole forth to look about him."I trust not these knave Saxons entirely," he said to himself. "Thoughwe all ride together now, they will seek to outwit us at the end, andgain the reward for themselves."
He had not gone far when he came upon the evidences of a recent passagealong that way, and, in great excitement, he returned to the camp androused up his followers, and, incidentally, the two Saxons. "Lie nothere sleeping," he said, "when we be close on the trail. Let us be offspeedily!" His men rose eagerly, and the Saxons also seemed to bestirred up at his words. And very soon, after half a breakfast, theyall mounted and rode off, Richard Wood keeping in the advance. Soon hestruck the trail blazed the night before by Bernulf, and eagerly hefollowed it, though he was obliged to do so slowly; for the trail wenton ahead for three miles, then doubled, then zigzagged, then wentstraight east three miles, and bent round till it went due west again.
"The young lord is lost," declared Richard Wood, positively, "elsewould he never ride such a crazy track as this."
At last, when it was too late to travel further that day, the trackturned eastward again, and the party went into camp for the night aboutone mile from where they had camped the night before. But to RichardWood it seemed that they must be at least ten miles advanced on theirway, for, to him, all the marsh looked the same.
"Did I not do well, Herebald?" asked Bernulf. "Here have we kept thembusy in the marsh for a whole day, and that giveth the lad with thecanon so much the better a start."
"Yea," said Herebald. "To-night rest thou, and I will start the trailfor them to-morrow."
Accordingly, as soon as the weary Richard Wood and his men had sunkinto a heavy sleep, which they did almost as soon as they lay down,Herebald set out. He was extremely swift of foot and knew the regionwell. He was gone four hours. "The knave king's man and his followerswill sleep soundly to-morrow night also if they follow my trail," hesaid, when he had returned and lay down.
The next morning a late awakening of the men gave a late start. Theenthusiasm of the day before was gone; but it came back when RichardWood, riding in advance, struck the trail once more. This was moredifficult to follow than the one of the day before. It led throughplaces where the party almost mired, but not quite; through placeswhere the horses splashed heavily along, scaring the water-fowl up inall directions; through patches of reeds; through tangles of toughgrass; through shallow water; through deep water; and ever on with fewseeming deviations. But the course was much slower than that of the daybefore, and that had been slow enough.
Night came and the fagged party in disappointment once more lay down.
"Thou hast done well, Herebald," said Bernulf. "To-night it is my turn.But think ye not it were better now to lead straight on to Yarmouth?"
"Yea," answered Herebald.
"It seemeth to me that it were best to put them there to search thetown. What thinkest thou?"
"Even as thou thinkest," returned Herebald, grinning.
"And then," continued Bernulf, "methinks it would be seemly to enticethem aboard a fishing-vessel and ship them off for France, and so berid of them."
"Yea," agreed Herebald. "I would all the knaves in England were shippedoff to France, and it were a good beginning to ship these four."
Another morning dawned, and slowly and heavily the men arose. Suchweary days followed by nights spent in the marsh had sapped theirenergy. For the first time the men-at-arms looked sullen, and one wentto Richard Wood and spoke for all. "We be neither fish nor water-fowl,"he said, "to spend our days in the marsh. We go this one day more withthee; then, if we come not out of the marsh and into the town ofYarmouth, we leave thee and return to our master."
The heavy-eyed Richard Wood counselled patience. "Would ye have theseSaxon knaves get the better of us just when the quarry is all but runto earth? They be not so weary as we, and a plague upon theirendurance. If ye stand not by me, the game is lost."
But the man-at-arms answered sullenly: "I have said. Lead us out ofthis vile marsh."
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