Poisonous Plots

by Griff Hosker

  “Yes, lord. We saw him too.”

  I was satisfied that the men we sought were in the Coquet valley or close enough to it. An enemy could easily cross the col into the valley and be at Warkworth, Alnwick, Bamburgh or even Morthpath. “Tell me, why were you delayed?”

  Masood said, “That was me, lord. We crossed the river and went into Scotland.”

  I said nothing. I had not forbidden them from crossing the border but I wondered why they had done so. I looked at them. Masood’s face was impassive.

  Edward looked uncomfortable, “Lord, it was Sir James. When he was last here he told Masood about the two girls who were taken and he asked him to find them. Masood likes Sir James.”

  “And you found them?”

  “Aye lord, we found them at the Scottish camp. It is close to Jedburgh. There are many knights there and hundreds of their warriors.”

  I looked at William, “Jedburgh? Then the King’s condition must have worsened.”

  He nodded his agreement. The fact that William had moved south would affect our plans. “We may not have as much time as we thought.”

  “What are the roads like, Edward?”

  “They are not yet good for travelling. We found it easier to use the old greenways.”

  I nodded, “I thank you but next time you are sent to do something then do as you are ordered. I like not this wandering off to do errands for others.”

  Masood looked at Sir William, “You would have done the same, lord. I do as my lord commands, Earl. I swore an oath to Sir William.”

  It was almost a challenge but he was right. I had learned a lesson. I would use Aiden, Edgar and Edward from now on when I needed something scouting for me.

  A rider brought us news from the Sheriff of Northumbria that the King had died. He had hung on for longer than any could have expected. Apparently, he had died before Christmas but William had not allowed the news to be spread. He had headed north to subdue those who would oppose him before they knew that the King was dead. When he returned he would be crowned. The coronation would take place far to the north of Otterburn. I estimated that we had a month or two before William would or could bring his army south.

  With messages sent to my lords informing them of my plans we set off at the end of March. Sir Morgan and his squire begged to accompany us. My son persuaded me to take him. The snow had gone. That did not mean it would not return, it might, but the weather was becoming better. was the time we had to spring a surprise and take the men who had occupied Otterburn. If King William was relying on his Norman allies then he was in for a surprise. The snow had gone. That did not mean it would not return, it might, but the weather was becoming better. The days were lengthening and green was springing all around us as we headed north towards Hexham.

  As we had four real scouts ahead of us we would not be surprised. More importantly Edward and Masood had already scouted out the tower at Otterburn. We did not stay at Matefen but, instead, chose the abbey at Hexham. The abbot was a friend and they had healed my warriors. We felt safe there. However, eight of my archers spent the night in the forest north of us to spy out any enemy scouts who might be there. When we left the next day I realised just how important the spy had been to the enemy’s plans. Had the spy remained undetected then I am sure we would have been facing an ambush. As it was, we headed north with our Norman foes blissfully unaware that we were about to descend upon them.

  We took a chance and headed up the old Roman Road. It was now easier to travel for the ice had gone with archers ahead of us and my four scouts spread out in the land to the side of the road I felt confident that we would escape observation. We had twenty-five miles to go. William and I had planned on camping close to their camp and making a night time assault.

  Edward had told me of a piece of rough and wild ground just two miles from the tower. It lay to the west of the road and trees and scrubland hid it from view. We made it safely and I sent Aiden and Edward to scout out the tower and the ramparts. We did not know if the Normans had left to join the main army or, perhaps, improved the defences.

  I decided to act straight away while we were still an unknown factor. We did not light a fire. We might be hidden but a tendril of smoke would alert our enemies. The men ate cold rations and we all rested. Five of our archers would guard the horses. We would leave the horses just a mile from the tower. The five archers would also be a reserve. If we sounded the horn then they would come to add their five bows to the others. We had seventy archers. Although the Normans and the templars outnumbered my knights and men at arms, the archers we had brought would, I hoped, swing the outcome in our favour.

  When my scouts returned it was with the good news that they were still camped at the tower and they had not improved their defences. We gathered our captains and lieutenants around us. “Aelric, you will take half of the archers and get around the far side of the tower. Ralph of Wales will lead the rest. Your task, Aelric, will be to wait until we attack and then stop the enemy from fleeing. If you can then bring your archers to support us.”

  “Lord, as soon as we hear your attack we will come to your aid. We can stop men fleeing while bringing our bows to bear. It is what Captain Dick would have advised.”

  “You are right. The rest of us will advance on foot. Our scouts will creep close and slit the throats of the enemy sentries. The knights and the men at arms will advance before the archers. It is night and I know that the archers will be at a disadvantage but the enemy will not know our numbers. They will be abed. Most of the men will not have mail. I want the squires to join the scouts and capture their horses. If they have no horses then they cannot flee.”

  Aelric led his men out not long after the sun had set. I did not wear my helmet and I left my cloak with my horse. The wind was from the east and that was a mercy for it carried their smell to us. It carried the noise of their horses and not ours. The scouts had long disappeared. I waved the three squires forward. William’s face was impassive but I knew that inside he would be worrying about Samuel. I was satisfied that Padraig would guard him and my four scouts were more than enough to deal with any sentry.

  The ground rose steadily but had few obstructions. I relied on my scouts. If there was a sentry left alive then it would go ill with us. I smelled the blood from the first dead sentry. He lay with his life blood seeping from his severed throat. Ahead of us the ground rose to the first rampart. They had not had time to build gates and so at the top of each rampart were embedded stakes. The ditches were just indentations in the ground. They might have slowed down horses but we just walked down one side and up the other. I could hear noises. Not all of those in the camp were in bed. Men were talking and laughing. There were some arguments. Then I heard a Norman voice bellow, “Keep your voices down!”

  Abuse was hurled at the speaker. It confirmed that they had no idea that we were close. When we reached the palisade, they had erected I peered over it to view their camp. There were two sentries at the door of their tower. That would be where the Templars and de Vernon were. Their men would be in the huts I could see. I could not see their horses and that meant my scouts and our squires had a chance to drive off their horse herd. The Normans and their Templar allies had two large fires burning. There were just a couple of men around each one but that was enough. As soon as we descended the rampart we would be seen. I nodded to Ralph of Wales. He waved to his men and they each nocked an arrow.

  I raised my sword and led my men at arms and knights through the stakes to the interior of the hill fort. The arrows soared above us and hit the men around the fires. My archers were accurate but, even so, it was dark and not every arrow resulted in a clean kill. As we reached the bottom of the slight slope I heard a cry and then another. A voice shouted, “Alarm!” We were discovered!

  My archers reacted quicker than those around the fires. As we raced down the slope towards the tower and the hut arrows felled the men who were illuminated by the fires. Sir Morgan was quicker than the rest of us and I saw him re
ach one of the huts first. He swung his sword so hard at the half naked Norman who stepped into the doorway that he almost cut him in two. John of Chester and Roger of Bath grabbed brands from the fire and they hurled them into the hut where Sir Morgan had slain the Norman. It would soon burn.

  I ran with William towards the tower. The two guards were dead. Ralph of Wales had brought five archers with us and as faces appeared at the top of the tower he and his archers sent arrows towards them. I am not sure if they hit anyone but they kept the heads down. William reached the door to the tower first and he hurled it open. Behind us there was a battle as the Normans and Templar sergeants fought a deadly battle in the dark. My archers used the fires to help their aim. The disparity in numbers soon swung in our favour.

  The tower was the simplest of defensive structures. The door led to a guard room and a stair. The two guards lay dead and that meant we were able to enter. Burning brands illuminated the room. There was a table and two half barrels used as chairs. I waited for my son and his former squire to join me. I could hear voices up the stairs. Alf, now Sir Morgan, made to head up the stair. I shook my head and restrained him. “They can go nowhere and these towers were built to make men bleed as they ascended the stair. Push over the table to make a barrier. We trust our men outside and wait for those within to descend.”

  “And if not, Earl? What then?”

  “Then we burn down the tower. There is no honour in slaying these treacherous dogs. Prepare.”

  We pushed over the table and the two half barrels so that they would have to clamber over them. Then we waited. It did not take long for the first knight to appear. It was a Norman. He shouted over his shoulder, “There are but three of them, lord!”

  A voice from above shouted, “Then rid me of them and we can return to King William.” The voice had to belong to Sir Richard de Vernon. He was slippery.

  The stairs were simple wooden ones and would only accommodate one man for they were narrow. Three other Normans descended and then the two Templars. I guessed that these were the only knights, save Sir Richard who remained. Even so we were outnumbered two to one. Outside the sounds of battle were fading. I could only imagine what was taking place. It was dark and the enemy would realise that they were losing. Without their knights they would try to flee and that would mean heading for their horses. The animals were held at the far end of the settlement and my men would pursue them. It would be a savage encounter for my men had Dick and the others to avenge. That meant there would be no help coming. The three of us would have to fight off the attack of six knights.

  “Back towards the door.”

  By moving towards the door William and Alf would be protected by the curved wall of the tower. The knights would outnumber us but only three would be able to fight us at a time. It was William’s former squire who worried me. He was a powerful knight but he had little experience in battle. It would be his father’s blood and heritage which would see him through.

  The Normans came down the stairs. I saw that there was an older one wearing the livery of de Vernon. I guessed he was the younger brother I had heard of. The three others wore the livery of household knights. Like us none wore helmets. The two Templars, as I had expected, hung back. When we were weakened they would strike and then be gone. The older knight came towards me. He had the table to negotiate. It was just before us. He could have tried to step upon it and use the height to strike down at me but he did not. He tried to clamber over it and he made the mistake of glancing down as he did so. I took my chance. I lunged forward with my sword. My blade was so quick that he had no time to react. He must have caught a blur of steel in his eye. My sword tore into his left chest just below his shoulder. I twisted as I pulled it out. Blood sprayed.

  One of the younger knights pulled him back, saying, “I will deal with this old man, uncle!”

  He did not bother looking down. He stepped up on to the table and launched himself at me. I had no room behind me and so I braced my shield and held my sword before me. He swung his sword as he descended. Had he struck me then I would be a dead man but he forgot the wall behind me. His sword scraped and scratched down the stone wall. With my shoulder behind the shield and braced by the wall when his sword hit mine the young knight bounced backwards towards the table. William and Alf were fighting furiously. The confined space meant there was little room for swashing blows. I watched as Alf punched his pommel into the face of the knight he was fighting. Alf might not yet be a good swordsman but he knew how to fight and brawl. In the confined space of the tower that was as important as sword skills.

  As the young knight I was fighting reeled I lunged. I could not sweep for my son was on my right-hand side. My sword tore through the chausses of the knight and into the thigh muscle of his left leg. My sword came away bloody. I had not struck anything vital but it would hurt and it would slow him down. He leapt to his feet. As he did so more links fell from his chausses. In addition, he was angry and it is never a good thing to fight angry! He rushed at me like a wild bear. He could not swing effectively and so he attempted a lunge such as I had employed. The difference was that I was not off balance and my shield turned the sword to rasp along the mail of his comrade who was trying to fend off Alf. My sword was pinned to my body by his shield. The fourth Norman saw his chance and he lunged at my head. I would have been a dead man had a spear not appeared between Alf and me. It was rammed into the triumphant face of the fourth Norman. I glanced around and saw Samuel holding the weapon.

  Samuel twisted the spear and blood spurted. The knight I was fighting was distracted. I punched him hard with my shield. The body of his dead comrade came to my aid and he fell over it as de Vernon’s brother shouted, “You Templars, come and help my nephew!” He took a step forward. The left side of his surcoat was now red with the blood from his wound. He had courage and that was more than could be said for the Templars who stayed on the stair watching for their opportunity to flee.

  Alf took his chance and punched his opponent. This time he, too, used his shield. As the young Norman fell Alf’s sword was brought from on high and he split the head of the prone Norman. The older de Vernon rushed at Alf. The knight I was fighting was also lying on the ground and he swung his sword at my leg. I jumped in the air. When I landed, it was on his knee. I heard a loud crack and he screamed in pain. I stabbed down and skewered him. Samuel had pulled back his spear and lunged at the knight fighting his father. It distracted him long enough for my son to sink his sword into the knight’s foot. As he reeled back William’s sword darted forward and into the midriff of the knight. William leaned into the body and the blade cut through the mail and into the knight’s stomach. When blood erupted from his mouth then we knew he was dead.

  Alf made short work of the older de Vernon. Weakened by my thrust to his shoulder he was no match for the newly knighted Sir Morgan. He lay amongst his kin bleeding to death but he had time for one last curse. It was not directed at us but at the Templars, “You faithless and cowardly knights! May you rot in hell!” Then he died.

  The two Templars raced back up the stairs. There was no door at the top of the stairs but the narrow entrance meant only one man at a time could progress. They meant to take us one by one. I did not know what plan they had to evade the rest of my men. There might be more doors higher up the tower. They could go nowhere. If my grandson was able to help us then it told me that the battle outside was over. The last remnants were being hunted. Alf was ready to race up. I held up my hand, “Hold. They can go nowhere and there is little that they can do.” Turning to Samuel I said, “Thank you, grandson, you saved me and your father. That was nobly done. How goes it outside?”

  “We have won. We have their horses. Our archers and men at arms are hunting the ones who fled.”

  “Fetch all of the horses and the other archers. We have time to plan the demise of these last knights.”

  “Aye, Earl Marshal.” He ran off.

  William had been around the five dead Normans to make certain
that they were dead. “How do we winkle them out?”

  “Perhaps we do not. When our squires return I will have them fetch faggots. We can set fire to this chamber. If we can capture them then we might learn much.”

  He shook his head, “These are Templars. They are not like John the Carter. They can endure pain and they will tell us nothing.”

  “Perhaps but I would not risk any more of our men and squires for they are not worth it.”

  I stepped outside and saw Arne Arneson and Peter Strong Arm. “You two, come and clear away these bodies. Take their mail and give it to any who need it. Search their bodies and then place the corpses close to the base of the tower.”

  “Aye lord. James of Thirsk is dead and Walther of Richmond has a bad wound.”

  I nodded. They were sad losses but it could have been much worse. Dawn was breaking. The hut we had fired was still burning and the air was filled with the smell of burning flesh. The fire had saved lives for it had swung the balance in our favour but that was no way for a warrior to die. I turned as I heard the sound of hooves. The squires drove in the enemy horse herd as my five archers brought our horses.

  My two men at arms had recovered the bodies and were taking the mail from them. When the sound of the hooves dies down and a sort of silence fell over the settlement I shouted, “Sir Richard de Vernon your men are dead and you are defeated. Surrender!”

  His head appeared from the parapet. He was flanked by the two Templars. “Why should I? We have food and we have drink. King William will soon bring his army. We shall be rescued and you and your rag tag band of cut throats will be slaughtered.”

  That told me that there had to be a door which had been barred. I said nothing. Samuel and the other two squires brought kindling from the nearest hut. They took it inside. Padraig shouted, “Do we place it beneath the stairs, Earl?”

  I shouted, louder than was necessary, “Aye put the kindling under the stairs for the fire will be sucked up the stairs and into the upper floors of the tower.”