“No, Sir Philip, for how often do you look up when walking along a corridor? It is dark and he would have been hidden.” My father pointed to the ground. There were tiny patches of water. “See where he sweated.” He looked at me, “But what I cannot understand, my son, is why you left your cell.”
“I needed to make water and the pot was not there.”
Padraig, who had wiped his sword on the assassin’s loincloth said, “Aye and I have been pissing all night!”
“As have I!”
“And me.”
“And there we have the answer to this puzzle. The assassin doctored the water and the wine. He would have used the root of the dandelion. It is known to make a man want to make water. It did not go against their code for it did not kill but it was clever. By removing the piss pot he could ensure that you would have to go to the garderobe to make water, and by hiding in the ceiling he would wait for you to pass him before attacking. He was a patient man who could hide where none would look.” He pointed to the two French sentries, “And you two are lucky. You would have been slain when he left. This is an assassin!”
They both made the sign of the cross. My father and I slept no more that night. Our next sleep would be on the ‘Petrel’ as she flew across the Blue Sea, our Crusade was over.
Epilogue
It took two months to reach our home. We parted with Jean and Sir Philip just off the mouth of the Seine. Geoffrey had looked a little sad as his homeland receded into the distance. He was making a new start in a new home but he and Mark had formed a close friendship and the latter had told him of England’s delights. Our destination was not York. We would sail to Stockton directly. The letters we carried for the King would be sent south by messenger.
On the voyage, one of the main topics of conversation was the attempt on my life. They could not criticise us openly but I knew that our men, archers, squires and pages were less than happy that we had not told them of the threat. My father remained calm and explained it to them. “Had we told you then each noise in the night would have resulted in confusion for all of you would have thought the assassin had struck. Others might have been hurt and the killer would have had more chance of success. My son slept in mail and coif. An assassin normally goes for the throat. As it turned out the killer was so good, he almost succeeded. Had William called out as soon as the attack began then he might not have a scar to show his wife and son but perhaps that will remind him of the day he regained his life.” He touched the hidden scar beneath his hair, “I know mine does.”
We reached Stockton on the afternoon tide. There were no tides to speak of in the Mediterranean and there was something reassuring about obeying the moon and the river. As usual, our slow progress up our meandering river alerted our people. They would know nothing of the crusade nor our losses. For them, this was a joyous day when their menfolk returned. As we rounded the last bend my father said, “I can speak with Matthew’s parents if you wish.”
I shook my head, “He was my squire and I was there, at the end. It is my task, however onerous.”
“Aye, and now your lessons to be lord of Stockton begin.”
At the quay were my family and my father’s. The families of the others would await in the town. It was our way. My wife did not hold my son in her arms. He stood by her side, he had changed from a babe to a child. As the ship neared, I saw her pointing at the ship. I waved and he returned a shy little wave. I said to my father, “Can he have grown so much?”
“It is almost two years since we left. I am guessing that he can speak too.”
I could not wait for the gangplank to be lowered but I knew I would have to allow my father to leave first. He stepped off as quickly as he could and my mother ran to him. Theirs would be a tense reunion for he had to tell her of his wound. I followed as quickly as I could. My son, Richard, hid shyly behind my wife’s leg. I kissed my wife and then knelt next to the son I barely knew.
My wife said, “This is your father, Richard, give him a hug.”
He stepped from behind my wife’s leg and held out his arms. I picked him up and when he hugged me tightly around the neck, I thought my heart would burst. In that instant, I knew that I had the hardest task of all to come. I had to tell a father that his child was dead and a sister that she now had just one brother.
I said, “I am home now, my son, and pray God I do not leave again.”
We walked into the castle with the garrison and my servants cheering but my smile was a thin one. We followed my father into the inner bailey and then I handed Richard to my wife. “There is something I must do which will not wait.” I turned, “Mark!”
Mark had the parcel he had carried from the ship and I walked across to the tanner and his daughter. They were smiling for they could see Mark but then when Mark’s father saw my face, he put his arm around his daughter; she was with child. She stared beyond me looking for Matthew. I approached them and she looked into my eyes. I just said, “I am sorry, gammer…”
That was as far as I got for she dropped to her knees and screamed, “Nooooooo!” It echoed around the inner bailey. Every cheer stopped as all eyes turned to the distraught woman and her father.
Mark stepped up to her and lifted her to her feet, “Our brother died a hero and men speak of him with the same respect as is accorded Sir Thomas. I will try to be twice the son and brother I was for I have to live for two.” His sister threw her arms around him and they both wept.
His father said, “Thank you, Sir William, for bringing one of my sons home.”
He meant no offence but his words cut like a knife to my heart. We had been on a crusade and our place in heaven was assured but for this family, there would be a permanent hole in their lives that nothing would ever fill.
The End
Glossary
a-vikingr- to go raiding
Amir- the leader of an askari column
Askari- a Turkish/Egyptian warrior mailed and armed like a knight or man at arms
Buskins-boots
Chevauchée- a raid by mounted men
Courts baron-a court which dealt with the tenants' rights and duties, changes of occupancy, and disputes between tenants.
Crowd- crwth or rote. A Celtic musical instrument similar to a lyre
Emir- a Muslim leader of some importance
Fusil - A lozenge shape on a shield
Garth- a garth was a church-owned farm. Not to be confused with the name Garth
Groat- An English coin worth four silver pennies
Hospital- more of a hotel than a place for the sick although the sick were cared for
Hovel- a makeshift shelter used by warriors on a campaign- similar to a ‘bivvy’ tent
Marlyon- Merlin (hunting bird)
Mêlée- a medieval fight between knights
Pursuivant – the rank below a herald
Reeve- An official who ran a manor for a lord
Rote- An English version of a lyre (also called a crowd or crwth)
sal ammoniac- smelling salts
Vair- a heraldic term
Wessington- Washington (Durham)
Wulfestun- Wolviston (Durham)
Historical Notes
Amazingly the events I made up were not as far fetched as the reality of this crusade. Duke Peter did raid a caravan which led to the Duke of Burgundy taking a quarter of King Thibaut’s army south where they were attacked close to Gaza. Although the King rescued some of them, most of the knights were captured. The fall of Jerusalem was equally bizarre. It had a tiny garrison and fell within a week! I made up the friendship between Sir Thomas and the Emir of Damascus but the Emir did give lands that were not his to the crusaders and the Kingdom of Jerusalem became as large as it had ever been! After the captives were ransomed the Duke and the King returned home and it was only after the King had departed that Richard of Cornwall and Simon de Montfort arrived. Amaury de Montfort lived just a year or so after his release and by 1240 all of the gains made in the crusade were lost. The royal fa
mily and Simon de Montfort never got on despite the fact that he was married to the King’s sister. If you are interested in the end to this story then read King in Waiting to be published by Endeavour Quill in late 2019.
I also discovered a good website http://orbis.stanford.edu/. This allows a reader to plot any two places in the Roman world and if you input the mode of transport you wish to use and the time of year it will calculate how long it would take you to travel the route. I have used it for all of my books up to the eighteenth century as the transportation system was roughly the same. The Romans would have been quicker!
Books used in the research:
The Crusades-David Nicholle
Norman Stone Castles- Gravett
English Castles 1200-1300 -Gravett
The Normans- David Nicolle
The Norman Conquest of the North- William A Kappelle
The Knight in History- Francis Gies
The Norman Achievement- Richard F Cassady
Knights- Constance Brittain Bouchard
Knight Templar 1120-1312 -Helen Nicholson
Feudal England: Historical Studies on the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries- J. H. Round
English Medieval Knight 1200-1300
The Scandinavian Baltic Crusades 1100-1500 Lindholm and Nicolle
Chronicles of the age of chivalry ed Hallam
Knight Hospitaller 1100-1306 Nicolle and Hook
Griff Hosker
August 2019
Other books
by
Griff Hosker
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The Sword of Cartimandua Series (Germania and Britannia 50 A.D. – 128 A.D.)
Ulpius Felix- Roman Warrior (prequel)
Book 1 The Sword of Cartimandua
Book 2 The Horse Warriors
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Book 4 Roman Retreat
Book 5 Revolt of the Red Witch
Book 6 Druid’s Gold
Book 7 Trajan’s Hunters
Book 8 The Last Frontier
Book 9 Hero of Rome
Book 10 Roman Hawk
Book 11 Roman Treachery
Book 12 Roman Wall
Book 13 Roman Courage
The Aelfraed Series
(Britain and Byzantium 1050 A.D. - 1085 A.D.)
Book 1 Housecarl
Book 2 Outlaw
Book 3 Varangian
The Wolf Warrior series
(Britain in the late 6th Century)
Book 1 Saxon Dawn
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Book 1 Viking Slave
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Book 5 Viking Wolf
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Book 15 Viking Witch
Book 16 Viking Blood
Book 17 Viking Weregeld
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Book 20 Viking Shadow
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The Norman Genesis Series
Hrolf the Viking
Horseman
The Battle for a Home
Revenge of the Franks
The Land of the Northmen
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Brothers in Blood
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The Anarchy Series England
1120-1180
English Knight
Knight of the Empress
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Baron of the North
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King Henry’s Champion
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Return of the Knight
Baron’s War
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Henry III
The Bloody Border
Baron’s Crusade
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Lord Edward’s Archer
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The Throne
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Book 1 Chasseur a Cheval
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Book 3 British Light Dragoon
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Waterloo
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Rebel Raiders
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From Arctic Snow to Desert Sand
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For more information on all of the books then please visit the author’s web site at www.griffhosker.com where there is a link to contact him.