"Kay," said Much. "It seems to me you were lucky enough to get off with just a knife in the leg. I just don't give a rat's tail about some girl. You're the one I care about."
Much's words settled me more, and I realized I'd been acting like an ass. "I know. Thank you, Much."
I considered how he and Will would have felt if the door had taken me in Cardiff. It had been close . . . too close. Dodging it was what had gotten me wounded.
Just then, we heard someone approaching without a torch. John cursed loudly when the new arrival tripped over him, sprawling on the grass between the benches.
"Who's that?" John asked, irritated.
"It's Andrew, sir. I'm sorry, sir." The page picked himself up. "I'm to see if you wanted any lights out here, or if you were coming in soon, sir."
"God's breath, boy. Why didn't you bring a torch?" John loomed over the boy now, a shadow rooted in the darkness.
The boy appeared not to mind, though having John standing over you was not an easy experience. "Didn't think of it, sir. I didn't want to disturb you."
"Well, you certainly didn't do that, Andrew," said Much, reaching out to ruffle the boy's hair.
Andrew giggled. "No, sir." He pulled at his clothes, trying to straighten them.
John grunted, swallowing his laughter. "Go in and tell Mother Irene we'll be in shortly and she's to ready a guest room. The good one." With a swat on the shoulder, he sent the rascally boy back toward the hall. "That boy's lucky he's a page here. I don't think he'd get away with as much anywhere else."
I was surprised to see John smiling as he took a seat on a bench.
"Come, Kay. Tell us about Caerleon," Much said eagerly.
I smiled, willingly changing to this memory from the other.
"Caerleon's is a ghost story," I said in a calculated whisper. "Listen while I tell you what I learned there." I paused, looking at each of my listeners—for effect, and for time to make up my story. I had the idea already, but I hadn't tried to organize it.
"If you come to see Caerleon, come in the night when the moon is out and shining brightly. Come with an open mind, so you can see what is before your eyes.
"At midnight, the towers shine golden in the moonlight. If you walk among them, you can hear the pennants snapping in the wind. And you'll find you're not alone. Caerleon is haunted by a host of gray souls crowding the streets. You can sense their waiting. Through the still air, you can hear the army approaching, the clatter of armor and jingle of harness. A cheer rises in the throats of the crowd. 'The king! Hail! The king is victorious! Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!' And you can see that wonderful man. He's shadowy gray, but brighter than the other wraiths. Then he turns—and looks at you. When the moon runs behind a cloud, the images vanish. The cheers become the moan of wood owls as they hunt for mice in deserted streets." I stopped, looking around at the others.
"Lovely, just lovely," said Much. "Where did you hear that story?"
"Nowhere," I answered. "I just now made it up."
"Ah, Kay, you're lying."
"Me? Lie?" I said innocently. "Occasionally, but not on this one, and never to my friends."
"She's good at that, you know." Will chuckled. "She has a tongue of silver in a tight spot. I think she could talk the moon out of the sky if given a chance."
"Aw, get off," I said indelicately. "You're a pretty liar."
"Well, then, you're simply pretty."
I snorted. "I've heard better than that."
"Enough," said John. "Save bedroom talk for the bedroom. As sweet as this night is, I think it's time we got off to sleep."
***
SUNLIGHT DAPPLED the forest floor as I rode out a couple days later.
I turned off the main road and onto an ill-used game trail leading to the river. The water looked inviting. I thought about taking a swim, then denied myself the pleasure.
I turned upstream and followed the river to a clearing, then turned Sassy out on a tether and walked into the forest. I followed the river just inside the trees, then went deeper into the wood.
Using all my skills at stealth, I went to Bran's camp and watched their activities for a while. They were all occupied with one thing or another—Eric with sleeping—but I noticed they were all alert to what was going on around them. I think they felt me watching, and they were nervous.
I timed my entry to a moment where it would look like I had appeared out of thin air.
Geoffrey was the first to spy me as I stood three steps into the clearing, waiting to be discovered. "Kay!" he called. "What news?"
I smiled at his easy composure. "I just came to tell you I'm back, to say hello and see how you're doing." I crossed the clearing and sat down next to Peter. "I see you've been keeping busy."
"Aye," said John lightly. "Working at being good little outlaws."
"Practicing every day," agreed Bran with more gravity.
"Have you gotten any better?" I asked, looking at Eric, who still slept against a tree.
"Better," said Milo modestly. The dagger he'd held became a blur as he threw it toward me. I started to duck away, but it flew past me to stick into a tree, inches away from Eric's head.
Eric woke with a start and looked at the knife. "Milo," he growled.
"Milo," echoed Bran. "I've told you not to practice on people."
"How am I supposed to get better?" he asked, a lopsided grin on his face as he went to retrieve his knife.
"Kay!" said Eric, seeing me. "When did you get here?"
"Ha!" laughed Peter. "She's been here for a while, man. You sleep too much, you'll miss things."
"Hell," said Geoffrey. "She was standing here long enough before any of us noticed her. We all sleep too much."
"You're learning," I said. "That's all that matters. Hey!" I took my bow from my back and jumped to my feet. "Let's see what you can do with your bows." I chose a target and sent two of my arrows into it before anyone could say yea or nay. "Come on, ladies. Show me your skill!"
I stayed with them late into the afternoon, coaching and watching my team working out. I almost stayed longer, but I caught a glance at the sun.
"Will's going to have my hide!" I said, dropping the arrow I'd been holding. I jumped to my feet and raced out of the clearing, gone seconds before any at our archery match knew it.
On my way back to the lodge, I reflected on how much happier I was during the time I spent in the forest. Most of my time at the lodge was onerous, educational, or tolerable at best, but not enjoyable.
I wasn't any good at giving orders or organizing. The servants liked me, so they did as I asked, but things often went smoother when I let them take care of everything. I felt much more useful out here in the forest.
It was even worth the cross look Will gave me when I came in during supper. I settled into my chair beside him, still in my breeches and tunic, and kissed the frown on his brow. My good mood obviously infected him because he couldn't maintain his frown for long in the face of my good humor. I knew I ought to tell him about my outlaws, but it just hadn't felt right yet. Every time I had even a remote possibility, something came up to let me put it off.
