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Richard, who has no say in the matter, and myself. But you are right. I myself had forgotten that there must be a good sprinkling of Strongbow's bastards' children holding manors around Clifford." |
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Walter's voice was easy, but he was annoyed with himself. Why should his first thought on being pursued be that Sir Heribert had tried to ambush him? Then he put the matter out of his mind. He would talk out the problem of Sir Heribert with Richard. It could not be long now until the attack was made on Shrewsbury. At that time he would gain a clearer picture of Sir Heribert's loyalties. |
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When they finished eating, they rode south again. The track was rough, but compared with the difficulties of the previous day, it was easy. The only complaints were Sybelle's, as she scratched flea bites and wondered if the relative warmth of the woodcutter's hut was worth the trouble she would have in ridding herself and her clothes of the creeping, biting pests they had collected. The woodcutters had moved out of the hut, but they had left behind many, many small inhabitants it was impossible to evict. However, she was only teasing, offering Walter laughing sympathy because, similarly afflicted, he was unable even to scratch because of his armor. |
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The light mood lasted until they came to the meeting with the main road at Llanvihangel. The village was in an uproar. First they had the news that the Earl of Pembroke's army and siege equipment had passed through two days before. Sybelle feared that Walter might order her to go on to Abergavenny with the men and pursue Richard's army north alone, but he did not ask which way they had gone. His only questions were about Henry's men. Had there been patrols, and were they likely to meet any such patrols on the road? Then they discovered that the frantic activity they had noticed was not owing to Richard's passing. |
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The villagers had scarcely replaced the few valuables they had and called their young women out of hiding after Richard's men were gone than they had word that an army was on its way from Grosmont. They were now preparing to abandon their village entirely, since they feared a battle would be fought right over it if Pembroke's men returned. Even if there were no battle, the villagers knew they would be safer in the woods. Then the worst that could happen, provided they could get most of their supplies out, was that their houses |
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