That he should have had to send the boys was, in itself, a worrisome revelation, and it set me fretting. For years, all four boys had been inseparable. Where one was found, the others were close by, and that had always been a simple fact of life. Until today. What, in the name of the sweet Christus,
I wondered now, could Arthur be about? Where would he have gone, without his friends? And then my mind leaped to consider unpleasant possibilities. Had he been harmed? Was he perhaps in danger, lost or injured somewhere out in the rough country beyond the walls? A sudden vision of Rufio, lying bleeding after his encounter with the bear in the forest, chilled me to the bone. But even as these thoughts teemed in my head, I saw Arthur running towards me, rounding the corner from the central road that divided the fort. He was red faced and out of breath, and I merely stood and looked at him, disapprovingly, as he came to a halt before us, panting as though he had run for miles.
"I'm sorry, Cay," he gasped. "I would not have kept you waiting had I known. I came as soon as Bedwyr found me." I said nothing, and his face grew redder. "I was out on the hillside, beneath the walls. I had no thought you might have need of me."
"You had no thought at all, that's plain." I was aware how very unusual such behaviour was for him, and yet I could not let the occasion pass without a reprimand. "You know better, Arthur, than to disappear without informing someone of your whereabouts. Have you forgotten Rufio's misfortune so soon, and the upheaval it provoked?" He hung his head now, shamefaced and making no attempt to defend himself. "Have you nothing more to say, then?"
He sucked in a deep breath, then shook his head, his eyes still cast down. "No, nothing more, except to say I'm sorry."
There was little more for me to say. The lad had committed no crime. He had not even misbehaved, other than to slip away on his own. No point, then, in punishing him further, for I was under no illusions; his red face and his general air of guilt declared that he considered this questioning a form of punishment. I thanked Donuil, who had been standing beside me, and allowed him to leave before I led the boy into my quarters. He stood meekly in the middle of the floor until I waved him to a chair and seated myself across from him.
"I know I seldom send for you at this time of the day, so there's no reason why you should have kept yourself available to me, none at all. I was concerned when I discovered that you had gone off alone and could not be found immediately, that is all. If you think about it, you'll agree that that is most unusual, as well as simply dangerous and foolish, when the woods and hills about us are full of savage animals who see us as the interlopers on their mountains. What were you doing?" I waved him to silence as soon as I had asked the question, seeing the alarm that flared in his wide, gold flecked eyes. "You needn't answer that. It's really none of my concern, mere curiosity."
He answered anyway. "I was close by, Cay, close beneath the walls. I was merely... in an unusual place, that is all. Bed found me, by accident, on his way to rejoin Gwin and Ghilly. As soon as he told me you were looking for me, I ran all the way here. But I was never in any danger and never beyond shouting distance of the guards on the wall."
"Hmm," I grunted. "Well, that's some relief, at any rate. Now listen, I have decided that we'll leave in three days' time to return to Camulod. We'll travel by road, with the returning garrison, because Connor has other affairs to be about and he believes the sea route may be much too perilous to risk at this time, with Ironhair's armies invading Cambria by sea and therefore plying to and fro across our only path." I paused, to see that I had his full attention. His eyes were fixed on my lips, waiting for me to speak again. "So," I continued, "everything is ready now, at last, although I had begun to doubt it ever would be! I want you to ride to Ravenglass, to take that word from me to Derek. You will leave in the morning, as soon as you have broken your night fast. You may take the others with you if you wish, but there will be no time for play along the way. I need you to go there, as quickly as you may, to find Derek, and give him word from me in confidence, for his ears alone. Is that clear?"
"Aye. What must I tell him?"
"Straightforward tidings, for the most part. You will inform him that Connor and his party will leave here tomorrow, later in the day, to return to Ravenglass. We Ourselves will leave Mediobogdum to return to Camulod on the second day after that— What's wrong with you? Are you not well?"
His face suddenly looked ashen, but when I questioned him he sat up straight and shook his head, the muscles of his jaw outlined, so tightly were they clenched.
"No! I'm..." He blinked then, widening his eyes and fluttering his eyelids and shaking his head like someone waking from a dream. "I'll be fine, Cay." His voice, very slightly slurred, made him sound dazed. I stood up, alarmed, but he stopped me with an upraised hand, shaking his head. "It was... a sudden vertigo, that's all." He shuddered and then sat straight, evidently attempting to pull himself together. "Perhaps from running," he continued in a more normal tone.
I watched him silently for several moments more, then thought to offer him something to drink. He cut my offer short, however, albeit not rudely, and his voice sounded normal again. I was thankful to see, too, that the colour was beginning to return to his cheeks. "No, Cay. I thank you, but I'm well enough now. It was a momentary thing and now it's gone. You were telling me about the message to Derek. Please go on. Why must it be so secret? Nothing you have said indicates a need for that."
Reassured by the calmness of his tone; I nodded. "That's correct, on the surface, but I believe there is a need at least for circumspection. When I first spoke to Derek of our decision to leave here and return home, he spoke of coming with us and leaving his kingdom to his eldest son, Owen. He was adamant about it at the time, but he has not mentioned it since. I don't know whether he has changed his mind and decided to stay here in Ravenglass, or whether he is simply waiting for the word from me to join us. You will carry that word to him tomorrow, simple and unadorned, but you must deliver it to him alone, in private, for whether he still intends to come with us or not, he is king of Ravenglass. The announcement of his departure must be his to make. Similarly, if he has changed his mind, he might not wish it to be known, for reasons of policy, that he had considered leaving. Do you understand?" The boy nodded. "Good. How are you feeling now?"
He nodded again, frowning slightly. "I'm perfect. Nothing wrong with me at all. May I go now?"
"Aye, of course. You'll leave in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, and I'll expect you back before nightfall." He stood up and started to leave, but I stopped him as he reached the door. "Will you take Bedwyr and the others with you?"
"I don't know." He hesitated, his hand on the latch. "Could I remain in Ravenglass tomorrow night, and come home the following morning?"