"But there's no question that thy father will win!" Geoffrey cried. "They are only counts. A King with a royal army should have little trouble with them!"
"Aye," Alain agreed, "yet there's this upstart of a Shire-Reeve."
The children stared.
Then Magnus frowned. "Surely a Shire-Reeve cannot be greater trouble than a count!"
"This one may be," Alain said. "He hath gathered an army in but a few days' space."
Geoffrey glanced at Magnus. "This must have begun ere our parents were taken."
Alain stared. "I had heard thy parents were stolen, and it did grievously trouble Their Majesties—but how is't thou hadst already heard of the Shire-Reeve?"
"We did meet with a peasant wench who did taunt a plow-boy 'til he did march off to join the Shire-Reeve," Magnus explained.
"She did nearly bewitch Magnus and Geoffrey into a-joining with him, too," Gregory piped up.
Geoffrey flushed and turned to swat his little brat, but Cordelia blocked his swing. "Aye, they would most gleefully have marched away with her!"
"Praise Heaven they did not!" Alain went pale at the mere thought of the Shire-Reeve with the powers of Magnus and Geoffrey behind him.
"Nay, praise Puck—for he did break her spell," Cordelia informed him. "Be sure, she was a witch of a sort." She turned to her brothers. "Do not regard me so darkly—there's no shame in being enchanted!"
But Magnus said only, "There is," and turned back to Geoffrey. "I should not think a mob of plowboys would trouble thy father—they are raw, untrained in battle."
"They have already fought with three counts, and have won," Alain said grimly, "and many soldiers from those defeated bands were eager to join with the Shire-Reeve. Nay, he hath an army as large as Father's now, though not so well-trained or experienced
"And certes not so well led!" Geoffrey affirmed. It wasn't flattery—King Tuan was an excellent general.
"My thanks," Alain said with a bow, "and I own, I would not be concerned were it but a matter of the Shire-Reeve—but five counts have marched up behind Father's army."
Geoffrey stared; then he frowned. "'Tis odd that five should act together, when they have but lately been battling one another."
"It is, in truth," Alain concurred. "Yet I have heard Father say that many of the noblemen have taken seneschals, whom he did not like, and I think they may have counseled their counts."
The Gallowglass children exchanged glances. 'Tis those minions of SPITE that Father hath told us of, Magnus thought.
Aye, yet he did not know that they had come as seneschals, Geoffrey answered.
Mayhap he did, but did not tell us, Gregory added.
They shared a moment of indignation at the thought that their father might not keep them up-to-date on matters of state.
Then Geoffrey turned to Alain. "Still, though, these counts are little threat, unless by hap they all attack together, and that when thy father's engaged in battle with this Shire-Reeve."
"Even so," Alain said, "yet that is just what I fear."
Gregory nodded. "The King is, after all, the greatest stumbling-block in each one's path. An he were defeated, each could seek to enlarge his own demesne without let or hindrance."
"Save for their dukes," Alain said darkly, "and if Father were…" he swallowed. "… if Father were gone, the great lords most probably would whip their vassals right smartly into their places."
"Aye, then march 'gainst each other," Magnus said, frowning, "and make one great turmoil out of our fair land."
"And whiles they were battling one another, the Shire-Reeve would no doubt serve them as he would have served the King," Geoffrey added "battling one, while another doth attack from the rear—and, by the time the dukes did band against him, his army would have grown too great to defeat."
"The fools!" Magnus cried. "Do they not see that, if they aid him now, this Reeve will presently reave them, one by one?"
Alain stared. "Dost thou think he doth seek the throne?"
"I am certain of it."
"Yet how can he?" Alain protested. "He is of common birth, scarcely a gentleman!"
"He doth see no bar in that," Magnus said. "Nay, for such an one, that is all the more reason to seek to rule!"
Alain's eyes narrowed; his face darkened. "'Tis a vile churl, then, and doth deserve to be drawn and quartered!"
Magnus nodded. "Such an one could rend this land asunder—for even an he did win to the throne, ever would barons rise up against him; they could never respect his right, sin that he hath not royal blood!"
"Nor would any man honor him," said Cordelia, "for each commoner would think, 'He is lowborn, and hath won to the throne; wherefore should not I?' And one after another would rise up to challenge him."
"The country would ever be rent in warfare," Alain groaned. "Never would there be peace!"
"Yet that is just as this Shire-Reeve's masters do wish," little Gregory said.
Alain stared. "What! How is this? Doth this miscreant have a master?"
The Gallowglasses exchanged glances. "We cannot know that…" Magnus hedged.
"Yet thou dost suspect it! Nay, tell me! To withhold thy good conjecture would be treason!"
"Only an we guessed truly," Magnus sighed. "Yet we have cause to think this Shire-Reeve was set up by enemies of Papa, who do seek to plunge this whole land of Gramarye into chaos."
Alain frowned. "Father hath never spoken of such."
"Papa may not have spoken to him of it," Cordelia explained. "He is loathe to speak until he is certain."
I would not quite say that is accurate, Fess's voice said in the Gallowglasses' minds.
But Alain couldn't hear him, of course. He shook his head. "He should never withhold such suspicion—yet I can comprehend it; Father would tell Mother, and she is forever fretting about troubles that may come, but do not."
"Yet the trouble hath come indeed," Geoffrey said, "and we do know of our own that Papa hath enemies of another sort—ones who do wish to steal thy parents' thrones, and rule Gramarye more harshly than ever they have."
Alain stared. "Assuredly thy father must have spoken to Their Majesties of this—he must needs be certain of it!"
"Mayhap he hath," Magnus said quickly, "but thy father hath not yet seen fit to tell thee. We all are yet young."
"Mayhap," Alain agreed; but he glowered at the thought.
"Yet here's a quandary," Cordelia interjected. "Did we not,'t'other night, hear one of those men say that the Shire-Reeve was one of their vassals?"
The children stared at one another.
Then Gregory nodded. "Aye, they did say so."
"In point of fact," Fess reminded them, "they did not say it; Cordelia read it in their leader's mind. Her exact words were, I believe, 'Their thoughts leapt to the Shire-Reeve; he hath been their man for many years, and they have told him exactly what they wished him to do when the chance came.'"
The children didn't quibble; they knew Fess always remembered everything exactly as it happened—Papa had used him to give evidence in family quarrels often enough.
Alain frowned. "Yet how can that be? Didst thou not but now tell me the Shire-Reeve did have support from men who wished no rule at all?"
"We did," Magnus verified, "and so we did believe. How now, my sibs? How can the man fight for both sides?"
"Why, by fighting for neither!" Geoffrey cried in excite-ment. "He lets each believe he's their man—but in truth, he fights only for himself!"
"Aye!" Alain caught his enthusiasm. "He doth play a dou-ble game, doth play them off 'gainst one another!"