A Hero's Heart (Noble Heart Book 7) Page 9

  Hero still hung from the man’s calf. His teeth were locked deeply in the flesh, and try as he might to shake the small dog off, the outlaw could not rid himself of the little terror. The leg was not nearly as tasty as Cook’s ham had been, but Hero pinned his ears back, and snarling and growling, hung on with every bit of determination he had in him. Even when the man swung his sword at him, Hero scrambled, pushing himself away from the sharp blade, but never loosening his grip on the leg at all. A bright red gash appeared in the calf where the thug had slashed himself instead of the dog.

  It was the last straw. The knave dropped his sword and pleaded for mercy. “Get him off me! Get him off me!” he screamed in pain and fear. With the king holding his own sword at the villain’s chest, Noble bent and tried to loosen Hero from his prize. It was nearly as difficult as it had been with the ham but finally the little dog spat out the hairy calf and with one final snap at the man allowed himself to be pulled away.

  All over the cavern the same scene was being repeated—minus Hero’s intervention, of course. The highwaymen had had enough and were throwing down their weapons and surrendering. Several of them lay on the ground, moaning and cursing. A few cried and begged for mercy. They had been no match for the King’s Guard.

  Noble and the other knights began rounding them up and gathering their weapons. They tied the hands of those who were not wounded behind their backs, and began to tend to the injuries of the others. The knights themselves were virtually unscathed. The highwaymen had been able to attack and terrorize the weak and lonely, but like most bullies, their only real strength lay in numbers and what little skill they had was in ambush.

  “Are you alright?” the king was finally able to ask William and Juliet as all around them the knights tended to the business of securing their prisoners.

  “We’re just fine, Father!” William exclaimed cheerfully. “Aren’t we, Juliet? That was quite an adventure, I must say! I told you Father and Sir Noble would rescue us, didn’t I, Juliet? You see, there was no need for fear at all!”

  “Adventure? No need for fear? Are you cra—” she sputtered, her red hair flying about her equally red face.

  “Now, now, my dear! You are quite safe now,” the king soothed, patting her arm. “We will have you back at the inn with your brother very soon. He is back there praying for us at this very minute. I will send a messenger on ahead to let him know that you are safe.”

  Juliet calmed down, although she still looked as though she wanted to say, Hmmph! but since she was talking to the king, she thought better of it and simply shook her head and rolled her eyes a bit in her cousin William’s direction instead. At the mention of her brother praying for them, though, she became very still and said nothing more for quite some time.

  Noble came over to them a few minutes later and said, “We have the prisoners all taken care of, Your Majesty, and as soon as it is dawn we will be ready to return to Aber. There is just one thing, though, Sire.”

  “What is that, Sir Noble?”

  “Morgan is not among the highwaymen we have captured. I was sure we would find him here. When we tried to ask about him, though, every one of the prisoners shut their mouths and refused to answer any questions about him.”

  “Oh, he was here, alright!” William said. “He is the leader of the gang, it seems. He was giving the orders, but then he left with two or three others. They had been talking about collecting a ransom. I don’t know if that is where they went or if they had some other business, but they were long gone before we fell asleep.”

  “Hmm… It is too early for him to think that the ransom would have arrived from Caernarfon already. Perhaps they have gone off to make arrangements for it, though. We will set a guard here to meet and greet them if they should return. They will be very surprised indeed to find our men waiting for them!”

  “Unless they have been by this place in the last hour and know already that we are here.”

  The king shrugged. “There is nothing we can do about it if they have. I have no doubt, though, that we will catch up with them if they try to run.”

  He paused to think. “And as for the ransom, I would like to send one of the knights back to Caernarfon to take the news to Lord Edmunds that the prince and Juliet have been found and there is no need to send the ransom after all. I want Sir Charles and his men to proceed, however, as if they truly were bringing the treasure here! Oh, we will set the bait, and if they walk into our trap, the bait will not be the treasure they were expecting!”

  “I will send a messenger to Caernarfon immediately. In the meantime we will move the bodies of the dogs that are lying outside and hide the horses, and then I will set a watch in case Morgan and his men return before dawn.”

  “That is fine, Sir Noble. Have the messenger stop at Locke’s Inn first and tell Peter and Master Locke all that has happened. It will set their minds at ease and perhaps Locke can get the word out to the other search parties, as well. Oh, and Sir Noble—you did a fine job tonight!”

  Noble bent down and picked up Hero who was gnawing at the toe of the king’s boot. He hoped and prayed the king had not noticed! “No, Sire! Here is our hero in this night’s work!”

  William laughed. “It is strange to think that such a little thing could be a hero!”

  “Did I not tell you, William, not to judge people—or creatures—by their appearances?” Noble reminded him. “Hero has a small body, but he has a huge heart! It is full of strength and determination, courage and loyalty! He has the heart of a hero! We look on the outside, but God looks upon the heart, the Scriptures say. And even little Hero can surprise us by what is in his hero’s heart!”

  Hero was full of dirt and twigs and old dried leaves. He looked anything but a hero! He gazed up into his master’s face, though, and licked him across the chin. Then he grinned his doggie-grin and gave a happy bark. These people were talking about him! Whatever a hero was, other than simply his name, he did not know. But yes, indeed! It had been a good night’s work!

  ____________

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  ____________

  The Bait

  They arrived back at the inn early in the morning. The trip back to Aber had gone much more quickly in the daylight, despite having to herd their bound prisoners along. There were fewer knights with them now than had set out from the inn the night before. Some had been sent out as messengers to Caernarfon and Aber, while others had been left to stand watch at the cave in case Morgan and his men returned.

  None of the highwaymen had died in the fight, but there were several on stretchers who were too seriously wounded to walk. Those who were not wounded at all were forced to carry the stretchers. They shuffled along, with all the fight gone out of them and too tired and beaten to even think of trying to escape the stern knights with their swords and bows.

  Hero nipped at their heels every now and again, but Noble did not call him back. If he wanted to play their jailer—well, he had certainly earned the right! Hero paid special attention to the fellow with the bandaged calf. He barked and jumped at him, snarled and snapped until the big hulking man was downright skittish whenever the small dog came near him!

  Juliet Hawthorne sat before the king on his horse, while William rode with Noble. His mood was jubilant and he chattered non-stop all the way to Aber. If the dog was the conquering hero, then William was the triumphant ruler, proud of his men and simply happy to be free and out riding on a beautiful summer’s morning!

  Master Locke was in the courtyard when they came back across the pasture with their prisoners. Sir Michael and Thomas were there, as well. Several of the search parties had returned as word had reached them that the prince and his cousin were safe. A number of the knights and townfolk who had spent the night looking for them were milling about, more than ready for a good breakfast at Locke’s Inn. Now, as soon as he saw them riding across the field, the innkeeper rushed back to his kitchen calling Thomas to come with him and help.

  Sir Edward was back als
o, and now he and a group of his men took charge of the prisoners. For now they would be jailed in the stable until the king was ready to transport them all the way to Caernarfon, and he had declared that that would not happen until Morgan and the others were caught, as well.

  Juliet wasted no time in going to her brother’s bedside. There were tears flowing down the faces of both brother and sister as they were reunited once more. Peter looked exhausted and pale, but he declared he had started feeling better and stronger the moment he had heard that Juliet was safe. “I did not cease praying for you, Sister. I know you do not see it, and perhaps you are even more bitter having been through this terrible experience after everything else has happened, but God loves you! He is caring for you, caring for me! Why, we could both be dead right now, Juliet, but He has spared us for some reason according to His plan. Don’t you see it? Can’t you trust Him now?”

  Juliet did not answer him other than to say, “Oh, I am so glad to be here, Peter! I thought I would never see you again!” About the Lord, she would not say a word.

  William had followed Thomas back to the kitchen. “I will help you, Master Locke,” he offered. “Perhaps Thomas will be free then a bit quicker to spend some time with me.”

  “Oh, no, Your Highness!” the fat innkeeper declared. “That is what got you into trouble last night! You go back out there by your father the king and wait for your breakfast like you ought! Thomas will be out as quickly as he can. There’s a good lad—er, a good prince—er, Highness!”

  “Now, now, Tom!” a voice came from the back door. “We’ve come to give ye a hand! Thomas has been out searchin’ all night and he deserves a bit of a rest, too. We’ve come ‘specially to help ye serve all these many people!” It was Willy and Jacob, the old men from the village. “Go on, now, Thomas! Go with His Highness and have a nice chat and a rest!”

  Thomas looked at his father. Locke nodded his permission and with broad grins and their thanks to Jacob and Willy, the two boys escaped the kitchen as quickly as they could. It was not long until they were back out in the meadow with their beloved horses.

  Many of the knights had begun to gather in the common room. The king sat down at one of the tables and called for his captains and several others to join him. Sir Robert had just returned with his men. “Sit down, Sir Robert!” King Stephen said, smiling. “Ah, yes! I know you are tired—we all are, but what a good night we have had, haven’t we! And now it will be a good day, as well!” He had not stopped laughing and smiling since they had started back to the inn with his son safely beside him. Now he informed his men, “Sir Noble has come up with a plan that I think will work in springing a trap on the leader of this gang and the rest of his men. Let us hear it, Sir Noble!”

  Noble spoke rapidly. “Morgan thinks he is in control of all of this. He has set the scene, and he has set the timetable, but we are going to change his plans for him and play this by our rules!” He looked around at the knights at the table. He could see that they were intrigued. He went on. “Morgan is expecting the ransom money to arrive from Caernarfon sometime today and there is only one way for the ransom to come. That is by the road that leads to Aber. Morgan is greedy. He cannot wait to set his eyes on ‘his’ treasure. He and his friends left the cave last night, and as far as we know, they have not returned. I have no doubt that they are hidden somewhere alongside the road, waiting and watching for Sir Charles and his men to ride by with the ransom. There is no way they will try to attack the knights, of course, but once he knows the treasure is here, he will set his plan in motion.”

  Sir Edward frowned. “I do not know how you think you can read this man’s mind, Sir Noble, but let us hear it. What is his plan?”

  “The demands Morgan wrote in his note were that a single rider was to come at nightfall with the ransom to a certain abandoned shepherd’s hut. I believe once he sees the ransom arrive, he plans to go back to the cave for his men and lead them to the hut or somewhere nearby to lie in wait. He will go early—hours before nightfall—for he must suspect we would try to set a trap for him. That is why, though he may put his plan in action early, we are going to put our plan into action immediately!”

  “And what exactly is our plan, Sir Noble?” Sir Robert asked.

  “We are going to bait the trap and spring it before he can go back to the cave for his men—who are no longer there, of course! We must move up the timetable—and this is how we are going to do it…” Master Locke and Willy began serving their breakfast just then, and while the men ate, Sir Noble explained just exactly what they were going to do.

  Less than half an hour later they were on their way. The king and his knights set out through the pasture once again. They would not travel by the road, for they could not take the chance of being seen by Morgan and his men. They were on their way to the shepherd’s hut. Morgan might think he would hide there early enough to outwit them, but he would be in for a rude awakening when he arrived!

  Only one man set off down the road to Caernarfon alone—and that was Sir Noble. A messenger had come in earlier with the news that Sir Charles and his men were less than an hour from Aber. It was time to put the bait in the trap. Noble rode his proud horse Valiant, making no secret of the fact that he was a knight of the King’s Guard. If the highwaymen saw him they would not dare try to attack him, for even with four against one, they would know they could not prevail against him.

  At last Noble saw a cloud of dust in the distance. Sir Charles and his company of knights were approaching. Noble hoped the captain had received the last message the king had sent him and would know to play along with the charade Noble was about to enact. Somewhere in among the trees lining both sides of the road there were eyes watching. They must believe what they were about to see.

  Noble met the knights of the Guard a few minutes later. He rode forward to speak with Sir Charles himself. “Sir Charles! You have something for me?” he asked loudly, hoping that there truly was an audience in the woods and that they were not half a mile down the road.

  “You have an order from the king for me?” the older man asked in return. Good! He had received the message and was playing his part well.

  Noble handed him a scroll and said, “The king’s seal is upon it!”

  Sir Charles broke open the seal and unrolled the parchment. He pretended to study the scroll for a few moments and then gestured to a couple of the other knights. “Load it on his horse!” he said loudly.

  Sir Noble dismounted and helped the knights tie two small chests and several large bags across Valiant’s broad back. Then he climbed back up and saluting Sir Charles, he wheeled his steed around and headed back for Aber.

  He did not ride quickly for he wanted to give the king and his knights time enough to get in place before Morgan and his men headed their way. He was fairly certain the highwaymen would not try to ambush him out here on the open road, for even if their greed overcame them and they decided to throw caution to the wind, they would wait until either they had more men with them, or they were in a more secluded spot. They probably thought he was going back to the inn. They would be in for a surprise—and then they would have choices to make.

  He was only a mile or so from the inn when he suddenly veered off the road and headed across country. The old shepherd’s hut was due east. It was a mixture of fields and forest in this location and Noble rode more swiftly now. He knew that if Morgan and his men were following him there must be a debate going on among them. To attack now, or wait until they had the help of their gang? Wait until nightfall to collect the ransom and hope to escape under cover of darkness, or grab the treasure now while it was so closely within their grasp? Attack a lone horseman, or risk being caught in a trap by the King’s Guard? Noble hoped the debate would slow them down just enough to bring him closer to the place where the king and his companions were waiting, but not bring the chase to a halt altogether.

  There! Ahead was the abandoned hut. And now he could hear the sound of hoofbeats pounding behind him. T
hey were coming. That’s right! he thought. Take the bait! It is our timetable, not yours! We are in control, and now my friends—the trap has been sprung!

  He reined Valiant in as he reached the hut. A few seconds later he was surrounded by four riders—one of them Morgan. Each man had a sword in his hand. They urged their horses closer to Valiant so that he was completely penned in. The black stallion was not happy about that. He tossed his head and tried to rear back, but he was so tightly constricted he could not even do that. “Easy, boy,” Noble murmured, patting his neck.

  “Ah, Sir Noble, is it not?” the man Noble recognized as Morgan exclaimed. “You are early! But you have brought it. The king is wise to agree to our terms so easily!”

  “Terms? The terms were that we are to receive Prince William and Miss Hawthorne back when you receive the ransom. Where are they? I will not hand over the ransom without receiving them first!”

  “Oh, you won’t, won’t you? We shall see about that! Get him, lads!” Morgan cried.

  “Halt!” a voice rang out. “You are surrounded, Morgan, and there is no hope of escape!”

  The highwaymen looked up and saw a ring of knights with spears and swords pointed precisely at them drawing closer and closer. Where they had come from, they did not know, but they realized at that moment that they had walked into a trap, and that the king himself was at the center of it.

  “What have you done, King Stephen?!” Morgan cried out. “You have just forfeited your son’s life—and for what? A paltry bit of treasure?”

  The king burst out into laughter. “Enough of the dramatics, Morgan! You are quite the actor, I hear! I have my son and my cousin—and the rest of your men, as well! They were all sleeping peacefully in the cave when we found them last night! You will soon be reunited with your men, Morgan—in the dungeons of Caernarfon! You may have the stage and entertain them then for the rest of your life, for you will never be free again to harm the people of my kingdom! Take them, men!”