The sun was just above the mountains to the west when they reached the inn. The four Grey Knights lowered their visors before going inside.
“We wish to remain anonymous,” said Bendu to Tiuri. “Our identity does not matter. We are simply avengers, servants of justice.”
The innkeeper was most impressed by his fine guests. When Ristridin asked if the company could dine privately, he said there were no other guests at the inn, so they were welcome to use the main room. It was small and poorly furnished, but it had one special attraction: all of the windows, with their small leaded panes, faced westwards, and they gleamed with a beautiful, rich light as the setting sun illuminated them. That was how the inn had earned its name.
Bendu asked the innkeeper about the Red Riders, but he had seen no sign of them. “But,” he said, “perhaps my manservant can tell you something. He always knows what’s going on.” He raised his voice and called, “Leor!”
A door opened at the back of the room and a gaunt-looking man entered. When he saw the Grey Knights, he seemed taken aback. The innkeeper beckoned him over and he shuffled closer and stood before the knights, his head bowed. But his eyes were wandering around and he took a good look at every member of the party. Tiuri noticed his piercing gaze and thought to himself, I have never met a man who looked quite so unpleasant and deceitful. He wondered if the others were thinking the same.
“Leor,” said the innkeeper, “these knights would like to know if you’ve seen some riders dressed in red pass through. Wait a second… Now that I’m thinking about it… Didn’t you mention something about horsemen earlier?”
“Horsemen?” said the man slowly. “Horsemen? No, not I! I’ve not seen any riders, not a red one, nor a black one. I saw a few fellows riding along in grey and blue, but that was these gentlemen here.” He grinned at the company and then looked down at the floor again. Perhaps he was afraid that he had said too much. But Tiuri could see that his eyes were still spying at them.
“Are you certain you have seen no other riders?” asked Ristridin.
“No,” mumbled the man. “I mean yes. Yes, I’m certain.”
“Look at me,” Ristridin commanded, “and answer me truthfully. Have you seen any men on horseback around here, riders in red, perhaps at night?”
The manservant stared at him, with a mixture of fear and defiance on his face.
“No,” he said, “I’ve not seen them. And if they’d been here, I’d know about it.”
“Fine,” said Ristridin. “You may go. And would you ensure that our horses are fed?”
“He will,” said the innkeeper. “Go on, Leor, off you go.” Then he turned to his guests and asked what they would like to eat.
“We do not mind,” said Bendu, “as long as it is cooked well and there is enough for all of us. And we do not wish to be disturbed while we are eating.”
The innkeeper gave them a bow and left the room. Tiuri went with one of the men from Mistrinaut to make sure that the horses were being taken care of. The manservant Leor was already getting down to work. He seemed more at ease in the stable than he had been inside the inn.
“Such fine horses,” he said. “I’m sure they can gallop for a while without tiring. You’ve come from Castle Mistrinaut, haven’t you?”
“We have indeed,” said the man from Mistrinaut.
“When did you set off?”
“This morning.”
“Then you’ve ridden quickly. Riders in grey and blue. Those men in grey, the knights, who are they?”
“No idea,” said Tiuri and the man-at-arms at the same time.
“We’re just servants,” added Tiuri. It had been agreed that he would pass himself off as one of Mistrinaut’s men.
“Oh yes, I know all about that,” said Leor, emptying a sack of oats into one of the troughs. “The fine gentlemen don’t tell us much, do they? They think their affairs are beyond our understanding.” He turned his attention to the horses. “This black beast is the finest of the lot,” he said, “and yet it’s not ridden by one of the knights, is it?” He looked at Tiuri, but did not ask him a direct question.
The horse Ardanwen stamped his hoof on the ground and shook his mane.
“He’s a wild one,” said Leor and then he looked at Tiuri again, with a sly grin on his face.
The more Tiuri saw of the man, the less he liked him. He was glad to leave the stable.
Back inside the inn, the candles had been lit and the innkeeper had laid the table. He and Leor soon brought in the food. Ristridin thanked him and said he would call if they needed anything else. Then he and the other knights made themselves comfortable, removing their helmets and gorgets and unbuckling their weapons.
Bendu slid the bolt on the door and said, “There. Now we are alone.”
As they were eating, Tiuri said, “Perhaps I am being overly suspicious, but I do not trust that Leor.”
“You don’t? Well, neither do I,” said Bendu. “But we shall keep an eye on him. We will find the Red Riders in any case, whether he wishes to tell us the truth or not.”
Sir Ristridin looked thoughtfully at Tiuri. “Would everyone please remember,” he said, “that Tiuri is supposed to be passing as a man from Castle Mistrinaut?” He did not explain why he was reminding them, but Tiuri understood very well. The Red Riders would surely want to know where he was; Tiuri himself was the only member of the company who knew exactly why. With a shock, he realized that the Grey Knights might not even need to go in search of the Red Riders. If I stay with them, they’ll come to us, he thought. They’ll try to take the letter from me. As long as the knights were with him, he was relatively safe, even if his enemies did find out who he was. They would probably know soon enough; he was disguised as a man-at-arms, but he was once again riding the horse that had belonged to Sir Edwinem, the Black Knight with the White Shield.
He did not speak his thoughts aloud; there was no point. Instead, he turned to Evan.
“Sir Evan,” he said, “would you tell me why the King of Eviellan is the enemy of King Unauwen?”
“That is a long story,” Evan replied. “But I would be happy to tell you.”
“Just as long as you remember that we should not be too late to bed,” said Bendu. “We shall be up with the sun tomorrow.”
“Where can a man find better rest than sitting with his companions, drinking wine and listening to stories?” said Ristridin. And he ordered his squire to go in search of the innkeeper and ask for more bottles of wine.
After they had finished their meal, they filled their glasses again, pushed back their chairs and sat comfortably to listen with Tiuri to the tale that Evan told.
*
“The land I come from,” spoke Evan, “is said to be the most beautiful in the world. Our king, Unauwen, has ruled for many, many years, and he is wise and just. For century after century, peace has reigned in our land. Only in recent years have we come to know war and discord. But that discord was born in the heart of the kingdom itself.
“King Unauwen has two sons. As is customary, the elder son is the crown prince and since his eighteenth year he has served as vice-regent and governor of the realm. But the two princes were born on the same day, and the younger son was never content with his position. He found it unfair that his brother, who was only minutes older, was the heir to the throne. You need to know that the two princes are each other’s double in terms of appearance and intellect. This made the difference in their position even more unacceptable to the younger son. And yet their characters are very different, and that became more and more obvious as they grew older. The crown prince is like his father; he cares deeply about the welfare of the kingdom and of his future subjects. His brother, however, is domineering, and longs for power.
“The contrast between the two brothers grew with the years. The younger brother began to hate the elder brother, and so a rift developed between the two. King Unauwen tried in many different ways to reconcile the two brothers and to help his younger son accept his place. But he was unrelenting on one point: he would never split his kingdom in two. It had to remain intact as a single whole, under the rule of the rightful heir.
“The king did, however, appoint his younger son the governor of the Province of the Rushing Rivers in the south of the realm. At first it seemed to be a good move, but the prince became increasingly headstrong, sometimes even acting directly against his father’s will. Finally he did something King Unauwen would never have done: he headed south and invaded the land of Eviellan. He conquered the country and made it a province of the Kingdom of Unauwen. The king, however, revoked this move, ordering his son to withdraw from Eviellan immediately. The prince responded by declaring himself King of Eviellan, and said that now he was a ruler and his father’s equal he no longer owed him allegiance!
“This pained the king greatly and he removed his son from the position of governor. But the foolhardy prince refused to accept his dismissal. Sadly, many people in the Province of the Rushing Rivers were devoted to him and supported his rebellion. The crown prince took an army to reclaim the province, and there was a battle. Brother fought against brother! Unauwen, represented by his elder son, was the victor. But since then, something has gone from our kingdom; peace and friendship no longer rule throughout the land.
“The younger prince, the King of Eviellan, sent bands of wild warriors to his father’s land to cause turmoil. And although war was not officially declared, there was constant fighting on the border and in the south of our land.”
“One of those bands of men,” said Ristridin, “had hidden in the Forest of Vorgóta. King Unauwen sent Sir Edwinem to drive them out.”
“I was there too,” said Sir Evan, “as part of Edwinem’s company. I was not yet a knight myself. Ristridin will have told you that we succeeded in routing that wicked crew. But still the evil had not been banished from our land. The crown prince tried a few times to make peace, but he did not succeed. It is said that he still loves his brother. The King of Eviellan, however, refused all such approaches and so, with heavy hearts, the knights of Unauwen took up their white shields, buckled on their swords and prepared themselves for more fighting.
“But recently, glad tidings started to spread throughout my land. It was said that the King of Eviellan finally wanted to make peace, even that he would surrender Eviellan and travel to the City of Unauwen to be reconciled with his father and his brother. It is true that he sent messengers to his father, the king, and that the king in turn sent envoys to Eviellan. It is also true that those envoys were sent to negotiate a peace, and that they went on their way with good wishes. One of those men was Sir Edwinem, the lord of Forèstèrra.”
Evan stopped.
“And what happened?” asked Tiuri.
“I have told you all I know,” said Evan. “I was in a joyous, hopeful mood when I left my country, to take a message from my king to King Dagonaut. I could never have expected that I would soon exchange my white shield for a grey one and that I would be travelling this land looking for vengeance.”
The room was silent.
It is strange, thought Tiuri. Here we are, sitting together, and we are embroiled in the affairs of a country that is not our own – all but for Evan, who comes from that land.
Tiuri was about to say something but, to his surprise, Bendu raised a hand to silence him, then stood up, without making a sound, and walked to the door at the back of the room. Then, very quietly, he slid the bolt and whipped open the door.
A man came tumbling into the room. It was Leor, the manservant.
Bendu grabbed hold of him and dragged him to his feet. “Got you!” he cried. “Why were you listening to us?”
“Help! Ow!” wailed the manservant. “I wasn’t… Ow, ow, let me go!”
Bendu grabbed him even more firmly. “Out with it, eavesdropper!” he barked. “Why were you spying on us? And who ordered you to do so?”
“No one!” said Leor. “I was just about to knock and ask if you needed anything.”
“That is a lie!” said Bendu, shaking the manservant. “Come on, answer me!”
“Ow!” cried Leor. “You’re hurting me! I don’t know anything, I tell you. Ow, ow!”
He was wailing so loudly that the innkeeper came to see what all the noise was about.
“Sir knights,” he cried in dismay. “What on earth is happening?”
“Did you tell your man to listen at the door?” asked Bendu.
“No, of course not!” said the innkeeper. “What do you want with Leor?”
“Let him go,” said Ristridin to Bendu. Then he turned to the innkeeper and said, “Your manservant has been acting very suspiciously, Foram. I am sure you will not object if we ask him a few questions.”
“Not at all, Sir Ristridin,” replied the innkeeper, looking in astonishment at the knight, who now stood before him without a helmet.
Bendu released Leor, who started rubbing his sore arms. “I’ve done nothing. And I know nothing,” he muttered.
“You had better answer these gentlemen, Leor,” said the innkeeper sternly. “I am ashamed of you!”
“So, then,” said Ristridin, “tell us what you know about the Red Riders. Because we know that you have seen them!”
Bendu said nothing, but he looked so fiercely at Leor that the manservant soon backed down. “Yes… yes, I saw some riders,” he said reluctantly. “Night before last. But they weren’t in red.”
“They were not in red?” cried Bendu.
“Not all of them, at any rate,” said Leor. He seemed to have forgotten his pain and a grin appeared on his face. “The one who spoke to me was black – dressed in black, I mean – and there were others who weren’t in red. I don’t know what they looked like. It was dark.”
“They spoke to you?” said Bendu. “What did they say? How many were there?”
“They rode by,” said Leor. “I don’t know how many there were. Ten, maybe twelve… I was awake and I saw them through my window. My room’s at the front. They stopped a way past the inn, and I got up to take a look. I thought maybe they wanted to come in. So I went outside and then they saw me. They didn’t want to spend the night, but they asked me to bring them some beer. So that’s what I did.”
“And what did they say?” asked Ristridin.
“Nothing much,” replied Leor.
“So why were you so keen to find out what we were talking about?” asked Ristridin.
“And why, sir knight, are you so keen to find out what they said?” asked Leor. “Not that it’s any of my business, but…”
“Answer the question!” shouted Bendu.
“The Red Riders have committed a murder,” said Ristridin. “We are knights of King Dagonaut and we must punish them.”
“Oh, really?” said Leor. Ristridin’s words seemed to have made quite an impression on him. “Please forgive me, sir knight,” he continued. “Well, they asked about you. They wanted to know if I had seen four Grey Knights and their squires, travelling from the direction of Castle Mistrinaut. I hadn’t and that’s what I told them. They asked about…” He paused for a moment and glanced at Tiuri. “About a young man with a beautiful ring on his finger. I haven’t seen a young man matching that description as yet.”
“And?” said Ristridin. Tall and stern, he stood before Leor, who was unable to resist the knight’s piercing gaze.
“They said I should watch for the Grey Knights and the young man,” he continued. “And that I should let them know if I saw them.”
“And how were you to let them know?” asked Ristridin. “How were you to contact them? Where are they now?”
“I don’t know. I truly don’t. They said they would return here, to ask me.”
“Is that the truth?”
“Yes, sir knight,” replied Leor. “That’s the truth.”
Now the innkeeper chimed in. “You must believe him, Sir Ristridin,” he said. “Of course it was wrong of him to listen in on your conversation. His curiosity will be the end of him. But he wasn’t to know that the Red Riders are murderers.”
“Of course I didn’t know,” said Leor indignantly.
“It is a pity you cannot tell us where they are,” said Ristridin. “But we shall find them anyway. Go, Leor. But one last thing: you must alert us if they should return.”
“Yes, sir knight,” said Leor meekly, as he shuffled away.
“Is there anything else I can do for you?” asked the innkeeper.
“Yes, Foram,” said Ristridin. “Please do not use my name again, as long as I am wearing this grey armour.”
“As you wish, sir knight,” said the innkeeper. “I shall keep a close eye on Leor, although I do not believe that he knows any more than he has told us.”
“Good, Foram,” said Ristridin. “We shall retire to bed. We intend to depart early tomorrow morning.”
After the innkeeper had left, the members of the company sat together for a while, discussing the situation.
“I for one believe this Leor knows more than he has told,” said Bendu.
“That is possible,” said Ristridin thoughtfully.
“And is the innkeeper to be trusted?” asked Arwaut.
“If he knew anything, I am sure he would have told me,” answered Ristridin. “I know him. He is a good man, but not very bright.”
“What do we do now?” asked Evan.
“Nothing,” replied Bendu. “Let us go to bed. But I think we should take it in turns to keep watch, so that no one may enter or leave the inn without our knowledge.”
“That sounds like a good plan,” said Ristridin.
They divided the watch, with Ristridin taking first turn, along with Tiuri, at Ristridin’s request. They were to stay in the main room and occasionally patrol the inn. When an hour had passed, they would wake two of the others.
Soon Tiuri was alone with Ristridin. With only one candle burning, the room was in almost complete darkness.
“I asked to keep watch with you,” said the knight, “because it gives me a good opportunity to talk to you about something.”
“Are you not concerned that someone might be listening in?” asked Tiuri.
“Leor? What I have to tell you is no secret. Leor is welcome to hear it, even if he is a spy for the Red Riders.”
“Do you think the Red Riders are nearby?” asked Tiuri. “And that they plan to return here?”
Ristridin shrugged. “I am certain they are nearby,” he replied.
Tiuri fell silent for a few moments. “I think they are looking for me,” he said quietly. “And if they know I am in your company, they will probably come to us.”
“Let them come,” said Ristridin. “The sooner, the better. As long as you are with us, you are under our protection.” He stood up, walked over to the door and looked outside. Then he returned and sat beside Tiuri, but left the door open.
The hour passed quickly, as Ristridin told stories about Sir Edwinem.
Tiuri listened. Later, he would often think back to this night. And he would picture the quiet room once again, by the flickering light of the single candle, and the darkness through the open door, and hear the sound of the river and the soft voice of Sir Ristridin as he told his story. And he would see Sir Edwinem, not dying and defeated as he had been in the forest, but riding proudly and valiantly through the world on his black horse, with the sunlight glinting on his white shield.