Poisonous Plots Read online

  Sir Richard’s head emerged again. He screamed, “You cannot burn us alive! It is dishonourable!”

  “You who sent poisoners and assassins amongst us talk of honour? No one would blame me if I burned the three of you alive. You have two choices: surrender or burn!”

  His head disappeared and I heard a furious argument. Then there was silence. I shouted, as my squires finished piling the wood within the guard room, “Well, what is your answer?”

  I was greeted with silence. “Fetch me a brand, Samuel, Padraig go and bring a pail of water.” When Samuel returned I shouted, “You have given me an answer. I hope you have confessed for now you die!” I went inside the tower. I took two of the faggots and placed them close to the upturned table. I lit the faggots. They quickly flamed and fire began to eat at the table. It was dry. The fire had taken hold of the table and I placed a barrel on top. The ceiling had wooden beams. It would take some time but they would burn. Smoke began to rise up through the open entrance. Padraig appeared with a bucket. I said, quietly, “If I shout then douse the flames.”

  He grinned, “Aye lord.”

  There were wind holes all around the tower and, as I stepped outside, I saw smoke begin to emerge from them. Richard de Vernon put his head above the parapet, “You are a murderer!”

  “I gave you your chance. Surrender. Throw down your swords and you can still make it.”

  His head popped back inside and I heard another argument. Then Sir Richard de Vernon took his sword and dropped it to the ground. It landed ten paces from me. I shouted, “Douse the flames!” There was a hiss. Walther and Samuel rushed in with two more pails of water and the smoke became thicker. I heard the sound of footsteps. Peter, Arne, have your swords ready for these knights.” There was the sound of coughing and then Sir de Vernon appeared. He was alone. “Where are the Templars?”

  He coughed and spluttered. Shaking his head, he said, “They confessed and then took each other’s lives!”

  “Peter and Arne go and see.” Even as they raced into the smoke-filled tower I knew that Sir Richard de Vernon was not lying. The two Templars had not risked divulging what they knew. Their knowledge died with them.

  Prudhoe Castle

  Chapter 15

  The Norman traitor was right. The Templars had taken each other’s lives. The two bodies were recovered. They had not committed suicide. It had been a death pact. I turned to Sir Richard. “And now you will tell me all of the plot of the French King and his Templar allies.”

  He shrugged and gave me a silky smile, “I know nothing about the Templars. The French King? I was promised that I would be Count of the Vexin when Henry was defeated. I thought it worth the price.”

  “And do you know what the price will be?”

  “I dare say that I will be kept a prisoner. Perhaps there will be bargaining and when King Henry has a use for me then I will be freed in exchange for some other noble.”

  I nodded, “And King William of Scotland? You said he would free you.”

  I saw that he realised he had said too much, “Perhaps he will not come as soon as I intimated but he will be coming, some time, to retake his Northumbria.”

  “And what was the price you demanded of him?”

  He looked at me and actually smiled, “Your valley!”

  I laughed. “Then you are a bigger fool than I thought. William will never capture Northumbria. You have sold your soul to the devil and there will be nothing in return.”

  “But the Bishop…”

  He knew then that he had said too much. His mouth closed and set in a grim, thin line. “Shall I finish your sentence for you? The Bishop of Durham said that he would help you once I was dead.” His face told me all. I shook my head, “Have him bound. When we have dealt with William and his army he will be sent to London.”

  As Peter grabbed his arms he protested, “But I surrendered! I have the right to be treated well.”

  I pointed to him, “No you have not for you have been sentenced by the King himself. I have a letter which orders me to chain you and send you to the Tower where you are to be hung, drawn and quartered. Your head will be placed on the gate of the Tower and the four parts sent to Rouen, Rennes, Anjou and Le Mans to tell the world what happens to traitors. Peter, appoint two good men to watch him. I would not have him cheat the executioner.”

  By evening we had made the camp secure and all of our men had returned. We had lost three men at arms and one archer. It could have been worse. More than a hundred enemies lay dead. I gathered my captains, scouts and squires. William sat by me. I spoke to all of my men. They deserved that.

  “We know that King William is coming but we know not where he will strike. Roger of Bath, you will ride on the morrow. Go first to Alnwick, then Warkworth, Morthpath and the New Castle. Tell the castellans that war is coming and they should be ready to bring their men north when I command. Edward, you will ride to Sir Wulfric. I need our men now!”

  Padraig asked, “But what of Bamburgh and Norham, Earl? They are closer to Scotland.”

  “And that is why he will not attack them. He will isolate them. He needs to hit Northumbria. The castles I have warned are, most likely, his targets. However, Aiden, I want you to take Edgar and find him. We will keep Masood here in case we need a scout.” I looked hard at my son’s scout, “I need not a scout who wanders into enemy lands without orders.” He stared back at me.

  While we waited we prepared. The spare arms we had collected as well as the mail were distributed. Every one of my men now had two horses. If we had to move then we could do so quickly. Sir Richard de Vernon sent message after message to me via his gaolers. He begged for me to reconsider and show clemency. Each time I sent back the same answer. What of those he had abducted, abused and slain; had he shown them clemency? In many ways this waiting for death was a worse punishment than a simple execution for each day he died a little. I think he thought that my reputation would make me relent. I was known as a fair man. However, King Henry had made it quite clear, in his letter, what the punishment was to be.

  Our army, and my scout Edward, arrived seven days later. It was a mighty host. We had over three hundred and fifty men. Most of them were fresh. More importantly we had the largest number of archers ever assembled. Two hundred archers could make the sky fill with arrows. Three days later my scouts returned.

  “Earl Marshal, they have crossed the Tweed.” Aiden smiled at Padraig, “They are not going to Norham nor to Bamburgh. The road they take might take them to Alnwick or they could go west to Barnard Castle. They might even come here!”

  I had not thought of that and the surprise showed on my face. William saw my look, “If he goes to Barnard then he will be able to use the men from Galloway. He can threaten Carlisle.”

  Samuel said, “But it does not get him Northumbria.”

  I shook my head, “It gets him the Tees Valley and, from what de Vernon said, he has the support of the Bishop of Durham. With the valley in his hands we are neutralized. Northumbria would be cut off.”

  Silence fell. Someone was advising the rash and wild William. Was it one of de Vernon’s people? Perhaps another Templar? Sir Richard would not tell me anything. He would make demands of me to which I could not accede.

  “Then we have to remain here. Edward and Edgar, you two will watch the road to Barnard Castle. Aiden and Masood, you will watch the road south. We are still well placed here. This valley is but a day, at most, from any of our castles.”

  When William and I were alone with Samuel my son said, “You have done all that you can, father. We could do no more.”

  “No, I have been guilty of arrogance. I thought I could read the mind of my foe and I did not; I failed. I believed that he would strike at either the New Castle or Alnwick. Now I do not know. Perhaps I am too old to command. My grandson appears to have more ideas than I do.”

  “This is the right decision, father. We have an army which is mounted. Once we find this army then we summon the rest of our knights and
we defeat him.”

  I took William with me as I went to speak with Richard de Vernon. I did not give him his title. His actions had stripped him of that honour. I went to appeal to his sense of honour. He pouted, “What now? Do you come to mock me?”

  “No, I give you one more chance to prove that you have honour. You are a knight of Normandy. You swore allegiance to Duke Henry. Enemies threaten his kingdom. Gain some respect for your family by telling me of William’s plans.”

  He laughed, “My brother is dead. You killed my nephews. The whore of a wife of mine is probably already remarried. I am doomed. I will die painfully but I will be shriven. My sins will be forgiven and I will go to heaven.”

  “Then suppose you were not shriven? What then?”

  Shaking his head, he said, “Even you, Henry’s right hand man, cannot deny me a priest. You might want to but if I am taken to the White Tower then my execution will have all due ceremony and that means a priest. It is a small thing, Earl, but it will be a victory for me. Who knows, it might result in victory for the Scots. By then I will not care for I will be in heaven.” He suddenly brightened, “Or I will be safe with William of Scotland and accorded great honours for my bravery! This may work out even better than I had hoped!”

  As we left I seethed. I wanted to take out my sword and end this man’s life but he knew I would not for I had given my word. William sensed my mood, “Sometimes father, evil does not get punished as it should. That does not mean that we should stop doing what is right. You taught me that.”

  “Aye, son you are right. We prepare for war and we make sure that Richard de Vernon reaps no reward from this attack!”

  That night as we waited and I fretted that I had made the wrong decision, Sir James came to speak with me. “Lord, the two captives.”

  I smiled. James was like a dog with a bone. He would not let it go. “What about them?”

  “I would like to effect a rescue. My men are happy to follow me into the Scottish camp.”

  “We do not know where the camp is. You owe obligations to me as a knight. I cannot have my knights serving themselves. We have England to think of.”

  “And I will not let you down, Earl, all that I want is the chance to rescue them.” He paused, “When the Scots come, lord, they will have a camp. If we attack their camp it would hurt them. It would be something which might lead to victory. I would like to take part in such an attack. I would not ask another to risk their lives for the two girls but ….”

  “But it might aid us. I had not thought of that, James. I will consider it but that does not mean that I agree.”

  “I know, Earl, and I will do as you order.”

  It was not a bad idea. The Scots, if they reached this far south, would be far from their supplies. Attacking their camp might gain us horses, destroy their supplies and make their weaker men fear failure. On the other hand, if they attacked Sir Hugh at Barnard Castle then they would be closer to their supplies. The more I thought about it the more I came to believe that he would attack to the west. When my scouts reported that the Scots were south of Rothbury I knew that their target was not Barnard Castle; nor was it Alnwick nor Warkworth. The New Castle seemed the most like place. I mobilised my men and I sent riders to warn Morthpath and the New Castle that they might be attacked.

  By the time we broke camp it was late afternoon and the Scots had moved further south. They were moving quickly. William suggested, and I agreed, that we should head towards Morthpath. That struck both of us as the most likely place he would attack. If he was going to take the New Castle then he had to rid himself of the danger Morthpath represented. For once our archer scouts let us down. However, we could not take them to task for they paid with their lives. We found their bodies close by Long Whitton. They had been ambushed. William had a good adviser who knew me and my methods. This time I sent out my four best scouts. Aiden and Edgar went towards Morthpath and Masood and Edward towards Barnard Castle. As darkness fell we were forced to camp.

  We camped at Stanfordham by the River Pont. It was just north of the stone castle of Prudhoe. Odinel Umbraville was the lord of the manor. He could be an awkward man and I had found him abrasive yet he was as solid as his castle. He was obstinate enough to defy any attacker. I decided that, the next morning, I would ride to Prudhoe and seek his help. His castle guarded one of the bridges over the Tyne.

  It was Masood and Edward who returned, just before dawn, with the news that the Scots had laid siege to Prudhoe. The Scottish army was more than a thousand men strong. However, we now knew where they were and we now knew their target. It was not the New Castle. They would cross the Tyne. Stockton and my valley were their targets. The Palatinate would turn a blind eye to the Scots as they headed south. The Bishop of Durham had much to answer for. I put that reptile from my mind as I held a council of war with my knights.

  “We do not have enough men to relieve the siege. We need to summon the men who garrison the castles at Morthpath and the New Castle. I will also send to the Bishop of Durham although I fear he will drag his heels. Until they arrive we are limited in what we can achieve. Besides it is early days. Baron Odinel has stone walls and the bridge will slow down the progress of the Scots.” I looked at Sir James. “However, there is another choice we can make. Edward has told me that they have their camp north of the bridge. They have their supplies and the wood with which to make siege engines. At dawn we will move our camp closer to them. I would be nearer to them. I would threaten them.” I saw nods of approval from Wulfric and William. “I propose that, tomorrow night, we attack their camp and try to destroy as many of their supplies as we can. It will be hit and run.”

  I saw that my knights all thought this was a good idea. Wulfric roared, “It is good to have you back leading us, Earl. This is my kind of fight.”

  “Except that you will not be taking part in it. I intend to use the young knights. Sir James, Sir Morgan, Sir Gilles, Sir Richard and Sir Gille will take their men. I need you, Wulfric, and my son,” I waved an expansive arm, “I need all the experienced men for the attack on the main army. Besides, Sir James has a special task he needs to perform.”

  My son said, “I think it is good that the young knights have the opportunity to gain glory but who will lead them?”

  “Why me, of course. It is my plan. I am the reason that the Scots have managed to get so far into Northumbria without a challenge. I will help to rectify my error. You will command in my absence. King Henry charged you with this task anyway. If it was not for Sir Richard de Vernon then I would still be in France. I am expendable.” There was a clamour and outcry from my knights. I held up my hand, “There is no argument. I am Earl Marshal and I make these decisions. I will see the knights who are to make the attack for we need a good plan.”

  The young knights were delighted to have been chosen. I quickly dismissed any thoughts of a reckless attack. “Padraig will have a horn with him. When he sounds it three times then we all retire north.” I looked especially at James, “No matter what we are doing. We are there to hurt them and not us. We destroy whatever we can. We drive off their horses, we damage their siege machines and, Sir James, has a special task. He will try to affect the rescue of two captives.” I had their attention. “Sir Gilles, you will drive off their horses. Sir Richard and Sir Gille you will try to destroy as many of their siege engines as you can. Sir Morgan you and I will be the reserve. We stop the Scots from spoiling our plan.”

  They nodded.

  “You all have archers. At night they will not have good targets. That does not matter. We will walk our horses until we are within bow range of the camp. Sir James and his men will go in first to try to rescue as many captives as they can.” I looked at him, “You have the count of five hundred to do so. Then the archers will send a shower of arrows into the camp while the two main raiding parties gallop in, destroy what they can and then listen for the horn. If this goes well then we will be in and out before they know what hit them.” I paused, “If men fall then w
e leave them. We do not go back for the wounded, nor the dead. We have a duty to the army to be ready to fight the Scots in open battle.”

  They were young but they were knights. The men they led were oathsworn. All of us understood the risks. They nodded their agreement.

  Samuel rode next to me as we headed south the next morning. “Grandfather I know that Padraig is your squire but could I hold Skuld for you this night?”

  “No, Samuel. It is not because I do not want you there, I do but you are your father’s squire. You are needed at his side. He will be preparing the rest of our men for the battle to come. When we raid their camp then the rest of you will need to watch our own camp.”

  “But I would fight at your side. You said I helped at the tower.”

  “And so you did but now I need you to obey orders.”

  He looked at me, “Grandfather, you do not go to your death, do you? You risk all and for what? Two captives? They are not worth the life of the Warlord.”

  I reined in Skuld and allowed the others around us to move away, “Never say that, Samuel. I am no more important than any in my land. Aiden was born a slave and yet I would not be alive today but for him. Padraig was doomed to a life of servitude and he has saved my life and others. All men and women are important. James sees, in these girls, a chance to save two lives which would otherwise be destroyed. He and his men are willing to risk all to do so. Make no mistake, Samuel, James has the hardest task. You have captured a horse herd. You know how hard it is to sneak into an enemy stronghold and take that which they protect. The women will be in the tents of their most powerful warriors. James and his oathsworn know that the odds on their survival are slim. Can I do any less than to be there for him and to try to save him if I can?”

  He was silent. Then he shook his head, “You are right but, grandfather, you are my only grandfather, I cannot lose you.”

  I smiled, “If it is my time then so be it but know that if I am taken I will be watching over you as you grow and become the great knight that I know you will be.”