Part 32 (1/2)

”What has the prince said against me?” he demanded. He thought of this afternoon's attack, while Gavril sat and watched, smiling. A cold chill ran through Dain, and with it came anger, deep and strong. Sir Roye had tried, in his gruff, hostile way, to warn him that more trouble lay ahead. But Dain hadn't expected it to come this fast. ”Lord,” he said to Odfrey, ”please tell me what I stand accused of. A drawn weapon in his presence? But I was already fighting when the prince entered-” ”Say nothing of this to me!” Lord Odfrey snapped. ”You will speak to the a.s.sembly.”

”But I tell you the truth!” Dain said desperately. ”It's too late to appeal to me now,” Lord Odfrey said harshly. ”You defied me by running away. And now you have attacked Prince Gavril.”

”No!” Dain said, horrified. In a flash, he finally understood. Gavril's evil, lying tongue had twisted everything. ”Lord, you must listen to me. It was-” ”The a.s.sembly will listen to you,” Lord Odfrey said, cutting him off. ”Master your fear.”

”I did no wrong,” Dain insisted. ”Hueh was a witness to what occurred. Sir Roye as well-” ”Dain, be silent!” Lord Odfrey said. ”We cannot settle this now. If you are innocent, then you must prove that to the knights.”

Dain stopped his explanations, feeling desperation clawing inside his chest. How could he explain? Who would believe his word above the prince's? Bitterness twisted inside him, and in his mind he could hear Thia saying, ”Trust not men, Dain. They will always turn and betray you.”

Lord Renald set his hand gently on Dain's shoulder. ”Better I take him now.” ”No,” Lord Odfrey said in a voice like iron. There was fear in him, and Dain's sense of alarm grew. If Lord Odfrey was worried about him, then truly he stood little chance.

Lord Odfrey shook his head. ”Thank you, Renald, but please go and tell them that I'll bring him in a few minutes.” The chevard's gaze swung back to Dain and narrowed. ”He must account to me first.”

”Be not long,” Lord Renald advised him. ”The more wine they drink and the longer they talk, the more trouble can brew.”

”Dain's delay has already done the most harm,” Lord Odfrey said bleakly. ”More will matter little.”

This remark did not seem to impress Lord Renald. ”It will be better if he appears of his own accord. If they must come for him, it will look black against him indeed.”

He left with that ominous remark.

Dain frowned at Lord Odfrey. ”Who will take my word instead of his?” he asked without hope. ”Even you do not believe in my innocence.” ”How can I when you have defied me so boldly?” Lord Odfrey retorted.

”I was angry.”

”Anger maketh a fool,” Lord Odfrey said as though quoting someone. Dain flushed hot. For a moment he wanted to shout curses at the chevard. But when he saw the anguish in Lord Odfrey's dark eyes, Dain's throat choked up and he could not stay angry. He had tried so hard in recent months to gain this man's respect. Now he saw how deeply he had disappointed Lord Odfrey. But Lord Odfrey needed tounderstand how much he had hurt Dain as well. Swallowing hard, Dain said, ”I wanted to prove myself to you. I wanted to make you proud of me. When you withdrew me from the contest, I was angry, for I wanted to try, even if I entered at a disadvantage.”

”But why run away over something so trivial?” Lord Odfrey asked.

”It was not trivial to me.”

Lord Odfrey frowned, and for a long moment there was silence between them.

Dain broke it with a sigh. ”I will never be a knight, will I?”

Lord Odfrey's brows knotted. ”Dain-”

”I am eld. Neither Mandrian nor one of the faithful.” Dain shrugged. ”When the knights let me sit and listen to their tales in the guardhouse, I felt as though I belonged. When they taught me swordplay, I could forget what I am. But there is no true acceptance for one such as myself.”

”Dain, I sought to protect you from harm,” Lord Odfrey said, looking upset. ”I feared Mierre would hurt you cruelly on the field, and conceal it as a jousting injury.”

”Strange,” Dain said, unable to believe him. ”Mierre's dagger wounded me today, and now that I am accused of a terrible act I did not commit, you believe them, not me. How does that protect me from harm?”

”It will be the knights who judge you, not I,” Lord Odfrey said.

That answer was meaningless, for Lord Odfrey still refused to take his side.

Dain stared at him, hurt beyond measure.

Someone pounded on the door. ”My lord, bid us enter!”

With a start, Lord Odfrey glanced in that direction. ”Wait!” he called. Dain heard an impatient murmur of male voices outside the door, and Sir Blait growling a response. Fear dried Dain's mouth. If he could not sway Lord Odfrey, how could he prove himself to the rest? Would they let Hueh speak on his behalf? Would the child tell the truth, or lie? It took courage to accuse the prince publicly of lying.

I shall do it, Dain promised himself grimly. Though they cut out my tongue for it, 1 shall make them hear how infamous their prince is. The pounding came again on the door, more insistent this time. Dain looked at Lord Odfrey in appeal. ”Lord, tell me the law I am to be judged by. If I am to defend myself, I must know how.”

Lord Odfrey flung his ink pot at the wall. It shattered there, blotching the wall with a huge indigo stain.

”d.a.m.ne! Had you come straight to me, you would have had no opportunity to attack Gavril. I am certain he provoked you, but why in Thod's name were you so foolish?”

”Open your ears to my words,” Dain said. ”I did not attack the prince. Not once. Not in any fas.h.i.+on.

He came to watch while Mierre and Kaltienne fought me. Sir Roye told me I was wrong to have my weapon drawn in his presence, but was I to sheathe my dagger to avoid offending his highness, and let them stab me?” Lord Odfrey closed his eyes as though in pain. He drew in a sharp breath and openedthem again. ”You will swear to this?”

”Aye, of course I will swear to it,” Dain said fervently.

”Truth is the only defense you have.”

”My word against Gavril's.” Dain sighed. ”Will Hueh be allowed to speak for me?

Will Sir Roye?”

Lord Odfrey's eyes were dark with anguish. He hesitated a moment before he said, ”I have sent Sir Roye away. He is delivering a message from me to Geoffen du Maltie.”

Dain stared in disbelief. Cold chills ran down his arms. ”Why?” he whispered. ”Thod help me, to save his life,” Lord Odfrey answered. His face held momentary despair, then it grew harsh again. ”The man has been my protector since I won my spurs of knighthood. I will not let him risk his life by calling the prince a liar.”

The coldness in Dain spread. ”And Hueh?” he asked.

”The child, by law, is too young to speak.”

Dain s.h.i.+vered, turned away, and went to stand by the window. He stared blindly outside, his heart pounding heavily. ”Then I am doomed.” Lord Odfrey came up behind him. He touched Dain's shoulder, but Dain flinched away.

”Forgive me,” Lord Odfrey said quietly. ”They are innocents and I cannot let them be harmed by what has befallen you.”

”Of course,” Dain said bitterly. ”As an eld, I am permitted no defense.” ”No!” Lord Odfrey spun him around and glared at him. ”d.a.m.ne, boy! I would rather fall in battle than lose you. I lost one son. I do not-cannot lose another.” ”I am not your son,” Dain said harshly.

”No.”

Dain flung up his chin, facing the man. ”Would you defend me if I were?” Lord Odfrey clenched his jaw so hard a muscle leaped there. ”In Thod's name, how can I? When I became chevard of Thirst, I swore to uphold the law of the land. I tried to protect you, but you defied me, ran away, consorted with a foreigner, and have been traveling through Nold at a time when our lands are under fearsome attack. You defied Sir Terent by refusing to come straight to me. I could have protected you then, but nay, you fell into the trap set for you. Now you would accuse me of not defending you. How can I when you have rejected my every effort to protect you?”

Dain listened to him and felt his defiance crumble. His eyes stung, and he turned away, silent and wretched. His mistakes loomed large, and he saw now how wrong he'd been, how unfair he'd been to blame Lord Odfrey for his problems. His own independence and defiance had played into Gavril's hands. ”What, then, can I do?” he asked. ”For me to tell the truth will be to accuse the prince of lying. If I do that, will I break another of your laws?” ”Yes.”

Dain swore softly beneath his breath. The trap was even worse than he'd thought. Gavril had him from every side. ”If I run away, for real this time? If I never return?” Sorrow creased Lord Odfrey's scarred face. ”You will be wanted for life. You can never cross Mandrian borders again, for the king will set a price on your head. If I or any knight here see you, we will be bound by our duty and fealty to seek your life. I do not want that, Dain. Do you?”

”If I remain here and go through this trial, will I die?” Dain asked bluntly.

”I know not. I hope not,” Lord Odfrey said with a sigh.

”But you cannot promise me.”

”Dain,” Lord Odfrey said, his voice serious indeed, ”if you wish to escape Thirst, there is a way out, a hidden way known only by me. It was shown to me by my father, and his father before him.”