Lionheart A Novel - By Sharon Kay Penman Page 0,233

see. They looked troubled, uncertain, ambivalent, not like men who understood the truth, his truth. Even some of his own lords seemed conflicted. “Listen to me,” he urged, in what was as close as he could come to an entreaty. “I cannot stay in Outremer indefinitely. None of us can. You think Saladin does not know that? All he has to do is to outlast us, wait for us to go back to our own lands. This is why we must come to terms with him. And to get him to agree to a peace that both sides can live with, we need leverage. We need Ascalon.”

“You are giving the Saracens too much credit and our army too little.” Hugh had gotten his temper under control, and his calm certitude was more convincing than his earlier antagonism; even Richard could see that. “This is not just another squabble between the kings of England and France. This is a holy war, sanctioned by Almighty God. Can you not see what a difference that makes? Our Lord Christ died on this hallowed soil. Do you think He has led us this far to fail? You talk of strategy and supplies. But what of God’s Will? I say we continue refortifying Jaffa and then use it as a base to recapture Jerusalem.”

“The Almighty still expects us to do our part! By your logic, Hugh, Ḥaṭṭīn ought to have been a Christian victory since they had God on their side. Yet even God’s Army can be defeated if outmaneuvered and outnumbered.”

“I am glad that you recognize it is God’s Army, not your own,” Beauvais jeered. “If you want to chase off to Ascalon, do so. But the rest of us are going to honor our vows to recover the Holy City.”

Richard’s eyes glittered, his color rising. Before he could respond, Hugh seized the opportunity the bishop had given him. “Do you remember the question you posed to the French lords at Acre? You asked them whether they were going back to Paris with our king or going on to Jerusalem with you. I say we ask again. How many of you want to follow the English king to Ascalon? And how many of you would rather we lay siege to Jerusalem?”

It was soon apparent that Hugh and Beauvais would win the vote count. Richard was backed up by the Templars, the Hospitallers, Guy de Lusignan and his brothers, the other poulain lords, and most of his barons and bishops. But the crusaders from Europe saw Ascalon as a needless detour on the road to Jerusalem. Virtually all of the French, Flemings, Bretons, and some of Richard’s own vassals wanted to recover the Holy City as soon as possible, eager to see the sacred Holy Sepulchre for themselves and to walk in the Lord Christ’s blessed footsteps, but eager, too, to fulfill their vows so they could return to their homes and families and the lives they’d left behind.

Richard was shocked, for he’d honestly believed that his argument would carry the day. How could seasoned soldiers like Guillaume des Barres and the counts of St Pol, Chalons, and Clermont fail to see that he was in the right? Yet of the French lords, only Henri had loyally declared in favor of Ascalon; even Jaufre, looking stricken, had mumbled “Jerusalem.” For several moments, Richard considered going his own way, leading his men and Outremer’s lords south to seize Ascalon whilst letting the others fend for themselves. But that was the Devil whispering in his ear, for what could gladden Saladin more than such a schism in the Christian ranks?

“So be it,” he said curtly, for he was damned if he’d be a good sport about it, not when so much was at stake. “But it is a mistake, one we are all going to regret.”

HENRI AND ANDRÉ had been searching for Richard in growing concern, unable to understand how a king could suddenly disappear. They finally found him on the beach. The wine-dark sky was spangled with an infinity of shimmering stars, the moon silvering the whitecaps as they churned shoreward, a light, variable wind chasing away the last of the day’s heat. But the serenity of the night was at odds with the emotions unleashed by the scene in Richard’s command tent. He turned in the saddle as they rode toward him, and for a time they watched without speaking as the waves splashed onto the sand, receded, and surged back.

“How can they be so