Lionheart A Novel - By Sharon Kay Penman Page 0,322

afternoon, Henri had been bedazzled. Nothing was more admired, more valued in their world than bravery on the battlefield. War was a king’s vocation, and at that his uncle excelled. But as he went in search of Richard on this August afternoon, Henri could not help thinking that even if a man did not fear Death, he still ought to accord it some small measure of respect.

Just then he heard his name called and paused for André to catch up with him. “Wait until you hear what I’ve learned, Cousin! We truly were in God’s Keeping last week. Saladin meant to strike whilst we were still sleeping. But his Kurds began to quarrel with some of his Mamluks over who should go in on foot to seize the king and who should remain on horseback to make sure none of us could escape into Jaffa’s castle. By the time they came to an agreement, dawn was nigh and that sharp-eyed Genoese with a full bladder caught sight of them.” His amusement ebbing, Henri said somberly, “Think how it would have turned out had they attacked in the middle of the night.”

André, ever the pragmatist, merely shrugged. “You might as well ask why Richard did not die when he was afflicted with Arnaldia back at Acre. Or what would have happened if Guilhem de Préaux had not learned a bit of Arabic. Just be glad, Henri, that Richard’s luck has so far kept pace with his boldness.”

Henri thought that race was often too close for comfort. “I have more to tell you,” he said. “As we suspected, Saladin himself was in command last week. He was outraged when his men were unable to break through our lines and kept urging them on, promising that they’d be well rewarded for their efforts. But when they were thwarted time after time, they began to balk. Finally, when he demanded that they charge again, only one of his sons was willing to obey. The others refused, and my spy says that the brother of al-Mashtūb even dared to remind Saladin that he’d sent in his Mamluks to try to stop the looting in Jaffa, saying he should send those Mamluks against us.”

André was laughing. “You deny soldiers their booty and they get testy! We were lucky we took that caravan or our lads might have been ripe for mutiny, too.”

“That is what my spy said,” Henri agreed. “Saladin’s men were angry that he’d offered terms for the surrender of Jaffa, feeling cheated of their just due, for they’d not had an opportunity for plunder in many months. He said Saladin was so wroth that some feared he might order the crucifixions of those who’d dared to disobey him. But he realized that he’d lose face if his men continued to be repelled by‘a handful of Franks,’ and so he ordered a retreat.” Pleased by André’s response to his revelation, he said eagerly, “Let’s go tell Richard. With luck, he’ll not have heard it from his own spies yet!”

As they approached Richard’s tent, they stopped to admire two finely boned horses cropping grass nearby. After winning his improbable victory on August 5, Richard had opened peace talks again, and three days later Abū-Bakr had ridden into their camp with a letter from the ailing al-’Ādil and these magnificent Arab stallions. They were a gift from the sultan’s brother, Abū-Bakr explained, in recognition of the English king’s great courage. Richard had been delighted and his knights envious, for Arabs were superior steeds. Henri had taken one out for a gallop and had been very impressed by the horse’s smooth gait and cat-like agility. “I tried to coax my uncle into sharing,” he told André, “pointing out that he has Fauvel, after all, but he just laughed at me.”

“That’s like asking a man to give you his concubine because he has a beautiful wife.” André’s grin faded as he caught sight of Jehan, one of Richard’s squires. The youth was hovering by the entrance of the tent, so obviously worried that André quickened his pace.

As soon as he saw them, Jehan heaved a sigh of relief. “The king is still abed. I know he slept poorly last night, for I heard him tossing and turning for hours. But this is so unlike him, as the sun has been up for hours—”

André parted the tent flap and darted inside, with Henri right behind him. The same disquieting thought was in both their minds; a number of their men