Dark Under the Cover of Night

  Ceolwulf locked gazes with his son for a moment. His men looked on tensely, watching, waiting for Ceolwulf’s reaction to Caelin’s interference. He had killed men for less. Ceolwulf was a terrible foe to cross for he was a warrior to the core – and he had a warrior’s pride.

  “Father,” Caelin softened his voice. “You are right to want retribution. Raedwyn is a stupid, spoiled girl who would make a fool out of you if you let her. Remember that you will have reckoning on the battlefield. Raedwyn will have to watch you slay her father. Surely that will be punishment enough.”

  Ceolwulf’s anger slowly deflated. He let go of Raedwyn and shoved her aside so she fell into the mud.

  “Get her inside before I change my mind,” he snarled.

  Caelin pulled Raedwyn roughly to her feet and manhandled her away through the crowd towards Ceolwulf’s hall.

  His fingers dug painfully into Raedwyn’s arms as he propelled her through the main entrance. Caelin pushed aside the rabbit-skin partition and hurled Raedwyn inside. Immediately, she flew at him, nails raking at his face.

  “Cur! How dare you call me stupid and spoiled!”

  Caelin’s patience finally snapped. He grabbed hold of Raedwyn and threw her down onto her pile of furs.

  “Do you realize the danger you put yourself in?” he shouted.

  Raedwyn looked up at his face and saw Caelin was white. In contrast, his eyes were black and his brows drew together above the bridge of his nose, giving him a hawkish appearance.

  “You are stupid and spoiled.” Caelin stood over her, daring her to get to her feet and attack him again. “And you have a temper to rival my father’s. It’s not a good combination Raedwyn and twill be the end of you if you continue to bait men like my father.”

  Raedwyn sat up and glared at him, aware as she did so that she was covered in mud and that her hair had come loose of its ribbon and now hung in her face like a madwoman’s.

  “You have no idea what it’s like,” she hissed, “to be a woman in a man’s world – to be married off in order to strengthen political alliances and then to be used to bargain with. If I were a man, I would have at least had the chance to die valiantly in battle like my brother Raegenhere. Instead, I have to listen while Ceolwulf insults my family and publicly humiliates me. It was not to be borne Caelin! I had to react, even if your father killed me!”

  Hot tears slid down Raedwyn’s face and she buried her face in her hands as the shock of her ordeal hit her. They were also tears of impotent rage for she knew that if Caelin had not intervened, she would have fought Ceolwulf even while he beat her, until pride dictated that he killed her.

  “Raedwyn.” Caelin’s voice was gentler now as he hunkered down before her. “I’ve never met such a proud, foolhardy woman. Under different circumstances, I would admire your fire but here as my father’s captive, I counsel you to restrain yourself. Ceolwulf has been pushed to his limit. One more folly and he will slay you.”

  Raedwyn did not respond to his words. She only cried harder. Caelin watched her with growing dismay. Like most men, he could not bear a woman’s tears.

  “Raedwyn please,” he impulsively reached out and pulled her gently into his arms.

  The shock of Caelin’s arms around her stilled Raedwyn’s tears. He smelled of fresh sweat, leather, horse and an underlying male musk that made her instinctively relax against him. She remained motionless for a while, enjoying the closeness, the warmth of Caelin’s body and the sound of his heart through the linen tunic he wore. As he held her, Raedwyn felt the tempo of his heart quicken and knew that having her in such proximity was affecting him.

  Raedwyn’s own heart raced as she lifted her tear-stained face to his. She kissed him gently on the lips.

  Caelin drew back in surprise; confusion and longing played across his face. Then, he gave into the need that the touch of her lips on his had aroused. His mouth came down fiercely over hers.

  He pulled her hard against him and tangled his fingers in her hair, forcing her head back so that she was trapped in his embrace. The feel of his body against hers and the urgency of his kiss unlocked something primal within Raedwyn. Before she knew what she was doing, her hands slid over Caelin’s torso and she pressed the length of her body against his.

  This kiss was nothing like her wedding night with Cynric. That experience had been cold and violent – while this made her senses reel, and released a hunger from inside of Raedwyn that she had never known existed.

  Suddenly, Raedwyn had never wanted anything so badly in her life than she wanted Caelin to lay her back on the furs, lift her skirts and take her.

  It was Caelin who broke away first. He grabbed Raedwyn’s shoulders and held her back at arm’s length, breathing heavily. His face had flushed about the cheekbones, and his eyes had glazed with lust. Raedwyn imagined she looked the same. As she gazed at him, she saw the expression he usually wore slip back into place as he regained self-control.

  “A dangerous wench you are Raedwyn the Fair,” he said thickly. He let go of her shoulders and got to his feet. “One moment you seek to enrage and humiliate my father in front of his warriors, while the next you play the role of helpless maiden, followed by that of seductress.”

  Raedwyn stared at Caelin dumbfounded, before a tide of shame flooded through her. He thought she had been trying to manipulate him. The realization horrified her – how could he think her reaction to him was feigned? Watching her, Caelin gave a bitter smile.

  “You are a sensual, beautiful woman I’ll grant you that,” he spoke coldly so that the compliment stung like a rebuke, “but a woman who uses her charms like weapons cannot be trusted. It will be a relief to hand you back to your kin.”

  If he had slapped her hard across the face, as Ceolwulf had done earlier, it would have been less painful. For once, Raedwyn was lost for a response; he had just succeeded in humiliating her totally.

  Caelin halted in the doorway as he drew back the curtain and looked at her once more. His expression was unreadable but she saw the contempt in his eyes.

  “Caelin…” Raedwyn managed, her voice unnaturally high, “I…”

  Caelin put up a hand to silence her.

  “No more Raedwyn. Our ‘friendship’ is at an end. From now on if you speak with me you will do it before my father.”

  Raedwyn watched as he turned and left her bower, the curtain swishing shut behind him. Alone in the tiny, drab bower, Raedwyn felt her chest constrict as if an iron band was tightening against her ribs. Her eyes burned with unshed tears and she fought back a growing nausea. She could not believe what had just transpired.

  Fool, she berated herself, you should never have kissed him.

  Caelin had not been her friend, but he had been the only person here who had shown her any kindness. Now, she had made him an enemy.

  ***

  Caelin wandered away from his father’s hall and, avoiding the men who were working in the center of the glade, made his way into the shadowy green of the woods behind the settlement. The cool, peaty scent of earth and vegetation calmed him somewhat but his heart still hammered against his ribs.

  Damn her. Why had he not heeded his own advice and kept away from her?

  She was a witch; a seductress who had nearly entangled him in her snare. Even now, he ached for her, but seeing the shock and hurt on her face just moments earlier had forced him to be even harsher than he intended. He could not let Raedwyn see how much he wanted her.

  Raedwyn the Fair was so different from the cowed, work-worn women who had toiled in the villages in northern Gaul where he had grown up. She was the daughter of a king, proud and strong-willed. She was a golden-haired goddess, but her beauty paled against her spirit. Raedwyn indeed should have been born a man for she wielded her beauty like a weapon, and no man who met her was immune to it.

  Caelin leaned up against the trunk of an ash tree and rested his forehead against the rough, cool bark. He had not led an easy life, and it had tested him more times than h
e cared to remember. The injustice Raedwald had committed against Ceolwulf had long become his own and he lived for the day when this quest for revenge would be sated, when he and the others who followed Ceolwulf would be free to live their lives as they saw fit.

  This life made him weary to his soul. Alone in the woods, with only the trees as witness, Caelin made a silent promise: if he lived through the looming battle, Caelin would bid his father and his life as a mercenary goodbye and travel this wild, green land until he found a quiet corner – far from war, blood lust and feuding.

  Far from the bewitching presence of Raedwyn the Fair.

  Chapter Five

  Dusk settled slowly over the woods; a long amber-hued twilight, as day released its grip and night’s shadow beckoned. The late summer days were long but the slight chill that came as the sun slipped beyond the treetops warned the autumn was not far off and that soon the days would shorten and the leaves would turn.

  Ceolwulf’s settlement was subdued as the light faded. The low rumble of men’s voices, the crackling of meat cooking on spits, and the gentle noises of horses as they munched their evening meal, all filled the wide glade. Now that Raedwald had accepted Ceolwulf’s challenge, they had little to do but wait. The anticipation was far worse than battle itself – every warrior knew that – for in waiting a man’s imagination could torture him. In the heat of battle, blood lust took over and obliterated all other thoughts. It was an oblivion Ceolwulf’s men would welcome, but for now they were forced to bide their time and await the next full moon.

  Inside her bower, Raedwyn had come to a decision.

  Listening to the sounds of men talking in the hall next door, she dressed in a plain tunic and overdress she used for traveling. She belted it securely around her waist and pulled on her thick woolen cloak, fastening it with a brooch. All her other belongings she would leave behind. They would just slow her down and since she carried neither food, nor weapons, it was better to be unencumbered.

  After Caelin had left her, Raedwyn had sat numbly on her furs, pondering her predicament. She had wanted to cry, but the situation was too serious for tears. She could not remain here – it was time to take action.

  Raedwyn finished dressing and stood silently in the center of her bower, listening to the sounds within the hall.

  They were roasting another side of mutton above Ceolwulf’s fire pit. The smell was mouthwatering, reminding Raedwyn that no one had brought her food that evening, and she doubted anyone would. The fat from the mutton had dripped into the fire pit and created a greasy smoke that hung over the entire building, including Raedwyn’s annex.

  The smoke had given Raedwyn her idea.

  Unlike Rendlaesham, Ceolwulf had built his settlement hastily. As such, the buildings were flimsier than those Raedwyn was familiar with. The walls of Ceolwulf’s hall were made of thatched bundles of willow twigs, rather than more durable timber planks.

  Raedwyn opened her leather bag and retrieved a small clay pot. She pulled out the wooden plug, revealing a solid white substance beneath – pig’s lard. Her mother swore by lard as a beauty aid. For years, Seaxwyn had smeared it on her face before going to bed, much to Raedwald’s disgust. She had insisted Raedwyn took some with her – but Raedwyn did not intend to use it on her face.

  Raedwyn scooped out a chunk of lard and smeared it on the wall, at a place where two bundles of long twigs were bound together. She emptied her pot of the remaining lard and wiped her hands on an undershirt that she had twisted into a makeshift rope. Raedwyn held the end of the greasy rope into the flame of the torch chained to the wall. Then, she waited until the end caught alight. The flames licked hungrily at the grease and Raedwyn deftly tucked the shirt into the crack between the bundles of twigs.

  Then she stood back and watched.

  The lard worked better than she had imagined. In a short time, smoke filled her small bower and she had to cover her mouth with her cloak to prevent herself from coughing. Soon Ceolwulf and his cohorts would notice the smoke, but for now, the smoke from their roast mutton would camouflage it. The flames spread over the area Raedwyn had spread with lard and soon ignited the dry twig bundles.

  Raedwyn waited until the flames had almost burned right through the wall. Then she picked up one of the heavy furs she had slept on. Draping it against the burning wall, she shoved her hand through it at the burning wood until she felt the wall give. Raedwyn smothered the flames with the fur, her eyes streaming from the smoke as she worked. She was relieved to see that her idea had worked perfectly – for now there was a smoking gap in the wall and the evening air filtered into her bower. It was not a large hole but with a bit of a squeeze Raedwyn was sure she would be able to wedge herself through it.

  Quickly now, for Raedwyn knew if she hesitated someone would catch her, she poked her head through the hole and glanced from side to side. Fortune was indeed with her for she spied no one guarding this wall of Ceolwulf’s hall. Another, lower dwelling sat a few feet away, obscuring Raedwyn from the rest of the settlement. Taking her chance, Raedwyn pulled herself through the narrow gap. It was a tight fit and Raedwyn was afraid the still smoldering wood would cause her clothes to catch alight, but after a few moments of struggle, Raedwyn toppled, face-first onto the dew-laden grass.

  Night had almost fallen; the sky was a dark indigo against the black silhouette of the treetops. Raedwyn was glad of the darkness as she crouched in the deep shadow between the buildings and pondered her next move.

  She had not thought any further ahead than breaking free of her bower, but now that she was outside, Raedwyn’s heart raced. Freedom was so close she could taste it. If they caught her now, Ceolwulf would murder her.

  Creeping to the back of Ceolwulf’s hall, Raedwyn peeked out, judging the distance to the edge of the woods. There were a few huts with thatched roofs between her and the dark line of trees. She could see the glow of fires and the shadows of men moving about indoors. Nearby, she saw the outline of one or two of them patrolling the area. Raedwyn’s heart was now thundering in her ears. She could either run like a hare for the trees or sneak quietly, flitting in and out of shadows until she reached safety.

  She chose the second option.

  Raedwyn moved from her hiding place and, with the hood of her cloak pulled up around her head, crept in-between the huts towards the woods. She was but yards from the trees, and passing the last hut, when she heard the sound of footfalls. A man emerged from the doorway behind her. Raedwyn dove behind the hut and cowered in the shadows as he wandered over to the trees. The man unfastened his breeches and relieved himself in the undergrowth. Raedwyn flattened herself against the damp ground, praying her dark cloak would camouflage her in the darkness. The man took his time relieving himself and farted loudly before making his way back to his hut. Raedwyn guessed from the unsteady way he was walking that the man was drunk. He staggered past Raedwyn and ducked back into his hut.

  Raedwyn lay there, frozen with fright for a moment or two before she slowly got up and dove for the sheltering boughs of the woods. Inside the protective shadow of the trees, Raedwyn grinned in the darkness.

  I’ve escaped – I’m free.

  Wrapping her cloak tightly around her, Raedwyn attempted to orientate herself. She had no idea which way was north, east, south or west. She had no idea in what direction Rendlaesham was, but she was free and she intended to remain so. She decided that the best route was a straight one, as far from Ceolwulf and his minions as possible. She cared not if she became lost in the forest, for then nobody would find her.

  Raedwyn moved through the trees away from the sounds and smells of civilization, into a dark, primeval world where the only sounds were those of night creatures, rustling in the undergrowth or screeching overhead; and the only smells were forest scents. In truth, Raedwyn was terrified of being in the woods alone at night. She tried not to think of the wild boars or wolves that inhabited the forest.

  Darkness cloaked the woods. The moon had not yet ris
en, and so Raedwyn fled blindly, away from her captors.

  ***

  The half-moon was rising into the night sky when Raedwyn heard the far off shouts of men behind her and knew they had discovered her absence. Drenched with sweat, her heart now hammering from exertion rather than fear, Raedwyn halted for a moment, listening to the sounds of her hunters. Every muscle in her body tensed, like a deer sensing a predator nearby.

  The hoary light of the moon turned the forest into an ethereal landscape. Raedwyn had reached a small stream. It burbled gently and twinkled in the moonlight. Raedwyn stepped into the cool water and felt it soak through her boots. She waded upstream in an attempt to mask her trail from her stalkers.

  Raedwyn knew not how long or far she fled. She thought of nothing but escape. Finally, scratched, aching and almost collapsing from exhaustion, Raedwyn realized she no longer heard those who hunted her. She knew it was still not safe to tarry but she could go no farther. She had to rest, and she needed to find a safe place to do so.

  The stream had widened to a lazy river and the bank rose up steeply on one side. A narrow cleft cut into the bank, obscured by a fringe of thick undergrowth. Raedwyn wriggled under the cloaking underbrush, ducking her head to avoid catching her hair in the brambles. It was a snug fit and in normal circumstances Raedwyn would have worried her hiding place was some unfriendly forest creature’s home, but such was her exhaustion that the damp, mossy ground felt like the softest fur bed and she did not care if she had to share it.

  Trembling, Raedwyn pulled her hood up over her face, curled up into a ball and pulled her cloak tightly about her. Sleep swallowed her and she sank into an exhausted, dreamless oblivion.

  ***

 

  Hunger pains awoke Raedwyn from a deep sleep. Her stomach gurgled loudly, reminding her she had not eaten since the morning of the day before. Damp and aching, Raedwyn wriggled out from the undergrowth and blinked like a sleepy owl. She rubbed her gritty eyes and looked up, surprised to see the sun already high in a cloudless, blue sky. She had slept for a lot longer than she had intended. She only hoped her hunters had overtaken her by now.