“Where did they come from?” Hild shrieked, clinging to his arm.
“They are barghests, hell hounds, black dogs,” Wilburh replied. “Don’t you ever listen to Raedann’s tales?” He lifted the torch up above his head, its feeble flames fighting a losing battle against the rain. “Fulbeorht!” he shouted and the dying flames burst into a glorious blaze of light illuminating the surrounding fields.
“That’s a neat trick!” Lar shouted as the dogs recoiled and fled yelping into the darkness.
“They fear the light, but it will not last long!” Wilburh said. “Come on, we must reach the ford.”
Anna nodded and taking the lead from Ellette sprinted hard for the road, but after only twenty paces the torchlight dimmed, flickered and went out. The others all bunched up behind her. Now they were alone in the dark.
Out of sight the dogs howled again. More than two: a dozen maybe, and the children could hear them closing upon them once more. The rain seemed to get heavier and now the children were soaked through, freezing cold and terrified.
“Run!” Anna shouted. For a moment her companions did not move, but stared fearfully into the gloom, waiting for the shapes of the dogs to come at them out of the rain.
“RUN!” bellowed Anna. This time they responded and started running towards the ford. Behind them they could hear the howling changing to growling as the dogs came into sight, once again chasing after them.
The ford was fifty paces away. Anna could see that Ellette was starting to falter, the little figure struggling to keep up the pace. Hild too was panting hard. Forty paces now. Ellette slowed down and began to walk then hobble.
“I’ve hurt my ankle,” she said, when Anna stopped beside her, “please don’t leave me!”
Anna looked back at the dogs. Three of them were close now. There was no way the girl would reach the ford before the beasts caught up with her, and even if she did they would just chase her over it.
“Keep running!” she shouted at the others. “Lar, take Ellette!” She pushed the small girl over to her brother.
“What?” Lar said. “What about you?”
Drawing her seax, Anna smiled at him and turned to face the hounds, but Lar, glancing back at them, shook his head. He took Ellette in his arms and passed her on to Wilburh. “Get her across!” he cried, and pulling out his own knife went to stand beside his sister.
Supported by Wilburh, Ellette hobbled down the road, followed by Hild. Behind them Anna and her brother stood side by side, backing slowly towards the ford whilst half a dozen of the snarling hell hounds, their mouths slavering and foaming as they growled and barked, closed in upon them.