Gersine was the only one of us whose hands were not tied, and he set about freeing us. With each unbound prisoner, there was another pair of hands, so it was not long before my wrists were untied and we were all free to move about our small cell. I pulled the gag from my mouth, spitting to rid myself of the taste of the dirty wool. Now that I could breathe more easily, I took in deep breaths. I quickly regretted it. The cloth in my mouth had prevented me from experiencing the full depth of the smell of our prison and now, as the pungent stink hit the back of my throat, I retched. I rubbed at where the rope had chafed my wrists, but the discomfort was nothing compared to my sorrow and guilt.

It was Leofstan who had untied me, and he placed a hand on my shoulder.

“You must not blame yourself,” he said in a whisper.

“Then who is to blame, brother monk?” snarled Eadmaer, overhearing Leofstan’s words. “It seems to me that had Hunlaf done his duty, we would not have been captured.”

Beorn, who was busy untying the knots that bound Os’ hands, growled, agreeing with Eadmaer. They were not wrong, and I slumped down in the corner furthest from the door.

It was dark inside the hut, but enough light leaked through the cracks between the planks and under the door to allow us to see. It was only early in the morning, and the sun that beat down on the roof was rapidly heating the building. The stink grew ever stronger, if that were possible, as the temperature rose. It soon felt as though the dark interior of the building was thick with a warm fog of shit and piss.

“Do not sit there feeling sorry for yourself, Hunlaf,” said Hereward. “Help Leofstan with Os.”

“I am not sure what we can do,” said the old monk, moving to Os’ side. “We have no water, nothing with which to clean and bind his injuries.”

“Do what you can,” said Hereward. “And the rest of you,” he swept the gloom with his gaze, “it does us no good to place the blame of our predicament on Hunlaf. The past is the past, and there are many others who are at fault. I, for one, should not have allowed us to camp so close to this place. And I should have seen that Hunlaf was too tired to stand watch.”

“I told you I would not fall asleep,” I said. “I am sorry.”

“I am as much to blame as you,” he said, swatting away a fly that had landed on his forearm. “I know better than to merely listen to what a man says. I do not doubt that you meant to keep watch, but I should have weighed up the truth of your words against the strength of your body.”