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Back A Night of Flames
Chapters (76)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise forMATTHEW HARFFY
  3. BY MATTHEW HARFFY
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Maps
  8. Epigraph
  9. Contents
  10. Place Names
  11. One
  12. Two
  13. Three
  14. Four
  15. Five
  16. Six
  17. Seven
  18. Eight
  19. Nine
  20. Ten
  21. Eleven
  22. Twelve
  23. Thirteen
  24. Fourteen
  25. Fifteen
  26. Sixteen
  27. Seventeen
  28. Eighteen
  29. Nineteen
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Twenty-Six
  37. Twenty-Seven
  38. Twenty-Eight
  39. Twenty-Nine
  40. Thirty
  41. Thirty-One
  42. Thirty-Two
  43. Thirty-Three
  44. Thirty-Four
  45. Thirty-Five
  46. Thirty-Six
  47. Thirty-Seven
  48. Thirty-Eight
  49. Thirty-Nine
  50. Forty
  51. Forty-One
  52. Forty-Two
  53. Forty-Three
  54. Forty-Four
  55. Forty-Five
  56. Forty-Six
  57. Forty-Seven
  58. Forty-Eight
  59. Forty-Nine
  60. Fifty
  61. Fifty-One
  62. Fifty-Two
  63. Fifty-Three
  64. Fifty-Four
  65. Fifty-Five
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Fifty-Seven
  68. Fifty-Eight
  69. Fifty-Nine
  70. Sixty
  71. Sixty-One
  72. Sixty-Two
  73. Author’s Note
  74. Acknowledgements
  75. About the Author
  76. An Invitation from the Publisher

“I took the liberty of bringing food and some good ale,” Mancas said. “Come on. Out of the way, young man. The ale will get watered down from all this rain.”

Bemused at the sudden appearance and the lord’s commanding tone, I stood aside. Mancas entered the hall, followed by the cloaked men, who, it seemed, were servants. One carried a large joint of ham, along with a round of pungent cheese. The second bore a tray piled with trenchers of hard bread. The third man laboured under the weight of a tray, upon which were balanced several brimming jugs and a stack of wooden cups.

At the sight of the dark-garbed lord, whose sombre face seemed to wear a constant, disapproving scowl, all merriment ceased. Everyone turned to stare at the newcomer, their expressions ranging from Gwawrddur’s apparent disinterest, to Runolf’s open disdain. We had spoken little of Mancas and his new role, but Runolf had made it very clear he had no time for his kind.

“He speaks like a woman,” he’d said, emulating the delicate manner in which Mancas had covered his mouth when coughing. “We need strong men to build the ship, not rich lords who seek to control us.”

“We are all controlled by lords,” I’d said. “Without them, we would not be able to build your ship. We came here for the king’s support. He has given it to us. If taking this Mancas with us is part of the bargain, so be it. Strength alone will not get us very far.”

It had taken me some time to find my place within this small band of warriors and I was not overjoyed at having Mancas’ involvement forced upon us, perhaps unsettling the delicate balance. But I could see no way out of it. It seemed that when it came to matters of dealing with men of worth, I had become the mouth of the group, and in my pride I had enjoyed the attention and the chance to show my value beyond my skill with a sword, which admittedly was still lacking when compared to the others, all of whom had much more experience than I. With the presence of Lord Mancas, I could easily imagine my importance to the others would dwindle.

The servants placed the food and drink on the table at the side of the room. One of them began to slice the food, while another set out the cups and jugs.