Ascrod sat in the woodland glade the Marlfoxes were using as a siege camp, watching the water rats testing the ladder. It seemed sturdy enough for the purpose. Furrowing his brow, he tapped his paws distractedly on a nearby oak. Vannan slid into camp like a wisp of smoke and seated herself next to her brother, observing his mood.

“You seem out of sorts today. What is it?”

“Arrh, we’re getting nowhere with this siege. We’ll never get the best of those Redwallers—the luck’s on their side every time.”

“So, what do you propose we do, brother?”

“Cut our losses and get out of here, back to the island.”

“Hmm, I only wish we could!”

“What d’you mean, sister? What’s to stop us going?”

“Listen and I’ll tell you, Ascrod. While you lot have been playing with ropes and foolish ideas, I took a trip back to see what was happening at our camp out by the river. Beelu was watching Mokkan for me, and I wanted to hear his report. But guess what?”

“What?”

“There’s not a trace of anybeast. The camp was deserted, Mokkan and the rats we left with him all gone!”

“Gone? What about the tapestry we stole from the Abbey?”

“Hmph! Of course, that’s gone also. Six shrew logboats we had, five of them are smashed to pieces on the bank there. That means Mokkan took the sixth boat, the rat guards, and our tapestry with him, bound for the island, I’ll wager.”

“The traitor! I’d like to skin the deserter’s hide from his back with my ax!”

“Aye, me too, brother, but it looks like we’re stuck here for now. We can’t go back empty-pawed.”

“So, what do you suggest we do, Vannan?”

“Only one thing to do. We put all our cunning into defeating Redwall. Once the Abbey and its treasures are ours, we can force the shrews to build us new boats. We’ll fill ’em with treasure, and then play the waiting game. Then one fine day we’ll start back for the island, when brother Mokkan’s least expecting us, and then there’ll be a reckoning, I promise!”

19

19

Martin the Warrior strode through Dannflor’s dream. He pricked the young squirrel’s footpaw with his swordtip, uttering only one word. “Awake!”

Dannflor woke and sat up. The sword he had been holding loosely in his sleep had slipped free and nicked his footpaw. The first thing he saw was a big scraggy ferret, with a raven’s feather braided to his tail, brandishing a scimitar, as he and a band of about twenty other ferrets crept up on the four friends. Dann shouted a warning to his companions. “Look out, ambush!”