Lázaro had prayed hard during the battle and vowed to the Mother of Christ that he would serve his Lord Beyard if she spared the Gascon captain’s life. Now on the journey, his prayers answered, he doubled his efforts to serve and attended Beyard and those of his Gascons who had survived. Aicart bore many small wounds, sword points’ jabs through mail, Loys a gash to the bone across a forearm. Any man who rode at Beyard’s side became the boy’s charge. Lázaro was tireless – preparing food, boiling water to wash bloodied bandages and helping men tend their injuries. When he finished his day’s work he attended to their horses, and when the moon was high he fuelled the fire and pushed his back against Beyard. Such comfort was the Holy Mother’s reward for his faith in her. And every night, when praying for those who had protected him, his final whispered invocation to the Almighty was for his dead Queen.

Don Pedro was not at Puebla de Sanabria. Álvaraz had left behind two of his men to explain that the distance between the battleground and the town meant the French and their mercenaries were too close. The King had gone deeper into Galicia, which remained loyal to him and where the enemy was unlikely to follow. He did not trust the priest at the church to uphold his sanctuary should the victorious French arrive.

‘There’s faith for you, Thomas,’ said Killbere.

‘He distrusts the Church,’ Blackstone answered. ‘And they know he’s been excommunicated.’

‘Not the Church, man, us. He had no faith that we could hold the bridge.’

‘He’s a king running for his life.’

‘An ex-king with his tail between his legs,’ said John Jacob.

‘We paid a high price for his escape. We rest here a few days and bury our dead. We’ll pay the priest to recite prayers for them for a month.’

They corralled their horses and found buildings to camp against whose walls faced the sun for much needed warmth in their muscles. Those townspeople who dared to venture from the safety of their homes brought food and wine once they realized these men were not there to cause them harm and paid for what meagre food they had. The women attended the wounded with skills learnt at their mother’s knee.

The ancient fortress next to the church was in a continuous state of repair and expansion. The town’s local lord was three days’ ride away and seldom seen, sending his reeve once a month to check on progress and then yearly to collect taxes. Blackstone ordered the men from their scaffolds and had them bury his dead. Carpenters fashioned a cross for every man.

The priest told Blackstone that Don Pedro had taken their food stores without payment. He was their King and such a man did not recompense peasants, no matter that they swore loyalty to him.