“What did you tell him?” Padric asked, doubling his efforts. “I am not a Goblin King.”

“Of course not,” Slouch Hat said.

Padric stopped, releasing his grip on the nail. “But you told Torcan--”

“What he wanted to hear,” Slouch Hat said. “Fanatics are easily manipulated.”

Padric’s knees went weak. Relief bent him double and he sucked in air from between his legs. The odor of salted fish did not help his stomach and he fought the need to vomit. At last, his innards settled back in their proper places and he was able to raise his head.

“Why?” he managed.

“Would you rather have a slit throat from one of Acwellen’s curs?” Slouch Hat asked. “For me, pinned to a wall is preferred to being a pile of ash.”

“You saved our lives,” Padric had not meant to say it aloud.

“For now,” Slouch Hat responded. “Only as long as the ruse holds.”

“Best tell me the ruse then.”

The husk nodded and spoke quickly.

“Mostly I told Torcan the truth. I was once in the service of a wandering sage, a goodly man whose intelligence was surpassed only by his near obsession for chronicling the history of the Fae Rebellion. For over forty years, I travelled the reaches of Airlann at his side, helping record the events of that war. At last, we came to Hog’s Wallow, so my master might study Bwenyth Tor and the siege that happened there. But he was near seventy and growing feeble. He never reached the top of the Tor. The gnomes had long left the village, but the shepherds and farmers allowed me to bury my master in their barrows. I remained, teaching the children and offering myself in service to the reeve. More than sixty years past and I now served the reeve’s grandson.”

“Brogan,” Padric put in.

“Yes,” the husk replied. “And then Kederic Winetongue came with his warriors and built his fort. That the Thegn was a capable man was obvious, but I felt there was something troubled about him…something linked to his hatred of the Fae. That he had lost a wife before coming to the Wallow was much whispered, but one night, while drinking with Brogan, I overheard the Thegn mention a child. He was well in his cups and near rambling, but it was there. When I realized Torcan sought the Thegn’s wife, I reacted quickly. From my time with my first master, I know much of the Goblin Kings and the Red Caps’ crusade to find their heirs, so I gambled that was who Torcan believed the Thegn’s wife to be. Why else would the Red Caps seek a human woman?”

“But how did you convince Torcan I was her son?” Padric asked.

“I did not,” Slouch Hat said. “Kederic did.”

“Kederic?” Padric was puzzled. “But he--”

“Is no fool.”

“But why would he lie to protect me?”