The Marquis Read Free Page A

my younger brother, and this is my cousin and Folctoga, Wystan.’ Although scruffy and dirty Efilda was mid- thirties and still a very handsome woman. In her youth she would have turned heads in the court of Samria. Her clothing was very functional and rustic; layers of tunics covered with a well maintained but inadequate hauberk. Obviously made up of several different items, it still had pieces missing. 
    Conn bowed respectfully. ‘Pleased to meet you Wealdend, Folctoga. We are grateful for your help in this situation.’
    As they got to the water’s edge, sailors from the ship had arrived with four extremely long ropes, and harnesses. With Balios’ help, they gathered in all the horses, saddled them with harnesses, and connected them to the ropes. Two ropes were connected to the horses, and two ropes had people at the end; Efilda’s people had arrived to help, and their job was to keep the vessel as upright as possible to stop the vessel toppling. With the sound of drums from the boat, they started to pull, and with every wave they surged forward until the vessel was in a few feet of water, beyond the breakers. The tide was now fully in, and although beached, they were safe from being torn apart by the waves. When the tide receded, the ship would be dry on the sand – another problem for another day.
    Given that the junk was on a lean, they couldn’t stay on that for the night so Logistics set up a camp behind the first dune. Efilda sent most of her wiga back to their camp but accepted an invitation to stay with Conn. She was further surprised to see Njil’s family and Conn’s children walking towards them.
    ‘It is not often that a Marquis takes children with him on a campaign. And isn’t the lady an Ancuman? I thought you said that you weren’t a minion.’
    ‘I’m not – Kutidi is a theow.’
    ‘A theow? But she is a wiga – Ancuman wiga never surrender to become theow. It is against their code.’
    ‘I was taught to believe that one should never say never.’ Conn introduced Kutidi to the Wealdend. She bowed respectfully and then continued on her way with the children into a tent. Logistics has completed the assembling of a dozen large tents for their use. Conn guided the Wealdend into one where a table and chairs had been set up. Not long after sitting, food and drinks started to appear.
    ‘Please eat and drink, and I’ll tell you my story after you tell me yours; I am interested in why you are in opposition.’
    Efilda sat beside her Folctoga and they devoured the food. Freshly cooked fish, steamed with ginger and spices, served with rice, soup and large lashings of beer and wine.
    After she had eaten, and having thanked her hosts many times for the quality of the food, she started her story. ‘It is a long tale, and unlike most, it does not get better in the telling. It begins with my father and ends with my younger brother.’
    It was indeed a long story and Conn had many questions along the way. Efilda’s father was Beohart, Healdend of Samria, and by all accounts a successful leader. He had only one serious vice and that was lust, and a wandering eye – so he had many bedda but few children. He would quickly tire of his latest conquest and seek out new ones, creating a not insignificant impact on his treasury because of the dowry he had to return and the compensation he had to pay when relinquishing a bedda for no good reason.
    Some twenty years ago, when Efilda was just a child, an Ancuman trading ship had arrived. On the pretext of having to repair their damaged vessel, they stayed for a month despite being banned from Sytha. The Captain seemed to know of Beohart’s predilection, and offered him three Ancuman bedda, daughters of the noble house of Axum, if he would agree to a trade treaty. He even gave Beohart a young Ancuman theow as a “taster”. Despite the opposition of many, he agreed, and six months later a dozen girls arrived for him to choose from. So blinded with lust, he