Blades of Valor by Sigmund Brouwer

sleep. She sat quickly, and when Sir William opened the door, her eyes were clear and she was alert.
    The three candles that burned on the windowsill cast unsteady light across the room.
    The man who slipped inside the door wore the long, flowing clothing of a desert traveler. As the door shut, he pulled the wraps from his headband and rubbed his hair lightly, as if relieved to be free of its restrictions.
    Katherine watched him with mild curiosity. In the flickering light, his features were blurred, but not so much that she could not distinguish a flash of white teeth as he smiled greeting to Sir William.
    The two men were of same height and build. The man’s hair was dark, unlike the complexion of his skin, and his first words confirmed Katherine’s immediate guess. The man was not a native to this land, but rather of Europe, for he spoke in slow and measured English.
    “I had despaired that you would ever arrive,” the man said. “It was with great relief that I saw your signal in the window.”
    The man glanced around the room and nodded at the two other men, Umar and Hadad. His eyes stopped on Katherine.
    “Do my eyes mock me?” he said. “Or is this truly a vision of beauty?”
    “They do not,” Sir William said. He stepped between the man and Katherine to make introductions.
    Katherine took the cue and rose.
    As the man stepped closer, she saw that his hair was tinged with silver at the temples. A handsome man with a noble bearing. Another part of her mind noted sadly that, handsome as he was, her mind could not release a vision of Thomas.
    “This, sir, is Katherine. She is one of us.”
    So the man is an Immortal.
    The man took Katherine’s hand, bowed and lightly touched his lips against the back of her hand.
    “I am honored,” he said.
    Katherine raised her eyebrows in question, and Sir William answered immediately.
    “This, m’lady, is a man with vast knowledge of the Holy Land. As one of England’s greatest knights, he has proven to be a great thorn in the side of the Mameluke soldiers who have attempted his capture for years.”
    “I am equally honored,” Katherine said. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sir … Sir …”
    Sir William quickly spoke again. “Lord Baldwin, Katherine. None other than Lord Hubert Baldwin.”
    “May we speak freely?” Lord Baldwin asked.
    Sir William glanced at Umar and Hadad and spoke rapid words in their native language. They nodded in reply.
    Then Sir William spoke to Lord Baldwin. “They will not resent it if you speak in English, a tongue they do not understand.”
    “And the lady?”
    “She has proven herself repeatedly, Lord Baldwin. Now, with so few of us in these desperate times, she must be counted among our leaders.”
    High praise indeed. Katherine hoped her flush would not be visible in the candlelight.
    Lord Baldwin smiled broadly at Katherine. His teeth gleamed like a wolf’s. Katherine tried to dismiss the thought, but failed. What secrets must such a man carry?
    His words interrupted her thoughts.
    “I have heard the news, of course,” Lord Baldwin said. “The one known as Thomas must be killed. And it should not be difficult to find him. Not when he is a stranger among the people of this land.”
    Katherine flinched, but forced her face to remain as stone.
    “But I know little else,” Lord Baldwin said. “Why must he be killed? Did he not reconquer Magnus? Was not his father the—”
    “Yes, yes,” Sir William said quickly, as if he wanted to spare Katherine the pain of more thoughts of Thomas’s betrayal. “Katherine, perhaps you might describe all that has happened since I departed from Magnus.”
    Katherine took a deep breath. “The situation in England is thus …”
    She repeated what she had told Sir William earlier.
    Lord Baldwin’s frown deepened at each new piece of information.
    “What can we do first?” he asked when Katherine finished.
    Sir William grinned. “Listen to the man!” he said. “He