or this was pleasure to him, as it seemed, though
he did not look straight at me. I wished they would hasten, that
was all.

Now the horseman and his follower came up, and lo! Egil was the
rider, and with him was Thrand.

"Ho!" cried Egil, "hold hard. That is my man."

Streone turned on him with a snarl.

"Your man!" he said. "I took him. Hold your peace."

"There you lie," quoth Thrand. "I took him myself for Egil, my
master--as your own men know. I told them."

"He did so," the Danes said, for they loved Egil, and Streone was a
stranger of no great reputation, though high in rank.

"Set him loose," said Egil. "I will have no man interfere with my
captives."

Then Streone hid his anger, and took Egil aside while the Danes and
Thrand set me free. Presently Egil broke out into a great laugh.

"Want you to hang him for slaying men of yours!" he cried. "Why, he
might hang you for the same. How many of his men did you slay this
morning?"

"That was in fight--he killed the others in time of peace."

"Better not say much of that fight," said Egil. "There was a peace
breaking there."

Streone turned pale at that, for he saw that the Danes did not hold
his ways in honour though they had profited by them.

"Well, then, take him. Little gain will he be to you, for he is
landless and ruined," he sneered, chuckling.

"Well," said Egil, "he is a close friend of Earl Wulfnoth's, and
maybe it is just as well that you hung him not. Cnut would hardly
have thanked you for setting that man against him, and maybe
bringing Olaf the Norseman down on him also."

Streone had thought not of those things. He turned ashy pale at the
picture Egil had drawn of loss of Cnut's favour. He looked once or
twice towards me as if he were trying to frame some excuse, but
none would come.

"I knew it not," he said, falsely enough. "I am glad you came."

Egil only laughed, and with that Streone rode away quickly, and
never looked back as he went.

Thereafter Egil took me down to the ships, and he sent Thrand for
sword Foe's Bane when the night had fallen. Most kindly did the
Dane treat me, but I cared for little. I could not move for
stiffness and bruising after I had slept for twelve hours on end,
but that was nought compared with the sorrow for what had befallen
us.

Two days after this the Danish host followed in the track of
Eadmund and his flying levies: but Egil stayed in command of the
ships, and I with him. I had not seen C