y, with a little shake of the reins, as if
she longed to hurry on; and I told her that now I must keep her
back, as she had kept me just now.

"Each to their own way," she said, sighing somewhat: "the man to
his weapon, and the woman to the sickbed that comes thereafter. See
what one evil deed has let loose on this land. It is terrible to
me. And how long it seems since we came to Fernlea in the bright
sunshine, deeming that all was to go well!"

"Yet all is not so much amiss," said I, seeing that the fears of
the day had hold of her.

And so I told her of Erling's christening, and of what we saw in
the church; for of this I had had no time to tell her before, save
when Erling himself had been with us.

Then in very gladness, for she liked my comrade, she lost her
gloomy thoughts, and would tell him softly of her pleasure. And so
we climbed the steep of the hill, and were met at the gate by Jefan
himself, with a frank welcome.

There were rough huts across the camp, set more or less at random,
and among them burned the fires which we had seen. There would be
about fifty men at most in the place, now that all had returned;
but the prince told me presently that he had had more when first
the alarm had been raised that Offa was summoning his thanes to him
for some unknown reason; whereby I gathered that here he had waited
for us.

"Lady," he said, as he helped Hilda from her horse, "your father is
but weak. I think that he began to mend when I told him that
doubtless you would be here tonight. I hope your ride has been easy
and without alarm."

"Hardly," said the chief who had rescued us. "It was a hard ride
for a matter of ten minutes, and we were frightened sorely. The
lady is the bravest I have ever met, for she screamed not once; and
the thanes are no bad judges of cattle raiding."

"Why, you have met with men after your own heart, Kynan," laughed
Jefan. "More of that tale by-and-by.

"Well, lady, you are safe, and that is the best. Now you shall see
your father.

"See to our guests, brother."

Jefan took Hilda's hand and led her to the best of the huts, and,
with a word to one within, entered. In a moment he was out again,
with a smile on his face in the firelight. I knew from that how
Sighard had met his daughter.

Kynan gave some orders to his men, and they took our horses,
leading them to a far corner of the camp. After that we were set
down to a great supper, and the tale of the flight and the ra