The King's Dogge Read Online Free Page A

helplessly lost but eventually returned to camp to find men milling about aimlessly. The confusion did not worry me; my lord had warned me about this when he had talked to me last night.
    â€˜King Edward’s men are close at hand, Francis. Now, given that they will suspect that we outnumber them, what tactics do you think they will employ?’
    I did not know. He shook his head in mock reproof and smiled at me.
    â€˜And after all my teaching too! What King Edward will do is to use the element of surprise; he’ll attack before daybreak and try to catch us unaware. Accordingly, I have given instructions that all troops are to be up and in position long before the sun rises so Edward’s plan won’t work. But never forget to use the element of surprise, Francis.’
    I shook my head in admiration at my lord’s kindness as I reentered the teeming camp. On the eve of a major battle, not only had he found time to add to my learning, but he had the forethought to explain what I would see. It was down to him that I understood that what seemed like confusion was, in reality, men mustering under their captains by the light of spluttering torches prior to advancing to their battle stations.
    I found my lord and followed him and his men through the dark woods until we came to the place where he had ordered marker stakes to be placed in the ground. There were frequent cries of ‘close up’ and gradually the mass of soldiers were driven into some form of order. Around my lord and myself, I glimpsed the reassuringly large shapes of his personal bodyguards. They were armed with halberds – eight-foot spears with an axe blade on one side and a vicious spike on the other. Behind us a dozen lightly armoured horsemen, all bearing Montague’s griffin emblem, waited to carry his instructions.
    There was the sound of shouts ahead of us and I heard the answering roar of insults from our men. A moment later, some unseen force threw us back a few paces and, ahead of us, I heard the clashing of weapons. For a few moments, we were carried forward and back. One of the tall bodyguards caught my eye.
    â€˜Surprised us in the mist!’ he shouted. ‘Our archers would not have got many shots.’
    I was about to question him, but my lord held out a metalled gauntlet, and I passed him the leather water flask. He grunted and glanced to the right to search for Oxford’s troops.
    The pushing and shoving continued, but it was impossible to make out what was happening. I could see little, nor could I work out whether we were advancing or retreating. I tried to fix our position by pinpointing a tall tree on my right, but when I looked again later somehow the tree had got behind me. Even more confusing was the fact that while we were constantly moving there was no sign of the enemy. Men passed us on either side but, apart from the clanging ahead, there was little sign of a battle.
    The sudden whirr of an arrow made me slam my visor down and my sense of disorientation instantly worsened, my vision being restricted to the little I could see through its narrow slits. I stumbled on something large beneath me and would have fallen had a halberdier not grabbed me. Flinging my visor up, I swallowed uneasily. The ground beneath us was covered in bodies. My lord signalled to me and I moved over to where he stood, talking anxiously with one of his captains. Without being asked, I handed him the water flask. The captain ignored me.
    â€˜What’s Exeter doing?’ he demanded.
    â€˜Holding his own, but only with the help of all our reserves,’ the Marquis Montague replied bitterly.
    The captain looked startled.
    â€˜He shouldn’t have needed them. We’ll want them here presently.’
    My lord made no reply, but looked out for Oxford’s men. The captain followed his gaze.
    â€˜Lancastrians – untrustworthy bastards,’ he muttered as he moved away.
    My lord looked worried and, because I