“It must be awful for you. But I’ll bet there is good food. Those nobles really know how to fill a store house, don’t they?”
“Well, yes, of course,” the deacon replied. “As a matter of fact, the margrave had put by a remarkable amount of smoked meats, not to mention ale and wine, but I only take what I need of course.”
“Of course,” Hadrian agreed. “Just looking at you I can tell that you’re not the kind of man to take advantage of a situation. Did you supply the ale for the funeral?”
“Oh no,” the deacon replied, aghast. “I wouldn’t dare pillage the manor house like that. Like you just said, I am not the kind of man to take advantage of a situation and it’s not my stores to give, now is it?”
“I see.”
“Oh my, look at the cheese,” said the deacon, scooping up a wedge and shoving it in his mouth. “Have to admit one thing,” he spoke with his mouth full, “Dahlgren can really throw a funeral.”
When they reached the end of the tables, Hadrian looked for a place to sit. The few benches were filled with folks eating off their laps.
“Up you kids!” the deacon shouted at Tad and Pearl, “you don’t need to be taking up a bench. Go sit on the grass.” They frowned but got up. “You there, Hadrian is it? Come sit here and tell me what brings a man who owns a horse and three swords to Dahlgren. I trust you aren’t noble or you’d have knocked on my door last night.”
“No, I’m not a noble, but that brings up a question. How did you inherit the manor house?”
“Hmm? Inherit? Oh, I didn’t inherit anything. It is merely my station as a public servant to help in a crisis like this. When the margrave and his men died, I knew I had to administer to this troubled flock and watch after the king’s interests. So I endure the hardships and do what I can.”
“Like what?”
“What’s that?” the deacon asked, tearing into a piece of mutton that left his lips and cheeks shiny with grease.
“What have you done to help?”
“Oh—well, let’s see…I keep the house clean, the yard maintained, and the garden watered. You really have to keep after those weeds you know, or the whole garden would be swallowed up and not a single vegetable would survive. And oh—the toll it takes on my back. I’ve never had what you would call a good back as it is.”
“I meant about the attacks. What steps have you taken to safeguard the village?”
“Well now,” the deacon chuckled, “I’m a cleric, not a knight. I don’t even know how to hold a sword properly and I don’t have an army of knights at my disposal, do I? So aside from diligent prayer, I’m not in a position where I can really do anything about that.”
“Have you considered letting the villagers stay in the manor at night? Whatever this creature is, it doesn’t have much trouble with thatched roofs, but the manor has what looks to be a sturdy roof and some thick walls.”
The deacon shook his head, still smiling at Hadrian as an adult might look at a child who just asked why there must be poor people in the world. “No, no that wouldn’t do at all. I am quite certain the next lord of the house would not appreciate having a whole village taking over his home.”
“But you are aware that the responsibility of a lord is to protect his subjects? That is why his subjects pay him a tax. If the lord isn’t willing to protect them, why should they honor him with money, crops, or even respect?”
“You might not have noticed,” the deacon replied, “but we are between lords at the moment.”
“So then, you don’t intend to continue taxing these people for the time they are without protection?”
“Well, I didn’t mean that—”
“So, you do intend to uphold the responsibility of a steward?”
“Well, I—”
“Now I can understand your hesitation to overstep your authority and open the manor house to the village, so I am certain you will want to take the other option.”
“Other option?” The cleric was holding another slice of mutton to his mouth, but sat too distracted to bite.
“Yes, as steward and acting lord it falls on you to protect this village in his stead, and since inviting them into the house at night is out of the question then I presume you will be taking to the field to fight the beast.”
“Fight it?” He dropped the mutton on his lap. “I don’t think—”
Before he could say any more, Hadrian went on. “The good news is that I can help you there. I have an extra sword if you are missing one, and since you have been so kind as to let me board my horse at the stable I think the least I can do is lend her to you for the fight. Now I have heard that some people have determined where the lair of the beast is so it really seems a simple matter of—”
“I—I don’t recall saying that lodging the people in the manor at night was out of the question,” the deacon said loudly enough to interrupt Hadrian, so loud that several heads turned. He lowered his voice and added. “I was merely stating that it was something I had to consider carefully. You see, the mantle of leadership is a heavy one indeed, and I need to weigh the consequences of every act I make as they can break as well as mend. No, no, you can’t rush into these things.”
“That is very understandable and very wise, I might add,” Hadrian agreed, keeping his voice loud enough for others to hear him. “But the margrave was killed well over two weeks ago, so I am certain you have come to a decision by now?”
The deacon caught the interested looks of several of the villagers. Those who had finished their meals wandered over. One was Dillon McDern, who was taller than the rest and stood watching them.
“I—ah.”
“Everyone!” Hadrian shouted. “Gather round, the deacon wants to talk with us about the defense of the village.”
The crowd of mourners, plates in hand, turned and gathered in a circle around the well. All eyes turned to Deacon Tomas who suddenly looked like a defenseless rabbit caught in a trap.
“I—um,” the deacon started to say then slumped his shoulders and said in a loud voice, “in light of the recent attacks on houses, everyone is invited to spend nights in the protection of the castle.”
The crowd murmured to each other and then Russell Bothwick called out, “Will there be enough room for everyone?”
The deacon looked as if he was about to reconsider when Hadrian stood up. “I’m sure there’s plenty of room in the house for all the women and children and most of the married men. Those single men, thirteen or older, can spend the night in the stables, smokehouse, and other outbuildings. Each of them has stronger walls and roofs than any of the village homes.”
The inhabitants of the village began to cluster now in earnest.
“And our livestock? Do we abandon them to the beast?” another farmer asked. Hadrian did not recognize him. “Without the livestock we’ll have no meat, no wool, or field animals for work.”
“I’ve got Amble and Ramble to think of,” McDern said. “Dahlgren would be in a sorry state if ’n I let sumpin’ happen to those oxen.”
Hadrian jumped to the rim of the well where he stood above them with one arm on the windlass. “There’s plenty of room inside the stockade walls for all the animals where they will be safer than they have been in your homes. Remember there is safety in numbers. If you sit alone in the dark it is easy for anything to kill you, but the creature will not be so bold as to enter a fenced castle with the entire village watching. We can also build bonfires outside the walls for light.”
This brought gasps. “But light draws the creature!”
“Well, from what I can see. It doesn’t have difficulty finding you in the dark.”
The villagers looked from Hadrian to Deacon Tomas and back again.