Merlin ignored the order. “I’ve been looking all over for you. Half the guards are combing the castle for your body, and Sir Kay is a wreck. Where did you run off to?”
“It doesn’t matter, but I must speak to you privately. Both of you, and Sir Kay and Sir Ector as well,” Britt said.
“Oh no you don’t. You owe me an explanation, I demand it. You never told me you ordered armor for yourself before you popped up by the throne with a rousing speech! You should have told me, I could have helped you,” Merlin said.
“No, you couldn’t have. You have been as useful as a pigeon in matters concerning Morgause,” Britt scoffed. “You said so yourself you couldn’t break the enchantment.”
“My Lord,” Sir Ulfius tried again.
“I was lying! There would be more meaning if you were able to break the hold it had on your men. It turned out for the best.”
“That’s a fine thing to say now that the need for magic is over with. You’re nothing but a roadside magician.”
“What?”
“My Lord.”
“Yes, Sir Ulfius?” Britt asked, turning to face the older knight before Merlin could recover from the blow to his pride.
“Merlin tells me you are looking for the Round Table?”
“I am.”
“I know the table to which you refer to.”
“You do?”
“Yes, My Lord. I do not know it’s current location but I am searching for it.”
Merlin draped an arm across Britt’s shoulders, clamping down on her like he thought she might run. “While that is marvelous news we had best return to the castle, lest Kay rips his mustache off his face.”
“When we see him we should talk about the assassination attempt,” Britt said.
“The what?”
“Someone is going to try to kill me.”
“WHAT?”
“They will strike against you in the middle of the hunting party?” Sir Ector said as he drummed his fat fingers on the table.
It had taken Britt a short while to explain the finer details of the assassination attempt Morgause had told her about. The most difficult part was explaining it without using the word assassin—apparently it didn’t exist yet as Merlin nor any of the knights knew what it meant.
“Strategically speaking it’s the best opportunity Lot would have. The party will undoubtedly go into the forest where it would be easy to hide any number of warriors. All members of the party will be armed, but that would provide a cover for the killers if they tried to portray Arthur’s death as a member of the party misfiring an arrow,” Sir Kay said.
“So Arthur remains at the castle and the attempt is thwarted,” Sir Ulfius said.
Merlin narrowed his eyes. “No.”
Sir Kay’s grip on the pommel of his sword tightened, and Sir Ector roared. It was Sir Ulfius who calmly said, “Are you mad?”
“If we catch Lot’s men in the act we can make them talk. We can then publically denounce the plot against Arthur’s life—which will help us control Lot.”
“Morgause is all but giving Arthur her sons. We have no need to try and control him,” Sir Ulfius said.
“But if we make the plot public Lot’s allies will back away from him,” Britt predicted.
Merlin affectionately patted Britt on the head. “Well thought,” he praised. “Everyone is at peace right now because they can’t afford another war. King Pellinore is indebted to us for letting him cross near Camelot to return home. He freely admitted he won’t attack again and I believe him. I’ve heard of his wife, she’s a strong lass from the north and she’ll skin him alive if he rides off to war again. Ryence is backing out of his war with King Leodegrance as fast as he can now that King Bors and King Ban have come out to play. King Urien won’t lift a toe to help Lot—brother-in-law or not—as long as we have Ywain. Without the support of his three closest allies you can be certain no one else will step in to help Lot.”
“In other words you will have isolated him and broken his political power,” Sir Ulfius said.
Sir Ector shook his head. “I still don’t like it.”
“You are gambling with My Lord’s life to make a political move. If My Lord is injured it will not bode well,” Sir Kay said, his words filled with unspoken promises.
“You forget something important,” Merlin delicately said. “If we don’t catch this first plot and Arthur plays invalid and misses the party it doesn’t mean that Lot’s attempts to kill Arthur are over. It means the only one we know about has been canceled. Lot may very well make any number of attempts, which will be far harder to fend off as we will not know when and where they will take place.”
Sir Ector and Sir Kay were quiet as they mulled over Merlin’s words.
“We are postulating all of this based off the words of a foreign queen with witch powers. Britt, are you certain of this?” Sir Ulfius asked.
“It’s Arthur,” Merlin hissed. Even in closed rooms using Britt’s real name was forbidden.