"What does that mean?" whispered the Strong Man as even more soldiers appeared on the rocks. "Can there be another way into the castle? I’ll go and look. But you’re not coming with me this time. Please! I promised the Bluejay. He’d punch my nose in anyway if he knew you were here."
"No, he wouldn’t," Resa whispered back, but she stayed where she was, and the Strong Man slipped away as she stood under the trees, freezing and watching him go.
The water of the lake was lapping on the bank almost to the toes of her boots, and she thought she could see faces under the mirrorlike surface, faces pressed flat like patterns on the back of a stingray. Shuddering, she retreated and heard footsteps behind her.
"Hey, you there."
She spun around. A soldier was standing among the trees, sword in hand. Run, Resa!
"Rat," said the Mole, "I simply can’t go and turn in, and go to sleep, and do nothing, even though there doesn’t seem to be anything to be done."
She was faster than he was, with his weapons and heavy shirt of mail, but he called another man up, and this one had a crossbow. Faster, Resa! From tree to tree, hiding and then running, as children do. As she would have played with Meggie if she’d been there when her daughter was still small. All those years missed. . .
An arrow drove into the tree beside her. Another buried itself in the ground just in front of her feet. "Don’t follow me, Resa. I have to know you’ll be there when I come back." Oh, Mo. It’s so much harder to wait, just to keep on waiting.
She ducked behind a tree and drew her knife. They were coming closer, weren’t they? Run on, Resa. But her legs were weak with fear. Breathing heavily, she staggered to the shelter of the next tree — and felt a large hand over her mouth.
"Call and tell them you’re surrendering!" the Strong Man whispered. "But don’t go toward them. Make them come to you.
Resa nodded and put the knife away. The two soldiers called something to each other. She felt sick with fear as she put out her arm from behind the tree and asked them not to shoot, her voice trembling. She waited until the Strong Man had crawled away — with astonishing agility for a man of his size before she emerged from the shelter of the tree with her hands in the air. The eyes under the soldiers’ helmets widened in surprise as they saw she was a woman. Their smiles boded no good, even though they lowered their weapons, but before one of them could grab her, the Strong Man was behind them, and winding an arm around the neck of each. Resa turned away as he killed them. She threw up in the damp grass, hand pressed to her belly, afraid the child had sensed her terror.
"They’re all over the place!" The Strong Man pulled her to her feet. His shoulder was bleeding so freely that it dyed his shirt red. "One of them had a knife. ‘Watch out for knives, Lazaro,’ that’s what Doria always says. That little fellow’s far cleverer than me." He was swaying so much that Resa had to support him. They staggered on together, farther into the trees.
"The Piper is here, too," the Strong Man whispered. "Those were his men we saw on the rocks. Seems there’s a tunnel under the lake there, all the way to the castle. And I’m afraid there’s more bad news."
He looked around. Voices came over from the banks of the lake. Suppose the men’s bodies were found? The Strong Man led her to a burrow in the ground that smelled of brownies.
Resa heard the sobbing as soon as she made her way into it. The Strong Man was groaning as he crawled in after her. Something furry crouched there in the darkness.
At first Resa thought it really was a brownie. Then she remembered the description Meggie had given her of Violante’s servant. What was his name? Yes, Tullio.
She reached for the furry hand. Violante’s servant stared at her eyes wide with fear.
"What’s happened? I’m the Bluejay’s wife! Please, is he still alive?"
He went on staring at her with his dark eyes, which were round like an animal’s.
"They’re all dead," he whispered. Resa’s heart began to falter as if it had forgotten how to beat. "There’s blood everywhere. They’ve locked Violante in her room, and as for the Bluejay. . . ."
What had they done to him? No, she didn’t want to hear. Resa closed her eyes as if that would take her back to Elinor’s house, the peaceful garden, where she could go over to Mo’s workshop. . . .