Rebels of Fortune: The Journey of Philys and Julianna.

It was well after dark when the great manor house at last came into view. The first rays of the pale moonlight revealed only a vague outline, but in a few moments, our eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness. I could already make out the tiles on the roof and the outlines of several windows.

The narrow path we'd been following had brought us within twenty yards of the house before it came to an end in a thicket of thorn bushes. We paused there, looking back and forth between the building before us and the cover of trees behind us.

"What do you think?" Julianna whispered, her voice barely audible. It was a question she'd asked me many times already during our long journey from Gaul. Always before, my answer had been that I didn't know yet; I would find out in due time. But now that we were here, I knew what my answer would be.

"We should go in," I said firmly. "Now."

Julianna nodded reluctantly and drew her cloak around her shoulders in a gesture that was so familiar to me it was almost painful. I took a deep breath and started forward, straining my eyes for any sign of movement within the house or around it. There was nothing but darkness, however, save for a single lighted window on the second story, where a lamp burned low in a small chamber overlooking the garden at the rear of the house.

There was no other place as close to us as this one; we would have to pass within two feet of it to reach the door at all. Yet there were already guards stationed inside, who must surely have heard our approach by now. The only question was whether they were sitting up waiting for us or asleep in their beds already; if they were asleep we might be able to slip past unnoticed while they still slept...but if they were sitting up...we would most likely die with them right here on this spot before we had gone ten paces further into their home. And yet: did we have any choice?

A slender figure emerged from behind me and joined me at my side; my wife, who saw things as clearly as I did when matters grew dangerous--and sometimes more clearly than I did when they didn't! She peered toward the window where I had seen the lamp burning earlier; I had known she would do that without even having to ask her myself; Julianna rarely failed to see what needed to be seen when she looked at something directly--and many times she saw much else besides!

She turned back toward me an instant later and nodded once decisively: yes! Looking back at the window again myself, I could now see two men seated at a table inside; one sat quietly with his head bowed over his arms upon the table top--the other leaned close to him and spoke softly into his ear at intervals without pausing between sentences. From what little we could see from our position outside their chamber, it seemed likely that he had just told his companion all about our recent exploits and rumored intentions! They were indeed awake--and listening intently now!

I looked quickly at Julianna once more and saw that she understood what must be done immediately now--before those two men reached for their swords and shouted for help! She gave me one quick nod, then stood behind me with her hands over my own as I lifted my bow slowly through the air above my shoulder so that its deadly point aimed directly through that small windowpane on its way toward those two unsuspecting heads! An instant later came a sharp *thunk* as its sharp blade bit deeply into wood; then followed another *thunk* barely half a second later as Juliana's arrow followed mine through that same windowpane in turn! The two men slumped over onto their sides as blood began to spill onto their clothing from wounds in their necks--a sight which sent chills through me every time I saw it happen...but not enough to make me fail in my task! A third arrow flew invisibly through darkness from Juliana's bow next--then another from mine...then another ...until both those men lay motionless upon those wooden chairs like ragdolls tossed aside by careless children careless children with too much time on their hands...too much time and too many weapons available for use against them!