Honor Crowned by Michael G. Southwick Read Free Book Online

out a place to rest on his own.
    “Sorry Con, two marks is all I dare give if they’re to get far enough away.  Do you think you’ll be ready by then?”
    “I ain’t goin’ nowhere!” the scout said gruffly.  “If’n yer stayin’, I’m stayin’.  An' I’ll tell ya this right now.  Ain’t none of the others’ll be willin’ to leave either.”
    “Whether they want to or not, I’ll need some of them to get these people to safety.”
    Just then, a hand grasped Jorem’s shoulder from behind and squeezed firmly.  Turning, he was confronted with Neth’s sparkling blue eyes.  Her face was set with determination.  A slight smile curved the corner of her mouth.
    “I’ll be staying as well.”  She sounded more resigned than determined.  “This is my home.  I hold few here close, but I’ll not leave them to die without a fight.”
    “Well, if we’re going to fight, we’d better come up with some plans,” Jorem responded.  “Gather up whatever maps of this area you can find and meet me in the dining hall.”

 
    Chapter VIII
     
    Two marks later Jorem walked out to the courtyard to see off those who had chosen to leave.  To his surprise, there was only one person there, Lady Bethania. She looked up at him as he approached, and a sad smile came to her face.
    “I thought at least some might leave,” she said in a quiet voice.  “The old will not or cannot leave their homes and friends.  The children will not leave without them.”
    “It’s probably just as well.  The invaders would likely have hunted them down eventually.”  Jorem knew he was being a bit blunt, but the time for niceties was past.
    “I need you and your council to meet me in the dining hall.  We have a battle to plan and little time to prepare.”
    “Do we have any chance at all?” she asked plaintively.
    Jorem was silent for a moment before answering.  “Personally, I have no desire to die here, so I’m going to use everything and everyone I can get my hands on.  If we go into this thinking we’re going to lose, we already have.  It’s not going to be pretty.  It’s not going to be heroic.  We live or we die by what we decide today.”
    Together they turned and walked back into Cragg Keep. Jorem’s men and Neth were waiting for him when he entered the dining hall.  Moments later, several elderly men and women came in followed by a few of the older children.  The children were small, but for some of Jorem’s ideas he thought they could be very helpful.
    Several maps were spread across a large table.  Jorem gestured for everyone to gather around.  He’d spent the last two marks poring over every detail of each map.  He expected to spend most of the night doing the same.  They would need to take advantage of everything the land had to offer.
    Shuffling through the maps, Jorem pulled out the one he wanted to start with.  Spreading it out flat, he picked up a piece of marking stick.  Cragg Keep was just a dot on this map.  The canyons, streams and forest were well-defined on the map for quite a distance around the Keep.
    “This is where we’ll start our fight.”  Jorem drew a line across the map a good day’s march north of the Keep.  Several of the “council” looked at Jorem as if he were insane.  A few of Jorem’s men looked a bit dubious about the plan as well.
    “You plan to attack?” one of them finally asked.
    “In a m anner of speaking,” Jorem said, “yes.  These creatures, whatever they are, aren’t coming to defeat us, they’re coming to kill.  The more of them we can take down before they get here the better.”
    “So,” Neth said with a raised eyebrow, “what have you got in mind?”
    “At first light tomorrow, or earlier if they can, I’m sending eight of my men up here.” Jorem pointed at the line he’d drawn.  “I want snares, traps, pits, anything their devious minds can come up with to kill or incapacitate whatever comes this way.”
    “Jake and I want in