At the very top of the rim of the hollow hill, however, I stopped dead in my tracks, my flesh crawling in horror as the aroma of wood-smoke gently drifted into my nostrils. Her fire! She must just have lit it or rekindled it from embers, piling new twigs and branches to feed it, and if I could smell it from here, so would anyone else who came within smelling distance. I turned on my heel and headed back the way I had come, wondering already how I was going to persuade her that she would have to live without fire for at least a week. I had to convince her of the danger of her fire without reawakening a fear of rape and mutilation in her mind.
I had no doubt of the welcome with which she saw me entering her little valley. She climbed all over me, her warm mouth covering my face with kisses that I was happy to return. But eventually I took a firm grip on myself and pushed her gently away, holding her firmly by the wrists until she stood looking at me expectantly. When I was sure I had her attention, I pointed to the fire and made a show of sniffing the smoke. She frowned at me at first, and then her face cleared and she smiled, tugging at the fabric of her tunic, trying to hold it up to me with one hand and beckoning me to approach with the other. Wondering what in Hades was in her mind, I approached her and let her pull my unresisting head down to her tunic. It smelled of wood- smoke! She had understood me.
Encouraged, I smiled and nodded at her and went back to the fire, where I traced the path of the smoke upwards with my open hands, pointing to where it was drifting into and over the trees. She followed with her eyes and nodded again to me, her smile now a little more uncertain. I kept my face solemn as I mimed the way the smoke drifted, and how I, or anyone else, smelled it in passing. My nostrils twitching like a rabbit, I feigned surprise, identification, then a search among the bushes, sniffing all the time, and then discovery of her fire.
She understood, watching me closely. Convinced now that nothing I did would escape her, I crossed to the pile of wood beside the fire and selected small, dry sticks that would burn with a minimum of smoke. I carried these a little way from the fire and lit them with a branch from the existing fire. When they were burning brightly, I indicated that there was no smoke, or very little. Quickly then, I crossed to the nearest bush and tore off a green twig which I threw on the big fire. It began to smoke immediately, and I pulled it off and stamped it out. I then took my helmet off, filled it with water from the lake, and doused the large fire, leaving the small one burning clearly.
When I looked at her again she nodded her head firmly to show she understood and then pointed to the shrivelled green bough I had stamped out. She waved her arms to indicate smoke and shook her head in a determined negative. No more smoke. I breathed a sigh of relief and gratitude for her obvious intelligence, but her next series of movements worried me again. She moved close to me and took the helmet from my hands, holding it upright, and then laid her hand flat against my bronze breastplate, after which she drew the sword from the scabbard by my side, bracing the helmet against the sheath for purchase. I made no move to stop her. She looked at the sword and then at me and then she gestured up at the hills around us, swinging the sword, and sniffed, looking around her for the source of the smell, which meant, You are wearing armour, dressed for war, and you mean that there are others up there, enemies, who might smell my fire, don't you?
I nodded slowly and emphatically, and she returned my nod. Then she replaced the sword in its scabbard, returned to the lake to refill my helmet with water, and doused the remaining fire. She was perfectly calm and self-possessed, and I knew there would be no smoke coming from the valley until I returned. I reached out and grasped her gently by the upper arms and watched her great eyes watching my lips.
"Woman," I told her, smiling, "beautiful, wondrous woman, you have me bewitched!" She watched my lips move, and cocked her head slightly to the side in that enchanting way of hers, before moving close to me and slipping her arms around me, armour and all. Time passed as we stood there hugging each other, I know not how long, and then I became aware again of where and who I was, and of what remained for me to do. She felt me tense as the awareness came to me, and leaned backwards in my arms, raising an inquiring eyebrow and a pointed finger towards the path.
I kissed and released her, hating time and the way it sped. As I picked up my helmet, I pointed again to the fireplace, with a warning shake of my head which she repeated. She would not forget. One more hasty kiss, and I was on my way back to the outside world. My horse whickered in recognition as he came to meet me and I heaved myself up into the saddle with a great sigh of regret.
As soon as I was mounted, I set him at a gallop on the road for the nearest stock farm, leaving him to pick his own way as I looked around me in every direction for signs of life. I was far from sociable as I clattered into Terrix's farm and summoned the senior officer. I tersely explained the situation, and the need to start his men moving out immediately, in small groups, to the north and east. He listened without comment as I emphasized the danger of leaving any recognizable trail or signs that a large number of men and horses had left the area. When I had finished speaking, I asked him if he had any questions.
"Just one, Commander. Where are they going? I know how you want my men to go, but not where?" There was a nuance in the tone of his voice that I couldn't define, but it made me realize that I was being unfair to this man, who had done nothing to justify my shortness with him. In an effort to moderate my harshness, I summoned a smile.
"Your pardon. My mind is taken up with so many details that I tend to lose sight of the major objectives. Years ago, before we drew in our borders, we had established a camp far to the north-east, towards Aquae Sulis. Do you remember it?"
He nodded, smiling. "Aye, Commander Merlyn, I remember it well. I was second in command there, just before we abandoned."
"Good. Then you know the place. That's our marshalling point. Have your men assemble there and wait with the contingents from the other farms for Commander Uther and myself to join you. We will be there before noon on the third day from now. You should be set to march when we arrive."
"To march back here, you mean?"
"Aye, or wherever. It depends on where the enemy appears. But there's one thing more. Have your people load up every extra piece of supply material you have. Have them do it today and move it all to Camulod as soon as they can. I want nothing left out here that Lot's people might be able to use."