Though She With Giants Fight! - Episode 12

Aefelthrith struggled to free herself from the harsh grasp of whoever it was that had hold of her.

“Nah then, missy, you come along quietly” Her captor suggested.

Aefelthrith decided that ‘quietly’ was the last thing that was going to happen.  She bit down hard on the hand over her mouth.  There was an almighty shriek and she was dropped to the floor.

“Yer bitch!  Look what yer done!”

The watchman, who had been holding her, was clutching his injured hand, from which blood was dripping.  Aefelthrith grinned, grimly and took the opportunity to yell,

“GLAD!!”  as loud as she could.

She became aware of a sword pointing at her throat.

“That is very useful, young lady” The Sergeant holding the sword commented, “we were a’lookin’ for two women, one known as ‘Glad’, and now, ‘ere she is, within shouting distance!”  He smiled, and it was a smile with a hint of menace.

Two watchmen were carrying Gladwys, bodily, into the hall, scratching and wrestling.

“Now then, you two are under arrest for the murder of Watchman Ernie Norris.”  The Sergeant announced.  “I reckon I should introduce myself, I’m Sergeant Herbert Norris.”  He leaned toward Aefelthrith,  “Ernie was my brother” He hissed. 

Now that she looked, she could see the resemblance.  The same piggy little eyes, the stubble, the swarthy appearance, the unkempt hair, it was the face that she saw so often in her nightmares.

“It’s taken a long time to track you two down, but now…we’ve got you!”  The Sergeant was really pleased with himself, and was just enjoying his triumph, when he became aware of the sharp point of, what had to be a sword, sticking into the base of his spine.

“Unhand these women!”  An imperious voice behind him instructed.

“Now, why should I do that, sir?”

“Because these are not the women you are looking for”

“I rather think they are, sir”

“Turn around, slowly” The voice commanded.  The Sergeant did as he was told and found himself facing a grand gentleman with a garish dress coat and a plumed hat.  “These ladies are known to me, Sergeant.  Allow me to introduce myself, I am Captain D’Arbanville of ‘The Golden Fleece’”

“And ‘ow would a fine gentleman like yerself know a pair of scrubbers like these?”

“They are not ‘scrubbers’ as you style them.  The lady there…” He pointed toward Aefelthrith, who was still slumped on the floor, next to the watchman tending his bleeding hand.  “She is my sister, Aefelthrith.  The other lady, Gwladys, is my aunt”

“But…but…they were cleanin’ ‘ere, I saw ‘em!”  The Sergeant protested.

“I am aware of that, Sergeant” The Captain sighed, “it is their little game, their fancy if you will.  They like to dress up as common cleaners and pretend they are serving in the houses of the gentry.  A harmless, if slightly eccentric, pastime”

“Yeah, but they answer the description of the women what we are lookin’ fer.  Got the same names, an’ all!”  The Sergeant protested.

“I trust, sir, that you will accept the word of a Gentleman when I tell you that these ladies are entirely innocent of the charges you have laid?”  Captain D’Arbanville glared at the Sergeant and his men.

“Of course, sir” The Sergeant nodded, “clearly we are mistaken.  Officers of the Watch, about your business!”  He screeched the last sentence as a command and the small group marched out of the house, with some sotto voce grumbling on the lines of ‘Look what she’s done to me ‘and!’

Captain D’Arbanville watched them until they were well away from the house and then turned to Aefelthrith and Gwladys.

“Are you two alright?”  He asked, with concern.

“You were magnificent!” Aefelthrith beamed.

“Nice one, Captain” Gwladys winked.

“Just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”  He said, modestly, “I was in the Drawing Room, discussing matters of finance with the Master of the House, when I heard a commotion” He explained, “Expecting banditry, I came out, with my sword drawn, and found you!  We need to get you out of here, whereabouts do you live?”

“We’ve got a garret above a shop, just along the road from ‘ere” Gwladys said.

“Right, then that’s where we need to go without delay”

“But, we have work to do here!” Aefelthrith protested.

“Look, I have probably only managed to divert those men for a short time.  My guess is, they will be back.  We need to get you to a place of safety”

Gwladys and Aefelthrith collected their work things and led the way, down the street, to their humble abode.  Once in the attic, Captain D’Arbanville looked very much out of place.

“Is this where you live?”  He asked, incredulously, “All the time?”

“It’s clean and dry an’ it does us” Gwladys said, as she bustled about getting their bags.

“If you say so” The Captain looked at his surroundings with some distaste, “the Sergeant of the Watch seemed to be accusing you of something.  What was that all about?”

“Ah…” Aefelthrith looked at the floor and blushed.  “It is a little awkward…” She began, eventually.

“In our last town, your young Lady ‘ere were accosted, style of thing.  ’E were goin’ to take ‘er ‘onour, so I belted ‘im over the nut with a lump of wood” Gwladys explained.  “It didn’t do ‘im much good!”

“That is how we came to be here” Aefelthrith nodded, “we thought we would be safe if we were miles from the scene of the crime.  Gwladys suggested a busy port, where people would be coming and going all the time and…why are you packing our bags, Gwladys?”

“We’ve got to get gone, lovey.  ‘E knows, don’tcher?”

“Gwladys is right, Aefelthrith.  I too need to make arrangements to leave” The Captain agreed.

“You do!  Why should that be?” Aefelthrith frowned.

“I cannot risk having the Watch take an interest in me.”  The Captain shook his head, miserably, “I’m rather afraid that I have misled you, Aefelthrith”

“In what way?”

“I truly wish I did not have to tell you this, but…I’m a fraud!”  The Captain looked dejected.

“Told yer!” Gwladys smirked.

“A fraud?  How can you be a fraud?”

“There is no ship.  I am no sea captain”

“The Golden Fleece!” Gwladys chuckled, “I thought that were a good ‘un”

“Dolly, my wife’s idea.” The ‘Captain’ nodded, “she said if anyone was stupid enough to fall for it, even when they should have known what they were getting themselves into just from the name of the ship…”

“I don’t understand!  What do you mean, there’s no ship?”  Aefelthrith was puzzled.

“When I left the battle, all of those months ago, I was badly wounded…”

“Yer chopped yer own ‘and orf” Gwladys observed.

“Yes, indeed, that is so” The ‘Captain’ conceded, “nevertheless, for whatever reason, I was badly wounded.  I rode away as fast and far as I could, but I was not in my right senses.  I could not come to terms with the sight of so many good men having been butchered for what, in all honesty was, my vanity.”

“Oh no, sir, no!” Aefelthrith shook her head.

“I dunno so much, sounds about right to me!”  Gwladys observed.

“I do not know how long I rode for, it must have been many hours.  I was losing a lot of blood and I think I must have fainted or something.  Anyway, I arrived at an inn, where Dolly was serving.  She took pity on me and nursed me back to full health.”

“I am indebted to her” Aefelthrith said, solemnly.

“Dolly had this plumed hat and the dress coat in a trunk, left at the inn by a previous customer.  She had this bright idea that, as I came across as a Gentleman (as she put it) we could travel from port to port, getting people to invest in a voyage to the Indies in a fictional ship.  She was correct!”  He smiled, thinly.

“So, there’s no ship!  You’re not a sea captain!”

“I think that is what I said, Aefelthrith.”  The ‘Captain’ nodded, “I take no pride in my deception.  Fortuitously, this was to be our last port of call.  Dolly, as you know, is great with child and we could not have realistically continued.  We have a little money put aside.  My hope is that we can purchase an inn, somewhere out of the way, where we can live undisturbed and raise our child”

“I am speechless” Aefelthrith looked shocked.

“Quite a neat little number, Captain” Gwladys nodded, approvingly.

“I dislike deceiving men of quality but, I have to say, so many are remarkably gullible.”  The ‘Captain’ sighed, “another happy outcome of being perceived as a ‘Gentleman’ is that people take your word for everything, without question, like your Sergeant.  Therefore, we never have to actually pay for anything, such as our landlord, tailor or grocer, because they have my word that we will pay, eventually, by which time, of course, we have usually moved on to pastures new”

“How did it come to this?”  Aefelthrith shook her head, sadly.

“I share your concern, Aefelthrith and I would not, willingly, have any of us in this situation but, I believe the adage is ‘needs must..?”

“…when the devil drives.’  That’s right enough, sir” Gwladys agreed, busily stuffing items into bags.

“Now I must head homeward and warn Dolly.  What will you do?”  He looked at Aefelthrith with concern.

“I really do not know” Aefelthrith answered, miserably.

“Don’tcher worry abaht ‘er, Captain.  We’ll be on the next ship out of ‘ere” Gwladys announced.

“We will?” Aefelthrith asked, with surprise.

“That sounds commendably sensible.”  The ‘Captain’ bent and kissed Aefelthrith’s hand, “I wish you godspeed, take great care of yourself, Aefelthrith”

“And you, my Lord, and you” A tear etched its way down Aefelthrith’s grimy cheek.

You can find the rest of the story in the collection, here on ABCtales:

The Chronicles of a Lady (and her Maid)