The Knight at Dawn (3 page)

“Look!” said Annie, peering through the mist. “A windmill! Right over there!”

 

“Yeah, there's a windmill in here, too,” said Jack, pointing at the picture.

“Look at the
real
one, Jack,” said Annie. “Not the one in the book.”

A piercing shriek split the air.

“Yikes,” said Annie. “It sounded like it came from that little house over there!” She pointed through the fog.

“There's a little house
here
,” said Jack, studying the picture. He turned the page and read:

Jack wrote in his notebook:

“We must be in the inner ward,” said Jack.

“Listen!” whispered Annie. “You hear that? Drums! Horns! They're coming from the castle. Let's go see.”

“Wait,” said Jack. He turned more pages of the book.

“I want to see what's
really
going on, Jack. Not what's in the book,” said Annie.

“But look at this!” said Jack.

He pointed to a picture of a big party. Men were standing by the door, playing drums and horns.

He read:

“You can look at the book. I'm going to the real feast,” said Annie.

“Wait,” said Jack, studying the picture. It showed boys his age carrying trays of food. Whole pigs. Pies. Peacocks with all their feathers.
Peacocks
?

Jack wrote:

He held up the book to show Annie. “Look, I think they eat—”

Where was she? Gone. Again.

Jack looked through the fog.

He heard the real drums and the real horns. He saw the real hawk house, the real windmill, the real moat.

He saw Annie dashing across the real drawbridge. Then she vanished through the gate leading to the castle.

“I'm going to kill her,” muttered Jack.

He threw his stuff into his pack and moved toward the drawbridge. He hoped no one would see him.

It was getting darker. It must be night.

When he got to the bridge, he started across. The wooden planks creaked under his feet.

He peered over the edge of the bridge. Were there any crocodiles in the moat? He couldn't tell.

“Halt!” someone shouted. A guard on top of the castle wall was looking down.

Jack dashed across the bridge. He ran through the castle gate and into the courtyard.

From inside the castle came the sounds of music, shouting, and laughter.

Jack hurried to a dark corner and crouched down. He shivered as he looked around for Annie.

Torches lit the high wall around the courtyard. The courtyard was nearly empty.

Two boys led horses that clopped over the gray cobblestones.

“
Neeee-hhhh
!”

Jack turned. It was the knight's black horse!

“Psssst!”

He peered into the darkness.

There was Annie.

She was hiding behind a well in the center of the courtyard. She waved at him.

Jack waved back. He waited till the boys and horses disappeared inside the stable. Then he dashed to the well.

“I'm going to find the music!” whispered Annie. “Are you coming?”

“Okay,” Jack said with a sigh.

They tiptoed together across the cobblestones. Then they slipped into the entrance of the castle.

Noise and music came from a bright room in front of them. They stood on one side of the doorway and peeked in.

“The feast in the Great Hall!” whispered Jack. He held his breath as he stared in awe.

A giant fireplace blazed at one end of the noisy room. Antlers and rugs hung on the stone walls. Flowers covered the floor. Boys in short dresses carried huge trays of food.

Dogs were fighting over bones under the tables.

People in bright clothes and funny hats strolled among the crowd. Some played funny-shaped guitars. Some tossed balls in the air. Some balanced swords on their hands.

Men and women dressed in capes and furs sat at long, crowded wooden tables.

“I wonder which one is the knight,” said Jack.

“I don't know,” whispered Annie. “But they're eating with their fingers.”

Suddenly, someone shouted behind them.

Jack whirled around.

A man carrying a tray of pies was standing a few feet away.

“Who art thou?” he asked angrily.

“Jack,” squeaked Jack.

“Annie,” squeaked Annie.

Then they ran as fast as they could down a dimly lit hallway.

“Come on!” cried Annie.

Jack raced behind her.

Were they being followed?

“Here! Quick!” Annie dashed toward a door off the hallway. She pushed the door open. The two of them stumbled into a dark, cold room. The door creaked shut behind them.

“Give me the flashlight,” said Annie. Jack handed it to her, and she switched it on.

Yikes! A row of knights right in front of them!

 

Annie flicked off the light.

Silence.

“They aren't moving,” Jack whispered.

Annie turned the light back on.

“They're just suits,” Jack said.

“Without heads,” said Annie.

“Let me have the flashlight a second,” said Jack. “So I can look in the book.”

Annie handed him the flashlight. He pulled out the castle book. He flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for.

Jack put the book away. “It's called the armory,” he said. “It's where armor and weapons are stored.”

He shined the flashlight around the room.

“Oh, man,” whispered Jack.

The light fell on shiny breastplates, leg plates, arm plates. On shelves filled with
helmets and weapons. On shields, spears, swords, crossbows, clubs, battle-axes.

There was a noise in the hall. Voices!

“Let's hide!” said Annie.

“Wait,” said Jack. “I've got to check on something first.”