Part Four. The End Game. Chapter I. Twice Taken. 1. Forced Play Against Time

Ruins of the Lymond Convent

June 1, 1548

Lymond's band is dissolved with his customary heavy handedness when it comes to this group of rogues and misfits. Realizing they will not be happy about the slaying of the golden goose, the Master has Turkey Mat hide most of the men's pay as an inducement to accept the inevitable. And, of course, Lymond is correct when he says the men could not make him stay if they tried. There is a reason beyond his title they call him "Master."

Will is unhappy on multiple fronts. He wants the band to become his, but he is smart enough to realize that is not going to happen. The dissolution means it is time for Lymond to travel to England to meet Samuel Harvey on June 2, that is, time for Will Scott to act. He has been watching messengers come and go at the Ostrich Inn for some time and knew beforehand the end of the band was nigh.

It is interesting that Lymond trusted Will to hide the gold that is the pay of the men "with special claims"--and that Lymond himself does not know where the gold is hidden. Furthermore, Lymond does not guess that Will has hidden the gold in the convent where his sister died until they have already passed it. This seems unlike Lymond, who is almost always several steps ahead of everyone, especially Will Scott. Has he actually come to trust Will? I don't think so. Has he dropped his guard? So it seems, but the question then is why? Why is he so distracted?

Lymond is in no doubt whatsoever that Will has betrayed him (and Turkey) to Andrew Hunter. Did Will figure Turkey Mat's life into his bargain with death? Will seems willing to die himself if need be, and Lymond sounds as though he means it when he says "if I were alone I'd say throw and be damned." But at the last moment, Lymond takes the offensive when Will's eyes are momentarily diverted to follow the sword that Lymond throws across the floor. And the Master would have subdued his well-trained pupil had Will not hidden a small knife on his person.

What is Will's motive for the betrayal? He tells himself repeatedly, even obsessively, it is because Lymond is a cold, calculating killer, a murderer of "girls": "Kill girls! He could kill girls..." Will seems to have a morbid fascination with Lymond's relationship with females: Christian is a "girl" Lymond has used and abused. Mariotta he mercilessly bullied and killed her child. Eloise is the sister he murdered and even now seems to feel nothing for. Even Margaret Douglas has been treated crudely and cruelly by the Master. However, I believe Lymond's analysis of Will's motives is far more incisive and does in fact lay out a true one: revenge.

"...revenge ... for every doubt and indignity and misery that Scott had suffered [at Lymond's hands]."

It is also important to remember that Will still believes Lymond is planning to sell him to the English, which is also a powerful motive for betraying the Master.

*** 

"heartsease quailed under their hoofs..."

Will does not know until Lymond is brought out of the ruins if he has killed his former leader or merely wounded him. The injury to Lymond's shoulder is not serious enough to shut Lymond's irreverent, sardonic mouth.

The contrast between Will and Lymond is stark: both are dirty and injured and disheveled, but Lymond retains his cat-like cool while Scott's every emotion plays out on his face.

I would be remiss if I did not call attention to the beautiful, expressive language of this section's penultimate paragraph, which describes the countryside and the convent, "wearing the nimbus of its injuries like a coronal," as Hunter's men take the injured Lymond and Turkey Mat away.

***

In the last chapter we found out that Lymond had been substituting his messages for Will Scott's, thanks to Sybilla's intervention. However, Will has managed to communicate on his own with Hunter (probably using the Ostrich Inn), as Sybilla learns at the convent. She sends Johnny Bullo to warn Lymond, but he is too late. Remember, however, that she has the presence of mind to tell the Ballaggan messenger to suggest Hunter take his captive to Threave castle, the home of Agnes Herries and John Maxwell, now Lord Herries. These are people who will definitely be sympathetic to Lymond and may even try to help him.

Asmodeus depicted as a goat ridden
by a witch holding her familiar (the cat)

Lymond's painful silence on the ride to Threave is broken when Dandy Hunter says something. But what does he say that sparks the reply from Lymond about not being Asmodeus, the king of the demons, most especially the demon of lust and the destroyer of marriages? Dunnett does not tell us; perhaps Hunter says something to Lymond like, "Well, the least you could do is to apologize for your horrid behavior." Doesn't that sound like something Dandy would say?

Hunter understands Lymond's classical reference, which explains why his face goes from red (angry) to white (guilty). The color drains out of his face because Lymond is implying something extremely ugly about Hunter's relationship with Mariotta. But Dandy is cool enough not to rise to Lymond's provocation. Immediately after this Lymond throws Mariotta's name out to Hunter. Once again, Lymond shows he knows there has been a relationship of some sort between Dandy and Mariotta.

Will Scott also blurts out another of his reasons for betraying the Master, that is, his conviction that Lymond was about to betray him to the English if Will didn't betray him to the Scots first. Before Lymond can reply, Turkey Mat foolishly and tragically seizes this moment to escape.

Hunter's men enjoy the chase and the kill, and Dandy is hardly bothered at all that a man is dead. He apologizes for Turkey's death to Will, not to Lymond, because he holds the Master in complete contempt. Turkey wants to know from Lymond if Scott prevented his escape, but Lymond tells him that he chose not to take the opportunity Mat gave him to break free. Turkey Mat's death is so pointless and sad it is easy to imagine how this wounds Lymond. I do not think it is giving anything away to say it will not be the last death for which he blames himself. At least Turkey dies with a "pleased look, as if a sunny beach and a flat board and a pair of celestial dice had manifested themselves among the leaves." He comes across as a man who lived his life at full tilt and died without regrets.

***

Threave Castle

Dunnett's ominous description of Threave is shockingly visceral, comparing the
stench of violence there with the powerful, feral odors of frightened, angry animals. Scott is relieved John Maxwell is away and that he and Hunter will have Lymond as their prisoner to humiliate and torment until Buccleuch arrives. However, Lymond has other plans, and quickly gets the hostile crowd on his side using his own brand of irreverent humor and wit, which is, "like Cupid, a notorious locksmith." Lymond's plan to disarm the crowd ends abruptly after ten minutes, and he goes mute. But why? We are left to wonder for now.

Peine Forte et Dure Torture

The easy laughter and enjoyment of their prisoner quickly turns very ugly in the face of his silence, leading to the horrendous scene of torture using the application of increasingly heavy weights. Dunnett describes Lymond as "capriciously vain" but not foolish, meaning he would bear the pain as long as he could but he would not purposely risk his life. At this point Will almost misses the flickering of Lymond's lashes as he briefly looks upward beyond the crowd. Will does the same, and there he sees Christian.

Now everything happens in a whirlwind. Buccleuch and his men arrive, Christian and Sym push through the crowd to confront him about his "whelp's" behavior, Christian forces her way to Lymond while Sym removes the chains weighing the Master down, and Christian confesses she knew who Lymond was all along: "I've known your voice since I was twelve." What an impression it must have made on the lass!

The yard erupts in the kind of ribald laughter Lymond has desperately tried to prevent to avoid tainting Christian by any association with him. He tries again, desperately, to dissociate himself from Christian by mocking red-headed women. By now, the captain and the crowd know their sport has ended, and Lymond is released to be taken to a "fine, dry cellar" of a prison. Before he can move from the place of his torment, and to Will Scott's surprise, Lymond faints. The way Lymond cups his face in a "gesture of half-comic resignation" shows he is in control until the last possible moment before his strength gives out, but even he has his physical limits, and this situation is too much for him.

***

Will Scott cannot make up his mind what side he wants to be on, much to the fury of his father, who never takes much to provoke him anyway. Buccleuch's solution is to stick his son in the cellar with Lymond, a rather neat punishment and one Will deserves after his betrayal. Will fights every step of the way to his prison because, as Dunnett says with her usual wit and understatement:

There is nothing very jolly about being locked in a cellar with a man whom, in every possible sense, you have just stabbed in the back.

Andrea della Robbia: The Announcing Angel

With his "very thews melted with apprehension," Will discovers Lymond at his ease, stretched out like a cat, "impeccably neat" (as always), with all that was unsightly removed from his appearance. Furthermore, his face was that of a "Della Robbia angel," something to store in the back of your mind for future reference.

And now...now Will Scott is about to have the very large and horny scales drop from his eyes in ways he never imagined or suspected. Now that all his plans have been thwarted and there is no longer any way for him to get to Samuel Harvey, Lymond at last clues Will in on what has been going on. The fact that he did not trust Will with this information before now is a measure both of Lymond's general lack of trust in others and his specific lack of trust in Will Scott, which the day's events appear to justify. You could make the case that Lymond might have avoided this fate if he had shared the truth with Will, but the Master is a great judge of character, and his judgment is that Scott is too emotional, too conflicted, too immature, and too unpredictable to be trusted with the truth.

Certainly, Will's sketch of Lymond's character in this scene supports this conclusion. What claims does Scott make?

• His father would have protected Turkey Mat.
• Lymond "hates women" in general.
• Lymond wrecked the lives of four women (Christian, Margaret, Mariotta, and Eloise).
• Lymond has hunted "poor Harvey" like a thing from beyond the grave.
• Lymond betrayed his country by selling the letters Will copied to the English.

Of course, not one of these claims contains an iota of truth, a fact that we observe as it slowly works its way into Will's consciousness. We learn, for example, that Lymond orchestrated Will's "escape" from the tower with Mariotta:

"I leave you to work out why, having seduced my sister-in-law and slaughtered my nephew, I should keep coy silence while you shuffle downstairs at three in the morning with that bantling-brained romantic done up in an oatsack."

Oops. One can only vaguely imagine how Will Scott feels by the end of this encounter, but surely even Will would agree that Lymond's description of him fits all too well:

"You pathetic, maladroit nincompoop, you're never right; but this time you can squat in your misconceptions like duck's meat in a ditch, and let them choke you."

Near the end of the section, Lymond refers to the earlier moment when, as they are leaving the Ostrich Inn after a night of madcap and riotous activity, he encourages Will to look up at the "teaching stars, beyond worship and commonplace tongues. The infinite eyes of innocence." (Pt 2, Ch I) Will was deaf to Lymond's offering that first time. Has he heard him now? Will he understand what he is being offered? Has he had a moment of epiphany and learned something about himself and, more importantly, about Lymond?

*** 

Aside: Once again, I recommend Laura Caine Ramsey's guide to The Game of Kings when reading the exchange between Lymond and Will, which is packed with allusions ranging from the Malleus Maleficarum to Norse mythology.

***

The Night of June 1, 1548

John Maxwell is a clever man. He cannot lift a finger to help Lymond and must be seen to be on Hunter and Buccleuch's side; hence the congratulatory note on Lymond's capture. Enter the redoubtable Agnes Herries, sent by her husband, "as was fitting," to see to the guests. All the guests. Watch how Agnes manipulates these men like a pro. First, she storms in at eleven at night, waking Buccleuch and demanding an explanation for Will's incarceration with the "desperate man" in the cellar. As only Agnes can, she argues and contradicts and harangues until Wat Scott gives up and agrees to let his son out of the cellar. Will is more than willing to oblige, but he does not do so quickly enough for Agnes when he sees that all his father's men have been replaced with Maxwell's. Agnes will have none of his loitering and sends him to bed with a "vigorous impatience" and a loud thud of the trap door banging shut. What the heck just happened?

***

Now we know: Agnes not only leaves the trap door unbolted, she has the utter gall to scold Will for being the one who failed to lock Lymond back in! Will cannot contradict the lady of the house, whose own men will confirm her story (of course). Furthermore, Will's father accepts Agnes Herries' version without question in part because he believes his son wanted Lymond to escape and in part because he cannot imagine Agnes would let a desperate rogue out of his prison in her own house and then lie about it. All Will can do is quietly accept the censure and try to find Lymond.

Agnes once again proves her mettle. Atta girl, Agnes!

***

June 2, 1548

At last, Sybilla and Mariotta talk to each other. It has been a long time coming and the Dowager Lady Culter is loathe to broach the subject of her son's marriage to Mariotta, but the anxiety of waiting without a word about Lymond's fate pushes Sybilla over the edge. She has clearly been wanting to say these things to her daughter-in-law and this seems like as good a time as any. At least it will divert them both!

I find it fascinating that Sybilla uses Janet and Buccleuch as an example of a marriage that works, but it makes sense. First, Mariotta knows them both well and has had ample opportunity to see Janet in action with a man far more stubborn and dense and far less sensitive and caring than Richard. Surely if Janet can manage to have so much influence on Wat Scott and "manage" him so fluently, Mariotta's task with Richard should be far easier. 

The other example--the Maxwells--shows Mariotta the opposite extreme from Janet and Wat. Janet is anything but a romantic, whereas Agnes created a fantasy that John Maxwell played into, with Lymond's help. But both Agnes and Janet share something in common: both are intensely interested in their husbands and understand what each man values and wants the most. This, Sybilla makes clear to Mariotta, is what she has not done. She really has taken little interest in Richard, has learned little of the man she married, and really does not understand what he values and wants and needs. Fortunately, Richard's mother is wise enough to tell Mariotta just enough to help her without telling her so much that she makes Mariotta want to give up.

What Sybilla says about Lymond and Richard's relationship is very, very telling:

"Your tragedy was that the man you became involved with was the very person who created the flaw in Richard's maturing. And if that was anyone's fault, it was probably mine..."

How revealing. And, at the same time, how unrevealing. There is a flaw in Richard that has hindered his growing up and Lymond was the cause. Mother (possibly) blames herself. That's all we know from what Sybilla says--not what Richard's flaw is; not what Lymond did to create it; not what Sybilla did or did not do to instigate the sibling rivalry, if that is what this is. All things to ponder and keep in mind as the future unfolds.

When Christian finally arrives at Midculter, Tom Erskine is there and about to have the shock of his life. We already know that Christian recognized Lymond from their first encounter at Boghall; now we find out that both Sybilla and Christian have been working--separately, it appears--to help Lymond. Sybilla worked out fairly early on that Christian recognized Lymond and was helping him. The "keenest ears in Scotland" belong to Christian, who was present when Lymond appeared at Monteith as the monk and told little Queen Mary the riddle, which was one invented by none other than Sybilla. Also, let us not forget that Sybilla has had contact with her younger son through intermediaries, so she most likely knew about Christian's assistance through those sources.

One of those means, in addition to Sybilla's "normal thought processes," would be Johnnie Bullo, with whom Sybilla expresses disappointment for turning out to be "rather much of an individualist," but she does not elaborate. One thing we definitely know about Johnnie is his propensity to gossip, which leaves little doubt he would have enjoyed telling Lymond's mother about what happened between her son and Christian at Boghall.

And then there is Samuel Harvey, a name mentioned not only by Christian but also by Richard and Andrew Hunter, tying all three of them to Lymond in different ways. Christian does not know the whole story of Harvey, but she knows George Douglas is involved somehow, so she is determined to see him and, "by persuasion and threats," make him help Lymond. Hmmm. How well does she know friend George? Not well, if she thinks either persuasion or threats will move him to help. George will require something that appeals to his self interest.

Tom is not so easily swayed, viewing Sybilla's attempts to help Lymond as natural maternal instinct. But Christian's behavior has him flummoxed. Why would she knowingly help this outlaw? It is left to Sybilla to explain the inexplicable to Tom, that is, Christian's own natural instincts to help a "lame duck" and right an injustice are just as strong as her maternal leanings. Sybilla points out what Tom already knows: Christian is neither someone easily gainsaid nor someone easily beguiled. Furthermore, Lymond is, according to Sybilla, an "artist in the vivesection [sic] of the soul" because he has been the one under the knife for the past five years.

Sybilla leaves Tom and Mariotta (and us) with the puzzling comment that Lymond is "probably the only person in the world now who can restore Richard to any sort of terms with his own future" and send Richard back to Mariotta. The latter claim is easily understandable because Lymond can convince Richard as no one else can of his, Lymond's, total indifference towards Mariotta. But just how Lymond can restore Richard to his future remains a mystery to be revealed.

***

Sunday, June 3

This is the day after Lymond was to meet Samuel Harvey in Wark. He arrives at Wark Castle too late. Harvey, a busy man, is gone. Gideon Somerville initially thinks Lymond's tardiness is an indication that he did not really care about the meeting and, worse, that Lymond is drunk, when in fact, he is exhausted from traveling at a breakneck speed on foot from Threave carrying with him all his injuries. Once Gideon realizes Lymond's true state, he immediately puts him to bed in good, practical Somerville fashion.

June 4

The next morning Lymond is in a far better and cleaner state and spouting all manner of obscure quotations, much to Gideon's annoyance, which leads to one of Dunnett's most cited and beloved lines:

"I wish to God," said Gideon with mild exasperation, "that you'd talk--just once--in prose like other people."

And then, amazingly, Gideon gets his wish after one more "malicious" quotation from Roger Ascham, a noted Protestant, which leads to Lymond's comment about Luther, whose views were not surprisingly deemed heretical by the Scottish Parliament. Now Gideon and Lymond have a serious, straightforward (by Lymond's standards) conversation about the potential benefits of an alliance between Scotland and England. Probably the clearest explanation of these events comes from Dunnett herself early in the book:

Henry, new King of France, ... felt his way thoughtfully towards a small cabal between himself, the Venetians and the Pope, and wondered how to induce Charles [the Holy Roman Emperor] to give up Savoy [in the Western Alps and strategically important to France as a gateway to Italy], how to evict England from Boulogne, and how best to serve his close friend and dear relative Scotland without throwing England into the arms or the lap of the [Holy Roman] Empire. (Opening Gambit)

Here's the situation in brief. The English control Boulogne in northern France just south of Calais, which is also under English control. The French want it back. Earlier in the book, Buccleuch says there is a rumor that the French and English will "promise neutrality" towards Scotland if the English agree to give up Boulogne (Pt 2, Ch 1). Now Lymond opines that France might sell out Scotland in return for the English surrender of Boulogne, even though he does not think so.

As an Englishman, Gideon is worried because Scotland keeps getting outside help from "the dregs of Europe" and attacking England by injecting these foreign fighters "into our backside." Worse, the Scottish ambassador to France, David Panter, is working for a separate peace between Scotland and the Holy Roman Emperor, something neither England nor France would like. Meanwhile behind Scotland's back, France is trying for its own separate peace with England.

Lymond points out to Gideon one of the major stumbling blocks for any peace between their two countries, that is, under Henry VIII Scotland suffered terribly and that suffering has bred a deep hatred of the English by the Scots. Nonetheless, the Scots Commissioners keep reopening talks for a marriage between England's boy king Edward and little Queen Mary whenever the country feels threatened.

The Queen Dowager of Scotland is plotting to keep the Scottish Governor Arran quiet by promising to marry her daughter Queen Mary to his son while she is simultaneously planning to bring more French into Scotland. But Lymond argues that the French are stretched too thin to effectively rule Scotland, so Scotland would be better off under France, which is separated by distance and rough waters, than under England, with which it shares a very porous border.

Edward VI of England
by William Scrots, c 1550

Lymond also alludes to the dangers of religious warfare, "the bloodiest emotion" he knows, the ultimate in the "honest emotion" of hatred that Henry VIII so effectively showed to the Scots and which they reciprocated. Despite his claim to the contrary, Lymond does offer Gideon a solution: let little Queen Mary leave Scotland and grow up in France, where there is no religious conflict; let Mary of Guise have the power in Scotland and "keep the throne warm" for her daughter; go ahead and arrange the marriage between England's Edward and Mary of Scotland so that, if both sides behave themselves, the contract will be honored when the children come of age. 

Sadly, Gideon acknowledges that this "intelligent" approach is not going to happen because the Protector's own position is "shaky" and he cannot afford to do anything to undermine his tenuous hold on power, which Lymond's plan would.

But Gideon is impressed, very impressed, by Lymond's clear, unemotional, logical understanding of the situation, which makes him curious why Lymond is not providing these insights to "his people" in Edinburgh. Gideon has figured out that the "one woman" who has caused and continues to cause Lymond trouble is Margaret Douglas. This was not hard for Somerville to discern given his interesting encounter with the Countess of Lennox in London in April (Pt 3, Ch IV). Unfortunately, injecting Margaret into the conversation causes the "barrier of nationality" to fall between them and the "shutters" that had momentarily opened close again.

Now for the interesting part: Gideon will arrange another meeting for Lymond with Samuel Harvey on his way back from Haddington. But until then, Gideon has to find a safe place for Lymond, and the only place he believes will ensure Lymond's security is the Somerville home at Flaw Valleys. Lymond experiences what is for him a very rare emotion: he is taken aback and completely perplexed by Gideon's plan. He "should dearly like to know why" Somerville not only trusts him enough to arrange another meeting with Harvey but also has enough faith in him to leave him alone with his wife and daughter in their own home.

Gideon understands his rationale no better than Lymond: it is "something that Gideon did not even know clearly himself." It seems that Lymond is not the only person who is a fine judge of character and an excellent reader of men.

Questions

1. Why does Lymond say everyone finds Dandy Hunter "irresistible"?
2. What do you think Hunter says to Lymond to provoke his response about Asmodeus?
3. According to Dunnett, Will Scott knows very well why Turkey Mat bolted. Why did he?
4. What did Johnnie Bullo do that disappointed Sybilla by showing he was "rather much of an individualist"?
5. What is the "flaw" Lymond created in Richard?
6. Why does Gideon Somerville decide on what seems to be the spur of the moment to trust Lymond enough to allow him to wait at Flaw Valleys for the meeting with Harvey?

Favorite Line

"I wish to God," said Gideon with mild exasperation, "that you'd talk--just once--in prose like other people."

Words that Describe Lymond in Forced Play Against Time

• preoccupied
• really furious (with Will)
• surprised
• sardonic
• deeply saddened
• disgusted
• disappointed
• exhausted
• worried
• resigned
• perplexed
• snide
• guilty
• passionate
• dispassionate

Part Three. The Play for Samuel Harvey. Chapter II. The Queen's Progress Becomes Critical

1. A New Pawn is Taken (Early February - February 21, 1548)

Tom Erskine has come to Boghall to retrieve Christian and take her to Midculter so she and Lady Culter can go to Dumbarton as nurses to the sick baby Queen. Ladies of high birth and family would fulfill this function. Even though there was little they could do other than make the sick child more comfortable, there was no way a royal child would be left alone for a moment during an illness and could only be tended by women of utmost trustworthiness, loyalty, and high birth.

Christian seems more concerned with the renewed fighting, which is news to her. Her reaction to the wishy-washy way in which Arran has handled John Maxwell's demand of Agnes Herries as his bride shows just how passionate a patriot and person she is:

"I should take her to Threave [Maxwell's home] by the scruff of her neck and beg John Maxwell on my knees, if I were Arran, to come to our side."

Tom's marriage proposal is not the stuff of romantic legend. It is as awkward and faltering as Christian's reply is eloquent and expressive. Dunnett draws a clear contrast between the halting, prosaic Erskine and the passionate, incisive Christian. Of course, the comparison between Tom and Lymond is inevitable not only for the reader but also for Christian. How much does her experience with Lymond affect her refusal of Tom's offer? It is not mentioned, but surely the excitement he inspired has lingered in her mind and set her emotions swirling. She cannot give Tom a good reason for her refusal and, ultimately, in showing Tom mercy she buys herself some time to make a final decision. At this point, it seems as though she will not accept his proposal.

***

Sybilla is also preparing to leave for Dumbarton and, unaccountably, is distracted and smelling of sulphur. Neither Richard nor we know why, except she has a foul-smelling potion from Lady Catherine Hunter designed (supposedly) to protect Richard in the upcoming battle. Was Sybilla checking out this potion to learn its ingredients and potential dangers? We do not know, but she does not want Richard to take it; she just wants him to know about it so he can effectively lie to Andrew Hunter if he brings it up. 

And now the parting from Mariotta. Mariotta has been quiet of late, but so has Richard, yet again not confiding in his wife. She has learned about Richard's interference with Buccleuch and his son from Sir Wat and Sybilla. And she has been listening carefully to the discussions of Scottish war and politics, absorbing mainly Sybilla's points of argument that she now throws at Richard just waiting for him to criticize them so she can triumphantly tell him they are his mother's ideas. He does not bite but is patient and sincere, if a bit distracted, with his replies.

Mariotta does quite a nice, subtle job of weaving the political arguments in such a way that they equally apply to her marriage. The woman is deeply unhappy and Richard is not doing anything to change that. She wants to be part of his life and for him to be part of hers and their child's, that is, something more than a shadowy figure coming and mostly going about his own business. Even in this exchange, Richard's mind is clogged with "the millrace of pressing business in his brain" and not fully engaged in or attentive to what Mariotta is trying to tell him. That is, until she mentions "the wicket gate at the back."

***

Aside: A wicket gate (or door) is a person-sized entry inside or next to a much larger gate or door. The idea of a wicket gate is to allow someone to enter or exit without having to open the large gate or door. Still in use today, we refer to them as pedestrian entryways.

***

When Mariotta for the first time in her life sees blood drain from a man's face, she realizes she has gone too far. But she has stepped onto the field of battle and cannot retreat. Moreover, Mariotta has her husband's undivided attention, and she likes the feeling of power she is wielding: "at last she was laying him bare." But the cudgel is a clumsy weapon, as Mariotta quickly learns, because Richard, far from having his defenses crumble puts on a "stiffer armour." Before, he was wooden and detached; now he is a stone battlement and burning with a cold rage, at her and at Lymond. 

And now bad goes to worse. Mariotta stumbles into admitting that she shared her confidences with Andrew Hunter. Richard's initial vacant shock and dismay finally give way to a hardened resolve: his obsession with Lymond just intensified to a level that even Richard probably did not think possible. It is no longer sufficient to hunt his brother down; Richard now must have Lymond "on his knees, and weeping, and begging aloud to be killed." Be careful what you wish for, Richard. 

Left alone at last, Mariotta starts packing, preparing to leave Midculter and Richard and the rest of the Crawfords behind her.

***

February 21, 1548

The three-pronged English invasion is underway:

• Wharton and Lennox leave Carlisle for Dumfries.
• Grey's forces leave Berwick and dig in at Haddington (less than 20 miles from Edinburgh).
• Lord Culter's Scots discover Wharton and Lennox's route and approach their flank.
• Wharton's son Harry (he of the hot helmet at Annan) leads a spearhead of mounted soldiers towards Durisdeer, bypassing the Douglas home at Drumlanrig where Angus's daughter Margaret Douglas is located.
• Harry and his men are attacked by John Maxwell with the aid of the supposedly fleeing Douglases, including Angus.
• Harry's "forsworn Scots" (Scots who swore allegiance to England) turn on him and join the Douglases in routing the English.

In an hour, it is all over: "the annihilation of the whole of Lord Wharton's army." A messenger is sent to Lord Grey to tell him not only of the "total overthrow" of Wharton and Lennox's forces but of the deaths of Wharton and his son Harry. Grey, seeing his own defeat in the offing, immediately heads back to Berwick, there to learn that indeed neither Harry nor his father is dead. Rather, they are, along with Lennox and a sizable portion of their troops, safe at Carlisle. The one person who seems to have disappeared without a trace is Margaret Douglas.

The news of the Scottish victory is left to Sybilla to deliver to the Queen Dowager. The little queen is recovering from her illness when Sybilla brings word to an exhausted Mary of Guise. Sybilla's own emotions are no doubt raw from worry and fatigue: she blows her nose, as one who is suppressing tears would.

2. But Proves to Be Covered

Lymond is nearby when the fighting occurs, but "except for an episode which he made memorable both for John Maxwell and Lord Wharton's son, he took no part in the fighting..." What is that episode? Dunnett does not tell us, but in the previous section she notes that Richard is "always gifted with special intelligence in the field," strongly implying that Lymond is (indirectly) the source of the "special intelligence" that lets his brother find Wharton and Lennox's route and avoid Harry's spearhead, which John Maxwell attacks. I believe this is the memorable episode Lymond set up, possibly with the assistance of George Douglas. Perhaps we will find out later.

***

Aside: A bit more irony: Will Scott is reading The Buke of the Howlat, a book celebrating the virtues of the Douglases (a very small book?) with a focus on themes that are all central to The Game of Kings: 

"The Buke of the Howlat was composed in the late 1440s for Elizabeth Douglas, wife of Archibald Douglas, earl of Moray. It is one of the great monuments of fifteenth-century Scots verse ... telling a comic fable of an owl's borrowed feathers, his pride and ultimate fall, and a bird parliament which decides his fate. At its centre is a heraldic excurses which leads to a celebration of the virtues of the Douglas family and their service to Robert Bruce in the Scottish Wars of Independence. Its themes therefore focus on Scottish freedom, aristocratic achievement, and good self- and political governance."
From the website of Boydell & Brewer.

***

Will has been left at the Crawfordmuir tower during the excitement at Durisdeer and surrounding environs, but the real fun is about to begin with the arrival of Margaret Douglas. During the confusion created by the fighting, Turkey Mat slipped into Drumlanrig and kidnapped Margaret. Lymond wants her to stew for an hour or so before revealing himself as her captor. And he wants Will to watch the ensuing display. Why?

There are a number of possible reasons to explain why Lymond wants Will to watch his encounter with Margaret, but I think the primary reason is a simple one: Francis wants a witness, one who is high-born, educated, and from a respected family just in case he needs someone to confirm what really was said and done to and by Margaret Douglas. Lymond does not trust Margaret one iota, and he knows she is quite capable of lying about what he did or did not do or say to her. Will Scott's testimony to the actual events would make it virtually impossible for Margaret to get away with any serious distortion of the events.

Of course Lymond also wants to continue Will's "education" in the ways of the world. He wants Will to learn more about his (Lymond's) past from him, not from Buccleuch and others. He wants Will to see exactly what Margaret Douglas is and of what she is capable. Will is still naive, especially when it comes to women (remember, he thinks of the majestic Christian as a "girl"). Lymond also probably wants Will to learn that Margaret is his hostage to use as a bargaining chip. Although Will does not know about Lymond's meeting with George Douglas in which he promised to turn Will over in exchange for Samuel Harvey, he knows Lymond needs someone to exchange for Harvey. The fact that Lymond now has Margaret in his grasp means she is that bargaining chip; certainly that is how Will will perceive it.

Will, however, spends an agonizing hour waiting for Lymond to begin his interview with Margaret. She is no slouch. To be kidnapped by unknown foes, blindfolded and taken to who knows where, and held in suspense for what must seem like an eternity takes a very strong will to wait with patience and calm, but she must, because Will does not hear a sound from her. During this time, Will suddenly recalls a "revealing expression" used at Annan. I think that refers to Lymond saying he was brought up in "bad company. From oar to oar," referring to "the Pearl of Pearls," Lennox's wife Margaret. The name Margaret derives from the Greek word for pearl, as Lymond and Will would both know. 

I am sure Will is vigorously searching his memory for everything that was said at Annan, especially by Lymond and Lennox, Margaret's husband. Note that Will wonders what a "majestically reared young woman" like Margaret will make of Lymond, the "wildcat eccentric." Clearly, Will has not yet figured out that there is a robust history between them. He is about to learn differently.

What Will sees when Margaret encounters Lymond is first recognition, then fright. Interesting that she shows momentary fear. Will (and the reader) has no idea why. Also, it is very important that Margaret calls Lymond by his given name. Almost no one calls him Francis. In fact, thus far only his mother has called him Francis, and then only once. This makes Margaret's address of Lymond as Francis a very significant fact: she has had a close acquaintance with him.

Lymond has deliberately dressed as Will has never seen him, in virginal white. Recall that Lymond's face seems "virginal" to Will only an hour before when he revealed that the woman in the tower is Margaret Douglas. And Lymond's very first words in the book are "I am a narwhal looking for my virgin." One thing that must be abundantly clear about Dorothy Dunnett by now is that she does not leave things to chance or make arbitrary allusions. Her word choices are deliberate and essential to the overarching story and its meaning. The association of 'virgin' and 'virginal' with Lymond and Margaret is important, but exactly why we do not yet know.

What else does Lymond's conversation with Margaret reveal?

• Margaret has been told what happened at Annan between Lymond and Lennox, et al.
• Lennox once saved Lymond's life, but how and when?
• Lymond says he regrets not killing Lennox at Annan.
• Lymond wants to exchange Margaret for her son Henry.
• Lymond plans to offer the child to the Scottish government for money and to gain the favor of a government that wants him for treason.
• With Margaret and her son traded, who is left to exchange with Grey for Samuel Harvey? Who indeed!?
• From Margaret's point of view, Lymond suffered "one accident, one reverse" that he should have been able to overcome by now.
• Margaret claims King Henry VIII sent Lymond to Calais to protect him from the Scots.
• By "stupefying bad luck," Lymond fell into the hands of the French.
• The bad luck appears to be that "ill-timed dispatch" implicating Lymond in the convent's destruction because an English agent left it "by mistake" where the Scots could and would find it.
• Margaret swears she knew of no duplicity involving the dispatch.
• Lymond implies her uncle the king would have had no compunction about framing him for the destruction of the convent. 
• Lymond was a galley slave! Wow! This is quite a discovery.

Now the full meaning of the insult at Annan becomes clear. Remember that Lymond says of Margaret, "I was brought up in bad company. From oar to oar, you might say." Why was Lennox angry enough to want to attack Lymond over this comment? Because Lymond is saying he went from being kept by a "whore" (the 'ore Margaret) to being a galley slave (at the oars) thanks to Lennox, Margaret, and King Henry. There is also the allusion to the Viking sport of jumping oar to oar to prove one's agility and prowess, and that also fits Lymond's situation.

***

Aside: The Viking sport of oar running appears in Dunnett's later novel The King Hereafter.

***

Margaret keeps trying to get Lymond to agree that he has over-reacted to the events and should "move on" with his life. Even she has to admit that his being forced into the life of a galley slave is good enough reason for his bitterness, but now, luckily for Lymond, she is here to help. Margaret as good as ditches Matthew Lennox, who is only a useful stepping stone to a possible throne, and promises Lymond he will take his place. She tells Lymond she can convince the Lord Protector of England to let her replace Lennox with Lymond, but he points out that there is still his "savoury reputation" that needs fixing. Lymond helpfully suggests a way: a believable story of strategic betrayal and forgery, with witnesses. This is important.

Margaret gets the Lymond treatment once she has agreed to dump her husband and arrange for some poor soul to swear the incriminating dispatch was a forgery. Once she realizes Lymond has been playing her all along, all the Tudor venom comes spewing out. But Lymond is more than a match for her. He even throws Thomas Howard in her face. Howard (Anne Boleyn's uncle) and Margaret were lovers and secretly engaged. Henry VIII found out and sent both to the Tower. Margaret, of course, broke with Howard and survived. Howard was to be executed, but died of an illness before the sentence could be carried out. It does not pay to be Margaret Douglas's lover or husband, as Lymond knows. He has no interest in her except possibly as a means to getting her son as his bargaining chip. 

Henry VIII by Hans Holbein

When Lymond says that King Henry's use of him as a scapegoat was no accident, he clearly believes that Margaret was in cahoots with her uncle to use him as a pawn in their game. Margaret acknowledges as much. But when Lymond refers to pleasing his mistresses, Margaret's eyes fill with tears of rage and she asks why he cannot "forget"--forget what? Lymond says he thinks of the past often, with "a certain aged melancholy," like the old lion, full of years and crying for its ancient prowess. Whatever happened between Margaret and Lymond had a profound effect on him.

But now Margaret gets the upper hand. She reveals that Wharton's son Harry captured Mariotta when she left Midculter after her disastrous encounter with Richard, and she has the letter to prove it. It is interesting that Margaret has waited until now to use this weapon against Lymond. Clearly, she is a strategic thinker and equal to the task of dealing with Lymond. His voice and words do not reveal much about how deeply this news affects him, but Will can see the impact in his white hands as they fumble with the cords of his shirt.

Lymond acts quickly to ensure he exchanges Mariotta for Margaret before anyone else starts searching for either woman and potentially discovers his location at Crawfordmuir. Margaret thinks Lymond's plan is to kill Mariotta (and, thereby, her child) to ensure his inheritance. She leaves him with a scathing critique of his mental state and his relationship with women, who Margaret believes Lymond "hates" because they are so inferior to him and cannot understand or appreciate him. Her words do sting because there is some truth to them. Not many people, male or female, can cope with Lymond. Margaret can and does in her own warped and malevolent way, at least with the Lymond she thinks she knows.

The last act in this melodrama involves the embarrassing disclosure of Will Scott lurking in the next room. Margaret is not content to humiliate Lymond; she has to make sure Will suffers the same fate, and with him her abilities are far more overtly effective. The imperious way she hands her cloak to Will and simply expects him to put it around her without a word of request or thanks shows she is used to handling people in general and men in particular as if they are all her servants.

***

Aside: Margaret's reference to "Krishna among the milkmaids" is an anachronism. There is no way she or Lymond or anyone in Europe at that time, no matter how educated and well-read, would know about Krishna or anything associated with Hindu writings, religion, or tradition. 

You can read the great Sanskrit scholar Friedrich Max Muller's Gifford Lecture, "The Veda as Studied by European Scholars," which was, ironically, given at Edinburgh.

***

Will gets drunk but Lymond gets drunker. Unfortunately for Will, his judgment deteriorates rather more and faster than the Master's, even if Lymond has a head start on Will. Will's petulant insistence on sleeping in his own bed is yet another indication of Buccleuch stubbornness and poor judgment: "a Buccleuch is incapable of leaving well enough alone." Will just cannot do the prudent thing and let Lymond drink off his anger and frustration and failure in private. Turkey Mat at least and probably all Lymond's other men seem to think it perfectly natural for the Master to get rip-roaring drunk in response to the stresses of the day, but Will has enough of his wits about him to realize there is potential danger in their leader getting snockered under the circumstances.

What Will does not realize is that Lymond never starts to drink until after he has put a plan in motion to deal with any potential dangers. Furthermore, Lymond is "a good deal less drunk and a good deal more dangerous" than Will first thought. The Master is sober enough to detect Will's real motives: he believes he, not Lymond, ought to be leading the men. Will is disgusted by Lymond's drunkenness and his unchivalrous treatment of women. 

So Lymond offers Will "what he had prayed for; what he had dreamed about and, more recently, what he had longed for to sting Lymond into shame." Will really does not understand Lymond, does he? It is as if Will is looking at one square inch of a magnificent stained glass window and thinks he is seeing the whole. But Lymond calls his bluff and offers Will a chance to wrest command from him through a drinking contest. If Will knew Lymond at all, he would know he has no chance of defeating him, even if the Master has "some hours' start" on Will. 

Lymond makes the insightful, humorous remark that he usually has an excellent reason for everything he does, "except perhaps recruiting redheaded predicants from the more notoriously pigheaded of our families," a reference to Will's predilection for high-handed moralizing. The comment also shows that Lymond is well-acquainted with the character of the Buccleuchs despite being away from Scotland for years. 

***

The opening of the next section is another example of Dunnett's masterful use of language to set a scene and build suspense: dawn, sleeping men and dogs, a door opening, Turkey Mat snoring on his back, a door closing, someone descending the stairs, the unsteady approach of a man who has been drinking all night...but which man? Lymond or Scott? The quiet tension and slow build to the inevitable is exquisite. 

Lymond is all business, the exchanges, the excesses, the embarrassments, and the inebriation of the past night seemingly forgotten. Unbeknownst to Will, Lymond had planned everything about the exchange of Margaret for Mariotta and given the orders to Mat. Confident all is well in hand, Lymond tells Matthew he is leaving for a little while, but he does not say where he is going. And Mat does not ask because, unlike Will Scott, Turkey Mat is someone "not prone to asking questions," a soldier used to following orders and trusting his commander. Even Matthew, however, cannot resist asking one question: what about Will?

What is interesting about how Matthew finds Will is not that he is snoring ferociously in an alcoholic stupor (as expected) but that "someone" has "loosened his clothing at the neck, put a cushion under his head, and laid a towel and a basin neatly and squarely on his stomach." Even after the insults, the threats, the anger, and the copious amounts of alcohol consumed, Francis Crawford has seen to Will's comfort as kindly and efficiently as any nursemaid. 

***

February 22 - early March, 1548

Lymond is off to meet George Douglas at Corstorphine, west of Edinburgh, to arrange for the exchange of Will Scott for Samuel Harvey. However, the meeting is delayed by more than five days because Lord Grey has finally realized he cannot trust George and is keeping him on a short(er) leash with his son as surety. George and Lymond ultimately make the arrangements for the exchange.

While Lymond is arranging his meeting with George, Matthew Lennox is exchanging Margaret for Mariotta. He does so, and afterwards Mariotta goes into premature labor. A royal surgeon is brought blindfolded to the Crawfordmuir tower to attend Mariotta, but the child is stillborn. Mariotta tells the surgeon who she is and also the identity of the man responsible for bringing her to the tower, and by this means the sensational news travels to astonished ears at Dumbarton and beyond.

Questions

1. Why does Lymond leave Will at the tower during the excursion to Durisdeer (where the English and Scottish troops clash)?
2. Do you think Lymond is responsible for the false reports about Wharton and his son's deaths?
3. Why is Lymond dressed all in white for his encounter with Margaret?
4. What does Margaret want Lymond to "forget"?
5. Was Lymond really going to trade Margaret's child to the Scottish government?
6. Lymond takes great care of Will Scott after their all-night drinking contest. What does this say about Lymond's character?

Favorite Line

High on the hilltops, among the wet scrub by the burn, a blackbird was singing. The notes, round as syrup, melted into the raw air of dawn and coaxed the cold, reddened sun to its day.

Words that Describe Lymond in the Queen's Progress Becomes Critical

• scheming
• manipulative
• duplicitous
• clever
• cunning
• frustrated
• surprised
• disappointed
• depressed
• considerate
• circumspect
• determined

Part One. The Play for Jonathan Crouch. Chapter V. Castling

All the chapter epigraphs are significant, of course, but I especially like the subtle meaning of this one, which only becomes apparent at the end of the chapter. This chapter is a hoot and is often cited as a favorite by many readers because we get to see a very different Lymond in action!

1. Capture of Some Advancing Pieces

This is an expository section that provides a good deal of detail and background on Lymond and his outlaw band through the eyes of Will Scott. 

Will Scott is feeling good. Things are going well and his ambition is about to transform itself from idea to action. 

We learn he has been with Lymond for about a month, give or take some time for a break after the Annan confrontation with Richard Crawford's men. For the first time we find out a bit about what happened. There was a fight and Lymond's men barely escaped. Given Culter's leadership and his men's fighting skills, it is a testament to Lymond that none of his men was seriously injured or killed in the clash. Will is smart enough to recognize genius when he sees it. 

We also learn more about Lymond's band. First, there are sixty men (I think this is the first time we find out how big the troop is). This is a fair-sized band of fighters, each one carefully selected for a particular skill or talent that Lymond has honed to a fine point. I think it's important to remember that there was no standing army but rather men gathered by nobility and large landowners to fight when needed, so sixty well-trained mercenaries represent a formidable force.

What do we learn from Dunnett's introduction of these characters? 

• They are "rootless," meaning they have ties and loyalties to no one beyond Lymond and, perhaps, each other. 
• They are a heterogeneous group, that is, their abilities complement each other's. 
• They are uneducated, probably illiterate to a man (recall that Francis told Will only half in jest that he was valuable to him because he could read and write). 
• They are "ruffians"--tough, lawless men. Their only law is Lymond's law.
• They are "unmarked, homeless" men. I think DD uses the word "unmarked" in its old meaning of unnoticed or unobserved, that is, invisible in the way the homeless often are. 

Will probes Turkey Mat for more information about "the Master" and other members of the inner circle. Mat is clear why he is with Lymond: once he gets enough money, he will retire to his little stone house, and for that he can "thole" Lymond, that is, put up with the capriciousness, the foul temper, and the harsh treatment. 

Johnnie Bullo

King of the Gypsies

The mysterious Johnnie Bullo comes into clearer focus as well. Johnnie, you may recall, found Lymond at Boghall and is the go-between for Francis and Christian. But now we find out Johnnie is not a member of Lymond's gang. In fact, he is a power unto himself as King of the Gypsies. Will doesn't understand what Johnnie is doing with Lymond, but Mat understands that Johnnie loves the challenge of matching wits with the Master. Bullo admires Lymond.

Notice that Mat is himself in awe of Johnnie Bullo: "You should see him at work in a fair: it's a scholastic education." Don't you love that? Scholasticism was the predominant form of education in Europe at that time, employing a rigorous dialectical methodology. Johnnie is a genius in his own right.

One other important note about Johnnie: "he has all the old crafts." It's not yet clear what these old crafts are, but keep this in mind as you read.

We learn a number of other important things about Lymond's band. They move around a good deal (not surprising for outlaws), and their present headquarters is an abandoned tower with Will in charge during Lymond's absence. Only Lymond metes out punishment. His formidable verbal skills extend to a "less respectable" form of punishment that involves utter humiliation. It's apparent from everything we have heard about Lymond that he is a very harsh taskmaster and an "unchancy bastard to cross." In short, these hardened reprobates, these mercenaries, these rough men are afraid of Lymond, especially when he is drunk. 

The irony of this will eventually be revealed.

About Will we learn that he follows Lymond because the Master has transformed criminality into an art form. Remember, earlier Will told Lymond he despises the hypocrisy he sees everywhere and admires Lymond's "consistency," that is, he makes no show of virtue. He is as bad as he professes to be. Beyond good and evil, Will thinks he has reached the point where he cares only for the rarefied purity of the perfect crime devised and implemented by Lymond. Will is educating himself for his own purposes.

The Ostrich

The Ostrich inn is mentioned for the first time, as a place not only for relaxation with women and alcohol, but also as an excellent place for espionage and prying information out of unsuspecting English messengers. 

You will notice that we do not find out what Lymond learned at the Ostrich.

It may not be clear in this scene, but the Ostrich is on the English side of the border, so Lymond and his men are slipping back and forth across the border. Lymond also implies to Will that he set up an attack on John Maxwell in order to allow him to rescue Maxwell and gain his gratitude. Thus the allusion to the chess move "smothered mate" (the king surrounded by his own men).

Maxwell is a Scot whose lands are surrounded by the English. In fact, in 1542, Robert Maxwell, John's father, was captured after the battle of Solway Moss and "forced to hand Threave Castle over to the English invaders. It was retrieved for Scotland by the Earl of Arran in 1545," just two years before this story is set. Lymond's reference to the smothered mate could also apply to Maxwell's untenable position on the border with England.

Supplying the Cattle with Toys

Hume Castle from "The Gateway of Scotland"

One of the problems with leading a band of mercenaries and thieves is that they must be kept busy, especially when the beer runs short. This restiveness provides Will his opportunity to suggest his own plan: attack Hume Castle.

Lymond and Turkey Mat talk over and past Will in the way adults often do with children. When Lymond finally addresses Will it is to destroy Will's idea with facts (Hume Castle is too heavily fortified and defended and Lymond is not looking to start a war) and with a personal attack (clean your boots and patch your clothes).

Something to keep in mind: this is one of the first indications of Francis's fixation on cleanliness and neatness. 

It certainly has not escaped Will's notice that Lymond tries to humiliate him by repeatedly addressing him in terms suitable for a small child or, more likely, a sweetheart: Marigold, Peg-a-Ramsey, Hinnysops, Willieken, little pretty boy, and, of course, Wally Gowdy. I find Will's forbearance under these withering insults admirable. It shows Will's maturity and understanding when he doesn't rise to the occasion and react to the name calling. He knows it is all part of Lymond's devilishly effective way of controlling his men, and since Will has his own agenda, he will also "thole" Lymond to achieve it. 

At this point I do not think it would be unjustified to wonder who is the "real" Francis Crawford? Is he the gentle, soulful, artistic, sensitive man we have seen with Christian and the little Queen, or is he the cruel, narcissistic, rude, obnoxious man we have seen with everyone else in every other situation? Even though all of us are complex, contradictory creatures, it is nearly impossible to reconcile these two Lymonds. Something to remember: If he practices evil while professing purity, he is a dangerous monster given his charisma. Any reader would be forgiven if he or she at this point greatly dislikes Lymond.

There is one other thing worth noting about him. Francis Crawford, Master of Culter, has no friends except Christian Stewart. Everyone else, including his mother and brother, seems to mistrust, dislike, despise, or fear him (or some combination of these). And he has done nothing to try to engender good will towards himself, except with Christian (and Sym, who is not his social equal). 

At the close of the scene Lymond verbally flagellates his men for "ten retching minutes" on their recent sloppiness and lax discipline. The "retching" must refer to how the men feel by the end of the tirade, but notice how he turns their nausea into enthusiasm with the promise of beer. Will's grasp of why these sixty hard men follow Lymond explains in part his own reasons for staying: Lymond offers something not one of the men can get on his own. For the band of outlaws, it's adventure and money and beer. For Will Scott, it's a chance to learn from the Master--and then usurp him.

2. Sudden Danger for a Passed Pawn

The Supply Train from Roxburgh to Hume

The planned waylaying of the English supply train heading from Roxburgh to Hume takes place the following evening before moonrise. Lymond's intelligence, no doubt what he learned at the Ostrich, is good. The train is right on time and right where he was told it would be. The one surprise is the addition of oxen to pull the very heavy ordnance wagon. There are still thirty extremely valuable horses ("ten geldings and twenty mares"). "The great leader" springs into action, directing Will to take as many men as he needs to carry out his part. 

Notice Will is to take the "excess"--the prisoners and anything Lymond's band does not want or need--and meet up with Lymond and the others later. Will is not taking anything truly valuable.

It is also worth noting that Lymond orders his men "to disable, not to kill" the men in the supply train. The little twist that is news to everyone, including Turkey Mat, is Lymond's plan to meet near Melrose, which is land owned by Walter Scott, Will's father ("Daddy Buccleuch"). 

Dunnett's description of the unhappy supply train is a wonderful thing to behold...the stubborn oxen lumber with "poached and indolent eye"...the night is "moonless and unsympathetic" (remember, Lymond planned the attack before moonrise to ensure the cover of darkness complete). You can feel the tension as the men in the supply train hear the silence broken, first by a dim beat, followed by a tap that begets others until it is clear horses are relentlessly sweeping down on them. Great writing. 

Rather than an armed assault by his men, Lymond has loosed wild horses on the supply train, but not just any horses: these are all stallions. Now we know the significance of the "twenty mares," who all "went silly" over the arrival of the stallions. In the confusion, it is a simple matter for Lymond's men to descend upon and overpower the English with no loss of life or serious injury on either side. 

The only disappointment in the fine haul is a lack of prisoners worthy of a ransom. Even the supply train's captain, says Lymond, is Spanish, not English. Will enthusiastically takes off with ten men and the prisoners.

William Grey, 13th Baron of Wilton,
"Portrait-of-a-Nobleman" (thought to be Grey) 
by German painter Gerlach Flicke

The Humiliation at Hume

Hume Castle, you may recall, is one of the four sites garrisoned by the departing English. The English are confident it is impregnable, and Lymond himself refused Will's plan to attack Hume because the castle is too well defended. 

Inside the well-fortified castle, all is not well. Lord Grey is still recovering from the embarrassing wound to his mouth that has left him with a confounding lisp. As he tries to say, "Is there no word in the English language wanting an S?"

But good news has arrived in the form of "Mr. Taylor" of the supply train from Roxburgh bearing food, ordnance, money, and most importantly, beer. Will's plan to capture Lord Grey following the explosion inside one of the commandeered carts fails stupendously, and Will ends up beaten and imprisoned by the English. It takes Will a few minutes of sober reflection as the afterglow of the adrenalin rush wears off to come to his senses and realize what he has done: "he had got into Hume...but hadn't the brains or the guts to get out." Worse still, his "exercise in self-expression" has condemned ten other men to death. Will's sole, if insufficient, consolation is that he has refused to tell the English his name and thereby be the cause of his father's further humiliation at the hands of the enemy in trying to save him.

I must admit to admiring Will's spunk in mocking Grey's lisp under the dire circumstances. The young man may lack wisdom and foresight, but he does have a raw if foolhardy courage and sense of humor.

***

Now the fun begins.

Don Luis Fernando de Cordoba y Avila (fully clothed)

Don't feel bad if you didn't realize the Señor was our own Francis Crawford. This is one of the things he does best: create a false persona. What do we learn about Lymond from this outrageously funny scene at Hume Castle? We learn he speaks Spanish fluently; another language Francis Crawford knows well.

This is a fast-moving, crazy-quilt scene. Here's a quick summary of what happens:

• A "human tornado" purporting to be the Spanish captain of the supply train arrives at Hume with his men after being found with the remains of the wagons bound, nearly frozen, and naked except for their shirts.
• "Don Luis" colorfully regales Grey and his men with his tale of personal and professional humiliation at the hands of thieves ("even Lord Grey had to admit the magnificence of his rage").
• Don Luis gains sympathy both with his outrage and with the physical mortification he has endured, to include being tarred and feathered.
• "Don Luis" makes sure Grey et al. know his pedigree, something he could not do if Lymond were impersonating an English officer.
• Through an excruciating give and take in butchered English, "Don Luis" reveals the identity of the supposed leader of the bandits who attacked him as Will ("Oil") Scott ("del Escocia").
• "Don Luis" talks Grey into giving him and his men horses and clothing (to include Grey's own clothes for himself) and allowing him to return "to Berwick" with the prisoners.

Lymond reveals Will's identity ostensibly to help persuade Grey to let him take the prisoners with him and hold Will for ransom. Keep in mind, Hume Castle is still without the most basic supplies, so getting rid of any extra mouths to feed is a benefit to Grey. Besides, Don Luis has a score to settle with Will and might get more information out of him with "the questioning gooder organized" back in Berwick.

About the Spanish serving the English:

"Since Solway Moss, Henry VIII had employed some 900 of these Spanish mercenaries, under Pedro de Gamboa, to defend the Scottish frontier and to intimidate the widowed Queen Mary of Guise and her French allies, the Spanish troops being distributed along the frontier fortresses until there should be need of them." Spanish Influences in Scottish History

Notice how Lymond distracts the English throughout the entire adventure inside Hume Castle:

• He uses his fury at being attacked to create a noisy, chaotic scene.
• He plays to their sympathies through the pain and humiliation of being tarred and feathered (Lymond is willing to suffer physical pain himself to gain his objective).
• He keeps them off balance by commenting on Grey's lisp and focusing on Grey's use of the word "idiot." 
• He takes advantage of the fact only Secretary Myles can speak Spanish, just barely, as evidenced by his use of 'embarazar,' which he intended to mean 'hinder' but which can also mean 'impregnate.'
• He makes a fuss about being dressed to suit his station, which causes quite the kerfuffle among Grey and his men.
• He ultimately wears them down with his incessant vivacity ("Lord Grey became aware that he was dead tired and another hour of the brilliant señor would undoubtedly drive him crazy").

Aside: Something else we learn during the course of the chapter: Francis Crawford is not a tall or big man. We already knew he was slender and elegant, but I do not think the fact that he is not a tall, heavily built man has been made clear before.

***

Will immediately knows Don Luis is Lymond because Francis makes sure to stand close to him and look Will in the eye with his distinctive "cornflower blue" eyes...right before he hits him in the mouth (the inevitable corporal punishment for Will's defiance). Lymond and Will use Spanish proverbs to spar with each other. Will's riposte--"a bad master creates a bad servant"--indicates to Lymond that Scott indeed recognizes him. Will also takes the hint from Lymond to faint once the questioning has gone on long enough to wear out the English without revealing anything. Then "Don Luis" not only manages to convince Grey to let him take the prisoners with him, he also convinces Grey to give him horses because Hume is short on food and fodder.

***

Grey and his men do not catch on to the ruse. The exploding culverins and, later, the brackish water where beer should have been, along with Lymond's wickedly apt note, tell of a masterful deception. But by whom? Grey has only one name to go on: Will Scott of Kincurd, who is surely now a marked man.

***

The final scene of this astonishingly entertaining chapter is all about the grinding and utter humiliation of Will Scott. In a few short, devastating minutes, he finds out that Lymond knew exactly what he would do and had given his men the choice of staying with him or going with Will to Hume. Even worse, all the men were in on the plan and thought Will was, too. This is the worst form of "spiritual chastisement" Will could imagine: having to play the part of the hero when in fact he has been revealed as a first-class fool. Worst of all for Will, Lymond thinks so little of him that he cheerfully heaps approbation on Will in front of the men. 

The final insult comes when Lymond tells Will, in answer to his question about the captain of the guard, that he was not in fact Spanish. So why did Lymond decide to make his impersonation of the captain of the guard Spanish instead of English?

• It virtually ensures the English at Hume Castle will not know "Don Luis." 
• It takes advantage of the fact that, while Lymond speaks fluent Spanish, no one among the English at Hume does. Lymond gambles that there are no fluent Spanish speakers among the English, and his gamble pays off.
• He can use this linguistic confusion to his advantage.

If Lymond were impersonating an English captain, someone at Hume should know him or at least know of him. It would immediately raise suspicion if he were not recognized. 

The chapter closes with another chess reference, which brings us full circle to the epigraph. Will decides his only course is to be humble and admit he has learned his lesson while Lymond warns him that the next time he pulls a stunt like this he may end up dead ("receiving the Bishop, with appropriate rites"). As the epigraph says, it's important for the Rook (Will Scott) to have men who will run here and there and get into places and cities opposed to the King (Lymond). 

In this wonderful chapter, as in the chess move Castling, the Rook and the King move simultaneously. However, it is the King, in this case, who ends up defending the Rook and, in fact, removing him from the board, so to speak. After all, Lymond risks himself and his men in order for Will to learn a lesson through this escapade. 

However, by the end of the chapter it is clear Lymond had planned to attack Hume Castle all along and simply uses the opportunity of the assault to teach poor Will a lesson. Is there another motive?

Questions to Ponder

1. When did you first realize that Don Luis was Lymond? Or did you?
2. What was Will Scott's plan for getting out of Hume Castle (or did he even have one)?
3. How does Lymond know what Will is planning to do?
4. Why does Lymond want to attack Hume Castle when he could have gotten the money, ordnance, and beer simply by attacking the supply train?

Favorite Line

"Mr. Secretary Myles, tried beyond endurance, gave a soul-destroying quack." 

Words that Describe Lymond in Castling

• dazzling
• outrageous
• hilarious
• manipulative
• authoritative
• fearless
• bold
• imaginative
• harsh
• mercurial
• witty
• despotic
• a loner