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said Will in a low voice. “I won’t!”

    “We won’t have to,” said Owein calmly, seating himself on the bench, “if you start behaving like the sergeant I know you can be.” When Owein saw he had the boy’s attention, he continued. “You have a sharp mind, William, and your enthusiasm and skill on the training field is laudable. But you refuse to apply yourself to the most fundamental obligations of our Order. Do you think our founders wrote the Rule for their own amusement? We must all strive to follow the ideals they prescribed in order to fulfill our role as Christ’s warriors on Earth. Being able to fight well is not enough. Bernard de Clairvaux himself tells us that it is useless to attack exterior enemies if we do not first conquer those of the interior. Do you understand that, William?”

    “Yes, sir,” said Will quietly. The sentiment touched something deep inside him.

    “You cannot continue to jeopardize your position by flouting the Rule whenever you think it dull, or senseless. You must start obeying me, William, in all of your duties, not just the ones you enjoy. You must learn discipline else you will have no place in this Order. Is that clear?”

    “Yes, Sir Owein.”

    Owein sat back, satisfied that Will had listened and understood. “Good.” He picked up one of the scrolls that was lying on the table. Unrolling the parchment he smoothed it flat with his palm. “Then your next duty will be to bear my shield at a parley between King Henry and Master de Pairaud.”

    “The king? He’s coming here, sir?”

    “In twelve days.” Owein looked up from the parchment. “And his visit is a private affair, so you are forbidden from speaking of it.”

    “You have my word, sir.”

    “Until then, you will be assigned to the stables as punishment for neglecting your responsibilities this morning. This will be in addition to your daily work. That is all, sergeant. You are dismissed.”

    Will bowed and headed for the door.

    “And William.”

    “Sir?”

    “My threats may have seemed without substance in the past. But if you test my patience any further, I won’t hesitate to have you expelled from the Order. Stay out of trouble. The good Lord knows it follows you around like a stray dog, but the next time you turn and pet it, it may well bite you.”

    “Yes, sir.”

    When Will had gone, Owein rubbed at his brow wearily.

    “You are far too lenient on the boy, brother.” A tall knight with flint-gray hair and a leather patch over his left eye appeared from around the wooden screen, where he had been sitting throughout the meeting. He crossed to Owein, holding a sheaf of parchments. “To bear the shield of a Templar is a great honor, greater still given the setting. His punishment seems more like a reward.”

    Owein studied the scroll before him. “Perhaps the responsibility will help to temper him, brother.”

    “Or lead him to worse abuses of his rank. I fear your affection for the boy has blinded you. You are not his father, Owein.”

    Owein looked up, frowning. He opened his mouth to object, but the flint-haired knight continued.

    “Boys of his age and breeding are like dogs. They respond better to the whip rather than the word.”

    “I disagree.”

    The knight gave a tiny shrug and laid the sheaf of parchments he held on the table. “It’s your decision, of course. I merely offer my opinion.”

    “Your opinion is noted, Jacques,” said Owein, mildly but firmly. He picked up the parchments. “Have you read them all?”

    “I have.” Jacques walked to the window and surveyed the Temple’s grounds. The leaves on the trees were beginning to wither, turning brown and crumpled at the edges. “What does Master de Pairaud say? Is he confident that Henry will concede to our demands?”

    “Fairly. As I have been dealing with this matter for some months, Master de Pairaud has, to some extent, left it in my hands as to how we proceed during the parley. I have talked