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thought of Cristen, and felt better.
    He heard John say, “We had best go to see Sir Gervase first. I didn’t tell him where I was going when I asked for leave. I just said I thought I knew someone who could help Bernard.”
    For the first time, Hugh realized that he didn’t want to see Gervase Canville. He had nothing against the man, but he didn’t want to see anyone else in Ralf’s place. He had not set foot in Lincoln since Ralf was killed.
    He drew a deep breath and said, “Aye. It would be best to see Sir Gervase first.”
    Lincoln was a large city, with a population of more than five thousand people. Most of the houses the two men passed as they rode up the main street belonged to the city burgesses. At one time the majority of the houses in Lincoln had been made of wood, but a fire in 1122 had destroyed a great part of the city, and much of the rebuilding had been done in stone.
    A group of boys playing in the street with a leather ball stuffed with straw caught Hugh’s eye. They brought back a memory of the time when he had been part of precisely such a noisy, shouting pack of youngsters. Ralf would collect him on his way home from the castle to supper…
    It was late afternoon and already beginning to grow dark. Hugh was sweaty and itchy and dirty and hungry, and his stallion, Rufus, was the same.
    He felt a stab of longing so sharp that it was almost physically painful. If only he could go home! Ralf would see that Rufus was cared for, and Adela would fill the big tub for him, and…
    He compressed his lips in a hard, straight line.
    He had not thought it would be so hard to see Lincoln again.
     
    Lincoln Castle had been built at the order of William the Conqueror himself. The castle was guarded most closely by a shell keep, or inner wall, constructed on top of the steep hill, or motte, upon which the castle keep was perched. Steep stairs led from the keep down to the inner bailey, a large courtyard of about six acres encircled by a second stone wall. In Lincoln this inner bailey was called the Inner bail.
    The Inner bail was the heart of Lincoln’s garrison. The knights who served on the castle guard lived there, housed in wooden huts. Also inside its walls were a stockade and stables for the knights’ horses. All of their food, drink, and weapons were stored in this area as well.
    Surrounding this military compound was the outer bailey, an immense space partly enclosed by a section of the old Roman city walls. In Lincoln this outer bailey was called simply the Bail and within its enclosure lay the Minster and the bishop’s house.
    Dusk was gathering when Hugh and John rode through the old Roman gate into the Bail. Hugh started with surprise at the line of merchant’s stalls set up along the east wall.
    “This is something new,” he remarked to John.There was a faint line between his brows. “Since when have merchants been allowed in here?”
    “Since about six months ago,” John replied. “The sheriff had the idea to rent some parts of the Bail to local merchants. The rent they pay has been a useful addition to our defense funds.”
    “I see,” Hugh said. But the frown did not lift from his face.
    The two rode on, and reached the gate to the Inner bail, where Hugh was recognized by one of the guards on duty.
    “Hugh!” the guard boomed in a voice that had to be audible clear to the castle. “By God, it’s Hugh Corbaille himself! Welcome back to Lincoln! It’s about time you paid us a visit.”
    “Thank you, Odo,” Hugh replied pleasantly.
    Odo’s greeting acted as a catalyst for the rest of the knights in the courtyard to spin around and come running. Within a minute, Hugh found himself surrounded by a crowd of men who were all talking to him at once. He laughed and held up a hand as if to defend himself.
    John Melan barked, “Be quiet and give Lord Hugh a chance to hear himself think.”
    Thus abruptly reminded of the change in Hugh’s estate, from the boy they had all seen grow up