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scene until either he or Hywel
could arrive. Gwen knew exactly what to do, of course. He was
pleased that Prior Rhys and Prince Rhun had learned as well.
    With a wave of his hand, Gareth suggested
that the two monks wait in a cooler spot under a tree, and then he
looked at the prince. “I appreciate your discretion, my lord. The
fewer people who know the details of an investigation, the
better.”
    “That is as Gwen said,” Rhun said. “Your
thanks should be given to her and to Prior Rhys.”
    “Don’t listen to him, Gareth,” Gwen said.
“The prince has been nothing but helpful.”
    Rhun ignored the accolade. “What do you
see?”
    Gareth surveyed the body, pleased that Gwen
had gotten it right again. Not only was it clear the man didn’t
drown, but the stab wound that Gwen had pointed out was
unmistakable. He raised the hem of the dead man’s shirt to examine
it, but what he saw had him tsking through his teeth. “He knew his
killer.”
    “I agree. When we find out the man’s name,”
Gwen said, “we should be able to limit the suspects to those he
knew.”
    Prince Rhun bent forward, his hands on his
knees. “Why are you so sure of that? In the dark, two strangers
might speak to one another and stand close enough for one to stab
the other.”
    “That might be true in a crowd,” Gareth
said, “but would it be true when they’re beside the millpond in the
dark of night?”
    Gwen swung her hands in a two-foot circle
around her body. “How often do you allow someone to move into this
space, my lord?”
    Prince Rhun frowned. “I would allow a woman
to come that close.”
    “But a man?” Gwen said.
    “Other than my brother, only when I greet
him,” Rhun said.
    “For which you use your right hand.” Gwen
pointed at the wound. “No man could die from that wound while
greeting another. The angle is impossible if struck with the knife
in the left hand.”
    “Besides which,” Prior Rhys said, “if one
stranger intends to kill another, he would know that he would find
it hard to get close. He would have sprung upon him, surprising him
if he could.”
    Rhun sucked on his teeth. “All right. You’ve
convinced me. He knew his killer.”
    Gareth laughed. “We’d better be correct
about this, Gwen, or we’ll never live it down.”
    Gwen crouched beside Gareth, laughing under
her breath too. Having his wife so close jumbled Gareth’s thoughts
for a moment. Almost absently, he traced the wound with one finger.
Then, in a rush, what he was seeing came into focus. His brow
furrowed. “That looks similar to—” He leaned in to examine the
wound more closely and found Gwen gripping his wrist. He glanced at
her, and she shook her head almost imperceptibly.
    He sat back, a chill running up and down his
spine.

Chapter Five
    Gareth
     
    G areth stood, and
as he helped Gwen to her feet, his fingers entwined with hers, both
of them holding on tight.
    “We should move the body inside.” Gareth
turned to Prior Rhys. “Is it customary here to place a body in the
chapel or somewhere else?”
    “They have a small room off the nave set
aside for it,” Rhys said.
    “Good,” Gareth said. “It will be far cooler
inside than out here. As it is, he’ll have to be put in the ground
by the end of the day tomorrow at the very latest. It’s just too
hot.”
    “Probably before,” Gwen said.
    “Hopefully, we’ll know his name before
then,” Prince Rhun said.
    “We’ll do our best,” Gwen said.
    “Surely someone will have missed him,”
Gareth said, “but at the very least, I can draw his face.”
    “That’s a good idea.” Gwen nodded
approvingly. “Any loved one will find him unpleasant to look upon
as he is now. Better to show them the image instead.”
    Gareth went to his saddlebag and removed
paper and charcoal. With quick movements, he sketched a rough image
of the dead man’s face, trying to draw him as he would have been in
life, not bloodless and cold from the water as he was now.
    Meanwhile,