The Robber Knight's Love (The Robber Knight Saga #2)(99)

He betrayed you, she forced herself to remember, concentrating on the bitter fact as hard as she could. He betrayed everybody you care about. You cannot feel pity for him. You must judge him.

But she also remembered her secret conversation with the traitor down in the dungeon, and she remembered his reasons for the betrayal: three reasons, which, to him, eclipsed the rest of world. His family. His everything.

For a moment, Ayla wondered what it would be like to have children. Would she go as far in protecting them? An image appeared in her mind of Reuben, holding her in her arms together with a tiny bundle wrapped in white linen blankets. Her heart ached at the image, and when she looked at Hans again, there was no anger in her, only sadness.

“Greetings, Hans,” she said.

The man on the floor bowed his head until it touched the cold stone.

“Greetings, Milady. Have you brought me here to pass judgment on me?” He sounded as though he had been expecting it.

Ayla hesitated, and that hesitation seemed to terrify Hans. He crept forward a few inches.

“Please, Milady, I don't care if it's quick or slow, but please, don't let my wife and children see it. Don't make them watch. I don't want them to see it, please.”

“See what?” Ayla asked, her brow furrowed, her sadness momentarily driven away by confusion.

Hans seemed no less confused.

“Well…my execution, of course.”

“Execution? I'm not going to execute you!”

“You aren't? But down in the dungeon, you said…”

“I said that I could execute you, not that I would! I was angry, and upset, and didn't…” her voice dwindled away, as she didn't know what more to say.

“But,” Hans continued hesitantly, daring to look up at her, “isn't death the customary punishment for treason?”

“Yes, I suppose it is,” Ayla mumbled, staring down at her hands.

“Then what are you waiting for, Milady?”

“Dear Lord, man! Do you want to be executed? You seem to be asking for it!”

Hans looked down again, shame spreading on his face. “I deserve it.”

“No doubt about that,” Ayla agreed, despondently.

“So, are you going to do it?” Hans pressed.

No answer formed on Ayla’s lips. In truth, she did not know what she was supposed to do. Yes, this man had betrayed her people, his people; yes, he deserved to die. And yet, he was Hans. A man who had lived in the castle and been around her since she had been four or five years old. A man with family. She couldn’t just hang him.

It occurred to her that maybe her attitude wasn't quite fair, considering she had been perfectly willing to dangle Reuben from the highest tower of the castle by his neck just for stealing a horse. But that had been before she knew who he was. Knowing people, it appeared, always made the difference.

“First,” she decided, “I need to know more about what happened. Tell me everything. And I warn you, do not try to lie or hide anything. I may not be ready to kill you yet, but I'm not above giving you some alone time with Sir Reuben.”

That threat obviously seemed to do its purpose. Hans paled and began to spout information like a gargoyle would water on a rainy day.

“I already told you how Falkenstein's man first contacted me, Milady. He told me to earn the Margrave's favor, I had to do everything I could to secure an easy victory. The first thing he demanded was for me to participate in the attempt at your abduction.”

“That…was you?”

“Yes, Milady.”

Ayla nodded woodenly. She had expected it, but still, it was a shock to hear.

“However, just in case that failed, he told me I had to take every opportunity to sabotage the defense.”

Ayla nodded again. “So that is why you tried to open the gates?”

“Yes, Milady. The man told me that, if I could get the gates open, I was to go outside and signal Falkenstein's soldiers. A scout would always lie in watch for my signal, and once he had received it, he would contact the camp. They would send up a troop of their best fighters up here in silence and darkness. They would secure the gatehouse and courtyard, and while they moved to the inner gates, the main force would move in behind them to kill the soldiers in the barracks in their sleep.”

A cold shiver ran down Ayla's back as she watched the man recounting all this in a calm and detached manner. The two guards on either side of him had a hard time restraining themselves. They would have been among the “soldiers in the barracks” who were going to be killed.

“These are your friends,” she whispered, not able to keep the horror out of her voice. “How could you? Even for your family?”

Hans trembled.

“I know the gravity of my crimes, Milady. But blood runs thicker than water, and despair runs thickest of all. I would do anything for my family.” As if finally bowed down by the shame, he lowered his head. Then, he hurriedly looked up again. “Did anyone die in the attack? In your attempted abduction? I knew there were wounded, but were there dead? It wasn't publicly announced.”

“No, Hans. There were no dead.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank the Lord.”

“Why?” Her hand slammed down on the armrest of her chair. “Why would you thank God? You let the enemy in!”