We mount horses - not ours, which are somewhere else due to our imprisonment - and race to the gates of the city as quickly as a king's retinue can.
When we arrive, Leopold is already ordering troops around to prepare defenses, and King Henri is scanning the horizon.
I make it up to where Roland is already standing, staring out into the distance.
On the horizon I can see it - a black mass of bodies. People marching toward the castle. Too many people to be refugees. Coming from the wrong direction.
"...Diane." He looks over at me suddenly. "With me. The rest of you, be ready. Let's go have a look at our enemy."
I nod quickly. Two people on horseback will have a better chance of getting in close enough to get a look at the enemies and survive than sending in a whole squadron. And then we'll know what to prepare for.
