The Walls of Byzantium (17 page)

Luke shook his head, unconvinced. ‘Well, it hardly matters now. We’ve got to get you away from here, back to Mistra. I will help you, of course – but my father can’t.’ He glanced at Joseph who was watching them, confusion in every part of his face. ‘He is sworn to the Archon.’ He took Anna’s hand, searching the thin face before him. Was she even hearing him? ‘So we have to leave. I don’t know where we’ll go, but we’ll find
somewhere. And we have to go now. This is the first place they’ll search.’

He got up and picked up her cloak from the back of a chair. She stood unsteadily to put it on. Then he guided her to the door.

‘Luke,’ said Joseph from behind him.

Luke turned. Joseph took his son in his arms and hugged him fiercely.

‘Listen to me,’ said Joseph. ‘You’re right – you must leave, but only because they
will
come here to search.’

Luke nodded.

‘So,’ said Joseph, ‘find your three friends and take her somewhere you can all look after her until it’s safe to leave. I will tell you where to go.’

By now the hour was late, Monemvasia was abed and only the cats prowled the streets. Both dressed in dark cloaks, Luke and Anna hurried through the maze of alleyways until they reached Matthew’s house. Luke put two fingers to his mouth and gave a low whistle.

Once Matthew was dressed and had climbed through his window and from there to the ground, he set off with Luke and Anna to the next house. The moon was on the wane and they needed the flickering lights of the street lamps to guide their way.

Fifteen minutes later, the five of them were sitting in the pews of the little church of St Andreas, hard by the city’s sea walls. They could hear the sound of the waves on the rocks outside. Anna was sitting a little apart, looking up at a mural painted on the ceiling above the altar. From the lights of two suspended lamps, she could see an angel of the Last Judgement
reading from a lectern, while all around were the damned in torment. Serpents were writhing through the limbs of sinners waiting to be pitched into hellfire while far above floated the saved, smugly processing across the ceiling to join God the Father enthroned. Anna found herself looking for the face of her brother amongst them.

Alexis
.

‘Anna, have you heard anything we’ve said?’

‘No … I’m sorry …’

‘We’re going to take you to a cave we know of on the other side of the Goulas,’ said Luke. ‘It’s a climb up the rock but you can make it with our help. It’s hidden from view by bushes and you’ll be safe there.’

Anna nodded.

‘But it means getting you through the city gate,’ said Matthew. ‘So one of us will stay behind and you’ll wear his cloak. The guards are used to seeing four of us leave together.’

In a moment Anna was wearing Nikolas’s cloak. It smelt of sea and fish.

Nikolas grinned. ‘They’ll know it’s me from the smell. Just keep the hood up.’

CHAPTER EIGHT

MONEMVASIA, SUMMER 1394

The cave was bigger than Anna imagined it would be, and much lighter. Both were a great relief.

It had been a difficult climb and the five of them had waited in the church until dawn before attempting it. Now, it was her fourth dawn there and Anna sat at its entrance, wrapped in a blanket against the early morning chill, staring out across the bay of Monemvasia. The mountains skirting its edge were slowly taking shape beneath a changing sky and a low mist hung over the sea. Around her, hundreds of birds had begun their noisy tribute to the new day and Anna could hear the screams of cats, far below, as they fought over scraps washed on to the rocks overnight.

The shore on this north side of the Goulas was almost nonexistent. The cliff walls rose straight from the sea and the rocks at its base were jagged and lashed by waves in all weathers so that it was impossible for boats to put in. Even if they had, they’d not have seen the mouth of the cave since it was covered by the branches of a laurel bush that grew out of the rock. It was the perfect hiding place.

Anna wondered who’d lived here in the past. There were
letters etched into the walls and she felt the presence of past habitation. She’d heard of hermits escaping the world to live in caves and wondered if that meant God remained in the place after they’d gone. She thought that God
was
perhaps in this cave with her, for she felt happier than she had in weeks.

She’d even managed to stop thinking about Alexis.

Anna looked out of the cave. The sun had crested the horizon behind her and stretched out across the waves like a ladder to heaven. The sky was becoming lighter and birds rose from the rocks around to warm their wings and chase away the last of the night.

Then Anna heard something unexpected below her, the neigh of a horse. It was coming from the direction of the port of Gefira, hidden from view to her left. But the port was too far away for the sound to have come from there. The animal must be on the rocks below. Or out at sea.

She strained her eyes to see into the mist. She heard the neigh again, closer she thought, and definitely coming from the sea. How was that possible?

A moment later, she understood. Coming around the edge of the rock, and quite far out, was a small merchantman lying low in the water flying the Mamonas flag. On its deck, tethered to the mast and moving with the roll of the ship, stood a horse.

Eskalon
.

Anna’s mind raced. If Eskalon was on a ship then he was leaving to be sold. He was leaving Luke. If Eskalon was being sold, it could only be Damian’s work. Could he have found out about Luke’s part in her ride to find Alexis? Was this Luke’s punishment?

Anna pressed her head against the laurel, pushing aside the leaves to get a better view. It was undoubtedly Eskalon and he
looked frightened. He was leaving to be sold to some Norman knight to brutalise into submission. And if he didn’t submit, as Anna feared he would not, then he would be killed. She felt sick at the thought.

Anna looked around at the contents of her cave, at everything Luke had brought for her. She had blankets, a pillow, food, water, towels and an oil lamp with enough spare oil to keep it burning. All she could need, in fact, except company. Then she looked at the last object, a small crossbow that Joseph had given Luke to shoot squirrels with. She remembered how Luke had knelt behind her in the cave, his hands on hers, as he’d shown her how to use it.

Another memory came to her. They’d been at the gate on the night of her escape, four of them in cloaks and hers smelling of fish. She remembered how Luke had stopped to face her in the dark and then gently lifted the hood to cover her head. She remembered how he’d put his arm around her shoulders, shouting to the guards that Nikolas was sick and in need of the old Jew’s remedy. She remembered how he’d squeezed her shoulder to reassure her that it would work. And she’d known that it would; that he was strong enough to protect her.

Later, Anna was asleep when she heard a rockfall outside. She rose to her knees and moved the laurel to look down. Someone was climbing up to the cave. She was surprised at how much she wanted it to be Luke.

It was Luke.

She saw his hair, the colour of straw, moving with his shoulders as he climbed, and the fair down that shivered on his forearms as he reached out for a handhold. A brown hessian
sack was slung from his shoulders. He paused and glanced up to the cave.

‘Help me up,’ he panted as his head drew level with the cave’s entrance. Anna took his hand and leant back with all her weight to help him in. Then he was there, sitting on the floor in front of her and lifting the sack from his shoulders.

‘I have food and more oil and another blanket. I thought it might be cold at night. And I brought you a book.’

Anna’s heart lifted. A book was a luxury.

‘Where did you get it?’

‘Zoe gave it to me to give to you. It’s written by Anna Komnene about the reign of her father the Emperor Alexios. She said you’d find it interesting.’

‘Anna Komnene?’ Anna smiled. ‘I was named for her. But where did you see Zoe?’

‘I met her in the
mesi odos
, buying something. She was anxious to know where you were. I told her only that you were safe. Then she gave me the book.’

‘She’s kind,’ said Anna.

Luke considered this. ‘It wasn’t always so. Anyway she’s suggested you leave by sea since the bridge is heavily guarded. It would seem to make sense.’

‘But surely we just need to wait for the Archon and Damian to leave?’ asked Anna.

Luke shook his head. ‘The Archon will only leave when he has to. He’s worried that his estates will be confiscated if he goes.’

‘Is the Despot marching on Monemvasia then?’

Luke nodded. ‘I managed to get a message to Mistra about the cannon. It seems the Despot means to punish Pavlos Mamonas.’

‘And Damian.’

Damian. They hadn’t talked about the man who was still her husband. He’d been away, permitted finally to engage in the business of the Mamonas fortune.

‘And Damian. He’s leading the search for you.’

Luke began to unpack the sack, taking out the rug and a knotted napkin, which he untied to reveal some bread, onions, cream cheese and a
sphoungal
, a baked egg dish that Anna had said she liked. A smaller napkin held figs stuffed with chestnuts.

‘These are my favourite,’ said Luke. ‘My mother made them for you.’

‘Your favourite? Then you must join me. I can’t eat all this on my own.’

They began to eat, comfortable in the silence of food shared. At last Luke wiped the breadcrumbs from his mouth.

‘I think I have a plan to get us away.’

‘Us? Are you coming with me?’

‘You’d never make it on your own. Anyway, I need to go to Mistra.’

Anna put her head on one side. ‘And leave your friends, your family? Why must you go to Mistra, Luke, except to take me there?’

Luke didn’t answer.

Anna leant forward. She picked up the book and trailed her fingers across the leather. ‘Anna Komnene writes about Varangians,’ she said quietly. ‘And my father told me that their treasure is buried somewhere on the hill of Mistra.’ She paused. ‘Is that why you must go there?’

Luke took the book and opened it. She knew he would say nothing more. She watched him turn the pages. She put her hand on the open page. ‘Can you read, Luke?’

He looked up. ‘A little.’

‘Would you like me to read to you? About the Varangians?’ Luke smiled and handed the book to her. ‘I’d like that very much.’

Much later, when the lamp had been lit and Anna’s eyes were straining to read, she closed the book. It was evening.

Luke had hardly moved a muscle for six hours. He’d barely breathed.

‘They were brave,’ she said. ‘Like you.’

He held her eye for a moment and then began to gather his things. ‘I must go. I need to be in the house in case they search it.’

Anna nodded, surprised at her disappointment. ‘Of course. Tell me, how is Joseph?’

Luke’s face darkened. ‘We argued the night you came,’ he said. ‘It’s never happened before, not like that. I fear I’m not the son he should have.’

Anna thought of Joseph, thought of his eyes. It was inconceivable that he’d not be proud of Luke.