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But destiny had other plans for the lady in the foritireat strength, and his natural ability to lead and draw others to him with absolute loyalty, had preserved his presence here, and he assue him But the bastard royal, François, had arrived upon the scene with a brutal and unnecessary violence Those areas still in ht have ridden proudly beneath a Norhtered Soer forces, leaving battlefields with few of their own lost, while the enemy lay decimated

The first conquest François had made upon his arrival had been that of Valeria, as well as her father’s holdings Conan was stunned by the betrayal Had Paolo turned his daughter over to François in pursuit of what he perceived as a greater power? Or had the man been threatened to such an extent that he’d felt he’d had no choice? The one tryst Conan had ed with Valeria after the arrival of his French counterpart had been deeply wrenching; he had been willing to fight anyBut while the beauty clung to hiht forever ether, she denied hiht for her He would never understand, but she was betrothed to François because she had to be, and any effort Conanbut harm And so he had stepped aside He had kept his fury leashed, watching François ravage the countryside, killing again and again He had been stunned to hear that Valeria had often appeared on the battlefield at the side of her betrothed, and it was ruht about such death and destruction He had never thought, however, that an entire populace could believe the woain and again that indeed, it was she, Valeria, who brought about the anguish and bloodshed The people had spoken of her as if she were a witch, a monster, the devil’s own bride cloaked in beauty As of late, he had even begun to fear for her

"My lord, they will be upon us anyin his voice

Conan strode for the door in the office of the ht into one of the cliffs and alnable A fine hallith Ro stairway; he descended to the great hall, where his knights were asse Well trained and attuned to his everychain and plate into place and proper position

Hagar, his ht to the entry, and he strode at the head of histoJust as Raoul had said It was night, but then, he had heard that ht, and de Venue and his co the very late hours, before the dawn They rode with s that tore into the flesh ofin a sea so great itSome were soldiers, some peasants, others oar at the head of his ate down the slope be opened, and he rode out frohts at his side, his reat field at the foot of the cliff, his fellows flanked him in a line; then he rode forward alone

"Halt! Tell me, what is it that you seek from me?" he bellowed loudly to the crowd, his voice deep and rich with the confidence and authority he never failed to wield

A fellow burst forth from the crowd, a man he knew: a fine Calabrian warrior who had lain down his ar and intelligent, a ht, his eyes were as wild as those of a madman

"Lord Conan!" he called "We have accepted your rule--the peasants beneath you saw a kinder ht, if you do not lead us against the devil horde of François de Venue, ill die to aus as well!--if you do not take arainst his that coht such unearthly demons, and you alone, blessed sire, must rid us of the monster queen ould slay us all"

"Good fellows, knights and peasants a you, surely you cannot believe that the woman is such a monster!" he called back

"Make way!" da Silva called, and a woe, burst through with the bloody, battered body of a young lad in her arms

"She did this!" the woman cried brokenly to his rushed around her, and laid claie I saw her! Saw her lift her hand, saw the light of hell in her eyes If you do not stop her, slay her, she will tear down everything By gracious God, dear Lord Conan!" She fell to the earth, her tearswith the blood of her son "You must help us!"

Fro howl suddenly encoht The earth itself seemed to tremble Conan was not a man who feared battle, pain, or even death Yet at the sound of that howling, he felt as if his blood grew cold and congealed in his veins Fear trickled in icy rivulets along his spine

Angrily, he ignored it, ignored the unholy unease that see

Wolves Wolves crying to the s, perhaps, their one-ti upon shorn fields where battle had taken place, now left to starve and rae on their own

"Wolves, or wild dogs," he said aloud

"No! You don’t understand, you’ve yet to see… you won’t believe You must coe!" da Silva told him "Lord Conan! For the love of God!"

He nodded Best that he lead the forces against François and Valeria, as surely forced to ride at his side, who must now have witnessed such horror that she stared upon it, her eyes glazed with dismay