‘But surely most of those who were robbed are now dead,’ said Yussuf quietly.
‘They may have heirs who are alive, but whatever is not claimed will be donated to our order,’ replied the Templar knight.
‘That is a most interesting explanation for what I have heard, that you consider yourselves too good to plunder a battlefield,’ said Yussuf with a smile, seeming to think he had won another exchange of words.
‘No, we do not take plunder from battlefields,’ replied the Templar knight coldly. ‘But that should not present a problem, since there are so many others who do. If we have taken part in a victory, we turn at once toward God. If you would like to hear what your own Koran has to say about plundering a battlefield…’
‘Thank you, no!’ Yussuf interrupted him, holding up a hand in warning. ‘We would prefer not to return to a topic of conversation since it would seem that you, an infidel, know more than we do about the Word of the Prophet, may peace be with him. Let me instead ask you a very candid question.’
‘Yes. Ask me a candid question, and it shall be given the answer it deserves,’ replied the Templar knight, holding up his hands, palm out, to show, in the manner of the faithful, that he agreed to change the topic of conversation.
‘You said that the truce between us would soon be over. Is it Brins Arnat you are referring to?’
‘You know a great deal, Yussuf. Brins Arnat, whom we call Reynald de Châtillon, has begun plundering again. And by the way he is no “prince” but an evil man who is unfortunately allied with the Knights Templar. This I know, and I regret it. I would rather not be his ally, but I obey orders. But no, he is not the major problem.’
‘Then it must be something about that new prince, who came from the land of the Franks with a great army. What is it he is called: Filus something or other?’
‘No,’ said the Templar knight with a smile. ‘He is indeed Filus, meaning the son of someone. His name is Philip of Flanders, he is a duke, and yes, he came with a great army. But now I must warn you before we continue this conversation.’
‘Why is that?’ asked Yussuf, feigning nonchalance. ‘I have your word. Have you ever broken a vow you have sworn?’
‘I once made a vow that I have not yet been able to fulfil; it will take ten years before I can do so, if it is God’s will. But I have never broken a promise and, may God help me, I never will.’
‘Well then. Why should our truce be broken because of the arrival of someone named Filus from some Flamsen? Surely such things happen all the time.’
The Templar knight gave Yussuf a long, searching look, but Yussuf did not avert his eyes. This went on for some time; both refused to give in.
‘You wish to keep secret your identity,’ said the Templar knight at last, without taking his eyes off Yussuf. ‘But few men could know so much about what goes on in the world of war; certainly not someone who claims to be a merchant on his way to Cairo. If you insist on speaking more about this, I can no longer pretend that I do not know who you are; a man who has spies, a man who knows. There are not many such men.’
‘You have my word also; remember that, Templar knight.’
‘Of all the unbelievers, your word is no doubt the one most of us would trust most.’
‘You honour me with your words. So, why will our truce be broken?’
‘Ask your men to leave us if you will continue this conversation, Yussuf.’
Yussuf pondered this for a moment as he pensively tugged on his beard. If the Templar knight truly understood who he was talking to, would it then be easier for him to kill and at the same time break his word? No, that was unlikely. Considering how this man had behaved when he killed earlier in the evening, he had no need to make it easier to betray his vow; he would have drawn his sword long ago.
Yet it was difficult to understand his demand, which seemed unreasonable. At the same time, no one would particularly benefit if it were met. In the end Yussuf’s curiosity won out over his caution.
‘Leave us,’ he commanded curtly. ‘Go to sleep close by; you can clean up here in the morning. Remember that we are in the field, under camp rules.’
Fahkr and Emir Moussa hesitated. They started to get to their feet as they looked at Yussuf, but his stern glance made them obey. They bowed to the Templar knight and withdrew. Yussuf waited in silence until his brother and his closest bodyguard had moved far enough away and could be heard arranging their bedding.
‘I don’t think my brother and Moussa will have an easy time falling asleep.’
‘No,’ said the Templar knight. ‘But neither will they be able to hear what we say.’
‘Why is it so important for them not to hear what we say?’
‘It is not important,’ said the Templar knight, smiling. ‘What is important is that you know they won’t hear what you say. Then our conversation will be more candid.’
‘For a man who lives in a monastery, you know a great deal about human nature.’
‘In the monastery we learn much about human nature; more than you imagine. Now to what is more important. I will speak only of things that I am positive you already know, since anything else would be treason. But let us examine the situation. As you know, a new Frankish prince is coming. He will remain here for some time; he has everyone’s blessing back home for his holy mandate in God’s service, and so on. He has brought a great army along with him. So what will he do?’
‘Acquire riches as fast as possible since he has had great expenses.’
‘Precisely, Yussuf, precisely. But will he go against Saladin himself, and Damascus?’
‘No. Then he would risk losing everything.’
‘Precisely, Yussuf. We understand each other completely, and we can speak freely, now that your subordinates are out of earshot. So where will the new plunderer and his army go?’
‘Towards a city that is sufficiently strong and sufficiently wealthy, but I do not know which one.’
‘Precisely. Nor do I know which one. Homs? Hama? Perhaps. Aleppo? No, too far away and too strong a city. Let us say Homs or Hama, as the most obvious. What will our worldly Christian king in Jerusalem and the royal army do then?’
‘They do not have much choice. They will join in with the plundering even though they would rather use the new forces to attack Saladin.’
‘Precisely, Yussuf. You know everything, you understand everything. So now we both know what the situation is. What do we do about it?’
‘To begin with, you and I will both keep our word.’
‘Of course, that goes without saying. But what else do we do?’
‘We use this time of peace between us to understand each other better. I may never have the chance to talk to a Templar knight again. You may never have the chance to talk to…an enemy such as myself.’
‘No, you and I will probably meet only on this one occasion in our lives.’
‘The singular whim of God…But then let me ask you, Templar knight, what is needed more than God if we, the faithful, are to vanquish you?’
‘Two things. What Saladin is now doing: uniting all Saracens against us. That is already taking place. But the other thing is treason among those of us on the side of Jesus Christ, betrayal or grave sins, for which God will punish us.’
‘But