‘I am sorry to have taken the liberty to stop you, my Lord, but my task is urgent,’ Gallend declared. ‘How much longer do you think they may be? I must speak with King Éomer, or Finglor if he can be spared.’
Gallend accompanied Imrahil into the tent and summoned a surprised Éomer over to speak with them privately. First checking that Lothíriel was locked in silent thought with Galadriel and Elrond, Maglor sought out Aragorn to join the men.
‘It will break her heart, you cannot do it. I forbid it,’ they overheard Éomer saying fiercely to Gallend as they approached. ‘As your King I forbid it, Gallend. There is another way.’
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Night was beginning to fall as Éomer and Mithrandir left the tent together to find Moonsheen and Shadowfax, to give thanks to the Mearas, and for Éomer to bid Moonsheen farewell until they met again. Shadowfax and Maela would not be parted from their riders and therefore Geldsheen too would remain, but the other Mearas had begun to return to their preferred pastures in the vast lands of Rohan. All except Gallend’s mount, which continued to patrol the outskirts of the camp. He had named her Sigrida.
The Easterling prisoners had already been moved in small groups to more secure holding areas away from the main camp and the rescued villagers would be returned to their homes in the morning with aid to rebuild their burned livelihoods to be provided as a priority. As the campfires were lit and supper prepared, together with Erkenbrand and Elfhelm, Éomer went to eat with them and heard of their needs for the future, speaking at length with Hadán’s two sisters to console them for the loss of their mother.
Maglor came to find him, hooded so as not to scare the children who had been traumatised enough. He addressed Éomer in Sindarin, ‘Gallend wants to speak to us both in private. I’ve left Lothíriel with Hadán and Genting in the House of Healing nearest to the stream. Genting has taken a turn for the worse and is not waking. She is beside herself. Before he relapsed, he had called for you, something about a message from Théodred. You can go to them after we’ve spoken to Gallend. I’ve been called to a formal Council of the Elves. I cannot avoid it I’m afraid, it’s about me… But I don’t want to leave Lothíriel alone.’
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Lothíriel was holding Genting’s hand beside his bed looking distraught as Éomer entered the large tent. Hadán seemed distracted and strained, pacing up and down. There were a few other injured men but no other attendants as two of the best healers in Rohan were already present. ‘Is he conscious?’ Éomer asked immediately going over to stand beside Lothíriel.
Before she could look up to answer him, the tent erupted into sudden activity. Seconds later a man lay dead; Gallend was holding a knife at Hadán’s throat; Maglor was shouting at him to stop; all the injured men in the tent except Genting had leapt to their feet and were watching for any further threats. Aragorn, Amrothos and Gimli all entered the tent at the same time before the man’s body had even hit the floor.
Lothíriel was the only one who had not moved, she was still holding Genting’s hand. But her mind had absorbed and analysed each movement within those action-packed moments, and she stood up to face Gallend.
‘Let him go, Gallend,’ she ordered. Gallend hesitated. Hadán was totally calm and passive.
‘It’s his dagger that is embedded in the Astari as well as Maglor’s. Take a look.’
Her eyes strafed the body of the man lying face down. She did not need to see his face to know who it was and neither did she think did anyone else in the tent. The injured men comprised Faramir, Legolas and Imrahil. Lothíriel almost laughed.
Still Gallend hesitated. ‘He could have killed him to protect himself from discovery,’ he said rationally.
‘I accept that,’ she answered. ‘It is a reasonable assumption, but I don’t believe it. Let me show you why. Let him go,’ she insisted.
Gallend reluctantly stepped back from Hadán and removed the knife. Hadán had not taken his eyes off Lothíriel as she approached him. She turned her back to him and pushed herself up against him and quickly took out one of her daggers from the sheaths on her forearms and pushed it into his hand and held it to her throat. Imrahil and Éomer both took sharp intakes of breath. Even Maglor looked concerned.
‘You can kill me before any of them can react. The choice is yours,’ she said defiantly. Hadán dropped the dagger and span her around to face him.
‘You fool,’ he cried out, folding her into his arms. ‘You cannot take such risks, Lothi.’ He held her close to him lovingly, his face crumpled with emotion.
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The relief was palpable. Éomer and Imrahil both breathed again. Gallend, ever suspicious, interrogated Hadán further. ‘It is only this one or are there more?’
‘I wouldn’t know,’ he answered stiffly, still holding Lothíriel close to him. He looked up at each of the men in the room and studied them. ‘I gave up killing as soon as Tuor gave me the chance of another life. I selfishly didn’t give my former life another thought until the attack on the village.’
He looked down at Lothíriel who was still wrapped in his embrace. Reluctantly he let her go.
‘I am an Astari, Lothíriel. I trained as an assassin under Pallakir himself. I was in the same cohort as the man you killed in the vortex. I was trained for one purpose only, to infiltrate Rohan and kill whomever I was instructed to kill,’ he confessed openly.
Lothíriel nodded and said, ‘I know, Hadán. Tuor told me this years ago. You have had hundreds of clean opportunities to kill me and escape since then, Tuor too, and most recently Éomer, had you so wished. You haven’t always had our trust but by the Valar you have earned it.’
Hadán laid his hands on both her shoulder and said looking at her seriously, ‘You don’t know the Astari like I do, Lothíriel. That was far too great a risk to have taken, you should have killed both of us rather than taking the risk of trusting me.’
‘Well, that’s exactly what I had advised the King,’ Gallend almost jovially, ‘but he wasn’t having any of it. Glad though that I am to be both wrong, as well as right.’
Both Hadán and Lothíriel had turned to Éomer, Lothíriel’s eyes glowing with love and Hadán’s in surprise as well as appreciation.
‘I am still confused with one point though, but I’ll need to inspect the body and Hadán, if you don’t mind, I need to ask you a lot more questions…’ Gallend continued.
‘Of course,’ Hadán answered, ‘I too have questions and I am concerned there could be more of my kind embedded deep within Gondor as well as Rohan. I would ask only that I might be here when Genting wakes. I slipped him a sleeping draft and I owe him an explanation.’
Maglor huffed impatiently but went over to Genting and reached into his mind to bring him to consciousness. The others in the tent had begun to clear it of the body under Gallend’s supervision and divest themselves of their disguises, while Éomer asked everyone to convene in the main tent which was acting as his counsel chamber.
Lothíriel and Hadán were both positioned on either side of Genting’s bed as Maglor sought to wake him. By the time he came to his senses, only Éomer remained of the onlookers. He sat bolt upright and grabbed Hadán’s tunic at his chest to pull Hadán closer to him. As his focus took in Lothíriel next to him and Éomer standing behind Hadán, he released his hold and sank back onto the bed.
‘It’s not you then,’ he rasped out relieved, before finding Hadán’s hand to hold. Hadán bent over and kissed Genting on the lips to no one’s surprise except Genting himself.
‘It’s more complicated than that Genting, but I would die rather than allow any harm to come to either Lothíriel or Éomer, or indeed anyone in Rohan. You still need rest. I gave you a strong sedative to keep you out of this. I will come to take care of you as soon as I can, if you can wait for a full explanation?’ Hadán begged the man he had been secretly in love with since he first went to meet him in Minas Tirith at Lothíriel’s behest.
‘Well then,’ Maglor interrupted, ‘Hadán, I think you will need my help to move Genting back to the appropriate tent before you meet with Gallend. I will escort you there, if you don’t mind. I have a few urgent questions of my own before we speak with the full council.’ As they made to help a still rather groggy Genting onto his feet, Lothíriel handed Hadán her own travel sack full of her main healing ointments.
‘Hadán, what made you suspect Alfrind? You seemed so happy with him when I was with you at the village,’ she asked gently, knowing he would find this difficult to answer in front of Genting but believing it needed to be said. Genting stiffened, trying to stay alert. Hadán’s face was sad.
‘Lothi, please understand. It was never about Alfrind, it was about being accepted, being loved. I came back to Rohan as a woman and this is how I was accepted. Everything I did to get away from Sennebar I did to get back to her, my beautiful, wonderful mother. To have a family. So, when I found her again and found I had a family, all I wanted was that life back, and this seemed easier to do as a woman, and with Alfrind.
As for suspecting him, I really should have known much earlier. Astari are very well trained to deceive, Lothíriel. I did not feel comfortable waiting until the wedding to… well… to find out if he really could accept me as I am and that should have made me suspicious. I mean, I have never met a man who refused a woman when she offered herself to him, if he was really interested… and he was most insistent we were to be married before he would…. Well, you know…’ Éomer looked decidedly uncomfortable when Lothíriel could not help herself but to glance somewhat pointedly in his direction.
‘It should have made me wonder sooner what his motives were. With hindsight, it was all just too quick… too easy… too smooth, but I really began to suspect once we had been taken, and then of course, it should have been obvious with way the Mearas behaved at the camp. They blocked him leaving with me and my sisters. They would not let him pass into the main camp. None of the other villagers were interested in leaving the safety of the Mearas, only we four came to see what we could do to help. They just wouldn’t let him pass.’
Genting and Maglor both looked at each other and nodded. Hadán lifted Genting’s good arm over his shoulder to support him and took Lothíriel’s sack in his opposite hand and together they followed Maglor out of the tent, leaving Éomer and Lothíriel alone.
Lothíriel interrogated Éomer with an arched eyebrow and offended questioning look. Éomer observed her with a cautious curl to his lips.
‘That’s not why I…’ he started to say.
‘I should hope not!’ came the speedy riposte.
They both studied each other intently. He came over to her as she stiffened to his embrace and turned her face away from him.
‘You know that’s not the reason I…’ His voice deep, rich and resonant. He moved her chin with his hand to make her look at him. She pretended to turn her head away from him again in fake disdain. He smiled; her mouth twitched at the sides. He held her very close to him and pulled her hips onto his.
She took a sharp intake of breath, which she let out slowly, tilting her head back in longing. They both throbbed with desire for each other. She nuzzled her face against his cheek and gasped as he rubbed himself hard against her. She took her hand to his groin and grasped hold of the hard bulge under his tunic. It was enticingly close. She stroked it firmly. He groaned and picked her up so she could wrap her legs around him as they devoured each other ferociously on one of the recently vacated beds. His tunic was almost ripped off him in her haste to feel his skin as she thrust her hand down past his waist to release his hard cock from its constraints.
‘I want you, Lothíriel of Dol Amroth. I want you, dammit,’ he gasped in between their kisses, ‘but if I take you, I will never be able to let you go. Please understand this. I will not be able to let you leave me.’
He lay on top of her on the bed and rubbed himself purposefully against her as he rasped out intermittently while kissing her passionately, ‘Believe me, I will gladly take you right now if you promise me you will stay and marry me tomorrow.’
With great reluctance she slowed the intensity of their lovemaking and rolled herself on top of him.
‘We must wait,’ she said with aching regret as she lifted herself off him before she lost all control.
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She helped him button up his tunic and they both made themselves more presentable before first joining Gallend in the tent where he was examining Alfrind’s body. He was with Aragorn and her father. Gallend looked up at them both as they entered. ‘Well, that confirms much,’ he said pleased with himself. ‘Hadán would have had a bit of a shock on their wedding night… Not Alfrind, but Alfrindiel.’
‘A woman? Truly? A full woman?’ Lothíriel asked astounded, taking a good look herself.
‘Well of course a full woman, what other kind do they have?’ Gallend snapped back. Lothíriel looked at Éomer and pointedly said nothing. ‘One of the Easterling prisoners I interrogated had overheard the Astari talking of the reward one of their own would receive if ‘she’ succeeded in luring Lothíriel to Handlend Vale. To me that could only mean Cissy. They mentioned this female Astari had been years in hiding with ‘the enemy’, meaning us of course, and no one suspected her. I knew from Maglor that Lothíriel had been determined to attend Cissy’s wedding. It seemed clear that the Astari assassin could only be Cissy. Cissy’s history was already highly suspicious, although the villagers I questioned also confirmed that not much was really known about Alfrind before he showed up asking about Cissy’s family, other than he had originally come from Elbrond, which I knew to be false. It seemed to me they were working together.’
‘So you set a trap using me as bait,’ Lothíriel enthused. ‘Maglor I am used to being invisible when he wants to be but even I didn’t recognise my own father and cousin as the other invalids in the tent, never mind an Elf! And I am most impressed you persuaded Éomer to play his part so well.’
Gallend observed her with a broad smile. ‘Actually, much as it pains me to say this, I meant it when I said I intended to arrest and/ or kill both Hadán and Alfrind. The whole deception was exclusively Éomer’s idea. I had even made to throw a dagger at Hadán, when I saw him draw his own, but Éomer threw himself in front of me before I could.’
Lothíriel looked at her intended with renewed respect and Éomer basked in her look of admiration. She went over to take his hand and he nuzzled her into him. Imrahil looked on hopefully. Amrothos had told him that the couple obviously loved each other but there had been some confusion between them, about which he had declined to elucidate.
Gallend continued. ‘Maglor has not left you out of his sight since the vortex closed in on itself, but we needed to give the Astari the impression that you would be alone and unprotected for a brief period, which would be their only chance to kill you. Éomer went to speak to the villagers, which obviously included Alfrind, and he asked Aragorn to pretend to be Finglor coming to tell him to go to Genting’s tent where you would be alone with an unconscious Genting, and, of course, Hadán. It had to be one or the other or, as I suspected, both. We knew from my father’s dealings with Sennebar that he had contracted the Astari to also kill Éomer, so to get you both together would have been irresistible.’
‘Yes, on that point. Surely it is likely that there is yet another Astari in Rohan who has been contracted for that task. It seems clear that Alfrind was mostly working towards eliminating me rather than Éomer, which means we still have a potential threat,’ Lothíriel surmised.
‘I agree,’ Gallend replied, ‘but I don’t think that person is with us in the camp, not unless it is Hadán…’ Lothíriel looked up disapprovingly. ‘I cannot rule him out yet, it’s just not my nature. But assuming it is not him, I do believe he will be a great help in aiding my ability to find the other hidden Astari as I suspect more have been embedded throughout our lands as well as Gondor... I know you will go to Sennebar, Lothíriel, and I accept that Hadán will go with you, but if you agree, Éomer, I would like to accompany the expedition to Sennebar. Rohan, as well as Gondor, needs to understand better the nature of the threat in our midst.’
Aragorn interceded, ‘Assuming Éomer allows, you have my consent to act for Rohan throughout Gondor on all matters relating to the Astari, but you will have to liaise closely with Tuor. He has long been a thorn in their side and has the best trained men in the field, if you would find that useful?’ Gallend accepted with pleasure once Éomer had given his agreement.
Amrothos came in to let them know that the senior commanders were all waiting for Éomer in his main tent. ‘Éomer,’ Lothíriel said, ‘Maglor knows my mind and can speak for me at the council. I would prefer to stay with Gallend before he speaks with Hadán. I will sleep in my father’s tent tonight with Amrothos. Maglor will watch over me. But will you please make sure you are as well guarded yourself?’ she pleaded.
Gallend answered her, ‘I will make sure of that, my Lady.’ Éomer smiled at her lovingly, nodded and left with Imrahil, Amrothos and Aragorn.
Aragorn stopped Éomer just outside the tent to speak privately with him. ‘Is it resolved between you and the Lady at long last? Faramir and Imrahil have been impatient to hear of the next great liaison between their house and Rohan, although I suspect there may be another brewing even before the one everyone has been waiting for!’ Éomer looked at Aragorn amused. Aragorn laughed. ‘You know already?’
‘I’ve not yet had the chance to speak directly with Amrothos if that is the Amrothian you might be referring to?’ came his cautious reply.
‘Yes indeed. It seems your cousin Frea has not left the company of the young and very handsome Amrothos since they met, if Imrahil is to be believed. She insisted on joining him on the ride to the Brown Lands once Imrahil’s messengers caught up with him in Aldburg. We left her less than half a day’s ride from here and it wouldn’t surprise me if she’s already in the camp! Imrahil is a little scandalised at the speed of their involvement but since he has never seen Amrothos so besotted and he has only heard very good things about the lady in question from Faramir who knew her late husband well, he is rather hopeful.’
Éomer had broken into a broad smile. ‘I cannot think of any pair better matched. I believe he may have the requisite stamina to keep her in hand, as believe me, Aragorn, she is quite a handful. Nothing pleases me more than this news. As for myself and Lothíriel, I will not hide my love for her from you, nor any of her kin but we have no wish for a formal announcement. She must leave for Sennebar, which I confess, I am finding very hard to stomach. And then she still insists she will go north, and I must let her go. A year from now, she has promised me, whether she has finally found what she is looking for or not, she will become my wife. Faramir and Éowyn will have waited a year from their first commitment to each other for my sake. It would be churlish of me not to make the same sacrifice, much as it pains me,’ he admitted.
Aragorn turned to face him squarely. ‘I make this promise to you, Éomer friend. I will do everything, everything in my power to keep her safe. The council we are about to attend is to discuss the details of the strategy to do exactly that. I have heard the bare bones of it, and I know it has Elrond and Galadriel’s approval. I hope it will give you a large measure of comfort. As to her stay in the North, she will be better protected there than you could ever believe possible, of that you may be assured. Now will you please put Imrahil and Faramir out of their misery before we discuss anything else…’