Chapter Thirteen - Loosing Their Trust.

The next day the knights found out they had to leave on patrol. Arthur was forced to stay behind at the fort while the others were split into groups to check on neighbouring villages. Tristan, Dagonet and Bors were sent east, while Lancelot, Galahad and Gawain were gone west. Sofia said her farewells to the men and stood with Arthur as they left.
"I should be going with them" he said, feeling bad he had to stay behind to protect the fort.
"Don't worry Arthur they will be fine." she said. He smiled at her before he left to his room. By the third day Sofia had to find things to keep her busy because she found herself sitting on the wall, looking mostly to the west waiting for their arrival home. She decided she would go to the stables and brush the spare horses, they never got as much attention as the knights horses did, and she felt bad for them. It had grown dark and Sofia wrapped her cloak around her tightly to keep warm as she finished the last horse. She looked up when she heard someone enter, and smiled at Arthur as he got closer. From the candle light, she could see he did not return the smile, his face remained expressionless.
"Tristan, Dagonet and Bors returned." he said. She smiled,
"They are alright?" she asked. He nodded but still showed no emotion.
"They did however come across a small scouting party of Saxons" he told her. She looked in surprise.
"They were not hurt right? They killed them?" she asked, worried.
"They killed them, but not before they listened to a rather interesting conversation they were having" he said. Sofia's eye brows came together in confusion.
"Interesting conversation?" she asked, waiting for him to go on.
"Yes they spoke of a woman slave they were searching for. She went missing in a battle about a year ago and they were annoyed that their commander, Cerdic, was still looking for her." he told her. No! No no no! Sofia thought, trying not to show anything on her face. Arthur went on,
"You know the strangest part of all?" he asked. Sofia shook her head no.
"Cerdic wanted that woman to perform a task for him, a task which would have set this girl free from them. That task, Sofia, was to kill myself and my knights". Sofia watched as his eyes showed their true anger towards her.
"Does this story sound familiar to you?" he asked. She hesitated, unsure if she should confess or not. He took her silence as a yes.
"You have lied not only once, but twice now! How do you think my knights will react when they find out the girl they have come to love and trust was here to kill them!" he shouted.
"No Arthur! You don't understand!" she cried.
"Then please tell me what's going on!" he demanded.
"Yes, I did agree to kill you, but I was never actually going to! I was a slave for the Saxons for a year but I still new they were the enemy and you were the good guys! I would never kill you! I agreed to it so he would trust me, and my plan was to escape in the battle." she explained, desperation in her voice. Arthur stared at her for a moment before he spoke again.
"You will explain everything in the Great hall once the others return from patrol. I expect the truth, and I expect the whole story." he said this in a low voice, almost like a growl. He turned and left the stables without another word. Sofia sunk down the wall, landing on a pile of hay. Pulling her knees up to her chest, Sofia rested her arms on top of her knees and began to cry. She loved the knights and she new they would be angry with her. She new they may never trust her again. Most of all, she was worried what Lancelot would think of her. Would he understand like last time? Would he be angry that she didn't tell him? She never meant to kill the knights, but would they believe her? They had to! They new her and they new how she felt about them. A scouting party was out? That only meant one thing, and that was the Saxons were planning an attack. Cerdic was looking for her! She new she stood no chance against him or his horrible son. She needed the knights now more then ever. I need to them protect me from those monsters! she thought, shuddering at the thought of being re-captured by the Saxons. Not protect me, help me! I need them to help me kill them! Sofia new that if Cerdic and Cynric were dead, they would not be hunting her down, she would be free! The only problem was she was positive the knights would not trust her once she told them her story, and she would be alone. Would they really leave me alone for the Saxons to take? She wondered. After thinking about her situation for a long time, she finally picked herself up off the stable floor and went to her room.
The next morning she was woken up by Jols knocking on the door.
"I'm here to escort you to the Great Hall my lady, the rest of the knights have returned" he told her when she opened the door. She nodded and went with him. They were silent the entire way, and Sofia's mind was racing. She was excited to see Lancelot, and very happy everyone made it home alright, but she was scared to see how they were going to react to the news. Jols opened the door for her, and no one stood to greet her as she entered. Judging by their faces, Arthur had already given them the story Tristan, Dagonet and Bors had given him. She walked silently to a chair next to Arthur's, and looked to Lancelot who angrily looked away. She remembered back to only 4 days ago when he purposed to her, and how happy they were. She sat down and waited for Arthur to start but he said nothing. The silence grew awkward and she turned to Arthur who stared back at her.
"We are waiting for your side of the story" he said flatly.
"Oh" she whispered and she cleared her throat. She looked at each of their faces before standing up and starting.
"So, as you all are aware of, the Saxons are looking for me. Like I told you before, they captured me after I made my way here to Britain, and they used me as a slave. After a while of torturing me and making me do things that no one should have to do, they started to train me how to fight. I was desperate at that point to try and find a way out, so I went to Cerdic to ask him a question. I feared he would have me killed when I asked for freedom, but instead he told me if I completed one task, he would let me go free." she paused her story to glance around at the faces in front of her. Seeing nothing but anger or confusion, she continued.
"That one task was to kill Arthur and his knights. I had been with the Saxons for almost a year, but I still new they were the enemy and you all were the good guys, so I new I could never hurt you. I agreed to do it, but only so Cerdic would trust me. My plan was to escape in the forest during the battle." she explained.
"Why didn't it work? Why did we find you in the battle field?" asked Dagonet.
"Well I had been running around the field, trying to look like I was fighting when really, I didn't touch a single person. I was suddenly hit hard in the back of the head and fell to the ground. Saxon bodies started landing on me, so I changed my plan to playing dead until the battle ended and escaping at the end. I guess I passed out from the head would because the next time I opened my eyes, I was with you."
The knights looked around at each other. No one seemed to believe her story, and she couldn't understand why. Looking to Lancelot, she pleaded with him.
"Lancelot you know me best of all! You know I would never hurt any of you!" she looked back at the others.
"I know I've lied to you in the past, but I swear to you this is the truth." Lancelot stood up, and he was in front of her in a flash. He grasped her wrist tightly, almost painfully tight, and pulled the ring off her finger.
"I new you, Sofia. Now I wish I never met you" he hissed before leaving the Hall, the others close behind. Sofia found herself alone with Arthur, and she turned to him, tears in her eyes.
"Arthur please" she whispered. He looked down at her, his face revealing nothing of how he felt.
"You should rest this week. Next week we will meet the Saxons and you'll want all the strength you can get." he said before turning and leaving as well.
Now in her room, tears rolling freely down her cheeks, Sofia couldn't believe what just happened. They are clearly over reacting; they will come around she thought. But what if they don't? Would they really leave me alone to face the men who tortured me for a year? She really couldn't decide how the men felt about her, and it scared her. But what scared her most of all was that she didn't know how Lancelot felt about her. She wanted so badly to go and speak with him, but at the same time she thought she should give him space and time to think. He would realize she wouldn't kill them, he had to.