A Plan is Made

"I need your help."

Diogo looked up from the knife he was sharpening, or at least attempting to. I saw his lack of progress by his flushed face and the furrowing of his brow.

I swallowed hard, and stared at a spot over his shoulder. "Please."

"What is it?"

"We need to get money."

He laughed, rather loudly, so I shushed him.

"Exactly, how are we going to do that, my lady? Do you think we're going to just go robbing people? Rob the rich to feed the poor?"

Why was it that everytime he spoke to me, his voice dripped with sarcasm and disdain?

"I have a plan."

"No."

He went back to his knife. I pulled out my casket, full of my mother's jewels and pushed it under his nose. His head snapped up and he raised one eyebrow. I nodded. Never look back.....

"Does Alfonso know?"

"No," I said, stashing the casket back into my bag. "And he won't, if I can help it. Not until after. You know he would commit highway robbery before he would allow me to sell these."

"Hmmm. Why are you wanting the money?"

"For Burga. She needs a home. We all need a home, Diogo."

"We're fine here."

I laughed. "Look around. This isn't a home. We're out here freezing our asses off, praying for a spring that won't come. It's April and I'm still wearing my heavy cloak. Diogo.....Burga will die if we don't try."

He sighed and threw his knife down. "Why am I always caught up in your schemes?"

"This is the first time."

Diogo snorted. "Why me?"

I smiled malevolently. "Because you're just like me, that's why."

He looked up at me in surprise.

I nodded in triumph. Finally I caught him off guard! "That's right."

He shook his head, as if he couldn't believe me and started to put on his boots.

"Never heard that from a woman before," he muttered.

I giggled. "And you'll never hear it from another."

"Hmm. How are we going to do this, my lady?"

"Very carefully."

He glared and I smiled.

"This is where you come in, Diogo. I need you to find me a buyer."

"Hah, and how in the hell do you expect me to do that? Pull one out of my ass?"

I crossed my arms and looked down at him. "That's exactly how. Find someone who is looking to get rid of some land, a house, whatever. We'll trade him."

Diogo just shook his head at me. I watched him get up and leave camp, grabbing his bow and sheath of arrows on the way.

It took him two days. By the end, my nails were chewed down to stubs, and the insides of my mouth had sores from where I worried on my cheeks.

It took everything I had not to run him over when he came back to camp, with a rabbit in his hand. Felipe and Alfonso made fun of him, but Diogo ignored them and met my eyes. He gestured to the tent with a jerk of his head. I nodded back at him, very slowly. He disappeared into the tent.

Alfonso and Felipe were playing a game of punch me, punch you. I walked over, just in time for Felipe to land a huge one on Alfonso's arm.

"Bastard!" He laughed. "I was distracted in the form of the wife!"

"Don't use me as an excuse," I chided Alfonso.

I turned and smiled at Felipe. "She looks good, doesn't she?"

He smiled back. "She does. Thank you for letting me see her."

I waved him off. "Please, it's my pleasure. It did her good to see you too, Felipe."

"Isn't my wife just so sweet?" Alfonso joked as he leaned in to kiss me.

My heart fluttered and I kissed him back.

Inside the tent, Diogo cleared his throat rather loudly. I pulled away from Alfonso.

"I'm going to have a bit of a nap, Alfonso."

"Do that, baby."

He smiled and stroked my face. I kissed his hand and then headed off to the tent.

I threw him a stunning grin over my shoulder as I entered the tent. The bag with my casket lay at the foot of the bed. Diogo was seated near the pallet so I sat myself across from him, eyeing the casket.

His eyes followed mine. "It's not going anywhere."

I only glared at him. "Well?"

"I found him. Nasty man. We're to meet him in the tavern tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Aye, tonight. It was tonight or not at all. If you give me the---"

"---no! I mean," I cleared my throat. "I mean, I will go with you. To make sure we get a fair price."

He snorted. "Fair price? There won't be a fair price. We'll be lucky if he doesn't call the guards to us and accuse us of theft. You are not coming."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Come hell or high water, Diogo, I will be going. These are mine and they're mine to sell as I chose. I don't care if I have to walk screaming your name, every step of the way. I am coming."

He smirked. "Exactly how are you supposed to be coming? Alfonso will never let you go."

"That's why we need a distraction."

"Oh? And how exactly are we going to do that?"

I stood up, brushing off my skirts and smirked. "Mathlida. She knows what I'm doing. She hates it, but she knows."

"What's the plan then?"

"I'm letting Beans into the woods and Mathlida will come out and say she got stuck somewhere and please will they come help? You will offer to stay behind with me--I'll have a horrible headache--and then we can sneak off. Mathlida will come back to camp ahead of them, where she'll turn and say that we ran off because we thought we heard something and we'll meet them where ever."

He was grimacing.

"What?"

"That's....overcomplicated."

"Perhaps, but can you think of another?"

"No," he admitted, pursing his lips.

I nodded. "I don't like it, but....."

"How will you tell him that suddenly we've acquired a new home?"

Shit! I froze. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Perhaps the truth?"

"Yes, maybe....when we get there."

He stood up and left the tent without another word. I watched him go, feeling a mixture of regret and camaraderie. I did tell him the truth, the other day. We were more alike than he knew.

I reached down and picked up the bag sitting at the end of the pallet. I held it to my aching heart as I sat back down. I put it in my lap and stared at the wall of the tent. Never look back.