Swords and Scimitars by Linda Lee Chaikin

of the Hermit as "noble." "The Rhinelanders do not follow the monk, although it was his rhetoric that stirred them up in Cologne." "I know the peasants under the Frankish knight who arrived at Nish have pillaged and looted the villages here in Hungary. It is the reason the emperor sent me ahead to meet this man named Peter. We have food supplies at Nish, and a number of guides to escort him and his followers to Constantinople. But I know nothing of murderous Rhinelanders." He scanned Tancred again, warily. "You say you are from the Norman kingdom of Sicily?" So he understood Norman rule. "Yes. Palermo." "You travel alone?" "Alone. I seek Constantinople, but not as a vassal to your emperor. It is personal business which brings me there," he said, thinking of Mosul. Philip's wariness increased at the mention of Sicily. Only ten years earlier the Normans under Robert Guiscard had fought the Byzantines for control of Dyrrachium on the coast of the Adriatic. "If you do not swear fealty to the emperor, how can I trust you?" "My father was Count Dreux Redwan. And I have an uncle," he explained of his adopted father, "who serves your emperor." At the word "Count," the woman turned to look at him, shielding her surprise, and he felt her eyes flitter over him, but he did not look at her. Although her physical beauty was memorable, she was haughty and proud. "Your uncle--what is his name?" asked Philip. "Rolf Redwan." Philip recognized the name, for his glance was observant, and he appe