The Siege Scare by Frances Watts Page B

‘Sir Malcolm the Mean’s knights are no match for the men of Flamant Castle,’ she declared. ‘You stop your moping about, girl. Sir Hugh will be back with good news before the sun is high, you mark my words.’
    Tommy went to work in the sword chamber, determined to sharpen every bladed weapon in the armoury. Mrs Moon had told her not to worry, but Smith’s long face told a different story. Even Lil, who had been so eager to bask in the sun on the flagstones of the courtyard, was unsettled.
    Midday came, and though the sun had reached its highest point, there was no word from Sir Hugh. As the sun sank behind the battlements once more, still nothing had been heard.
    That night Tommy had bad dreams about fire and people shouting. She woke with a start to realise that she had heard something. She pulled on her tunic and leggings and ran outside to the great courtyard.
    Instead of a dark, star-speckled sky, the night was lit up with flames! Just like in her dream, people were running and yelling, as flaming arrows the size of broomsticks hurtled over the castle walls.
    The wooden roof above a walkway between two towers was on fire, and Tommy watched in horror as an arrow landed on the roof of the well only metres away from her. It burst into flames and Tommy shrank back against the wall.
    Suddenly Mrs Moon appeared, her long nightgown flapping around her ankles.
    â€˜Come back inside, Thomasina,’ she ordered. ‘It’s not safe, child.’
    She grasped Tommy’s arm and tried to usher her into the safety of the kitchen but Tommy pulled away and ran across the courtyard. She had to find Lil!

    There was a rush of air as an enormous boulder hit the ground in front of her with a thud, cracking several flagstones. Tommy’s heart started to race – the boulder had only just missed her! Whoever was outside the walls must have a giant catapult to be able to hurl such huge rocks.
    â€˜Lil!’ she shouted. ‘Lil, where are you?’ The courtyard was so full of people running about in a panic, she could barely see or hear anything.
    She reached Lil’s favourite sleeping spot in the corner of the courtyard, gasping as another flaming arrow landed near her.
    In an instant Smith was beside her, beating at the flames with a sack.

    â€˜What’s happening?’ Tommy cried.
    â€˜A siege!’ he roared above the noise. ‘A hundred or more knights from Malice Castle. The raiding party to the west was just a decoy. While Sir Hugh is off chasing them, the rest of Sir Malcolm’s knights have circled around and approached from the north.’
    The ground beneath their feet quaked as another boulder landed nearby, and Tommy’s heart quaked too.
    Flamant Castle was under attack!

CHAPTER 3

    â€˜C OME TO THE ARMOURY ,’ said Smith. ‘We should work out exactly how many weapons we’ve got. If those brutes manage to breach the walls, we’ll need a weapon for every man, woman and child in the castle.’
    When they entered the dim room Tommy ran immediately to the sword chamber to see if her friends were all right. To her relief, the black and white cat was crouched in the corner beside the Old Wrecks.

    â€˜Lil! Thank goodness you’re safe!’
    â€˜Only just,’ replied Lil. ‘I was almost hit by an arrow.’ The cat, who always seemed so calm, looked shaken.
    â€˜What is it, Sword Girl? What’s going on?’ Jasper asked urgently.
    â€˜It’s the knights of Malice Castle,’ Tommy said. ‘We’re under siege!’
    Back in the armoury, Smith was stoking the fire.
    â€˜We’re in a tight spot here, Sword Girl,’ he said. ‘Sir Malcolm’s men have the castle and the town surrounded. We’ll hold them off for as long as we can, but even if Sir Hugh and his men returned now, I don’t like their chances against a hundred enemies. We need Sir Benedict and the rest of the knights, but