Withelm saw at once that Havelok had no weapon but the bar, and he ran to him and held out his own axe.

“Thanks, brother.  Mine is inside the door.  Get it for me,” said he; but now he was laughing, and doing not much harm to anyone, and as I got behind his back I saw why this was.

There was only one of Griffin’s men left, and all the rest of the crowd of half-armed men were townsfolk.  Havelok and Raven were keeping these back with sweeps of their long weapons, and behind them against the wall was the sheriff, swearing and shouting vainly to bid his people hold off and listen to him.  And the noise was so great that they did but think that he was calling them to rescue him from these who had taken him prisoner.  It seemed that the Welshman was keeping this up also; but neither he nor any of the men cared to risk any nearness to the sweep of bar and long oar in such hands.  There were many broken heads in that crowd; but it was growing greater every minute, and those who were coming were well armed, having taken their time over it.  They say that there were sixty men there at one time.

Now ran Withelm with the axe, and at that Havelok parted with the door bar, and ended the last Welshman at the same time, for he hurled it at him endwise, like a spear, and it took him full in the chest, and he went down to rise no more.  And at that the townsmen ran in, and we were busy for a space, until once more they were in a howling circle round us.  But they had wounded Havelok again; and Biorn was at his wit’s end, for he had had to take part in the fight this time.  The men were mad with battle, and forgot who he was, as it seemed.  And now some raised a cry for bows.

That was the worst thing that we had to fear, and Raven called to us, “Into the house, brothers, and keep them out of it till the jarl comes.  He will hear, or be sent for.”

So we went back and got into the doorway, and we could not bar it at first.  But Withelm hewed off the blade of Raven’s oar, and I went out and cleared the folk away for a space, and leapt back; and Havelok and I got the door shut quickly against them as they came back on it, and we barred it with the oar loom.  That was but pine, however, and it would not last long.

Outside, the people were quiet for a little, wondering, no doubt, how to rescue Biorn.  He wanted to go out to them, but it did not seem safe just yet.  If they grew more reasonable it might be so.

Then, as we rested thus, Goldberga came quickly, for she saw that her husband was wounded, and she began to bind his hurts with a scarf she had.  She was very pale, but she was not weeping, and her hands did not shake as she went to work.

“This is my dream,” she said.  “Was that the voice of Griffin that I heard?  It does not seem possible; but there is none other who speaks in the old tongue of Britain here, surely.”

“There is no more fear of him,” said Havelok, looking tenderly at her.  “Your dream has come true so far, if he was in it.  How did it end?”