She looked up at him with a straight stare; her voice was level, even imperious.
"Put up your vizor," she said to him.
The man in the black harness hesitated, then obeyed her. She could see little of his face, however, save that it was bronzed, and that the eyes were very masterful. She ventured further in the argument, being bent on fathoming the baser instincts of the business.
"Knight of the red shield," she said.
"Madame?"
"I ask you an honest question. If you would serve me, speak the truth, and let me know my peril. Are you the Lord Flavian of Gambrevault, or no?"
The man never hesitated an instant. There was no wavering to cast doubt upon his sincerity, or upon his intelligence as a liar.
"No, madame," he answered her, "I am not the Lord of Gambrevault and Avalon, and may I, for the sake of my own neck, never come single-handed within his walls. I have an old feud with the lords of Gambrevault, and when the chance comes, I shall settle it heavily to my credit. If you have any ill to say of the gentleman, pray say it, and be happy in my sympathy."
"Ha," she said, with a sudden flash of malice, "I would give my soul for that fellow's head."
"So," quoth the man, with a keen look, "that would be a most delectable bargain."