The Monastery Chapter 21

In which the spirited youth Halbert Glendinning, urged by a secret purpose, ventures from his home at dawn only to be intercepted by the sorrowful Mary Avenel, whose gentle entreaties seek to stay him from a hazardous duel with a haughty English knight. The meeting-place being chosen, the combat ensues with skill and valour, blending courteous words and fierce swordplay beneath the shadow of a newly made grave, where fate and honour interlace their dread designs.