Child Of A Guardian And Of The Free (Book 3) (17 page)

‘
Not a lot. There are so many threads I would like to pursue, but I haven’t wished to trust the safety of the Empress to any other, so progress has been slow. I made a promise to Alem and Sahbdah that if anything happened to them I would guard their daughter, which is one of the reasons I have been moving between here and Nyinaku. We’ve sent people to investigate the more obvious criminal activity, such as the nest of vipers you came across in Qinel. I’m saddened to hear of Khimerahd’s murder, but I don’t yet know exactly what happened there. Khimerahd was sent to discover how many were hiding within the walls of that little fortress and get an idea of what their purpose is.’

‘
Well, as far as numbers go, there’s not many left now,’ said Milgorry.

‘
Explain please.’

‘
The guardians got into the building the night we left Qinel. They found Khimerahd and removed anyone who had a hand in her torture, which turned out to be almost everyone in the building other than the slaves.’

‘
And you?’

‘
I went along for the excursion,’ said Milgorry, shrugging. Callian raised an eyebrow. He reached out and placed a hand on Milgorry’s shoulder and one on Garran’s. Garran became entirely still as he watched the events of the evening through Callian’s eyes. As Callian lifted his hand, Garran turned to Milgorry with a very thoughtful look.

‘
You have more than your father’s skill, more than his strength and far, far, more intelligence. You are a very dangerous man, Milgorry of Tarl.’

‘
You are fallen?’ Cahndrech looked fearfully at Milgorry.

‘
As is Garran,’ Milgorry confirmed. ‘And I’m about as likely to do you harm as he.’

Cahndrech relaxed slightly.

Kelian spoke for some time, telling the Empress of their journey to Tathra and the events at Qinel. With the help of Evan, Borgulnay and Callian, he recounted every detail he felt might be helpful in understanding the strange recent events within the Sanctuary. Cahndrech then spoke of her daily life in the Sanctuary, of those who taught her and those who helped her. They discussed the strange and worrying occurrences, and Kelian knew he couldn’t leave the Sanctuary until he was sure the Empress’ life was no longer in danger. He wished there was a way he could ensure her safety, without expecting Garran to stand beside her for the remainder of her life.

‘
Empress Cahndrech,’ said Garran. ‘Perhaps you might consider making one small change here within the Sanctuary.’

‘
Yes?’

‘
Would you consent to having some of the guardians remain within the Sanctuary, just until these troubles have passed? I know your parents were against this, and asked the guardians to leave Tatharlia, but as things stand, we can use any help that is offered. For a time perhaps?’

‘
What would they do?’

‘
You know that I am one of the people you call fallen. We cannot hear the thoughts of the Tatharlian people. I don’t know why. We can hear the thoughts of most other humans. But I’m certain Callian can do this. I would guess he can hear far deeper into a person’s soul than almost anyone other than perhaps Tiernan. The guardians can make humans do whatever they want them to do, if necessary. They have control over human thoughts, and over human desires.’

‘
I don’t know if I like that,’ said Cahndrech uneasily.

‘
That’s exactly what your mother said,’ said Garran. ‘But the guardians don’t use their gifts to their own advantage, but to maintain justice.’

‘
But there is only Callian. What can one person do?’

‘
No. Louisa is also a guardian, and Timbul and Araas are wandering around the city somewhere.’

‘
Oh,’ Cahndrech’s face paled. ‘Last night the guards caught two men called Timbul and Araas who were sitting on the Sanctuary wall. I thought it was strange that they didn’t try to run away. I had them put into the most secure cell in the dungeon, with lots of guards, until I could find out what they were up to.’ She rose from the table and everyone stood politely. At the door she spoke to one of the servants. ‘Bring me the men who went to the dungeon last night. They won’t need a guard. They won’t try to escape.’

A few
minutes later Timbul and Araas were escorted onto the balcony by the same servant. They bowed low to the Empress and greeted her formally. Kelian was relieved to see them. He eyed them curiously. ‘You’ve bathed!’

‘
Well, it’s been such a long time since we’ve had the chance to properly bathe, and the courtyard is filled with little pools. It seemed a waste not to use them,’ Timbul explained innocently.

‘
But you were in the dungeon!’ said Cahndrech in surprise.

‘
Yes. We thought it prudent to return to our cell when we were finished. We didn’t want to frighten anyone,’ Araas explained, ‘though we were a bit...persuasive. You have a couple of very confused guards outside the dungeon.’

‘
I was just told that the guardians don’t use their gifts to their own advantage, but to maintain justice,’ Cahndrech commented shrewdly.

Timbul laughed.
‘Absolutely! And had we come in here before we bathed it would have been to your great disadvantage. We were on the road for so long we were a bit...odorous.’

Cahndrech smiled.
‘Well...in that case, I thank you.’

‘
And have you been listening to everything we’ve discussed?’ asked Kelian.

‘
Of course,’ said Araas. ‘With Kelian’s permission, I’d be happy to help Garran.’

‘
As would I,’ Timbul agreed. ‘Providing our commitment to the King is not jeopardized.’

‘
I will also help in any way I can,’ added Louisa.

‘
As will we all,’ Elena confirmed.

‘
Thank you,’ said Cahndrech. ‘I didn’t know who I could trust, and Garran said it was better not to trust anyone in Tatharlia.’

‘
Is that why you asked us to come?’ Kelian smiled at the little girl.

‘
Yes. Do you know what I wish?’

‘
What do you wish?’ asked Elena.

‘
I wish I could go away from here. I wish I didn’t have to do this anymore. I wish my parents didn’t die. And I wish I had a big brother just like you Kelian.’

Chapter
19

Unwelcome Pleasure

Dale sat up and
examined the bright, airy room. He could remember being taken here the previous night, after they were captured, but he was so exhausted that where he’d only planned to rest on the bed momentarily, sleep had come immediately. He wondered where the others were, if they had escaped or if they were being held prisoner somewhere after being ambushed on the beach. They had dragged the abandoned boat for over an hour, when a group of people attacked. They were uniformed, but not in the same outfit as the human soldiers they had previously seen. The warriors sensed them coming, but the people closed in from north, south and east, in such numbers as to prevent their escape. Their captors took one look into Dale’s eyes and immediately separated him from the warriors. He noticed Raline was keeping her head down and holding tightly onto Rezon’s hand. He felt sure Rezon, Ben, Eibhear and Rudiger could have outrun them easily if one hadn’t held a knife to Dale’s throat and forced the warriors to retreat. The threat was reinforced as blood appeared on Dale’s throat, and a multitude of spears were pointed at the warriors. Dale could feel guilt emanating from the Warriors, and chagrin that they had not heeded Dale’s warning about the boat, yet Dale felt like a burden upon an otherwise powerful team and it annoyed him that the warriors could be brought to their knees simply by threatening him. He lost sight of his friends as he was propelled through the forest and taken into a secure building, which appeared to be the equivalent of an Alkiran castle. Now he was locked in a pleasant room as though someone wanted him comfortable, even though he was their captive. He was lying on a high, soft bed surrounded by pillows and light padded covers. There was a small table beside his bed containing fruit and an earthen cup of water. His clothing had been taken from him and there was no sign of it, though several strange looking garments were hanging beside his bed. He slid from the bed and picked up his pillow. He managed to tear a hole in the fabric and looked thoughtfully at the mass of feathers inside. He scooped the feathers from the pillow cover and shoved them under the bed. Once the cloth was empty of feathers, he took all the fruit from the bowl beside the bed and placed it inside the pillow cover. He tried to open the door. It was locked from the outside, so he balanced the bag of fruit in the bowl and moved across the room to where he could see through the window. The eastern facing window overlooked a grassed courtyard. In the courtyard, Dale could see several women sitting at a small table and several men who appeared to be servants standing patiently in attendance. One of the women gestured and a servant bowed and walked towards the building.

Moments later the door opened and the servant entered. He pointed at Dale then at clothing which was hanging over a small wooden frame.
Dale understood at once, but chose to ignore the command. He turned back to the window and watched the women. The door was closed firmly and Dale heard a locking bar slide into place. The servant reappeared in the courtyard and spoke to the woman. She glanced towards the window where Dale stood watching. Her face was both interested and calculating and Dale wondered what she wanted from him. His stomach gave a strange leap as she stared at him. He moved away from the window and lifted the lid of a small wooden chest. It contained boots in a variety of sizes and several strangely shaped hats. He closed the lid and opened the door of the tall triangular corner cupboard. On a single rail many beautiful dresses hung, each a work of art. Some were of simple cut, but so exquisitely beaded and embroidered that Dale found himself looking at them one by one, wondering how long it took for someone to sew thousands of tiny glass beads onto a garment. Some of the dresses were of one color and some of many, but all were unimaginably beautiful. The longest dress had threads of gold woven through its soft pink fabric. It was floor length at the front and the back of the skirt was longer as if when worn, it would trail on the ground behind the wearer. It had small bands at the top of the bodice which Dale imagined would grip the upper arms to stop the dress sliding onto the floor and also help it cling to the wearer’s upper body, as there seemed very little fabric to cover the wearer’s back. Dale had spent much time at royal functions and amongst nobles but he had never seen women wearing such dresses as these. He closed the door and turned away. A small table and two chairs stood next to a second window which faced south. On the table was a little bowl holding a candle, a large wooden jug of water, several pieces of parchment, a quill and a tiny clay bowl containing a red liquid that Dale assumed was used for writing. The wooden floor was bare, the walls were unadorned and the windows had neither curtains nor shutters.

Dale swung around as the
door opened and the woman who had watched him from the courtyard appeared in the doorway. She was very small, but with a confidence and expectant demeanor which reminded Dale of the Princesses Lerise and Jade. Her hair was reddish blond and her skin was freckled. She stared at him expectantly and he felt a twinge of curiosity as she stood poised in the doorway. He found the feeling disturbing as he did not find the woman in any way attractive. She was far too thin. Dale pointed to the clothing, then to himself and raised his hands, wondering why his own clothing had been taken. The woman raised her eyebrows and pinched her nose and Dale glared at her. His clothing had badly needed washing, but to be told so by a complete stranger annoyed him. She raised her hands questioningly once again and pointed to him.

‘
I can’t talk while I’m naked,’ he admitted aloud, irritated that the woman attracted him, when he could not for any reason ascertain why. He turned away and picked up the clothing. It was all bright cherry red. The trousers were very wide legged and had a cloth strip to draw them closed around the waist, making them look extremely puffy when worn. The shirt was strangely shaped, very short and fitting tightly around the chest, but with huge gathered sleeves and a low round neckline. He put the clothing on and glanced down at himself in disgust, thinking that he looked like a girl in the ridiculous garb. His head snapped up. At that moment he was sure he heard, or rather sensed, Eibhear laughing and he wondered how close the warrior might be. He picked up the feather quill and dipped it into the red liquid which looked disturbingly like blood. A quick sniff revealed that it was some kind of plant juice. He pulled a piece of parchment towards himself and started to draw. In the corner of the parchment he drew the bay where the Alkiran ship waited and a small picture of the ship, surrounded by little boats. Then he moved his quill to the far corner of the parchment and drew a small castle. He pointed to himself and then to the castle. He decided not to even attempt to draw the Alkiran coastline, as he felt that this was like providing a map to his enemy. From his drawing Dale had made it impossible to tell from which direction they had come. The woman studied the picture. Dale gestured to himself and then pointed to the picture of the ship and then the castle. He grasped his hands together in plea.

‘
Trochoh!’ The woman tilted her head to the side. Dale was quite certain she meant no. She pointed to Dale and then motioned to herself. Dale glared at her, frustrated by the communication difficulties.

‘
Eibhear?’
he thought cautiously, wondering if the laugh he sensed earlier was just his imagination.

‘
Apparently you now belong to her,’
Eibhear’s thoughts came easily into Dale’s mind.
‘It’s difficult to believe, but she finds you attractive.’

Dale stared at the woman in alarm and took a step backwards.
She turned and left the room, locking the door behind her.

‘
Where are you?’
Dale wondered how he was able to hear Eibhear’s thoughts so clearly.

‘
Under the bed, and strangely, I’m covered with feathers.’

‘
What!’ Dale spoke aloud in his surprise. He dropped to his knees and lifted the edge of the cover. Eibhear grinned up at him.

‘
I was waiting until you woke up, but I accidentally fell asleep a couple of hours ago. Sorry about that. We need to go,’ Eibhear said emphatically.

‘
Well I don’t want to stick around,’ Dale agreed.

‘
You will if you’re still here when that woman comes back. You’re her prisoner and she intends to do as she wishes with you.’ He slid from beneath the bed and stood up.

Dale
shook his head in confusion, wondering why he should suddenly wish so strongly to stay. He exhaled angrily, unsure of why he would have such an irrationally strong desire when he knew they were in danger, and when he considered the attitude and appearance of the woman, he found her unappealing.

‘
Can we just go now? How did you get in here anyway?’

‘
We could sense from their thoughts where they was taking you, so we got here first,’ said Eibhear. ‘The woman - she seems to be in charge - she could scarcely believe it when you didn’t do exactly as you were told in the first place. Dale there’s something strange about these people. They seem like ordinary humans, but I think this woman has the ability to control your desire – that is a gift the women of the fallen retain! You need to know that what you are feeling towards her is not your own passion. The fact that you feel revolted by her is a bit of a give-away, isn’t it? If she was the woman for you, you would know it, trust me! Don’t be fooled! When she comes in here, try to think of something else, because she will be able to smother your feelings of revulsion. Control your emotions!’ There was a flash of movement and Eibhear disappeared under the bed.

The door opened. Dale gaped at
the woman as she entered the room. He stepped towards her, showing no control over his own movements. As if he had no recollection of Eibhear’s advice, he ran his hands over the woman’s shoulders and drew her close. Somewhere in the back of his mind he could sense Eibhear’s anger and disapproval, but he couldn’t seem to concentrate for long enough to work out why he would be annoyed. He pushed the thoughts aside easily. The woman giggled and put her arms around his neck. An image of Charie appeared in his mind so forcefully that he gave a shout of shock, shoving the woman away with all of his strength and sending her flying across the floor. Charie, when she was alive and well, leaning over to bathe him. The image filled his mind and heart and he gasped at the strength of the memory, so real, sending tears down his cheeks and making his heart pound erratically. Every iota of passion dissolved instantly and he glared at the woman. She stood up warily, looking both stunned and angry. Without a word she left the room, once again locking the door behind her. Dale fell to his knees, and a cry of grief escaped his lips. Eibhear slid from beneath the bed and stood beside him.

‘
Thank you,’ Dale whispered, brushing his hand across his eyes.

‘
Sorry if that seemed a bit callous, but I couldn’t think of anything else that might stop you. Let’s get out of here. No matter what happens, stay right behind me, don’t fall back.’

Dale stood up
feeling overwhelmingly miserable. He followed Eibhear to the door, wondering how the warrior intended to get them out of a locked room. Eibhear simply drew back several paces and flung himself at the door. There was an earsplitting crash as the door burst from its hinges. A guard appeared wearing a shocked expression which disappeared as Eibhear’s fist drove it from his face.

‘
This way,’ Eibhear murmured and he shot down a narrow staircase. Dale collected his bag of fruit and followed him. They ran through a large room where every piece of furniture appeared to be broken. Smashed chairs lay everywhere. The table was lying on its side with its legs broken and shattered earthenware plates and cups littered the floor. Amongst debris of broken crockery, food and hundreds of other items, Dale could see large patches of blood and marks where bodies had been dragged from the room.

‘
What happened in here?’ asked Dale as he raced through the mess, pausing only to grab the occasional undamaged item of food and stuff it into his little bag.

‘
Ben, Rez, Rudi,’ Eibhear explained. ‘They were being held in this room, and someone tried to take Raline away from Rez. They could have fought their way free whenever they wanted, but they preferred to stick around here until I got you out of that room. So they stayed - until someone noticed that Raline was human and decided to take her away. Rez wasn’t prepared to let that happen.’

‘
But I heard nothing. And the woman, surely if there was a struggle down here...’

‘
She was already afraid of having them inside this place and wasn’t sorry to see them go.’

‘
Where are they now?’

‘
They went back into the forest. Rez couldn’t bear to think they might find a way to separate him from Raline. Uh oh.’ Eibhear pushed Dale behind himself as two men appeared in front of him holding curved knives. Without waiting for them to attack, he leapt forward and smashed the knife from the nearest man’s hand. The second man tried to duck around Eibhear towards Dale and Eibhear turned, kicking out towards the man’s face. He dropped like a stone as Eibhear’s foot smashed against his nose and cheek. The first man managed to pick up his dropped knife and he drove it upwards towards Eibhear. The warrior nimbly stepped aside and the blow passed by but he caught the man’s wrist and began to squeeze. The woman appeared as the man’s shrieks reached an impossible pitch. Dale gave a cry of anger and snatched the knife from the screaming man’s hand. He leapt over the man’s legs and slashed the knife across, narrowly missing the woman’s throat. Eibhear drove his fist into the man’s face, knocking him unconscious, and then he grabbed the sleeve of Dale’s strange shirt and pulled him backwards. ‘No. You can’t kill her. She’s just a woman!’