“How do we find him?” the king said. “For I think it is safe to say he is outside the city by now.”
Danielle could hear her father’s muffled voice as he talked to Eden and the Lord Commander in the tower mess hall as she and Joseph headed down the stone hall way in that direction. Sir Thomas and Sir Jeffery were waiting for Eden, and both knights gave her and the Lord Protector a sympathetic nod, before moving to open the door.
The king looked up as she entered and Eden who had just posed the question of where Kane might flee to, fell silence and turned as well. Unlike the rest of them, her father was the only one whose robes and garb was not iced in dust and who did not bear cuts and bruises. He frowned heavily and came forward, seeing the cut above Danielle’s eye. “Are you all right?”
“Well enough.”
He took the handkerchief she was holding to the cut from her hand and checked for himself. “Jeffery.”
The door opened. “My liege?”
“Get some healing balm off one of the physicians.”
The door closed.
Her father bid her sit in a chair by the hearth and he knelt and dabbed at the wound, getting the dust out of it. “Eden …”
The prince regent had already pre-empted his father and handed Dee a mug of water to drink.
“Lord Cargius not with you?”
“He is not.”
“Eden tells me he and his kind cannot help us find Kane?”
“That’s what he said.”
“Why does that not surprise me. So, where would Kane go to ground?”
The question was meant for everyone present.
Eden was first to speak. “If I were Kane the Eastern Mountains would be where I’d go. At least initially.”
“That is likely,” Joseph added. “Fren is known to dwell up there somewhere.”
The king’s smile was void of humour. “We are talking about a thousand of miles of unhospitable wilderness and he is likely in the company of one how even under our noses has managed to eluded capture for decades.”
“All the more reason to move quickly, before he can get too far from Illandia. And I think we should remember that unlike Fren, Kane can’t change form,” Eden replied.
“What if he has done the opposite and headed west, assuming we would think he would go east?” Hendrix suggested.
Eden responded saying, “I say we mobilise the army. We seen riders down every highway leading out of Illandia and we throw the net as far and wide as possible. But we have to move now and in numbers.”
Hendrix agreed with Eden and added, “You could issue a proclamation, announcing that your disown son has escaped the city and is now a wanted fugitive. Even place a bounty on his head. He has a face familiar to high and low born alike, and with the population looking for him, it will improve our odds.”
“I have another idea,” Joseph said as he sat by the fire and cleaned his glasses. He turned and his considering gaze settled on Danielle. “Can you sense him?”
“What do you mean?”
Dee wasn’t the only one puzzled by the question for everyone was frowning at the Lord Protector now.
“When you were children you used to have an uncanny ability to know where Kane was around the palace. I was just wondering if that ability had been enhanced with what has been awakened in your blood.”
“I don’t know. It may have been. I can try.”
Joseph looked to the King, who nodded. “With what is at stake I think it is worth the risk.”
“Then please do.”
“I need everyone to be as quiet as possible, and move away from me. I need space to do this.”
Everyone got up and formed a wide perimeter around her.
Danielle closed her eyes. The flickering light from the fire in the hearth played against her eyelids and she could feel the heat on her face. She could also feel the anticipation in the chamber and forced herself block it out as she cleared her mind. Once she found that place of calm she focused her thoughts on Kane, just as she used to when they’d played hide and seek. Her mind’s eye drifted through the palace and out into the city. Kane’s presence came to her faintly but the clarity of the images she saw in her mind’s eye genuinely surprised her and it was quickly obvious that her art at this had improved dramatically since last she had tried as a child. There was a whorehouse in the southwestern quarter of the city. Kane had been there not more than a few hours ago. The inside of the Illandian Abbey, he had been there too. The burnt out ruins of his apartment, several taverns, a cockfight, and a sewer—his presence lingered at all of these locations. But there was no Kane. “I can feel where he has been, but I can’t find him.”
“Where are you?” Joseph asked.
“The city.”
“Take yourself to the Eastern Gate, and up the highway into the wilds,” Joseph suggested.
Danielle did as asked. She felt herself soar over the towering stone gate and along the causeway. Kane’s presence was stronger here and she felt a tinge of fear ripply through her, remembering her first dream and what he’d done to her out in these woods. The forest closed in around her and she heard distant voices and laughter. Familiar voices. Then he appeared! She gasped. “I see him. He’s with Fren.”
“Where are they?” Eden asked, eagerly.
“Walking in the woods. They’re laughing at us.” She frowned, concentrating harder. She couldn’t tell where, except it was well below the snowline, and the abundance of pine and fur trees suggested the western slops above Illandia. Then she saw a church steeple above the trees, it was bathed in moonlight, and she instantly recognised it.
“Crofter’s Gorge. He’s just shy of Crofter’s Gorge,” she blurted out. Even as she said this, Fren turned abruptly and looked straight at her. Fury lit the old woman’s face and she lashed out with her jagged yellow fingernails. Danielle felt the blow on her face and fell backwards, tumbling off her chair. Dazed, she sat up and touched her burning cheek. Her hand came away with a little blood on it.
“What happened?” her father said, helping her up, alarmed by the fresh scratches on her face.
Eden righted her chair and took her other arm and made her sit.
“Fren sensed me. She struck me.” Danielle could barely believe it herself. But the scratches on her cheek were real enough.
There was a general air of bewilderment and concern in the faces around her.
Joseph said, “Sorry lass, I did not think it would be so dangerous. Best we do not do that again.”
“Eden, Hendrix, go and get him, use what men you need,” the king said. “I want him caught and quickly. And get the witch if you can, and any who might be with them.”
Eden and Hendrix bowed and left at a run.
As they disappeared through the doorway, Sir Jeffery entered with equal haste, a jar of healing balm in his hand. His hair was still tussled by the wind that had ravaged the prison and his armour was iced with dust. “Your Majesty, Milady, please forgive me, but Mr Pyra needs to talk to you, Milady, at once if you will.”
Why the head physician would want an audience with her, Danielle was at a loss. She excused herself, and slipped out into the hallway, one hand holding a handkerchief to her burning cheek.
When the door closed she fixed Jeffery with a questioning look. “What’s the matter?”
He was struggling to find words. “It’s James. He’s blacked out and we haven’t been able to wake him. Not even salts will do the trick. Mr Pyra has grave fears for his well being.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
James felt himself rising through the heaviness of a dreamless sleep, like one surfacing from a deep dive into murky water. His senses began to kick in and with them came a flood of memories. First among them was Danielle. Her name found its way onto his tongue as he forced his eyes open. Bright sunlight streamed in through the window and forced him to squint, as did the sharp throbbing pain in his head.
“Drink this.” A woman was sitting on the bed beside him. She was young
and familiar, but in his disoriented state he couldn’t remember her name. She helped him rise sufficiently to take a sip from the cup. Whatever she was giving him was wonderfully numbing and it threatened to lull him back towards sleep as he lay down.
“No you don’t.”
A sharp pat on the cheek made him open his eyes again. He still couldn’t remember her name. She was dark haired, with a comely olive face, and doe brown eyes.
“Do I know you?” He was sure he did.
“Lady Faith Galloway. King Richard’s daughter? We were introduced when we rode out to Fairfax with Father Joseph.”
Yes, he remembered now. “Sorry, of course. Lady Galloway.”
“It’s Faith.” She smiled. “Dee tells me we’re to be in-laws. Congratulations.” She had put the cup on a side tray and was now tightening the bandage around his head.
It was all slowly coming back.
Faith moved to help him as he gingerly sat up. He felt as weak as a babe.
“Go easy, James, you’ve been out for sometime.”
“How long?” he looked bleary-eyed around the chamber and realised he was in his bed. Or what had become Danielle’s bed after her chambers had been destroyed.
“Ten days.”
She smiled at his surprise. “Dee wanted you close, hence you’re in here. She was extremely worried about you.”
“Ten days?” He could scarcely believe it.
“You gave everyone quite a scare. The palace physicians had to drill a hole in your skull to ease the wound.”
James instinctively touched his bandaged head, not sure he liked the thought.
“You need not worry, everything is still intact.” Faith moved to refill his cup. “We’ve been able to raise you enough to get a little broth into you several times a day, but I suspect you’re starving?”
“And then some.” He had vague memories of being woken and other darker memories still beyond his reach.
Faith handed him the cup.
He was trying to remember. There was supposed to be an engagement celebration before Danielle left for the quarterly meeting of the Grand Assembly of Realms in Amthenium. “Is Dee still here?” More vague memories. He remembered her nursing him and her warm arms around him. She’d slept beside him. He remembered her crying quietly in the dead of night and begging him to come back to her.
“We leave this afternoon,” Faith said. “Your High Council is presently hearing her Vafusolum proposal. With Kane’s chair vacant, its ratification is a mere formality—or so Dee says. And even if it is, the Gods know how she’s going to manage the next week in Amthenium let alone the ride. She hasn’t slept properly in more than a week; worried sick about you and this Druid business, and she seldom sleeps at Amthenium, with so much to do.”
“Has the prince been recaptured?”
“Unfortunately not. A reward was put on his head, and Eden and General Hendrix have most of Arkaelyon’s army scouring the eastern mountains. There have been sightings of him and they have got close a few times, but they don’t have him yet. The feeling is they’re getting close though and everyone here is quietly confident that they will have him soon.”
“And his friend’s haven’t tried to get at Dee?”
“Not a peep. Dee suspects it is because they used so much power getting Kane out of Illandia.”
“Who has been protecting her?”
“You needn’t worry about that. Eden has half his retainer following her about, much to Dee’s quiet vexation.”
“Do you think it wise for her to be going to Amthenium? A day and a half ride will put her at considerable risk. Surely Bastion could act on her behalf as he did during her convalescence? He’s a competent fellow.”
Faith laughed as she picked up an apple from a plate on a side table and began to cut it into quarters. “I wouldn’t suggest that if I were you. It’s already been tried. Dee won’t hear a word of it. The only thing that might have convinced her is if you’d deteriorated. But the physicians put her mind at ease on that account a couple of days ago and she’s been determined to go ever since.”
She handed him a piece of apple. James ate it compliantly and then threw back the covers and eased his legs off the bed.
“What are you doing?”
“I need to use the privy.” Faith got up from her chair, but he waved her help away and traipsed stiffly across the chamber to a side door.
“I’ll send word to Dee that you’re awake. The physicians will want to look you over, too,” Faith said as he did his business.
“No. I want to surprise her. And I don’t need the physicians. More of that tonic would be good, though.”
He stepped out of the privy and went to his wardrobe, hoping some of his clothes might be there still. They were.
“James, you need to stay in bed.”
“Thanks, but I’ve had enough of beds for a while.
Faith laughed. “Fair enough, you can stay up for a short while. I’ll take you out into the garden. A little fresh air won’t hurt, while I go fetch Dee.”
After finding a fresh pair of underclothes, trousers, shirt, and tunic, James stepped behind the changing screen. His head was pounding and his limbs heavy with fatigue as he struggled to dress. Trying to slip a foot into his trousers he almost fell and would have if Faith hadn’t barged in on him.
He flushed with embarrassment. “I’m fine, Milady. I really don’t need any help.”
“James, you have nothing I haven’t seen before. Stop being so prim. Who do you think has been cleaning you up for the last few days?” He would have preferred not to know that the future queen of Corenbald had seen him naked. “Now slip your foot in.” She was holding his trousers open for him. He put a hand on her shoulder for balance and did as she said.
When he was dressed, Faith put his sword belt around his waist and buckled it up. “I’ll take you down to the pagoda beside the lake, then go and fetch her. The High Council must have just about finished, and I think after the week she’s been through you two deserve to be alone for a while. That said, I’d like her to get a couple of hours sleep before leaving for Amthenium at noon and you really shouldn’t be on your feet too long either.”
James nodded. “I’ll do my best. And thank you for all that you have done.”
“No need to thank me. Martha did most of the work.”
James made a mental note to thank Danielle’s aged nursemaid as he followed Faith out onto the sunlit balcony and down the stairs to the lawn. “So you leave this afternoon?”
“We do.” She glanced at him. His thoughts must have found their way onto his face for she said, “Don’t even think about it, James. I seriously doubt you could mount a horse, let alone survive the ride, particularly at the pace Dee leads.”
Faith likely spoke the truth. Besides, Dee would be safe with men like Sir Jeffery and Thomas and the rest of Eden’s retainer looking after her. Still, he would have liked to be going with her.
“How has she been?” he asked, as they crossed the lawn, the mid-morning sun on their faces and the scent of spring in the air.
“Until the physicians agreed you were improving, she was beside herself. I only arrived a few days ago, but Michael tells me she did her usual; buried herself in her duties. The rest of her time has been spent working on the Vafusolum proposal, preparing for Amthenium or lying with you and crying herself to sleep, if she managed to sleep at all. They had to force her to eat more than once. It was really quite horrible there for a while.”
James glanced back at the palace. He longed to see her and put her mind at ease, at least on account of his well-being.
“Did she tell you about Lord Cargius and our early morning trip to Ra’majum?” He was quite sure Dee would have shared everything with Faith. They were like sisters.
A sympathetic smile touched Faith mouth as she hooked a strand of black hair behind her ear. “She did.” She glanced sideways at James, adding, “It’s not for me to tell you the details, but a few decisions have been
made about Lord Cargius while you’ve been recovering.”
“Such as?”
“Let’s just say they’re not about to take his word on anything. I’m sure Dee will fill you in.” Faith hesitated then said, “There’s something else, too. Dee’s had another dream. She’s fobbing everyone off, despite having made an agreement with her father and Joseph to the contrary. We all know she’s scared, so if you wouldn’t mind?”
“I’ll talk to her.”
Faith smiled gratefully. “I think she’ll listen to you.”
“I hope so. So, what’s being said about court regarding the destruction of her apartment and the attack on the Arkaelyus? And Kane?”
“There’s a great deal of speculation, but the truth seems to have been concealed well enough. Beyond court, the commoners believe the royal account, that the attack was an elaborate plot to lure their lady up the Illandia River and then to abduct her for ransom. The turning of the oarsmen and the destruction of Dee’s apartment is being seen as the working of a witch, who is generally thought to be the likely leader of the failed plot. Though there is no talk of ancient Druids thank goodness. The fact that it is being said that Danielle found nothing at Ra’majum, despite the writing on the wall of her chambers is helping waylay suspicion. Kane’s escape from Illandia is being proclaimed as proof that he is guilty of slave trafficking.”
“The search of Lord Helidon’s estate proved successful then?”
The court bell suddenly began to toll. Faith took his elbow and drew him up. She looked as confused as he for whoever was responsible for the bell was pulling at the rope with considerable urgency. It certainly wasn’t the usual tolling of the hour or signalling of court proceedings that James was used to.
“I’ll find out what’s going on,” Faith said, before turning and running back to the palace and darting up the stairs, one hand on the handle of her sword. James followed as fast as his wounds would let him. His first thought was that a fire had broken out somewhere in the palace. But there was no hint of smoke in the warm morning air, or certainly nothing beyond the familiar smell of the palace ovens and the blacksmith’s furnaces in the royal stabling yard.
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