‘What reason?’
‘The baby,’ Celine whispered.
‘What about it?’ Daphne snapped.
‘I’ve heard some pretty nasty things being said,’ Celine frowned. ‘Some of the priests in particular have taken against you. Not all of them. Most are reconciled to your pardon, and wish you no harm, I’m sure, but there are a few…’
‘I don’t understand,’ Shella said. ‘There’s no law here against having a baby.’
‘They say it’s unnatural,’ Celine said, ‘mixing the blood of Holdings and Kellach Brigdomin. And the fact that you’re a mage, a high mage really, and the father is the brother of another powerful mage. Some fear what will result.’
‘And do you?’
‘Of course not, Daphne,’ Celine cried. ‘I joined this family when I married Vince, and I’m Holdfast now. I’m proud to call you my sister.’
‘Thank you,’ Daphne said. ‘Sorry for doubting.’
‘That’s all right. Someone’s just tried to poison you and your baby. You’re entitled to be pissed off.’
‘Yes. Someone in this house.’
She turned to Bedig. ‘How are you feeling?’
‘Pretty much better,’ he said. He stood, picked up the flagon of water, and drank a pint’s worth.
‘Stand by the door,’ she said. ‘Make sure no one gets in.’
‘Aye, miss,’ he said. He walked over to the door and leaned against it.
‘So,’ Daphne said, ‘how do we catch them?’
Shella and Celine cleaned up the sickness and spilt tea, and swept away the remains of the broken cup, while Daphne sat, her back aching. She rang the bell and sighed, longing for the day when she could move without the extra weight.
The door opened, and Daphne readied herself.
‘Mistress?’ her housekeeper said, two other servants behind her.
‘I’m afraid we were so busy chatting,’ Daphne said, ‘that we allowed the tea to go cold. Could I trouble you for a fresh pot, please?’
‘Of course, mistress.’ She signalled to the man and woman behind her, and they came forward.
Daphne focussed on the housekeeper’s eyes, and entered her mind.
An air of impatience, a tired feeling of duty, a longing for spring.
She blinked, and turned to the young male servant.
Hunger, nervousness around the mistress and the princess, a fondness for Celine.
Daphne pulled back, feeling tired and sick, and moved on to the other female, Mona, a middle-aged woman whom she recognised from many years of service to the family.
Hate, confusion, fear.
Daphne withdrew from the woman’s mind, almost gagging again, a headache growing behind her temples. She nodded to Bedig and pointed.
‘Her.’
The housekeeper blinked. ‘What is it, mistress?’
Bedig stepped forward, and grasped Mona by the shoulder.
‘Get off me, you godless savage.’
‘Send someone you trust to summon the nearest guard patrol,’ Daphne said to the housekeeper, the ache in her head intense, ‘and let no one else leave. She might not have been working alone.’
‘I don’t understand, mistress.’
‘Someone tried to poison me and my baby,’ Daphne said, ‘and everyone else in this room.’
The housekeeper nodded, her eyes wide, and left the room, the male servant rushing after her.
‘Mona,’ Daphne said, squinting from the pain, ‘you’ve been with my family for years. I can remember you from the estate when I was a child. Why did you do this? Have I hurt you in some way?’
‘Whore,’ Mona spat. ‘You have sinned against the Creator, the abomination you carry in your womb is a wicked crime against him. You are a curse upon the sacred magelines of the Holdings. We are the chosen people, not the Kellach. The Creator chose us to fulfil his plan, and you have polluted his vision, by lying with another race.’
‘Well,’ said Shella, ‘I think that might count as a confession.’
Daphne said nothing. She sat back in the armchair, her headache subsiding. She had guessed that some of the more fanatical in the church might fear the birth of her child. She had pondered the mingling of vision and fire skills herself, and what it might mean for the baby’s future. But that was a question for over a decade hence, as mage powers became evident in one’s teens, no matter which race someone belonged to.
‘Do you have nothing to say, whore?’ Mona cried.
Shella stood and slapped her across the face.
‘You degenerate toad,’ Mona said, her lip bleeding, but standing tall and proud, Bedig’s firm hand on her shoulder. ‘Your people came crying to us, and we fed you and gave you what you asked for. Now you serve us. We are your masters now.’
Shella raised her hand.
‘She’s baiting you,’ Daphne said. ‘Don’t give her what she wants. Leave it to the authorities to punish her.’
Mona laughed. ‘I will be happy to take the stand in a trial. I will denounce you to the world. When the judges ask me why I did it, I will tell them, and I’ll also tell them of the narcotics and alcohol that have been consumed here. You arrogant nobles! You think the rest of us beneath you, those who serve your every petty whim. Your mother’s a good woman. I know why she isn’t here, she’s ashamed of you; humiliated at your behaviour.’
‘How dare you speak of my mother,’ Daphne said. ‘You have betrayed the family.’
‘The Holdfast name is beyond redemption,’ Mona said. ‘Between you and your father, you have dragged it through the sewers.’
Mona choked, blood appearing on her lips, a knife point emerging from her chest.
Bedig jumped back, as Celine pushed Mona to the floor, a bloody dagger in her hands.
‘Celine!’ Daphne cried.
Celine gazed down at the body of Mona, blood leaking from her mouth and chest.
‘She tried to assault you,’ she said, her voice toneless. ‘She would have killed you. I stopped her.’
‘That’s what I saw,’ said Bedig.
‘Fucksake, Celine,’ Shella said. ‘I could have done it without any blood, made it look like a heart attack.’
‘More realistic this way, I think,’ Celine said.
‘All of you stop,’ Daphne said. ‘I knew her. I’ve known Mona since I was little.’
They stood in silence for a moment, before the door burst open, and a sergeant of the town guard strode in, a pair of troopers and the housekeeper behind him.
He took in the bloody scene on the floor. ‘Mistress?’
‘This servant tried to poison us,’ Daphne said. ‘The teapot there, have it checked. While I was asking her why she did it, she attacked me. Thankfully Celine was here, and she protected me. She saved my life.’
The sergeant walked over.
Celine stood trembling, tears rolling down her cheeks, the knife clutched in her hand.
‘Your Highness,’ the sergeant nodded to Shella.
He took the knife from Celine, and knelt by the body of Mona.
‘Did she say why she did it?’
‘An old family grudge,’ Daphne said. ‘She’d been harbouring it for years, and had waited until my father had departed so I would be alone.’
The sergeant stood and picked up the teapot, sniffing it.
‘All the same,’ Daphne said, ‘I’ll miss her. I had no idea how she felt.’
The sergeant nodded.
‘We’ll come back for statements in the morning,’ he said. ‘For now, we’ll leave you in peace.’
The two troopers picked up Mona’s body, and the sergeant took the knife and teapot.
‘Thank you, Sergeant,’ Daphne said as they left. She put her head in her hands, exhausted.
The housekeeper remained, staring at the patch of blood on the carpet.
Shella nodded to her.
‘I think the mistress of the house could do with some more tea.’
Chapter 24
The Call
The sun was low in the western sky, and shadows rolled up the long frozen valley where Killop and a squad of warriors lay hidden.
The road through the valley was quiet, as was the entire countryside around the Severed City. Killop had taken the squad out further than normal, though this time he was not looking for Kellach slaves to free.
The Rahain convoy came into view. Four carriages, just as the scout had reported. They were heading west, away from the rebel city and towards the security of the Rahain heartlands. The wagon-wheels crackled on the icy surface of the road, and the gaien lumbered along, their breath creating clouds of mist by their lowered heads. Four guards sat atop each of the carriages, their crossbows aimed outwards, their eyes scanning the valley for danger.
Killop pulled his own crossbow up, and peered through the thick, thorny undergrowth, looking along the sighting peg. He waited. The cold was severe, as harsh as it had been all winter.
Two shots each, then charge, those had been his orders to the squad.
The first carriage passed by, then the second. As the third drew level, he aimed and loosed.
A Rahain soldier twisted in the air as the bolt struck his shoulder, and the rest of the squad began shooting, peppering the guards.
Killop aimed again, and got off his second shot, into the stomach of a soldier who was hit at the same time by another bolt in his leg.
He flung the crossbow over his shoulder and pulled himself to his feet. With his thick cloak wrapped around him, he barrelled through the thorn bush, roaring his war cry.
A soldier stood and aimed his crossbow at him, but was hit by a bolt in the back, and toppled from the carriage.
The squad emerged from the undergrowth, and within seconds the rest of the Rahain soldiers were cut down. Kellach warriors jumped up onto the driver’s benches, and slowed the lurching gaien beasts to a halt, while the rest of them moved back and formed a perimeter around the four wagons.
Killop walked down the road, studying each. Their doors were closed, and their windows shuttered.
‘You’re surrounded,’ he said in Rahain. ‘You have one minute to surrender.’
There was no sound from the carriages. Killop stamped his feet against the freezing temperature.
‘How can we trust you?’ a female voice called out from the second wagon. ‘You murdered the soldiers protecting us.’
‘It’s war,’ Killop said. ‘Soldiers die, but the Severed Clan don’t kill civilians. Are you civilians?’
The door of the second carriage opened, and a gloved hand appeared, followed by another, both raised in the air. A woman stepped down to the ground, standing tall, but shivering despite the heavy robes she wore. Behind her, sitting in the carriage and peering out, were two young children.
‘We’re the sole passengers,’ she said. ‘You can search the other wagons, they contain only our possessions.’
‘That’s a lot of luggage,’ he said, signalling to the squad to approach the remaining carriages.
The Rahain woman looked down. ‘We had to leave most of our things behind. This is all we could load onto four wagons.’
‘You’re fleeing?’
‘We are.’
‘Where are your slaves?’
‘They all ran away.’
‘Then you were in no danger from us.’
‘We received orders to evacuate,’ she said. ‘Listen, the children are getting cold. We had hoped to do another twenty miles or so tonight, to reach Clovenstone. If we freeze to death out here, you will still have killed us.’
‘Get back in the wagon,’ he said. ‘We’re taking you to the Severed City.’
Her face paled, and she shivered harder.
One of his squad approached.
‘Chief,’ he said, ‘no one else in the other carriages. Just crates and boxes.’
Killop stepped forward, and gestured to the Rahain woman. She boarded the wagon and he closed the door behind her.
‘Get these gaien turned around,’ he yelled to the squad. ‘We’re heading back.’
Warriors tugged and pulled at the reins, and slowly manoeuvred each wagon so that it faced east.
‘Becky,’ he said to an older warrior he knew spoke Rahain, ‘come with me.’
He stepped up to the second carriage, now third in line on the road. He glanced around, as large flakes of snow filled the air, swirling in the chill wind, and lying where they fell.
‘Let’s go,’ he called out. The warriors scrambled onto the carriages, and the gaien began lumbering forward. Killop opened the door of the wagon and jumped inside, Becky climbing up after him.
The woman was sitting with a child to either side, and Killop and Becky sat opposite, their size and thick clothes taking up the whole bench.
The young girl to the woman’s left whimpered at the sight of them, while the little boy closed his eyes, his hands shaking.
‘What’s your name?’ Killop asked the woman.
‘Riac,’ she said, stroking her children’s hair.
‘I’m Killop.’
‘You’re the chief,’ she said. ‘I heard one of your soldiers call you that.’
‘You know my language?’
‘A little. I’ll not lie to you, there used to be Kellach slaves on the estate. I learned a few words.’
‘Including chief?’
‘That’s what they called me, as their mistress.’
With the thick door shut and sealed, the interior of the comfortable carriage began to warm a little.
‘That was a lot of guards you had,’ Killop said. ‘Are you important?’
‘I’m rich.’
‘In Rahain that’s the same thing.’
‘I don’t involve myself in politics,’ she said, ‘and we live, lived, far from any city.’
She reached down and took the girl’s hand. ‘Be still, child. They have promised not to hurt us.’
‘But, mama, I’m scared.’
‘So am I,’ Riac said. ‘We must be brave.’
‘Your mother’s right,’ Becky said. ‘We won’t harm you.’
‘Then please let us go,’ the girl said.
‘We can’t,’ Becky said. ‘It’s so cold out there that you would freeze in the night. We’re taking you somewhere warm.’
‘You mentioned orders to evacuate,’ Killop said to Riac.
‘Yes,’ the woman replied.
‘Ten days ago,’ Killop said, ‘these hills were swarming with Rahain soldiers, as if they were building up for another assault. And the next day, they were gone. All of them. Why?’
Riac said nothing, holding her head high.
Killop sat back. Becky glanced at him.
‘What do we do now, Chief?’ she said in their own tongue.
He frowned.
‘I’m going to guess,’ he said to the Rahain woman, ‘that the orders you received, and the army pulling out are connected.’
Riac remained silent.
‘Maybe they’re planning an earthquake?’ Killop said. ‘Clear the area, gather the mages, and bring the whole side of the ravine down. Destroy the Severed City. I saw what your mages did to Meadowhall, the old Kell capital. The earth opened, and the whole town was swallowed up. They locked all the old and sick folk inside, hundreds of them, and they disappeared beneath the dirt.’
Becky glowered, and he could see the anger in her eyes.
‘The Rahain army would never do that!’ the young boy cried.
‘I was there, lad,’ Killop said. ‘I saw it happen.’
‘You’re a filthy liar!’
‘Quiet,’ Riac hissed, her tongue flickering.
‘It’s all right,’ Killop said. ‘The boy can speak his mind. He thinks I’m an ignorant savage, and he’s right. Before your people invaded us, we were ignorant. We never imagined that a foreign race would attack us without provocation, steal our land, slaughter thousands, and cart the rest off into slavery. I wish w
e’d stayed ignorant.’
The carriage fell into silence, apart from the girl’s low sobbing.
‘If the Rahain are planning an earthquake,’ Killop said, ‘then we’re taking you and the children to your deaths.’
‘It’s not an earthquake,’ Riac said, each word forced out.
‘How do you know?’
She reached into a bag on the floor by her feet, and took out a paper. She handed it to Killop.
He scanned it. It was the order to evacuate.
It skirted over the withdrawal as a temporary expedient. Every soldier in Rahain was currently required elsewhere, therefore the protection of all estates surrounding the rebel city could no longer be guaranteed. His eyes froze at the bottom of the document. The family had been instructed to move to the capital, along with everyone who had been displaced by the invasion of Rahain by Holdings forces, along with their allies.
‘The Holdings?’ he gasped.
The Rahain woman shuddered.
‘What?’ said Becky.
‘The soldiers were withdrawn because the Holdings have invaded Rahain.’
Becky half-snorted, half-laughed.
Riac sat still, her head bowed in shame.
‘We would have searched your bag,’ he said, ‘and found this anyway. You haven’t betrayed anyone.’
‘It’s too much,’ she said, tears starting to roll down her cheeks.
‘Do you know what’s happening now?’ Becky said. ‘Do you know how far the invasion has got?’
‘They’ve captured the tunnel,’ she said, weeping. ‘That’s all I know.’
Killop turned to Becky.
‘This is it,’ he said. ‘This is what we’ve been waiting for.’
‘If the Holdings have taken the tunnel,’ Bridget said, ‘then they’ll be in Tahrana Valley by now.’ She pointed down at the map, which displayed the northern region of the Rahain Republic.
‘We’ve no idea how many soldiers the Holdings have,’ Kalden said, ‘and I don’t understand the part in the evacuation order about allies. What allies?’
‘Kellach,’ Bridget said. ‘It must be. We know many refugees headed up to the northern Plateau, where the Holdings rule. I’m sure the King had no problem finding volunteers from among our folk.’
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