Thank the gods, they had to be Duncan’s friends. “Sarra, we’ll wait here.”
As she pulled back on the reins, she turned the gray in a wide circle, hoping to find Duncan riding behind them. Her heart plummeted when she realized he was nowhere in sight. That was bad enough, but it was the sound of battle cries in the distance that had her screaming his name.
“Stop!”
* * *
Murdoch rode up beside the woman and made a fast grab for her reins when she ignored his order and kept riding straight back to the woods.
Lady protect him from stubborn women!
He tried one more time to cut her off. “We can’t fight and protect you at the same time! Stay with the girl!”
She was already shaking her head. “They’ve cornered Duncan in the woods! I can help!”
Before he could stop her, she spurred the gray forward, leaving him behind. He sent a mental shout to Shadow, asking her to guard the child.
Stay with her! If we don’t return, you and Kiva lead her to the keep.
The growl inside his head made it clear that the cat would prefer to fight at his side, but she was already turning back toward the little girl.
Sigil hung back until Shadow reached the child before he came riding hard to catch up with Murdoch. They’d reached the edge of the woods, but it was difficult to see very far under the canopy of thick foliage. At least the pale color of the woman’s horse made it easy to track her.
The trees forced them to slow down. Sigil glanced over toward Murdoch. “I’m guessing that’s Lady Lavinia, the woman Duncan told Gideon about.”
“Yes, no doubt,” Murdoch grumbled. “Let’s hope she can lead us to Duncan in time to keep the idiot from getting skewered. I didn’t ride all this distance on no sleep just to bury him.”
Sigil started to smile, but then he pointed into the trees off to the left. “Murdoch! There!”
A line of three riders was circling through the trees, probably trying to cut off any avenue of escape for Duncan and the woman. The leader abruptly pulled back on the reins and pointed his horse in their direction. He drew his sword as did his two companions.
“Attack!”
As the three men charged forward, Sigil accepted their challenge. “Go, Murdoch. I can handle these three.”
Murdoch didn’t hesitate; right now he needed to find Duncan and the woman, whom he could no longer see. But despite the darkness, he had no trouble tracking them. The sounds of fighting carried all too clearly through the night air.
When he reached the edge of a clearing, the situation was as bad as he feared. Duncan was surrounded by a dozen of the duke’s men. Two others were on the ground, dead or dying. The woman had dismounted and now stood at Duncan’s side.
Murdoch watched as Duncan shoved her behind him as he faced off against the enemy. Lavinia moved to the side as she raised her hands toward the enemy and started chanting. A small blue whirlwind appeared above her palms, spinning and spinning as it grew in size and strength. How was she doing that?
And like Murdoch, the guards froze as they stared at the whirling wind in stunned horror.
* * *
Duncan stood next to Lavinia, brandishing his sword at the guards. He didn’t dare take his eyes off them or even reach out to touch her. She was chanting, the first tendrils of power sparkling in the air around them.
“Please don’t do this, Lavinia. Our goddess forbids the abuse of magic. Let me handle this!”
Duncan tried desperately to distract her, to make her stop, but she shook her head.
“There are too many of them, and you’re already hurt! They want to kill you and drag me and Sarra back to the capital city for Ifre to play with. I love you too much to let that happen!”
“And I love you too much to allow you to get killed in my place!” He wasn’t hurt badly enough to slow him down. “Lavinia, stop! I can and will carry out my duty to protect you.”
Clearly she wasn’t going to release the spell until the guards were rendered harmless, unless she burned herself out first. Already the blue shimmer of energy was spreading, encompassing her hands and arms. Soon it would cover her completely. He had no idea what effect it would have if that were to happen.
Meanwhile, the guards were already backing away, looks of horrified terror replacing the aggression that had been there only seconds before. He didn’t blame them. Lavinia would never hurt him, but the duke’s men had no such protection from her magic.
They knew it, too. Any second now they would bolt and run, but the poor bastards didn’t act quickly enough. The whirling mass of power lashed across the clearing to pick up the struggling guards and heave them against trees and boulders.
As soon as the last one slid to the ground, Lavinia shouted one last word and then dropped her hands. Duncan barely caught her as she collapsed, his heart in his throat as her eyes rolled up in her head. If he hadn’t felt the pounding of her pulse, he would’ve been terrified.
He sank to the ground, holding her close and praying that she’d not done herself irreparable harm. At least the Lady of the River hadn’t returned to smite them both. The thought no sooner crossed his mind than he heard the Lady’s voice echoing inside his head.
“Unlike you, Warrior, your lady was born to bear the burden of her magic. She’ll need support, not condemnation if she is to aid your cause.”
“Thank you, my lady,” he whispered.
As he spoke, the ache in his chest eased, and even the pain from the gash on his arm abated. Even better, Lavinia stirred in his arms, her eyes fluttering open to stare up at him in confusion.
“Did it work?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
Her face paled as she twisted her head to stare at the bodies scattered across the clearing. “Did I kill them all?”
Murdoch, whose arrival had gone unnoticed, was the one to answer. “No, she knocked them out. They’ll have a few bumps, bruises, and maybe a broken bone or two, but they’ll all survive.”
The huge warrior approached the two of them warily, his gaze firmly on Duncan as he avoided even glancing at Lavinia. His attitude infuriated Duncan, even though he wasn’t all that comfortable about what had just occurred, either. The unconscious guards would wake up happier about the outcome of the battle than if they’d crossed swords with Duncan and Murdoch.
If his friend wouldn’t acknowledge Lavinia on his own, Duncan would force the issue. “Sir Murdoch, may I present Lady Lavinia?”
The warrior barely glanced her way, not even a hint of softening in his stern expression. “Lady Lavinia.”
The chill in his words caused her to flinch. Before Duncan could call him on it, Lavinia frowned. “Duncan, I’m sensing something. It has the same feel as the coins and the medallions we took off the guards who attacked the abbey.”
He helped her up from the ground and trailed after her as she wandered closer to the guards. After a few seconds, her steps became more purposeful as she moved from body to body, never lingering until she reached the last one.
“This man is carrying something Ifre made.”
Murdoch had joined them. “Who is Ifre?”
Duncan glanced at Lavinia before answering. This wasn’t going to make Murdoch any more comfortable about having her with them. “Ifre is Duke Keirthan’s first name.”
His friend looked surprised. “You know him well enough for such informality?”
Her cheeks flushed pink. “He’s my half brother, although I have not seen him in years. I was raised at court but was sent away after my mother died. She was his father’s mistress.”
Murdoch clearly wasn’t happy with that bit of information. “So that explains the magic.”
He spit out the last word as if it tasted foul. That was enough. Duncan might have felt the same way when he first encountered Lavinia’s gift, but she was nothing like her sibling. He put his arm around her shoulders, making it clear to both her and his friend that he would stand with her in this matter.
Before he could defend her, Lavinia answered for herself. “My gift also comes from my mother’s side of the family and draws its power from the world around us. The dark magic Ifre uses requires the sacrifice of blood and life to replenish his power. I am an earth mage and control the magic I wield without any such sacrifice. Ifre’s magic will eventually control him, if it doesn’t already.”
Murdoch looked no happier. “I will check on Sigil and the girl.”
Lavinia stiffened. “Her name is Sarra. Is she safe?”
“She is fine. I left her with Shadow. I’ll fetch her as soon as I see if Sigil needs any help.”
Lavinia blinked up at Murdoch in confusion, so Duncan explained. “Shadow is a mountain cat. She serves Murdoch much as Kiva serves me. No one will get past that cat to harm the girl. Sigil is a warrior who has recently joined our cause.”
Or at least it appeared that way. Else, why would Gideon have allowed him out of the keep?
“I’ll return as soon as possible.”
Lavinia stared down at the unconscious guardsman. “While you’re gone, I will do what I can to destroy the link to Duke Keirthan.”
Duncan shook his head. “The minute we do that, Keirthan will know that his men have failed again. We should wait until right before we leave.”
“All right.”
Lavinia walked away to start gathering up their scattered belongings. Both men studied the guards, who had yet to move or even make a sound.
“Do you trust her?”
Duncan didn’t hesitate. “With my life.”
“I hate magic. Give me a good sword any day, but the decision is not mine or even yours. Gideon has no fondness for magic, especially after the attacks on Scim and Lady Merewen’s horses.”
Murdoch wasn’t saying anything Duncan hadn’t thought a hundred times himself. “We’ll be ready to ride when you return, but it’s imperative that we destroy whatever it is that Lavinia is sensing.”
“Fine.” Murdoch swung up in the saddle. “I know we’re all tired, but Gideon wants us back at the keep as soon as possible.”
Then he spurred his mare and disappeared into the trees. Lavinia waited until he was gone to speak again. She wrapped her arms around her waist, her shoulders slumped in exhaustion and worry.
“I frighten your friend.”
She’d frightened Duncan, too, but he schooled his features to make sure she did not discover the truth. “None of us has any experience with such power except that practiced by our gods. I think he was surprised more than frightened. He’ll adjust.”
They all would. They’d have to if they were going to defeat the enemy. With that in mind, they needed to keep moving. The guards wouldn’t stay down for long. Even without their weapons they presented a danger. Once they located their horses, the guardsmen would be back on Lavinia’s trail. They served an unforgiving master, one who wouldn’t accept another defeat lightly.
“Why don’t you have a seat? I’ll pack up our gear.”
Lavinia was already shaking her head. “First let me see to your wound.”
She obviously needed something to focus on other than what had just happened. As he let her fuss over him, he wondered just how badly she’d frightened herself with her magic. After all, this was only a small skirmish. The battles that likely lay ahead carried the potential for far greater violence and bloodshed.
This time she’d only damaged her opponents. When it came time to kill, he could only hope that she found the strength to live with the consequences.
* * *
Riding into battle had felt right to him. Natural. The only thing Sigil had known about himself since awakening in Lady Merewen’s keep was that he was a soldier. His function in life was all he knew.
He bellowed in challenge at an approaching noise, not sure of the meaning behind the words he shouted. He knew only that they felt right.
The deep shadows prevented him from seeing the face of his enemy, but that would change as soon as they crossed swords. Enemies shared an intimacy unlike any other, a dance filled with blood and fear and a fierce joy of triumph that came with victory.
Defeat didn’t matter. An honorable death held its own blessing.
Two of the guards reached him at the same time. The first swing of Sigil’s sword sent one catapulting off his horse right under the hooves of his partner’s. His scream was choked off in the middle, his body trampled into the dirt.
The second guard managed to control his horse and attacked again. There was no time to wonder what had happened to the third guard. He could be approaching from behind, but Sigil couldn’t risk a look until he dealt with his current opponent.
The fighting had taken them from the trees and out into the grasslands beyond. The silvery moonlight brought everything into sharp focus: faces flushed with effort; blood, liquid and black; the flash of blades cutting through the air. The second guard slipped from the saddle to hit the ground, silent and unmoving.
That left one.
Sigil yanked hard on the reins, spinning his horse around sharply. Sure enough, the third guard was charging right for him. As he closed in on Sigil, his eyes widened in shock. He fought to stop his horse, but it was too late. The animal carried the man forward and right onto Sigil’s sword.
After Sigil yanked his sword free, his enemy stared down at the gaping wound in his stomach. He swayed in the saddle as he tried to staunch the flow of blood. Sigil dismounted and caught him as he slowly toppled out of the saddle. He lowered the dying man to the ground.
As the guardsman stared up into Sigil’s eyes, his expression wasn’t one of defeat but of confused betrayal.
“Captain Ter—”
The words came out on a pain-wracked sigh. What was he trying to say? Had they known each other when Sigil had served the duke? He stared down into the dying man’s face, searching for even a hint of familiarity and finding none. He forced himself to ask the question he wasn’t even sure he wanted answered.
“Do you know my name? Who am I?”
But it was too late. The last hint of life had faded away, any knowledge the man had about Sigil’s past dying with him. He closed the guard’s eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. He’d been a soldier and deserved Sigil’s respect.
Did the man have family? How long would they wait before they knew he wasn’t coming back home? He prayed for them as much as he did for the three fallen guards. He took no pride in their deaths. This wasn’t a victory when he truly had no idea what he was fighting for. How could a man know his duty when he didn’t even know his name?
A heavy hand came down on his shoulder. “If I’d been the enemy, you’d be dead.”
Murdoch knelt beside him, looking puzzled. “Are you all right?”
No, he truly wasn’t.
“I’m not wounded.” Sigil stood up and wiped the blood off his sword before sheathing it. “Did you find Duncan?”
“He’s fine. He killed one of the guards and wounded another. Lady Lavinia took care of the rest.”
The big man shuddered, clearly spooked by whatever had transpired. Before Sigil could ask for details, Murdoch continued. “They’re packing up their camp. I came to check on you and to fetch the girl.”
Sigil had forgotten all about her. They both looked out toward the grasslands. She was heading right for them with Shadow guiding the way.
“She doesn’t need to see these bodies. I’ll stay behind to bury them. I can follow your trail back to the keep.”
He owed the dead that much, although Murdoch might not agree. The warrior was already shaking his head.
“Lady Lavinia used her magic to render the rest of the guards unconscious. They can take care of their own dead and wounded. We’ll take these three back to Duncan’s camp so their comrades will find them.”
Even better. Their families would still know the pain of loss but not the endless uncertainty. It wasn’t much of a comfort, but it was all he could offer them.
As they settled the dead soldiers acr
oss their horses’ backs, Sigil said, “You’ll have to tell me more about this magic that she used.”
Murdoch stepped back and clenched his fists. “Maybe later. Right now we need to concentrate on getting back to the keep.”
Interesting. It must have been an impressive display of power to rattle Murdoch. Now wasn’t the time to press for details, not with the little girl rapidly approaching.
“Why don’t you wait here with her until Lady Lavinia and Duncan arrive while I move the bodies?”
Murdoch nodded. “Don’t linger. We need to put as much distance as possible between us and the surviving guards. I don’t know if they’ll come after us again or skulk back to the capital with their tails between their legs.”
Sigil bit back the need to defend the guardsmen, the reaction as unexpected as it was powerful. Rather than say anything at all, he gathered the reins of the three horses and handed them off to Murdoch until he was mounted himself.
Regardless of how Murdoch and Duncan felt about the guards, Sigil knew on a gut level that these men had not truly been his enemies. Yes, he’d killed all three, but only because they would’ve killed him. At least that was true for the first two he’d faced. It was the third one’s indecision that had cost him his life.
Sigil yet wondered at the cause for the man’s hesitation. Most likely he’d never know the truth. Mayhap it had been Sigil’s true name he’d been trying to say, but he could’ve also been calling for a friend.
As he made his way through the woods, Sigil admitted one last thing to himself. Just as he knew he was a soldier, he now knew that he was used to being called Captain. There was a sense of the familiar when the guard had called that out. He smiled; another small piece of his identity regained. He tucked that little bit of knowledge away to think about later when they were all safely back behind the palisade of Lady Merewen’s keep.
Chapter 29
Duncan’s friends had been strangely quiet for hours. No doubt they were tired from riding for two days, stopping only when absolutely necessary. Lavinia felt every mile they’d ridden, too, but that wasn’t the reason behind their silence. It also hadn’t passed her notice that Duncan had made sure to stay between her and Murdoch.
Her Knight's Quest: A Warriors of the Mist Novel Page 27
