by Linda McNabb
“Make sure you come out and visit,” Sanelle said to Kaylene, Klel and Toby. “Mother and I will be going back home tomorrow. My father must be worried.”
“We’ll make sure Blaise never comes near the valley again,” King Herat promised the several dragons and sorcerers who had accompanied them up to the waterfall. Nathan took a firm grasp of Blaise’s arm and Cole took the other one. “And we’ll make sure nobody comes looking for dragons here again.”
“We’ll have to close this gate permanently tonight anyway,” Morgain’s father said sadly. “We cannot risk more people coming through.”
“How will we get home then, grandfather?” Sanelle asked with a worried look but he smiled back at her.
“You will leave by a gate closer to your home tomorrow. There are many gates,” he replied gently. “We hope you will come back and visit.”
Kaylene approached King Herat, keeping a good distance away from Blaise, and waited patiently for the king to notice her.
“Could you make sure my mother and father know I’ve gone back home, please? I don’t want them to worry,” she asked.
Toby listened to her polite request, thinking how different she was and he was sure it had nothing to do with the bump on her head. King Herat nodded solemnly and said that he would pass on her message.
“Tell Aggie I’ll come and visit soon,” Toby said to Nathan and Cole. “Don’t forget me.”
“No chance,” Cole and Nathan replied at the same time and they grinned at him.
Toby climbed onto Klel’s back and helped Kaylene up. Klel lifted up into the air with a single beat of his wings. Toby barely had time to wave to those on the ground before Klel shot forward. The dragon and his apprentice flew through the waterfall, and out into the night.
Shadow Hunters
Linda McNabb
Copyright © Linda McNabb 2007
www.mcnabbnz.com
Linda McNabb asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission from the author.
Cover art © Algol
Internal Art © Marciomauro
www.dreamstime.com
CHAPTER ONE
THROUGH THE FOREST
‘Are you sure you know where you’re going, Rhonan?’ Dyahn whispered through the clammy mist. ‘We shouldn’t have left the road. We’re not supposed to go into the forest.’
‘The road would have taken too long, Dyahn. And we’ll already be in trouble with mother for being late,’ Rhonan replied softly without slowing his pace. The rope attached to his belt was taut as his little sister held on tightly for fear of being separated in the thick mist.
‘We wouldn’t be out in the dark if you hadn’t stayed so long with the wild horses,’ Dyahn muttered accusingly.
‘Nobody forced you to come with me,’ Rhonan said lightly without being offended. ‘Perhaps you should just stay in the village next time I go?’
‘Someone has to go with you to remind you to go home,’ Dyahn replied and then fell silent. Rhonan smiled. Dyahn had been just as reluctant to leave the moors where the wild horses lived.
It wasn’t often they had the chance to make the journey out to the moors beyond the forest. It was a two-hour fast walk each way and they had to pick their times carefully. They weren’t supposed to use the forest road alone and they certainly weren’t allowed to wander the moors. But the wild horses were worth the long trip as well as the trouble they were usually in when they arrived back at Tulon. They were supposed to help in the family-run Inn in the evenings and it was already well past dark.
‘I’m going to ask mother if we can go to the Spring Festival,’ Dyahn said a few minutes later. ‘There was a man handing out notices about it in the village the other day.’
‘They won’t close the Inn for that long,’ Rhonan pointed out. ‘The Spring Festival is held way over in the east at Castle Durran. It would take two days by stagecoach just to get there from Tulon.’
‘Well, I’m going to ask. Maybe mother will take me,’ Dyahn insisted.
‘Maybe,’ Rhonan said, not wanting to upset his little sister. They had never been to a Spring Festival and he doubted they would ever go. However, he hoped his sister could talk their mother into going, as he would love to go as well.
A noise from behind them on the track made Rhonan stop so suddenly that Dyahn walked into him.
‘Why did you stop? Are we lost?’ Dyahn asked with a gulp as her brown eyes widened in dismay.
‘Quiet,’ Rhonan hissed and then pulled Dyahn from the track and into a prickly bush. ‘I can hear someone coming.’
‘I can’t hear anything,’ Dyahn whispered back.
Rhonan didn’t bother to answer. Instead he clamped his hand over his little sister’s mouth and glared at her. Dyahn nodded briefly and Rhonan removed his hand. It was obvious that Dyahn couldn’t hear the sounds that were so clear to Rhonan. It was a horse, maybe more than one, and moving slowly in their direction.
Not many people used these tracks, for they were hard to follow, and more than a few seasoned travellers had become hopelessly lost. Rhonan’s natural sense of direction was the only reason they too hadn’t become lost so far. He could tell if a track was doubling back on itself or heading in the wrong direction. Just how he knew was a mystery but it served them well on their travels out to see the wild horses.
Dyahn looked to be about to speak again and Rhonan held up a finger to his lips. He could only just see her face in the darkness of the forest. The moon was filtering through the canopy of the forest and cast a faint, odd silvery sheen on the mist.
The horses, for he was now sure there were three, were almost upon them. Finally it seemed that Dyahn could also hear the horses and now voices could be heard as well.
‘Elezan will be pleased to see you. It’s been a long time since you visited, Falh,’ a voice said casually. ‘She’ll be thrilled to meet her nephew at last.’
Rhonan shot a nervous look at his sister and they both mouthed ‘father’ at the same time. He was back early. He wasn’t due back until tomorrow and he would be furious if he found them out here in the forest and Uncle Falh would probably react just the same. It was so long since his uncle had come to visit that it took Rhonan a few seconds to remember what he looked like. His mind brought up an image of a tall, thin man with a shock of red hair and a compelling smile. As for Uncle Falh’s son – Rhonan hadn’t known he even had a cousin!
‘I only wish it was a social call, Bryn,’ Falh replied with a sigh. ‘I’m checking that everyone is wearing their stone.’
‘You know I always do,’ Bryn assured him. ‘I swore an oath before I left.’
‘What about your children? The boy would be almost old enough.’ It was a blunt, speculative statement and it was followed by a silence that lasted until the horses were almost level with Rhonan and Dyahn.
‘He’s not one of us,’ a young voice argued sullenly.
‘We have to check, Kheron,’ Falh replied in an even tone. ‘He will be twelve by now, the same age as you and your heritage is clear to see.’
‘You’ll see, he doesn’t take after me in any way,’ Bryn said firmly.
‘Are you sure? Shadow Hunters have been seen on the moors recently and they only go where they expect to find one of us.’ Falh obviously wasn’t convinced.
‘You’ll see when we get to the village. Rhonan’s just a normal human boy. Anyway he hasn’t been to the moors for at least a year as I’ve told him not to go there,’ Bryn insisted and the men fell silent as their horses were swallowed up by the mist.
‘What was all that about?’ Dyahn asked as she extracted herself from the bushes. She only took one step forward though, as the mist was too thick to move far away without becoming lost.
‘I’ve no idea,’ Rhon
an said with a shrug. ‘But I do know that if we’re not back at the Inn when father gets there we’ll be in more trouble than we’ve ever been in before.’
‘But how can we get there before them?’ Dyahn asked with a stricken look. ‘Do you know a shorter path?’
‘There’s only one way to beat them home,’ Rhonan said with one raised eyebrow and a look that said his sister wouldn’t like it. ‘We go straight through the forest without following the paths.’
‘No way!’ Dyahn said with a furious shake of her head and a glare of horror at Rhonan.
‘You’d rather face father when we arrive after them?’ Rhonan asked calmly. ‘You heard him say how we weren’t allowed on the moors.’
‘I…’ Dyahn’s face crumpled into a state of confusion as she tried to choose between two undesirable options. Then she took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she tied the rope to her belt instead of holding it. ‘Are you sure you can find your way through the forest without the paths?’
‘I can,’ Rhonan replied, confident that he could get them home. He turned slowly in a circle then stopped and pointed through the mist. ‘We go this way.’
Half an hour later Rhonan wasn’t sure it was a good idea after all. He had been trying to keep a direct route through the forest but had to change course constantly due to deep gullies and thick clumps of trees and bushes. The moonlight struggled through the thick leaves and it was so dark they couldn’t see more than a step ahead through the mist.
At first the forest had been totally silent which seemed rather unusual to Rhonan but now he could hear a snuffling noise behind them.
Whatever it was made no attempt to come closer but it was definitely following them.
‘Can you hear that?’ Dyahn asked suddenly. It was the first time she had spoken since they left the path.
‘It’s just a rabbit,’ Rhonan said as casually as he could, but his feet moved quicker over the damp moss-covered ground. The mist was thicker now and trees seemed to spring up in front of them every few seconds, which forced them to slow down again. The snuffling was getting closer, as if the animal was gaining courage and moving in for a closer look.
‘Rhonan…’ Dyahn’s voice was a mere whisper and she sounded terrified. ‘Something just touched my leg.’
Rhonan yanked the rope and pulled his younger sister up level with him. The snuffling had stopped and that worried him more than when he could hear it. Was it coming up around the side of them? Was it in front, lying in wait?
He dared a glance back and regretted it instantly. Something shiny flashed past a patch of moonlight and bright green eyes stared straight at him. He turned away with a gulp to hide the panic that flooded through him.
‘When I say run, just keep going and don’t look back,’ Rhonan whispered and grabbed hold of Dyahn’s hand. ‘It can probably smell the left over apples.’
The mist was clearing slightly and Rhonan hoped that meant they were near the edge of the forest. A twig snapped off to Rhonan’s right and something brushed against his leg making him almost leap with fright. He looked down and two small green eyes looked out from the mist only a pace away.
‘Run!’ Rhonan yelled.
He ripped open the top of his backpack and threw two apples at the creature, and then took off through the trees and pulled Dyahn with him. He couldn’t hear the snuffling - he couldn’t hear any twigs snapping - all he could hear was his heart beating so loudly that it seemed about to leap from his chest.
They broke free from the trees a few minutes later but they had run another dozen steps before they realised they weren’t in the forest any longer.
‘We made it!’ Dyahn sounded surprised that they were in one piece and Rhonan agreed with his sister’s opinion for once.
Rhonan untied the rope from their belts and they headed for the village as fast as they could. He was angry with himself for taking his little sister through the forest and he hoped Dyahn didn’t tell anyone they had been there.
‘Brush the leaves from your clothes,’ Rhonan told his sister as he brushed evidence of their trip through the forest from his own tan shirt and dark brown trousers
They hurried into the village and headed towards the Inn. It was right in the middle of the small village and the streets were mostly deserted. A stagecoach rolled past them, causing them to step into the bushes to avoid being knocked over.
‘We are now arriving in Tulon where we will stop for the night. A room and a meal can be found at the Halfway Inn,’ the driver bellowed over the sound of the horses’ hooves on the cobbled road. The stagecoaches stopped in Tulon every evening. It was exactly half way between two major towns and a lot of the trade at the family Inn came from the travellers.
Just as they neared the Inn, Rhonan’s keen night vision showed him what he hadn’t wanted to see. Father and his two companions had just reached the inn and were handing their horses over to a stable boy.
‘They’re already here!’ Rhonan exclaimed softly through clenched teeth. ‘We’ll have to try to sneak in through the cellar. Just keep your head down and keep walking.’
They walked towards the side of the Inn and snatches of the two men’s conversation drifted to Rhonan’s ears.
‘What will you do if I’m right?’ Falh was saying.
‘It’s not Rhonan. It must be someone else…’
The conversation faded away as they hurried around the Inn and ran down the steps into the cellar. They came up into the kitchen and ran straight into their mother.
‘Goodness, you two scared me!’ Elezan was filling a jug with ale and she spilt some of it on the stone floor at their sudden arrival. ‘Where have you been? The stagecoach has just pulled in and I’m going to need your help.’
‘Father’s just arrived as well. Tell him we’ve been here all day if he asks,’ Rhonan begged of his mother. ‘Please!’
Elezan’s pretty brown eyes narrowed as she looked to see if they had been up to major mischief or not.
‘Please,’ Dyahn added her plea as well with a puppy dog look on her face that usually got them anything they wanted.
‘I guess you’ve been in enough trouble with your father lately. Just this once though,’ Elezan said with a smile that lit up her whole face. She shook her long black hair back over her shoulder and bent back down to the barrel of ale. ‘Bring up two fresh barrels from the cellar and I’ll say nothing.’
Elezan wiped up the spilled ale, topped up the jug and went back through a set of swinging doors to the noisy public room of the Inn.
Rhonan and Dyahn bent to the task of removing the old ale barrels and were just about to head down into the cellar when the back door swung open. Bryn and the visitors strode in and their father looked around, obviously searching for Elezan.
‘Rhonan, Dyahn. You remember Falh, don’t you? And this is your cousin, Kheron.’ Their father smiled at them. ‘Where is your mother?’
‘Welcome to the Halfway Inn,’ Rhonan said politely to Falh and Kheron. Falh matched the picture in Rhonan’s memory perfectly and his son was a smaller version of his father. He was slim and red-haired but his mouth was set in an unfriendly scowl instead of a smile. ‘Mother is in the public room.’
Rhonan felt both Kheron and Falh’s eyes on him and looked up to meet his uncle’s gaze. Almost immediately he regretted it as a knowing, intense stare held him motionless like the racoons in the forest when caught in the light of a lantern.
Bryn coughed discretely and Falh was the first to look away but it wasn’t before his face settled into a deep frown. Kheron continued to stare and Rhonan knew instantly that his cousin did not like him.
‘We have to change the barrels, father,’ Dyahn said and gave Rhonan a push ahead of her.
‘You’ll frighten him by staring like that.’ Bryn’s voice drifted down the cellar steps. ‘I told you he’s just a normal boy.’
‘Did you see his shadow?’ Falh’s voice replied bluntly.
A dig in the ribs made him forget those upsta
irs for a second and he glared at his sister. ‘What are you doing?’ Dyahn asked impatiently.
Rhonan realised that he had stopped halfway down the steps in his desire to overhear his father’s conversation. Bryn, Falh and Kheron must have left the kitchen as no more of the conversation drifted down to Rhonan.
He shook his head to clear his jumbled thoughts and hurried down into the cellar. What could be so odd about a shadow?
He missed the last step and fell heavily to the cellar floor and sent the empty barrel flying into stack of others against the wall. He narrowly missed his sister who looked at him in confusion.
‘Sorry,’ Rhonan muttered as he stood up and straightened the barrels up.
By the time they had lugged two full barrels up the stairs they were worn out. They spent the next hour serving food to the newly arrived travellers. After a long day and the mad dash through the forest, it was all Rhonan could do to drag himself up to bed. As he blew out the lamp he remembered that he had meant to look at his shadow to see what Falh had been talking about. He was too tired to re-light the lamp so he turned over and went to sleep.
CHAPTER TWO
SHADOWS
The next day started early, just like any normal day. The stagecoach had just pulled out and the remains of a hurried breakfast lay scattered on the wooden tables of the Halfway Inn. Rhonan and Dyahn were down in the public room cleaning up when Kheron and his father came in.
‘It’s a fine winter’s morning,’ Falh said pleasantly but Rhonan was sure his red-haired uncle looked just a little longer and harder at him than his sister.
‘I guess so,’ Rhonan muttered back and he turned back to scrubbing the long wooden table. Sometimes he wondered why he bothered as it would be just as ale-stained and grubby by tomorrow morning.
‘Tell your father I’ll be out the back,’ Falh said and with a brief smile and nod of his head he wandered slowly towards the kitchen. His hands were folded behind his back, over his pale grey cloak, in a relaxed grip and he was humming softly to himself. Kheron watched Rhonan for a few seconds longer before following his father.
