The chubby, brown-haired man behind the bar was as unkempt as the rest of the place. His shirt--Amber guessed it was once white--was mottled with stains. He moved his bulk to stand directly across the bar from Sir Arlan. When he shook his head, his jowls wiggled.
“Head back out, mister, we don’t serve your kind here.”
Sir Arlan looked down his nose. “We did not come for drink. We need information.”
“Whatever you want, you ain’t gonna find it here.” Waving a fleshy arm at the door, he said, “You best leave before there’s trouble.”
Amber stepped up to the bar and put on her best smile. “If we could have just one moment, please.”
The man eyed her as if trying to see through her clothes. “Missy, the only way you’ll get a moment is to get on the bar and take off that robe,” he said, which caused laughter and catcalls from around them.
Sir Arlan sucked in a sharp breath as his hand went to the pommel of his sword. Before he could make matters worse, Amber acted. She grabbed the barkeep’s middle finger and twisted back as she pulled him to her. He gave a grunt of surprise then pain as he looked up at her fearfully.
Still speaking pleasantly, Amber said, “Sir, I am very willing to remove any part of your body necessary to get the information I seek. Do you understand?”
He gave a slight nod. “Yes’m.”
“Do you know where Lord Tayan is?”
He glanced at his tortured finger. “No, ma’am, never heard of him.”
She leaned closer, putting enough pressure on his finger to make him grimace. “There was a horse sold here two days ago, a dapple-gray with a saddle and pack. Who sold it?”
The man shook his jowls. “Dunno, ma’am, I didn’t have nothin’ to do with it.”
Amber noted his other hand reaching for something under the bar. Sir Arlan noticed, too; he drew his sword and laid it over the back of the man’s neck.
The man stiffened. “I’m tellin’ ya, I don’t know nothin’!”
She tugged a little harder. “Maybe pulling this off will help you remember?”
“I don’t know nothin’!” he cried.
A strong voice called out, “Let him go!”
Amber turned to see a stout man with dark hair standing with his hands on his hips. His hard eyes and leathery face told of one who had fought in more than barroom brawls. To each side of him were men holding crossbows on them. Sir Arlan stepped in front of her, his shield raised. She didn’t want to fight in a room full of hostile men, but Sir Arlan’s pose told her it was imminent.
“No!” she barked, “Fighting will not help us find Tayan!”
“Tayan?” the dark-haired man asked. “Tayan of Elrad?”
Amber released the barkeep’s finger and moved around Sir Arlan. “Yes, do you know where he is?”
The man eyed her cautiously. “Why are you looking for him?”
She walked towards him as she spoke, unmindful of the weapons trained on her. “He came this way a few days ago. We found his horse at the stables back by the main road; the man there said he had left them. I need to find him.”
The man raised his arms and motioned for the other men to lower their bows. “You still haven’t told me why.”
She tried to think of how to put her explanation, not knowing whom she could trust. “We got split up, and Lord Tayan arrived here before I did. I have information he needs, and I know he will be very upset to learn you didn’t help me.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, the man scratched his chin. “You say you know him--describe him to me.”
Sir Arlan stepped up beside Amber. “Do you doubt the word of a Sister of the cloth?”
The man gave him a casual glance. “And you are?”
“Sir Arlan Gateman of Paladnia. This is Sister Amber Tanner of Capetown.”
The man gave a slight bow. “You may call me Nathaniel.” Waving an arm as if to impress them, he said, “I have traveled with Lord Tayan and helped save him as well as the elf king from vlaks. Now, Sister, if you would describe him to me, maybe I can help.”
Although she thought it was foolish, she gave him the description he asked for. He listened intently then gave an approving nod.
“That’s him,” he agreed. His eyes swept the room. “This is not a good place to talk. You’re staying at the church, correct?”
“Yes, but I’m trying to find out what’s happened to Tayan,” she insisted.
Nathaniel shook his head. Waving at her robes, he said, “You aren’t going to find out anything. Go back to the church; I’ll come see you when I know something.”
“We are to trust you?” Sir Arlan asked, making it plain there was no way he was going to do anything of the kind..
Crossing his arms over his chest, Nathaniel stared him down. “Look, tin man, I have my reasons for wanting to find Tayan alive and well. A very important friend of mine will be highly upset if he finds out I let anything happen to him.”
“Who might that be?” Sir Arlan demanded.
“The Red Man.”
Sir Arlan threw his head back and laughed. “The Red Man? He’s a myth, a spook story! He’s a phantom made up by coachmen to keep the bandits away.”
Nathaniel’s face turned dark. “He’s real, whether you believe in him or not.”
“Real, huh?” the knight asked with a raised eyebrow. “You’re telling me there is a man who can fight his way though an army of hoarcs, drive away pilgyns and kill vlaks all by himself?”
“I was there--were you?”
Amber had heard these things but never believed them. Still, the man’s words did have a ring of truth to them. The men at the Roadhouse Inn had said they wouldn’t take her any farther because the Red Man had warned them not to. By the looks on their faces, they were scared to death of him. She then remembered what he said about being with Tayan and King Alderlan.
“You were with the king’s caravan when it was attacked?”
Shifting his gaze to her, he nodded. “That’s right. I was part of the bloodiest ambush of all time. Out of four hundred, we had nine men left when it was over. If it wasn’t for Eric I doubt any of us would have lived.”
Thinking back, Amber connected the name with the person that elven woman was looking for. “Eric...Redman, that’s his name?”
“He is not real,” Sir Arlan stated. Turning to Amber, he said, “We should be on our way--we’ve no time for fairy tales.”
“He is real, but you should be going,” Nathaniel advised her. “I'll visit you when I have something.”
Amber didn’t want to leave; she had a dozen questions for him. This man was at the ambush where Tayan’s wife died. If anyone knew what had happened, it was him. Shrugging off Sir Arlan’s hand as he tried to steer her away, she asked, “What happened to Princess Lucinthia, and why does Tayan hate this bag so much?”
Yanking the bag out of her robe, she showed it to Nathaniel. He looked at it as if remembering something.
“Where did you get that?”
In a rush, she told him, “Tayan gave it to me. As I understand, he was put in it to keep him alive until help came. Who put him in there, who is this Eric Redman and what happened to Tayan’s wife?”
Nathaniel looked at her for a moment. “I don’t know what happened to the princess. We came around and she...was dead. That’s all I can say.”
“And Tayan?”
Pointing to the bag, he said, “Eric put him in there, that’s all I can tell you. Now you had better go.”
She could see in his face he knew more than he had told her. She was about challenge him when Sir Arlan grabbed her more firmly by the elbow.
“We are leaving, Sister.”
Thinking about it, she decided maybe he was right. This man wasn’t going to say anything else in front of these people. To prolong their stay was not going to do any good. To Nathaniel, she said, “Inform me as soon as you find anything.”
In her heart she knew he could find out more than they could. Still, i
t was aggravating to have to sit and wait for news. Turning abruptly, she led the way out. As they neared the door, two men stood to block their way, one brandishing a knife. Not breaking stride, she kicked the knife away then dropped low to punch the other man in the groin. Before they could react, she spun quickly and her heel came up to smash the knife-wielder’s nose. The wounded men fell to the floor, grabbing their injuries and moaning. Three others who had looked like they were about to join the mugging backed off.
Sir Arlan gaped at her as she straightened up and glared at Nathaniel. “I give you three days.”
With a stiff arm, she shoved the door open and walked out into the bright sunlight.
Outside, Sir Arlan caught up to her as she strode down the street.
“Sister, where did you ever learn to do...that!” the stunned knight asked.
She kept her eyes straight ahead as she told him, “I trained with Lord Zodiac’s Company. Every woman needs to know how to defend herself.”
She passed some of the waiting time at the church praying. She paid penance for her actions against the two men by taking on the scrubbing and washing chores. Although the priest and the other brethren outwardly showed disapproval at a Sister’s beating up common street thugs, she did hear whispers of pride behind her back. Some were calling her the “fighting priestess.”
She also noted there were many who also suddenly had penance to pay, easing her chores. The second night after dinner it seemed everyone had to wash their own dishes and help clean the chapel.
The second night was also when she got a visit from Nathaniel. She was taking out wet robes to dry on the clothesline when she saw someone slip from the shadows. Not knowing who it was, she dropped the robes on a nearby barrel and went into a fighting stance.
The dark figure held up his arms. “Whoa, Sister, I don’t have a knife and I like my nose square on my face.”
He took another step towards her, and she recognized him. “I didn’t want to be seen coming here, and I was sure you would appreciate some discretion.”
“You have news?” she asked, standing upright.
“Yes, and not very good news, I’m afraid. Martin Toma, the man currently calling himself duke, has Lord Tayan. He is being paid a king’s ransom to ship him off, unharmed.”
“Who’s paying him, the elves?”
Nathaniel chuckled. “I don’t think so. What I do know is he’s working for someone to the north, somewhere on the plains. It must be important--I heard Tayan killed twelve of his men, and he still ordered no harm to come to him.”
Amber’s heart sank. The plains. That was where Zodiac wanted to attack.
“Where is he? How can we free him?”
“He’s in Toma’s castle northeast of town. As far as freeing him, we can’t. Toma has five hundred men and a well-fortified castle. The best thing I can tell you is to find Eric. He’s the only one I know of that has a chance at getting through.”
Amber was tired of hearing about that man. “He’s not here, we are!” she snapped. “There must be some way to get inside!”
Nathaniel shrugged. “I don’t plan on dying for a hopeless cause, and you sure don’t look like the harem girl type.”
“What are you talking about?”
“One of Toma’s men was at the Paradise Inn. He said Toma has women guarding Tayan now. It seems he won’t kill women when they bring him food.”
Her mind worked quickly. This was a chance. If she could only get in to guard Tayan, she could rescue him. “How does he pick these women?”
Nathaniel nervously rubbed his cheek. “I, uh, don’t think you could do it. He uses harem women wearing nothing but see-through silks. They have other...duties besides guarding. I don’t think you could pull it off.”
Amber flushed at the idea. He was right, she couldn’t possibly walk around virtually naked; and she shuddered to think of what those “other duties” entailed.
“There must be something we can do,” she whispered.
“Well, I can’t think of anything, short of storming his castle. He has ears around town, so I’m not even going to think about that. I’m sorry, Sister.”
“So am I. If you hear anything else, will you tell me?”
“Yes, but I better go. You know where to find me.” He gave her a bow and faded back into the shadows and was gone.
Amber picked up the wet robes. She hung them up, wracking her brains to come up with some way to get into the castle. Toma was working with evil, she felt that much, so going to him with a plea was out of the question. She thought about going to him with threats, but how could she back them up? Even if Governor Stazor did send his knights, they would arrive long after Tayan was gone. Sneaking in was out of the question, unless she went as one of those harlots. What kind of penance could ever make up for such a shameless act?
A mental image of Odif, walking along the riverbank as nude as the day she was born, came to her. Amber had been ashamed for her, but Odif had thought nothing of it. Odif was bold, she was brazen and she had the reputation for bedding many men. It was Odif who should have come, not her. Despite herself, she was once again feeling jealous of the druid woman. She knew Odif still cared for Tayan on a deep level. The druid would have no problem with ripping off her clothes and doing whatever it took to get inside.
Her eyes clouding with tears, Amber sat in the dirt of the churchyard and cried.
“Dear Leighna, help me!” she sobbed as she held her face in her hands. She was not fit to deal with these kinds of things. Mother Frieda should be here; she would know what to do. Frieda had such a commanding presence that this Toma would probably drop to his knees before her and beg forgiveness. Pynlee, with her talking sword, would be able to creep in unseen and spirit him away. Glier, with his strength, would rip the gates from the castle walls. Jo-Jo, Entaurus or any of the wizards would make them cower in fear before powerful magic. She felt as helpless as a baby. Why did Zodiac choose her to come?
“Why me?” she asked the night. “Of all people, why me?”
“Why you what?” asked a voice.
She turned to see the hunched shape of a beggar woman. Embarrassed, she got up and brushed herself off. “I’m sorry...is there something I can do for you?”
The woman shuffled closer. “Tell me why a lovely child is crying in the dirt in the middle of the night.”
Amber shook her head and tried to smile. In her grief, she had forgotten that the homeless came here to find whatever food and shelter they could.
“It’s nothing. Do you need shelter?”
Tipping her head, the woman asked, “You are young and strong and have the blessings of Leighna. What troubles you so?”
Amber shook her head. “I am here to serve, not to be a burden.”
There was sympathy in the woman’s voice. “You burden yourself, child. I see you are a priestess--have faith and let Leighna guide you. Father Wright tells us to look to the scriptures for answers. Perhaps you might find what you need there.”
Amber felt a pang of shame. The woman was absolutely right. In her self-pity, she had not thought of going to the one place where she might truly find help. “Thank you. Would you like to come inside?”
The woman patted her hand. “I'm fine--go seek your answers.” She then wandered towards one of the sheds for the homeless.
Amber had a direction, one she should have thought of herself. She went to the rectory and sat down with Leighna’s bible. Lighting two candles to make reading easier, she began thumbing through the pages. How scriptures would help her at a time like this, she had no idea. Her mind kept drifting to thoughts of harem women in their scandalous outfits. Nothing in Leighna’s words allowed for that kind of behavior.
She came to one of her favorite parts, the writings of the prophet Maria. Maria hadn’t been pretty either--from some passages, Amber got the idea that she was a homely Slavonic woman. Maria had used her unwavering faith to sway thousands to Leighna’s wisdom. Every time she read of Maria’s deeds, sh
e felt better and came away with a bit more knowledge.
The place she stopped to read was when Maria had confronted the council of knights for the sake of several prostitutes who were to be sentenced.
She read:
The Prophet Maria stood before the gathering of knights and asked, “And how do you find that these women cowering before you are evil?”
The head knight, Sir Palance, said, “Each of these women practices fornication, selling herself for mere coppers. They seduce and corrupt--in this way they are spreading evil.”
The Prophet Maria waved a hand at the women awaiting their fate. “These women have no skills to trade. The husbands who should be caring for them and their children have been killed or have gone away. They sell themselves not for greed or gain, but to put food in their children’s mouths. I say this to you, sad is the world where women are forced to bed strangers to feed their own, and cursed are those who can judge without mercy the acts of desperate mothers.”
The head knight asked our Prophet, “And how are we to judge whether a woman is practicing evil or surviving with the only coin she can offer?”
Holding her head high, the Prophet Maria said, “This I say to all. As the Goddess of Light, holy Leighna, said unto me, though mortals may hold the deed in contempt, no evil shall come of any act done for the sake of love. It is for the love of their children that these women do what they must, and it is for the love of Leighna that I stand before you in their behalf.”
Amber stopped and read one phrase over again aloud. “No evil shall come of any act done for the sake of love.” She had read this passage many times, each time coming away with the message of forgiveness. She admired Maria for standing up to a council of knights. Maria had braved powerful men, armed only with faith and Leighna’s blessings, and had emerged victorious. Again her attention was drawn to that single phrase: No evil shall come of any act done for the sake of love.
Amber read it twice more then read the entire passage. Was it saying what she thought it was saying? Was Maria telling her that she was free to do whatever she needed to? In a strict sense, Maria was talking about prostitutes, but the message was more universal than that single incident.
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