EXILE'S RETURN

by Kate Jacoby

  Robert pulled the door open a crack and Jenn sneaked up behind him to peer through, just in time to see a band of yelling raiders roar into the farmyard. They kicked open doors and gates, sending panicked animals running. One of the men had a flaming torch which he touched to the thatched roofs as he passed. As they headed for the farmhouse, Robert moved.

  “Stay here, Micah. Look after Jenn.” With that, he was through the door and running across the yard. With his sword already drawn, he cut down a raider from his horse, sending the animal galloping off into the rain. Chickens and geese squawked and ran out of the way as Robert reached the second raider. Sullen flames were already rising from the damp thatched roofs, but Jenn could only stand and watch. The barn was untouched and she held on to Micah’s arm, knowing that her fingers dug into his flesh, but unable to stop.

  By now some of the raiders had turned their attention to Robert. With two men down, and three in the house, there were only another three for him to deal with; they appeared fierce but incompetent swordsmen. Robert moved like lightning, spinning around in the slippery mud to parry each attack against him. His sword flashed up and a man fell, a gaping wound in his side. The second pressed Robert for a moment, but he too soon fell. The third, realizing his mistake early, turned and ran into the house. As he disappeared, Robert waved his hand towards the burning roof and instantly the flames began to die. Seconds later the last of the raiders tore out of the building and leapt on to their horses, their arms full of loot. The torch was tossed on to the roof of the house and then the raiders rode off into the rain.

  Micah moved. He grabbed Jenn’s arm and together they ran through the mud to the house.

  “I told you to stay back!” Robert was inside the building, on his knees beside the old man. The servant lay by the door, his lifeless eyes gazing into heaven.

  Jenn twisted out of Micah’s grasp and knelt down beside the old man. He was still alive, but his breathing came in grating surges, his eyes shut tight against the pain. Blood seeped from an evil wound in his chest and another on his shoulder. The raiders had cut him down without a thought, just as they had his servant.

  “It’s too late,” Robert murmured, his voice almost inaudible now. “He’s dying.”

  “But can’t we do anything?” Jenn reached out and took the old man’s hand, but his grip was weak, his flesh cold.

  “Yes,” Robert said reluctantly. “There is something I can do.”

  She looked up in time to see him produce his ayarn. He gazed at it for a second, and then a warmth seemed to flow from the stone and out across the old man’s broken body. Gradually the lines of pain eased from his face and his breathing became more even. Jenn glanced up at Robert but he shook his head.

  “I can ease his pain a little. Nothing more.”

  Her gaze dropped again to the old man’s face and as she watched, he opened his eyes and looked at her. Slowly, a look of breathless awe creased his features and his hand gripped hers hard.

  “Blessed Mineah!” he gasped in wonder. “You have returned to us at last!” With that, he smiled, closed his eyes and let out his last breath. The hand lost its grip in hers and fell to the ground.

  Jenn breathed as if for the first time. She hadn’t known this man, had never seen him before, but his death felt so real, so personal. He’d been murdered by those raiders. His home destroyed. His family would come back to nothing. She felt his death like a knife in her own heart, sharp and uncompromising.

  In front of her, Robert rose to his feet and replaced his sword in its scabbard. When he spoke, his voice was as heavy and as cold as the rain. “There’s nothing we can do for them now. Let’s get going.”

  Jenn heard his words. She understood. She knew they had to move before either the farmers came back, or the raiders. She appreciated the necessity, felt it in her bones, but she could also hear the stubborn denial in Robert’s voice, as though he was calling himself hypocrite with every breath—as though he hated himself for having to say it.

  She got to her feet but couldn’t look at him. She knew how he felt.

  Slowly now, they went back to the barn, collected the horses and resumed their journey.

  All day it nagged at the back of her mind. As the rain stopped, as the smell of wet grass rose from the fields around her, as the grey sky rolled on overhead. That old man, his dying breath, Robert’s silence, and Micah.

  She could feel his gaze on her, but she said nothing. Hour after hour she refused to say anything. And what could she say? What was she supposed to say? What was she supposed to feel? She knew what Robert wanted. The attack on the farm had only concentrated their argument. She would not be safe anywhere but Elita. Damn them—damn them both!

  It was the conviction more than anything else. That deep-seated tone of belief in everything they said. And it didn’t matter what they were talking about—the Guilde, Elita, even sorcery. She knew nothing, she was the innocent—and at the very same time, she was expected to make some kind of damned decision about the rest of her life!

  And of course, they had no idea why she would have a problem. But why would they? Why would Robert and Micah think there was anything strange or odd about taking her back to Elita? Sure, no child taken in the Troubles had ever been seen again and the very fact that she’d been discovered was a cause of some mystery. This . .. this kind of thing just didn’t happen. She was the child of an innkeeper, raised to the smells of a taproom, the heat of a kitchen. Was she supposed to forget her father? Was she expected to stop loving him? And even though they’d turned her out when he’d died, she had already decided to make her own way in life and had been happy, more or less, with that decision ever since. Then suddenly—

  Suddenly, it turns out she is the daughter of an Earl! Suddenly, she has a place in life, a home to go back to, roots she can trace back generations, and at least as far as a kinship with the royal line. Suddenly she has a sister and probably cousins and neighbours as well.

  Suddenly she is a completely different person.

  Now this sorcery business was hard enough to deal with, and she had real, physical evidence of that. But this? A faceless parent she’d never met—at least not to remember. A sister who would probably not welcome her return. A household who would watch every move she made, waiting for her to slip up, to prove to be an impostor. What if Robert was wrong? What if they really didn’t want her at all?

  No. This was not going to work, no matter what he said. She had no desire to go back to the Enclave, so the best thing by far was for her to slip away during the night, when they were asleep. She’d made her own way in life before and would do so again.

  Immediately she began to feel better and turned her attention to the wood they were entering. If she was to make an escape that night, it would be better if she had some proper idea of which direction to go. She might not be able to take the horse—because of the noise—though it would be better if she could because—

  Her thoughts came to an abrupt halt. “Where are we?”

  Robert stopped his horse and turned to face her. His eyes were in shadow but she could swear he was almost smiling. “Why do you ask?”

  She couldn’t find an answer, she didn’t have one. Instead, she glanced around at the tall trees sloping up the hill to her left, the gentle incline on her right going down to a stream. It looked like so many other woods and forests they’d ridden through and yet...

  Without a word, she swung her leg over the horse and slid down to the soft ground. She’d never considered herself a fanciful person before, but right at this moment it felt like there were other forces at work on her feelings. As though ... as though something else was controlling her.

  “What is it?” Micah asked softly, jumping down beside her. “Is something wrong?”

  She shook her head at him then turned back to Robert, who still sat on his horse, watching her. “Where are we?”

  He turned his gaze to the path they were travelling. “This wood is called Bailee’s. It covers the r
idge overlooking a castle and a lake. The castle is called Elita and we’ll be there within the hour.”

  Jenn was stunned. “You ... you liar!” she hissed, taking a furious step towards him. “You said it was my decision, but all along you meant to bring me here no matter what! All that talk about what I would do ... and what I would choose ... and you just decide.”

  “Now, wait,” Robert dismounted and held up his hands to still her anger. “You have to understand something. You’ve been Sealed. That places certain restrictions on what you can and can’t say to people. But it also protects you to a certain extent. What it cannot do, however, is stop the Guilde from hanging you if you’re ever caught!”

  “I don’t care about the Guilde!” Jenn spat back. “As far as I’m concerned you can take your sorcery—and Elita. I want nothing more to do with it.”

  She paused, struggling to get air into her lungs. He’d betrayed her. The whole thing had been a trap. “I want nothing more to do with you. Do you hear me? I trusted you—and this is what you do ...”

  “Jenn,” Micah offered, “you don’t understand ...”

  “Leave me alone!” She couldn’t look at him—at either of them. With tears of rage blinding her eyes, she turned and ran down the hill towards the stream, then along the river bank until they were far behind her. Only then did she finally stop running.

  Think. Think what to do next. Where to go. How to get out of this. Think, dammit—

  A noise, there, to her left. What was it? Robert or Micah coming to talk her around? She turned to look but there was nothing there. She took another step forward but the sound came again. Her eyes darted between the trees but she saw nothing. Was it some trick...

  Another noise, by that tree over there. It had a familiar look to it... like she’d seen it before somewhere ...

  The noises merged together, becoming the sound of many horses galloping towards her. She spun around to find a dozen armed men bearing down on her with fearsome menace in their eyes.

  She turned to run but her feet would not move. She raised her hands in defence, but they did nothing. She opened her mouth to scream but no sound came out. She took a ragged breath.

  Help me—

  NO!

  Chapter 8

  Micah didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to; Robert already knew what he was thinking. It was written all over his guileless face. There was no reproach in those blue eyes, simply an acknowledgment that something had to be done. Not that Micah would ever say anything, he was too loyal for that, but nevertheless, Micah’s unwavering sense of justice always prevailed regardless of the odds. Robert knew this, counted on it even as he knew that in some respects, Micah played the part of his conscience, however silently.

  With a sigh, he handed the reins of his horse to his friend. Robert knew what he had to do. Somehow he had to prove to Jenn that he was to be trusted. He knew he was right: Elita was the safest place for her, even if it was not for Robert. First he had to convince Jenn to believe him. Then he had to convince her to go to Elita ... and then he had to convince Jacob that this child was his own daughter.

  And it would be all the more difficult because Jacob believed Robert was a traitor and had sworn never to speak to him again.

  Robert turned and made his way down the hill towards the stream. His boots sank into the muddy ground, never slipping on the wet grass. Dripping bracken brushed his legs and drops of fresh rain fell from the trees above. Birds had come out after the rain and had already begun their evening chorus. This was a gentle, peaceful wood, and now he had destroyed it.

  She would have used it as an excuse. If he’d told Jenn about Jacob’s attitude earlier she would only have used it as an excuse not to go to Elita, to save Robert the trouble. So what should he say now? What would she want him to say? Would she even listen?

  He reached the stream and headed along the bank, his eyes not on the path, but on the water as it trickled over brown mossy rocks and fallen branches. The air was sweet and cool after the rain, a balm to his misgivings. He’d handled this all so badly. Even from the first moment when he’d told Jenn about sorcery. How the hell was she supposed to understand the danger when he’d hardly told her anything? He was putting her life at risk because he couldn’t trust himself to tell her the truth ...

  Help me!

  No!

  The scream wrenched him from his thoughts and he sprang into action. He ran forward, tearing along the bank, crashing through brush and bracken. By instinct his hand reached for his sword. Suddenly he burst through the brush and saw her. She was standing alone, her head down, hands over her face. Behind her stood the moss-covered ruins of the old mill. There was no one else around.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  She turned to him, dropping her hands. Her eyes were wide with horror and barely shed tears. She fumbled for words, struggled to speak of the horror. “I ... remember it! I remember ... them taking me. Oh, Robert, it was terrifying. They came so quickly, they didn’t even stop. And the old man in the front, on this huge white horse, his face so awful...” She gulped in air, trying desperately to shrug off the memory.

  Robert strode forward and wrapped his arms around her. She clung to him and gradually she calmed down.

  “They came from over there ... and looked so big...” Her voice broke off and she looked up at him. “It really happened, Robert. I mean, these men really came along here and took me away. I didn’t know who they were or why they were chasing me. I just remember being terrified.”

  “Do you remember anything after that? Where they took you? What they said? Anything?” If only she could remember, it would be some way to solving a very old mystery.

  “No,” she said after a moment, taking a few steps back. “I just remember the horses coming towards me and the man in front. He was old, long white hair and ...” She paused.

  “And what?” Robert prompted.

  She took a deep breath and wiped her hand over her face. When she looked back at him she was more her usual self, if a little shaken. “How did you know?”

  “Why—I heard you scream, of course. Micah will be following any second, I’m sure...” His voice trailed away as she held his gaze.

  “But I made no sound, Robert.”

  For a second he didn’t quite know what to say. Then he glanced over his shoulder to where Micah should be rushing towards them. However, Micah was nowhere to be seen. That meant only one of two things. Either something had happened to Micah and he was unable to come or—

  For some strange reason Robert’s hands had developed a small tremor. He clenched his fists and it died away. “You made no sound? No sound at all?”

  She shook her head, her voice steady, unlike his. “I couldn’t. I was frozen. I wanted to, I tried to run, but my body wouldn’t move.”

  “But you did scream?”

  “Yes.”

  “Sweet Mineah!” Robert breathed. His eyes closed involuntarily. This was incredible! It had always been nothing more than a myth ...

  He opened his eyes again and found she was watching him. Her gaze was patient, as though she expected a reasonable explanation for this as well as everything else. That half-innocent look almost made him laugh. He shook his head slowly. “You really are amazing, you know that? In an instant, you’ve just done the one thing that sorcerers have been longing after for centuries. To be able to speak mind to mind.”

  Jenn frowned, her dark brows drawn together like storm clouds. “I’m not sure ... It might have been one of those things...”

  “Look, try it again,” he said, his excitement getting the better of him. “Think a word, just one.”

  “All right.”

  Robert watched her face for a few long seconds but heard nothing in his head. Not wanting to be disappointed so quickly, he asked her to try again. She did, but still with no effect. Maybe it had just been the memory, maybe because she was reliving that trauma.

  “Perhaps you’re right,” he murmured. “It doesn�
��t matter. I doubt the Enclave would take too kindly to it anyway. I think they’ve had enough shocks for one year.”

  Jenn nodded mutely.

  “Look, I’m sorry about all this. I never intended to just take you to Jacob. I thought that if I said nothing and got you close enough to see Elita, you might remember something. I never dreamed you’d remember it like this. I know I never really explained it fully, but there are good reasons why I think you’re safer with Jacob. I’d still like to show you Elita, but if you really don’t want to go then I’ll take you to the nearest village, find you a nice inn to work in and I promise you’ll never see me again.”

  He felt he was rambling and wanted to laugh at his own incompetence, but her grave gaze chilled the thought. He waited for a response, but all he got was silence. With a nod he added, “Well, think about it. We’ll wait with the horses.”

  Not knowing what else to say, he nodded again and turned away.

  Robert?

  He froze. Like a feather on a breezeless day, the word drifted into his mind, fluttered briefly and was still. Had he really heard it, or was his imagination finally betraying him? Almost afraid to move, he turned his head until he could see Jenn standing where he had left her. He raised a single eyebrow in question.

  Her answer was a smile. Then: So you can hear me after all.

  He took a single step towards her. “Your voice is very quiet, though. Is that deliberate?”

  No. I’ve been shouting at you for the last few minutes but you were so busy apologizing you weren’t listening. I’m also shouting at you now. Robert, don’t you think it’s funny? You always think everything is funny. Why aren’t you laughing?

  It was her voice inside his head, as though she were speaking from his memory alone. Each word grew stronger, held more expression. Her prodding irony was not lost on him. He gazed at her a moment longer. “Why aren’t you?”

  Almost involuntarily, the smile drifted from her face. She tore her eyes away from his and glanced down at her hands. “I don’t understand why this is happening to me. I’m doing my best, but even I can only take so much change before I start to wonder where I went wrong. Believe it or not, I do trust you. I don’t know why I do—but there it is. From what I’ve seen, you seem to have that effect on most people, so I guess I’m no different there. I don’t want to go to Elita at all but—” she broke off, as her hands twisted together. Finally she said, “I’m beginning to understand why you think it’s a good idea.”