by Megan Derr
But he was going anyway. Roark wondered why—Amara had certainly given him enough of an out. Maybe he was even more frightened of Roark than he appeared? Or he didn't think Amara could really protect him from Roark. Or, unpleasant thought the idea was, he wanted to help and was going along despite his fears.
"Tell me what you know of the fortress," Roark said as he led the horse through the outskirts of town. They didn't pass many people; Idia was a small farm town—most people were in the fields this time of day. The few they did pass stared curiously at them as they headed towards the tress at the foot of the mountain.
Cos just shrugged unhelpfully. Roark rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to shake Cos a little, just to see what fell out of his mouth. The man could talk; Roark didn't really understand Amara's "mostly mute" description.
"Where did you live before you were taken by the wizard?" Roark tried, but Cos only shrugged again, slouching a little as though that would keep him safe from Roark's ire.
"Do you know the layout of the fortress?" Roark asked, deciding to try a simple yes-or-no question. Cos's shoulders tensed up another ratchet, but he didn't answer, not even with a shrug.
"Goddamn, man, are you spelled to not talk about anything important?" Roark demanded, frustrated. Cos whipped around at that, nearly tumbling off the horse—he would've fallen had Roark not dropped the reins and steadied him.
"You are?" Roark asked incredulously. He didn't know wizards could do that.
Cos nodded slowly, looking exhausted and worried and damn it all to hell, why in the world would the wizard spell him instead of just killing him off?
Roark muttered curses under his breath, nudging Cos around to face forward again. The mare had taken advantage of his inattention and stopped to graze.
"Fine," Roark said, scooping up the reins. "I can work around that."
Cos didn't relax, and Roark rolled his eyes. He'd have to write for a curse breaker—perhaps the other survivors had been spelled as well? Inciting the horse into motion, Roark fell quietly, trying to work up a way to overcome a spell to keep things quiet.
"Are you spelled to not talk about the fortress or just what happened there?" Roark finally asked as they hit the tree line. Cos ducked down against him to avoid a few low-hanging tree branches and Roark resisted an urge to press closer—Cos was not his type, not at all.
Also, Amara would kill him if he fucked with her ward.
Roark let it drop, but he came up blank on other topics of conversation. In light of where they were going, staring a conversation about the weather seemed inane and Roark wasn't going to apologize for his actions in the stable the previous night, either.
They'd only been riding through the forest for an hour or so when the clatter of hoof beats came from behind them. Cos's shoulders tensed, killing the almost-relaxed posture he'd slowly been lulled into.
Roark slowed his horse, curious who would be following them out here. He also loosened his sword in the saddle sheath, in case their followers weren't friendly.
It didn't take long for the riders to catch up. There were four of them, all unfamiliar to Roark. They wore clothes similar to what most of the villagers wore, so this was probably the motley group of slackers Amara had told him about last night.
"Roark Toohey?" The man in the lead, on the most expensive-looking horse, asked. His eyes slipped to Cos, and a sneer slipped across his face for a moment before it disappeared. Roark nodded, wondering at the urge to do something stupid like pull Cos closer to show he was protected.
"I'm Lehan Jaise. We've been planning an expedition to the fortress for a few days now —"
"Just as, I'm sure, you planned an expedition to get help battling the wizard. You took too long, in case you hadn't noticed," Roark drawled, giving Lehan his best scornful look. He didn't let Lehan Roark didn't let him say anything in his defense, just continued speaking over top of him. "I'm riding to the fortress. You can follow me there if you like."
"You don't understand —" Lehan began angrily, making Cos flinch back. Roark steadied him without really thinking about it, his focus entirely on Lehan.
"I understand well enough. How many people disappeared before you noticed something was wrong?" Roark asked furiously. "And then how many more were taken while you were dithering over what to do?"
Lehan scowled, but he didn't say anything, just stared venomously at Roark.
Roark stared back for a moment, then urged his horse into a fast walk. They wouldn't reach the fortress that night, as Roark had planned. If he'd left first thing in the morning, they'd have arrived at dusk. Personally, he preferred having light to see by, especially if he ended up battling a wizard.
Lehan and his people were following, unfortunately. At least if the "expedition" went sour, Roark could use them as human shields. He'd feel a little guilty if he did that to Cos now.
"There's nothing keeping you from showing me the places the wizard might've kept people, is there?" Roark asked Cos, keeping his voice quiet because Lehan was riding rudely close.
Cos shook his head, shrinking down a little as Lehan came apace with them.
"Look, you don't have any right to pass judgment on us," Lehan began as he met Roark's eyes. Roark just stared at him impassively, wondering if Lehan would try to fight him if he lunged and caught the bastard full on the nose with his fist.
That would've probably toppled Cos from the horse, but it might have been worth it. Only, it would definitely delay him, and even though Roark didn't have a set appointment at the fortress, he didn't really want to be delayed. It would probably be just as easy to draw Lehan into a fight when they returned to town.
"Kiran is my only sibling," Roark said, letting his voice drop dangerously low. "If you had done something sooner, my sister-in-law wouldn't be worrying herself sick over her missing husband, my nephew would still have his father, and I would be on my way to earning my Colonel's stripes in His Majesty's Army."
Lehan's eyes widened, though probably just at Roark's mention of his rank. Lieutenant Colonel was one step down from Colonel, but both were damn hard to get to if you weren't born to it.
"Like I said, you can come with me, but I consider you more hindrance than help," Roark concluded, deciding at the last second that resting his hand on the hilt of his sword was overkill.
"Fine," Lehan snapped. "We should leave you on your own, just for that arrogance." They wouldn't, if only because how the hell would they justify that to the people waiting for them back home? "But every man here has lost a loved one or a friend—they have just as much right to come along as you do."
"I never said any of you couldn't come," Roark said, urging his horse into a facer walk. "I just said it wouldn't be necessary if you'd done the right thing in the first place."
Lehan colored angrily again, but he finally let his horse fall back. Roark ignored him, focusing on riding and keeping Cos from tumbling. Tomorrow they'd find Kiran and hopefully the rest of the villagers. Then Roark could wash his hands of the whole damn village—especially Kiran, for getting caught—and go home.
*~*~*
They arrived at the fortress mid-morning. Cos had gotten progressively more tense, to the point where Roark thought he might actually break something if he didn't relax.
The fortress was a wreck. It had obviously never been huge—it had probably been barely bigger than Amara and Kiran's sprawling farmhouse. The gray stone of the fortress's walls had crumbled into haphazard piles, larger chunks scattered across the green around the ruins. There had been two towers, but only one stood; the other had been reduced to a height barely above Roark's head, jagged stone edges pointing towards the sky.
Roark dismounted slowly, turning back to steady the mare so that Cos could clamber down—which he managed without falling on his face this time. Roark turned back towards the ruins. Whatever had made the fortress crumble had spared only the singular tower and a small room in the north corner where the walls also appeared to be still standing, if just barely.
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Lehan and the three men with him—none of whom Roark had bothered to get names for—had dismounted behind them. One of the men whistled, obviously impressed by the scale of the damage.
Roark shot him a glare, then tied his horse to a nearby tree. At least it appeared the wizard really and truly was no longer a threat.
Even if it also appeared there was little he hadn't taken with him.
Still, Roark slid his sword and its sheath from its riding place below the mare's saddle and strapped it to his waist—better safe than dead because of a surprise ambush from the wizard.
That done, Roark turned back to explore the ruins, his heart sinking a little as he surveyed the damage once more. Cos was waiting for him, standing awkwardly by himself while the other men slowly took care of their horses—probably taking their time so Roark would be the one to encounter any dangers or make any grisly discoveries.
Indeed, nearly as soon as Roark headed for the ruins, all four men finished securing their horses and headed after them.
"Split up," Roark barked, putting a bit of bite into the words. Cos jumped, but Lehan and his men reluctantly fanned out. They didn't go far, but it was far enough to give Roark room to breathe.
"Not you," Roark said, rolling his eyes and grabbing Cos's arm to pull him back. Cos glanced at him. "Where were you when it happened?"
Cos frowned at him, honey-gold eyes wide like Roark would hit him if he didn't answer right.
"Point," Roark ordered shortly, not really in the mood to soften his voice. Cos blinked, some of the trepidation clearing from his face. He pointed to the north corner, where some walls still stood.
"Just the women who returned in there with you?" Roark asked, heading that way. Cos hesitated, then nodded briefly.
It had obviously been a cell of some sort. The room had been long and narrow, if the three walls that still stood were any indication. There were chunks of stone missing from each wall, and most of the intact windows had bars bricked into the openings. Under the rubble—from the ceiling, probably Roark decided—was a row of pallets. Not enough for everyone missing, but that held up with Roark's theory that the men had been held someplace separately.
"You two," Roark called, addressing the two men who had wandered close while apparently inspecting the outside wall. "Sort through this room. See if it's as empty as it looks."
They hesitated, but finally the one on the left nodded reluctantly.
Roark stepped away from the room, heading towards the tower next. Lehan had apparently been brave enough to approach it, and he was currently inspecting the outside with a frown.
"How do we get in?" Roark asked as he neared. Cos followed behind him and mumbled something under his breath in reply.
"We don't," Lehan said, openly scowling in frustration. "There's no door."
Roark rolled his eyes, noting with curiosity the thick rope dangling down one side of the tower. "What?" he asked, belatedly turning back towards Cos. The man spoke little enough that his mutterings might actually be useful.
"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair," Cos obediently repeated, his eyes bright as he looked past Roark at the tower. Or perhaps at Lehan. "The wizard had a daughter."
Lehan was staring at Cos like he'd grown a third head. It really wasn't that surprising that Cos had spoken, was it? He didn't talk much, but he did talk.
"So where is she, then?" Roark asked, then scowled in annoyance. "And why am I just hearing about a daughter now? Is she a mage as well?"
"You didn't ask," Lehan had the nerve to say. He smirked, looking rather pleased at knowing something Roark didn't. "She's either dead like her father or, if she's alive and has any sense of self-preservation, she's run as far from here as she can get."
Roark ignored Lehan, staring up at the tower. Climbing through the rubble, Roark surveyed the inside wall of the tower. Oddly, as Lehan had said, there was no outside door. There were also no windows, save for the largish half-moon openings near the top of the tower. A thick rope dangled from the north side of the tower, so maybe Lehan was right and the daughter had taken off. The rope stopped maybe a foot above his head. It was braided thickly but it looked incredibly frayed, at least at the bottom.
"Feel like climbing, Lehan?" Roark asked as he rounded the tower again. Lehan would refuse of course. The man was a coward, even if he liked to play it like he wasn't. "I'll give you a boost."
"I'm not going up there," Lehan protested immediately. "You're the soldier, you do it."
Roark smirked. He could give Lehan the benefit of the doubt—perhaps he just didn't have the physical prowess to climb the rope. Cos certainly couldn't manage it, not with his skinny arms. He also lacked the mental state of mind, Roark decided, studying Cos openly. He was staring up at the tower with open trepidation. Somehow he looked even paler, which was no easy feat considering how pale he'd been before.
"All right," Roark agreed. Cos's head snapped over to glance at him, but he looked away again just as quickly, giving Roark the feeling he was missing something important. He shrugged it off—probably Cos couldn't say whatever it was because of the spell on him. The best way to figure out what was missing would be to climb the tower.
The rope was barely within his reach. Unbuckling his sword belt, he thrust it into Cos's hands, earning a startled look. Cos held onto the sword though, albeit awkwardly. He'd probably never held one before, Roark thought dismissively.
Roark didn't waste any more time, but turned back to the tower. Contemplating a moment, eventually he just lunged, grabbing the end of the rope and pulling himself up the wall—only to immediately fall back to the ground, a loud snap heralding the breaking of the rope. He landed hard on his ass and smashed his elbow against the side of the stone tower. Then, to add insult to injury, the rope landed on his head, coiling and hitting him three times.
Cursing, Roark shot Lehan a glare. Lehan, poorly concealing a smirk, wisely went to investigate somewhere away from Roark.
"Are you all right?" Cos asked quietly, and Roark grumbled something that was almost a yes as he slowly climbed to his feet. His ass hurt, but he really should've tugged on the rope before attempting to fling himself up it.
Brushing off his pants, Roark glanced around crankily. The rest of Lehan's group was prudently keeping their distance, and Cos was watching him with a mixture of concern and fear, as though he was both worried that Roark had been hurt or was going to hurt him.
Rolling his eyes, Roark kicked a coil of rope out of his way and reclaimed his sword from Cos. Squinting up at the tower as he belted it back into place, he scowled. There'd be no getting into the tower now. Not without an extraordinarily tall ladder or magic, neither which was handy.
The rope had broken nearly at the window; there was perhaps a foot of dangling, frayed ends swaying mockingly in the light breeze. The rope looked odd, too. Roark squatted down, wincing as something twinged painfully. It was dry, but smoother than twine —
"Hair?" Roark questioned, startled despite Cos's strange words of earlier. "She climbed down using her hair?"
Cos didn't answer, but he didn't have to. Only a wizard's daughter would have hair this long that was strong enough to support a person's weight. It was faded and dull. Dead at least a week, Roark decided.
Straightening, Roark hissed in annoyance. Where the hell was Kiran? Roark refused to believe he was buried in rubble.
"Where else?" Roark snapped at Cos, feeling mildly guilty when Cos flinched back. He stared at Roark, wide-eyed and Roark really wanted to shake him and yell at him to grow a backbone already.
"Lead me there if you can't tell me where," Roark said, narrowing his eyes as Lehan turned towards them. Thankfully Lehan decided to return to his examination of the fortress rather than join them again.
Cos looked conflicted for a moment before finally he moved, heading across the grassy clearing and back towards the woods. Roark frowned, but he didn't say anything, just followed Cos into the trees behind the fortress. The dirt path they follo
wed was well-tread—maybe it led to a separate building?
They didn't go very far, perhaps a few dozen yards, before they reached a wide, sunlit clearing. It was quiet, peaceful, and completely empty save for a series of randomly placed, mismatched stones.
"What —" Roark cleared his throat, ignoring the heavy weight in his chest as he turned to Cos. "What is it?"
Cos looked completely miserable, his skinny arms wrapped around himself and his honey-gold eyes distant. He looked like he was about to throw up.
"Graves," he said quietly, then coughed, turning away slightly. How close, Roark wondered, had he come to being in one of those graves?
"Kiran?" Roark asked dully, though he was sure he knew the answer. Cos hesitated, a bit of life coming back to his eyes, but after a moment he pointed, singling out one of the larger rocks set near the outskirts of the clearing.
Swallowing, Roark turned to leave, not wanting to stay here any longer. There were no more survivors.
How was he going to tell Amara?
Out of the corner of his eye, Roark caught sight of moment. Turning his head, he glowered at Cos, who had dropped to his knees and looked about ready to pass out now.
"What is your problem?" Roark demanded, in no mood to be kind. Cos flinched, shaking his head, and maybe he was as cracked as the rest of the survivors were.
"I knew, I'm sorry, I couldn't —" Cos said, his breath hitching suspiciously. "I couldn't tell her."
"Fuck," Roark said, and he really wanted to hit something. He'd probably break Cos if he hit him, though, and unfortunately it didn't seem like Cos deserved hitting. "Come on, let's get out of here."
Cos nodded, letting Roark help him to his feet. He really did weigh almost nothing, and Roark made a note to make sure he stuffed himself silly on Amara's too-big meals. If Amara was in any frame of mind to make them, that was.
