by Avril Sabine
Chapter Twenty-Seven
By mid afternoon, and a whole day of riding, Gwyn demanded, “Where are we going? This isn’t the way to the castle.”
“How observant of you,” Thornton said lightly.
“Thornton.” There was both a warning and an order in Shadow’s tone.
“To see a friend.”
“What sort of friend?” Iain demanded suspiciously.
“Relax,” Thornton said easily. “A wizard who has a portal tower that’ll take us to the capital. We’ll be across Relthon in an instant.”
“To Crell?” Iain’s voice still held a hint of suspicion.
“That’s the only capital city Relthon has,” Thornton said.
“Then why couldn’t the captain use it?” Gwyn demanded.
“Because the wizard can only send eight at a time. That means we’ll have to leave most of the horses behind,” Thornton said.
“No guess who’ll be walking,” Iain grumbled.
“We’ll all walk,” Shadow said firmly. “If there isn’t enough horses for all of us, no one rides.”
“So harsh,” Thornton said lightly.
“It won’t hurt you. How much further is your friend?” Shadow asked.
“We won’t get there until late afternoon. We’ll stop for something to eat soon, but not for too long. Not while those soldiers are on the loose,” Thornton said.
“Did Carson know about this plan?” Shadow asked.
Thornton nodded.
“Then why didn’t he tell me?” Shadow demanded.
“Because he knew you’d argue,” Thornton said. When Shadow remained quiet, he asked. “Was he right?”
Shadow shrugged.
“Of course he was right,” Irlan said.
“And so she should. It ain’t right us getting back to the capital like that and the captain and the rest of the men stuck out there,” Gwyn complained.
“He uses the portal towers too sometimes,” Thornton said irritably. “No need to act like I’m the only one who does.”
They all fell silent until Thornton called a halt for them to eat and rest. Tired, Shadow leaned up against a tree trunk as she nibbled on a handful of dried fruit and nuts. Her eyes closed and the sound of Irlan and Gwyn talking faded. She relaxed as she noticed the sounds of birds, wishing she could pull out her bedroll and stretch out for an hour. The food eaten, her hand dropped to her side and she sighed heavily, not wanting to move. An insect landed on her hand and she opened her eyes to see what it was. A glimmer from the corner of her eye caught her attention and she turned to see Clem sneaking up on Thornton, magic hid, sword drawn, still a good distance from him.
A glance around showed crossbows trained on them, the men remaining amongst the trees. Shadow’s heart raced as she tried to think what to do. The insect crawled across her hand and with her eyes hidden by her hat Shadow glanced towards Clem. The distance between him and Thornton was slowly growing smaller.
Making sure her voice was high pitched and sounded panicked, Shadow called out loudly. “There’s a snake slithering over my hand. Someone get it for me.” She watched as Clem froze and looked towards her. She hoped her face was shaded enough from her hat that he couldn’t tell she could see him.
Irlan rose to his feet. “What kind of snake?”
“I don’t know. I can’t bring myself to move. What if it bites me? I can’t see anything past my hat.” Shadow watched as Clem took a single step forward then stared at her again.
Irlan shook his head. “Baby.” He started towards her.
“Thornton? Can you help me? I don’t trust Irlan not to get me bitten.”
Thornton laughed softly, but rose to his feet and strode towards her, Irlan at his side. He stood above her. “Shadow-”
“Don’t tell me what type it is. I don’t want to know. Just get rid of it.” She motioned them closer with her hand that rested in the grass.
“Shadow I don’t-” Irlan began.
“Shut up, Irlan. I don’t want to hear it. Help me with this situation.” Shadow could see Clem had changed direction and now headed towards them. He took a step at a time, pausing to check Shadow still hadn’t seen him before he took another cautious step.
Thornton crouched beside her, tugging Irlan down to join him, before he whispered, “What’s really the problem?”
Shadow spoke in barely a whisper. “Clem is sneaking up behind you and the rest are hidden in the trees with crossbows. I can see all of them so unless they’ve gathered more since we outran them, there’s none behind me. Is there any cover there?”
Thornton glanced past Shadow. “Plenty of trees and bushes.” He raised his voice. “The snake looks like it wants to strike. Gwyn, Iain, get behind and distract it.” He lowered his voice again. “How close is Clem?”
Shadow’s gaze slid past Thornton. “If they don’t hurry, he’ll soon be close enough to see there’s no snake. I can’t even get to my weapons without alerting him.”
Thornton’s hand closest to her slid inside his boot and withdrew a slim blade. He turned it so the fingers of her right hand could reach the handle. Her fingers tightened around it and she held it close to her leg to hide it.
“Don’t do anything stupid, Shadow. Get to safety. Irlan, you get Gwyn, I’ll take Iain. They’re nearly in place.”
“What about our gear. And horses?” Shadow glanced again towards Clem. Only another few steps and he’d be able to see her hand.
“We can walk.” Thornton raised his head. “Don’t come any closer. You’re upsetting the snake.” He lowered his gaze to Shadow. “Count of three.”
She nodded slightly.
“One, two, three.” Thornton dived past her and Irlan did the same on the other side.
Instead of joining them, Shadow leapt forward, her knife aimed at Clem. She struck out at him, dodging as he recovered from his surprise and swung at her. As she dodged, she dropped to the ground to hear a thunk in the tree behind her.
“Shadow!”
Ignoring Thornton’s bellow, she rolled as Clem attacked again, pushed herself from the ground and threw herself into the shrub in front of her. She eyed the distance between her and her crossbow. A check at where the magic hid men were showed it was impossible. Clem’s sword slashed at the shrub hiding her and she darted from it, aiming for the next one. She couldn’t keep dodging forever, and she noticed the men were starting to move towards her hidden companions.
When Clem attacked the shrub she hid in, instead of running, Shadow dodged to the side and struck out at him. She came in under his raised arm, slicing at it as she slid behind him. She felt exposed as she dashed for another shrub, holding her breath until she was amongst the leaves and twigs, cringing at the sound of bolts hitting trees. But one of them was no longer magic hid. Only five more to wound.
Clem came at her again. She grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it into his face. She ran as he cursed and rubbed at his eyes, stumbling in her direction. She had to do something. The other men were intent on quietly crossing the clearing to attack her companions. Their backs were to her. A quick, sharp intake of breath and she dashed into the clearing. One man turned as she grabbed her crossbow and bolts and continued for cover. She felt the rush of the bolt as it barely missed her face. Shadow slid to the ground and pressed her back against a tree as she tried to slow her breathing, her fingers trembling as she readied her crossbow.
The clearing was quiet. She’d have to look and see where they were. Her cheek could still feel the cold rush of metal and it took all her willpower to rise on one knee and turn towards the clearing. None of them looked towards her. They had nearly reached their destination.
Heart in her throat, Shadow took aim. She fired at one of the soldiers and ignored his cry of pain as she readied a bolt and wounded another. She was forced to turn away and shield herself with the tree as the first man she’d wounded shot at her. Another glance showed Gwyn dash behind a tree.
“Stay back. There’s three more.” Shadow cal
led out. She heard footsteps run towards her tree and knew it was time to move. Without looking, she ran, dodging trees and shrubs. Behind her she could hear her pursuer. She angled her direction, not wanting to get too far from the clearing. Ahead of her, Gwyn rose from dense shrubs, a crossbow aimed behind her. Shadow dived towards the side, rolling as she landed in the rock strewn grass. A cry of pain sounded as she spun to face her pursuer and watched as he crashed forward, a bolt protruding from his chest. She darted forward and checked he was dead.
Gwyn ran to her side. “Where are the rest of them?”
Shadow turned towards the clearing. “I don’t know.” She ran, stopping only when she reached the edge. She quickly aimed at one of the magic hid men and shot him. Before he could turn, Gwyn finished him off. Not hesitating, Shadow shot at the next man, surprised when he crashed to the ground. The last magic hid man ran for cover. Shadow raced after him.
“Shadow!”
She didn’t glance towards Thornton. “One left hidden. He’s trying to get away.” She didn’t stop. Ahead she could hear the man. If he got away he could easily circle back. And Clem was still out there somewhere. She tried to shoot the man with her crossbow, but she missed. Not even close. The man went to ground.
Shadow slid behind a tree, expecting him to fire. Nothing. Crouching low, she inched forward, listening for sound. All was quiet. Not even the birds were singing. Behind her she heard her name called by Irlan and Thornton. She hoped they didn’t follow.
A noise ahead made her freeze. She turned slightly. There it was again. Like a branch cracking. She hurried forward. A glimpse of movement amongst the trees drew her attention. He crouched low like her. Hooking her crossbow over her shoulder, Shadow pulled out her dagger and ran towards the man who rose to meet her. He parried her attack with his crossbow, leapt back, dropped it and pulled out his own dagger. They circled each other. Shadow watched him warily, his bearded face expressionless.
The attack was swift when it came and Shadow barely managed to dodge. She had no chance against this man. He was far more experienced. Behind her she could still hear her name being called.
“Here!” She lunged at the man but he seemed to slide away from her effortlessly. She nearly stumbled over a berry bush as he attacked her. The thorns scraped her hand.
“Shadow!”
She didn’t need to turn to know Thornton was nearly with them and he couldn’t see the man who looked towards him. A trickle of blood ran down her hand and Shadow glanced at the berry bush again. She grabbed hold of a long thin stem, and slashed at it with her dagger. She struck out at the man and blood trickled down his face from the jagged scratches.
Thornton raced towards him, pulling his sword to attack. Shadow jumped back, barely missing the berry bush. She watched as the two men fought, Thornton far more skilled than his opponent. A sound drew her attention, and she turned to see Clem aim a crossbow at Thornton. She threw herself across the short distance, crashing into Clem, the dagger still clutched tightly in her hand. She pulled her hand back and plunged it into him, her mouth falling open at the ease with which it sunk into his stomach. Warm blood gushed over her hand as startled eyes met hers.
This man had caused the death of those who had trusted him. Might cause Perrun to lose his leg. She pressed harder with her knife then pulled it out. “Loyalty would have been cheaper. It wouldn’t have cost you your life.”
Clem’s hand pressed against his stomach. “You don’t understand.”
Shadow pushed away from him. “I understand all I need to.” She looked over her shoulder when she heard footsteps. It was Thornton.
He came to a stop beside her and stared down at Clem. “I hope you found the time to spend your blood money. You won’t be able to take it where you’re going.”
Clem tried to speak, but doubled up in pain instead. More blood flowed from the wound. “End it. Please.”
“You don’t deserve it.” Thornton stared at him a moment longer then swung his sword.
Shadow looked away at the last second, but she still heard the sound as the weapon was driven into Clem’s body. She stood still, waiting for the usual rush of nausea to follow. It didn’t. All she felt was a grim satisfaction that they’d caught the traitor.
Thornton’s arm dropped on her shoulders. “Let’s get cleaned up. We’re going to arrive later than I expected.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
They reached the wizard’s tower as day was fading into night. Shadow felt a sense of dread. With one step she would put even more distance between her and Carson. She’d thought he wouldn’t be too far behind them as they travelled to the capital. She urged her horse forward and dismounted when he wouldn’t budge.
“Shadow!” Irlan exclaimed. “Stop. There’s a chasm in front of you.”
“No there isn’t. The path is safe enough, but only where I’m walking.” Shadow walked across the chasm illusion, avoiding the real traps and grinning at the gasp behind her.
“Why? What’s behind that illusion?” Irlan asked.
“A mixture of pits with spikes in them, sharp blades protruding from posts and a few other nasty surprises.” Shadow stopped in front of a magic hid door.
“We’ll wait here until he’s ready to let us in,” Thornton said.
Shadow rapped on the wood. Minutes later the door was flung open by a man who was almost bald. He was about as tall as Shadow, going to fat around the middle and had a permanent frown.
“What do you want? Hate elf sight. You think you’re so clever to be able to get past it all, don’t you? Who’ve you got with you?”
“Mayhew, my friend. Aren’t you going to shine the path for us?” Thornton called out.
“You! If I have to.” Mayhew muttered under his breath and a black path appeared, leading to his door.
The men followed the path and Irlan lead Shadow’s horse for her. Once they had dismounted, Mayhew stared at them.
“What do you want?” Mayhew demanded.
“A trip to the capital,” Thornton said.
“Should have known. Where’s your brother? Off playing soldier I guess. At least he makes himself useful sometimes,” Mayhew muttered.
Gwyn snickered.
Thornton ignored them both. “We’ll have to leave some of the horses with you. Can you send them through when the energy builds up again?”
“You’ll leave them all here. I’m not depleting the energy for frivolous requests when times are uncertain. I’ll send one or two a day. Have someone ready at daybreak to fetch them,” Mayhew said.
“That’ll be fine,” Thornton said.
“It’ll have to be. Put them in the stable. Don’t have anyone to do for me. I’m not some useless noble.” Mayhew turned his back on them and the door slammed shut behind him.
“Friend?” Shadow asked. “So how do your enemies treat you?”
“Surely you recall. They offer me the finest of accommodations, serve the best of meals and make sure the laundress takes the utmost care of my garments,” Thornton said lightly.
“I’m sorry.” Shadow reached out to him and rested her hand on his forearm, guilt filling her.
Thornton smiled wryly. “Don’t be. Come on. I’ll show you to the stable.”
Once their horses were stabled, they made their way back to the tower, their saddlebags slung over their shoulders. This time Thornton knocked on the door. No one was there to open it, but it swung open anyway.
Shadow saw the faint glimmer that showed magic had been used.
“Come on. We’ve got a million stairs to climb.” Thornton led them to the stairs a few paces inside the door. As soon as all of them were inside, the door closed itself with another glimmer of magic.
They headed for the top of the tower, using the steps that travelled all around the inside, sandwiched between two rock walls. At each level, a closed door stood. At the top level, they walked straight into an open area. All that was in there was a circle painted on the floor, magical symbols around the outsid
e.
“Stand on the circle,” Mayhew snapped. “I haven’t all night. Now, elf sight, close your eyes or you’re likely to be sick. You’ll see stuff, the others won’t. It’ll be black around them and they’ll only see each other. About five minutes and you’ll be there.”
“My name’s Shadow.”
“What do I care? If I’m lucky I won’t have to see you again. Everyone get ready or you’ll miss out. I don’t have time to waste.” As soon as they all stood on the circle, Mayhew muttered the chant to activate the portal.
Shadow quickly closed her eyes. It seemed to take ages. Surely a quick peek wouldn’t hurt. She opened her eyes to see grotesque creatures coming for her. Her mouth opened to scream, but no sound came out. She staggered as she tried to avoid the creature coming for her and would have fallen if Thornton hadn’t caught her arm. With his other hand, he covered her eyes.
“Don’t you listen to anyone?” Thornton asked.
“Never,” Irlan answered for his sister.
“Where are we?” Shadow asked shakily.
“I’ve been told it’s better not to know,” Thornton said.
“Does anyone get trapped here?” Shadow asked nervously.
“That’s not a question to ask while we’re in a portal,” Thornton said.
“Do they?” Gwyn demanded.
“Ah, we’ve arrived.” Thornton took his hand away from Shadow’s eyes.
“Do they?” Shadow glanced around to see they were in a similar place to the one they had left. The only difference being the guards on duty who hastily bowed when they saw Thornton.
“Not often and not for very long. That’s why it’s good to let people know you’re using them. In case the portal tower you’re going to is destroyed. Then a wizard can use another portal tower to bring you back,” Thornton said.
