“Just fine,” Warren said as he headed towards the table. “Hope dinner’s ready. I’m starved!”
Within minutes, everyone had a plate full of food in front of them. Conversation was light and inconsequential as everyone concentrated on eating. As soon as they were done, Warren asked Kevin to join him for a walk. Once they were outside, Kevin asked how things had really gone.
“I expected her to be ready to start using her magic, but I had no idea she’d be this ready,” Warren said. “Glendymere has her gathering energy from different sources and storing it in different places all at the same time, and she’s doing it better than most practicing sorcerers. Some sorcerers never figure out how to split their focus like that. It’s like she’s been doing this for years.” Warren shook his head. “Glendymere has a distinct advantage over humans as far as training is concerned. He can look into her head and see what she’s doing right and what she’s doing wrong. With us it’s trial and error. If an apprentice can’t get something right, you can offer suggestions or try new approaches, but without knowing exactly where they’re going wrong, you can’t do much to help. They have to figure it out on their own, and that takes time. She didn’t have to do that with Glendymere, but she will with me. She won’t progress as quickly with me as she has with him, but she’s already mastered the hard part. I can’t be sure, but I think she’ll be up to Colin’s level in two or three years.”
“When do you think she’ll be able to defend herself?”
Warren shook his head. “Depends on what you mean. Normally we just teach an apprentice to throw a basic shield, nothing fancy, but she’ll need more than that, won’t she?”
Kevin nodded. “If she’s going to survive. Rolan wants her dead, preferably before she’s trained, but I don’t think he’ll stop as long as she’s alive.”
“In that case, add at least another year, maybe two. Since he’s a seated sorcerer, he has to be skilled in dueling, right?”
“Not necessarily. Everyone assumes seated sorcerers can duel, but there’s no way to tell. He claims Tsareth declared him his heir and then died in his sleep, but Taelor was there and he says Rolan attacked Tsareth when his back was turned. But either way, he didn’t get his seat by dueling. Right now he’s sending assassins armed with arrows and knives after her. Later he may send sorcerers. She’s got to be ready for either one.”
“Well, let’s see how the next few months go,” Warren said. “I’ll be able to give you a better estimate once she masters the basics.”
“Thanks for doing this,” Kevin said as they turned back towards the cave. “You didn’t have to, and you can stop anytime if you need to.”
Warren frowned. “Why would I need to?”
“You wanted to retire before my father died. I’m sure you and Torrey have stuff you want to do. If you decide to go back home and pursue retirement, I’ll understand.”
Warren shook his head. “Just because I didn’t want to work full time doing what other people wanted done doesn’t mean I’m ready to be put out to pasture. Torrey and I both still have a few good years left in us.”
Kevin laughed. “I didn’t mean it that way. I thought you might want to travel, see other parts of the province, spend some time with relatives or something.”
“Maybe one day,” Warren said. “If we decide we’re ready, I’ll let you know. But for now, I’m looking forward to working with her. This is going to be fun.”
~ ~ ~ ~
Rhianna and Doreen ended up having several mugs of scog at Fenway’s, and while they were there, some of the guards dropped by, including Rigel. After a while, Doreen yawned and said it was time for her to head back to Jana’s. Rigel was quick to volunteer to see her back and shortly after they left, Rhianna slipped out too, ready for some time alone, just her and the night.
Rather than follow the road back to the castle, Rhianna headed for the woods. As soon as she walked into the woods she felt the tension begin to fall away. Small animals peeked out from their hiding places as she walked by and owls called to her from the tree tops. For the first time in months, she felt at peace.
Rhianna hadn’t wandered through the night forest by herself since she’d left Crinsor Run and she’d missed it, but she hadn’t realized how much she needed it until that night. By the time she left the woods and walked out into the meadow, she felt lighter, quicker, and stronger than she had since she’d finished her training. She stretched out on the grass and gazed at the heavens, marveling at all the stars and the beauty of the night. Moments later she drifted into a dreamless sleep.
~ ~ ~ ~
Kevin stayed in Rainbow Valley until a little after nine that evening. After he took Laryn and Steve back to their house, he asked Laryn if Torrey liked it in Rainbow Valley.
Laryn laughed. “She and Ashni are like two peas in a pod. They’ve already designed half a dozen quilts they want to make before next fall and they’ve been exchanging recipes since they met. Sari showed Torrey the herb gardens and explained what a lot of them are for, so Torrey asked her to teach her how to prepare them since they don’t have access to a sister. And Torrey’s decided Taelor’s entirely too thin and has already started making snacks to fatten him up. Your biggest problem will be convincing her to leave when it’s time to move.”
Kevin let out a long breath. “I wasn’t sure what I’d do if Torrey hated it there. And she’s okay with living in a cave?”
Steve nodded. “She thinks it’s great, especially after I told her the caves stay the same temperature year round so she won’t get hot in the summer or cold in the winter. And she won’t have to worry about storms either.”
“The kitchen’s better than half the kitchen’s in town,” Laryn added, “and how many people have bedrooms as nice as that one?”
“Good,” Kevin said. “If I move them where I’m planning to, they’ll be living in a cave there, too. I’m glad she likes it. You don’t think they’ll get too lonely, do you?”
Steve and Laryn looked at each other and then Laryn said, “We promised to come out and spend a few days with them before long. And with the giants looking after them, I don’t think so, but you might want to offer to take Torrey home for a day or two every once in a while.”
“Remind me to do that or I’ll get busy with other things and forget.”
Laryn nodded. Then, as Kevin started for the door, she told him to wait and dug a piece of paper out of her pocket. “Here’s Torrey’s grocery list. Can you take this stuff out there either tomorrow or Wednesday? Ashni hasn’t had a chance to send Macin to Abernon yet.”
Kevin nodded as he took the list. “I’ll give it to Chris.”
When Kevin got back to his office, Chris and Nikki were the only ones in the reception area. “Everyone gone for the day?”
Chris nodded. “All ready to close up unless you know of something we need to do.”
Kevin shook his head. “Not today, but would you take care of getting the stuff on this list together tomorrow? I need to take it to Torrey.”
Chris put the list under his bottle of ink. “First thing tomorrow.”
Kevin knelt down and petted Nikki. “Rhianna already gone up?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her since this morning. Want me to check?”
“If you don’t mind,” Kevin said. “Nikki and I’ll wait here for you.”
While Chris was gone, Kevin went into his office to check for messages. He flipped through the new ones and had them sorted by the time Chris got back.
“No one’s seen her,” Chris said. “At least no one I talked to.”
“Did you check her room?”
Chris nodded. “I knocked, and when no one answered, I opened the door to be sure. She’s not in there. She’s not in the dining room either.”
Kevin stood up slowly. “Where is she?”
“I don’t know,” Chris answered. “She said she was going to spend the day working at Doreen’s. You don’t think they’re still out there, do you?”
“They could be sitting on the porch talking, or they could be at Fenway’s.”
“Do you know where Doreen’s house is?”
Chris nodded.
Kevin took off his key and handed it to Chris. “Let’s go.”
“What about Nikki?”
“She’ll be fine. We won’t be gone long.”
~ ~ ~ ~
Ten minutes later, Kevin and Chris were back in Kevin’s office. “Okay,” Kevin said as he sat down behind his desk. “She wasn’t at the construction site. Where else could she be?”
“Fenway’s?”
“I doubt it, but would you check? If I go it’ll cause all kinds of grief.”
Chris nodded, turned the key and left. Fifteen minutes later, he was back. “Well, they aren’t there now, but they were earlier.”
“How do you know?”
“I talked to some of the guards who were there. She and Doreen came in around sunset, had a few mugs of scog, and then Doreen left with Rigel.”
“Do you have any idea when that was?”
“A couple of hours ago, and no, no one saw Rhianna after that.”
“So she may have gone with them?”
Chris grinned. “I doubt it. She’s smarter than that.”
Kevin stood up and started pacing. “Where could she have gone then?”
“I don’t know, but she’s a warrior elf. She can take care of herself.”
“Maybe, but what if she was ambushed somewhere? What if the assassins have been waiting to get her by herself? We know there are at least three of them hanging around here, maybe more. If they all jumped her...”
Chris shook his head. “Slow down. There’s no reason to think that. Besides, there’s that translocation thing elves do. If they tried to jump her, she’d just bounce somewhere else.”
“Not if someone grabbed her first.”
“Rhianna’s too aware of who and what’s around her for that to happen, and anyway, where could they hide between here and Milhaven?”
“I don’t know.” Kevin walked out of his office, through the reception area, and opened the main door. “Could I get you to do something for me?” Kevin asked Aaron, the guard on duty.
“Yes, sir.”
“Rhianna hasn’t come back from Milhaven yet, and I’m concerned she may have gotten hurt along the road. Would you ride into town and check the road? In fact, could you get one of the other guards to go with you so you can check both sides?”
Aaron nodded.
“If you don’t find her, go by the chapel and ask Sister Theresa if she’s seen her or heard of any accidents anywhere.”
“I’ll get Brandon to go with me,” Aaron said, “as soon as I find someone to cover the door.”
“Don’t worry about the door. I’ll take care of it.”
Aaron frowned. “Cpt. Darrell wants us to have a guard here. It won’t take but a minute to find someone. Then we’ll be on our way.”
Kevin growled. “Aaron, I’m the Master Sorcerer. I’m perfectly capable of keeping an eye on my own door. I want you saddled up and on your way. Now.”
“Yes sir,” Aaron said as he turned to leave.
Before Aaron cleared the hall, Chris said, “Kind of rough on him, weren’t you?”
Kevin exhaled a long breath. “I’ll apologize later, after she’s been found. Now, would you please go tell the guards on duty if she shows up, I want to see her immediately?”
Chris nodded and headed out the door.
Kevin sank down on the couch with his head in his hands. A few minutes later, a cold nose pushed against his hands. Kevin sat up and absentmindedly petted Nikki as he pictured Rhianna lying hurt in the dark. He should never have let her roam around on her own. He knew assassins were in the area. He should have protected her.
Kevin stood up and started pacing again. He’d never forgive himself if something happened to her. How would he live knowing he’d never see her again? Or hear her laugh? Or hold her hand? And how would he ever tell her parents?
Fifteen minutes later Chris walked back into the main office, followed by Darrell and Rigel.
“Meech will be here in a few minutes. He’s Aaron’s relief,” Darrell said as he checked the coffee carafe to see if there was any hot coffee. It was empty. He held the carafe out to Rigel. “Want to get us a refill? I have a feeling we might need it.” Then he turned to Kevin. “Okay, what’s going on?”
“I wish I knew,” Kevin said miserably. “All I know is it’s late and Rhianna’s not back. She left the tavern right after you did, Rigel. Did you see where she went?”
Rigel had started towards the door, but he turned around at Kevin’s question. “No, sir, I didn’t. Doreen and I went to Jana’s as soon as we left the tavern. I didn’t even see Rhianna come out.”
Kevin nodded.
While Rigel was gone after coffee, Chris asked, “How about Corin? Do you know where he is?”
Kevin shook his head. “And even if I did, he won’t talk to us.”
“No, but he’ll talk to Laryn,” Chris said. “I’ll go see if she knows where he is.”
After Chris left, Darrell asked, “Do you want me to get Marcus? He could use his seeing eye to search for her.”
Kevin shook his head. “Let him sleep. If she’s not back by daybreak, he and I’ll split up and search the woods. Aaron and Brandon are searching the area near the road and around town. They’ll spot anything we could tonight.”
Darrell watched as Kevin started pacing again. “Anything I can do to help?” he asked as he stroked Nikki’s head.
Kevin shook his head. “Not that I know of. Why don’t you get some sleep?”
“I’ll hang around for a while, at least until Aaron and Brandon get back. We’ll see how things stand then.”
Rigel set the fresh coffee on the table and said he’d go check the stable and pasture area.
“While you’re out there, would you check the family garden? I doubt she’s there, but I don’t think anyone’s checked it yet,” Kevin said while Darrell poured him a cup of coffee and set it on the conference table.
Rigel nodded and left.
Kevin took a sip of coffee and started pacing again.
When Chris got back a few minutes later, Kevin looked at him expectantly, but Chris shook his head as he returned the key. “Laryn hasn’t seen Corin this evening. But she did say if he sensed Rhianna was in distress, he’d go to her, so there’s probably nothing to worry about. She told me to remind you that between the two of them, they could handle just about anything.”
Kevin frowned. “But she didn’t call him?”
Chris shook his head. “When I mentioned it, she said Corin wasn’t a puppy, if he had something to tell her, he’d come. Otherwise, we should assume everything’s all right.”
“The absence of news is not necessarily good news, Chris,” Kevin said. “I wish she’d called him.”
“Apparently it doesn’t work that way.” Chris watched Kevin pace for a few minutes and then caught Darrell’s eye and tilted his head towards the door. Darrell nodded and left the office, pulling the door shut behind him. “Kevin, you need to settle down. You’re blowing this all out of proportion.”
“Chris, she could be lying out there hurt somewhere. She could be dead for all we know.”
“And she could be fine. Why don’t you go in your office for a bit? Think about something else for a while. It’s not like all this worrying and pacing is doing any good.”
Kevin closed his eyes. “Okay. You’re right. This isn’t helping.” He took a few deep breaths. “I want to check the assassin’s cave. If they’ve got her, and she’s still alive, they’ve probably taken her there.” He turned his key and left.
While Kevin was gone, Rigel came by to say Rhianna wasn’t at the stable, in the garden, or out in the pastures, at least as far as he could tell. Chris thanked him and told him to go to bed.
> Kevin got back right after Rigel left. “She’s not there, and the assassins in the cave are sound asleep. But I don’t know if that’s all of them.”
“Well, if any of them had had any part in her disappearance, they wouldn’t be asleep. The adrenaline high wouldn’t have worn off yet.” Chris took a sip of his coffee. “Rigel came by while you were gone. She’s not out back. I told him to go on to bed.”
Kevin nodded as he picked up the cup of coffee Darrell had poured for him, took a sip, frowned, and then concentrated on it a moment to warm it back up. “Think I’ll see if I can get a little work done while we wait.”
“Good idea.” Chris picked up some messages off his desk and handed them to Kevin. As soon as Kevin was settled in his office, Chris stretched out on the couch in the reception area and patted the cushion. Nikki jumped up beside him and within minutes, they were both asleep.
~ ~ ~ ~
A little after midnight, the dropping temperatures roused Rhianna. With a laugh at herself for falling asleep, she finger-combed the bits of dead grass out of her hair, straightened her clothes, and headed back to the castle.
The guard at the front door told her Chris was looking for her.
Rhianna frowned. “Surely he’s gone to bed by now.”
“Possibly, but he said to tell you to stop by his office on your way in no matter what time it was.”
“All right. I’ll see if he’s still there.”
As Rhianna approached the office, Meech nodded and opened the door for her. “They’ve been waiting for you.”
Rhianna frowned, but when she saw Chris sleeping on the couch, she relaxed. Whatever it was couldn’t be all that bad if Chris was asleep.
The sound of the door opening woke Nikki up. She jumped off the couch and ran to Rhianna with her tail wagging. Rhianna smiled as she knelt down to rub Nikki’s ears. “What are you doing still up, girl? You should have been in bed hours ago.”
Kevin had been at his desk for the past hour trying to concentrate on the messages, but his mind was too shrouded in a fog of worry for him to get much done. When Rhianna’s voice registered, it was like the fog dissipated in a ray of sunshine. Kevin leaned back and took a deep breath. She was safe. As the tension eased out of his body, his muscles began to ache and his head began to pound. For a full minute he just sat there, relaxing, as he watched Nikki snuggle closer to Rhianna. And then the anger began to seep in.
The Warrior Elf Page 29
