Finding Refuge: The Marked Ones

by Cathi Shaw

  FINDING REFUGE

  BOOK 2 OF THE MARKED ONES

  by Cathi Shaw

  Ink Smith Publishing

  www.ink-smith.com

  Finding Refuge

  Book 2 of the Marked Ones

  By Cathi Shaw

  Copyright 2014 by Cathi Shaw

  Cover Design: Chris Arlidge of Cheeky Monkey Media

  Map by Linda Bjarnason

  Author Photo by Becca McNeil

  (http://www.beccamcneilphotography.com/)

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion therof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  The final approval for this literary material is granted by the author.

  Printed in the U.S.A, 2014

  All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.

  ISBN: 978-1-939156-61-7

  Ink Smith Publishing

  P.O. Box Box 1086

  Glendora CA

  www.inksmith.com

  Table of Contents

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  DEDICATION

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  List of Names and Places

  Map of Five Corners

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  There are so many people to thank for making Finding Refuge a reality.

  First and foremost, I would like to thank all the people who read Five Corners: Book 1 of the Marked Ones. Your feedback and enthusiasm for more inspired me so much.

  Once again I’ve been blessed with an incredible group of beta readers for this book.

  Thanks to: Caitie Shaw, Dan Nixon, Wendy Nixon, Kate Fitzsimmons, Mackenzie Nelson, and Carol Doyle-Jones.

  Thank you to everyone at Cheeky Monkey Media (http://cheekymonkeymedia.ca/) for the amazing vision you had of transferring my stories to illustrations and the web. Special thanks to Treena Bjarnason and Chris Arlidge, whose professionalism and talent continue to astound me!

  Big thanks, of course, to my family and friends who were incredibly supportive of my work on Finding Refuge. Your positive energy continues to be a great treasure to me.

  DEDICATION

  For Dr. Muriel Edith Shaw, the strongest woman I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing and loving.

  I miss you more than words can express! Ox

  CHAPTER ONE

  Kiara’s lungs burned as she ran through the dusty landscape, her arms aching with the weight of the small child she clutched to her chest.

  “Shhhh,” Kiara hissed as the child whimpered, the noise carrying over the rocky terrain. She glanced over her shoulder, looking for signs of pursuit. In the distance she could just barely make out the black blur that indicated a Hunter was there. One at least. She kept running. There was no time to see if there were more.

  The Hunters had sniffed this child out just as Kiara had talked the mother into releasing her into Kiara’s care. Kiara had heard the Hunter’s telltale hiss and had begun to run. Oddly enough the Hunter hadn’t teleported. But Kiara didn’t have time to dwell on the possible reasons for that. She had to get back to the camp in the mountains and she knew she wouldn’t make it taking the more travelled road.

  “Mama!” The girl in her arms wailed miserably.

  “Hush!” Kiara panted, squeezing the child tightly, which only resulted in an escalating howl of rage from her small passenger. Caedmon was so much better at this than she was. Despite his size and the rough manners he’d honed from his years in the army, Caedmon was surprisingly gentle with the children. They felt instantly safe in his arms. Kiara had to admit that she understood the feeling. Although it had been months now since she’d been alone with Caedmon, he still made her feel safe.

  She stumbled on a rock and almost went down, jerking her thoughts back to the task at hand. She didn’t risk another look over her shoulder but knew the Hunter was gaining on her. It had to be, they moved faster than she could even at the best of times and the child in her arms was not cooperating as she continued to wail at an increasing frequency.

  Looking ahead she saw a steep path winding up the side of the mountain. She had no choice; she would have to leave the main road and climb. If her luck held, she would stay ahead of the Hunter. Hidden within the hills lay Caedmon and safety.

  As she forced her legs forward, Kiara cursed her impatience. She should have waited for Caedmon to come with her to the small village. He was going to be furious at her for risking so much. But if she had done that the girl in her arms would very likely be dead by now, she reminded herself. She had rescued her just barely in time.

  They had been seeking out the Marked children all summer. They had already ferried two groups of children to Bellasiel in the Eastern Mountains but they’d also found dozens of Marked Ones slain. Kiara was determined to save as many of the remaining children as she could before winter set in. Right now they had the largest group of Marked children they’d collected yet - more than twenty of them. And Caedmon was getting nervous.

  It was dangerous traveling with the children, as they’d soon learned. But it was more so with the group they currently had because it was so large. They were sure to draw attention if they went into villages. They couldn’t stay in proper shelters. The network of sympathizers for the Marked Ones, known as Helpers, was growing across the Five Corners but they had to be sure they could trust the Helpers with their lives before they would stay with them. Bellasiel was reluctant to sanction such actions yet. She hoped by next summer they would have a number of safe houses to take the children they found. But for now they were stuck with camping in remote locations - less than ideal conditions when they were traveling with children as young as two years old.

  Suddenly the girl in her arms twisted and wriggled violently. Kiara clutched her closer but lost her footing and they both fell hard at the top of the steep incline. The child began to scream and before Kiara could do anything she heard the sibilant voice of the Hunter.

  “Give me the child.”

  Kiara pushed herself to sitting, tucking the now silent girl behind her. “No,” she said firmly, forcing herself to make eye contact with the vile creature in front of her.

  The Hunter’s hood was pulled low but she could still see the eerie glow from its red eyes. She knew that beneath the dark robes lay a creature with skin as translucent as glass, its blue veins clearly visible. The idyll thought that sun would not be kind to such skin floated through her mind.

  “Fine,” the creature almost shrugged, “I will take you first.”

  It advanced toward Kiara. She reached for her sword before remembering that she’d left it at the camp. A broadsword, even one crafted in Séreméla, was far too heavy to carry on a rescue mission. She reached for the dagger in her boot but it was too late. The Hunter moved with a s
peed that would have been shocking if Kiara hadn’t seen it before. As its gloved hand closed around her throat, Kiara forced herself to look into its eyes, where she saw all hope for the Marked Ones being devoured.

  Spots clouded her vision and Kiara felt a searing heat radiating from where the Hunter grasped her throat. She watched as the blackness reflected in the red eyes turned to pure white energy. As darkness began closing in on the edges of her vision, she could see the Hunter’s eyes, feasting on whatever it saw in her own eyes.

  “You never had a chance at saving them. You should have saved yourself,” it hissed softly as the blackness began to overtake her.

  Suddenly Kiara found herself on the ground, her vision still dark. She heard the screaming hiss that announced the death of a Hunter, then she felt herself being lifted by familiar strong arms. Caedmon, was her last thought before she slipped under the blackness.

  #

  It was late afternoon when Kiara woke. She was lying on a makeshift cot near the fire in the camp. Caedmon was sitting next to her, watching her. His expression was just short of thunderous.

  “The child?” Kiara asked and was surprised when her voice came out hoarse.

  Caedmon didn’t answer for a moment. Then he jerked his dark head toward the other side of the camp. Ignoring the pain in her neck, Kiara forced herself to turn in the direction he’d indicated. She saw the little girl playing happily with one of the older children and relief flooded her.

  “She made it.”

  “You almost didn’t,” Caedmon growled angrily.

  No, he was more than angry. Kiara took a deep breath, searching for words. But Caedmon didn’t let her speak.

  “Don’t bother, Kiara. This isn’t a game.”

  “I know it’s not a game,” she responded sharply, despite her guilt.

  “Do you? Because you seem to be upping the stakes more and more lately. Taking unnecessary chances. Going off to fetch that child on your own, when we knew the Hunters were not far behind us. Nevermind the risks we are taking by traveling with this many children!”

  He stood and began to pace, his large frame vibrating with rage.

  “Caedmon,” Kiara whispered, her heart twisting.

  He turned suddenly. “Do you even see what you’re doing, Kiara? You’ve become like one of them. You’re addicted to the hunt!”

  Hot tears pricked at Kiara’s eyes. “I am not like a Hunter,” she denied as anger swelled inside her.

  “Yes. You are.” Caedmon stopped pacing and crouched down beside her. “You are. You may not hunt for the same reasons but you are drawn to do this. At all odds. Do you think you’ve achieved what you set out to?” He gestured toward the children in the camp. “Just because you’ve got them here doesn’t mean we’ll make it to the Refuge with them all.”

  Reluctantly, Kiara looked around the camp. She knew Caedmon was right. They had to get these children to Bellasiel but what about all the others they would be leaving to sure death. She couldn’t bear the thought of more dead children.

  “We can find more.”

  “No!” Caedmon roared, his handsome face twisted in anger. “Kiara, we can’t find more. We will all die if we try to.” He paused when he saw the look on her face. Then he softened, “I know you want to help as many of these children as you can. But the Hunters are on our trail. You almost died today. You know as well as I do that the Hunters are increasing in number. And they’ve had no trouble sniffing us out. The time has come to focus on getting these children back to the Refuge.”

  Kiara closed her eyes. In her heart she knew he was right but the appearance of the Hunters meant sure death to so many more.

  “Kee, you have to let it go. We can’t save them all. We can only do our best.”

  Tears pricked at her eyes as Kiara looked across the camp at the groups of children playing softly. It wasn’t fair that these children had to run for their lives. They should be allowed to live as children not as refugees, torn away from their families.

  She felt Caedmon’s strong fingers stroking her cheek.

  “Loving you will be the death of me,” he whispered, almost too softly for her to hear.

  She looked at Caedmon and saw the raw hurt on his face. Kiara’s chest tightened. She never wanted to hurt Caedmon.

  “Do you have any idea what it was like to find you like that?” he asked quietly. “I thought you were dead.” His voice broke and he stood abruptly. She watched as he turned away from her. Caedmon was never one to show his emotions. He saw it as a sign of weakness. The fact that he was showing her such a depth of emotion now just served to show how much she was hurting him. Kiara felt the tears that had been threatening earlier suddenly hot on her cheeks.

  “We’ll break camp at first light.” Caedmon said over his shoulder before he strode across the camp, leaving her lying by the fire.

  Kiara brushed the tears away and focused on his words. They both knew it was at least a two-week journey to the Refuge in the Eastern Mountains.

  She looked over at the children playing happily in the camp and closed her eyes. She just hoped they could make it.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The tingling began in her fingertips. Thia took a deep breath and slowly let it out, holding the vibrating energy at bay. The tingling grew more insistent and Thia felt the threat of a seizure creeping up her arms. She focused more keenly on her breathing, reminding herself that she was in control. Despite her eyes being closed, colors collided beneath her eyelids and then she was pulled from her meditation into a vision.

  Teague beaten and bruised hanging in chains from a damp, stone wall. Teague’s fingers closing around her neck and choking the very life from her. Teague’s silver eyes turning cold and hard as hatred filled them.

  Abruptly Thia jerked herself from the vision. She opened her eyes to find herself lying on the floor, her breath coming in gasps as the visions slowly faded from her mind. After a moment she sat up and brushed her cheeks to find them wet with tears. She didn’t want to think about what the visions might mean.

  Thia forced herself to her feet. Dizziness and fatigue swept over her but she crossed the small room to stand at the window. Just outside was one of the busiest streets of Sailsburg. Her head throbbed as she absently pressed her fingers to her temples and thought about the previous night’s dreamwalk. She couldn’t shake the unease that was filling her. First the dreamwalk and then the vision.

  There was something about Teague that wasn’t right. Thia tried to remember precisely what had been different about the dreamwalk but as she pushed herself to call forth the memory the pain in her head intensified for a few moments. She gasped as she let the mental probing slip away.

  It had been months since she’d seen Teague in person and she was becoming increasingly concerned by what he was telling her in their dreamwalks.

  Teague had gone with Kiara and Caedmon to the Eastern Mountains. The urgency to get him there and out of grasp of the Draíodóir had been strong. The Draíodóir were a mysterious sect of Druids who were greatly feared in the Five Corners. Little was known about them because they didn’t mingle with outsiders and almost no one left their numbers. They were desperate to keep Teague in their grasp. Bellasiel, the Elder healer, had promised that there was someone at the safe haven in the Eastern Mountains who could help Teague. A former Draíodóir apprentice who could help to break the ties the sect had on Teague’s mind. And at first it had seemed as if the man had actually been helpful. But now Thia was starting to wonder.

  But, to be honest, she really couldn’t judge just how well Teague was doing when she was so far away from him. She had only their dreamwalks through which to gauge his mood and dream emotions were sketchy at the best of times. What she really needed was to go to the Eastern Mountains herself and see Teague in person. She was certain she could help him. And the vision she’d just experienced only intensified that feeling.

  Thia absently heard the door behind her open. She turned as her sister, Mina, came in. Mina w
as looking excited and happy, her green eyes dancing with light. But her expression sobered when she saw Thia.

  “You’re not going to hide in the room again all day, are you?” she asked, disappointment and worry tingeing her words. Thia knew that Mina was loving every minute of their travels. She saw it all as a great adventure – one she’d been waiting her entire life for. Mina certainly showed no sign of wanting to turn toward the East.

  Thia turned back to the window and looked out at the crowded streets of Sailsburg in front of her. It was the most Southern port in the Five Corners and she didn’t like it. Besides the crowds of strangely dressed people, she didn’t enjoy the hot salty ocean scented air. It made her long for the cool forests of home.

  But Mina appeared to thrive on it.

  “Please, Thia, come out and explore with me.”

  Thia turned to her sister. “Mina, when are we going to move to the East?” she asked seriously.

  Mina paused. “I don’t know,” she admitted, looking sheepish. “Meldiron is determined to find Arion. He feels we are close to finding him here. He has had several promising leads.”

  Thia shook her head impatiently. “He had those leads weeks ago and so far nothing has panned out from them.” Her thoughts returned to Teague. “I wish we’d start on the journey to the mountains.”

  Mina’s smile faded. “Why? Has something happened?”

  Thia sighed and closed her eyes. “Nothing concrete but, Mina, I can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong with Teague. And you know what it would mean if the Draíodóir were able to reinforce their connection with him.”

  Mina nodded, a worried expression creasing her pretty face. “The Refuge would be in danger.”

  Thia nodded miserably. She didn’t want to share her vision with her sister. Sometimes what she saw actually came to be and many times it just didn’t make any sense. She was hoping that the disturbing images of Teague were her mind’s way of urging her to turn East. She decided to focus on what she’d discovered in the dreamwalks.