Finding Refuge: The Marked Ones

by Cathi Shaw

  Finally Thia shook her head. “I haven’t sensed his leaving,” she admitted quietly. “But I can’t be certain that he is still alive either.”

  Xyrisse inclined her head. “I think you must believe that he still lives. And you will find him again.” She slowly sat up. “It seems that we must move on soon. You’ve already sacrificed too much to spare my life. We should leave tomorrow.”

  Thia’s heart leapt but she looked at Xyrisse’s wounds. She was doubtful that the girl was well enough to travel.

  “I will be fine,” Xyrisse insisted as if reading her mind. “We will go.” And her hissing tone was firm. Thia could tell that the Hunter girl was accustomed to having people do as she said. It appeared she would not entertain any arguments.

  An idyll thought flitted through Thia’s mind. She had a sudden suspicion that Xyrisse was accustomed to holding a position of power. Shaking her head slightly, Thia discounted it as ridiculous. After all, the Nasseet would hardly let one of their most powerful leaders leave the country simply because she refused to work as a Hunter. The idea was absurd and Thia put it down to the stress of the last few weeks causing her to have fantastic thoughts. Pushing her silly speculations aside, Thia went in search of Meldiron.

  #

  They were amazingly efficient in packing up camp the next morning. Thia was surprised when Meldiron agreed to leave the camp. He’d been extremely concerned for Xyrisse’s wellbeing and Thia had often caught the two of them having quiet talks late into the night. But Meldiron didn’t even blink when Xyrisse announced that it was time for them to resume their journey.

  They had decided that Xyrisse would ride with Meldiron on his horse since Thia was a weak rider at the best of times and not confident carrying a passenger on her mount. Despite her distaste for riding, Thia admitted that she was relieved to finally be on the road moving toward Teague.

  It was on their third day eastward that they stumbled upon the remains of Arion and Mina’s camp. It was Xyrisse who sense that something was not quite right. In fact, Thia was certain they would have ridden right past the camp if Xyrisse had not been with them.

  She hissed suddenly from her place in front of Meldiron on his mount. “Stop the horses,” she commanded in that regal tone again and immediately teleported off the mount. Meldiron’s horse reared up in fear but the crown prince kept a tight rein on him and held the animal under control. Thia looked at Meldiron in confusion. Where had Xyrisse disappeared to? But they had no time to discuss the situation as the next moment Xyrisse was calling to them from the forest at the side of the road. Meldiron exchanged another look with Thia and then they led their horses into a clearing. Scattered throughout the clearing were three bodies. All of them were Hunters.

  Thia looked at Meldiron in alarm. He strode over to the first body and crouched down to examine it. “This is Arion’s work,” he said as he rose, his tone confident.

  Xyrisse spoke. “They were obviously on your sister’s trail,” she shook her head. “Three in one place. I’m sorry to say it but I fear that it is highly unlikely your friends will be successful in their journey to the Eastern mountains with this many Hunters after them.”

  Meldiron shook his head. “I don’t think Arion would be that foolish. He knew what he was up against.” He looked around the clearly. “He wouldn’t have put Minathrial at risk if he could avoid it.”

  “He was injured in this fight,” Xyrisse said suddenly.

  Meldiron looked concerned. “Are you certain?” he asked.

  She nodded grimly as she held up the dagger that was on the ground and sniffed it. “This is a Hunter weapon. It has Elder blood on it.”

  Thia looked closely at the curved blade and saw the dried blood.

  “How do we know it’s not Mina’s blood?” Thia asked in fear. “She is Elder as well.”

  But Xyrisse dismissed her fear immediately. “The blood is from a male,” she said with certainty.

  Thia didn’t want to ask how the Hunter girl knew that.

  “So Arion is injured and we know Hunters are on their trail,” Thia said in despair, fear for Mina causing her chest to ache. Her sister had been through so much in the last year. Her recovery from the Hunter attack had been long and arduous but Mina had emerged from that ordeal just as bubbly and enthusiastic as ever. But she had never spoken of the attack, not even to her sisters. The trauma of that event still dwelled in Mina, Thia was certain of it.

  Thia looked around the clearing and wondered how her sister would have reacted to this attack. Even if Mina was somehow well physically there was no saying what her mental state might be. “What chance do they have of escape?”

  Suddenly Meldiron smiled.

  “What?” she asked wondering what he possibly could have to look happy about.

  “Arion wouldn’t continue East. He would know the odds would be stacked against them making it to the Refuge before the Hunters caught up to them.”

  “Then where could they have gone?” Thia asked.

  Meldiron turned to the Hunter girl. “Xyrisse, you told us about the trouble Hunters have in big cities.”

  She nodded. “Yes, they can’t pinpoint the energy from a Marked One, or even from one like Mina who has been attacked,” she acknowledged quietly.

  Meldiron grinned. “Then that’s where Arion will have taken Minathrial. To the nearest city.” He paused and beamed at Thia.

  She looked at him uncomprehendingly.

  “Thia, they are in Bermgarten. I’m certain of it!”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  When Mina and Arion arrived in the large Eastern city of Bermgarten two days later, he led them deep into the heart of the city. He wasn’t taking any chances on finding lodgings on the outskirts. Clearly he felt that the more hustle and bustle the safer they would be from the Hunters.

  When he finally located the busy inn at the heart of the city, which was run by Helpers, Arion was able to secure them side-by-side rooms on the third floor. Even though he told Mina that they would be safe from the Hunters in Bermgarten, it quickly became apparent that he didn’t want Mina exploring the city on her own. She wrinkled her nose in frustration; she was keen to see this strange new place. Finally, after a few days of being confined to the inn, Mina told him he could either accompany her or back off. To her dismay, he chose to go with her, which meant that she had to explore on his schedule. But there was some trade off. He had to go to the places she wanted to see! And in Bermgarten that was art.

  Mina delighted in Bermgarten as much as she had in Sailsburg. She felt that, despite the attempts on her life during the journey, she was finally fulfilling her dream of seeing the world. And since they’d arrived in Bermgarten, she’d seen almost every sight that was available.

  They’d been in the city five days when Mina found herself once again in the hallway outside Arion’s room waiting. It seemed that all she ever did was wait for the Elder. Annoyance prickled at her senses. He’d promised, albeit reluctantly, that they could go to the Bermgarten Art Exhibit, which she’d been told about by an artist she’d met at the street market the day before, much to Arion’s disapproval. He didn’t like her speaking to anyone in the city. By his surly mood the previous evening, Mina could tell that he didn’t truly want to attend. She didn’t see why she couldn’t just go to the museum on her own. The artist she’d befriended had told her that it was one of the most stunning art galleries in all of the Five Corners and boasted a collection that was both unique and eclectic. The only complication was that it opened at 9 in the morning and only let in forty patrons a day. The artist had told her that most days there was a line up and many people were turned away.

  Mina had been determined to be first in line and she’d told Arion that they would have to leave early. Despite his early rising on the trip to Bermgarten, since being in the city, Mina had noticed that the dark-haired Elder preferred to sleep for most of the morning. When she told him how early they would have to leave, he hadn’t looked excited by the idea but he had a
greed to go. And now she’d been waiting for him in her room for the last hour and he’d yet to make an appearance. Looking at the level of the sun out the window, Mina could tell that her chances of being admitted to the gallery were diminishing with every second. Finally she’d decided to wait no longer and stomped into the hallway.

  She paused outside Arion’s door and listened. A twinge of guilt pricked at her. Was it really fair to wake him up so early? Absolutely, she told herself firmly. After all he had been the one to insist that she not explore the city without him. If he was going to be so stubborn then he had to make some sacrifices on his sleep. Besides he could have gone to bed early. She had told him they were leaving early!

  “Arion! Are you ready yet?” Mina called through the door after she finished pounding on it. She listened for a few minutes and pounded on the door again. Still no answer.

  Arion seemed determined to sleep in and make her miss the one exhibit she had been dying to see. Shaking her head in frustration, Mina made a quick decision. She could either leave on her own or wait for him and surely miss her chance. It was no contest.

  Mina raced down the hallway excitement pounding in her chest. She was actually going to explore the city on her own! Grinning she stepped into the city street, a spring in her step. The sun was out and there were people everywhere on the street. She loved the hustle and bustle of the street vendors and women running through the streets on their errands.

  And the architecture in this city was so unique. Houses were built incredibly high. Mina looked up at them as she wandered below, fascinated by their height.

  Mina was so excited to be exploring on her own that she didn’t really notice where she was going. That was until she realized that she had no idea which direction the art gallery was located in. She looked up and saw that she’d wandered into an unfamiliar part of the city. Looking back over her shoulder, she felt a beat of alarm when she realized that she couldn’t see any familiar landmarks behind her either. Instead the street was lined with warehouses and boarded up shops. All at once, Mina noticed the other people on the street. Rough around the edges, men with hard eyes and gruff words. There were children begging on the corners and she saw more than one pitiful creature collapsed in a doorway, sleeping or otherwise unconscious.

  Cursing her impatience and lack of attention, Mina stopped suddenly in the street trying to find her bearings. A delivery boy crashed roughly into her back. “Watch it, Miss. Whatcha doin’?”

  “Sorry,” Mina murmured but the boy was gone. She continued her frontward motion and frowned. How could she have so quickly wandered off course? Why hadn’t she paid better attention to the location of the inn when she went out with Arion? She’d spent most of her time in the city so far too excited to pay any attention to her surroundings. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

  Mina held up her head and walked with purpose even though her heart was beginning to pound. She’d carelessly wandered into a rough part of the city and she had no idea where she was going. She thought she was a world traveler but since leaving the Inn back home, she’d not once ventured out on her own to explore. She’d always had Meldiron or Thia or Arion with her. And now, the one time she did take off by herself, she got lost and could potentially be in a dangerous position.

  Almost as if her frantic thoughts had conjured them up, out of the corner of her eye Mina saw a group of five or six rough-looking young men pointing in her direction. Pretending not to notice them, she picked up her pace.

  Her heart sank as she glimpsed the ruffians falling into step ten paces behind her. Mina turned at the next road and they followed. She quickened her pace. As long as she looked like she was expected somewhere, surely she would be safe, she reasoned. After all this was broad daylight. Surely, they wouldn’t dare to approach her in the middle of the morning. But, looking ahead, she was dismayed to see that the road she’d stepped onto looked even more deserted than the others.

  Knowing it was the wrong thing to do but unable to stop herself she broke into a run. She heard a yell from the pack following her and she knew she’d made another fatal mistake. Choking back a sob, Mina desperately turned down the next opening in the street to find herself in a deserted alley and it ended in a sturdy brick wall. There was no exit.

  Trembling she turned around to face her pursuers. They were exchanging crude remarks and grins.

  Mina took a deep breath and decided to try to reason with them. After all she had nothing they could possibly want.

  “Ooops, I must have taken a wrong turn,” she said less confidently than she’d hoped, her voice coming out high and squeaky. “Excuse me, gentlemen.” She took a step in their direction hoping against hope they would step aside and make way for her.

  They looked at her as if she’d lost her mind.

  “Not so fast, chickie, pretty little thing like you,” said the tall, broad one who seemed to be their leader. His long hair hung in his face in greasy strings and Mina felt a shiver of repulsion streak through her. She took one more tentative step hoping to duck past them and then the big one grabbed her arms.

  “We’ll have some fun with this one, eh boys?” He pulled her flush against his body, his foul breathe making her choke.

  “Let me go!” she sobbed, fear squeezing her chest.

  “I don’t think so,” he said grabbing her face with a callused hand. “You’re a fine beauty,” he breathed his hot eyes lighting up in a way that made Mina’s stomach roll. She wondered vaguely if he would let her go if she threw up on him?

  “I’ll have the first turn with her, lads, then you can each have a turn.” He groped the neckline of her dress and terror streaked through her. Mina didn’t want to imagine what he planned to do to her. Spittle dripped from his mouth as his eyes dropped to her cleavage.

  Mina screamed at the top of her lungs and the ruffian swore foully before he cuffed her on the side of the head making her ears ring.

  “Stop that,” he growled.

  Before he could say anymore, he was flying against the side of the alley. His head hit the wall so hard it gave a resounding crack and he crumbled to the ground. The others surged forward and then Mina saw Arion, his dagger flashing dangerously in the dim light. Relief coursed through her followed by panic as she realized he was outnumbered and his shoulder was not yet healed. But Arion moved like lightening. This encounter was even more lethal than his face off with the Hunters in the clearing. Three more of the gang fell and the rest scattered running for their lives. Mina vaguely noted that it was probably the wisest choice on their part. Arion certainly looked capable of murder.

  Mina was rooted to the ground trembling as she looked over at the body of her attacker. He was obviously dead, a pool of dark blood under his head. She flinched when Arion touched her shoulder.

  “Princess. Look at me.” Mina dragged her eyes away from the crumbled figure and looked unseeingly in Arion’s direction. Small sobs were escaping her lips. Arion reached out and pulled her neckline into place, averting his eyes as he did so. Then Mina’s legs gave out as the full horror of what had almost happened occurred to her.

  Arion swept her up into his arms. Whispering reassurances in the Elder language until they washed over her in a steady tide, he carried her through the streets back to their lodgings.

  #

  When they returned to the inn, Arion tucked her into her bed and ordered some tea delivered to her room. Despite the warm blankets, Mina couldn’t stop shivering. Arion sat on the edge of her bed and forced her to sip the hot beverage, which he’d prepared with generous amounts of honey and milk.

  When she calmed down at last and reluctantly forced herself to meet his eyes, she was gratified to see no judgment or censor in the pale green depths. Instead his eyes were filled with concern and something deeper that she couldn’t identify.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered and looked down at her hands, resting on the blanket.

  Arion didn’t answer for a moment. At last he said, “Why, Princess?” When she look
ed up at him he went on. “Why would you do something so foolish?”

  She swallowed and felt her cheeks heat as she remembered how determined she’d been to find her own way through the city. It seemed silly now.

  “I wasn’t thinking. You weren’t answering your door and I wanted to go to the art exhibit.” Mina forced herself not to cringe as she heard how childish her words sounded.

  Arion raised his brows. “You weren’t anywhere near that part of the city.”

  She nodded dropping her gaze again. “I don’t know my way around very well,” she admitted, shamefully. Then added defensively. “You haven’t exactly encouraged me to navigate on my own through Bermgarten.”

  “Do you realize how much danger you were in?” he asked gravely, his tone neutral.

  Mina remembered the foul stench of her attacker’s breath, his rough fingers groping into her dress. A sob escaped her lips again and she nodded as hot tears spilled onto her cheeks.

  Biting out a curse in Elder language, Arion suddenly pulled her into his arms and she went willingly. His strong hands drew comforting circles on her back as he murmured Elder words of reassurance in her ear. Mina was vaguely aware that she could easily understand what he was saying.

  Eventually her sobs abated and she became aware of Arion’s heart beating steadily beneath her ear. She should pull away but she didn’t want to. It felt … nice.

  He continued to hold her. “Do you know how important you are?” he asked after a few more minutes.

  Mina looked up at him. He kept insisting how vital she was but Mina didn’t really understand because he never explained it to her.

  “To the Elder people?” she asked softly.

  Arion looked down at her, his face unreadable. “To the Elder people, yes.” His gaze dropped to her lips and he looked like he would say more but then suddenly he pulled away and stood.

  Mina watched at him in confusion, trying not to feel hurt at his abrupt departure. Arion was a complex character.