On side of Papa’s mouth quirked up. “I knew you had someone to carry messages for you. I didn’t know who.” He rang the bell and sent for Rog.
~
With Papa hurrying them along, they were well on their way an hour before dawn. As the sun came up, Ailsa breathed out a sigh of relief, sure that they’d gotten clean away and would be at Papa’s estates before anyone knew they’d left the capitol.
Then she noticed that Captain Damek kept looking over to the low rise on their left. She followed his gaze. A single rider watched them from the top of the hill. Odd. Anyone up and about at this ungodly time of day ought to be too busy about their own business to stop and watch them pass. She drew in her breath sharply. Unless watching them was his business. Watching and reporting back to . . . who? Baron Mikel? King Ewart himself? And for what purpose?
She pushed Pearl to a place a little closer to the dozen guards Arrigo had assigned them. Without questioning her, Jathan maintained his place at her side. At Captain Damek’s gesture, the guards closed in, keeping the group together.
“What’s up?” Jathan asked, noticing the change.
“Someone’s watching us,” Ailsa replied in a low voice. Though, really, there was no way the lone rider, whoever he was, could possibly hear her.
“So?”
“So, at this hour, normal people are either still eating their breakfast or hurrying to finish up whatever chore is keeping them from it.”
Jathan turned to look up the hill. “Ah. Want to place a bet on whether he belongs to the king or that slithery baron who visited us yesterday?”
Ailsa shook her head. “No. Could be either. Or somebody else altogether. The only bet I’ll place is that it’s not intended as a friendly gesture.”
“No takers on that one.” Jathan’s smile glinted mischievously. “Unless you want to wager a kiss, that is.”
Ailsa smiled and shook her head. “How would we know who won?”
“Why would it matter?”
“Keep up, you two,” Papa said. “We’ll be safe when we get to the estates, but we’re exposed here.”
Ailsa would have been more reassured if she hadn’t overheard Captain Damek add to himself, “Until we want to leave again, anyway.”
~
Ailsa’s fingers fairly itched to get to work as Aunt Izbel led them out to look over the sites she’d selected for their work.
The first site was a woodlot Ailsa remembered fondly as one of her favorite childhood playgrounds. Ailsa let her magic reach out to the young trees. They were growing well, healthy but for a minor infestation of leaf-curlers, which she and Jathan could address in the same way they had the rose garden aphids. It’d be the work of a couple of hours. “What little this needs wouldn’t be much of showcase.”
“Ah,” Aunt Izbel said. “There’s water underground just here. Not very far underground, either. If you could funnel your green magic to me, I could bring it up in a spring. The water would drain off over that way,” she gestured downhill, “in a little stream. Probably form a small pond in that hollow. Then it’d be up to you two to bring out appropriate vegetation.”
Ailsa could see it. A singing little creek, bordered by berry bushes. She knew just where they could get the cuttings. And a few lilies for the pond, too. She even imagined a family of ducks paddling around the pond. It would be both beautiful and productive.
“It’s near the road, too,” Aunt Izbel went on. “So it’ll be easy for the other barons to see as they ride past.”
Ailsa grinned. “I like it.”
Papa’s brow furrowed. “Do you think it’ll be enough of a testimonial to your green magic?”
“When we’re done. What we can do along the banks of the stream and around the pond, yes,” Jathan said. “Definitely.”
“Plus, the water will impress the barons almost as much as the plants,” Ailsa added.
Jathan swung out of the saddle of his horse. “Let’s get started.”
For the first part of the task, bringing the water out of the ground, they stood close together. Necessarily, Aunt Izbel must lead this circle because she was the only water mage. But Aunt Izbel was also the weakest mage of the three of them. Ailsa held back and only released a portion of her magic to her aunt. She could feel the same restraint from Jathan.
It was actually pretty boring, since she couldn’t follow what Aunt Izbel was doing with the magic they gave her. Well, then, this part obviously required no concentration on their part, other than to feed a bit of magic to Aunt Izbel. “I think we could do more than one thing here. Jathan and I could also address the infestation of leaf-curlers at the same time. That way, we’d be less likely to feed Aunt Izbel more magic than she can handle.”
“Great idea!” Jathan said. “You stay here, where you can make sure we don’t overload Princess Izbel. I’ll go around to the other side.”
Ailsa smiled. Obviously, Jathan had been at least as bored as she was. “All right.”
Aunt Izbel nodded, keeping her concentration on the water she was slowly drawing to the surface.
Ailsa waited until she was reasonably sure Jathan had reached a position opposite her and then she let her magic rise. She continued to send a trickle to Aunt Izbel, but most of her magic reached across the grove, boosting the natural defenses of the young trees. It was easier, this way, to keep from overloading the water mage. Jathan’s magic joined hers like a caress. Ailsa drew a deep breath and reveled in the exultation of their combined magic. She floated in a little bubble of bliss, working with Jathan. This is what she wanted to do for the rest of her life.
With no warning, Jathan’s magic just . . . stopped flowing to her. What—?
~
Jathan almost lost himself to the euphoria of working green magic with Ailsa again. It had been too long since they’d done sustained work together like this. With Ailsa feeding a portion of their magic through to Princess Izbel, for him it was almost like working with her alone, like they’d done over the burned area. Intoxicating. The tingling touch of her magic was almost erotic.
He couldn’t help grinning. They’d be working like this for the rest of their lives—if you called this delight work. Even Far Terra wasn’t nearly as bad as he’d expected. Once you got here, anyway. Well, the crossing would only be a couple of times a year. If that was the worst, their lives would truly be blessed.
He was jerked back to reality by a pair of hands gripping him from behind, forcing his arms tight to his sides. Being one of four brothers, Jathan reacted instinctively. His magic recoiled back to him. He lowered his head and drove his hip backward at the same time he twisted his upper body hard to the side. The grip loosened.
Jathan tucked into the twist, breaking free. He rolled as the movement took him to the ground and came up facing his opponent. Opponents. There were three of them. And a nasty looking lot they were, too. This wasn’t going to be like wrestling with Arrigo or Rish. On the other hand, he didn’t have to fight them alone—or fight fair, for that matter.
Jathan retreated into the copse and brought his magic back up around him. At the same time, he filled his lungs to shout. Captain Damek and his troops were just on the other side of the trees. His shout was lost in an uproar from the far side of the woodlot. Jathan’s lips thinned and his heart sped up. Either Captain Damek and his troops were already aware of the attack or . . . or there were others of these thugs going after Ailsa. That thought was like fire in Jathan’s chest. He needed to deal with these ruffians quickly and get across to protect Ailsa.
He glanced around. These young trees fed his magic, but they didn’t offer a lot for him to work with. The branches were too stiff to move easily and not really heavy enough to do much harm. Then his gaze lit on a bright splash of color just beyond the trees. Oh, yes. He recalled those vines along the fence. What had Ailsa called them? Bougainvillea or something like that. They had long, wicked thorns and nicely long and flexible canes. Jathan grinned evilly. Oh, yeah. He could do something with those a
ll right.
Better yet, his would-be kidnappers—he had no doubt that their goal was to grab both Ailsa and himself—had their backs turned to the fence and the bougainvillea vines. Jathan focused his magic and made those vines whip forward, extend and imprison the louts. Ha! He didn’t even have to make the vines bind them tightly. Those thorns were incentive enough for those thugs not to struggle too hard.
Jathan took off running across the copse to Ailsa. He kept the fence line in sight, just in case he needed to use more of those vines. He skidded to a halt when he saw what was happening on this side of the trees. It took a moment to make some sense of the chaos.
Ex-king Sandor, Captain Damek and his guards were battling a half-dozen more intruders. Princess Izbel hung limply in the arms of another thug who was trying to drag her through the melee to the nearby gate. Heat waves rippled through the air surrounding Lady Sosana as she pushed directed gusts of superheated air at the men nearest Ailsa. Jathan was sure she’d be a lot more effective if she didn’t have to worry about burning her daughter.
Jathan’s eyes fixed on Ailsa. A trickle of blood on her forehead and a slightly unfocused gaze told him she’d been struck, too. He could feel the tingle of her magic and see the closest trees whipping in response. That wasn’t accomplishing anything but to add to the confusion. Her back was to the fence or maybe she’d have thought of the better alternative, too. Or maybe that blow to the head had kept her from thinking clearly.
Jathan’s vision narrowed to Ailsa and the ruffian who held her. His pulse pounded in his ears and an animal growl rose in his throat. His magic reached out to bougainvillea vines. He whipped a long cane, equipped with thorns as long as his thumb, across the face of the man who detained Ailsa. The man jerked back, pulling his hands up to his bloody face. Ailsa crumpled to her knees.
Jathan couldn’t hear anything over the roaring in his ears. He pulled the bougainvillea canes longer to twist them around the thug who’d hurt his Ailsa. The canes weren’t quite flexible enough to wrap around him and drive the thorns into him. A high whistle cut through the sound of his own blood rushing in his ears. Abruptly, the intruders broke off and ran. Captain Damek’s men gave chase.
Jathan ignored them. The only important thing was Ailsa. He ran to her side, sliding to his knees and cradling her against him. “Ailsa! Are you all right?”
She clutched him. “I . . . I think so. When that man hit me, everything went kind of fuzzy, but it’s becoming clearer now. Only . . . my head hurts. It feels like it’s going to split open, actually.”
Jathan pulled her closer. He knew that one. He’d had a similar experience after a very bad fall from his horse when he was about twelve. The time Arrigo had thought it would be funny to put a burr under the horse’s saddle. Of course, he’d had his healer-mage mother to take care of him, then. No such luck now. He stood and swept Ailsa up into his arms. “Let’s get you inside where you can lie down for a while.” His memory of that earlier accident included the feeling that light had somehow become sharp and was stabbing his eyes. “Someplace dark.”
~
Jathan sat by Ailsa talking to her in as calm a voice as he could manage. He dimly remembered that Mother hadn’t let him sleep for what seemed like hours after that fall. He wasn’t sure why, but he wasn’t prepared to take any chances with Ailsa, either. He drew a deep breath, temporarily unable to think of anything to say. “Is there anything you want?”
Ailsa smiled crookedly. “I think I could drink a cup of tea.”
Jathan smiled back. “I’ll be right back. Now . . . don’t fall asleep while I’m gone. Hear?” He dropped a kiss on her forehead and stepped out into the corridor.
The sprawling estate house was bustling with activity. Captain Damek’s men had returned empty-handed, it seemed. They were taking up positions to guard the entrances. Were they under siege here? Or was Damek just taking no chances. Well, the thick mud-brick walls did seem somewhat . . . fort-like.
Ex-king Sandor beckoned Jathan into his study. “How’s Ailsa?”
“Her head hurts. I promised to bring her a cup of tea. When I hit my head once, years ago, Mother didn’t let me sleep for a while, so I’m trying to keep her awake.” Belatedly, Jathan thought to ask, “How’s Princess Izbel?”
“About the same. Sosana’s sitting with her.”
Captain Damek saluted. “My apologies, Prince Jathan. I never anticipated that they’d attempt to kidnap you, too. Or that they’d make such a brazen attack on Princess Ailsa.”
Jathan shrugged. “Neither did I.”
“We’re going to have to make new plans.” Ex-king Sandor blew out his breath. “Maybe we should all get some rest, first, so we can think clearly.”
Jathan looked around at all the alert, armed men. “Do you think we’re in that much danger here, Captain?”
“I think it would be a very bad idea to underestimate the determination and desperation of some of the barons.” Captain Damek winced. “Again. I’ve already sent two of my men back to the capitol to apprise Princes Rishiart and Arrigo of the events of this afternoon. And to ask for reinforcements.”
Chapter 29: Retreat
Ailsa’s head only ached a little by the time they met in Papa’s office the next morning, doors shut for privacy. Ailsa sat next to Jathan on one sofa, across from Mama and Papa on the opposite sofa. Aunt Izbel sat in the large armchair, eyes half closed against the morning light streaming in from the windows. Captain Damek paced across the window side of the room like a sentry.
Rishiart perched on Papa’s desk chair, turned backwards so that his arms folded across the backrest. He’d arrived with more imperial cavalry sometime after midnight. “I say the best course is to send you two right back to Terranion now. Once you’re safe over the border, Arrigo, Captain Damek, and I can make a better assessment of the situation. Father can send more troops with you, if necessary, when you return next year.”
“So soon?” Ailsa turned to Jathan, worried about him. “We haven’t even begun to complete the plan. We’re supposed to leave something behind that you and Papa can use to persuade the barons to accept our terms before we come back next winter.”
Rishiart’s lips thinned. “I beg to differ. Clearly, you’ve made a greater impression on at least some of the barons than we bargained for.”
Papa raised a hand palm out. “I don’t think we should let ourselves be stampeded into a too-hasty retreat. For all we know, whoever set up that attack yesterday is only waiting for us to make a rash move. We could be sending them into a trap.” He turned his hand palm up and closed his fist. “On the other hand, I think a strategic retreat is probably our best move, now. When we’re ready. Besides, I’d prefer to give Ailsa, particularly, another day or two to recover before sending her across the desert.”
Rishiart chewed his lip. “You could be right. A few days might serve to disrupt whatever follow-up plan our enemies may have.” He tilted his head to the side. “If we could come up with a way to get them away in secret, that would be best.”
“I’ll send half my cavalry guards with them, just in case,” Captain Damek said.
Rishiart shook his head. “Father sent the guards to augment your forces here in case of trouble. Besides, more riders means slower travel and destroys any hope of secrecy.” He nodded decisively. “I’ll go with them and get them to the border. I’d like to give my report on this directly to Father before I come back, anyway.”
Captain Damek folded his arms across his chest and met Rishiart’s eyes. “All right. I’ll send only a handful of guards. But I’m not allowing any one of you—let alone all three of you—to cross the desert unguarded. It’d be more than my life is worth if anything happened to you.”
Mama fingered her honey-blonde hair and looked across at Ailsa. “What about a diversion?”
Papa turned to her. “What did you have in mind?”
“Properly dressed, I could pass for Ailsa from a distance. Captain Damek is enough like Jathan—again, from a
distance. Say we rode out openly, back to the capitol with most of the cavalry. Made a show of it, in fact.” She nodded toward Ailsa and Jathan. “At the same time, they can take the back way out onto the Imperial Highway. Sneak past the enemy. Ailsa knows the way, but not very many outside of our family and retainers do. It’s not on any map I know of.”
Rishiart grinned. “That could work. We’ll be across the border before they even know we’ve gone.”
“Good plan,” Captain Damek said. “I’m still sending cavalry guards with you, though.”
Ailsa gripped Jathan’s hand. “We won’t be able to take a coach on that route. The crossing will be more difficult if we have to ride. We may not be able to make as much speed as you think.”
Captain Damek shook his head firmly. “No. A coach would slow you down too much. And you’d be sitting ducks if Lady Sosana’s ploy doesn’t work. A horse can run across country. A coach can’t.”
Jathan shrugged and stroked his vine, sending another trickle of magic into it. “I won’t claim I’m looking forward to the crossing, but I’ll manage.” He looked up at his stepbrother. “Rish can tie me to the saddle, if necessary.”
Papa’s eyes narrowed. “Baron Mikel’s lands adjoin the Imperial Highway between here and the Ring Mountains. You’ll have to take extreme care on that part of the road.”
Rishiart grimaced. “Mikel’s one of the worst. I don’t trust him out of my sight.”
Jathan narrowed his eyes as he stroked his potted vine. “I don’t like sneaking out. Makes it look like we’re running away. It could be taken as a sign of weakness. That’s not the impression we want to leave them with, is it? Kind of undermines everything we’ve just done.”
Rishiart shook his head. “Can’t be helped.”
Ailsa lifted her chin. “Well, if we’re going to be here for a few more days, we can at least get something done while we wait.”
Daughter of the Disgraced King Page 28
