Secrets & Swords

by R A Lewis

  “It can be,” he answered, a smile directed towards her enthusiasm.

  At that moment, a fight broke out across the tavern. Two men, who had been dicing in a corner, had accused one another of cheating, and in their drunken state stood up to throw punches. The gathered people cheered as Hob came flying out of the kitchen, yelling and trying to regain control as the crowd escalated around the two brawling men. Liam stood up quickly and followed Hob into the crowd. Roguelyn stood on her tiptoes, watching the men’s passage through the crowd. Hob grabbed one man by the shoulders and bodily hauled him off the other man. Liam grabbed the other man under the arms and began dragging him towards the front door. Liam kicked open the door, his muscular shoulders straining as he unceremoniously threw the drunken man out the door. Hob’s man followed a moment later.

  “Stay out of my bar if you’re going to fight! I won’t have that kind of behavior in my tavern!” Hob yelled, slamming the door shut, and turning back to the crowd. “You.” He pointed to the women with the leaflets. “Go spew your nonsense somewhere else.” The women huffed and angrily left the tavern as the crowd cheered once again. When Hob looked at them again, they quieted. “Well? What are you all staring at? Go back to your reveling!” Hob stomped off across the room, Liam following in his wake, the tavern-goers giving him a wide berth. Roguelyn gave Liam a small smile as he picked up his ale and chugged it down.

  “Want another?” she asked, reaching for his empty glass.

  “No, I think that’s enough excitement for me for one night.” He turned to leave. “Good night, Rawlin. I hope to talk with you further tomorrow.” He strode off across the room and up the stairs at the other end of the bar. Roguelyn was left standing there, clutching an empty tankard, and feeling slightly dazed by the night’s activities.

  Chapter 9

  The next week was spent learning her way around the city. Roguelyn was overwhelmed, but with Henndo and Liam’s help, she began to get used to the twisting streets, the large number of people, the smells, and the guards. Liam was right, most of the young men her age or older were not in the city, or if they were, they were dressed as part of the army, having been conscripted into service. Liam assured her the current draft was over, and that she was safe for now, but he warned she may get snatched up if they started another draft. Roguelyn went around with what she felt like was a target on her back.

  Hob had her do the weekly shopping in the market, which Roguelyn took to with a will. It gave her the chance to get to know the town, without anyone breathing down her neck or asking her questions. She could shop and observe the crowds and the roving palace guards. As she stood by a farmer’s stall, inspecting his radishes and onions, she felt eyes on her. She casually straightened up, looking around the crowd as if searching for other farmers to compare produce. Her eyes caught on a dark figure, watching her from across the square.

  He was devastatingly handsome, his features sharp, his dark eyes sharper as they took her in. She wasn’t entirely sure of the best course of action. Was he a bounty hunter? A spy? A criminal? Why was this man so interested in her? Should she run? Approach him? Stay put? She purchased a few onions from the farmer and moved on the next stall, carrying her ever growing sack of food stuffs slung over a shoulder. Henndo had suggested she always carry her knife with her but to leave the sword at the inn, and suddenly Roguelyn was missing the sword’s reassuring weight as the dark man moved with her through the crowd.

  Roguelyn did her best to focus on her shopping. She encountered a small group of the Eternal Ministry’s women. They stopped her in her shopping and tried to recruit her.

  “Excuse me, young sir.” Roguelyn had stopped, momentarily forgetting she was still dressed as a boy. “May we speak to you for a moment about our god Fodor?” the woman was short and squat, her face lined with the beginnings of age. She eyed Roguelyn for a few moments.

  “Umm,” Roguelyn didn’t quite know how to respond.

  “Our god Fordar is the god of death. He rewards those who have fought in our war. Did you fight and are now home after being injured?”

  “No.” Roguelyn began searching for a polite way to disengage. The woman’s companions had all but surrounded her. The woman before her handed her a leaflet.

  “Please, read this. It explains our order and how our god supports and cares for his people. We offer a life of success and wealth, a life in which you are in control. A life worth living.” Roguelyn looked at her more closely. She was in earnest, thoroughly believing her own words. Roguelyn took the leaflet and smiled.

  “Thank you, ma’am. I will look it over.” She gave a small nod of her head and then pushed past the woman, tucking the leaflet into her pocket. She would look it over later. It was always better to know her enemy than to be willfully ignorant. That was something her father had taught her.

  As she left the square, making her way down a deserted side street back to Hob’s tavern, a dark shape stepped in front of her, making her jerk to a stop, almost tripping over her own feet. Her hand went to the knife at her waist as she recognized the tall man before her.

  He smirked down at her, his arms crossed as he scanned her from head to toe. Roguelyn felt uncomfortably like this man knew she wasn’t a boy.

  “Can I help you?” she ground out, her nerves on high alert. She was alone in a deserted street with a man she could tell, without a doubt, was dangerous. His smile widened.

  “What’s a pretty little lad like you doing in my town?” His voice was silken and deep and it sent a shiver up Roguelyn’s spine. She straightened in response.

  “It’s none of your business.” The man grinned.

  “Except it is most certainly my business. Everyone is my business.” He took a few steps closer until Roguelyn could smell the leather and steel scent of him. “And any woman that goes around dressed as a man is my business.” Roguelyn was so startled she looked up at him, her eyes meeting his. They were dark, yes, but a chocolatey brown so deep she felt like she could get lost in them. She swallowed. How had he figured her out so quickly?

  “I don’t know what you are talking about,” she barely managed to squeak out. The man reached out a hand and brushed her cheek gently, making her shiver again.

  “Fine. Keep your secrets. But stay away from the Eternal Ministry. They won’t do you any good.” Roguelyn nodded as she shook slightly, trying to keep herself under control, trying to keep from either screaming or running away. His good looks were deadly, despite his charming demeanor. He finally stepped away from her and she stayed where she was for a few moments, still feeling his touch on her cheek. When she felt like she had thawed, the icy cold draining away enough for her to move, she looked around, finding the street once again deserted. She shook herself and hurried back to Hob’s Tavern.

  Liam was sitting in the common room and he saw her come in, visibly shaken. He stood, putting down the book he’d been reading and walking towards her just as Henndo came down the back stairs.

  “Are you alright, Rawlin?” Liam asked. Roguelyn stopped at the bar, placing her bag of food stuffs there and turning to face Liam and Henndo.

  “No. Not really.” She tried to communicate to Henndo with her eyes, hoping he’d realize that her secret had been blown, but Henndo just watched her with concern. Liam went behind the bar and pour her a tankard of ale. Coming back around the bar he handed it to her.

  “Here. Drink this, and then tell us what’s wrong.” Roguelyn took the drink gratefully and sat at a table with Henndo and Liam. She took a few swings, stalling for time, trying to find a story that didn’t give her secret away. She cleared her throat.

  “The Eternal Ministry tried to recruit me.” She pulled the leaflet from her pocket, giving validity to the partial lie. Liam took it from her, flipping through it.

  “I told you to stay away from them,” Henndo warned again. Roguelyn nodded.

  “I didn’t go looking for them. They cornered me in the marketplace.” Liam looked up at her, his blue eyes shrewd.

/>   “You just have to say no thank you, and walk away,” Liam said, handing her back the leaflet. “No one can force you to do something you don’t want to do.” Roguelyn looked at him.

  “Actually, they can,” she said, thinking back on how Cole was trying to force her into something awful. She couldn’t have said no. She had been backed into a corner where there was only one option. She still wasn’t sure killing her abuser was the right call, but it was what she had to live with. “Sometimes you can get backed into a corner with no other options. Sometimes you just do what you can to survive.” Liam looked at her startled. Henndo eyed her.

  “Let’s get you upstairs for a lie down.” Henndo took her by the shoulders and steered her from the room. Roguelyn looked back over her shoulder at Liam, who remained seated in the common room, looking down at his own hands.

  “What was that all about?” Henndo whispered to her as they entered their room.

  “It wasn’t the ministry that got me. It was some man. He confronted me. He knew I was a woman dressed as a man.” Henndo’s eyes narrowed.

  “What did he look like?” Roguelyn described him as best she could, leaving out how he smelled, or how handsome he was. “That sounds like the new king of the thieves.”

  “King?” Henndo nodded, pinching the place between his eyes.

  “Look, Roguelyn. Don’t leave the tavern without me or Liam. You understand?” Roguelyn nodded.

  “Why?”

  “Because a man like that doesn’t have your best interest at heart. We do.” He left her sitting on her bed. Roguelyn took the leaflet out of her pocket again and read through it. The Eternal Ministry had some crackpot ideas, but much of what they spouted would make sense to a lot of people, which made them dangerous. They practically promoted slavery, of both women and children. Roguelyn sighed as she put the leaflet aside. She would have to be infinitely more careful the next time she left the tavern.

  Chapter 10

  Roguelyn’s third week in town took an interesting turn when Liam asked her to accompany him on a delivery. She agreed, nerves squirming in her belly. She’d not spent much time alone with the man, and despite her disguise, she always felt like he was about to see through it. Henndo assured her that Liam had no clue, but that didn’t stop her from making sure her breast band was wound extra tight that morning.

  They rode in a wagon down the street to an old warehouse. Liam jumped down, handing off the reins to Roguelyn as he pushed open the large doors. He motioned her inside and she lightly slapped the reins on the horse’s back, moving the cart into the gloom. Hoof beats echoed in the vast space of the warehouse, and Roguelyn couldn’t make anything out until her eyes adjusted to the change in light. Liam came up beside her and placed a hand on the cart next to her.

  “Well? What do you think?” he asked, a large grin on his handsome face. Roguelyn squinted into the gloom, and as her eyes got used to it, she was able to make out trunks and stacks and rolls of different types, dyes, and forms of wool. Some were in rolls, some were laid out in stacks of fabric, some were still in raw, fluffy form, fresh off the sheep. Some stacks were bright red, some green, others blue or yellow, a few even purple. She marveled at the variety, her eyes wide in shock.

  “It’s amazing!” she said, climbing down from the wagon, her voice rising a bit as she fingered the nearest stack of cloth, wishing she had a nice woolen dress made from the soft, green fabric.

  “It is, isn’t it,” Liam said, walking around with his hands on his waist. “My final shipment came in last night, so today we’re taking a load to the castle to sell. Then, I thought I’d show you around the castle a bit, show you the gardens, and especially the stables.” He winked at her, as he knew her love of horses. She smiled back and nodded. “We’re taking this stack here,” indicating a yellow stack of wool, “this stack,” indicating a purple stack, “and this roll here,” indicating a roll of undyed wool. Roguelyn realized the yellow stack was probably going to be made into soldier’s tunics, like the ones the men she’d killed in battle wore. She shivered at the memory. “Are you okay?” Liam asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. Its warmth burned through her, banishing the memory immediately.

  “Yea, I’m fine,” Roguelyn quickly answered. “Which ones again?”

  They loaded the wagon together and drove towards the castle, Roguelyn taking the time to watch the city go by, but also slyly watch Liam out of the corner of her eye. He hadn’t shaved in a few days, and his cheeks were covered in stubble, which suited him nicely. He had a strong jaw, and despite his rugged looks, his bright blue eyes gave him a kind expression, as if he was always smiling. Roguelyn had discovered that he was liked by pretty much every person he met, and he had certainly caught her attention. They pulled up to two huge iron gates flanked by guards in yellow uniforms. They stepped forward and Roguelyn clenched her jaw. There was no way they’d know who she was, but somehow, she felt like they would know she was the enemy, a traitor in their country, a spy.

  “Liam, how are you man?” the one on Liam’s side of the cart asked, grabbing a hold of the horse’s bridle to slow them down.

  “Good, good, Conner. Just been busy visiting family and getting the sheep sheared. But,” he slapped the mound of wool behind him in the cart, “as you can see, I’m all restocked.” Conner nodded.

  “I can see that. Are you meeting with Bartley today or Piers?” Conner asked.

  “Piers today, probably Bartley next week,” Liam pulled a sheaf of papers from his vest pocket and handed them down. Roguelyn was acutely aware of the second guard, who was standing awfully close on her side of the cart, eyeing her and Liam. She tried to school her face into innocent interest.

  “Who’s the kid, Liam?” the second guard asked, looking Roguelyn up and down.

  “Oh, this is Rawlin, and he’s here to help me unload,” Liam said jovially. “Besides, I thought I’d show him around the castle, you know, impress the lad a bit.” He winked at the second guard, and the man nodded. Conner handed back the papers to Liam.

  “Looks to be in order,” he said, waving at the second guard to help him open the gates. “Stop by for a drink after you’re done. I could use a good laugh.” Liam nodded, placing his fingers on his forehead and nodding like he was tipping an invisible hat to them then clucked to the horse. The horse rode on through the gate and Roguelyn relaxed a bit, the tensions easing out of her back.

  “What was that about,” Liam asked softly. Roguelyn shot him a suspicious look.

  “What do you mean?” she asked, trying to be nonchalant but failing.

  “You were stiff as a board, and you looked terrified to boot,” he said, but his tone was all concern.

  Roguelyn didn’t know what to say, so she let the silence stretch between them.

  “Look, I figured you were new at this game, but you’ve got to relax, make them feel at ease, draw them in.” Roguelyn frowned, unsure what he was talking about. “If they think you are their friend, they won’t suspect you.” She frowned deeper. What in the world was he talking about? Liam turned towards her as they made their way up a large lane down the center of a wide-open space, trees lining the lane and the castle proper towering above them.

  “I don’t know what you mean,” she said, looking him square in the eyes.

  “That’s the spirit!” he said, a wide grin spreading across his face. This threw Roguelyn into even more confusion, but his advice was sound, whatever the reason. The cart rumbled up to a large wooden building. The smell of chemicals wafting from the open door. As they came to a stop, a large man with a shaved head came out, pulling a piece of fabric from his face, revealing a shaved head and a clean-shaven face. He frowned when he saw Liam.

  “You’re late,” he growled, his voice sounding like chewed up rocks.

  “I’m not late, I’m here right on time, Piers,” Liam said, leaping from the cart and striding up to the huge man. Liam shook the man’s enormous hand as Roguelyn jumped cautiously from the cart. Liam led the man around the ba
ck of the cart to show him the goods. “Well? Here’s what I’ve got, and if you place a larger order with me, you’ll get your usual goods,” Liam said good-naturedly.

  “You know I don’t like your prices, Liam,” Piers grumped, but he reached in the cart and pulled out a roll of un-dyed wool to inspect. “But no one can rival you for quality.” He pushed the wool back into the cart. “Fine. I’ll pay your ridiculous price, but if you don’t bring me what I ask for next week, I swear I’ll never do deals with you again,” he threatened, staring Liam down menacingly. Liam chuckled.

  “You know I always follow through.” Piers huffed, and stalked away into the building, pulling the cloth up to cover his nose again. Roguelyn looked admiringly at Liam.

  “How’d you manage that?” she asked wonderingly. “You were so calm, and you even laughed in his face! He was terrifying!” her face was wide open in honest admiration. Liam chuckled again.

  “Oh Piers? That big oaf? He’s a soft little bunny inside. But he knows he can use his size to get what he wants, and sometimes he forgets it doesn’t work on me,” Liam said, as he began to unload his wool. “Now, grab a stack and follow me,” he led them around back, where a small door opened into a store room. The fumes were thick in here, seeping through the walls.

  “What is he doing in there?” Roguelyn asked, covering her nose and mouth with her hand.

  “Oh, he’s a tanner and a dyer. He dyes wool and leather and tans the leather for the army’s gear. That’s what the smell is.” Roguelyn coughed and nodded, heading back towards the cart for a second load.

  Once they were unloaded, Liam stretched, his arms rising towards the sky, showing off his muscles in a most pleasing way. Roguelyn caught herself staring and had to look away quickly. Piers came out of the building again and handed Liam a pouch that jingled. Liam smiled and thanked him, handing a few silver pieces to Roguelyn for her help.