by D. E. Morris
“It does,” confirmed Cailin. “Lerranyth Village is for the poorer citizens. Donnchadh only lets people above a certain wealth mark reside within the inner wall of Lerranyth.”
“Where do you live?” Badru asked. Instead of answering, she pointed her chin in the direction of the castle they were headed to. “Inside Lerranyth? But you said you were not on his council.”
She smirked, starting up the stairs to the front entrance. “I’m not. I’m his deputy.”
While Badru remained perfectly unreadable as they followed Cailin down the long echoing stone hallways inside Lerranyth, Cavalon’s gaze wandered and tried to take everything in. As much as he wanted to trust that Cailin would help them, it didn’t sit right with him that she would hide her status from them. As soon as there was a moment, he’d have to go back to Altaine and speak with Ashlynn about her. Before they invested too much faith into someone they didn’t really know, he needed to hear from Ashlynn herself that Cailin was not a person to worry about.
“Sheriff Fintan is a fair man. He will listen to your request to meet with the king.”
“And you work directly under the sheriff?” Cavalon asked. “That’s an unusual position for a woman to hold.”
The look Cailin spared him was one of slight importance. “Times change. If a woman can be the solitary ruler of a country or a nation, what should stop her from being a deputy or even the sheriff should she wish it?”
As they approached the end of the hallway, two curved wooden doors with black iron fixtures stood looming and somewhat ominous, two armed men flanking them. “I will ask you to remember your manners. Fintan may not be the king himself, but what he hears, Donnchadh will also hear.”
She nodded to the men and one of them moved to open the door for her. Walking in without hesitation, she dipped her head. “My lord.”
Fintan was not an overly good looking man, though it was apparent he had been at one time. He had a full head of salt and pepper hair, clear blue eyes and a look about his face that suggested he was a man given to easy laughter. He sat behind a large desk with parchment before him and a quail-feather quill in his hand. He did not look up when Cailin entered, but continued writing. “Ah, Cailin. I was wondering where you had gotten to. Any news on our...” He trailed off, now looking up and seeing the two men behind his deputy. “Hello.”
“My lord, my I present Badru Khaliifa and Cavalon Amenti. They are here from Siness to speak with the king.”
Fintan frowned. “Not originally from Siness I should say.”
“I was born in the Sandlands,” Cavalon admitted. “Badru is from the marshes near there.”
“Fascinating.” Despite the uttered word, Fintan did not look fascinated. He turned his eyes to Cailin, expecting an explanation.
“These men were the ones at the gate earlier.”
Now he was fascinated. The sheriff put the quill down and stood, coming around his desk to stand before the two men while Cailin stepped respectfully to the side. “You were the ones looking for Nealie.”
“You know of her,” said Badru.
“I do,” Fintan admitted easily. “She was a frequent guest at court for a time. In fact, she should have been here several days ago, but I haven’t heard anything from her.”
Badru grimaced. “It would appear we are in the business of delivering bad news today. Nealie has been killed.”
Obviously shocked, Fintan’s eyes widened. “What? When did this happen?”
“Fairly recently.”
Letting go of a burdened sigh, Fintan rested against the edge of his desk and crossed his arms. “Forgive me for having a hard time believing it. I feel like it was not long ago that I saw her last.”
“You said she frequented here,” Badru pressed. “As a guest of your king?”
Fintan shrugged noncommittally. “The king, some of the lords who came and went. I daresay a lady or two as well. As for the king, what they discussed was never passed to me. She and I met several years ago when I was new in my post. She was kind to me and we became friends. Whenever she would visit the king, she would make sure to spare some time for me.”
Cavalon looked at Badru. “Sounds like there was a whole other side to Nealie that we didn’t know.”
“Indeed.” Remembering his manners as Cailin instructed, Badru said, “My Lord Sheriff, is there any possible way to speak with the high king? We need to know as much about her last few days as possible.”
“I cannot say for certain. The king is very busy in his preparations for the wedding of his daughter.” Fintan furrowed his brow. “How is it you two know Nealie?”
Cailin caught Cavalon’s gaze and gave an almost imperceptible nod. He took a breath and decided to trust the girl. There wasn’t really any other option at the moment. “Nealie was the Water Elemental.”
“I am aware.”
This surprised him. “She told you?”
“As I have stated, Nealie and I were friends.”
Before Cavalon could speak, Badru placed a hand on his arm, though his words were directed at the sheriff. “Then perhaps you might know where her family may be.”
Fintan shrugged again. “She lived in Cormill.”
“Yes, but did she ever speak of a lover, children?”
“No. In fact I often wondered if she and the king had a secret child, they were seen in each others company so often...well, it is not my business to speculate.”
“But you had your suspicions,” Cavalon hedged.
“The king loves his wife.”
“That has not stopped a king from taking a mistress before.” Turning to Badru, it was obvious his mind was trying to piece things together. “What if Nealie and Donnchadh had an affair and he had her killed because she was with child?”
“Now wait one moment,” Fintan interrupted. “I will not allow you to defame my king in my quarters.”
“And I will stop at nothing to find out what has happened to Nealie.” Cavalon took a breath and stepped back, raising his hands. “I apologize. It’s just...we want to figure out what happened to her. We need to find her oldest child. We need to know who the next Elemental is and protect them from whatever it is that might be coming for us.”
Fintan frowned. “Us?”
“Nealie was our sister by holy charge. Badru and I are Elementals as well.”
“Ah.” Fintan was taken aback by this and it was apparent by the raise of his eyebrows. “Didn’t expect that.” Recovering quickly, he returned to his chair behind the desk. He held up a finger and pulled a folded piece of parchment from one of the desk drawers before holding it out to Cavalon.
“What’s this?”
“I kept a record of the times she was here, how long she stayed and with whom she left.”
Cavalon looked at the list. “Did she often leave with people? Men?”
“Man, woman. She prefered company over solitude, it seemed, no matter the gender.”
With a shake of his head, Cavalon handed the list to Badru. “Get us an appointment with your king, and give us a place to rest beforehand.”
“With all due respect, my good dragon, I am not a man to be ordered around by anyone but he whom I serve.” Fintan stood once more, knuckles pressed to the top of his desk. “If you wish to speak with the king then I would expect a little more politeness to his sheriff. And his deputy. Have they been harassing you?”
Cailin hid her smile well. “No, my lord.”
He clicked his tongue. “She’s smarter than you think she is, gentlemen. Don’t think she’ll be so easily swooned as that.”
Deciding to be bold, Cailin stepped forward to stand beside the desk. “If I may, Sheriff, these men are weary from travel and their fear for their kindred has made their tongues sharp. Let us give them rest, perhaps a bath and some food and see where things stand then.”
Fintan didn’t look at her but kept his eyes on the two men. After a moment, he nodded. “Very well. Wonderfully diplomatic of you, Cailin. Show them to a guest room, gi
ve them what you suggest. I will see what I can do about an audience with the king, but I promise nothing.”
Badru bowed. “That is all we ask. Thank you for your hospitality. It is greatly appreciated.” With a wave of his hand to shoo them away, Fintan picked up his quill once more and went back to work.
Once out in the hallway and the doors closed behind them, Cailin turned an angry glare upon Cavalon. “Do you even know what manners are?”
“We weren’t getting anything else accomplished in there.”
“No, not after that little show you weren’t. You’re lucky he didn’t throw you out after that.”
“Thank you for stepping in,” Badru offered. Her scowl lessened some, but her lips stayed tightly together as she led them away from the sheriff’s room. The quarters that were offered to them were nothing grand; a small sitting room with a desk and two chairs facing a lit fireplace. There were two beds with a wardrobe between them. “The sheriff will have this matter taken care of as quickly as he can, but I cannot promise it will be tonight that brings you before the king.”
“All we need is food,” Badru told her. “We will rest until we are sent for.”
She nodded somewhat stiffly. “I’ll send someone up from the kitchen soon.” With a look of warning, she took both of them in with a sweeping gaze. “Please, for the love of my sanity, stay here.”
“We will.”
The door closed, leaving the two men alone. Cavalon sighed heavily and fell back onto one of the beds. “This is ridiculous.”
“Be that as it may, my friend, we have no choice but to take what we can get.” “Have you ever been in a court so tight with security before?” Cavalon pulled off his boots and tossed them to the floor. “I mean in times of peace.”
Badru took a chair by the fire, drawn to the heat. “Perhaps High King Donnchadh knows something we do not.”
“Think it has to do with Nealie?”
“It is impossible for me to say.” The darker man sighed and shook his head. “I used to believe Nealie confided in me in everything. Most things, at least. Now to find out there is a whole separate part of her life that I have not known about...”
“Seems Nealie was good at making people think they were the only one she confided in. Everybody has their secrets, Badru. Don’t take it personally. You did know Nealie better than any of the rest of us ever did.”
"I suppose I will never know if that is true or not."
An audience with Donnchadh did not come until morning. After eating, both men fell asleep. Cavalon was still asleep as Badru stood at the window and watched the sleepy town below waking up just as he was. He turned unexpectedly when the door to their quarters opened and Cailin walked in. “The high king will see you in twenty minutes” She looked over at the empty food tray on the desk, smirking. “I see the food was not to your liking. Hope you got some rest.”
“It was delicious and we did,” said Badru. “Thank you.”
Cavalon drew her attention as he turned over and she gave Badru a curious look. “Tell me about your friend.”
Badru walked back to the fireplace and sat, extending a hand in invitation for Cailin to join him. “There is not much to tell. You already know what he is and what he can do. He is the oldest of all of us.”
“Does he have a family?”
“He did, at one time.” Badru cocked his head. “His present situation is not known to me. I have been more concerned with solving this mystery of our sister’s death than anything else, I am afraid. I must admit, you did not strike me the type of woman to be attracted to his kind.”
“I’m not.” To Cailin’s credit, she did not blush or waver in her gaze.
“Are you spoken for?” asked Badru.
“No, I am simply not looking.”
Now he smiled. “Sometimes not looking is when you find what it is you were not looking for to begin with.”
Cailin smiled softly in return. “Sometimes. And what about you? I like to know who I have brought into my home to introduce to my king. Are you a man of quality?”
He could not stop his quiet laughter. “I suppose that would depend on your level of quality. I have many wives, many children, and even more grandchildren.”
“I see the warmth of your heart in that statement. You love them all.”
“I do. Each one of them has a piece of me. Unlike the others of my kind, I stay close to my family. There is no point in distancing myself from inevitability when it would only make me lonely and bitter.”
Cailin glanced at Cavalon. “Like your friend.”
“He is learning.”
“You should wake him. I will wait outside and lead you down when you are ready.”
~*~*~*~
As far as throne rooms went, Cavalon wasn’t impressed. He liked the grandeur of Altaine with its high windows and flags from different nations and countries. Lerranyth disappointed with a much more claustrophobic room where the king sat in a great stone chair, a smaller one to his right for his queen, and another to his left for the sheriff. Only the sheriff was there beside Donnchadh when they entered, speaking quietly to the older man. The king himself was well built, aged with lines to his face under the bushy mustache and beard of orange and blonde. His hair, which was the color of a good carrot at its darkest, was turning to fine gold at his temples and along his hairline. When the trio entered, he stopped his conversation with Fintan and turned to face forward.
Cailin knelt and bowed her head, the other two doing the same. “Your Majesty,” she greeted. “May I present to you...”
“Yes, I know who they are. Thank you, Cailin. That will be all.”
With head still bowed, she nodded and stood to go stand at the shoulder of Fintan’s chair.
“Rise,” Donnchadh ordered, “so I can get a look at you.” His emerald eyes took in both of their faces, their dress, right down to the sandals on their feet. “You, I remember,” he said to Cavalon. To Badru he admitted, “You, I do not. What is it that you have come here for?”
“Your Majesty..." Badru had told Cavalon before that he would do all the talking, something Cavalon begrudgingly agreed to. “We have come to seek information about one of our kind. We were told this was the last place she had come before she was killed.”
Donnchadh frowned. “Yes, Fintan told me about Nealie. I am sorry for your loss, but what is it you expect of me?”
“Information, where she was headed when she left you, perhaps her mental and emotional status? Anything you could give would be helpful. As you know, when one of our kind passes, our eldest child receives the gift of the Elemental power. We seek to find Nealie’s child to help teach them and protect them if we need to.”
“Protect them from what?”
Badru's brow wrinkled. “From whatever it was that killed Nealie, Your Majesty.”
Considering this, Donnchadh rubbed a hand over his beard and sat back in his chair. After a long moment, he shook his head. “She was fine when she was last here. Where she went when she left, I could only guess.”
“Would you know where she had family? Anything at all that may help?”
He was quick to shake his head once more. “No, but I know if she did they would be here, in Ibays.”
“Why is that?”
“She loved her country.” Donnchadh fixed his eyes on Badru. “If you need help searching I will send someone with you. One of my men. He knows Ibays better than anyone.” Badru opened his mouth to speak, but Donnchadh raised his hand to stop him. “My daughter is getting married in less than a week and there is still much to be done. I am afraid that is all I can offer you.”
Knowing he was being dismissed, Badru gave a nod of his head. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“Cailin, show them to the gate so they do not get lost inside the castle. Fintan, have Jessiah sent to meet them.”
Cailin nodded for Badru and Cavalon to follow her, making her way quickly from the throne room and out into the hall. When they were well enough away, she sl
owed her pace some to walk between the two men.
“Who is this Jessiah?” Cavalon asked.
“A good man,” promised Cailin. “I was told he has been in the employ of the castle since he was a boy. The king was right in saying he knows Ibays better than anyone. He works as a messenger, a tour guide, a hunter, and he is a devout follower of the Giver. You could not have a better escort.”
The portcullis raised and a man in his late-twenties strode over to greet them. He had sandy brown hair with a slight beard of the same color, and light green eyes. He nodded at Cailin and smiled. “Cai. These must be your friends.”
“Aye. Take good care of them, yeah?”
Jessiah winked at her. “The king gave me the very same orders. They’re in good hands with me.”
With slight reluctance, Cailin turned to go back into the castle. After a few steps, she turned to call over her shoulder, “Be safe!” then disappeared in the movement of the villagers.
“All right, lads. Shall we be off, then?”
Jessiah started down the path that led away from the castle and back through the poorer village of Lerranyth. Badru and Cavalon exchanged a look and followed. “If anyone’s a ‘lad’ here,” the Badarian rumbled to Jessiah’s back, “it would be you.”
With a good-natured grin, Jessiah glanced at the older man over his shoulder. “Right, sorry about that. Force of habit.” His accent was strong and much thicker than Cailin’s or even Donnchadh’s. “The sheriff told me who you are and who you’re looking for. Try not to worry too much. I can find pretty much anyone.”
“But we have nothing to go on,” argued Badru gently.
Jessiah gave him an enthusiastic glance. “Well sure we do! We know Nealie was Ibayish and that she loved this land more than any other. She didn’t keep it hidden what she was, so anyone who’s even met her once is likely to remember her. Half the country is as yet still untouched so we know not to look there. We’ve got plenty to go on.”
Cavalon asked, “So where are we going first, then?” He was already annoyed with the kid.
Chapter Ten
