by TJ Nichols
The men saw his cloak and then moved to box him in.
“Let me pass. I’m on the king’s business.” Aubrey put his hand on his sword and edged his horse forward, trying to break free.
The men slowed and closed in. His horse pranced, and his newly mended heart beat faster.
The man at the front turned. “So am I.”
Morris.
Aubrey yanked and the reins and his horse reared. He used that moment of distraction to break free. Their horses danced back, and he broke out of the box and started down the road, pushing his horse hard, hooves pounding behind him, gaining. Their horses were fresher.
Morris overtook and stopped right in front of him. Aubrey’s horse backed up, but there was nowhere to go. He was surrounded again. They had been expecting him and had made a plan. He’d thought Morris would be at the castle. Instead, he’d only gone as far as his relative’s holdings.
“I thought you were dead.”
“You did try to kill me.” Aubrey spoke clearly so the men could hear his side. Or had they been promised a part of the treasure so nothing else mattered to them anymore? Gold could turn a man’s heart to stone.
“We were attacked by wolves. We were hunting them.” Morris smiled, but it was cold.
“There was one wolf, trapped by your dogs. You killed the mayor and attacked me, then fled like a coward.”
“And how did you survive?”
“The forest folk found me.”
“Forest folk.” Marris spat on the ground. “You may not have heard, but I’m the mayor now, and there’ll be none of them left by the time I’m done. What business are you on for the king?”
“He wants a wolf.”
“Yes...but I doubt you are going to give him one.”
“I’m a hood. I serve the king. To attack me is to attack the king.”
Morris considered him for a moment. “Maybe. But I doubt your loyalty. Prove it by riding with us. Hunt with us so you can take a wolf to the king.” He looked at the man closet to Aubrey. “Remove his sword.”
Aubrey brushed aside the reaching hand. “I will keep my sword.”
Metal hissed, and three swords pointed at him.
“You know it wasn’t far from here that I was stopped by two highwaymen. They took my gold and sent my horse running. I wore through my socks before I caught up with her.” Morris edged his horse closer. “I thought you were in Nightlark to stop them.”
“I was. Never got a good description of them.”
“I can help with that. One tall, lanky fellow with dark hair and blue eyes and the pointed face of a criminal. The other was brown haired and took orders. Perhaps you saw them in the forest? While you were getting help.”
Jardin and Lyle. Jardin had the sharp face of a wolf, the glint in his eyes and a face that suggested he liked trouble. His lover, Lyle, would’ve followed his lead. The highwaymen he’d been sent to hunt had been under his nose the whole time.
“I was healed by one of the women.” That and the bracelet. “I never saw them.”
“Perhaps you’ll be able to do your job and arrest them. Until then, give up your sword.”
Metal jabbed Aubrey in the side, and he drew his sword and handed it over. He couldn’t fight his way out of this. He’d have to bide his time. They bound his hands to the pommel of his saddle and they continued toward Nightlark.
Lyle ran into the soothsayer’s building. “There’s horsemen in town.” They clattered into the courtyard. Announcing that they were there to hunt wolves and stop the highwaymen. “Morris is back.”
The soothsayer nodded. “What do you want me to do? I’m not part of the pack.”
“Your family is.” If Morris saw him there’d be trouble. He’d hang—no not that. More likely he’d be stabbed and dumped.
“You were supposed to help the hood.”
“I did. And now he’s working with Morris. He rode in with them.” That was the last time he put his trust in a hood. Jardin had been right all along. Now the hood knew where the village was, and he wore a fur bracelet.
“Morris could own the whole forest and still not be happy,” the soothsayer said.
He couldn’t go out there and fight well-armed men on horseback, at least not on his own. “We need to stop them from reaching the village.”
“I’m an old woman, what would you have me do?”
“You want to live in a town ruled by Morris?”
“Hm.” She turned away. “Most here have forgotten how to fight. We’ve had it easy and have become comfortable. Even you lot in the forest.” She threw herbs on the flame and made thick white smoke. “You must still help the hood, or we’re all lost.”
“He’s part of it. I saw him ride in with them. You gave him the wolf fur bracelet.”
“I had to.”
He was getting nowhere. He raked his fingers through his hair. “I need to warn the village.” And Jardin. If Morris caught him… Lyle shuddered.
“And lead them straight to it?”
She was right. He couldn’t go anywhere until they’d left town.
Jardin returned from wood cutting to a pile of clothing and other items dumped in the center of the village. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve and walked over to see what was going on. He smelled it before his brain realized what he was seeing. Morris’s fear sweat clung to some of the clothing. In the pile were boots and fine cloaks and coin purses.
They’d found everything he and Lyle had stashed away.
It was a punch to the gut. Bile rose in the back of his throat. There’d be no chance of talking his way out of this. The thought of bolting and never looking back occurred to him, but aside from a little theft, he’d done nothing wrong. He hadn’t brought the hoods to Nightlark; the first one had come for their treasure.
He forced himself to walk forward as though he was innocent, but from the stares he was getting, they knew it was his pile of stolen goods.
“These things carry your scent, but they aren’t yours. In fact, I would suggest that they are items takes by highwaymen. Do you disagree, Jardin?” His father crossed his arms.
There was no point in denying it. “That would be a fair assessment.”
His father nodded. “You brought the hoods.”
“I didn’t. The first one, who you killed, came for our treasure. The others followed to investigate the death.”
“And who killed the others? There’s a hood here.” The leader kicked the pile.
That did appear bad. “I haven’t killed anyone. His body was dumped the same as the other one you had me bury.”
“You should’ve reported it.”
“Would you have believed me? Or would you have thought me the killer? You clearly think I am capable of that. Yet, I saved the hood who might still help us.”
“Your hood had betrayed you. He was with the riders who arrived in Nightlark today.”
“No…he wouldn’t.”
“He did, as you have betrayed us. Stealing and putting us in danger, to what end?”
He couldn’t admit he’d been thinking about leaving. “I shared some of the coins, bringing them to us in small quantities.” And keeping more for if him and Lyle did leave. “Aren’t you sick of scrabbling around, living so close to the edge our bones show at the end of winter? We once ruled.”
There were a few nods and murmurs of sympathy. He wasn’t entirely alone.
“This is how we live now, safe from those who want us dead. The hoods were our hunters, and nothing has changed. The soothsayer is as much a liar as the hood. You should’ve left him to die.”
“No.” He couldn’t believe that Aubrey would hunt them down. He’d wanted to stop Morris. It hadn’t all been a game to him, a way to gain trust and find out more. Had it? Where was Lyle? He’d been as much taken in by Aubrey as he had. “Is this about hoods or the highwaymen?”
“Both. I need to be able trust every member of my pack, wolf or human, and I can’t trust you or your partner.”
Jardi
n stepped forward. “I have always worked for the good of the pack.”
His father kicked the pile of stolen goods. “Have you?”
“We’ll need every fighter,” one of the women said. “As many who can wield a sword to protect the village.”
His father shook his head. “I won’t put lives at risk. We’re going to flee into the forest.”
“They’ll burn everything to the ground,” Jardin said.
His father stared at him then lowered his gaze as though he couldn’t bear to look at Jardin any longer. “You won’t be here to see it. You’re banished. Lyle, too. Pack what you can and go.”
Jardin stopped back. “Banished? For stealing?”
“For saving a hood so he could betray us. You should’ve taken the bracelet and left him to bleed.”
A fourth dead hood would’ve done no one any favors. “Then the king would send an army to investigate.”
“And what do you think has arrived in Nightlark?”
Chapter 8
Aubrey worked at the knot in the rope that bound his hands and tied him to the bed. This was supposed to keep him secure while they drank downstairs and talked about the ways they’d spend their share of the wealth. Aubrey doubted Morris would be sharing anything. He’d probably stab them all in the back.
Morris had been lapping up attention and praise as the new mayor all afternoon. So far, he didn’t seem to have done anything close to actually doing his job. Showing up with armed men and promising to crack down on crime was a weak man’s way of ruling.
The first knot of the rope slipped free. In the dark, he wasn’t sure if it was blood or sweat on his fingers, but he didn’t care. The rope came loose, and he stretched his hands and rotated his wrists before getting up. He didn’t know where his boots were. He searched around the room, but there weren’t many places to hide them. Someone had no doubt taken them to keep them safe.
He had to stop Morris and his men from destroying the wolves. He needed to get to Jardin and Lyle and have them convince the wolves they needed to fight.
Aubrey eased the window open. It groaned, and he paused, straining his ears to hear if anyone was outside his door listening. If there was, they hadn’t heard anything over the din from below. Laugher and music and the many voices of merry men. Let them celebrate. Tomorrow they would have to fight, and they’d be feeling worse for the ale in their blood.
He’d bring the wolves to their door.
Morris would not get the treasure he hoped to find, nor would the king get his wolf.
As he pushed the window fully open and scanned the yard, Aubrey realized he’d made his choice from the day he’d first arrived in Nightlark and had noticed something wasn’t quite right. The moment he’d started to investigate thoroughly instead of arresting the highwaymen for murder, someone had been watching him. Morris had been sent to Nightlark to make sure everything worked out in his family’s favor.
The real crime had yet to happen.
There was no one in the yard. And not that far to run to the start of the forest. If he could get across the yard, he could lose anyone who followed in the trees. He glanced at the ground. Unlike Jardin, he couldn’t jump and hope for the best.
Carefully, he eased out of the window. Without boots or socks he had more grip with his toes, but the wood offered little purchase. He climbed up instead of down. The roof was closer than the ground, and he needed to find a place where he could scale the wall more easily. He crept over the roof, toward the brick chimney. There were enough rough edges for him to have something to grasp. He didn’t think too long about it—if he did, he’d talk himself out of it. He also knew he needed to move quickly, in part because he didn’t want to be caught halfway down, but also because he didn’t know how long he had before someone checked on his room and found him missing.
The warm bricks bit into his skin, and his fingers cramped, but he made it down and paused in the shadows, waiting and watchful. His heart thumped, loud in his ears. But no one was yelling that he’d escaped. He slipped around the corner and prepared to dash across to the forest—wishing he had his boots and sword.
He’d barely stepped around before he was slammed against the wall. He fought back, kicking the other man and twisting his arm behind his back, pressing him to the wall.
It was then he realized it was Lyle.
Aubrey didn’t ease his hold. “What are you doing?”
“You traitor. Liar.” Lyle writhed but couldn’t break free.
Traitor yes, because he was no longer obeying the king. Liar…no. He kept his grip on Lyle’s arm and his hair. “What do you think I’ve lied about?”
He didn’t have time for this, he needed to be away.
“Everything. I saw you ride in with those men. What were you going to do? Lead them to us?”
“I was their captive.” Definitely not his best moment. He removed his hand from Lyle’s hair and placed it on the wall so he could see the rope marks, the blood where his skin had torn. But his wrists were warm, the skin tingling, and if he washed, would there be anything more than a fresh pink scar? “I came back to stop them. To warn you…. Why are you here?”
It was then Aubrey realized that while he was pressing Lyle against the wall, he was also pressed to Lyle and his body might be enjoying it a little too much.
Lyle pushed back. “Let me go and I’ll tell you.”
“How do I know you won’t attack me again?”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
Slowly, Aubrey released Lyle’s wrist, but he didn’t step back. Lyle squirmed and turned around, which was even worse. With no gap between them, this was a far too intimate position, but Aubrey couldn’t bring himself to ease away. Lyle didn’t shove him away either. He held Aubrey’s gaze.
“Well…what do we do now?” Lyle’s lips curved. His hand fluttered over Aubrey’s side to where his belt should hang. “No sword?”
“No boots either.”
Lyle tipped his head. His lips were far too close. “Jardin was right about you.”
Aubrey stepped back. Lyle already had a partner. And Jardin had never quite trusted him.
“I still have the bracelet. I didn’t reveal it to anyone.”
“That wasn’t what I meant.” He put his hand on Aubrey’s chest then let it slide lower, stopping just before where his belt should have been. He drew his hand back. “How are you going to stop them without a sword and boots?”
“I was going to look for the village and warn them.”
“I’ll take you there. But first I need to make sure they all sleep well.” Lyle pulled a packet out of his pocket. “From the soothsayer…though it took a bit of convincing.”
“Are you sure it won’t kill them?”
“Do you care?”
“Poison isn’t a noble death.”
“Neither is hunting down wolves. It’s sleeping powder. What a pity they didn’t strip your morals when they stripped your socks.” Lyle turned. “You’d best wait here.”
“And if they try to stop you?”
“If I don’t come back, hide in the forest like you planned.”
“I wasn’t going to hide.”
Lyle grinned and slipped away.
Aubrey stood there with the cold seeping out of the ground and up his bones. A hood would never let anyone confess to planning to drug a noble and his men and then let him go and do it. But then, he was never going to wear the red hood again.
Lyle stopped by the wood pile and picked up some logs. Then, hunched over, he went in as though he were a servant tending the fire. With his back to the noisy tavern, he knelt and add the wood, making sure it was burning well before pouring on the powder the soothsayer had given him. For a moment nothing happened; there was no spark or puff of colored smoke.
Then he smelled it. A sweeter scent beneath the burning of the wood. He didn’t hang around to watch what would happen next—he didn’t want to fall asleep in front of the fire.
“Hey! What are yo
u doing back here?” The harried worker reached to grab him before he could get out of the building.
“Leaving—it’s too busy in there for anyone but the city folk to get a drink.” He brushed past. While he felt a little bad the staff would also be affected, it wasn’t enough to stop him.
When Lyle stepped out, he sucked in several breaths of cold night air to clear the smoke from his lungs. The noise from the tavern continued as they ate and drank their coins and joked about how many wolves they’d kill tomorrow. Did they not realize or care that the wolves were people like them? That they had families and children?
In the shadows out the back, Aubrey had waited instead of leaving for the forest.
“They should all be asleep soon.” Lyle leaned on the wall, almost wishing Aubrey would push against him again. The attraction was dangerous. He loved Jardin. And Jardin knew Lyle found the hood attractive.
They waited in silence close enough that they could’ve touched, but neither of them made the effort. Gradually the tavern noise lessened, until there was nothing but the rustle of leaves and the beating of his heart.
Aubrey peeled himself off the wall. “I’m going in to get my things.”
Lyle grabbed his arm. “Don’t be a fool. Just because those downstairs are asleep, doesn’t mean everyone is. Leave things be. I know where you can get a sword and boots.”
The things they had taken from the rich were hidden in case there would be a need for them. With a fight coming, weapons would be required. They’d go to the cache first and then the village.
But after they’d wound through the forest, the night distorting even familiar landmarks, the cache was empty when they reached it. It had been torn open and raided.
Lyle got on his knees and felt under the roots of the old tree, hoping for some small scrap or a clue as to who had been here. If he were a wolf he’d have been able to smell the thief. He rocked back on his heels, as hollow and empty as the cache. Everything he and Jardin had been saving for when they left was gone.
He closed his eyes, waiting for Aubrey to say something. To laugh.