The Crystal Curse

by Gin Hollan

  Sam met them at the bottom of the stairs with Marble, Davin, and a new horse. "We get to ride, this time." He smiled. "Another great escape, right?"

  Arabeth laughed, recalling a few of their crazier moments while she worked in Bail Enforcement. It felt like a hundred years ago, now.

  "Don't remind me," she said.

  "Where is Melanie?" Sam looked up the stairs behind Arabeth.

  "I'll explain later. Right now we need to go."

  "And Kennen isn't coming, is he?" Sam looked at Arabeth, confused.

  She shook her head. "There is something compelling them to stay here. A sense of purpose, I think. That's what it is for Melanie, at least."

  He shrugged. "There's no disputing that, when it happens. Where are we going now?"

  "Over here," the girl said. "We have to go out the back."

  Marble looked up at Arabeth and whimpered. This trip and been hard on her, Arabeth knew. Mealtimes were inconsistent, and she was nowhere near her comfort zone. Arabeth picked her up deciding to make it up to her, somehow.

  They followed the girl pass the stables until she stopped in front of a narrow dirt path. "Go out this way if you see anyone, swing wide and look for a place to hide. Believe me – you don't want to meet my brother."

  Arabeth chuckled. When she phrased it like that, it was almost worth tracking him down on purpose. He sounded interesting.

  "You're on your own again. If you go straight that way," she pointed toward an unmarked point on a flat horizon, "you will find a cabin you can use for shelter tonight."

  Arabeth wished she knew how to use a compass for navigation. Or the stars if she had a sextant, that would be ideal. The next time she saw one for sale, she would have to get and learn how to use it.

  Arabeth waited for Sam to mount up before passing Marble to him. Only moments later, they were out on the road again. This time their mission was from Melanie that felt a little odd. Good, but odd. Cross the border and tell the powers that be capital to turn a blind eye to everything that was about to happen over here.

  That would probably be hard for most people, never mind those who think it is their right or duty to intervene with how people live their lives. Government was known for that.

  // Chapter 26 //

  "Step away from my horse, boy." Arabeth said as she stepped outside and saw someone in their mid-teens going through the saddle bags.

  "I don't think so. I need a horse. My group was attacked and we got separated. I need to catch up." He was oddly well-dressed for the location, making him more out of place even than Melanie would be in her city clothes. He stopped his search and turned to face her.

  "We shoot horse thieves, where I'm from," she lied.

  "Judging by your accent, you're a long way from home. We don't do that here," he spoke with an oddly confident authority. Again, Arabeth ignored her intuition.

  "I warned you, boy." Arabeth pulled out her pistol aimed it at him. "And I am not kidding."

  He laughed and climbed up. Arabeth shook her head. Arabeth needed to move fast, before the horse was in motion or she risked him falling onto his head. "You can't say I didn't warn you." She only wanted him to take her serious. She aimed at his arm, thinking that put it out of use for a day and that would temper his attitude.

  The youth went to kick the horse, pulling the other rein. Just then Sam came around the corner and saw what was going on. Arabeth pulled the trigger and the boy went limp, threatening to fall off the far side. Sam got there just before the boy came completely off and eased him to the ground.

  "Well, that didn't go according to plan. I meant to hit his arm," Arabeth said.

  "At least we don't have to hide a body,” Sam grinned.

  She tucked the pistol away again.

  "What do we do with him now?"

  "We can leave him in the cabin. He'll be safe in there, and there's food and water."

  Arabeth looked out across the horizon, hoping to see some sign of the people he had planned to chase after. There was nothing but the same barren landscape they'd faced since leaving the King's mansion.

  "I'm not sure I'm comfortable leaving him out here by himself. He may be a brat, but abandoning him feels wrong," she sighed.

  Sam chuckled. "All right. Let's find a way to transport him until he wakes up. Should we sling a blanket between the two horses?"

  "That won't work. Your horse is way too spirited to put up with that for long."

  "I don't want us to be stuck here until he wakes up, but we might have to consider that as an option."

  The sound of clattering metal and hoof beats echoed suddenly loud, and close. Turning, they saw a group of well armoured men riding behind another man in a covered wagon.

  "Quick, let's get him inside."

  They moved the boy inside and set him to rest on a thin couch, barely long enough or wide enough to hold him. He wouldn't roll until he tried to wake up, if Arabeth remembered right. The woman they had in the wagon certainly didn't.

  "Do you suppose those are his friends?"

  "Not likely. Let's go see what these ones want. If they want this kid, the good news is we wouldn't be abandoning him anymore. The bad news is, you shot him."

  "Yes, thank you. I had almost forgotten that," Arabeth rolled her eyes. "Time to go meet my doom."

  They stepped out the door and were instantly surrounded. The man sitting at the front of the covered wagon climbed down. He was dressed in a suit, causing Arabeth frown. Who travelled in the near-desert in a suit?

  "Have you seen the king?" The man asked. "We've become separated, and he needs to be found."

  "And I thought you were the master of saying nothing while speaking in full sentences," Arabeth joked with Sam.

  The man scowled back at her. "This is a serious matter, Ma'am."

  "What does your King look like? We’ve seen a lot of people lately," Sam said.

  "He's about my height, blond, and 15 years old."

  Now that Arabeth realized who she'd shot, her heart sped up. The connections suddenly met. Melanie wanted her to leave before the king arrived, not because he was arriving, but because she wanted Arabeth to meet him outside the mansion. And his little sister sent them right here.

  Why was he attempting to escape his own guards? The new realization caused her to feel protective of him. Feigning light-headedness, she reached out, taking Sam sleeve in a fist and leaning toward him.

  "We can't let them in," she whispered. What had Melanie thrown them into the middle of? And why hadn't he tried to use his position or title to take one of the horses?

  He was escaping these men? If these men weren't legitimately with him, that made them kidnappers. What if they were supposed to be with him? Somehow that seemed worse. She looked at the man in the three-piece suit.

  She wrapped an arm across her midsection and whimpered once, hoping she wasn't over-doing the acting. "Sorry, all of our travel has left me weak. We only stopped here to rest," she said.

  A look flashed across the man's face that was a combination of pity and disgust. She must've looked convincing.

  "Check the house." He pointed to the nearest guard and waved him in.

  Arabeth couldn't think of a way to stop him. Sam looked at her as though he was also reaching the same conclusion she had. The boy needed protection. He stepped in front of the door, blocking the guard's path it.

  "It is law that once a place is occupied, it is private. This place is occupied," Sam said.

  "We were at the King's mansion earlier and they had preparations for his arrival well underway." She turned and pointed off toward it. "I suggest you look for him there," Arabeth said trying to use her best wispy yet confident voice. “I am going into lay down. Please, just let me rest." She slipped behind Sam, into the building.

  Inside, the boy was still sleeping. Looking around, she thought about how to disguise him. Arabeth looked at the fireplace. They could use the soot. The searchers were looking for a blond. He might hate her for it later, but at
least it would wash out. She grabbed a handful and went over to him, and started pulling it through his hair, darkening it. Next she ran over to the bed and pulled a blanket off. As she covered him, she wondered if she shouldn't roll him off and tuck him under the couch. No, that would be more suspicious.

  Pausing, she tried to think of something else that would make it look like he'd been there since they arrived last night. Teenagers did tend to sleep long. She grabbed a cup off the counter and have filled it with water for setting it on the side table. She pulled his shoes off. They were a little fancier than they should be for the disguise she was building. She pulled her own shoes off and put them by the couch, instead.

  His jacket! It looked like one of a kind. If they pulled the blanket back to look, that would be a dead giveaway. Luckily, he wore a plain white shirt and those were common.

  Sam was doing a good job stalling them, but she had to work fast. Taking the boy's shoes and jacket, she hurried over to the bed and jumped under the blanket, tucking the items under with her, shoes wrapped in the coat. A moment later, the door opened and three guards came in. One of them held Sam by the wrist, his arm twisted up behind his back. The other two stood in the doorway, scanning the room.

  "There he is!" one of them barked.

  Arabeth stood up quickly and went to block the man, wobbling in place intentionally as she stopped. "What do you think you're doing?” She acted indignant. “Let my brother sleep. He's not feeling well."

  Sam hurried over and wrapped an arm around her. "Take it easy - you're pushing yourself again. Go back and lie down. Howard is clearly not blond, so don't worry." He steered her away from the couch, gently guiding her.

  Behind them, the nearest guard grunted. Another guard walked over, unconvinced. He whipped the blanket back.

  "Let's go. He could be halfway to Salumbine by now."

  Without another word, the trio stormed out.

  As the door started to shut behind the last man, Arabeth heard the suit say Sebastian wasn't going to be happy. Thankfully, the door muffled anything that came after that.

  Thankfully, she hadn't left anything that could identify them in the saddlebags and what was there supported her story. They were travellers an their way home.

  They slammed the door behind them, but Sam went out as well. Arabeth stared across the room at their new travelling companion as he blissfully snored. What was going on?

  Sebastian... was he going to haunt every step of their journey? Why did his name keep cropping up? Even this far away, he was moving people, influencing them.

  // Chapter 27 //

  "Is he awake yet? I want us gone before those guys figure out who we are, and that this kid isn't with us," Sam said. "Can we sling him across the saddle? If we don't get moving, we're going to get shot, or hung, or brought to some other unsavoury end."

  Arabeth smiled. "He's coming around. I think he can sit, if we double up. Your horse is the only one big enough to handle two riders."

  "Good, yes. Let's do that." Sam walked over and looked the kid over. "Can you stand? The men you evaded will be back, and we need to be gone."

  He nodded and held onto the arm of the couch, pushing himself up. Arabeth and Sam each stood to one side steadying him.

  Marble and the horses were waiting outside, and once Sam and the kid were up, Arabeth picked marble up. "All we need is a direction," Arabeth sighed, looking out over the landscape. "Hey, does that look like it could turn into a mountain range?" She pointed toward a set of distant peaks to the south.

  "Only one way to find out," he nudged the horse into motion with his knees.

  Arabeth hurried to catch up. "No need to hurry - they're days away, if they are mountains."

  "I think we should go back underground, by shuttle," he said.

  Arabeth blinked, wondering why she hadn't thought of it. Looking behind them, there was a cloud of dust that made her wonder if the guards were on their way back, and riding hard to catch up. She didn't want to know what the penalty for kidnapping a king was. Probably death.

  "You know, maybe we should hurry. Look back toward the cabin," she called out, nudging Davin to pick up speed.

  "If that's them, there is no way we can hide in time," Sam stopped his horse. "We may as well dismount and wait."

  "We'll have to hope they believe us when we didn't believe this kid is their king."

  "Or get that pistol ready," he said.

  "I don't know if there is a recharge time. It doesn't use bullets."

  "Ah, right. Recharge."

  "You go. If you take him and get inside the tunnel, I'll follow when I can. I'll slow them down," Arabeth said. "Go! They can't charge me with anything if they haven't got proof."

  "Evidence can be fabricated."

  "I'll pretend you were holding me hostage, but my horse went lame."

  "But -"

  "Just go! I'll think of something. Get him to safety!" Arabeth yelled, climbing back on Davin. "Wait, take Marble."

  "I can't manage both of them." He turned and headed for the underground passage that led to the shuttles. Once there, he could lock the door behind them, blocking pursuit. Bleeding on the lock only worked if you had the silver in your veins, so they'd be safe.

  Arabeth breathed a sigh of relief and sat, waiting for her soon-to-be captors, wondering if this was a good time to test the recharge time, or if that would only make matters worse.

  Minutes dragged as they neared, but somehow they weren't closing the gap the way she thought they should. Were they heading after Sam? No, would nearly pass her in order to get to him.

  She climbed off and set out a small stack of cooked chicken for Marble, then pulled out a small dish and poured some water in. Who knew when the poor little thing would get her next meal. Arabeth stroked her fur as she ate, wondering if the fox was losing weight.

  Looking up again, there was still no sign of pursuit. Her heart suddenly hammered in her chest. Where had they gone? She turned and looked the direction Sam rode. There was only his dust trail drifting across the plains. The pursuers were just... gone.

  Marble was not yet finished eating, but Arabeth felt herself starting to panic. Maybe they were at the house looking for evidence. There was none. The kid had his own coat and shoes back on. They'd left nothing behind.

  She looked back toward Sam again, barely seeing him as a speck on the horizon. Maybe he'd make it.

  She sat back down on her heels, wondering what to do.

  'Don't move,' came a thought. 'Stay very still, and they will not see you.'

  Odd thought, but worth a try, she guessed. There was dust on the horizon again, and it was headed her way. It was too much to hope for that they'd go the wrong way, she supposed.

  She was about to stand when the thought repeated itself. 'Don't move. Stay very still.'

  Marble whimpered and lay down in the shade under Arabeth's knees as she crouched.

  "Melanie?" she whispered. That wasn't possible, was it? Only Melanie would know how to find her. How could she hear her but not see?

  The riders neared, but as they did, their path swerved to the left, away from her, and away from the direction Sam had gone.

  The compulsion to stay still remained, so she stayed. More interesting was how Davin hung her head and stayed still as well. Arabeth almost laughed at the thought, knowing it had to be coincidence.

  "Fools, where are you headed?" A man's voice rang out across the distance. Sam's voice, Arabeth realized.

  The other riders stopped and turned back.

  Why hadn't he gone to safety? Where did he put the kid?

  'Stay down.'

  "I can't. That's Sam," she muttered to the voice, glad she was surrounded by animals instead.

  'The king needs you.'

  "I don't care about the King."

  'Sam will be fine.'

  Before Arabeth realized, they had all ridden away.

  'Go find the King. Get him to safety. Only he can save Sam now.'

  She lif
ted Marble onto the saddle and led Davin the way Sam had originally gone. She found the boy, sitting and groggy, propped up in the shade of a large rock.

  'Take the King to Ocean City. Go east in a straight line.'

  "Fine, but you'd better protect Sam," she said, wondering if she'd lost her mind somewhere along the way.

  Straight East. Past tumbleweeds and low shrubbery. To a place she'd never even heard of - Ocean City. Walking. Arabeth sighed. Small hills rose and fell, and there seemed to be no end in sight.

  "You shot me. How am I alive?" the kid asked, apparently awake now.

  "I stunned you. There's a difference," Arabeth said.

  "Yes, and I get to be your hostage now, instead of theirs."

  "I can take you back to them, if you want. Your Advisor seemed quite keen on finding you."

  She heard him mutter something and decided it was better not knowing what it was.

  "Here’s the deal – I know enough of the truth to want to help you, for a short while at least," she continued.

  "Oh...." He clamped his lips together, thinking.

  "They tell me you're the future King, but haven't mentioned your name. Who are you and where are you trying to go? Who was the guy in the suit?"

  "What did they say?" He ran his hands up under his hair and shook his hands, causing a thin cloud of ash to fall. "And, did you hide me under a chimney flue or something?"

  Suddenly Melanie was talking again.

  “Wait,” Arabeth held a hand up to stop Andun. "You said go east. I've been going east." She said, looking into space.

  There was a pause and Arabeth knew she must look insane.

  "Fine, you sent us around something. I get it. Now where do we go?"

  'There is a road ahead. Follow it to the right. That will take you down, into Ocean City.'

  Arabeth looked up. What had originally looked like miles of endless landscape had in fact started to look more like water in the distance.

  "Fine. We follow the road to the right. What are we doing there?"

  "This is perfect."

  Arabeth turned to see if he was being sarcastic. He did not seem to be. "I am not going mad."