The Last Falcon: Book 1 of the Cael Stone

by Colleen Ruttan

CHAPTER 25

  Erynn kept an eye on the cottage as they made their way across the field and when they finally reached the barn they slipped in the side door. Several goats were roaming around loose inside and they ran away, bleating in alarm. Erynn cringed, hoping no one in the cottage had heard their cries over the rain.

  The barn was almost pitch black and as they carefully felt their way around Erynn was able to determine that four horses, two or three cows, and what sounded like a dozen pigs also resided there with the goats. They found a stall used for storage at the far end of the center corridor and slipped out of their wet cloaks and dresses and hung them over the door. Then they changed into the extra clothes they each had stuffed in their packs, which were slightly damp in places from the rain but at least drier than what they already had, and curled up on the floor to rest.

  Erynn's hair was still wet, but it was warm in the barn and she was already feeling better. Even her foot didn't seem as sore, although she had taken care not to put any weight on it since they left the clearing in the wood. She had no idea what they were going to do for the next three days, but didn't want to think about that now. All she wanted to do was sleep. She didn't even have the energy to tell Adena about her conversation with Cathus and what she had learned about the Daughters of Maegan, even though she hadn't stopped thinking about it since he left.

  She had just closed her eyes when a dog started barking.

  Adena scrambled to her feet. "Someone must have seen us."

  Erynn felt her heart sink, unable to believe this was happening. Just when she had finally thought she might get some warmth and rest. "The curtains were drawn. I watched them the whole time."

  "Then they must have heard the goats."

  The barking was close by, and getting louder, the dog whining between barks as if it was being restrained. Whoever was with him, they were definitely headed toward the barn.

  Erynn sat up. "Maybe they're just coming to check the animals?"

  Adena thrust a cloak at her in the dark and she grabbed it and carefully pulled herself up on her good foot.

  "I think there's a loft," Adena said, handing her one of the packs next. "Maybe we could hide."

  Erynn heard her slide back the stall door. "It won't matter with a dog. Besides, I don't even know where the ladder is to get up there. Do you?"

  Adena sighed. "No."

  "What about the front doors?"

  "I think there's a lock on them."

  Now Erynn really couldn't believe this was happening. "So we're trapped?"

  Adena didn't answer. Someone was talking to the dog outside, the voice growing louder even though the words were lost in the rain.

  Erynn felt disoriented in the dark. A wave of panic rising inside. She wished she had listened to Adena. Wished they had stopped and built that fire when they had a chance. And that she hadn't listened to Cathus. He obviously knew about this barn when he told them to come this way. Didn't he know that whoever lived here also had a dog? The king had warned her not to trust anyone and already she had failed. The elf had seemed to understand she was in danger, but how could he possibly know about the warrant? The only hope they had was that whoever was now headed to the barn hadn't heard of the two girls wanted for the murder of the king.

  The side door opened and the barking grew louder. The goats ran bleating from the door once more, and this time the horses, cows, and pigs all added their voices to the protest. Then the dog whined and a light swung about in the darkness over the stall door.

  Erynn and Adena both ducked down out of sight.

  "I know someone's in here," a woman's voice rang out. "Show yourself or I'll set my dog on you."

  Erynn hadn't expected a woman, although she supposed it didn't really matter. All it would take was one person to notify Marik.

  "What do we do?" Adena whispered.

  Erynn sighed. "I don't think we have a choice."

  "Did you hear me?" the woman said, louder this time. "I'll set my dog loose. He'll find you."

  Erynn handed Adena her pack. Then they both straightened up and she wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulder and stepped with her out of the stall.

  The dog barked louder and the light swung toward them.

  A middle-aged woman with curly red hair was standing in the center of the barn. She was dressed in a dark cloak and was holding a lantern with a candle in one hand and the collar of a large brown dog in the other. She looked stunned as the girls walked toward her and raised the lantern up higher for a better look.

  "Two girls in my barn?" she said.

  "We got caught in the rain," Adena replied. "We were just looking for a dry place to sleep."

  "Thought we had thieves in here again. They stole two of my best pigs last week."

  "We're not thieves," Erynn said, a little angrier than she had intended. "We just needed a place to wait out the rain."

  "Come closer so I can see you better."

  Adena helped Erynn forward. The dog strained toward them, still barking.

  "Oh do be quiet, Voltan!" the woman said to the dog. "It's just a couple of girls." The dog stopped barking, but continued to whine. "What's wrong with your foot?"

  Erynn studied the woman's face, looking for some sign that she was aware of the warrant and had connected it to the two girls in front of her. But she saw none. "I twisted it."

  "What's that you've got on it?"

  Erynn hesitated, not sure if she should tell her the truth. Elves were not known to help people suffering minor injuries in the forests, and she had a feeling the only reason he had helped her was because of who she was — although even that still left her confused. But she couldn't think of any other way to explain her strange green boot. "An elf helped me. In the wood out back. He put something on it."

  "An elf?" the woman said, clearly surprised. "In our woods?"

  Erynn just nodded her head.

  The woman's eyes narrowed. "Where are you girls from?"

  "Farglen," Erynn said before Adena could respond. "We're on our way to Renford and got a little lost in the rain."

  "On your own?"

  "We've got no family left in Farglen," Adena said. "And we thought maybe we'd find better work there."

  The woman remained silent for a short time, eyeing them carefully, but then her face relaxed. "Well, you certainly don't look like thieves. What you look like is a couple of cats that fell in a well. I suppose you best come inside. We haven't much, but at least the fire will warm you up. And it just so happens we have some leftover stew."

  Erynn almost didn't know what to say. She was so relieved at the thought of sitting in front of a warm fire, and eating a hot meal, that any fears she had about what this woman knew or what trouble she might bring suddenly melted away. They thanked her, and slipped into their wet cloaks again, then followed her and Voltan across the yard.

  The cottage was small, but as cozy and warm inside as Erynn had imagined, and the smell of pork and spices coming from a cauldron over the fire made her mouth water. An old woman with white-gray hair and wearing a green dress was dozing on a couch by the fire, but she raised her head the second the door closed.

  "What was it, Callie?" she asked, concern in her voice. "Is everything all right?"

  "Just a couple of girls, Amara," the other woman replied as she showed them where to hang their cloaks. "Got caught in the rain on their way to Renford and decided to seek shelter in our barn. They looked miserable so I invited them in. One's twisted her foot, but it sounds like one of your friends out in the woods put something on it."

  "One of the elves?" the old woman asked, sitting up straighter and turning even more toward the door.

  "Was a shock to us, too," Adena said with a bit of a laugh. "Neither of us had seen one before."

  Erynn was curious what Callie had meant by "one of your friends," but not sure it was wise to say much about their encounter with Cathus and hoped they wouldn't ask too many questions.

  "Don't normally hear of that
sort of thing," Callie said. "Do you, Amara?"

  "No," the old woman said. "The elves do tend to keep to themselves." A bit of a frown had formed on her face, but then it cleared and she smiled. "Well, come on in girls. There's plenty of room by the fire. I'm Amara and you've met my niece, Callie. What are your names?"

  Erynn was about to say her name, but caught herself just in time. "I'm Loren. And this is my —"

  "Cousin," Adena said. "Serena."

  A slightly unsettled look flitted across Amara's face. "Loren, did you say?"

  "Yes," Erynn replied. As Adena helped her around the couch to the fire, the old woman's head slowly turned to follow them, and she reached up one hand and touched her throat. Erynn noticed that both of her eyes were almost completely white and realized she must be blind.

  "You sound so young," Amara said. Her voice seemed to crack slightly and she paused to clear her throat. "How old are you girls?"

  "I'm seventeen, and she's sixteen," Adena said as she sat down next to Erynn by the fire.

  "Something wrong, Amara?" Callie asked.

  The old woman seemed to have gone pale, but she simply waved her hand. "Just surprised is all. Don't normally hear of girls their age traveling such a long way on their own. Or elves coming out to help someone like that, either. Which one of you has the sore foot?"

  "I do," Erynn said. "Loren."

  "What did he put on it?"

  "A mud of some kind. And he wrapped it in some leaves. He said to leave it on until morning and then rest it for three more days. I guess he must have seen me fall."

  "Not much happens in those woods that they don't see," Amara said. "Did he tell you his name?"

  "Cathus," Erynn replied. She thought something in the old woman's voice sounded strange, even distracted, but Callie was ladling stew into a couple of bowls she had fetched from a shelf near the hearth and she didn't give it any more thought.

  Callie handed Erynn one of the bowls. Then she turned toward her aunt as she reached for the second bowl. "Didn't you once say Cathus was their leader?"

  "Yes, that he is," Amara replied. "Not just any elf of the wood. I used to go out walking back there — before my sight left me anyway. Got to know a few of them over the years. Even met him, too. I'm sure whatever he put on your foot will help. Probably help it heal much faster than it would have alone."

  "It actually feels better already," Erynn said, still relishing the warmth of the hot bowl in her hands, but distracted from digging in by this news about Cathus. Was that why he guided them to their barn? Because he knew Amara and her niece would likely take them in? Help them?

  "Well, you're more than welcome to stay as long as you need," Callie said, handing the second bowl of stew to Adena. "It's only the two of us here now, and it's not often we get company."

  "That would be nice, thank you," Erynn said. She felt relieved at the thought of having a warm place to stay for the next three days — and plenty of hot meals — but was still nervous at the thought of Marik finding them. And she remembered what that soldier on the road had told Cole — about what Holden would do to those found helping them. "I wish I had been more careful."

  "Not your fault you hurt yourself," Amara said. "These sorts of things happen sometimes. I often think it's a sign. Telling us to slow down. Or that maybe we're not on the right path."

  Erynn paused, her first spoonful of stew halfway to her mouth. Struck by how similar Amara's words were to those of the elf. She glanced at Adena, but her friend was busy eating and she remembered she still hadn't had told her everything Cathus had said. She hesitated, not sure if she should respond, but then the smell and heat of the stew caught her attention again and she forgot about the comment and dug in — not surprised to find the stew tasted even better than it smelled.

  Amara turned to Callie as her niece sat down next to her on the couch. "Could you take them to Renford in the wagon? When her foot heals?"

  "I could when I get back from Chapley," Callie said. "We still need to sell a few of those pigs."

  "You're going into Chapley?" Erynn asked through a mouthful of stew.

  "I was planning to go tomorrow, Callie replied. "But if this rain keeps up I might push that back. I'd rather wait it out than risk getting stuck in the mud."

  Erynn glanced at Adena, not liking the sound of that. So far, it didn't seem like either woman had heard about the warrant, or at least hadn't made the connection to the two girls now sitting in front of them, but that would change if Callie went into town.

  "Couldn't Nolan take the pigs in?" Amara asked.

  Callie snickered. "He could, but he wouldn't get us a fair price. Besides, I think he's already gone into town."

  "It's alright," Erynn said, knowing they couldn't accept the offer anyway. "We actually don't mind the walk. Just need to wait for my foot to heal."

  "How close are we to Chapley?" Adena asked.

  "About ten miles," Callie replied.

  "So you haven't been there recently?"

  Erynn shot Adena a warning look. If the women did know about the warrant but just hadn't made the connection, it probably wasn't good to remind them. Her friend cast her a look back that said she understood — and that she knew what was doing.

  "Not in a few weeks," Callie said.

  "So you haven't heard about the Galians?" Adena asked.

  Erynn again shot Adena a look, but this time her friend's eyes stayed on Callie.

  "Yes, we heard about that from Nolan," Callie said. "One of our neighbors. He goes into town more often than we do and likes to check in on us now and then."

  "I still can't believe it," Amara said, looking rather outraged. "Galians in Alyria! And without Gareth here?" She shook her head. "I can only imagine what the king must have been thinking when he saw them."

  Erynn gazed down at her stew, almost glad the old woman couldn't see her face.

  "It might not be that bad," Callie said. "Maybe it is just a short visit. Like they said."

  "They're Galians, Callie," Amara said, anger in her voice now. "There's more to it than that. I guarantee it. And I'm sure Wryden knows it, too."

  Erynn glanced at Adena again, wondering if she planned to tell the women the rest — about what had happened to the king — but this time her friend simply raised a brow, as if to say she was now leaving that up to Erynn. At first, Erynn wasn't sure they should, but after giving it some more thought, she supposed it couldn't hurt. It was clear the women didn't know about the warrant. "We heard the king died a few days ago."

  "Died?" both women said at once, turning to Erynn with their eyes wide.

  "That's dreadful," Callie said. "What happened? Was it his age?"

  "I don't know," Erynn replied, keeping her eyes on her stew and trying to act like she wasn't really interested. "We only heard about it the other day."

  "It was the Galians," Amara said, tears appearing in her eyes. "It had to be. I knew something wasn't right when I heard they'd come here."

  Erynn stared at her, finding something about her reaction somewhat unexpected.

  Callie seemed to notice. "My aunt knew King Wryden once. Many years ago now. During the Tallon War."

  "I didn't know him, Callie," Amara said, sounding a little embarrassed at the comment. "I was a servant. Simply in the room a few times when he was there."

  "You were in Tallon during the war?" Erynn asked.

  "I was born there," Amara said. "And worked at the castle for many years. My father was a cook in the kitchen. My mother a maid."

  Erynn could hardly contain her surprise. "You served Queen Sasha?"

  Amara smiled. "I was one of her maids for several years. And one of the last to see her alive."

  Erynn almost dropped her spoon. A million questions had suddenly formed in her mind, but she suspected it wouldn't be wise to appear too eager.

  "Do you know how she died?" she asked, trying again to pretend she was only casually interested. "I heard she was betrayed by a Bryan knight —"


  "That is a lie!" Amara said, her voice so full of anger that for a moment Erynn and Adena both froze. "I knew that young man and I can tell you he never would have done such a thing."

  "You can't know that for sure, Amara," Callie said. "You were separated."

  "I knew Branen, Callie! Radel needed to destroy him. Sasha's death just gave him the excuse he needed to finally do it."

  "Radel?" Adena asked.

  "King Agar's father," Amara explained. "The former King of Brye." Color had risen to her face. "I tell you, I celebrated the day I heard that old fool had passed. Didn't shed a tear."

  "Why did King Radel want to destroy the knight?" Erynn asked.

  "Because many thought Branen should be the one sitting on the Bryan throne. Not Radel. As long as Branen lived, he was a threat."

  "The knight blamed for Sasha's death was of royal blood?" Erynn asked.

  "Through his grandmother," Amara replied.

  Erynn found Branen's story interesting, but wanted to get back to Queen Sasha. "So if he didn't kill her, what do you think happened?"

  "The elves?" Adena asked.

  Amara snorted. "No, not the elves. They knew who she was and would never have harmed her." She was quiet for a moment, the anger fading completely, and then sadness came over her face. "I think it was the childbirth." She paused to wipe away a few tears. "You see, King Maslin sent word to Radel some weeks before she died, asking for help in getting her safely out of Tallon. Unfortunately, by the time Branen and his men arrived, the baby was already due. We waited for days, hoping it would come so we could leave, but then the Alyrians were lost in that horrible battle and we couldn't wait any longer. It was very difficult for her. We barely got out of Tallon in time."

  "Then what happened?" Adena asked.

  "We ran into Galians and I was separated from them. I searched for days. Saw bodies everywhere. Most of Branen's men dead. But I never found Sasha or Branen. My brother had gone to Berridge some months earlier so I decided to go there, but it took me weeks and by the time I arrived, Branen was dead. Executed. He had returned to the castle with her lifeless body and had been blamed for her death."

  Erynn was surprised to hear the name Berridge, the town where she and her father had been headed when they ran into Lord Caden. It was certainly a long walk from Tallon.

  "There was no sign of her child when he returned?" Adena asked.

  "No," Amara said. "But there were lots of rumors. Some said Branen killed it accidentally. Some that it was a girl and he either purposely killed her or sold her off somewhere. And, of course, some blamed the elves — because we had been so close to the Bryan Forest at the time."

  "He never said what happened?" Erynn asked.

  "If he did, it never got out. I've always wondered what would have happened if I'd gone to the castle instead of my brother's farm. If I could have saved him. I started to. Walked for days. But then I had this terrible dream that the castle was on fire. It scared me so much I decided not to go after all. Or to at least wait until I reached Berridge and could ask my brother to go with me."

  "But how could you have done anything?" Callie said. "You weren't there at the end to know what really happened."

  "I knew Branen, Callie. I could have at least said that. And I knew the state Sasha was in. How difficult the travel had been for her."

  "They might have killed you, too," Erynn said. "If King Radel really did want Branen dead."

  Amara sighed. "Yes, that's what everyone told me. Still doesn't make it any easier."

  Erynn gazed down at her stew, not quite as hungry as she was a few minutes ago. She felt bad for upsetting Amara and decided to save the rest of her questions about Sasha for later. "Did you see King Wryden often?"

  "Just a few times. The last time was right after we learned about the Alyrians. He was devastated."

  Erynn knew that thousands of Alyrian soldiers had been killed in the Tallon War, but had never understood what happened. "Were they really ambushed?"

  "Yes, and it was Wryden's fault," Amara replied. "Maslin's too, to be fair. Sasha had warned both of them, but neither of them listened."

  "Warned them about what?" Adena asked.

  "About the young knight Maslin chose to assist Wryden while he stayed in Tallon. She told them something wasn't right about him and it wasn't until later that they found out he was feeding information to the Galians. They had planned to use those Alyrian soldiers in a final assault against the Galians — one last battle they hoped would win the war — but the Galians sent fresh men to ambush them and every last one of those men was killed."

  "The king must have felt awful," Erynn said.

  "Oh, he did," Amara said. "But that wasn't the worst. Those Alyrians were led by the only son of his closest friend. He was killed in that ambush, too."

  For a moment, Erynn couldn't take her eyes off Amara. Then she gazed back down at her stew. Was this the reason the king grew so obsessed about Gareth? About him coming home? Did he fear he might lose his son the same way his friend had lost his? Perhaps as some sort of punishment for what happened? Her father had once said the king was never the same after the war. Now she knew why.

  "What happened to the knight?" Adena asked. "The one that betrayed them?"

  "The Galians killed him," Amara said rather matter-of-factly. "Some months later. I don't know why, but it wasn't all that surprising, really. He had obviously proved his loyalty couldn't be trusted."

  "Do you remember the name of the king's friend?" Erynn asked. "The one who lost the son?" As far as she knew, Lord Brison was his closest friend, but she had never heard mention of him having another son and wondered if this might explain why Jeth seemed so upset at the castle. Perhaps he knew the story behind how his older brother had died.

  Amara thought about this for a few moments, and then she smiled. "Paddon. That was his name, although I don't remember the rest. He came to see Maslin from time to time as an advisor, but was also close to Sasha. In fact, he was one of the few she trusted."