by A J Park
She nodded and turned away with her head bowed.
Hannal went back to his rooms and found Kallia waiting for him. There were shadows in her dark eyes. “They’re coming, aren’t they?”
He nodded, taking her in his arms and holding her close.
“We’ll fight. We won’t let them into the valley,” she said. There was no way she could know how hopeless it was.
The children came in and he knew they had heard Kallia. Why did they always have to overhear the things he most wanted to keep from them?
“Is it time to fight?” Kemman asked. His young face was eager. “I’m ready, Father. I’ll ride with you. I can do it, I’ve been practicing.”
“No,” Hannal said fiercely. Then more quietly, he said, “No. I need you to take care of your mother for me.”
“But you need every man you can get,” Kemman protested.
“No,” Hannal said flatly.
His daughters ran to him, and Hannal picked up little Cinna. “What’s happening?” she asked, putting her small hands on his cheeks. Her face was serious, framed by dark curls.
“Nothing. Nothing’s happening, little one. Everything’s going to be all right,” he lied. “Kemman, will you take your sisters into the other room and find them something to eat?”
“But—” Kemman protested.
Hannal silenced him with a look.
Kemman took Cinna by the hand, and Meli followed him.
Hannal sat down, and Kallia sat beside him. “How much time do we have?” she asked.
“We’re riding out at dawn,” Hannal said. “I need you to take the children and go with the others into the mountains.”
“No. I want to stay with you.”
How could he tell her? Finally, he said, “Kallia, you can’t.” She looked up at him, waiting for him to explain—waiting for him to tell her that it was hopeless. “I will fight to protect you until my last breath. But there’s too many of them. They will take the valley and then the city. You can’t be here when they come. Please, take the children and do what you can to keep them safe.” It was horrible to tell her that he thought he was going to fail. She had always believed in him, had confidence in him.
“You can’t stop them?” she whispered in disbelief.
“No.”
“Wouldn’t it be better, then, for all of us to flee together? Some of our people might survive then.”
“I told them,” he said. “If any man wanted to go into the mountains with his family, he could go.”
“But not you?”
Hannal took a long deep breath. “Not me. I have to lead them. With Kalleck gone, they all look to me. If we don’t at least slow them down, then none of you will have a chance to escape. I have to do what I can here.”
CHAPTER 26
Lady Shalyrie Almorin
Shalyrie sat alone and blind. There had been no sound since another door had slammed nearby. She could feel the soft motion of the ship on the water. She wasn’t sure how long she had been sitting there when she heard the key in the lock and the door open and shut. Then someone pulled her to her feet and uncovered her head.
In the bright lantern light, she recognized the man who stood there. It was Galenor’s second-in-command. He hung the lantern on a hook and pulled the gag from her mouth.
“Captain Calreth, what is the meaning of this?”
“I’m so pleased that you’re alive, my lady,” he said, bowing and cutting the ropes on her wrists. “We have much to discuss.”
“I have nothing to discuss with you,” she said angrily, rubbing her wrists. “I order you to take me to the king.”
He laughed and stepped closer to her. She resisted the urge to back away from him and stood her ground. “You can order me to do anything you please, Lady Shalyrie,” he said. “But I won’t do it. There is no one else in this room. Everyone believes you are dead, brutally murdered by those savages living in the hills. I can do anything I want to you. No one will stop me.”
“The king will kill you if you harm me,” she warned him. But her stomach clenched. He didn’t intend for the king to find out. They were going to kill her before anyone had a chance to help her.
He stepped offensively close to her and bent to whisper in her ear. “You should tell me what I want to know. I mean it when I say I can do anything I want to you.”
“Leave me alone!” She shoved him away.
He struck her face, and she stumbled backward, trying to keep her balance. He seized her arm and struck her again. Pain erupted across her cheekbone. For a moment, all she saw was blinding light.
He twisted her arm behind her. She couldn’t see him now, but his voice was right in her ear.
“Now we will talk,” he said. “You were traveling with the horsemen. Why?”
She didn’t answer, and he twisted her arm harder until she cried out in pain.
“Why are you with them? They took you into their city and taught you their speech. I want to know everything you learned there.”
“Why?”
“I want to know what they’re hiding. They must have a mountain of gold in that valley, treasure beyond counting. Otherwise, they wouldn’t guard it so closely.”
“And you plan to kill them and take everything they have? How can you justify that?”
“Almoria is expanding. Our people are growing and spreading their control far and wide. Our wealth and territory are expanding, and the king is increasing his power. You know this is true.”
“The king doesn’t take lands claimed by others!”
“How can you be that naïve? He doesn’t care. As long as we ship iron, grain and a wealth of goods back to him, he doesn’t care how we got them. The king’s men have begun this great work, and now we will finish it. With or without your help, the horsemen are finished. This war is almost over.”
“You can’t just kill them!”
“Our army is already there, and Galenor will be soon. He won’t have to kill them if they get out of his way. Tell me how many men are guarding their valley!”
“I don’t know! How would I know that?”
“You saw their defenses. Tell me. Tell me how I can beat them!”
Shalyrie clamped her jaw shut stubbornly. He twisted her arm until she cried out again.
“Think,” he snarled. “I will make you tell me everything. You were in their secret city.” He pulled her around to face him. “They accepted you. Somehow, they did. And they never let anyone in. They dressed you like them,” he looked at her, considering. “Did they put their mark on you?”
She kept her face carefully blank, but her mind went to the mark over her heart, the symbol of the Sacred Spring. She raised her head to look at Calreth. “Surely you’ve noticed they bear their marks on their faces. Obviously,” she pointed to hers, “I don’t. I don’t know anything that will help you. Now, take me to the king!”
He smiled slowly and leaned close to her. His hand caressed her cheek. “The men have them on their faces,” he whispered gently. “It’s not the same for women. It wouldn’t be on your face. It would be somewhere else. Somewhere hidden. And I’m going to find it.”
Shalyrie felt her skin crawl, and she took an involuntary step backward. “Leave me alone,” she demanded. “If you touch me, you will answer to the king.”
“He’s not here. And don’t worry about me. He’ll want you to explain why you were traveling with those horsemen, unescorted. What do you think the king will think of that? Either of those filthy savages could have dishonored you any time along the way. I’d wager that they both did. And you liked it—you wanted it. Who would have thought that the highest lady in Almoria could be so cheaply bought?”
She attempted to slap him, but he seized her wrists and laughed. “It’s true, isn’t it? They did put their mark on you.” He drew his knife and held the point
of it to her throat. “I’m going to find out.”
She twisted her hands free, pushed the blade away, and brought her knee up hard into his crotch, just like Sinnar had shown her. He dropped to his knees with a groan, and she grabbed the knife and pulled it out of his hand. Suddenly, her legs were swept out from under her, and she found herself on the floor. Calreth was on top of her, pinning her arms under his knees, and he wrestled the knife from her. She wriggled and managed to get one arm free, then reached up to scratch his face. He pressed the knife against her throat again.
“Stop,” he ordered her. “It would be sad if you forced me to kill you. Now lie still. This won’t hurt as much if you behave yourself.”
He kept the knife point hard against her, and he unfastened her belt. She could feel him lift the hem of her tunic and pull it up to her neck. When he removed the knife point, she struggled again.
“Stop it,” he ordered. She could feel the knife against her chest now. “There,” he whispered, looking down at her in her underclothes and leering. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
She turned her face away from him and stared at the wall.
“Do you want to tell me anything yet?” He was close enough that she felt his breath on her skin, and she shuddered in revulsion. “It won’t bother me if I have to search you… very thoroughly.”
She took a deep breath, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing her react any further. His fingers touched her skin, and she could feel him pulling down the neck of her shift. He discovered the scar left by the assassin’s blade. “Well, that’s not pretty. It looks like the horsemen haven’t treated you well.”
When he pulled down the other side of her shift, he laughed. He had seen the atoh now, the symbol of the Sacred Spring.
“I knew it!” he exclaimed triumphantly. “They don’t accept outsiders. How did you convince them to accept you?” He looked down at her. “Tell me!”
She felt the knife digging into her skin. She said nothing.
“Look at me!” he ordered, digging deeper with the knife.
She clenched her teeth in pain and turned back to face him.
“You make this so much harder than it needs to be,” he said. “Tell me what the mark means. It has to do with their secrets. They told you what they were hiding, didn’t they? They told you where their treasure was?” He stared down at her, and she looked back defiantly. “I’ll make you tell me,” he promised. He pressed the knife point into her chest—hot pain jolted through her. He pushed even deeper, and she screamed.
He was going to kill her. Now. She tried to conjure up an image of Kalleck in her mind. Be brave for Kalleck. But then the pain eased a little. She wasn’t dead. Another voice was speaking.
“…crossed the harbor… be ready to dock soon.”
Calreth’s voice was loud and too close. “We’ll have to postpone this until later. We’re going ashore.” He got back to his feet.
She opened her eyes and saw him standing above her.
“Get up,” he said.
She had to get up. If she didn’t, or couldn’t, he would force her. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. Move her arms, move her legs. Breathe slowly, in and out. Warm blood ran down her chest. She covered it with the black tunic.
“Perfect,” he said, seizing her arms and tying her wrists together. He shoved the gag back into her mouth and tied it behind her head. He took her hood and covered her hair, then wrapped the ends around to cover her face and the gag.
“Now we’re ready to go, my lady,” He said. “Please…” He seized her arm and dragged her to the door. “Walk with me.”
Calreth dragged her out onto the deck. The soldiers stared at her, but they hadn’t seen her, not really. The dawn had not yet come, and it was dark. They saw only one of their enemies. Her face had been covered the whole time. He dragged her to the rail and down a plank to the dock. There were more men there. Some of the faces she recognized. She would have tried to call for help. Surely someone would help her. But they didn’t see her. They only saw a horseman, an enemy. Black clothes, riding boots, her face covered.
Calreth marched her through the city and up the hill to the fortress. They went through the gates and down the stairs. Shalyrie had been down here before, when she’d been trying to help the captured horseman. They didn’t go to the same place. They turned a corner and came into a long, low room with a couple of windows, high in the walls and covered with grates. There were iron rings set into the stone wall, and Calreth pulled her arms above her head and tied her hands to one of them.
When Calreth stepped back from her, she saw the Almorian soldiers bringing in Kalleck, Sinnar and Finn. They were still alive, then. For now. The soldiers tied their arms as they had hers and tied their feet as well.
“Wait right here, my lady,” Calreth said, bowing sarcastically. “Governor Galenor will be with you soon.”
Calreth and his men left, and the heavy door shut behind them. Quiet. They were alone. Shalyrie felt like she was choking on the gag, but she couldn’t remove it. Blood was still flowing from the cut on her chest.
“Shalyrie,” Kalleck said in a tight voice. “What did they do to you?”
She couldn’t answer of course, but she could see him. His eyes looked agonized. “Can you speak?”
She shook her head.
“How bad is it?”
What could she tell him? She saw his eyes fall to the floor at her feet, where blood was slowly dripping.
They were not alone very long. They heard the lock rattle in the door. Several men came in. A couple of them carried chairs and set them down in the middle of the room. Galenor followed them. He stood straight and tall, his clothing crisp and elegant. He walked slowly closer to her, as if he could not believe what he was seeing. “I thought it couldn’t be true,” he gasped, staring at her. He gently pulled the hood back and removed the gag. “I thought you were dead,” he said. “Shalyrie? Can it really be you?”
“Yes,” she gasped.
“This has all been a dreadful mistake.” He cut the ropes from her wrists, and she stood there, putting pressure on her wound, trying to stop the bleeding. “Let me help you.” He led her to a chair, and she sat down. “Tell me what happened, please?”
She kept her eyes on Galenor, deliberately not looking at the others. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. She was still in shock from her encounter with Calreth. The cut on her chest was throbbing, and the memory of his hands on her skin was still sharp and horrible.
“I was struck by an arrow on the bridge,” she said. “I saw you get hit too and fall.”
He nodded, rubbing the place on his arm where the arrow had hit him.
“The horsemen tended my wound and brought me back to where you were waiting.”
“Of course, I remember that day. We all saw the attempt on your life,” Galenor said.
“But why would the horsemen go to such effort to save my life, only to kill me?” she asked. “They could have killed me any time.”
“They wanted us to see what they did!”
“One of the horsemen struck down my attacker,” she said. “Would they kill one of their own men?”
“I have no idea what they are capable of,” he said. “I thought they had killed you. We searched for days… How did you escape?”
“I didn’t escape. They let me go. They helped me, even after we attacked them,” she said.
“We had to find you! I was insane with worry.”
“I’m here now,” she said, “Back among our people. So you can withdraw and leave them alone. Surely you have no further cause to attack them.”
“It’s too late for that now. Our armies are already in position around the edge of the valley.”
“Well, go! Send a message. Stop them!” For a long moment, they stared at each other. Suddenly, Shalyrie realized wha
t she already knew. “You don’t want to stop them. None of this was about me at all. You were only using me as a reason to attack them. You want to get rid of them. You’ve already taken some of their lands, killed and enslaved their people, and now you intend to finish it. You think just because you want their gold and their lands that you can kill them? It’s wrong Galenor, and I won’t help you!”
He stared back at her, anger growing in his face. “I didn’t believe it was true,” he said. “Calreth said you had gone over to them. I didn’t think it was possible. You… a member of the king’s family. How could you forget your own people and side with our enemies?”
Shalyrie stared back at him, shocked. “I haven’t forgotten my own people!” she exclaimed. “You are spending Almorian lives for your own profit. How many of our people have been killed because you wished to conquer? Did you ask them if they chose to die so that you could increase your wealth and power? Did you ask their families?”
He slapped her face. “You dishonor the memory of our fallen soldiers, brave men who have given their lives defending Almoria. You have lived all your life under the protection of the king. What do you know of war?”
Shalyrie remembered the battle at Thell, the clamor and the screams. Blood and death. “More than I wish to know,” she said. “There’s been too much violence already. We have to stop it.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “It will soon be over. The horsemen are no match for my army. We will beat them once and for all, and it will be over. That will happen, no matter what you do now. But you could save many Almorian lives with the information you have. You have the power to save them.”
“By helping you destroy the horsemen?”
“You were there, Shalyrie. You saw their secret city. You saw their armies, and you learned their ways. They gave you their secrets. This is just what we need. Someone who has been there and knows what they are hiding in that valley. You could do so much to help us! Either way, this war will be over quickly. They can’t defeat us, but you are in a position to be a great help to us. You could save the lives of many of our people.”