“You’ll need these,” he added and tossed each of them one of the shroom balls out of his pouch.
Marsh sniffed the one she caught and understood why the mule had stayed. The sticky sweet smell of candy cap caught her nostrils, tempting her to eat the thing herself, but she caught the interested lift of her mount’s head and decided it deserved something for the fright they’d caused it.
She tried to catch its eye as she walked toward it, seeking to connect with it and reassure that it was safe. It bobbed its head, snorting for a few strides as it resisted her call.
“I have candy cap…” she called, holding the shroom ball where it could see it, and it stopped.
Marsh watched the flare of its nostrils as it sought the scent of what it could see in her hand, and it met her gaze and accepted her contact. It was happy to see her, Marsh realized as the connection between them flared to life…even if she was the reason the kat was always so close.
Marsh reminded it that the kat was the reason they had been able to keep it safe, and watched as its ears drooped to either side. It had forgotten the kat was there to protect it, and its next burst of curiosity felt a little sheepish.
Did she really intend to give it the sweet shroom?
The unspoken desire made Marsh laugh.
“Of course, I do, you silly beast. Come here.”
Once it had arrived, Marsh followed Gustav’s example, feeding it the shroom ball and taking its reins as she inspected it for injury and adjusted the girth before mounting. All around her, the other mules were slowly letting the shadow guards mount, and they were soon riding past the first stone structures that told them they’d arrived in Dimanche.
The anger in the raised voices coming from the town square was unexpected, and Gustav signaled a stop before they reached it.
“We’ll tether the mules here,” he said. “Scatter through the back and try to blend in.”
“Blend in, huh?” The voice came from a sheltered doorway ahead of them. “And why would you want to do that?”
They all turned to look, Gustav freezing half in and half out of the saddle before dismounting entirely. The woman who stepped out of the doorway was of the same slight build as Marsh and the rest, but her long straight dark hair, dark eyes, and well-defined features gave her a slightly exotic look.
“We’re new in town,” Gustav explained, keeping a firm grip on the mule’s reins. “We blend in, we might be able ta learn somethin’ to keep ourselves outta trouble.”
He’d dropped into the way of speaking he’d used when he was with Greta, Marsh noted, and she wondered why.
“Not doing a very good job of that, are ya?” the woman replied, and Marsh heard the shift of accent in her tones as well.
“Never did,” Gustav said, turning to look over his shoulder.
Marsh turned to follow his gaze and realized Mordan was nowhere to be seen.
Dan? she asked, seeking the kat via the connection between them.
She felt a faint reassurance in response, and the urgent need for silence.
“Where are you, girl?” Marsh asked, turning her mule and preparing to ride back the way she’d come.
She should have thought to keep the kat close, but she’d been so distracted by the stone buildings that made up the town that she’d forgotten her—again.
You’re not the only one, Roeglin told her as if he had any responsibility for Mordan’s welfare. You’d be surprised.
Oh, she would, would she? Well, that was just another topic they could add to that talk they hadn’t had yet. How many were they up to, now?
Mind-speaking, Mordan… What else was there?
For the life of her, Marsh couldn’t remember, but she was sure there was something. Roeglin shrugged, turning his mule to follow her.
We’ll think of it.
“And just where do you think the pair of you are going?” Gustav wanted to know.
“Dan,” Marsh replied, and he sighed.
“Yes. Fetch her.”
“We can find your companion,” the woman said, but Gustav shook his head.
“You don’t know what to look for.”
“And since when has that ever stopped us?” The woman sounded amused.
Gustav’s reply wiped the smile from her face.
“Since this companion…” He stopped and shrugged. “Let’s just say it would be better if the mages go and find her. Safer all round.”
“Ooh, safer. Now you do have me intrigued. Very well, they can go fetch your companion.”
Marsh tapped the mule in the ribs and turned it, then realized why the woman had sounded like she’d thought she could stop them from going anywhere. An archer had appeared at each of the second-floor windows across the street. There were six in all, and six crossbowmen in the floor above that—all with their bows drawn or cocked.
She froze, staring up at them, and glanced at the captain.
“Go along, Marsh. I’ll still be here when you get back.”
The expression on his face was much less reassuring than his tone of voice. His tone said it was okay for her to go. The look on his face said he didn’t have a choice, and he needed them to return. Roeglin nudged her.
He’ll be okay.
Hiding her misgivings from her face, Marsh kicked the mule into a trot.
Where are you? she wanted to know, and the kat gave her the impression of a flat stone roof with a low wall surrounding the lip so the children wouldn’t fall off.
Children?
There were three, all more enamored by the big kat’s presence and the softness of her fur than their mother.
“Uta, Simel, Tanith, you leave the kitty alone and come over here right now!”
The urgent call reached Marsh’s ears as she pulled the mule to a halt in front of one of the first houses they’d passed on their way in.
“Can’t get me,” one small voice cried.
“No, can’t get me,” sang out another.
“Me! Me! Me!”
“Children!”
Marsh arrived just as the woman took a tentative step toward where Mordan was sitting, three small forms crawling over her shoulders and back, with the kat pretending to try and swat them with a very lazy paw. The fact the kat had no intention of swatting anyone was clear, but the fact she appeared to be trying was enough to have the woman nervous. Marsh stepped around the woman, ignoring her startled glance and Roeglin’s very formal “Pardon me, ma’am.”
“Dan,” she began, “those are not your cubs. You can’t keep them.”
The kat gave her an obliging growl of protest.
“No. I’m serious. You need to give them back to their mother and get your tail back to me, or there’s…” She thought fast. “There’ll be no mouton for you tonight.”
No mouton? The kat was laughing at her inside her head, but the look on her face was one of mortification. She carefully stood, keeping one child on her back and picking the nearest up by the back of its shirt. With a long-suffering sigh, she looked at Marsh.
“Give. Them. Back,” Marsh repeated, pointing an authoritative finger at the mother as though she thought the kat was having second thoughts. “Honestly, Dan. It’s the same in every single town. I can’t take you anywhere.”
“Every town?” the woman asked.
“Oh, yes,” Roeglin answered as Mordan brought the child back to its mother. “Every town. Raiders took her cubs, so she tries to adopt nearly every place we go. We’re trying to catch up to them, but so far no luck.”
He gave a very eloquent shrug and sighed.
“I don’t suppose…”
From the way the woman’s eyes widened with fear and the very hasty shake of her head, she knew more about raiders than she was willing to tell. Marsh and Roeglin didn’t press her, but watched as she pulled the little boy from Mordan’s back and picked up the girl the kat had deposited at her feet. The third child stood at the edge of the roof scowling.
“No,” she said. “Not going.”
“No…” the little girl giggled and squealed with delight when the kat picked her up and took her back to her mother.
“I’m really very sorry about this,” Marsh said, burying her hand in Mordan’s scruff. “We’ll go now.”
“I…it’s fine…” the woman replied and closed her mouth as though she didn’t know what to say next.
15
An Old Flame
Marsh left her and descended back to the ground floor and out into the street, wondering what the kat had thought she was doing.
Hiding, the kat told her, and gave her the impression of an empty roof and surprised mortification on being pounced on by three small children when their mother brought them up to play.
Marsh had to laugh, and Mordan shot her a wounded look. Roeglin started to sputter, but he swallowed his laughter when the kat hissed at him.
“Come on,” Marsh said, taking the reins of her mule in her hand and leading it back the way they’d come.
She figured it was safer to be seen walking beside the hoshkat than having her pace the mules—and she’d be more able to react to anyone who might object. Gustav and the other guards were nowhere to be seen when they got back to where they’d left him, but an archer stepped out of the same doorway the woman had been standing in.
“This way,” he said.
He was not alone. Two crossbowmen stepped out behind him, their weapons trained on Marsh and Roeglin, although one shifted quickly to cover the kat. Mordan hissed, and Marsh stepped in front of her.
“The kat comes,” she said.
Their escort opened his mouth to protest, so she cut him off.
“Or you can shoot me now.”
He closed his mouth and gently pushed the crossbow down when one of his guards moved to oblige.
“No. The kat can come.”
Mordan gave a soft rumble and lashed her tail from side to side.
If Marsh didn’t know any better, she’d think the kat wasn’t happy with their situation and laid the blame for it squarely at her feet.
“Give it a rest, kat.”
She tethered the mule and followed the first man inside. He was tall for their kind, with ash-blond hair, gray eyes, and the same sharp-edged features the woman had. Same family or clan, Marsh thought, and let her eyes rove over the two crossbowmen.
Their brown hair was netted in short ponytails, and their eyes were dark. Neither looked like they knew how to smile, and one was scarred up the left cheek as though he’d been caught by a fireball sometime in the past. None of them spoke as they passed through a corridor and into a large common room. Gustav looked up from a table at the far end as they entered.
“You took your Deeps-damned time,” he grumbled and gestured for them to join him.
“And you,” he added, looking at the kat. “Stay with me.”
As if the kat could understand him—except Mordan tilted her head to catch Marsh’s eye and gave her the impression she’d do as the man asked. She let go of the kat’s scruff and watched as the big beast padded ahead of them to sit beside Gustav’s chair. It was hard to keep her surprise from her face, but seeing the expression the woman wore was worth it.
Stop laughing, Roeglin said, and Marsh had trouble keeping a straight face. It would be really unwise to crack up now.
You’re not helping.
And you’re doing it again. Tell me, did you close your eyes?
Crap.
She’d kept her eyes on Gustav and seen his eyes widen as he watched her face. Her only hope was that the woman didn’t know the significance of what she’d just seen happen. It was a hope that was short-lived because their host turned to the Protector captain, drawing her sword and extending it so that the tip reached his throat.
“Really, Gus? You consort with mind-walkers now?”
Marsh watched him tense and flick his eyes anxiously toward her and back to the woman.
“That’s new for her,” he said, swallowing nervously. “This is the first time she’s shown any sign…”
“And the other?”
So Roeglin hadn’t had his eyes closed! Marsh looked up at the mage.
“My bad,” he murmured, and they came to a halt before the table.
“Sit,” the woman commanded, pointing to the empty chairs between Gerry and Izmay, and they obeyed.
“Gus?” Marsh asked, taking her place.
“Long story,” the woman told her, withdrawing her sword, “but I swore I’d kill the next mind-walker I saw.”
Marsh tensed, getting ready to move, but the woman continued.
“So it’s a good thing I can see you’re shadow mages, isn’t it?”
Marsh nodded, aware of Roeglin mirroring the action beside her.
The woman sheathed her sword and propped herself against the wall near the head of the table.
“My name is Valerie. Gustav knows me from some time past.” She shifted, studying them as they sat. “And you are mostly shadow guards from the monastery, regardless of your uniforms.”
Her eyes shifted to Henri and Jakob.
“Except for the ex-caravan guards in your midst.”
She fell silent, studying each of them in turn and looking at the kat.
“Tell me, why has she joined you?”
Marsh caught Gustav’s look as the Protector captain directed Valerie’s attention toward her. The woman’s eyes narrowed.
“You again? So, the kat is under your control?”
Marsh couldn’t help it. She gave a startled bark of laughter and followed it with a short-lived chuckle.
“I wish,” she replied, “but the kat is her own creature. She chooses to stay with me because I made her a promise.”
“Oh?”
“To find her cubs and retrieve them from the raiders.”
Mordan gave a soft growl, and some of the men nearest them dropped their hands to their sword hilts. The smarter ones backed up, reaching for their bows or crossbows. Marsh was out of her seat and moving around the table before any of them could be raised to fire.
“Call your dogs to heel,” she snarled, reaching for the shadows and pulling her own sword and shield into being.
“Marsh…” Gustav spoke quietly as though he struggled to keep his voice calm. “Stand down. They will not harm us.”
“They might not harm you, captain, but Mordan has no such guarantee.”
Marsh didn’t take her eyes from the men nearest as she took a stand between them and the kat. All around the table, the shadow guards pushed their chairs back and slowly moved to join her.
Valerie didn’t say a word. She only watched as they positioned themselves, and glanced past them to her own people.
“Stand down,” she ordered. “These are our guests. You will treat them as such.”
“Unless they try to leave,” came a voice from the doorway, and Valerie dipped her chin.
“Oui. Of course, unless they try to leave.”
“Our beasts need tending,” Henri said. “They’ve had a long ride.”
Again Valerie seemed to agree.
“See to it. Stable them with our own.”
Gustav cleared his throat.
“You do have mounts, don’t you?”
Valerie shot him a startled look and then laughed.
“Yes, of course, we do. I only ever played that trick once. Your mounts will be returned to you when you leave.”
From her tone, Marsh thought that might be “if” they left, and she looked at Henri.
“Go with them,” she said. “Take Izmay with you.”
The two guards sheathed their blades and made to step away from the table. They were immediately stopped by Valerie’s own. Henri looked down at the blade making a slight indentation in his armored gut and he stared into the man’s face, placed a gloved finger against the sword blade, and gently pushed it to one side. Beside him, Izmay did the same.
The swordsmen dipped their blades under the
offending digits and put them right back where they’d started. Henri and Izmay exchanged glances and put their fingers against the blades once more. This time they clenched their other fists, and flame covered their gloves.
Before they were forced to put their plan into play, Valerie spoke.
“Let them through,” she said, “and if the rest of you could take your seats?”
Her men took the hint and sheathed their swords, letting Henri and Izmay through with a polite gesture to those already at the door. It made Marsh smile to see the pair make a show of blowing out the flames on their gauntlets as they left.
She was still smiling when she returned to her seat, but Roeglin’s quiet mind contact soon wiped the smile from her face.
Gustav is going to have your head, he said.
And putain to him. Marsh retorted, looking up to see the Protector captain observing them closely.
As soon as he’d caught her eye, he sat back in his seat.
“I might not be able to hear you,” he told them, his eyes boring into her face, “but I sure as shit can read your faces—and you, Master Leclerc, are on latrine duty for the next week.”
Marsh stared at him, and Valerie laughed. She stopped laughing as Gustav shifted in his chair.
“I’m going to assume you didn’t take us off the street for your own entertainment,” he said, “but I don’t have time for games, so maybe you can tell us what you’re doing here, and what you need us for.”
All traces of amusement vanished as Valerie pulled out the chair in front of her. Turning it so its back was to the table, she straddled it and sat.
“You first.”
Gustav sighed.
“We’re here to offer Dimanche an alliance of mutual protection between Ruins Hall, Kerrenin’s Ledge, Downslopes, and the Deeps Monastery. After we’ve heard your reply, we’re moving on to Ariella’s Grotto. Along the way, we’re restoring the trade routes and setting patrols to guard them. Once we’re done, Master Leclerc is going to try to find where the raiders are coming from and put an end to their depredations. Your turn.”
It sounded very rehearsed to Marsh, but Valerie just nodded.
“It’s more than I was hoping for. As for me and mine, we are hires for Gaebler’s Gems, protection for the mine and its caravans.”
Trading by Firelight Page 14