“Would you want me to lie?” Jara replied.
“No, but don’t try to send Vio away.”
“Would you let her go after our wedding?”
“I know how much you care about her, but I can’t,” he said, and moved faster, leaving Jara alone and wondering if he could not or would not.
She followed him inside his suite. “The Circle and Codrin care about her too.”
“Then why is she here?”
“They want to keep the pressure on Codrin. There was an understanding that he was to marry Vio.”
“I may enjoy spoiling the Circle’s game, and stop that wedding.”
“You may, but your position may become untenable.”
“And who is your best hope? The Master Sage? Or your young champion, who is good enough to win a fight, only to lose the war? Codrin took Leyona and lost it,” Orban said, feeling that Jara did not understand him. “He destroyed Aron’s army and took his castle and second son, but could not free your other daughter. At least he hanged a Primus Itinerant, something that I never dared to do.”
“What?” Jara gasped and wrung her hands. Why did he do that? The Circle will never forgive Codrin.
“Codrin hanged Belugas not far from Severin’s gate, and even wrote Sage on a placard and hung it around the Sage’s neck. I very much enjoyed that fine piece of irony. It seems that you did not enjoy it.”
“No.”
“You think he is in danger. You care about him.” Orban frowned, massaging his chin. “Strange that I did not realize it until now. That means that your links with Codrin are deeper than I thought.”
He stood up, and walked toward the window, staring away into the distance, pondering on his new knowledge. “I will take care that my son doesn’t bother your daughter, and forget about their wedding.” I may try to come to an understanding with Codrin. Nothing would please me more than to piss on the Circle.
“Thank you,” Jara breathed.
“I hope you can bear me for a little longer,” Verenius said, when he remained alone with Cantemir.
“After surviving Drusila, I don’t imagine I’ll die from talking to you.”
“This thing,” Verenius gestured with the letter still gripped between his fingers, “should have been discussed with a more select audience.”
“Why? To let Maud bury it as soon as possible?”
“Do you really think that she was involved?”
“Yes. From the day I opposed her scheming with Aron to make Bucur our Candidate King, our relation turned sour. She chose to go forward even though Bucur is a joke. Both Drusila and Maud knew this. All his so-called achievements were actually down to Codrin. All her hopes are now with the Duke of Tolosa. With his army, as that man is the stooge of his wife, who happens to be Maud’s daughter.”
“I know about Bucur, but it seems that we’ve learned everything a little too late. Even your warning about Bucur came too late.”
“And Maud, do you think the same about Maud? Did she not know about Bucur when she was so close to Aron? We are in a difficult position right now.”
“I don’t know. It may be that she knew.”
“Do you have more questions?” Cantemir asked coldly.
“Whatever the past, we are now bound to help Bucur. You know that.”
“One day, I may tell you more about that.” Cantemir closed his eyes and remained silent, and Verenius had no choice but to leave him alone.
Chapter 17 – Codrin
Codrin didn’t begin to wake up until late in the morning. It was a gradual process, and for a few moments he could not remember anything. Not the place and not the time. Struggling to drag himself fully awake, he stirred and rolled onto his side, sending a soft groan against the walls of a room with no windows and no echo. A faint scent of baked bread washed over him, and a glimpse of Jara’s hunting house surged into his mind: Milene cooking in the large kitchen, and Vio sneaking around to steal fresh hot cookies. It can’t be. The sharp, bitter metallic taste in his mouth overrode his daydream and forced him to recall the day before. I was wounded. That awful taste always followed a wound. Opening his eyes, Codrin found Delia sitting on the edge of his bed. He blinked against the gentle light of the candles and, silent, he ran his fingers through his tangled hair. With the returned memories came the understanding of his situation and the fears about everyone else involved in Vio’s escape.
“Don’t worry, everything is fine,” Delia said before he could speak. “Apart from the wounds.”
“Wounds?”
“Cantemir was wounded too, but his life is not in danger.”
“Orban must have caught him. What happened to Vio and Jara?” Codrin sighed and closed his eyes, trying to think what he could do. Nothing. He shook his head. He breathed deeply, as he recalled walking here in the middle of the night. Despite his attempt to leave the house, he was grateful they had made him stay because of the exhausting effort; and at least he had a night to rest and heal. I have to leave, Orban will send his men here.
“Both girls are fine, and Orban knows nothing. Even now, it’s quite difficult to understand what happened yesterday. I will tell you more when you have eaten.” She pointed to the table, where breakfast was waiting for him. And that fresh bread. “How is your wound?”
“Like any wound,” Codrin shrugged, and pulled the blanket away from his leg. He looked at the bandage: it was soaked in blood, and the bed sheet was filled with small red spots, but all seemed to be dry now. “It could be better,” he moaned, standing up.
“Lean on me. Panait ordered a cane for you; it should arrive at noon.”
He placed an arm over her shoulders and they walked together toward the table. “Thank you.” Codrin sighed and seated himself with a grimace, his jaw clenched, waiting for the pain to recede. “Now tell me,” he said, taking a piece of bread from the basket.
“Drusila came late in the evening.”
“The bitch,” Codrin snapped, “she must have had a vision. How low could a Wanderer go, to stop a young girl’s escape?”
“A vision, she claimed,” Delia smiled. “But it seems that there was another vision about her arrival, and Jara canceled everything, just when Vio was about to leave. She sent Cantemir to warn you. The moment Drusila arrived, she grabbed Orban and took him to Lady Jara’s room to show him that Vio was already gone. It seems that she even knew the exact time of her escape. They found Vio in bed. Dressed in her riding suit, but sleeping. Jara did not let them wake her daughter. I wish I could see Drusila’s face.” Delia burst into laughter.
“Then who wounded Cantemir?”
“It seems that Orban’s son hired an assassin.”
“The timing is quite strange.”
“Yes, and Cantemir put the attempt on his life on Drusila too. It may be true, but we don’t really know,” Delia said, a touch of worry in her voice. “The man vanished, even though he was a stranger, so he was good at his job. Cantemir escaped only because some servants arrived on the stairs and forced the assassin to run. Orban has banned Drusila from Arad. I don’t think that anyone will miss her, not even Orban.”
Thoughtfully, Codrin pushed away the plate in front of him, but Delia pushed it back. “You need to eat.”
“I need to think.”
“You can’t leave Arad for two or three weeks, so you have all the time in the world.” She remained silent, waiting for him to finish. “I remember the day when Vio visited our stand and found you there,” she said, after a while. “First I thought that helping her escape was a Wraith’s job, but it seems to me now that it was more than that.”
“It was a Wraith’s job,” Codrin smiled. “And more than that. I can’t hide that I know her. Can I?”
“Not after she jumped into your arms. And Lady Jara did not ask where you would take her daughter. She trusted you completely. You are ... close to her family.”
“You may be right.”
“There must be a story behind such ... closeness.”
&nbs
p; “Something not much different to meeting you in the Cursed Forest.”
“I considered that.” Delia placed her palm over his. “You are always eager to help people, but...” she bit her lip. “I am sorry if I ask too much about this. In Severin, no one seems to know Tudor, the Wraith of Tolosa.”
“Maybe now is the right time to know more about me,” Codrin sighed. “There are two protectors under my skin. One is the Wraith of Tolosa, the other one is...”
“Codrin,” Delia said and squeezed his hand gently. “We knew about a young man from Arenia who found a new home in Lady Jara’s home the same year you came here. A protector, always dressed in black and always traveling. Like you. The strangest thing was that nobody outside Severin knew about a protector named Codrin, even though he seemed to be quite successful. Merchants have their ways of learning things,” she smiled, “but I could not connect the dots until Vio jumped in your arms. I wished I had known about Codrin earlier.”
“I am sorry if I upset you, but it was better to have two separate identities. No one in Severin knew about Tudor, and no one here knew about Codrin. Until now. Don’t think that it was easy for me to live in two different worlds.”
“I am not upset. You risked your life for people you thought deserved it. My thought was that maybe we could have helped you better.”
“You helped me when it counted.” Codrin raised her hand and kissed it.
“I am just a merchant’s daughter and wife,” she said shyly, trying to pull her hand away.
He gripped it gently, not letting her escape. “You deserved it as much as some women having a title and more than some others who have and don’t deserve it.”
Delia’s eyes glimmered with that fondness mothers reserve for their children, and she remained silent.
“Does Panait know too?” Codrin asked, tentatively.
“Not yet, and I will let a few days pass before telling him. There is too much on his plate right now. Will you tell Cantemir?”
“Not yet.” Codrin closed his eyes and smiled. It will take a while to tell him.
Even after two glasses of old cognac, Verenius was not in a good mood – he had too many things to worry about. There was Cantemir’s wound, the previous assassination attempts on Cantemir that had been ordered by Aron, the attempt at an escape that may or may not have happened, and all the events of the night before that weren’t linking well. “Too many strange things,” he muttered and took another sip. It was now clear that the two men that entered the palace two nights before had acted very differently. The one who wounded Cantemir escaped through a small gate going from the garden into the stables precincts, a gate that was usually closed. The other one climbed a wall. Because a Sage was involved, Verenius did not share his worries with Orban. They did not work together. He shook his head and wondered if Orban was aware of that. And there was the other piece of weirdness he had heard just a few hours before: Lady Jara visited Panait’s stand just two days earlier. “I have to talk with Panait.” He stood up and went to the window. “It’s still early.”
If Panait was surprised at Verenius’s sudden visit, he did not show it. He was angry that the visit was not announced; Vlad was with him and Delia, but he did not show any irritation either. “How is Cantemir?” Panait asked, even though he had left the wounded man just before noon.
“It’s not a serious wound,” Verenius said. “Cantemir was at least that lucky.” He glanced at Vlad, then his stare moved to Panait.
“Sage Verenius,” Vlad nodded, before Panait could speak.
“Have we met before?”
“People meet sometimes on the streets of Tolosa.”
“Tolosa...” Verenius rubbed his chin, trying to work out if he could place Vlad there. His face was vaguely familiar, but their brief encounter had happened on a corridor in Cleuny, when the Sage visited Codrin.
“Vlad is the right hand of Tudor, the Wraith of Tolosa,” Panait interjected before Verenius could finish his thought.
“Ah, the ever elusive Wraith of Tolosa.” Verenius was still rubbing his chin. “Little is known about him in the Circle. Is Tudor here too?”
“He left two days ago. And it’s quite strange to think that Tudor is not known to the Circle when he saved Cantemir’s life three times, and he saved us too.” Panait’s hand gestured between Delia and him.
“Ah, he was the one?” I wish he had not found the letter from Aron. “Was Tudor in your stand when Lady Jara visited it?”
“Why would that be of interest to you?” Panait asked flatly.
“I was wondering if he knows her.”
“They saluted each other.”
“Could they have met again later?”
“Tudor stayed with us when the ladies left my stand, but you can ask the soldiers who escorted them. What’s on your mind?” Panait stared at Verenius, who did not seem to be at ease.
“Please excuse me,” Vlad said and stood up.
“The two men who were spotted in the palace,” Verenius said, after Vlad left the room, “they did not work together. One of them had a key, the other jumped over the wall.”
“Cantemir thought that they worked together. Maybe it was just an issue of timing, the intruders could not find each other at the right moment, or it was a strategy to leave by separate routes,” Panait shrugged. “What has this to do with Tudor?”
“What if Drusila was right about the escape? I understand that Vio has the Light. She could have had a vision too and stopped everything.”
“Verenius, I know that you are affected by the attack on Cantemir, as much as we are. And perhaps even more so because of that letter from Aron, but,” Panait looked at him with the kind of indulgent stare an adult usually throws at a child, “how could Vio have a vision about her future? And how could she leave the palace? Orban is known for his tight security, and we both know why. The Wanderers are a manipulative lot, and Cantemir is not quite on good terms with Drusila and her sister, who happens to be our Master Sage. Again, we both know why. Think about that letter again. If you are just trying to prevent Cantemir’s formal complaint against Maud and Aron, I will not help you. What will happen if we start to kill each other?”
“You are right,” Verenius said absently, thinking that he would be in an unenviable position when he returned to Leyona. “I hope Orban finds the wounded man. He may clarify some things. If Tudor returns before I leave Arad, please tell him that we need to meet.”
“He always stays in our house,” Panait said. “It will not be a problem.”
Chapter 18 – Codrin
Cleuny did not look much different when Codrin returned, carrying with him the burden of another failure. At least he was happy to have seen Jara and Vio. In the inner court, carts were lined up against the wall; the provisions Mara ordered had started to arrive in the last few days. And children were playing between them; the servants from Severin had arrived a week ago. Entering the house, Codrin tried to conceal his limp, but the pain was accentuated by the ride. At least he didn’t need help, but he could not hide from Mara’s perceiving eyes when he entered the council room; luckily she was alone. He could not hide the wound on his leg and the wound inside him. She stood up and came to meet him, embracing him, arms laced around his neck.
“Welcome back,” she said in a caring tone, and her words, voice and gesture were a comfort to Codrin.
He pulled her closer, and neither of them spoke for a while. “It’s good to be home,” he finally said.
“There are many things to talk about, but they can wait until dinner. The scouts let us know you were coming, and a bathtub is waiting in your room.”
He felt refreshed after the bath. Food was waiting for him in the antechamber. And Mara. He did not speak while he ate, and she did not try either.
“I can give you the latest news,” she said, while he was chewing the last piece of steak. “We have gathered food for six months. Laurent and Marat were most helpful; they brought more than half of our provisions. Laurent p
romised to send three more carts in a week; it seems that he was able to take over the east of Severin from Aron quite quickly. Most of it, at least. We still need to cover almost three more months.”
“Deva,” Codrin said, still chewing, his voice muffled. He swallowed, and was finally able to speak properly. “But we will send a courier from Poenari. It doesn’t make sense to gather everything here, only to transport it again. Poenari is closer to Deva. What else has happened here?”
“Nothing. Things are calm. Sava sent word that no one has come to Poenari. It seems to be a place of ghosts.”
“And you?” Codrin gestured at her.
“I am fine too.” Mara smiled, touching her belly, “and growing. Tell me what happened.”
“I failed,” Codrin said with a grimace. “I failed everyone.”
Mara stood up, and came on his side of the table, in front of him, and leaned on it, her hand resting on his shoulder. “You failed in some things; you succeeded in others. Life is like that.”
“Orban’s son tried to rape Vio.”
“Like father like son.” She looked at him, pondering how much she could ask. “Tell me everything.”
“That bitch, Drusila, had a vision about me sneaking Vio out of Arad, and she came to warn Orban. I barely escaped alive.” Codrin massaged his thigh.
“Vio?” Mara risked a difficult question, feeling that Codrin needed to get things off his chest.
“She is fine; Jara aborted the plan just before Drusila arrived in Arad. It was almost midnight. Drusila traveled through the darkness. She knew when and how I would take Vio out. At least, she did not know who helped me,” Codrin sighed. “I had to kill three soldiers and Orban was in a rage.”
“How did Jara...?
“Vio has the Light, and a vision came to her too. This thing about Vio stays between us,” Codrin said, stroking her hand. “It was strange timing, just a few minutes before Drusila arrived in the palace. And even stranger was that someone tried to kill Cantemir at the same time. It looked as if Orban’s son was behind the attempt, but that young man is not the most clever of men, and it may be that someone else manipulated him.”
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