Alecia still gripped his fingers. “You were angry once when I told you that you would find him one day,” she said. “I still believe that with all my heart.”
“He is probably just a pile of bones in the bottom of some ravine, Alecia. For all I know, he just went hunting and fell upon trouble. When I was younger I used to tell myself we would meet again one day. I think it’s something the young do to cope with loss. Once I passed my thirtieth year, I decided to let that particular fairy tale go.” He looked at her. “You’ll have to let yours go as well.”
“What are you referring to?”
“Your father. Let the dream of a normal relationship with him go, Alecia. Be glad that you had a loving mother who gave you the strength to survive and the judgment to know right from wrong. You’re blessed in that.”
She laughed and didn’t like the harsh sound of it. “You’re the only blessing in my life, Vard. For the rest, the Goddess can take it and do with it what she will. I don’t need my father. So you see, I’ve already let go of the dream of being close to him again.”
“You haven’t. But it’s normal to delude yourself. I told myself I didn’t care that I had lost everything dear to me, but when I realized I cared very much, I was able to grieve that loss. It will happen in its own time.”
“Might we speak of something else?” She had let go of the dream of closeness with her father. Had she not been planning her revenge on him just that morning? “Let us remember something happy before we settle for the night.” Alecia reclined in Vard’s arms and they talked of their childhoods until they grew sleepy.
The next morning, Alecia awoke to a faint lightening of the forest that heralded the dawn. Vard was already up and had a fire crackling in the pit. After a breakfast of oatmeal, they retraced their steps to the trail and continued into the forest. The trees were as quiet as they had been the day before, except the mournful cry of an owl seemed to follow them as they rode. Alecia wished it would cease its serenade and go to sleep like owls should at that time of day. Even Vard appeared ill at ease. He rode with his hand on the hilt of his knife. Alecia imitated him, traveling just behind and to the right of Swift.
She tried to keep her mind on the surrounding trees, but the gentle sway of her horse lulled her mind. Before long, her eyes drooped. She began to sense movement in the trees to left and right but when she turned her head, there was nothing to be seen. She had just convinced herself that it was an illusion when a man swung out of the forest and landed in front of them on the trail. Their horses lurched to a halt, snorting and fussing.
Alecia’s heart thudded and she blinked, trying to focus on the intruder whose skin was dark, almost black. He was tall and slender, clothed in a deep green tunic and leggings, knife at the hip and quiver over his shoulder. A short bow with a nocked arrow was trained on Vard. She experienced a moment’s irritation that the man didn’t think her worth his regard. She wished she could make out more of his features but the light was too poor.
Vard had frozen, and his eyes seemed locked on the man, his body poised for action.
The dark man slowly stood erect, his attitude all haughty self-assurance. His eyes had not left Vard. “Dismount and throw your weapons on the ground between us,” he said, his voice deep and guttural, the words running together.
Vard dismounted and threw his knife and bow onto the road, then drew his sword and laid it gently atop the others. Alecia did the same and stepped back beside Vard.
“Who are you?” she asked and saw Vard shake his head out of the corner of her eye.
“You ride through my province and ask me that question?”
The man’s eyes glowed in the gloom, and Alecia noticed that a dark headband with three silver leaves ringed his forehead. Short black curls covered his scalp leaving his small ears bare. If you could call them ears; they had no lobe and were pointed at the top.
“So this is your country?” Alecia asked.
“Mine and my brothers.” At his words, a dozen dark men stepped onto the track. They had the grace of hunters and all carried small bows and long wicked knives. The headbands of the dozen had only two silver leaves. None looked friendly.
“Who are you?” the dark hunter asked.
“I am Anton,” Vard said, “and this is my companion. . . Allandra. We seek passage through this forest to Amitania.”
The leader made a gesture to the others and they surrounded Vard and Alecia, their knives extended. “Amitania has not existed for centuries.”
Alecia bore the gaze of the dark man. Did his eyes have vertical pupils? “Regardless,” she said, “that is where our journey takes us.” She couldn’t help the air of authority that infused her words. “I ask again, who are you?”
“I am Caele Aloe, the leader of this party of Sis Lenweri, and you are my prisoners. Do not try to escape.”
“Gir Aloe, I didn’t know your people inhabited these parts,” Vard said.
Caele Aloe’s eyebrows shot up. “You address me by my rank. You have experience of the Lenweri.”
Vard nodded. “Your silver leaves denote a sergeant.” He turned to Alecia. “Gir in their language. The Lenweri are elves. I’ve heard the Sis Lenweri are a faction of the Lenweri, intent on taking back kingdom lands.”
“I don’t intend to discuss Sis Lenweri goals with a human.” Disgust hung thick on his words. “You will, however, get your wish, Anton,” he said. “We will take you to Amitania, or what is left of it. My people have renamed it Elvandang. It is a place of dark magic such as the world has not seen. Our leader will decide what we should do with you and the woman, if woman she is. I have not seen a female of your kind dressed as a man before.”
Alecia bristled. She stepped forward and met Aloe’s eyes. No, they were not those of a cat, but the pupils were more oval than round. “I’m a woman, Aloe, and I’d appreciate it if you would call me… Allandra.”
He seized her upper arm and she gasped as pain stabbed through her muscles. “Shut your mouth,” he sneered. “There will be time enough for talking once you are presented at Elvandang.” He turned to his men. “Bring the horses.”
They formed up with Alecia and Vard in the center and the elves on all sides. Aloe set a brisk pace and soon Alecia was having difficulty keeping up. Her stomach cramps returned and she relied on her grip on Vard’s arm to keep her moving forward.
Aloe called a halt. “At this rate we will never reach Elvandang before dark. What is the matter?”
Vard almost snarled. “Allandra is unwell. She can’t keep up this pace. Let her ride.”
“Watch what you demand. You have no power here, though it appears you are used to wielding it.”
“Let her ride,” Vard said.
The two men stood eye to eye as the seconds ticked past. Alecia would have held her breath if she had breath to spare but she was just grateful for the pause in the trek.
Finally, Caele Aloe grasped Alecia’s arm and propelled her to her horse. She mounted and they continued on, setting a pace that meant her horse had to jog to keep up. The elves must be superhuman to have that stamina. The trotting of the horse was little better than being afoot. She was soon exhausted from the effort of controlling her movements in the saddle, so her side wouldn’t cramp. She barely had time to notice the forest they rode through, though she saw Vard watching the trees as he always did.
Finally, blessedly, they slowed to a walk. The forest they passed through looked just the same. Was it a little lighter? The slower pace of the horse lulled Alecia in her exhausted state until she dozed. The next thing she experienced was being gently prized out of the saddle and cradled in strong arms. Her head lolled on a hard shoulder as she was taken into a dark place and laid on something soft that smelled of moss.
She roused herself and looked up as Vard moved away from the makeshift bed. “Where are we?” The walls around her were rough-hewn and moisture trickled down the stone. It smelled of earth and water and mold.
“Amitania, or what’s left of i
t. We’re beneath that stone tower we saw from the mountains. They have our weapons and refused to say how long we’d be kept here. How do you feel?”
She smiled. “I’m well, but this place is cold and… ugh.” She shuddered and shook her hand as a cockroach scuttled across it. “I hate cockroaches.”
“We’re below ground in some type of chamber, perhaps these were dungeons.”
“What are the Lenweri doing here?” she asked. “Father said he had sent them back to the farthest reaches of the north, that their numbers were so low they wouldn’t trouble us for centuries.”
Vard frowned. “I’ve been wondering the same thing. I’ve come across them before but further to the north when I was a lad. We’d occasionally trade with them. Back then, they were peace-loving.”
“I don’t think Father knows he has a hive of his old enemy this close to Brightcastle.”
Vard joined her on the bed and pulled her against him. “They aren’t on kingdom lands so perhaps not.” He pulled her against his body. “Get some rest while you can and try not to worry.”
Alecia snuggled against him and closed her eyes. Exhaustion made sleep come quickly.
Chapter 5
The sound of grating metal woke Alecia. The wooden door swung into the room and Caele Aloe stood there, a burning brand in his hand. Shadows danced on the walls and a gust of wind threatened to extinguish the flame.
“You will come now. Alen Leth demands your presence. No doubt he would like to know why you dared to enter our realm.” Aloe glared at them, his gaze unblinking.
She looked at Vard and he shrugged.
“Lead us to Lord Leth, Gir Aloe,” Vard said.
Aloe led them out of the cell and another of the Sis Lenweri fell in behind them. Again a brisk pace was set, which Alecia found hard to match with her mind still fuzzy from sleep. They turned a corner and entered a long stone hall where they took a flight of steps to the surface. They exited through a trapdoor in the stone floor and she blinked in the weak light of a new day. At first, she thought she was in a forest, then began to make out the shapes of towers and pillars under the trees and vines. As she looked further she gasped at the size of the metropolis that stretched as far as the eye could see.
“My master does not like to be kept waiting,” Aloe said, before leading off again through the jumbled stone.
Alecia had to pick her way with care but Vard was always close by to lend her an arm. As they walked through the ruins she saw few structures remained intact. In some areas, the elves came out to gaze at the strangers. They appeared to have used the loose rocks and stones to construct their own houses, weaving roofs out of vines. Smoke rose from chimneys in most of the residences. They picked their way along what must have been one of the main thoroughfares of the city, past the facades of once grand palaces and halls. The stone here was white and intricate carvings showed through the greenery. Alecia even saw the shimmer of quartz, much the same as the façade of her palace in Brightcastle. It was rumored that a witch had helped fashion the Zialni castle. Perhaps the same sorceress had helped construct the outer shell of these buildings.
Their journey brought them to a palace at the end of the promenade. They skirted the ruins of a gigantic dry fountain, which housed the statue of a woman, breast bared, one intact arm pointing at the palace as if showing the way. The head was missing, so Alecia could not have said whether the woman was accusing, directing or something else.
Broad steps led from the plaza to the front entry of the palace, the white stone cracked and broken in several places, though someone had tried to tidy as much as possible. Aloe led them straight up the steps and through the arched entry that had once held a door. Now there was nothing to bar their way, but Alecia felt a prickle up the hairs of her neck as they crossed the threshold. She looked at Vard and found him frowning. He stopped and Aloe spun to face him.
“What is it now, Anton?” His demeanor reeked of impatience and perhaps fear of keeping his master waiting.
“We just crossed a warding. Why is this place guarded by spells?”
“My master is a busy man. He likes to know who is close by, hence the magical barrier you call a warding.” With that, he turned and strode off across the huge hall to another set of steps. These internal stairs had been restored, and they led to a circular gallery that gave access to numerous rooms. The doors to these rooms were decorated with flaking gold paint. Alecia stopped at the top of the stairs and looked around, but Aloe beckoned them on again to a door that lay just to the right at the top of the stairwell. He knocked and waited.
The door swung open, seemingly on its own, and a voice said, “Come.” It had all the authority of absolute command.
Aloe stepped across the threshold, and Alecia followed along with Vard, wiping her suddenly clammy hands. She looked at Vard, but his eyes were riveted to the man who stood behind a desk in a corner of the room. He appeared not to be a kingdom man but neither was he elven. There was a nagging familiarity about him.
Alen Leth was large, as tall as Vard, with long graying hair and a neatly trimmed beard. He was dressed in a royal blue robe trimmed with gold thread, but the mantle couldn’t hide his powerful shoulders and muscular torso. Alecia couldn’t have said how old he was, but wrinkles marred his tanned visage. It was his eyes that captured her attention. The gold flecks in his irises were obvious even at that distance. She was trapped by his gaze, lost in its depth, mesmerized so she couldn’t move.
“Come,” Leth said, and Alecia moved forward, her eyes never straying from the man who commanded her, until an arm blocked her path.
“What are you doing?” Vard’s voice shattered her trance. She broke the eye contact and gazed up at her beloved. He was addressing Leth.
“Never mind that,” Leth said, “What are your names?” His stern tone left no room for defiance. It was a beautiful voice and Alecia imagined him serenading her. A ripple of anticipation ran up her spine at the thought.
Aloe stepped forward before Vard could speak. “The woman is Allandra and the man, Anton, or so they say. I suspect they are not their true names.”
“It is no matter,” Leth said. “The truth will out in good time.” He turned to Alecia. “A woman in men’s clothes. This is intriguing.” He came out from behind the desk, and she watched as he slid his hand along the smooth wood. He possessed an artist’s hands, with long fingers, and for some reason she imagined them on her body, giving her pleasure. Again his eyes trapped hers.
Leth walked around her and she fought the desire to grasp his hand. What was this? The only similar experience she could recall was when she first met Vard, but this was so much stronger. It was all she could do to resist this stranger with the compelling voice and hypnotic hands.
Leth paused in front of her. “You should be attired in silks and brocades not tunic and breeches. Though. . .” His eyes ran down and up her body, “this costume does show off your considerable attractions.” He looked at Aloe. “You will be handsomely rewarded for bringing this woman into my abode, Gir Aloe, well done.”
“May I leave now, Alen Leth?” Aloe said.
Alecia glanced at the Sis Lenweri and found a troubled shadow in his gaze.
“Be about your duties, man.” Leth’s gaze shifted to Vard. “And Anton, in you I sense a kindred spirit, if a little underdeveloped.” His eyes narrowed. “Do not be a fool, man. If you shift now, I will bind you in the transformation, so you will never leave your chosen form. Is that what you wish?”
A muscle twitched in Vard’s jaw as he grasped the amber talisman at his throat. “I wish for your help.” His voice was strained. “And I wish for you to keep your gaze from Allandra.” Alecia watched the gold flecks in his stormy green eyes flare and subside with his control.
Leth snorted. “You’re in my province, Anton. I hardly think you’re in any position to make demands. What is this help you require?”
“I seek a shape shifter who can teach me my gift. Are you that man?”
; “I think you know what I am but as to whether I am the one to teach you, only you can decide.” A sly look came over his face. “You may stay and find out if you wish.” He looked at Alecia. “Perhaps some exchange can be arranged.”
“Allandra isn’t part of the bargain,” Vard snapped.
Leth’s eyebrows climbed his forehead. “I do not need to bargain to attract a beautiful woman. It will be up to Allandra what she does. My bargain will be between you and me. Leave now and I will think on what you have said. Ade Gyndis will show you to your rooms where you can rest and break your fast. We will talk at a later time.”
Leth turned his attention back to the papers on his desk, their presence seemingly forgotten. Alecia found herself disappointed to be leaving him.
They were guided from the room by the young Sis Lenweri corporal, back around the curving balustrade to rooms on the opposite side of the atrium. Gyndis ushered them into Alecia’s room where a breakfast of steaming oats, fresh rolls and honey was laid out on an ancient stone table. Alecia immediately sat on a small stone bench, spooned honey and milk onto her porridge and reveled in the first fresh meal she had had in a week. She didn’t feel ill this morning but was ravenously hungry. Her eyes followed Vard as he inspected the room, flicking a tapestry aside and peering from the windows and into a tall wooden cupboard.
“What is the matter, dearest?” she asked, between mouthfuls of oats. “Come and break your fast. You must be starving.”
“This place unnerves me. Something isn’t right.” He paced across the room and turned to face her. “First we are treated like criminals and now we are guests.” His eyes fell to the feast before him. “But I am hungry.”
“Then put aside your worries and eat. We must be grateful for small fortunes.”
Vard broke a bread roll, spooned honey onto it and used the bread to scoop the porridge into his mouth. “This could be a trap of your father’s making.”
Alecia laughed. “Your old soldier’s habits amuse me, Vard,” she said, eyes sparkling as she watched him shovel his breakfast in, as he had on the road. “Lord Leth has provided utensils for us. We have not been on the road so long that our manners should desert us. As for the other, I don’t think my father’s arm stretches this far. As you said earlier, we’re not in the kingdom now.”
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