The Price of Hate

by Kyle Alexander Romines

  I raise an eyebrow. “What can you do?”

  She puts her hands on her hips. “I grew up in a tavern. I learned how to patch up battered girls when I was eight.”

  Maybe it’s the receding adrenaline, but time becomes a blur. While the rest of us work to put out the fires and secure the camp, Arlo helps Wren remove the arrow and close his wounds. Fortunately for Bast, it appears the arrow’s tip wasn’t poisoned.

  It’s late when Bast regains consciousness, and many of the others are asleep. I’m awake to keep watch on Wren, who lingers by Bast’s side.

  “Am I going to die?” His voice is weak.

  “I don’t know. You’ve lost a lot of blood.” She searches his face in the dark. “Why did you save me?”

  “The world needs people like you more than me.”

  There are tears in her eyes. “You don’t know anything about me.”

  “I do.” Bast sounds half-delirious. “When I saw you for the first time, I knew.”

  Wren frowns. “Knew what?”

  “That you were different.”

  Wren looks at him as if she’s seeing him for the first time.

  “My sister used to sing too.” He starts to speak again but lapses into unconsciousness.

  After that, things begin to change. Or maybe they’ve been changing for a while now, and it happened so gradually I hardly noticed until now. Duke spends most of his time off with Talon and Kade discussing further plans. Arlo was right. He’s changed somehow—become mistrustful and suspicious. The spirit of unity that followed the goblin attack quickly breaks down. With Kade backing him up, Talon grows bolder each day, and soon he and Bast are up in arms over his not-so-veiled threats to Wren. Meanwhile, Arlo becomes more and more withdrawn. He’s haunted by our actions in Siren’s Vale.

  I learn about Duke’s exchange with Shane secondhand through a conversation with Søren. He’s sent word to each of the city’s most powerful nobles offering to return Wren safely to the highest bidder. Apparently, all we have to do now is sit back and wait, but it’s not that simple. Søren and I followed the goblins’ trail to a stronghold in the mountains. The band that raided our camp was just part of a larger force. Even if the goblins haven’t attacked again, they know we’re here now, which complicates the plan to ransom Wren. The sneaky devils have eyes everywhere.

  We’ve enough to worry about as it is. According to Shane, the Sheriff of Widow’s Vale has arrived in Siren’s Reach. The trail of bodies we left behind in Siren’s Reach was bound to catch up to us sooner or later, and word of our role in Wren’s abduction must have reached his ear. The sheriff has brought a host of men who scour the east in search of our hideout. Despite the danger, Duke refuses to abandon the plan. He’s hellbent on blood and gold, no matter the cost.

  No one has changed more than Bast. Their shared ordeal has forged an unlikely friendship between Bast and Wren. They spend most of their time together while Bast recuperates from his wounds, and he tells her things I’ve never heard him share with the rest of us, especially about his sister. In turn, Wren tells him about her life in Siren’s Reach. Wren was unaware she was Laird Ward’s bastard until after his death, and she confides to Bast she’s found herself lost and alone in an unfamiliar and hostile world since. She’s an ordinary girl forced into a dangerous life not of her choosing—not unlike Bast himself.

  He’s falling for her, though no one sees it but me. I notice it in the little things—looks and gestures made when he thinks we’re not looking. Bast lights up whenever Wren speaks. It’s as if he’s rediscovered part of himself he thought was lost forever. She’s putting together the pieces of his broken heart, and neither realizes it. They stay up late talking long after the others have gone to sleep.

  “We moved around a lot after we left Buckley. Nowhere was safe, so we kept to the road and traveled from place to place.” Bast sits across from Wren at the campfire as I listen from the dark.

  Interested, Wren leans forward. “What was it like for you? I’ve spent most of my life behind the city’s walls.” She wears a new dress, which Bast gave her to replace the torn and stained one she’d worn since her abduction. He paid Shane for it out of his own pocket. It’s a simple commoner’s dress, the most Bast could afford, but it’s clean and suits her well.

  “It wasn’t all bad. We were together, and that counted for a lot. We came across an old bard who joined us on the road. Abner was his name. He was starving when we found him. We didn’t have much food, but Fern convinced me to share what we had. She was kind that way. She never thought of herself—only others.”

  “A bard? What was he like?”

  Bast smiles at the memory. “He loved stories. Abner had this laugh that made the stars shine brighter. When Fern got sick, he traded his lute for medicine. It was the only thing he had. He stayed with me after she died. Sometimes I think his stories are the only thing that kept me going.”

  “What happened to him?”

  “Thieves robbed us on the road to Tindale. Stripped us of everything we had. I don’t think they meant to kill him. It all happened so fast.” A shadow crosses Bast’s face. “I understood them better after I started stealing to survive. You’re lucky you’ve lived your life in a city. Life out here is cruel.”

  Wren scowls and crosses her arms. “You’re not the only one who’s known hardship. City life can be just as cruel. I never had a father, and my mother abandoned me when I was just a girl. Do you know what it’s like for a little girl growing up in a dockside tavern?”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

  Wren’s expression softens. “I tried to leave once, when I was younger. The priestesses at Brigid’s temple wouldn’t take me because of this.” Her fingers graze the birthmark around her eye. “They said it was a cursed mark, that I was the child of a monster and no one would ever want me.”

  Bast’s brow furrows. “They were wrong. I think you’re beautiful.”

  She chuckles. “You’re kind.”

  “No. I’m not.” There’s a hard edge to his words.

  For a while, neither speaks. Then Wren glances around the camp. “Why are you with these people, Bast? You’re not like them.”

  He stares at the ground, as if unable to hold her gaze. “It was different when I joined. We only stole from those who deserved it. We fought for those who couldn’t fight for themselves. Now it’s just suffering and death wherever we go. I feel like I’m drowning.” Finally, he meets her eyes. “I’m not sure about anything anymore. Anything but you.”

  Wren changes the subject abruptly. “If you could do anything you wanted, what would it be?” She shivers in the night air, and Bast rises to feed the flames and settles next to her for warmth. When Wren lays her head on his shoulder, he stiffens initially but then relaxes.

  “I’d want to see the world like old Abner. What about you? What do you want?”

  Wren stifles a yawn. “To be free. To go somewhere where I can live an ordinary life, away from all this ugliness and pain.”

  Bast smiles a little at the thought. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”

  Wren, already asleep, doesn’t answer, and Bast strokes her hair and remains still so as not to wake her.

  “You’re a fool to get close to her,” I say at last.

  “Berengar?” Bast’s smile falls away. “You’ve been listening to us.”

  I draw near to the fire and hold my hands near the flames for warmth. “I’m missing an eye, but I’m not blind. I see the way you look at her.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Bast tries his best to appear indignant, but he stops stroking Wren’s hair.

  “You think I don’t know what love looks like? You watch Wren the way I used to watch my wife.”

  “You were married?” Bast’s mouth opens in surprise.

  I haven’t spoken about this with anyone—even Duke—but something compels me to tell Bast. “Her name was Rhona. I was lost when I met her. Broken. She healed my heart with her love. Seeing th
e two of you together…it reminds me of us.”

  “What happened to her?”

  “She died years ago. Childbirth.” I don’t mention our daughter. I can’t say the words. “You’re an outlaw, Bast. Wren is our hostage, and a noble at that.”

  “Wren’s not just some noble, and you know it. She’s different.”

  I shrug. “Maybe so, but she’s still our hostage. This doesn’t end well for her. You can’t let your feelings get in the way of what has to be done.”

  “Better not to have any feelings at all—like you?” Bast has changed more than I thought. He usually doesn’t show this much backbone, especially with me. “It must be easy caring about no one but yourself.”

  The stupid idiot can’t see I’m trying to help him. He’s one of the only people around here I actually like. “Don’t do something you can’t take back. You’re one of us. You’re not a part of her world, and you never will be.”

  The next day, Duke returns with Talon and Kade from a trip into Siren’s Reach and calls a meeting. We gather around his tent while Faolán keeps watch over Wren, who’s been intentionally excluded.

  “I’ve got good news, lads.” Although Duke, all smiles, acts like his old self again, I can tell something’s up. “I know things haven’t been easy since we lost Harald and Doyle, but our luck is about to change.” He nods in my direction, as if what he’s about to say will undo the past. “Clan Ó Mordha, the second most influential family in Siren’s Reach, wants to marry Wren to one of their sons and make her their puppet.”

  Bast’s mouth becomes a thin line. “I bet they do.” He mutters the words so softly only I hear.

  When Duke reveals the amount of gold Clan Ó Mordha is willing to pay, every man in camp is stunned—including me. It’s more money than we could spend in a lifetime. Duke savors the moment of triumph before continuing. “But my friends, we’ve had an even better offer. The late Laird Ward’s cousin, Taskill, is next in line to the throne and wants the threat to his position removed.”

  Bast’s face finally betrays his discomfort. “Removed?”

  “Taskill wants us to bring him her head, and he’s willing to pay significantly more than Clan Ó Mordha. He’s also agreed to send the sheriff packing once he takes pwer.”

  Sensing Bast is about to make trouble, I clear my throat to get Duke’s attention. “Is it really necessary to kill the girl? Clan Ó Mordha is already willing to pay more gold than any of us have ever seen.”

  “Necessary?” Duke’s gaze narrows in my direction. He’s never liked having his decisions questioned, but he’s always tolerated it from me in the past.

  I can’t let it go that easily. Bast was right. Wren doesn’t deserve this. “She’s just a girl, Duke.”

  “She’s a noble. I would have thought you of all people would understand.” Duke regards me with suspicion. “The decision’s been made.” That’s his way of saying it’s not up for debate.

  One way or another, Wren dies.

  I find Bast readying his horse for travel. Duke set out with the others hours ago. He left us behind with Wren in case Taskill crosses us.

  “Going somewhere?”

  Bast flinches at the sound of my voice. “Are you spying on me now?” He brushes past me before I can answer. He’s hardly said two words since Duke made his pronouncement.

  Something’s not right. Bast normally isn’t this jumpy. I inspect one of his saddlebags and find a satchel filled with silver—our silver.

  When I look up, Bast has an arrow pointed at my face.

  “You don’t want to do this, Bast.” I remain motionless, but my voice becomes a menacing growl. I don’t like being threatened.

  Bast warily regards Faolán, who snarls and bares her fangs. “Call off your hound.”

  “Faolán, stay.”

  Faolán obeys, but her gaze remains fixed on Bast. If I wanted, she’d be at his throat right now.

  Wren, a short distance away, looks from Bast to me. “Bast, what’s going on?”

  “Don’t move.” Bast makes sure to keep the bow trained on me while backing away. “I won’t let them hurt you.”

  Her expression darkens. “I don’t understand. What are you saying?”

  “Your uncle wants you out of the way. He’s paying us to kill you.” Bast eases off the bowstring and cuts through Wren’s ropes. “I’ll get you to safety, but we have to leave now—before the others return.”

  “You know what this means.” Even though Bast has taken the bow off me, I keep my distance. “What do you think Duke will do when he comes back and finds you two gone with our silver?” Nothing’s more important to Duke than loyalty. “He’ll never stop hunting you. Are you willing to throw your life away—for her?”

  Bast’s eyes never leave mine. “Aye.” He helps Wren onto my horse and mounts his own. “Sorry to leave you stranded here, but I can’t let you follow us.”

  “I thought you were one of us.”

  “So did I.” Bast spurs his horse forward, and the pair ride off.

  Hours pass before Duke and the others return. The others take the news of Bast’s betrayal poorly. Søren even mentions something about cooking him alive, though it’s hard to tell when he’s joking. Talon thinks I was in on it, that Bast never could have escaped unless I allowed him to. He’s only half-wrong. I hoped Bast would leave my horse behind so I could track him and Wren down and return them to camp with the others none the wiser. Now it’s too late for that.

  The camp devolves into shouting and threats spurred by anger and greed. It’s no surprise—we’re a company of thieves and cutthroats, after all. This was always about vengeance, not gold, for me. Somehow Duke manages to calm us down even with everyone at each other’s throats. Although he defends me from Talon’s accusations, I can tell he has his doubts.

  “We need that girl. We’ll hunt them across the whole kingdom if that’s what it takes.” Duke calls me over as the others make last-minute preparations to leave camp again. “I know things haven’t been the same since the abduction, but I need you with me on this, Berengar. You and Søren are our best trackers. I want Bast found. He has to answer for what he’s done.”

  “He’s young. He made a mistake. It wouldn’t be the first time someone did something stupid over a girl.”

  Duke frowns. “You think I want this? That boy was lost when he came to us. So was every man here—me included. Bast stole from us. He chose her over us. That I can’t forgive. Are you with me or not?”

  This is what it’s come down to. Bast or the gang.

  “Fine. I’ll do it.”

  We split up to cover more ground. I head north with Arlo and Kade. From the alcohol I can smell on his breath, it’s a wonder Arlo manages to stay in the saddle. He has the look of a man who’s given up. I saw it in the war.

  “Tracks.” I whistle to Faolán. “It’s Bast alright, and Wren too.”

  Arlo merely grunts in response. He’s unusually reserved, perhaps because he’s fond of Bast.

  I know what Duke will do to Bast if he gets his hands on him, but Wren was always going to die. Maybe that’s why her fate never troubled me. I tell myself not to care—that she’s just some girl. My daughter was just some girl to someone once. I find myself thinking about Elyssa again as we follow Bast’s trail from Hollowfall. When did I become so numb?

  “This road leads to Siren’s Reach.” Kade regards Arlo and me with a puzzled expression. “Why would he take her there?”

  Arlo checks his empty flask to make sure there’s nothing left. “Easier to lose us in a crowded city, I’d wager. And it’s the last place we’d want to be, given that the sheriff’s taken up residence there.” He almost sounds amused.

  I turn to Kade. “Go find the others. Tell them what we’ve learned. Arlo and I will ride ahead and search for Bast.” If I can find Bast before the others, there’s a chance he still walks away from this if he gives up Wren. He came back for me in Redmyre. I owe him that much, at least.

  Getting into Sir
en’s Reach unnoticed isn’t easy. I spot a few of the sheriff’s men among the guards. If Bast and Wren came this way, they’ll probably try to keep underneath the guards’ notice as well. Even Bast isn’t fool enough to think Wren’s status as Laird Ward’s heir will keep her safe, not if her own uncle’s after her head. There’s no telling who else Taskill has bribed.

  Shane points us toward the same neighborhood where we abducted Wren. He thinks it’s the first place she’ll return. Maybe, but we don’t have much luck in our search, and I’m very persuasive at making people talk. Even Wren’s few friends haven’t seen her, which suggests she and Bast are lying low.

  To make up for lost time, Arlo and I decide to part ways and meet back in an hour. Unsurprisingly, he volunteers to pay a visit to the tavern where Wren grew up and mutters something to the effect of staying there for a while.

  “What’s wrong with you? Duke gave us a job to do.” If he thinks I’m letting him get roaring drunk with the sheriff’s men and the city guards searching for us, he’s got another thing coming.

  “I have enough on my conscience without that boy’s death.”

  “Bast broke the code.”

  “You still think this is about loyalty?” Arlo scoffs. “Duke wants his gold. That’s all.”

  “Duke’s trying to do right by us.”

  Arlo looks tired. “I’ve known Duke a lot longer than you have. Let me tell you what loyalty really means to him. Duke got every man in the old crew killed because of his greed. He uses people and then discards them. He’s good at fooling others—even me. I remember when Duke told me that he became an outlaw after the local lord hanged his mother. Sometimes I wonder if he even bothers to keep track of all the lies.” He sighs. “Don’t worry. I’ll do what I’m told. I always do.”

  “His wife. Duke told me it was his wife.” I tell Arlo to try the nearest temple while I make my way to the tavern. After I’ve jogged a patron’s memory with a few lumps and a close look at Faolán’s fangs, someone in the tavern suggests I try the almshouse. Apparently, Wren used to spend her spare time caring for the sick. That must be how she picked up the skills to patch up Bast.