“I’m sorry, but they...” She gestured helplessly at the mist changing under Aisha’s hands.
The pair ignored Aisha as she spoke the raider’s lines, letting Esme keep her children as long as she told them what happened in the village.
Esme flinched as Rocko came to stand beside her. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
She began to sob. “I didn’t know who to turn to. Who else might...”
He wrapped a hand around Esme’s shoulders, turning the woman to his chest. “I understand. It’s all right. Shh, it’s all right. You did what you had to.”
Aisha crumpled to the floor and Claude scooped the little girl into his arms, passing her to Brigitte when the shadow mistress reached for her.
Rocko rested his chin on Esme’s head and turned to Master Envermet. “Do you have room for three more?” he asked.
His eyes flicked around the hall, and Marsh saw why he’d asked. Several of the villagers were staring at the woman in open-mouthed dismay, and several more wore looks of fury and disbelief.
Master Envermet followed his gaze and nodded. “Yes, we do,” he answered, “and Henri and Izmay will go with her to collect her children and her belongings.”
He stood and then stepped up onto his chair, surveying the villagers and their ill-concealed anger.
“This woman and her family are under my protection and the protection of the Grotto. An attack on them is an attack on us and will be dealt with accordingly.”
“But she betrayed us all!” one villager argued.
Angry murmurs of agreement rose like a swarm, stilling when Master Envermet raised his hand.
“She did what many of you would have done if your children or loved ones had been under threat.” He paused and looked at Rocko. “Tell me, how did you stop Marius from going after his sister?”
Rocko paled. “We...we knocked him out and kept him in Liam’s cellar until he promised not to.” His face turned scarlet with shame. “And then Liam and I made sure he was never alone.”
From the looks on the faces around them, no one had known. Esme’s whisper hissed through the room. “I’m glad I never told them.”
Rocko lifted his chin and looked down at her in surprise. “You knew?”
She nodded, sniffing and dashing the tears from her eyes. “I didn’t tell them everything, only the things I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide, and even then, not everything they needed to know. There was a lot I couldn’t pretend I hadn’t heard, but I did what I could.”
She looked up at him, begging him to understand. His only answer was to wrap his arms more tightly around her. Esme leaned her forehead against his chest and began to sob softly.
One of those standing nearby turned to Master Envermet. “She will not need your protection,” he assured the shadow captain.
Master Envermet met his gaze and his lips firmed into a straight line. “Nevertheless, she has it.”
He turned to Rocko. “We can find our own way to the compound. If you can move her and her family into the room beside Marsh’s?”
Rocko nodded and then gave the room a defiant look. “There’ll be four of us,” he stated. He gave the room another look. “I won’t be leaving her again.”
14
The Missing
“Do you know where the raiders went?” Master Envermet asked when they arrived at the compound.
Master Olderman met them at the gate. “No, but from what we heard, they were worried about their families.”
“There was talk of them taking another fortress,” Master Envermet told him. “Do you know how many of them were going to try?”
“They were going to check on their families and get some help,” Olderman replied. “From what I can gather, they were expecting very little resistance once they reported that the Library had fallen.”
Master Envermet glanced at Obasi.
“Twenty should be enough,” the Grotto warrior suggested, “especially if they convince the raiders already there that it’s over and their families are safe.”
“Whatever ‘it’ is,” Lioma muttered.
“Roeglin is trying to see if he can find out,” Master Envermet reassured her. He returned his attention to Master Olderman. “How are they?”
The village head sighed. “Your healers have worked miracles,” he replied. “Without them, we might have lost half a dozen. As it is, they’re still weak.”
“When will they be able to travel?” Master Envermet inquired, indicating one of the nearby buildings.
A low wooden porch surrounded it, and several people sat along it. If they’d looked in better health, Marsh would have said they lounged. As it was, the best she could have given was that they rested, and even that was stretching the truth.
“We don’t even know how they made it this far,” Master Olderman admitted, “but I’d say some of their guards had a hand in that.”
“Truly?” Master Envermet was startled.
Master Olderman nodded. “Him and several others. They might have been doing something they hated, but they were doing it as humanely as they could without losing their families.”
“They should have fought,” Lioma grumbled, her eyes dark with anger. “We would have fought.”
“With swords at your loved one’s throats?” The town leader’s voice was gentle, even in reproach.
Lioma stared at him, and he shrugged before leading them inside.
“I talk to everyone. It helps me anticipate where the next threat might originate. Those boys weren’t it. Their leader, though?” He sighed. “We were lucky not to lose anyone.”
“Even with us.” One of the healers approached him. “Mikel, we need more savory and lavender. Is there...”
Master Olderman nodded. “I’ll send a runner.”
“If you will show me who you need?” Master Envermet began drawing his attention and let his eyes flash white.
The town leader hesitated, then gritted his teeth. “Her name is Adalene. This is what I need.”
Master Envermet stilled, closing his eyes for a few short breaths. “There,” he said after a moment’s silence. “She’s on her way.”
They approached the building, Evan and Xavier walking cautiously behind them. Mordan and the kit brought up the rear. The newly-freed slaves barely glanced at Masters Olderman and Envermet, letting them pass without comment.
It was not the same for Evan and Xavier.
Marsh was alerted to the problem when there was a sudden gasp from behind her. It was followed by the clatter of a falling chair, the thump of a person hitting the ground, and the rapid scramble of panicked limbs.
Marsh and the two Masters turned as one. Up and down the porch, prisoners were scrambling away from...
Marsh frowned. It was hard to tell. They were either fleeing from the two ex-raiders or the hoshkats. The slaves closest were eyeing each pair with equal amounts of fear. All save one.
Halfway down the porch, she rose to her feet with an oath and picked up her chair. Evan had time to lift his head and drag Xavier back as she closed the distance and took a wild swing at them.
The chair swished through the air, and both Mordan and Perdemor hit the boards on their bellies. Master Olderman took a hasty step back, and Master Envermet swayed out of range of its legs.
The woman ignored the kats and swung the chair back the other way, her eyes blazing with anger.
“You promised we’d be safe!” she shouted at Master Olderman. “You promised!”
Master Envermet grabbed a chair leg and stopped the chair before she could bring it forward.
The woman tried to jerk it free. “Let go!”
Marsh moved around to the side and gently pried the woman’s fingers free. “He did not break his promise.”
The woman stared at her, trying to pull her hands free, but Marsh refused to let go.
Tears welled in the ex-slave’s eyes. “He promised,” she wept, her gaze darting to the ex-raiders.
“They are raiders no longer,
” Marsh reassured her.
“They should be executed.”
Evan stepped forward, reaching out to touch her, but she sidled out of his way.
“Don’t touch me!” she hissed. “Don’t you ever!”
He raised his hands and backed up apace. When he spoke, he didn’t beg for forgiveness.
“What you say is true,” he told her, “and I know an apology is not enough. I can only offer to try to pay for what I’ve done by living better and finding ways to serve whichever community takes me in.”
“You don’t deserve the chance!”
Around them, others murmured in agreement, and Marsh tensed. Mordan moved to stand behind the two ex-guards, and Perdemor interposed himself between them and the woman.
Marsh watched hurt flash across Evan’s face and then saw his expression harden. “Maybe not, but my wife and children did nothing wrong, and what I did kept them alive and safe.”
The woman opened her mouth to argue, but Master Envermet interrupted.
“And let’s not forget the others you saved along the way,” he said. “What is your count now? At least a half-dozen who’d have died or been sent to the Depths if you hadn’t intervened.”
The woman paused, a sneer twisting her mouth. “Words!”
“Really?” Marsh had learned to be wary when Master Envermet used that tone of voice. “Let me show you.”
Evan gasped, but he didn’t flee. He closed his eyes and waited.
Instead of the ex-guard, Master Envermet looked at the woman. “Let me prove the thoughts I draw are real.”
She tilted her head. “How?”
Beneath her fingers, Marsh felt the woman trembling with fatigue. She hid her weakness well.
“Like this.” Master Envermet kept his head up and his eyes open so that all could see when he began using mental magic to take the first memory he found from the woman’s mind.
White mist billowed in the open space before him and shadow descended from the eaves. Darkness swirled in Master Envermet’s eyes, turning the white to silver. A village stood before them, or rather, behind them.
The woman reached for the figure, and her hand was slapped down and away.
“My children!” Master Envermet cried, then laughed in a different voice.
“You’d better hope you have good neighbors!” Master Envermet continued. “We’ll be back for them.”
“No!” Master Envermet’s voice shifted back. “No!”
He made an abrupt movement with his hand, cutting through the mist and shadow as his eyes went from silver to white threaded with black, and then to blue.
The woman glared at him, but the trembling had turned to shivers and she hunched in on herself. Marsh kept hold of her. “That was private.”
“Pretty sure it wasn’t, Giselle.” The comment came in a quiet rasp from the man who’d overturned his chair in an attempt to escape the raider-guards. “I was there, too. Remember?”
More tears came, these falling silently down the woman’s cheeks. She said nothing, so Master Envermet filled the silence for her.
“Now that you know I can take the memories from a person’s mind, let me show you why we let these men live.”
“You mean there were some you didn’t?” The man again, disbelief and curiosity warring in his tones.
Master Envermet turned to him, his face hard. “Many,” he answered, daring them to disbelieve him.
Looking at his expression, Marsh couldn’t find any room for doubt. Before she could object, though, he stepped toward her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “See?”
Marsh froze. Just because she knew what it was like to have him rifle through her memories, it didn’t mean she liked it when he did it. That and the scene where she’d rescued Evan and called the lightning down on the raider named Drew were not things she wanted to remember.
“There will be no murder.”
Master Envermet ended the scene on those words and gestured for Drew to come forward. He looked at the woman. “Do you want to see what he did that earned him his life?”
She nodded in reply, and the shadow mage picked up the chair he’d taken from her. “Then sit down before you fall down, and I will show you.”
Marsh released Giselle’s hands, and the woman sat. To Marsh’s surprise, Giselle took her hand again and held it against her shoulder, keeping Marsh beside her. Mordan cocked her head and came to sit on the other side of the chair.
The woman dropped a hand to the kat’s head, absentmindedly scratching Mordan’s ears. Mordan gave a short rumbling purr and leaned into her. She didn’t move away, even when Giselle stopped scratching and draped her hand over the kat’s shoulder.
Master Envermet waited until they were settled and then beckoned for Evan to come and stand beside him. He began by showing what had happened after Marsh kicked Drew’s body aside. The ex-slaves gasped as the women he’d saved came out of hiding.
Xavier stepped forward as the images ended, and Master Envermet once again drew forth the memory of him keeping the druid’s secret, the memory of another guard diverting attention so a young woman could escape, Arlin’s plea, and finally, Liam’s desire for sentence and execution.
He was pale by the time he’d finished, and Marsh wondered if he’d expected to have to expend that much energy convincing the ex-slaves to trust the ex-guards. Perhaps it had not just been the healers he’d been worried about.
The healers and those just freed, Master Envermet weakly assured her. I had not thought about this.
He kept his hand on Xavier’s shoulder as he let the last of the images fade.
“Are you satisfied?” he asked, not bothering to keep the weariness out of his voice.
The woman nodded and rose from her seat. Letting go of Marsh’s hand, she picked up her chair and carried it back to where she had been sitting. “They can live,” she replied. “For now.”
“Good.” Master Envermet turned to Master Olderman. “Where would you like me to speak to them?”
As if he hasn’t been speaking to them already, Marsh thought, following them as Master Olderman led them inside. The two ex-raiders followed, and Mordan and Perdemor came after.
It was lunchtime by the time they were set up, and the rest of the shadow guard and the impi came to join them, helping arrange chairs and tables and cook and serve the food. The healers who’d worked during the morning stopped to eat, and another five took their places.
“Five is hardly enough,” Lioma told Master Envermet, “but if we don’t spell them, they’ll burn themselves dry, trying to fix the broken.”
“Is it that bad?” the shadow captain asked, and Lioma regarded him with dark eyes.
“They’ll be ready to move in the morning,” she replied and glanced at their gathering audience, “if they’re willing.”
Master Envermet’s gaze grew shadowed. He ducked his head, but not before Marsh saw his eyes turn white. After a few minutes, he spoke, but very quietly.
“They need to be ready. The township can’t support them over the winter.”
“They can’t?” Marsh let her surprise show.
Master Envermet shook his head. “No. They can’t. The raiders have taken a greater toll than they’ve admitted.” He paused. “We’ll have to speak to them about that. Do you think some of your druids would mind?”
Lioma shook her head. “We might have one or two who’ll stay, but most want to get home to their families. Everything they’ve seen...” She sighed. “I can promise this, though. Sulema will send them aid before winter.”
“Are you sure?”
The female warrior nodded. “Yes. She will not let them starve, and she’ll give shelter to the rest.”
15
Negotiations
“What if we don’t want shelter?”
The question came as an unexpected shock, and Master Envermet’s jaw dropped. “I-I beg your pardon?”
“This shelter you offer,” his questioner repeated. “What if we don’t want it? W
hat if we want to go home?”
His voice crumbled on the last word, but he held it together, so it came out sounding like he’d swallowed gravel. Several other ex-slaves raised their voices in agreement.
Master Envermet closed his mouth and signaled for Master Olderman and Lioma to come to the front of the room.
“Firstly, we cannot spare the manpower to escort you to your villages.” He raised a hand as protest rippled around the room. “Not yet, and not before winter. Secondly,” and here his eyes turned white, “many of you have no homes to return to.”
He waited as many gasped. Marsh watched as some of the prisoners turned to others, demanding an explanation.
“They burned it,” one finally answered, her voice cracking. “Burned it to the ground. It’s all gone. I saw some loading the winter stores onto wagons and others herding the animals away just before they set it alight.”
One of the men turned to her, his voice rough. “Maillet is gone?”
The woman bit her lip and nodded, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes.
“But we can rebuild it, right?” He was grasping at straws, and he knew it.
The woman shook her head, and Lioma brought the conversation to a close.
“Not before winter,” she announced and indicated one of the druids. “Marceau tells me the snows will be early.”
Several members of the audience groaned, and more slumped in their chairs in defeat.
“But...” That one word brought many of them upright. “We can offer shelter for the winter and then assistance in rebuilding if you are willing to wait until spring.”
Master Olderman stepped forward. “We will accommodate you,” he began, and Master Envermet laid a hand on his shoulder.
“It is a generous offer,” he told the man, “but tell me, can Briar’s Ridge really support this many?”
Marsh could see the answer on the town leader’s face, but she waited, watching his desire to give shelter war with the reality he faced. After several long heartbeats, he sighed.
Trading By Stormlight (The Magic Below Paris Book 7) Page 12