Deepwoods (Book 1)

by Honor Raconteur

  He shook his head in wry amusement. “Siobhan. Giving your name to him like that is an astonishing gesture of trust and affection. Didn’t you learn ten years ago? Trusting someone like that is powerful.”

  She opened her mouth to retort, thought about that first moment when Rune had realized she’d given him a family name, and the joy on his face, and couldn’t find a way to argue. Intellectually, she’d known that naming people in Wynngaardian culture was huge, but she hadn’t really understood it until she’d seen that expression of Rune’s. Even after that, though, she hadn’t thought of it as a gesture of trust. But in Wynngaard, where a name meant everything to a man’s reputation, it would be a colossal offering on her part.

  “Didn’t you realize how important it was to me, ten years ago?” Wolf asked her softly. “Despite all my bad history, you trusted me completely. That trust was healing to me. It’s your absolute trust in Rune that’s healing him.”

  “I didn’t think of it as a gesture of trust,” she responded, feeling her way through the words as she said them. “He reminds me so strongly of you, what you were like the first year in Deepwoods. You were so cautious, so bewildered by kindness. The first time that you asked if I wanted to go somewhere with you, I wanted to just hug you because I knew you’d finally opened up to me a little. And when Rune asked to teach me how to skulk, I felt the same then, too.”

  “That’s trust, Siobhan,” he assured her patiently. “At that point, I trusted you enough to ask. He trusts you enough to ask.”

  She sat there and thought about it, but the whole situation still didn’t make sense to her. “Giving him the Maley name really means that much? I mean, it took a solid three months of working on you to get you to that point!”

  “Yes, Siobhan,” Wolf said patiently, “it really means that much.”

  “But that doesn’t explain why he’s bonded with everyone else too,” she objected.

  “I think it’s helped that the whole guild is working with you as well. When I came in, Grae thought you were insane to take me on and only Beirly was open to the idea. This time, it’s not just you trying to win him over.”

  Also a very good point. “Still, that’s a load off my mind.”

  “He’s not completely won yet.” Wolf shrugged slightly. “That’s just going to take more time. But he at least trusts that you trust him, and that makes all the difference.”

  Her mouth curled up in a satisfied smile and she leaned her head against his shoulder. Hearing all of that did her heart good and she just let his words sink in so that she could bask in them for a while.

  After a long moment of silence, he asked, “You have plans for tomorrow?”

  “I was going to check in with Jarnsmor, see if I could get a more accurate head count of who we’re escorting, start making plans of our own. Other than that, nothing. You?”

  “Beirly hit upon the idea of teaching me how to build a handcart. He said if all we need the cart for is pulling supplies along the path from one city to the next, then we don’t need to bring Kit every time. We’ll do a trial version up here, sell it, then make a better one when we’re home again.”

  Not a bad thought, that. Without the additional weight of Kit, the load that Grae had to carry would be drastically reduced. “You think you can pull a cart that has the whole guild on top?”

  “If it’s designed right, two strong men can manage it.” Wolf shrugged. “Besides, it won’t be the whole guild. Tran and I will probably be pulling, and Grae walks in front. At that slow pace of his, I think we’d be fine.”

  Those two put together could move small mountain ranges. She didn’t doubt that if they put their minds to it, they’d manage. “Keep me updated on that. I’d like to know if it worked.”

  “We’ll likely have to load everyone into the cart to test it, so I think I can safely promise you that.” He grinned at her, a brief flash of white in the darkness.

  Struck by the image of Wolf with a tool in his hand, she couldn’t help but ask, “Do you even know how to build something?”

  “Not a bit. But Beirly informed me he gave me a natural hammer,” Wolf held up his iron right hand in demonstration, “and it’s about time I learned how to use it.”

  She snorted. “He does rather have a point.”

  “I certainly couldn’t think of a way to argue with him.”

  “Well,” she shrugged, “I think that as long as you don’t manage to accidentally cut off your other hand, you’ll be fine.”

  ӜӜӜ

  Siobhan awoke slowly, not quite sure why she felt the need to awaken. Something seemed out of place, or more like, she sensed something that she shouldn’t have. Puzzled, she raised her head from its pillow and looked around the room. Her roommate was still dead asleep in the other bed, only her dark hair visible. Soft moonlight and shadows flickered through the window, indicating the sun wasn’t anywhere close to rising. It felt like the wee hours of the morning.

  Her ears perked at a foreign sound. Aside from her and Sylvie’s breathing, another sound rose and fell. Cautiously, she shifted to look over the edge of the bed and at the floor.

  There, curled up on his side, lay Rune. He was fully dressed, sans boots, eyes closed as if fast asleep. Now when did he get there? For that matter, why was he asleep there? She knew for a fact that he had a perfectly good bed to sleep in, not two doors down.

  An old memory flashed through her mind. Wolf used to do something like this, the first year he’d been in the guild. He’d never entered her room, but he’d propped himself against her doorway many a time, dozing. It had taken her years to finally get him to confess why he’d done so. Wolf admitted that on the nights he had the darkest dreams, it comforted him to know that she was there. Just being able to hear her breathe, peacefully sleeping, gave him a sense of well-being.

  She stared at Rune’s sleeping face for a long moment. Was it the same? Had Rune felt compelled to sleep near her for a similar reason? Or was there something else going on that she didn’t know about?

  Siobhan still found it strange that Rune had attached himself to her so quickly and with such devotion. Conli hadn’t thought it so. Neither had Wolf. Rune had tested her several times, done things to irritate her or make her uncomfortable, but she’d never rejected him because of it. Conli said that once Rune felt sure of her, he hadn’t needed anything else.

  The proof of that could be seen right in front of her eyes.

  Had she adopted an assassin, or had he adopted her? It was hard to tell.

  Either way, it wasn’t something she wanted to stay up all night debating with herself. She grasped the extra quilt laying at the foot of the bed and leaned up on her knees long enough to shake it out and lay it carefully over Rune’s sleeping form.

  Of course, he awoke the second that the blanket touched him. He didn’t start awake, just opened one eye and looked up at her.

  “Everything alright?” she asked him softly, barely more than a whisper.

  “There’s no danger,” he whispered back.

  That didn’t quite answer my question. Shaking her head slightly, she decided not to push it any further. “You’re not cold down there?”

  He dragged the quilt up around his shoulders a little more. “I’m fine.”

  Shrugging, she let him be. He was the one that would wake up with a crick in his neck, not her. Instead she rolled back into her bed and let her eyes fall closed. If he wanted to sleep down there, she’d let him.

  “Siobhan.”

  Her eyes flew open. He’d never called her by her name before. “Yes?” she responded carefully.

  “Did ya really take in Wolf knowi’n he was from a dark guild?”

  “I did,” she admitted. Now, where had he heard about that?

  “Ya trust him in spite of that.”

  “I trust him because of it.”

  Rune twisted about to look up at her. “What?”

  “I trust him because of it,” she repeated. “Because I know that he hated living
in that darkness. He’ll do everything he can to avoid it. He’ll never let us fall into it, either.”

  His brows furrowed together as he turned that over in his mind. “Did ya…did ya take me on thinki’n I’d be like him?”

  “No.” She had to be careful how she answered this. “At first, I honestly only wanted you to help me. I was desperate for help. But I hoped you’d be like him. I see the same potential in you as I did in him.”

  A strangely content expression settled over his face. He almost looked like he was smiling, although the faint light of the room made it hard to be sure. With a nod, he rolled back over to his side and curled up again, as if going back to sleep.

  Siobhan rolled onto her back and let out a low breath. Phew, why did she feel as if she’d just passed some sort of test? That conversation had been vitally important. How, she still wasn’t quite sure. Perhaps Rune wanted to know if he really could become like Wolf, an accepted member of a good guild? Come to think of it, she hadn’t yet made it clear to him that he was welcome to stay in Deepwoods if he wanted to. She’d discussed it with every other member of the guild, but never when he was within earshot. Did he even know that he could stay if he wanted to?

  She rolled over and stole a peek over the side of the bed. This time he truly did seem sound asleep, as his breathing had deepened to an almost snore. Considering how little rest he normally got at night, she was loath to wake him up. Besides, there should be a certain timing in telling him such an important thing. Some wee hour of the morning while he was asleep on her bedroom floor didn’t seem like the right moment. She’d have to either find the right moment or create it later.

  Sighing, she flopped onto her back with a slight squeak of springs.

  Now how in the world was she supposed to go back to sleep?

  ӜӜӜ

  Siobhan studied the list in her hands as she walked back toward the main building of Iron Dragain. Nortin had thoughtfully written one out for her, as well as the predicted schedule of when they were expected to be ready to leave, all in neat penmanship. It looked like they’d be ready to go by the end of next week, which was faster than she’d anticipated. Siobhan silently sent a prayer of thanks to the gods. She didn’t know how much longer she could keep Wolf and Tran out of trouble in this city. They tended to stay near the compound in case trouble arose. Which led to a different sort of trouble occurring on a regular basis. She’d argue against it, but their concerns weren’t exactly groundless. They weren’t sure of Fallen Ward’s tactics. Would they attack again? Do something else entirely? So far no one had been able to predict what that guild would do.

  She shook the worries away and focused on the list again. For now, she needed to find Grae. Now that they had a list of people and equipment, they could estimate how much weight it would be and he could start building a path to Quigg. Siobhan really, truly wanted to get those architects to Island Pass before winter really hit Wynngaard. They were a good month and a half away from season’s change, but it was already getting colder by the day and she wanted to be safely home before she got buried under twenty feet of snow.

  As they’d learned from previous experience, a path buried in snow did not work well.

  Another body slammed suddenly into hers and she stumbled back a step with a grunt of surprise.

  Two strong hands caught her arms and steadied her. “Sorry, Siobhan, sorry!” Conli apologized, but he was already pushing past her and running before the words could fully leave his mouth.

  She blinked, startled, but instinct had her turning and chasing after him. Conli rarely looked rattled, but when he did, it was usually because someone was seriously hurt. “What happened?” she asked, lengthening her stride into a jog.

  “Pyper came to me with a message,” he said, not slowing his pace. The dog, hearing her name, barked once, tail wagging, but she kept running too. “Wolf and Tran are hurt.”

  “WHAT?” Siobhan demanded in open dismay. “Weren’t they with Beirly building something?”

  “A cart, yes, near the docks. Someone over there lent them the tools. Denney’s message wasn’t long on explanations. She just said grab a bag and a lot of bandages.”

  Well that didn’t sound good.

  Siobhan followed close on his heels, weaving through the narrow, maze-like streets of Sateren. Pyper ran ahead with great confidence, as if absolutely sure of where to go, but if not for her, Siobhan and Conli would have gotten quickly lost.

  Eventually they exited the city through the Sea Gate, letting them out near the docks. The smell of the sea hit her strong here, mixed in with fish, tar, and some other unidentified scents. Pyper went around the corner, passing a dry dock with a half-finished ship on it, and through a doorway that led into what appeared to be a warehouse. Siobhan blinked as she went from sunlight to the dimmer interior of the building, letting her eyes adjust. She barely processed the worktables on both sides of the room, and the tools and wood shavings lying about before her eyes fell on the bloody scene in front of her.

  What looked like a half-finished wooden box lay on one side, part of it smashed in. Next to it was a stack of cut lumber, which Wolf was using as a seat. Wolf had a nasty cut at his temple, multiple lacerations and bruises along his arms, and it looked like a large splinter was sticking out of his thigh. Tran lay on the ground near the other side of the half-finished cart, and his condition wasn’t much better. His nose looked broken, eyes already swelling under the pressure, and the way that he had two hands protectively over his stomach spoke of an injury her eyes couldn’t see.

  Conli hesitated at the door, torn between whom to go to first. “Who’s bleeding?” he finally blurted out.

  “Tran first,” Wolf rasped out past a bloody and split lip. “I think I might have broken a rib.”

  Swearing, Conli dove for the other man.

  Siobhan lifted her eyes to the ceiling and took in a deep breath. She let it out again slowly. Another breath in. Another breath out. “Beirly.”

  Her handyman had been kneeling next to Wolf, as if preparing to pull that huge splinter out, but as she called his name, he looked up grimly. “Siobhan.”

  “What. Happened,” she gritted out between clenched teeth.

  “They got into a fight.”

  “Obviously.” She pinned him in place with her eyes, making him flinch at the obvious anger she was exuding. “Over what?”

  “Um…who could work the fastest?”

  “Why, why did you have them work on it together?”

  “I thought that if they had a task to work on, they wouldn’t get into pointless fights!” he protested in his own defense.

  She honestly didn’t know who to kill first at that moment. Beirly, for his good but misplaced intentions, or the other two for their rash stupidity.

  Breathe, she ordered herself sternly. Breathe. They’re some of the best friends you have. You can’t give into temptation and strangle them. “Conli. How bad is Tran’s condition?”

  “Thank the gods he’s so sturdy,” Conli responded without taking his eyes away from his patient. “I don’t think it’s broken, just badly bruised. If we wrap it and he takes it easy, he’ll be fully healed in a month.”

  “Wolf?” she asked steadily.

  “Looks worse than it is,” Wolf assured her. “Head wounds are always messy.”

  “Good.” Another breath in. “Let me make this clear to the two of you, as apparently you didn’t understand it before. If I find you fighting each other one more time, I will finish what you start and you won’t be walking home. As it stands, you’re on half pay until the end of next month.”

  Neither man dared to utter a peep of protest about that.

  “Beirly.” She waited for him to look up at her. “Your next task is to build a cage large enough to put them into it. If I see them even arguing, one or the other will go into that cage, even if I have to stuff them into it personally. You got me?”

  He nodded vigorously.

  Spinning on one heel, she whirled
sharply about and stomped out of the warehouse. “Rune!”

  Like magic, he appeared at her side, landing from…somewhere. Where had he been perched this time, anyway? She hadn’t even sensed his presence. It was his habit of always spying on people that led her to believe he was nearby.

  “Yes?” he asked, lengthening his stride to keep up with her.

  “Lead me back to Iron Dragain, I have no idea how to get there,” she ordered sharply.

  “Yes ma’am.” He eyed her sideways as he led her back through the Sea Gate and into the city. “Yer…scary when mad.”

  She gave him a cutting glare. “Then why aren’t those two louts intimidated?”

  “Don’t know,” he admitted frankly. “I am, and I ain’t the one in trouble.”

  Siobhan snorted. Maybe after so many years of being exposed to her glare, it had lost its impact on those two?

  “If they fight again, ya can always tell ‘em I’ll assassinate the next person that starts it,” Rune offered helpfully.

  Siobhan lifted her lip in a snarl. “Don’t tempt me.”

  In an effort to move things along and get home quicker, Siobhan ordered every able-bodied man—this excluded Tran, whose ribs were too sore and tender still—to help Grae build a path to Quigg. Since they had an accurate head count, and knew how much weight to calculate for, Grae could start building the path that very moment. She expected him to build a sunflower pattern, as that would be more than sufficient not just for their own group, but any future groups of people and equipment Jarnsmor sent down. Grae surprised her by announcing that morning over breakfast that he instead felt it prudent to build an evergreen pathway, something capable of handling over one hundred people.

  Siobhan had outright winced. The evergreen pattern took a lot of stones and it would not be an easy matter to collect enough for a path back to Quigg. Grae calculated that he would need 5,670 stones in order to build the path.

  Everyone groaned— well, everyone except Rune, who hadn’t yet had the dubious pleasure of assisting Grae in pathmaking. He followed along with a curious look on his face as they all trooped out of the city and toward the coastline. Grae had scouted out a good location for a path the day before while waiting for exact numbers to come through, so he led them straight to a spot that was up above the tide line but close enough to the sea to gather water as needed.