by Victor Poole
THE SECRET JOURNEY
"He needs the exercise," the man said defensively. "He can't stand in a stall all day."
Ajalia folded her arms. She waited. The little boy began to whistle.
"Who's he?" the man asked. His fingers fumbled over the buckles.
"Horse boy," Ajalia said. "Here to exercise the horse."
The boy whistled a little louder. The man's fingers slipped over the harness. A sheen of sweat was beginning to show on the man's temples. The heaving breath of the overworked horse was loud in the stall.
"What do you want?" the man asked. "The horse stands in the stall. The horse eats. The horse is looked after."
"I want my money back for the boarding," Ajalia told the man. He began to bluster; Ajalia smiled. She waited. The man petered out. The black horse gasped. His long black legs were trembling.
"I won't give you the money back," the man said.
"Then I'll take the horse to the city guard, as he is now," Ajalia said. She stepped forward, and took the horse by the bridle. She noticed with satisfaction that the harness was well-constructed, and that it carried a blue metal bit in the bridle. The horse looked ill; his hide had filled out, and his eyes were not so dark as they had been when she had bought him, but his sides bellowed now with exertion, and he held his knees gingerly. "You've nearly killed my horse," Ajalia remarked.
"What do you think you're doing?" the man demanded.
"Taking my horse to the guard," Ajalia said. The boy hopped down from the stall, and swung the door wide open.
"Stop!" the man shouted. "That's my harness!"
"You can take it from the guard," Ajalia said, "after he hears my complaint. Since the harness is on my horse."
"No!" the man shouted. He looked deeply disturbed at the mention of the guard. Ajalia thought that he must have some kind of record. Ajalia saw Delmar coming down the walkway to the stables. The man followed her gaze. Delmar waved cheerfully at Ajalia. Leed went down the main walkway towards Delmar, and Ajalia followed, leading the shivering black horse.
"You're stealing," the man called after Ajalia. She did not respond. He seemed unwilling to confront her with Delmar closing in. "The guard will side with me," the man said.
"We'll see," Ajalia said.
"Fine!" the man shot at her back. "Fine, keep the harness as payment, and stay away from the guard. But I'll get you back for this," the man spat at Ajalia. She called to Leed, and handed the reins to him. She walked back towards the man, and put her face up against his face.
"I look forward to the day that you come after me," she said. Her voice was level, and calm The man flinched away from the look in her eyes. "It has been a very long time since I killed," Ajalia told the man, "and I miss the smell of blood very, very much." She looked into the man's eyes, and then turned away. Delmar had come up to Leed, and was stroking the black horse on the nose. The black horse sighed loudly, and shook his mane.
"I don't believe you," the man called after Ajalia. She turned back again, and her knife found its way easily into her palm.
"Ajalia," Delmar said. She had not heard him speak like this before, with real concern in his voice. She did not think he could know what she wanted to do, and yet he spoke as though he was aware. She glanced back at him. Delmar was looking at her with piercing intensity; he shook his head, just a little. She slid her knife back into its housing, and walked back towards her horse.
She heard running footsteps behind her. Delmar let out a shout as a heavy hand landed on her shoulder. Ajalia let the force of the man's grip spin her around; she ducked under his fist, and pushed him gently.
The slight force of her push, backed by his own momentum, threw the man off balance; he stumbled to the side, and fell against a wooden beam. Ajalia stood near the man, and watched him to see if he would rise. He had knocked his head against the wooden beam, and he looked a little dazed.
"Next time, I will use more force," she told him, "and I will go to the guard." She went towards the horse.
Delmar was hovering on the balls of his feet near the horse. He looked as though he had been dancing to and fro since the altercation had started, unsure of what he should do about it. Ajalia told him to calm down, and a nervous laugh escaped his lips. Leed handed the reins of the horse back to Ajalia, and she led the horse down to the very edge of the stable district, where the caravan's horses had been installed.
"Is Denai around?" she asked one of the young men working in the stalls. The young man pointed deeper into the stables, where the aisle between stalls stretched into the dark.
"Stay here," Ajalia told Leed, handing him the reins. "You too," she told Delmar.
Deep under the shadow of the wooden roof, she found the horse trader repairing a bridle at the end of the aisle. To one side, a pile of straw was heaped to the ceiling; to the other, a rough stacking system had been pegged against the wall to hold a large number of harnesses, and crude Slavithe saddles.
"Honored stranger from the East," Denai said, when he saw her. "Your master is a just man, and I thank him for his business."
Ajalia bowed respectfully. Many of the Slavithe people thought that her master was in the city, a subterfuge that she did nothing to contradict.
"My master has a journey of some delicacy to undertake," Ajalia said. "I require two of your horses, and harness to suit."
Denai's smile was broad and keen.
"Your master," he said conspiratorially "travels to the other city, does he not?"
Ajalia concealed her surprise; she nodded. Denai sprang to his feet, and began to rustle among the harness hanging on the wall.
"If your master seeks to evade attention," Denai said efficiently, "he must dress in the garb of a sailor from Slavithe, and he must hood his face."
Ajalia had seen few sailors in the city; they wore the same brown clothing as the other Slavithe, but she had seen the black hoods that they wore over their faces. The first time she had seen a sailor, she had guessed that he was an executioner, but inquiry had revealed the truth of the man's profession.
"Why do the sailors wear black hoods?" she asked Denai. She had not asked Chad as many things as she would have liked about customs in Slavithe; the more questions she asked him, the more he thought that he could tell her what to do. She had not grown annoyed enough to fire the young Slavithe man, but lately, his dismissal was beginning to seem inevitable. She put up with him because he was so honest-looking, and so simple. Chad was an excellent cover for her activities in the city.
"The sailors receive much shame," Denai explained, "for they must deal directly with the other city in trade. Much of our stone is sold to the traitors, and much of our goods are traded there for food, and leather. We do not wish this dependence, but contact is inevitable. Sailors must publicly own their shame, when they pass in the city. To see their faces would bring shame to the honest people who live here."
Denai was assembling the gear for three horses from the walls; he took down two rough saddles, and a pair of bridles. The saddles were pieced together from old scraps of leather. They looked sturdy enough, but they were ugly as sin, and their girth straps were plain flat braids of rope that tied into a leather loop. The bridles had metal bits, and were better constructed than the saddles, but the straps of leather were of different lengths, and the metal rings were made of lumpy lengths of the blue metal. The seams were all sewn with a plain brown plant fiber that stood out sharply against the dark leather.
"The third horse will have to be led," Denai said apologetically. "My gear is poor, but it would look strange for sailors to have found three functioning bridles."
Ajalia wanted to keep her questions to herself, but the contrast between the sturdy harness that currently lay over her own black horse, and the scraps of leather being given her by Denai, were absurd contrasts in terms of quality and workmanship. Denai noticed the look on her face, and he laughed.
"I must explain our ways, honored stranger," he said jovially. "I saw your own horses. Even
your asses are laden with finer equipment than our best leather goods. The workmanship of your saddles, and even of your simple head stalls, is fine and without compare."
Ajalia bent her head respectfully towards this compliment.
"Our sailors do not care for riding horses, or using them for pack animals," Denai explained. "The reliance on a horse is seen as an insult to their mistress, the sea. A sailor would rather be pulled in a wagon by servants, than ride on a horse. But the pass to the other city is not smooth, and such things as horses are necessary. And also," he added, "sailors are very cheap. They resent the money spent on harness, and hiring horses."
"I see," Ajalia said.
"If you like," Denai said hesitantly, "I could procure you the hoods, and the dressings of a sailor."
Ajalia looked up sharply at Denai. His eyes were honest; he looked nervous, as though he were afraid she would accuse him of being a thief.
"Such assistance, though valued, will not be necessary," Ajalia told him. "Your thoughtfulness is beyond compare."
Denai blushed, and smiled. Ajalia arranged for the horses to be ready in the evening. She told Denai that her boy would fetch them in harness, and she paid him.
As she walked back up the dark aisle of the stable, the patch of brilliant sun ahead shone like a blinding white fire. The figure of Delmar was just visible at the edge of the lighted square. Delmar was beginning to form a kind of blank spot in her mind; she did not know why she did not drive him away. Delmar seemed to form a part of her consciousness; he seemed almost a part of her, and she could not figure out what part of her she needed to dispose of in order to be rid of him.
Ajalia came closer to the entrance of the stable aisle, and the boy Leed came into sight. He was standing against the wall of the stable. The long reins of the horse were grasped easily in his hand; his face was turned up towards Delmar, and his face was animated, and moving in rapid speech. Ajalia saw for the first time that Delmar was well-liked by other people. She saw that the boy liked him, and trusted him. She came out of the shadows. Delmar saw her, and smiled. Ajalia hated that her heart made a thorough flip when he smiled. She felt the back of her knees weakening, almost as though she wanted to curl against him and hide. She reminded herself that Delmar was utterly useless in almost every way.
"We need to find black hoods," she told Delmar.
"Why?" he asked. "We can just go out of the city to the north. No one watches the entrance there."
"That's true," Leed told Ajalia. "That's how my uncle brings the money."
"The money that comes from your parents to your grandmother?" Ajalia asked. Leed nodded.
"There's a gap in the wall," Delmar said. "The path only leads to the other city, so no one wants to stand guard. No one goes to that city anyway, unless they have to."
"Well, that simplifies things," Ajalia said. She began to feel as though she were going to have to start keeping a list of everything that people told her, so that she could go through the city on her own, and check the veracity of the things she heard. She wondered if both Delmar and Leed would lie to her. She was not sure why they would collude in such a lie, but she did not trust either of them yet.
"I need to take care of my horse," Ajalia said. Leed and Delmar stared at her.
"I will help," Leed said.
"Aren't you going to go away?" Ajalia asked. Delmar shook his head.
"I have nothing to do," he told her.
"What do your brothers do all day?" Ajalia asked him. She had too many questions about the Thief Lord's family; it was easier not to ask much about them. She was continually boggled by the way in which Delmar seemed to float around and exist.
"Well, Wall follows my father around, to learn the business," Delmar said.
"I heard that you are supposed to be the next Thief Lord," Ajalia lied.
"You heard wrong," Delmar said. He followed her as she led the horse down to where the caravan's horses were being kept. His hand rested on the black horse's side.
"Delmar is useless," Leed told Ajalia.
"Yes," Delmar agreed. "Wall has always been next in line."
"Why?" Ajalia asked. Delmar lifted his shoulders in a futile gesture.
"I am too stupid to live," he said apologetically.
"Right," Ajalia said.
"Everyone says so," Delmar told her. Leed kicked a loose pebble that was lying in the street.
"It's true," Leed agreed. "Everyone does say that."
Ajalia greeted the slave that was leaning against the wall of the stall nearest the road, and handed over the reins of her horse.
"When you are finished with the horse, clean the harness," she told the young man in Slavithe. "You can sell all of it but the bridle."
The slave's eyes sparked at this news as he touched the heavy harness. It was sturdy, and well put together. The leather was seasoned, and the stitching was neat.
"Where did you get it?" the slave asked. He was one of the few slaves who had begun to learn the language of the white city. He had a thick accent, but his words were clear. Ajalia gestured down the main road, towards the center of the stable district.
"I was boarding my horse privately. The man was taking him out, and working him like this. I caught him."
The young man made a disapproving noise with his tongue.
"These Slavithe," the slave told her in the Eastern tongue, "they are terrible cheats."
"How is the yurl?" Ajalia asked him, also in the Eastern language. Delmar studied Ajalia's mouth as she formed the words. The sounds of the East were thick, like oil in her mouth, compared to the light and dancing words of Slavithe.
"Denai is honest," the slave told her. "Erange, the trader who wanted to house the yurl first—"
"I remember him," Ajalia said.
"He has tried three times to steal hair from the yurl's tail," the slave told her. "The old woman Erai has caught him every time. Last time, she put him before the city guards, and they fined him five hundred coins."
"Good," Ajalia said. She glanced at Delmar. She was sure he did not understand what she was saying, but something about the way he watched her made her step closer to the slave anyway. She turned her back to Delmar, and lowered her voice.
"I have taken advice of Denai," Ajalia told the slave, whose fingers over the buckles slowed. "He tells me that Slavithe who travel outside this city disguise themselves as sailors, with black hoods."
"It is so," the slave told her, nodding at once. "Denai has a side business, supplying these forays. Many of the wealthy here have deals with folk outside the harbor that they do not wish anyone to see. The Thief Lord has spies."
"I also hear there is a second way, on the north side of the city," Ajalia said, "an unguarded path."
The slave looked at her closely.
"It is not so," the slave said. "There is a tribe of ruffians, outcasts from the quarry. They prey on any who go out that pass. Denai has tried many times to gain an exit that way, but there is nothing but loss."
Ajalia nodded.
"You have done very well, Barat," she said in Slavithe. Barat lifted the heavy harness from the black horse; the slave's dark eyes darted quickly to Delmar, and then to Leed. "Keep the profit from the sale of the harness," Ajalia told Barat in the Eastern tongue. She glanced into the stalls behind Barat, to see if any other Eastern slaves were nearby.
"I am alone," Barat said.
"Have you gone into business with Denai?" Ajalia asked in the Eastern language. Barat gave her a swift nod. "Good," Ajalia said. She nodded towards Leed. "I'm going to give you the boy after a few days. Use him. He has an uncle in the band of robbers you mentioned."
Barat looked appraisingly at the boy.
"What is your name?" Barat asked the boy in Slavithe. Leed stared at the fine pale fabric of Barat's clothes, and of the narrow ring of beads he wore twisted through his thick hair.
"Am I going to work for you?" Leed asked harshly. Barat nodded. "Are you going to pay me?" he asked.
"
Not unless you're exceptionally clever," Barat said. Leed stared up at Barat.
"I'm Leed," the boy told him.
"Barat," the slave said. They shook hands.
"Can you get me two pairs of hoods without telling Denai?" Ajalia asked Barat. Barat nodded.
"I will have them any time you like," Barat said.
"Have someone clean my horse," Ajalia said. She rubbed the black horse behind the ears, and he grunted wearily. "Come on," she told the boy, and walked towards the little house.
THE SCARS
"Are you going to use the pass I told you to get out of the city?" Delmar asked Ajalia. He was still following along beside her, bouncing up and down, his hands thrust into his pockets. He glanced at the boy, and lowered his voice.
"Have you read the book yet?" Delmar whispered.
"No," Ajalia said shortly.
"Can I read it?" Delmar asked.
"Not yet," Ajalia said.
"Why not?" Delmar asked. "When are you going to read it?"
"Does this guy follow you around a lot?" Leed asked Ajalia.
"Yes," Ajalia told him.
"Why?" Leed asked. Ajalia shrugged. "Why are you following her?" Leed asked Delmar.
"She likes me," Delmar told Leed.
"No, I don't," Ajalia told Leed.
"Yes, you do," Delmar told Ajalia. "She does," he told Leed.
"I don't," Ajalia told Leed.
"I don't care," Leed said. "I think he's right," he told Ajalia. "I think you do like him."
"Why would I like Delmar?" Ajalia asked.
"Because I don't try to get things from you," Delmar said.
"You tried to get the book from me," Ajalia said.
"What book? Can I see it?" Leed asked.
"The book doesn't count," Delmar said. "Anyway, you like me better than Philas."
"Who's Philas?" Leed asked Ajalia.
"Philas is in love with her," Delmar said.