“Since when have I believed you were a bit much?” Ranik grinned.
“Why do I put up with you?”
“I know you have a certain sense about the weather and other things, but I also know now that it isn’t magic. You don’t need to throw your arms about.”
“But the pay’s better when I wave my arms.” Jenner waved his arms again. “And now I sense that Ranik has news for me.”
“But you can’t guess it?”
Jenner playfully shoved Ranik’s shoulder. “Try to resist telling me. I know you won’t be able to.”
“There’s a boat that sails tomorrow for the Halo Isles.” He pointed to the mast with the tattered red flag at its tip. “They’ll make a stop in Caratia first, but then they sail to the Isles.”
“Are you mad?”
“No one else is likely sailing to be sailing to the Halo Isles until spring,” Ranik argued. “This might be our only chance.”
“That boat is nothing but trouble for you.”
“And exactly how do you know that? The wind tells you?”
“I know things you can’t possibly realize. That you can’t possibly understand.” His tone was sharp.
“Because you never try to explain,” Ranik shot back.
“We’re not sailing on that boat. You’d be mad to go anywhere near that crew.” When Ranik opened his mouth to argue, Jenner held up his hand. “That’s the end of it.”
* * *
Jenner’s cot was empty when Ranik woke the following morning. He went up on deck and found the harbor cloaked in a fog so heavy he could hardly see the helm of the boat. He called for Jenner but got no answer. They’d argued all night about the Halo Isles and he knew Jenner was still angry with him.
Pulling his wool cap down over his ears, he hopped off the boat and went to the tavern. Jenner wasn’t there. He bought a few butter rolls from the baker, who had also not seen Jenner, and then headed out to the jetty, thinking Jenner might be giving an early weather report.
With the fog, Ranik couldn’t make out the end of the jetty and he picked his way along the slick rocks carefully. The gray water blended seamlessly with the fog. He heard voices and squinted, expecting to see the crowd of fishermen from the day before. But the fog seemed to close around him and the only figures he saw were blurred. From the water’s edge, he couldn’t make out the town behind him, nor see where the rock jetty ended. He heard footsteps and spun around, still not seeing anyone.
“Jenner?”
“Jenner’s not here,” a voice said. “My brother’s busy. Seems he had to settle a fight that I started at the tavern. Our mother’s got a bloody lip and I’m guessing Jenner will be worse off than that by the time the fight’s done.”
“What have you done?” Ranik asked, straining to see where the voice was coming from.
“He needed a break from you. Turns out you hadn’t told him your little secret.” Jenner’s brother was suddenly standing ten feet away. “Seems he had no idea that you stabbed a man—called me a liar. Did you know there’s a bounty for your arrest? A certain king wants you to stand trial for murder.”
Ranik clenched his fists. He’d never wanted to strike a man as much as he did now. “You don’t know a thing about what happened. I was trying to help a man with his crates—”
Something hard struck the back of his head. Ranik fell forward onto his hands and knees, the rolls from the baker tumbling out of the sack and onto the rocks. He tried to stand up but was shoved down again. When he turned to see his attacker, he recognized the man from Captain’s boat—the one he’d seen mopping the deck yesterday. Jenner’s brother was gone. A foot landed in his side and before he could call for help, the man cuffed his ear. As Ranik struggled, a gag was shoved in his mouth and his wrists were bound behind him.
“Get up then,” the man said, kicking Ranik’s ribs.
When he didn’t move, he was pulled roughly up to his feet. He tried to walk, stumbled and then fell again. Gray rocks swirled into the gray water and his head pulsed.
“I’ll drag you,” the man threatened, kicking him again.
Ranik got to his feet again and eyed the sailor.
“It’s rude to stare,” the sailor said, as he punched Ranik’s jaw. “Now watch your step.”
The sailor led him down the road to the docks. Ranik squinted to see anyone, but the fog was a thick blanket, shrouding him from anyone who might be his witness. The man turned and prodded him down the planks until they reached Captain Asa’s boat. Anchor was on board, his arms crossed. Captain stood next to him.
“You’ve turned the wrong man against you, Ranik,” Anchor said. To the other sailor he added, “Hurry it up. We’ve been waiting to leave.”
The sailor pushed Ranik aboard and Captain then directed him below deck. With his arms tied behind him, Ranik struggled with the rope ladder and then fell the last few feet, taking the brunt of it on his shoulder and side. The sailor hopped off the ladder and kicked Ranik as he moved past him. “Go on, get up.”
He led Ranik through the sleeping cabin to the back storage hull and pushed him inside. As if an afterthought, he ripped out the gag and smashed the back of his fist on Ranik’s face. Ranik fell back, trying to stop the stream of blood at his nose. The door slammed shut. A scrape of metal as the latch lock slid into place confirmed that he’d been locked in the hull. The sailor hollered through the door, “Make yourself comfortable. You’ll be calling that home.”
When the boat began to move, Ranik felt his hope of Jenner finding him quickly vanish. He yelled and slammed his weight against the door repeatedly, but no one appeared.
Finally he sat on the floor boards and managed to shift his arms in front of his chest. He tried biting at the knots. After several failed attempts, he loosened one end enough to slide his wrist free, chafing his hand until it bled in the process. Once free, he buried his face in his hands and let the tears flow. Jenner would think that he’d left him without even a goodbye—and sailed to the Halo Isles alone.
Hours later, he heard the shuffle of boots in the galley and then Anchor’s voice. “I’m coming in with a plate of food and your water flask, so don’t try anything damn foolish.” The metal bar screeched as he unlocked the latch.
Ranik blinked in the light and edged back from the doorway. “What the hell is going on, Anchor?”
“Just take your damn water and food and be happy I like you enough to feed you.” He held the water flask out and Ranik grudgingly reached for it. He was more thirsty than hungry. Anchor set the tray of bread and smoked fish on one of the crates. He started through the doorway and then paused, “Ranik, it’s your mistake that brought you here so don’t go blaming me. I’m glad you got the ropes off. I thought that was a bit overdone, but Captain insisted. And, I’m glad to see you’ve still got your flute tied on your belt. I’ve missed your music.”
Ranik seethed at Anchor’s pleasantries. “You know what happened that day. You saw it was an accident.”
“But you stabbed him all the same, didn’t you?” Anchor said. “Were it my choice, you’d be up on deck with the rest of us, but there’s no bargaining on that one. Captain didn’t even want you fed.”
Ranik didn’t try to stop Anchor. He watched him leave feeling worse than ever. That his knife had been in his hand by chance was something no one would believe. He sat down on a crate and stared at the food. His mind spun back to the details of his last conversation with Jenner. Had he gone out early that morning to find if anyone else was sailing to the Halo Isles as he promised? Had someone come to tell him about his brother’s fight at the tavern and Ranik slept through it? Or had he left early because he was upset?
What bothered him most was that he hadn’t told Jenner about the stabbing. It had been on the tip of his tongue too many times to recount. Partly it was guilt, partly it was the nightmares. He’d hoped they would stop without him having to explain anything. And now it was too late.
Chapter Thirty-Six
The boat reach
ed Caratia eight days after leaving Crag. On the evening they docked there, Anchor came into the storage hull with the sailor who had attacked Ranik. They bound him and Ranik didn’t try to fight the ropes until one was slipped around his neck.
“It’s only for show, Ranik. I know you won’t try and make an escape. But if you say a word, Cecil here will beat you senseless.”
Cecil grabbed Ranik’s elbow, his other hand jerking on the end of the rope at his neck. When they jumped off the boat onto the dock, Anchor was replaced by Captain. As they marched him past the other boats, they passed the spot where the trader had fallen on Ranik’s knife, and Ranik felt his stomach clench. Tears welled in his eyes and he could hardly convince his feet to keep moving. Cecil was more convincing, providing a punch to his kidney when he’d stopped.
At the gate, the guard asked to see the captain’s paperwork. Instead, Captain pointed to Ranik. “I’m to meet with the king’s counselor. He’s wanted for murder.”
“I didn’t murder anyone,” Ranik said, risking another punch.
Cecil grinned back at him. “Course you didn’t, boy. Only seems you lost a knife in a man’s gut. Heard all about it the last time we were down here.”
The gates swung open and Cecil marched Ranik forward. Few people passed them, and those that did gave Ranik little notice. It was as if they had grown used to the sight of prisoners and had no reason to look twice. They entered a barn and the sounds and smells of the horses were a strangely warm welcome. The similarities to the barn in Glen Ore ended there. This one was bustling with the noise of soldiers and reeked of urine.
One of the soldiers approached, eyeing Ranik first and then settling his gaze on the captain.
“You’re wanting a reward for bringing in this one?”
Captain nodded.
“Follow me.”
Ranik kept his eyes down. He watched the soldier’s boots march up a flight of stairs and felt his throat thicken. His fate was sealed. Captain pushed Ranik forward. With his hands still bound and Cecil tugging on the rope at his neck, Ranik hated every miserable step up the narrow staircase. As they reached the end of the climb, Captain turned to Cecil and said, “Wait down in the barn.”
Cecil hopped down the stairs, whistling happily. Captain looked over at Ranik, meeting his eyes for the first time that night. “I’ve always liked you well enough. But your bounty’s more gold than I’d make in a season of trading.”
The door opened before Ranik could argue his case and Captain gripped Ranik’s elbow, pulling him in alongside him. They entered a small room, stifling hot with a fire burning in a stone fireplace and crowded with a handful of soldiers.
“Captain Asa,” someone said, coming forward.
“Counselor,” the captain replied, bowing his head. “I trust you received word I was on my way.”
“No, but I’ve been expecting you all the same.”
Clearly made uncomfortable by this, the captain shifted his feet and pulled on Ranik’s rope. “Here’s the man the king set bounty for—the one who’s wanted for the trader Alekander’s murder. Ranik’s his given name.”
Captain punched his fist into Ranik’s side, shoving him forward. Ranik stumbled, caught his balance and looked up at the man who had come forward to inspect him. He was the tallest in the room, by far, and had the stout build of a soldier. His skin was pale, offset by a trim dark beard and curly dark hair.
Ranik looked down at the carpet when he caught himself staring at the man. Under any other circumstances, he would have been distracted by the man’s good looks. Now he just felt sick, though the feeling was made somewhat more confusing by the fact that he had any impulse left to feel an attraction for a stranger. His eyes were a brilliant blue and Ranik knew they were still trained on him, though he refused now to meet the man’s gaze. Something about this man, beyond the obvious shared Northern blood, reminded him of Jenner.
“Counselor, about the bounty,” Captain said. “There was gold promised for bringing him in—for the murder of Alekander.”
“Attempted murder. And, yes, you deserve that reward.” The counselor held a leather pouch out and Captain quickly snatched it from him. Coins clinked as the pouch slipped into his pocket.
Attempted murder? Ranik’s mind spun. The man hadn’t died?
“I don’t think he’ll run. He hasn’t the grit for making an escape.” A moment later, Captain added, “Though, clearly, he has it in him to pull a knife on a stranger.”
“Clearly.” The counselor’s tone was strangely distant as if he’d already forgotten about Ranik, the crime, and everyone in the room. After a moment, he said, “Would you like to join us for some ale, Captain Asa?”
“Another time.” Captain glanced at the doorway. “I’ve got a full crew and a loaded ship. We sail tomorrow after we unload and I need all the men aboard.”
“There’s always a certain risk in docking your ship at a port full of crowded taverns. Sailors will find their way to mischief, won’t they?”
“My thoughts exactly.” Captain eyed Ranik as if he was a prime example. He gave the counselor another bow and then turned to leave. Ranik watched the door close behind him, clenching his teeth to keep away tears. The familiar boat and crew had provided some measure of assurance that in time all would be righted. Now he realized his stupidity.
“I doubt that’s a knife you have hidden in there.” The counselor gestured to the leather sheath that protected the flute which hung from his belt. “Captain Asa wouldn’t allow a prisoner to keep one, I’d wager. Though, you don’t look like much of a brute anyway, truth be told. I’d doubt you would hold your own in a knife fight even if you were armed.”
Ranik felt the gaze of everyone in the room on him and heard a few chuckles. He kept his eyes down, focusing on the red rug under his feet. “It’s a flute. I’ve no weapons.”
“Ah, a flute. You’re a musician…He doesn’t seem like much of a threat to any of us here, now does he?”
A handful of voices agreed with the counselor. The counselor went over to the fire, the other men stepping back to make a space for him. He stretched his hands toward the flames and then closed his eyes for a long moment.
“Raleigh, untie him, will you?”
Raleigh was Ranik’s height and of a similar build with the darker features of a Southerner. With a sneer, he slid a knife along Ranik’s wrist, close enough that the icy blade shaved the skin as it cut. Once he’d cut both cuffs, he stepped between Ranik and the door, as if expecting his next move would be to catch Ranik escaping.
Ranik rubbed the chaffed skin on his wrists. “I won’t try to run,” he said, eyeing the soldier behind him. “I know what they say I’ve done, what crime I’ve committed, but the truth is a man fell into my knife after someone shot him with an arrow.”
The counselor cleared his throat and turned away from the fire. “Unfortunately for you, that man is one of the king’s closest allies.”
Ranik tried to repeat that it was an accident, but the counselor held up his hand and continued, “It doesn’t matter if you are innocent or guilty, my friend. We only need someone to take the blame for this. And to be certain, the king doesn’t really care if we have the right man or not.”
A few men nodded their heads at this and then someone said, “Too bad he didn’t kill him. Always more entertaining to watch a murderer hang than an attempted murderer rot in prison.”
The counselor waved his hand at this, ignoring the low hum of laughter that followed. “Even attempted murderers are hung if the king has any say in it.”
The soldier guarding the door chuckled at this, and the others began placing wagers on his head and laughing over their mugs of ale. Ranik interrupted with, “I can tell you who tried to kill that man—who shot the arrows. My knife gave him no more than a flesh wound, but I saw the bowman’s face clearly. And I know the one he was with—a Northern fugitive.”
Raleigh said in a joking tone, “Never can trust those Northerners.”
Sev
eral men laughed. Most of the soldiers other than Raleigh looked as if they had Northern blood. Another soldier added, “So it was one of our kin, of course. Maybe it was you,” he smacked the shoulder of the man next to him and added, “Those murderous Northerners!”
“No one would believe you,” the counselor said, approaching Ranik. The room went quiet. The counselor stood only a few feet from Ranik, and his expression was fixed. “Captain Asa said he witnessed you stab Alekander. His first mate confirmed the story. The king wouldn’t have minded if you’d tried to kill anyone else, really, but as I’ve said, you picked the wrong man to cross. King Bairndt has been close friends with Alekander for years. He’s bent on making him a general.” The counselor handed Ranik his mug of ale. “Take a sip. You don’t look well.”
Ranik held the mug in his hands, but the swirling amber made his nausea worse. There was an exchange between the counselor and the soldiers and then everyone started filing out of the room. Ranik’s mind was reeling.
As the door shut behind Raleigh, the last of the soldiers to leave, the counselor went over to the armchair by the fire. The room was suddenly quiet enough to hear the crackle of the flames.
“Sit down. We have a lot to discuss, you and I.”
“Why don’t you order me hung right off—if I’m to have no fair trial? You’ve explained that my innocence means nothing. What is there to discuss?”
“What we discuss should not be shouted across the room. Please come sit down.”
Ranik noted the change in the counselor’s tone. Reluctantly, he went to stand by the stone fireplace. He could feel the counselor’s gaze on him but wasn’t ready to meet the man’s eyes.
“Something you want to say?” The counselor asked.
“You remind me of a friend.” Ranik was surprised he’d admitted it aloud.
“Is your friend a forecaster?”
“How’d you know?”
“When you first came in, you looked as if you recognized me,” the counselor paused. “Forecasters can seem alike. Is this forecaster your lover?”
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