A Fugitive's Kiss

by Jaime Clevenger

  The soldier’s face was turned away from her, but when Aysha recognized Darin’s profile, her heart leapt to her throat. She ran to her and then stopped short, waiting to see her chest move with a breath… Her eyes blurred with tears. She knelt and took Darin’s hand in hers. Her skin was still warm. A gash split the side of the uniform and blood darkened the material. She looked up from the wound to Darin’s face. Her lower lip was cut and a smudge of blood tracked from the lip down her chin. One cheek was dark red and swollen. Aysha longed for Darin to open her eyes. She called to her softly, but she didn’t respond.

  “She hit her head when she fell on Alekander,” Ranik volunteered. “She was knocked out.”

  Aysha nodded, taking in his words slowly. If she was unconscious because of a head wound, maybe the cut at her chest wasn’t as bad as it looked. As she teased the fabric from the chest wound, Darin groaned. Swallowing down a wave of nausea, Aysha stared at the split in the flesh; it had penetrated through the muscle to the bone. Memories of the king’s slashed belly flashed in her mind. But Darin’s wound wasn’t pouring blood as the king’s had. There was only a trickle…and Darin was still breathing. Aysha repeated this in her mind as she pulled off her cloak. She scanned the room for something to wash the wound. The dining hall was in disarray. Most of the chairs were overturned and on the far side of the table were two bodies. Aysha spotted a pitcher of ale on a bench against the wall.

  “Ranik, hand me that pitcher. I’ll need you to cut strips from my cloak. We’ve got to bandage the wound before she loses more blood.”

  “Alekander’s allies will regroup and come back here any minute. They’ll be wanting someone to hang for his murder,” Telvin said. “You don’t have long to work. We’ve got to get her out of here.”

  “Darin killed Alekander?”

  “Everyone thinks she killed him,” Ranik said quietly. He slid his knife lengthwise along Aysha’s cloak and then held up a strip of the fabric. “There were forty witnesses or more and they all watched the fight between Darin and Alekander—they all saw her sword in his belly. But that was after he fell on the ground…I’m not even sure Darin realized Alekander already had a knife in his back when he ran for the door.” Ranik’s eyes darted to Telvin’s. “For some reason she didn’t stab him right off. I don’t know why she waited.”

  “He’s dead,” Telvin said. “That’s all that matters.”

  No one spoke as Aysha poured the ale over Darin’s wound. Her groaning was loud enough to attract a soldier in the corridor. Telvin quickly waved him off but then grumbled about Aysha taking too long. Two ribs had been nicked and the muscle between them oozed bright red blood with each breath, but the knife hadn’t penetrated deep. If the bleeding stopped and the wound didn’t fester… Aysha wished for once that she was a witch with a secret spell to ensure that Darin survived. As it was, she could only trust the few skills she knew.

  When she’d finished binding Darin’s chest with the strips of her cloak, Aysha leaned back on her heels. An ache of worry left her feeling hollow inside. “I can’t take her back through the tunnel. There’s no way we could carry her in that tight space and she can’t walk.”

  “One of my men is waiting with a wagon at the back door of the kitchen. You’ll all leave together,” Telvin said, immediately silencing Ranik’s questioning look.

  He and Ranik lifted Darin’s body and carried her quickly through the hall to the kitchen. One of Telvin’s guards waited there. He ran to open the locked door and then led the way to the wagon.

  Once Darin was loaded onto the blankets in the back of the wagon, Telvin turned to his guard. “Raleigh, take them to my quarters. Don’t stop for any reason.” He glanced from Ranik to Aysha. “You’ll wait for me there.”

  There was a shout and then the clatter of boots. Telvin spun on his heel and slipped back through the open kitchen door without another word. Ranik watched his back disappear. His face clouded. Whatever faults she saw in Telvin, Aysha realized, Ranik had seen something different in him. And tonight he’d saved them all.

  “Get in,” Raleigh said. “We’ve got only minutes before someone remembers to lock the castle gates.”

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Every breath sent a spasm of pain down Darin’s left side. She kept her eyes closed, trying to focus on the sound of wagon wheels crunching on the gravel and the rhythmic clomp of hooves. All she could smell was the sickeningly sweet, metallic scent of Alekander’s blood. When she’d pulled her sword out of him, an arc of blood had shot out of his belly to spray the air. It was everywhere—on her hands, on her sword, and in the shadows all around the wagon. When she tried to move, its stench flattened her.

  Hours passed. She heard Aysha’s voice and then Ranik’s—soft murmurs of half-finished thoughts. She couldn’t ask how bad the wound was. Maybe she’d die in the wagon. Maybe she’d never look at Aysha’s face again. This thought made her finally try to open her eyes. Stars spotted the sky. She craned her neck forward and saw Raleigh holding the reins. One of the wheels hit a rut in the road, and she bounced off the floorboards. The spasm of pain doubled her up. She coughed, tasted blood, and then Aysha’s hands were on her, holding her down.

  * * *

  Darin wasn’t certain how long they’d been in Caratia, but she knew it must be days, even weeks. Aysha seemed always at her side. Sometimes she told her stories of Glen Ore. Other times she’d sing softly and Ranik would play his flute. Tea did little to stop the pain, but she knew that she was healing when the sharp burning turned to a dull ache. Eventually she was able to sit up and even stand without Aysha’s arm supporting her. They hadn’t spoken about what had happened in Heffen and no word had passed between them of what would happen next. She began to wonder if Aysha would only stay long enough to see her well, but she didn’t dare to ask the question aloud. With yet another death on her hands, could Aysha still love her?

  Two weeks passed before Telvin returned. Aysha had gone out on an errand, so when she heard a knock, Darin reached immediately for her knife. Telvin came in. Unshaven and smelling of dried blood and sweat, he looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. He looked at her briefly and then sat down in the chair where Aysha usually sat with a heavy sigh.

  “I trust you’re healing well with Lady Spur tending to you?”

  “You know she doesn’t like to be called that, Telv,” Darin chided. “But I think she has done some magic on me.” She lifted her shirt up far enough to show the wound. “It hardly hurts.” Alekander’s sword had carved a semicircle into her skin, but Aysha had managed to neatly sew the edges back together.

  “Well, she is a witch,” Telv said. “What did you expect?” He smiled, his gaze drifting to the window. New wrinkles creased his forehead.

  “I think you’re the one who should be lying in bed. What happened to you?”

  Telvin ignored her question. He was distracted by the passing clouds.

  “Aysha could make you some sleeping tea at least.”

  “There isn’t much sleep when you’re worrying about murder and mutiny.” Telvin laughed, but a bitter edge took the smile off his face. “I won’t bore you with all the details. Suffice it to say, I’ve had to set my own against Alekander’s men. We’ve lost more than I’d like. And these clouds…”

  “How long are you in Caratia?”

  “Only a few days. I can’t stay away from Heffen for long,” Telvin said. He went to the window then and stared up at the sun. Blinking, he glanced back at Darin. His sense gave him worries that no one else had. “I’d like to have you with me in that castle. I find myself in need of a trusted friend.”

  “You have Illyan. And Fellings. And what about Raleigh?”

  “They’re all on my side,” Telv agreed. “Then again you never know someone that well until you’ve either tried to kill them or slept with them.”

  Darin laughed and regretted it instantly when a sharp pain shot up her side. She waited for the spasm to subside and then said, “I don’t think I’m meant to
wear a uniform.”

  She eyed the neatly folded black uniform on the stool at the foot of the bed. Aysha had sewn up the tear Alekander’s knife had made without asking if Darin planned on wearing the uniform again.

  “I can’t stop thinking about what happened in Heffen…Why didn’t Alekander finish me? Something made him stop short of pushing the blade all the way in. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought that he didn’t want me to die.”

  “Maybe he didn’t. He never was very smart. I think he wanted you alive—all to himself. There aren’t enough scenters around to kill off the few we have. But I saw you hesitate as well.”

  Darin stared at the bed covers. “I’d promised Aysha that I wouldn’t kill anyone. That very night I’d sworn to her that I wouldn’t fight…”

  “She knew that you were a hunter. Did she suppose it was only rabbits and deer that you hunted?” Telvin chuckled. “Don’t tell me she doesn’t know the best part of you.”

  “I’m not certain that it is the best part of anyone, Telv. Aysha knows me well. She looks beyond my sense—and I don’t think she likes what else she sees in me. But I don’t know that I can change.”

  “You were born a hunter. And a scenter. Both of these things are part of you. And you won’t change. One day she’ll understand…” Telvin eyed the jars of herbs lined up on the table next to the bed. “Does she make you drink all of that?”

  “I would have died without it, I think. And without you stabbing Alekander first.”

  “It was the least I could do for a good friend. And you’ll be happy to know that I buried him under a boulder nearly the size of this room. His ghost won’t move.”

  “Thank you. For everything.” The words did little to convey the emotions she felt. Knowing Alekander was gone, buried in Tiersten, and that the nightmare of his hunt was behind her, was more than she could express with words.

  “I hope you’ll think of coming with me to Heffen…But you’ll go where Lady Spur goes. Still her fate is tied to that castle. Wherever she goes from here, she’ll return to Heffen before long.” Telvin picked up one of Aysha’s flasks and pulled out the stopper to sniff the contents. “Maybe I do need sleeping tea. Or more ale.”

  Darin got out of bed slowly and went to the washbasin. The servant boy had brought in a pitcher of hot water that was now lukewarm. She scrubbed soap on a rag and washed her face, then smoothed her short curls into place. She straightened up and looked over at Telvin. He clearly had something on his mind. “What about Ranik? What do the clouds say about him?”

  “There’s a ship that sailed in from Crag this morning. Their next port is one of the Halo Isles. And there’s a rumor they’ve got a forecaster aboard—a man with mixed blood.”

  “Ranik’s friend. Are you going to tell him?”

  “I only came to see that you were healed. I ride to Eldering in the morning. Illyan and I have business.”

  “Ranik would stay, you know,” Darin said. “If you asked him…You could keep him at your side with only a few words.”

  “I have plenty who can take his place.” Telvin stood up. He eyed Darin. “You aren’t well enough for another fight yet. But soon you’ll be healed…Think about joining me in Heffen. I’ll make you a counselor. No uniform.”

  Darin moved aside as Telv passed. She leaned against the washbasin, exhausted from standing and spent from the conversation. When Telvin reached for the door handle, she stopped him. “I know how you feel about Ranik—even if you deny it. You should tell him.”

  Telvin shook his head.

  “What have you seen in the clouds? I can tell you’re keeping something.”

  “The clouds say I die alone. On a windless day.”

  Darin felt a chill with his words. “With a crown on your head?”

  He smiled sadly. “Sometimes I hate knowing what I know.”

  Telvin hadn’t been gone long before Aysha returned. She looked puzzled to see Darin leaning against the washbasin and then rushed to her side. Darin leaned against Aysha’s shoulder and let her lead her back to the bed.

  “You’re pale,” Aysha said, pressing her hand to Darin’s forehead. “What are you doing out of bed?”

  “I’m fine…I just wanted to wash up,” Darin said. She sank down on the bed. “We need to talk.”

  Aysha ignored Darin, testing the water in the teapot with her pinky. “This pot’s gone cold. I’ll have to ring for more hot water.” She went to the door and then stepped outside to ring the bell. The servant appeared almost instantly. He nodded when Aysha asked for hot water, so used to this task that he was likely dreaming of boiling water in his sleep. When he’d gone, Aysha came back to the bedside and busied herself with crushing herbs.

  “Telvin stopped in to see me,” Darin began. Aysha didn’t look up from her mortar and pestle. “He wants us to go back to Tiersten with him. To the castle.”

  “Us?” Aysha asked. “Or you?”

  Darin didn’t answer for a moment. She shifted on the bed, stiff from too many days passed without leaving the same room but tired too from the rush of thoughts spinning in her mind. She longed to tell Aysha everything—even the secrets she’d kept from her—but she couldn’t tell her everything at once. “If he could keep one of us, I think he’d prefer to have you. A good medicine woman is hard to find.”

  “Witch, you mean?” Aysha shook her head. “I know what he thinks of me. And I know he still holds a fondness for you. That month in Heffen…”

  Darin interrupted, “Telvin has a fondness for your brother, Aysha. There’s nothing between him and me. Not anymore. But Telvin says that our fates are linked. Yours to Heffen and mine to yours.”

  “And he’s seen all this in the clouds, I suppose?” Aysha finished crushing the herbs and put the mortar and pestle aside. She leaned against the chair. “You know I don’t trust a fortune-teller.”

  “Forecaster,” Darin said gently. “You’d be surprised how much he knows.”

  Aysha rose to answer a knock at the door. The servant exchanged the cold teapot for a hot one and then slipped out of the room. Aysha poured the hot water over the freshly crushed herbs and then sat done to wait for her potion to steep.

  “What happened in Tiersten…” Darin felt a lump in her throat. She thought of the moment she’d watched Aysha drop into the dark tunnel and the promise she’d made. She’d given Aysha her word that she wouldn’t kill anyone. But it wasn’t only Alekander she’d had to fight that night. She’d met up with two guards outside the castle gates and had to get past both of them. If she’d had another choice, she would have taken it. But she’d broken her word.

  “I’m not sure that you can love me.” Tears threatened but Darin pressed on. “The things I’ve done, Aysha…I carry them. It’s more than scars. I’m afraid that it’s who I am and that you might not be able to love me because of it.”

  Aysha reached across the bed to caress Darin’s chin. Her kiss was soft at first, barely brushing Darin’s lips, but then the kiss deepened. Aysha’s scent was still desire. After everything that had happened…

  Darin wanted Aysha’s touch more than she could say. Longing for her coursed through her body, but she stopped when she noticed the tears on Aysha’s cheeks.

  “I love you,” Aysha said softly. “I thought you’d die before I could tell you…I was a fool for asking you to make that promise. Alekander nearly killed you. Ranik told me you didn’t try to fight him until after he’d already stabbed you. And it was all my fault. If you’d died…” Aysha pressed against Darin’s shoulder, sobbing.

  Darin held her until the tears were spent and then brought her close for another kiss. Their lips lingered together. Aysha’s skin kept the scent of her teas. Licorice and lavender. There was a hint of ginger too. Darin breathed deeply. “I love you too.”

  Aysha met her gaze. “Sometimes I wish we could go back to Maylek.”

  “And face the Widow Baylor?”

  Aysha smiled. “I’ll tell her that I’ve learned a few spel
ls. She’ll leave me alone.”

  “What about the Halo Isles? There’s a boat in the harbor that’s sailing to the Isles soon. We could pay for passage…” Darin hesitated. “Aysha, about the locket—”

  “I’ve known for a long time now,” Aysha interrupted. “Telvin’s meant to be king. In Heffen. It isn’t that I don’t like him,” she added. “But I am jealous. He has a claim on your heart and now Ranik’s too.”

  Aysha reached into a pocket in her tunic and pulled out the bronze locket. She stared at the rearing horse etched into the metal on the front. Wrapping her hand around the locket, she dropped it back in her pocket, then reached for the mug of tea and scooped out some of the leaves. The crushed herbs gave the tea a grit that Darin didn’t like, but she took a sip when Aysha insisted.

  “When I’m well, I won’t drink another sip of your tea.” Darin smiled.

  “You can make your own tea from now on,” Aysha said. “You’re nearly well enough.” She took the mug from Darin and set it aside, then shifted into Darin’s bed. She took Darin’s hand and slipped it under her tunic. Aysha’s breasts were warm and her nipples were tight buds, but she settled Darin’s hand over her heart. “Do you remember how we used to sleep in Maylek?”

  “You couldn’t fall asleep until I wrapped my arms around you,” Darin said.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Ranik had heard that Telvin had returned to Caratia from Tiersten, but he hadn’t gone to find him. His excuse was that he was giving Telv time to settle in. But he hoped Telv would come looking for him.

  From the third floor window, Ranik could see the harbor and count the boat masts. Soldiers swarmed the docks day and night. Even with Alekander dead and Telvin in charge, he wouldn’t risk going down to the pier. Thinking about what he’d say to Captain Asa and Anchor if he ever had the chance was a useless game of distraction. He doubted he’d face either of them again.

  When Aysha knocked on his door, Ranik tried not to look disappointed. She came into the small attic room and sat down on the one chair.