by Peter Dawes
My heart leaped in my throat, tears threatening to sting my eyes while I breathed a relieved laugh. Paolo met my gaze just as I opened my mouth to speak, lifting a finger to his lips and winking. Swallowing hard, I peered around, in search of Jane’s servants in case any of them were close enough to spot or hear us. One stood near their quarters, but appeared to be distracted by a piece of wood he picked away at with his knife. “I’m not certain if there’s any good place for us to speak,” I whispered as my gaze returned to my lover.
Paolo nodded and pointed toward the corner of the property. I raised an eyebrow and he gestured more emphatically, an exasperated sigh passing through his lips. “Non capisce una mazza,” he said, his voice even fainter than mine had been. “Follow me.”
I nodded, surrendering to the ghost of a smile. Paolo didn’t wait for any further acknowledgment from me before slipping down the branch and landing within the shade. Instead, he walked along the line of trees lining this part of the property, prompting me to stroll beside him within the light. We failed to make eye contact through the entire trek, not pausing until we stood at an angle that took us outside the one interloper’s line of sight. Paolo leaned against the trunk of a larger oak and I stopped beside it, my gaze falling to the ground. “How long have you been here?” I asked, keeping my voice low. Another thought invaded my mind just after I issued the question. “Does Roland know you’re here?”
“I’ve been here for two days,” he said, “And yes, he does. He asked if the bed had been lonely and I told him he keeps denying me while you will not.” Hearing the amusement present in his voice made my heart lighten, even if just a little. I had missed his levity. His voice gained a measure of sobriety as he continued. “I haven’t been able to get any closer to the manor, but I’ve hoped you would wander outside. Have you been kept busy, amico mio?”
I winced at his words, not certain if they bore an accusation to them or if it was my own guilt-laden conscience filling in the subtext. Exhaling a shaky breath, I lifted my head to peer toward the horizon. “I have been a fool. That I had a better defense than my own stubbornness, I would present it.”
“I know you’re stubborn. Why do you think I rode down here?”
“How did you know where I’d be?”
I chanced a glance at Paolo in time to see him smirk faintly. Relief washed over me when he failed to look vexed. “Men speak when they’ve had too much to drink,” he said. “Somebody told me where to find the manor when I arrived.”
“That they do, though you have your own magic in the way you lower their inhibitions.” A faint smile crossed my lips, wobbling as it bloomed and threatening to make my sight glass over again. I wanted to reach out a hand to him and feared doing so. Clearing my throat, I nodded once more and pushed my fingers through the locks of my hair, finally damning the consequences enough to meet his gaze. “We are in trouble,” I said. “All of us. Roland might even be counted among that lot.”
Paolo raised an eyebrow. “Christian, you were in trouble the moment you left town.”
“Yes.” I breathed the word with exasperation, directed at myself. “Perhaps even before then. I wished to wrestle with the serpents and underestimated their cunning. Now, they are poised and ready to strike.” Pausing, I drifted closer to the tree, placing a hand on its trunk. “I don’t think I have much time left. I am wise to them and them, to me. There have been two men circling while the lady has kept me distracted.”
A frown overtook his expression that I mirrored instantly. “One of them is my father’s killer,” I added.
“Merda,” he said, a deep sigh following the issuance of the word. Profound fatigue settled in his eyes, which shifted away from mine as he shook his head. “Please, let go of this once and for all, amico mio. I beg you. You will get yourself killed if you stay.”
“I’m keenly aware of that fact.” Turning slightly, I extended a hand, attempting not to move much beyond this. As I touched his fingers, they closed around mine, bearing the texture of the gloves he wore. Paolo glanced back at me while my frown deepened. “I’m outmatched and in a difficult spot, though. Yes, if I stay, this man – this Marcus – will strike against me with his master at his side. And I’ve experienced enough at their hand to know they will have their way with me. If I leave, however, my brother will be in trouble. They want the scroll my father gave me and now that they know who I am, they will pursue you all until they find Jeffrey.”
“When they find Jeffrey, they will find the tree.”
“Yes, they will. Whether it takes them a day, a fortnight, or a season, they will. And whatever it was my father died to protect will perish.” Evoking Richard sent hot pokers stabbing through my heart. I shut my eyes against the pain, not wanting to consider my father’s own duplicity at a moment when there were more pressing matters before us. My lids lifted again and I swallowed back a lump in my throat as I regarded Paolo again. “Jeffrey’s family shouldn’t suffer my folly.”
“I agree.” Paolo gave my hand another squeeze. “Should we send one of the brothers to protect them?”
“They will perish in the effort, even if they flee. Jeffrey has the same gifts I do – I’m sure of it – but no will to use them.”
“Then we will need to bring them with us.” The emphatic way he nodded threatened to break through the melancholy which had settled over me. He looked at me as if waiting for my affirmation and silence settled between us as I considered the possibility. I had already determined fetching the scroll would give the Luminaries ample chance to catch up with us. But perhaps there was another way, I told myself.
A faint memory danced across my thoughts, stealing my gaze away from my lover as my eyes undoubtedly turned distant. I recalled the night my father had been murdered, remembering him taking one last, lingering look at me before pulling the medallion he wore over his head and putting it over mine. “Don’t ever take this off,” he had said. “It’ll keep you safe.” It had been so long since I had remembered the directive that I failed to consider what was meant by it.
‘I haven’t been hiding. I’ve been here the whole time.’
‘Sometimes plain sight is the best place to find cover.’
Without giving the matter any further thought, I let go of Paolo’s hand and reached under my shirt for the medallion. Pulling it over my head, I glanced at it for a moment, noting the times both Jane and Talbot had touched it. The fact that something so simple could captivate them, even if just briefly. “I have an idea,” I said. My eyes lifted to find Paolo’s again. “I need you to trust me and ride ahead of me, though.”
The frown returned to my lover’s face. “I won’t leave without you,” he said.
“You have to. For my brother and his family. Please.” I thrust the gold chain into Paolo’s grip and took hold of his hands with both of mine. “Leave now and ride for Jeffrey’s farm. Give this to him and tell him he is not to take it off, whatever he does. He needs to leave at once and get the devil out of the area, but anywhere else he goes, he should be safe. They won’t be able to find him.”
“How are you so sure?” Paolo raised an eyebrow at me.
“It’s kept me safe thus far. I think that was by design. My father was able to avoid his cohorts for years, and I, since his death. It’s the best I can hope for right now, and considering they now know where I am, I have no use for it.”
Paolo sighed, but he nodded. As I let go of his hands, he slipped the chain and medallion into a pouch and shut it tight again, looking back at me once the task was finished. “What else?” he asked, the question filled with resignation.
I released a breath I failed to notice I was holding. “See my brother off and unearth the scroll. You know where I keep it. You have to remove the rock concealing its hiding place and find the spade I keep hidden near it. I am going to make my escape tonight and ride on until I reach a point where we can meet.”
“Not town. It won’t be safe there.” He frowned in thought for a brief moment, glancing aw
ay first, then back at me. “Ride to Taunton. There is an inn on the western edge of town with a horse painted on its sign. Give them my name and I will ask for it when I arrive. If I get there first, I will wait for you.”
“What is in Taunton?” I asked.
“The first place of rest before London. Then far away from England, amico mio,” he countered. His gaze bore weight to it, settling on me as though issuing an ultimatum I would be unable to refuse. “If I leave to do this, you are promising me you’ll be in Taunton. You are promising me that we will leave this all behind here. Looking for these men. Looking for their trouble. Play with the spells if you want, but please, promise me we will do it somewhere else. Somewhere safer.”
The severity of his words settled into my heart, calling to mind the plea he’d made to me before my journey to Plymouth. My entire existence since I had been fourteen had been to see revenge through to its bitter end and now, the quest had come to fruition. I couldn’t outrun myself any longer. Paolo and I would never be what my father and mother had been, but standing before me was the closest thing to a normal life I would ever entertain. Whoever Richard Hardi had been and whatever led him to become the man who raised me, in that moment, I felt as though I had stepped inside his shoes.
And I was thankful for another chance.
“Warn my brother and I promise you I will be in Taunton” I said, the words bearing conviction at last. “You and I will leave the Luminaries far behind us.”
“Gratzi.” The tension left his body as he spoke the word, fatigue giving way to gratitude and exasperation to relief. He reached for my hands again and drew me close to him, as much apt to damn the action as I had been only a short while ago. I shut my eyes and pressed my lips against his, a cauldron of emotions bubbling and boiling beneath my skin at the feel of his kiss. Relief did not deign fit to pay me as much of a visit. I was too keenly aware of how much trouble I had been through and how much waited on the other side. Smelling him and tasting him, however, gave me the first glimpse at hope I had experienced since waking. By the time he pulled away, I felt a spark of life reignite within me.
We regarded each other and I lifted one of his hands, bringing the back of his palm to my lips. The lump in my throat bobbed as I swallowed back the heady mixture of sentiment and anxiety pulsing through me. Exhaling a deep breath, I nodded at him. “Let me go and prepare,” I said. “If we’re to make it that far, I’ll need to have a plan of escape.”
“What will you do?” he asked.
“Attempt to beat a sorceress at her own game. And hope like hell I still have my blades when I return inside. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was taking this chance to disarm me.”
“You doubt me, amico mio.” Paolo smirked, releasing his grip on me and pushing back the folds of his cloak. I watched him produce a sheathed dagger and pass it over to me, his expression never wavering. “I’ll bring you a sword in Taunton.”
“Thank you.” A grin lilted across my lips as I lifted the ends of my shirt and tucked the dagger behind my back. Once it was hidden away, I dropped the tunic back over my waist and smoothed out its folds, punctuating all of this with a nod. Shifting my sights toward the horizon, I took a deep breath while considering my escape further. “I’ll need to find a road that doesn’t wind through town.”
“You entered from the North, si?”
As I glanced back at Paolo, I peered at him with a quizzical expression and nodded. His smirk broadened. “There’s another road if you go further west,” he said. “At the crossroads, turn north. It will intersect with the main road outside the city gates.” When I continued to regard him in stunned awe, he continued. “I knew we might have to escape, so I plotted our journey. What do you think I’ve been doing for the last two days?”
A delighted laugh sprang past my lips, as softly as I could manage it. “Ever the resourceful one. I best send you off before I risk getting us caught,” I said, mirroring his smile. “As it is, I want to find a way of thanking you that would get us put in the stockades.”
“Show it to me in Taunton. This way we are already fleeing when the authorities come after us.” Lifting a hand, he brushed the backs of his fingers across my cheek. “Te amo, amico mio.”
I smiled, reaching to pat his hand. “I love you as well, Paolo.” Apt to indulge the sight of him for an additional moment, I lingered in his touch until he finally pulled his hand away. The air carried a weight to it, something which afflicted my steps even when he scaled the wall and I turned away to return inside the manor. It seemed as though the gaze of every servant settled on me as I strode past, weighing me in a conspicuous manner even as I ignored them.
My expression remained impassive; neutral to the point of being blank. Even if my heart was heavy, my mind remained focused and on my way back to my room, I avoided any potential altercations which might force me to show my hand. It wasn’t until I shut the door that I afforded myself the chance to relax.
Pausing to catch my breath, I reached for the dagger I had hidden and stowed it inside my leather satchel. A quick perusal of the rest of its contents proved what I had feared. I found no evidence of any blade I had carried with me to Plymouth and considered it unlikely I would discover them hidden anywhere in the room. My pensive frown deepened, eyes scanning what I did have at my disposal while my mind worked to develop a plan. Yes, I knew I could kill Jane, and now, the odds were stacked in my favor that I could slit her throat before she worked a spell against me. At the same time, my stomach sank at the notion. She might have been a conspirator, but I had not yet become a cold blooded killer.
“Cannot allow her to stop me, though,” I murmured, lifting a hand to scratch at the back of my neck. As I spotted Lawrence’s spell book, I walked over to it and brought it with me to the bed. Settling on the mattress again, I flipped it open and paged through the contents, careful to examine each spell contained therein. Most seemed liable to backfire, or not to be enough to detain a much more studied sorceress. “Be of some benefit to me, Lawrence. Surely you could do better than choking people.”
Each page I flipped threatened to snuff out the fledgling hope Paolo had ignited. I gritted my teeth and skipped to the end of the book, wondering if working backward might offer some revelation scanning forward hadn’t. As I stopped on one, I poured over the notes penned in the margin about it, able to soothe my racing heart. “This should do it,” I said, fanning the flames if just to inspire confidence within me. I had no chalk to draw a circle, nor time to practice evoking the elements less apt to incline their ear. All I had was a passionate plea within me, begging for this to work.
I gathered what makeshift materials I could assemble in the room. Repeating the spell a hundred times over, I set myself toward memorizing it in the intervening hours. A chill raced through me as I waited, solidifying the last parts of the plan within my mind. As the sun began to set in the horizon, the smells of supper wafted up to my room as if to remind me that time had run out. I could only hope magic would be on my side that night.
Because if that failed, I didn’t know what would become of me.
Chapter Sixteen
The blankets had been smoothed over my bed by the time the sound of footfalls made it to my room, candles lit to compliment the roaring hearth in providing equal parts light and warmth. I lay on my back, idly reading Lawrence’s book when the door swung open, the young, female servant entering with a man following in her wake. The latter carried two platters, both of which he set down on a small table before bowing and making his way out.
I raised an eyebrow at the remaining servant when she turned and departed as well. Within moments Jane entered, pausing to shut the door behind her before directing her attention toward me. The first moment our eyes met bore a level of tension to it, her evaluating me and me doing likewise to her for several seconds longer than our usual glances. This told me our game had commenced.
Attempting a smile that felt belabored by fatigue, I set myself to the part I had rehearsed whi
le waiting for her to arrive. “Good evening, milady,” I said. “How has your day been?”
“Rather odd with you so absent from it,” she offered. Her cryptic smile made its first appearance as she strode to the table and pulled out one of two chairs, slowly lowering into it before focusing on me once more. Jane folded her hands atop her lap. “Has the rest helped your disposition?”
“Yes, considerably. I already feel in better spirits.” Placing the book aside, I rose to a seated position on the bed first before walking to the empty chair. Jane’s eyes lingered on me, studying me as I settled in and shifting to my gaze when I peered back at her. “Apologies for my earlier behavior. It’s been some time since I’ve been so tired and I’ve been told I get ornery when I’m fatigued.”
“Hardly ornery. Distant, more like. I had to wonder what was clamoring on inside your head.” Her smile broadened as she plucked an apple from the platter in front of her. Lifting it to her lips, she took a bite, then nodded toward the food as if to silently direct me to join her. I nodded, mirroring her grin, and paused to evaluate what had been prepared for supper.
A bowl of stew had been placed on each platter, flanked by the normal addition of bread, cheese, and apples. Something about the stew made me suspicious. I picked up a piece of cheese and started to eat it, making eye contact with Jane again as I swallowed down a bite. “I was thinking I might tarry for an additional few nights,” I said, breaking the short silence that had settled between us. “Considering I’ve missed a day’s worth of lessons. I think my evocation could use some additional practice as well.”