“No, I don’t think one extra person would make much difference whereas more sleep might. Also, if we change things now, Taelor’s going to wonder why. He’s paranoid enough as it is. I don’t want to give him any reason to start wondering about us.”
“You’re right,” Darrell agreed. “Okay. I’ll tell Chris about the assassins this afternoon. Then I’ll tell Steve while we’re on guard duty tonight, and Chris can tell Kevin.”
“Just do it quietly. We don’t want Taelor to overhear us talking about it.”
Darrell nodded, and then, a couple of minutes later, he said, “I think we need to start working out again – tonight.”
Karl nodded and said, “Now’s definitely not the time to get rusty. Maybe we’ll have some time before dinner, and we definitely should have plenty of time tomorrow. Well, I’m going back up front with Joan before Taelor wakes up. You know, he sure was a big help with the clinics. We really lucked out there. He has a perfect cover. There’s no way anyone in that town doubted that he was Theresa’s assistant.”
“He certainly did know what he was doing,” Darrell said slowly. After a couple of minutes he added, “You do think he’s legit, don’t you? I mean … you don’t think he’s really one of the assassins, do you?”
Karl sighed and said, “That thought crossed my mind too, but I don’t think so. If they know enough to target us, why not just kill us? Why go to all the trouble to plant someone on us?”
“I don’t know, but those bounty hunters gave up a little too easily to suit me.”
“Did you see Theresa’s pendant? I think that had a lot to do with the way they backed off.”
“Maybe, but Taelor did manage to get himself covered up with the rest of those blankets and tarps pretty well. For someone so close to death …”
“Yeah, but you can do a lot of stuff when you’re life depends on it. Besides, if he was an assassin out to kill Kevin, he’s had plenty of opportunities to do it.”
“That’s true, but he may not have any idea who Kevin is.”
“I’m not following you. If he doesn’t know who Kevin is, why would he be here?”
“What if it was just a ploy to get someone in with us so he’d have a good excuse to travel around and scope out the towns? The townspeople are pretty free and easy around us. It would be a good cover if you were looking for someone and didn’t want to alarm the locals.”
“But why here? It would make more sense if we were in Camden,” Karl said.
Darrell shrugged and said, “I don’t know. Of course, it’s always possible that he’s exactly who and what he says.”
“Where’s Xantha when you need him?” Karl frowned. Then he laughed and said, “Now I sound paranoid.”
“Yeah, but just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that they aren’t out to get you!” Darrell said with a grin. Then he got serious again. “We’ll just keep our eyes open and our hands near our swords.”
~ ~ ~ ~
They made camp that night beside a wide but shallow stream about a quarter mile from the road. On one side of the stream there was a small grassy clearing for the horses, and on the other side the forest was open enough for the wagons, their sleeping tarps, and a small cooking area. Between their campsite and the road was a huge tangle of bushes and shrubs. Someone on the road might be able to smell the smoke from their campfire, but they wouldn’t be able to see it, and the only way to get from the road to their campsite was to come down the stream, just like they had.
By late afternoon, the horses were settled, camp was set up, wood had been gathered, and dinner was ready to go on the fire. Theresa offered to tend to dinner, and Taelor said he was going to look for herbs. That left the others with a bit of free time, so they worked out for a couple of hours while the stew simmered. Then, after dinner, everyone except Karl and Taelor headed off to bed. The last few days had been hectic and everyone was ready to take advantage of every minute of sleep they could get.
Karl and Taelor had not said more than a dozen words to each other since Karl had suggested that Taelor join the group, and Karl was hoping that guard duty would give him a chance to get to know Taelor a little better, if he could only figure out how to get him talking. At first, they talked about the weather and the horses, but those topics ran out pretty quickly, so they ended up sitting in silence.
Finally Taelor said, “You know, I envy you your type of life. Free to come and go as you please, no responsibilities, no ties, no worries, just taking life one day at a time.”
“Well, it’s not quite as worry free as you make it sound. I worry about where we’re going to stay at night, how safe the girls are, where our next meal is coming from, and things like that. It just looks carefree,” Karl answered.
“Maybe, but I like it. I hate feeling boxed in, trapped. That’s the way I’ve felt for the past six years, ever since Rolan took over. I hate him almost as much as I loved his father.”
“What happened to Rolan’s father anyway? I never did know.”
“Rolan told everyone that Tsareth passed away in his sleep, but the truth of the matter is Rolan killed him. Rolan demanded that Tsareth resign and pass the seat on to him. When Tsareth wouldn’t do it, Rolan challenged him.” Taelor took a deep breath and exhaled it in a long sigh. “That was a dark day for Brendolanth. I just wish one of Tsareth’s other sons or daughters was strong enough to defeat Rolan.”
Taelor put some more wood on the fire and watched the flames dance. After a while he said, “There might be one person who could defeat him. Tsareth had a daughter born after most of his other children were grown. She inherited his magic as well as his red hair. She looks more like Tsareth than Rolan does. I’m not sure that she and Rolan have ever even met. I know that they were never at the castle at the same time. She should be twenty-three, twenty-four by now. She probably hasn’t even begun to train yet. I wonder where she is.”
Taelor stared into the fire for a while as if it could answer his questions. “Rolan might have already had her killed, but if she’s still alive, she might be able to defeat him one day.” Taelor was talking to himself more than he was talking to Karl at this point. “Wish I knew where she was fostered. We were friends a long time ago, even though I was a slave.” Taelor stood up, stretched, and said, “Think I’ll go check on the horses.”
Karl had a lot of questions, beginning with the name of the younger daughter, but he was afraid to show too much curiosity. He was trying to decide just how much he could ask when Taelor returned. “I didn’t know that Tsareth had a daughter who had the gift for magic,” Karl said. “From what I’d heard, Rolan was the only one of Tsareth’s children to have inherited his magic.”
“Several of Tsareth’s children have the gift, but Rolan is the strongest so far. Tsareth was pretty sure that Landis was going to be more powerful than Rolan, but I don’t imagine we’ll ever know now. Tsareth isn’t around to arrange an apprenticeship for her, and I can’t see Rolan doing anything to help her. If she’s even still alive,” Taelor said quietly. He was afraid he might have already said too much.
They both became quiet, lost in their own thoughts for the remainder of their watch. At midnight, Taelor wished Karl a good night and headed for his bed in the back of the wagon. Karl woke Darrell and Steve and waited for them at the fire. As soon as they had a cup of hot coffee in their hands, Karl told them good night and headed off to his tent to join Joan.
Darrell waited about an hour to be sure that Taelor was asleep before he quietly told Steve about Rolan and the assassination squads. Then he chuckled and said, “Assassins, bounty hunters, slavers, bandits … I feel like we need a scorecard just to keep track of who’s trying to kill us. It’s almost funny.”
“I know what you mean,” Steve agreed, “but I’m not going to ask for credentials before I defend myself.”
“I’ll just be glad when we get to Glendymere’s. At least we’re going to stay put for a while. I feel so exposed traveling like this.”
“Mayb
e so, but remember, we’re hiding in our roles. Keep thinking of yourself as a minstrel. Don’t even think of the other stuff. You never know who might be tuned in to your thoughts.”
“I guess that’s something we should sort of keep in mind, isn’t it?” Darrell said quietly. “You, know, that’s like the ultimate invasion of privacy.”
“Yes, and one that we never had to worry about before we came here.”
They spent the rest of their watch talking about plans for their time in Nandelia and before they knew it, their watch was over and it was time to wake Chris and Kevin.
After Chris checked on the horses and Kevin got a fresh pot of coffee going, they sat down next to the fire to wait for the coffee to perk. After Chris told Kevin about Rolan and the assassination squads, Kevin didn’t say anything for a while, and Chris was afraid that the idea had spooked him.
“Look, don’t worry about it,” Chris said. “We knew this was going to happen. It’s why all of us are so well armed and why we’ve spent so much time practicing. We’ll handle whatever comes our way.”
“No, it’s not that. I was just trying to decide how much to tell you about something else,” Kevin said slowly. “Do you remember the other morning when you woke me up and I jumped up like a madman? I told you that I’d had a nightmare? Well, Xantha had come into my dreams that night and told me several things, including the fact that Rolan had sent out two death squads. But from what Xantha said, we don’t really need to be too concerned about them. They headed straight for Camden.”
“That’s good news. What else did he tell you?”
“Rolan isn’t the only one who’s sent out assassination squads. Quite a few death squads are out there, roaming around looking for Myron, and there are also a few protection squads looking for him, too.”
“Great! Then all we need to do is find one of the protection squads, link up with them, and let them worry about the assassins. At least it proves Myron has some friends on the council. Right?”
“No, not really. According to Xantha, the sorcerers who sent out the protection squads are so sure that they can defeat Myron in a sanctioned challenge that they want to make sure he assumes his chair as soon as possible, and the squads that they sent out are charged with delivering Myron to Badec’s castle in Camden immediately, with no side trips to Glendymere’s. The ones who sent out assassination squads are a bit leery of challenging him, afraid of being defeated, so they want to kill him before he can get to the castle. So, no, I wouldn’t say that any of this implies that Myron can look to anyone on the council for help.”
“Oh. And Xantha told you all of this the other night? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“For one thing, I wasn’t positive that it wasn’t just a dream. I mean, after all, I was asleep the whole time. But what Taelor said about Rolan backs up what Xantha told me, so I have to assume that the conversation really did take place, and that I didn’t just dream it all up. And that’s really scary.”
“I have the strangest feeling that there’s something you haven’t told me. What is it?”
Kevin paused, trying to decide how much to tell Chris. Finally he shrugged and said, “I don’t know if I should say anything about this or not, but according to Xantha, Glendymere isn’t a human sorcerer.”
“Well, in a way that makes sense. If he’s as good as Kalen and Duane say he is, he would be on the council if he were human. So what is he? An elf?”
“Not exactly.”
“Well??”
“Glendymere’s a dragon.”
“Whaaaaat?!?” Chris’s eyes popped wide open, like white saucers with little black holes in the center. His jaw dropped and his face slowly drained of blood, turning a ghastly shade of white.
Kevin nearly laughed at the look on his face. “Shh! Don’t wake the others.”
Chris slowly closed his mouth, frowned, and stared straight through Kevin.
“I hadn’t planned to tell anyone yet,” Kevin said in a hushed tone, “and I probably shouldn’t have mentioned it to you, but I sort of wanted someone else to know. Now be quiet!”
“Okay,” Chris gasped. “I’ll try. Did you say a dragon?”
Kevin nodded.
“Do you know if a dragon on Terah is the same type of thing we’re thinking of?”
“Oh, yeah. It’s what you’re thinking of all right. Big, with lots of big sharp teeth. Looks a lot like a huge lizard with wings,” Kevin sighed.
“How do you know?” Chris argued.
“Xantha showed me a mental image of Glendymere. His scales are golden by the way, and he has green eyes.”
“Oh,” Chris said slowly. Then he asked, “What do we do now?”
“We keep going,” Kevin answered. “What other choice do we have? Besides, he’s the one who’s supposed to teach me how to defend myself, remember?”
“Are you going to warn the others?”
“I don’t think I want to mention it yet. Let’s wait a while. I’ll tell everyone before we get there, but there’s no need to worry anyone else with the news right now.”
“Why not?”
“From what Xantha said, we won’t be living in his cave, just nearby. I’ll have to go to him everyday, but they probably won’t see much of him.”
“Oh. So you’re the only one who’ll have to deal with the fact that he’s a dragon.” Chris nodded his head, relieved.
“Not exactly,” Kevin said hesitantly. “One other person will have to be around Glendymere everyday. I have to have an assistant. Xantha told me that, too.”
“And you’re telling me about all of this now.” Chris paused and looked deep into the fire. “Why do I get the feeling that I’m going to be that assistant?”
“I’d like for you to be, but you don’t have to,” Kevin said quietly. “I could ask one of the others.”
Chris groaned, shook his head, and said, “I didn’t say that I wouldn’t do it, but how about letting me think about it a bit and sort of get used to the idea? We’ll talk about it some more later.”
“Okay, but for now, let’s just keep this between us.”
“Sure. Fine. Who would I tell anyway? A dragon you say? I wonder if he can fly.” Chris said as he drifted off into his own thoughts about dragons and magic.
Kevin smiled to himself. He felt good about his decision to ask Chris to be his assistant. He had the feeling that Chris would end up viewing life with a dragon as just one more adventure.
Then he put thoughts of Glendymere and magic out of his head. They were too distracting, and at least one of them needed to concentrate on keeping an eye on things around the campsite.
They spent the last hour of their watch gathering firewood. Around daybreak, Joan and Theresa got up and sent Kevin and Chris back to bed for a few hours. The evening before, the two women had decided to give the guys a chance to sleep in for a while so that they could get some things done without interruptions. Joan hung several pots of water over the fire, and by the time the men woke up, both Theresa and Joan had had their baths and had started on the laundry. By lunch, everyone had had a bath and the laundry was hanging on tree limbs and bushes to dry.
Theresa and Taelor headed out to gather herbs, and the others spent the afternoon practicing with their weapons and sparring with each other. While Joan prepared dinner, the guys brushed down the horses and checked their legs and feet. Shortly after dinner, everyone except Kevin and Chris went to their tents and quickly fell into an exhausted sleep.
Chapter 24
Trouble in the Night
Kevin and Chris were so tired that evening that they were afraid they’d fall asleep if they didn’t stay on their feet, so they walked the perimeter of the camp, loop after loop. Shortly before midnight, Kevin realized that Chris had jumped at every sound all evening, so he asked Chris if anything was wrong.
“I’ve had a bad feeling all day, like there’s someone out there, watching us. And it’s getting stronger,” Chris said, glancing back over his shoulder.
&nb
sp; “Do you think it’s tied in to the stuff we talked about last night?”
“No, I don’t think so,” Chris said. “I don’t know how to describe it, but I’ve had this feeling before, several times.”
“And did something happen when you had this feeling?”
Chris nodded, and glanced around nervously. “Oh, yes. The first time I had it, I was about sixteen, and I got beat up by some punk who wanted my jacket. The next time I was around eighteen and on my way to my date’s apartment. I got mugged. The third time I felt like this, I didn’t hang around to see what was going to happen. I walked into the nearest store to wait for it to pass. So what happens? A couple of guys burst into the store behind me, waving guns around and yelling for all of us to empty our pockets. That was about four years ago.”
“Okay,” Kevin said slowly. “Have you ever been jumped, mugged, or robbed when you didn’t have that feeling?”
“No. I always thought of it as New York radar, ‘picking up vibes from the street’ type of thing. But out here … no New York … no streets … just that feeling closing in on me. Man, it’s getting strong.”
“That’s good enough for me. Let’s get the others. Now. But quietly,” Kevin said.
Chris ran down to Karl’s tent to wake him and Joan up while Kevin headed over to Darrell’s tent to wake Darrell and Steve. Within a couple of minutes they were all on their feet and armed. Then Joan woke Theresa and told her that they thought there was someone in the woods. Theresa said that she’d wake Taelor and get some woundwort ready, just in case.
When Theresa got to her wagon and drew back the canvas flap, she saw that the floor of the wagon was empty. Taelor was nowhere to be seen and his bedroll was gone. But before she could react to his absence, she heard swords clanging. She whirled around just in time to see the startled faces of the five intruders as they realized that instead of sleeping victims, the people at the campsite were awake and ready for a fight. A couple of them actually looked panicked, like they hadn’t expected to meet armed resistance and weren’t quite sure what to do about it. Even though the light from the campfire was fairly dim, Theresa had the distinct feeling that she’d seen some of those faces before, she just wasn’t sure where. A sudden yelp as someone got cut shook Theresa out of her trance and sent her scrambling into the wagon for her herbs and bandages. By the time she got everything she needed and climbed back out of the wagon, the battle was over. The invaders had turned tail and were running back towards the stream.
The Master's Chair (The Chronicles of Terah) Page 29