Ruled by Shadows (Light and Darkness Book 1)

by Jayne Castel

  Lilia craned her neck up, following the line of the jetty back to the village. Her breathing hitched when she saw the first of the men and their muscular hounds reach the docks. There were a handful of them up front, their cloaks flapping. Some of them had drawn short fighting knives, the blades gleaming dully in the half-light.

  “Ryana, hurry!” Lilia gasped. It was almost too late.

  The shadows skittered toward Ryana like scuttling insects, forming a chattering swarm about her as she whipped them up into a frenzy. She then shouted out a string of words in a harsh, clanging tongue, and thrust her hands forward. Her boiling shadows rose up to form a wall and surged down the pier to intersect The Brotherhood.

  Meanwhile, Saul had released the sloop from the dock, and he and Dain were untying the mainsail and the jib from the mast. The boat started to drift away from the jetty. Howls erupted further down the wharf; Ryana’s clawing wall of shadows had met the first of their pursuers.

  “Jump!” Lilia shouted at Ryana.

  She did as bid—but barely made it. Lilia caught hold of her hand as she landed, only just preventing her from toppling backward off the stern into the water.

  The sloop drifted further away from the edge of the dock, although not fast enough for Lilia’s liking. They were moving with agonizing slowness. She crouched on the stern next to Ryana, her gaze riveted on the wooden pier. The howls grew louder and the thumps and crashes of a struggle ensued.

  “It’s just a diversion,” Ryana informed her grimly. “My shadows won’t hold them for long.”

  Lilia glanced at her, heart hammering. She hoped that wasn’t the case.

  Once the sloop had cleared the dock, it slowly turned to face the wind. At this point, Saul and Dain frantically worked to hoist the sails, first the mainsail, and then the jib.

  The brisk breeze caught in the mainsail making it flap before Saul started to trim it. Moments later, the sail billowed and they sailed west, beam reach.

  At that moment, The Shade Brotherhood broke through the wall of shadow and surged up the pier.

  Lilia watched them pound up to where the sloop had been moored just a short while earlier but—thanks to Ryana—they were too late.

  The sloop was now at least ten yards away and gaining speed.

  Their irate shouts drifted out across the water. A couple of men drew long bows and shot flaming arrows at their quarry.

  “Get to the bow,” Saul shouted as one of the arrows whistled past Lilia’s shoulder and embedded in the deck. He stamped out the flames with a booted foot, ducking as another shot past him.

  Lilia and Ryana obeyed. They huddled at the bow, watching more arrows rain down from the sky. Most of them fell, hissing, into the sea. Their luck held as none of the arrows hit the sails, or Saul and Dain, who did their best to steer the sloop out into the open sea.

  Soon, Wellwash’s rickety jetty shrank to the size of a toothpick in the distance. Lilia could still see the seething crowd gathered there. For a few moments she worried that they would simply commandeer one of the fishing skiffs or barges that lined the pier. However, none of the craft appeared swift enough to catch this one.

  Eventually, satisfied they were safe for the moment, Lilia tore her gaze from the shore and sank back against the railing, weak with relief.

  Saul sailed them west and then south around the edge of Orin. The wind grew stronger, sending a salty spindrift over them, while the sky lightened and morning spread over the green hills of the isle to the east.

  Lilia watched Saul navigate the boat. He hadn’t glanced her way since leaving the pier, his handsome face stern with concentration.

  Dain assisted Saul. Even so, there was no warmth on Dain’s face when he spoke to Saul, or took orders from him. It was no secret that the two men barely tolerated each other, but their common need to be safely away from Orin had united them for the moment.

  Lilia and Ryana kept out of the way. The pitching of the sloop, as it rode each swell, was starting to make Lilia feel queasy. To distract herself, she turned her attention upon Ryana. The woman was staring at the passing headland, a distant look on her face.

  “What you did back there …” she began hesitantly, “it was incredible.”

  Ryana turned her steel-blue gaze on Lilia and gave her a thin smile. “I haven’t Gathered the Dark in a while,” she admitted. “I was a bit rusty but managed it in the end.”

  Lilia studied her face. “You saved us.”

  Ryana’s smile widened. “It was pretty exciting, wasn’t it?”

  Lilia grimaced. “That’s one way of describing it—I’ve never been so scared.”

  The sloop bucked as it rode a large swell and both women clung onto the rail to prevent being tossed overboard into the sea. The wind whipped a tendril of hair across Lilia’s face, stinging her eyes.

  “Enjoying yourselves?”

  Lilia glanced up to see Dain, his face flushed from exertion and the stinging wind, sit down next to her.

  “Aye,” Ryana replied, “and letting the men get on with their work.”

  Dain pulled a face. “Saul has everything under control—he doesn’t need my help.”

  Indeed, Saul didn’t appear to be having any trouble steering the sloop southeast. The emerald green Isle of Orin was drawing back toward the northern horizon. Soon, for the first time in her twenty years, Lilia would lose sight of her home. She turned her gaze away from the receding headland and caught Dain watching her.

  “Are you well?” he asked. “It was a close thing back there.”

  Lilia shook her head and managed a wan smile. “Well enough, if this boat can just keep still.”

  She leaned against the railing and tried to give herself up to the sloop’s pitch and roll. The nausea got worse when she tried to fight it. Ryana and Dain had both fallen silent, each lost in their own thoughts.

  They were now out in the open sea, with no land visible in any direction. Suddenly her world, which had once been so tiny, felt limitless. There was nothing but glistening swells of water and a vast sky.

  Lilia remembered how she used to steal into her father’s study and gaze at the maps of Serran on the wall. He had detailed maps of all the four kingdoms: Rithmar, Thûn, Anthor and Farras, even one of the barren wastes north of the Shadefell Mountains. She’d imagined great adventures: travelling through the highlands of Rithmar, sailing on the vast lakes of Thûn, visiting the glittering cities of Anthor and trekking into the steamy rainforests of Farras.

  She was going to see some of the things she’d always dreamed of, including Idriss—the busy port city that lay just across The Wash.

  Lilia’s belly twisted at the thought. She had nothing but the clothes on her back, she didn’t even have a pack with her. She thought of the items she had left in her room: her feather, white charm stone and the book with pressed flowers. Would Neasa throw them out now she had gone?

  Shadows, they’ll think I’ve run off with Dain.

  Lilia’s gaze shifted from the watery horizon to where Saul trimmed the main sail. His back was to her for a moment, so she was able to study him unobserved.

  She hated to admit it, but he was as devastatingly attractive as he’d been the day they met at The Grey Anchor—only now she knew the truth of things. She couldn’t trust him.

  Sensing her stare, Saul turned. His gaze met hers and held for a few moments, then he flashed her a smile. Lilia tore her gaze away, cursing herself for the heat that rose in her cheeks. He might be a liar, but he was a handsome one.

  14

  Across the Wash

  Lilia’s first glimpse of Idriss was of a great, flat-topped, purple mountain looming over a wide bay. Even at this distance, she could see that the mountain dwarfed all other landmarks around it. The city had been etched into the sheer, rocky slopes; multiple tiers linked by zig-zagging stairways. Two edifices crowned the extinct volcano: a long crenelated fortress of dark basalt on the northern edge of the top tier, and a great tower at the southern end.

&n
bsp; The sight of the city caused Lilia to gape. She was so entranced by it that she didn’t notice Saul step up next to her at the bow. “Mount Velar is quite a sight, isn’t it?” he commented. Lilia nodded; the volcanic cone made the mountains of her island look like hillocks.

  “What are those two buildings?” she asked, forgetting her earlier resolve to be wary of him.

  “That’s the Great Library of Idriss to the north, and the Tower of the Over-Lord to the south,” he replied.

  “Spent some time in Idriss, have you?” Dain asked from behind them. Lilia turned to see him watching them closely.

  Saul flashed a grin over his shoulder at Dain. “Aye—the dicing is good here.”

  “Why does a princeling need to dice?” Dain asked. “Surely your father gives you an allowance.”

  Saul laughed. “He does, but where’s the fun in that? I enjoying parting fools from their coin.”

  They sailed into port across a busy harbor. Ferry barges and fishing boats crossed the wide Bay of Idriss, their sails snapping in the breeze. The day had started off as windy but clear, however as noon approached the sky had turned overcast and the spring wind had a chill to it.

  Dain recognized the old ferry that passed by on their way in. It was the one traveling to the Isle of Orin—The Sea Horse—the old, weather-beaten barge he had seen countless times sliding into the docks at Port Needle.

  The sight of it reminded him of all he’d left behind. He’d not shown it in front of the others but the fact he’d run out on his parents without even a word bothered him. He’d always felt a responsibility toward The Grey Anchor, which was why he’d not joined the Port Guard. Yet here he was leagues from home. His mother would be frantic, his father furious.

  I’ll explain it all to them when I get home, he promised himself. However, the promise sounded hollow. He had no idea where this journey would lead him, or when he’d return to Port Needle.

  A massive wooden pier thrust out from the docks into the harbor. The odor of tarred rope, fish and brine wafted out to greet the sloop, accompanied by the cry of gulls and the shouts of men working on the docks.

  Saul guided the sloop into port and moored her at the end of a jetty for pleasure boats. The vessel bumped as the stern nudged gently against the pier, and the four of them disembarked.

  While they waited for Saul to tie up the boat, his companions stood looking around at the industry of Idriss’s docks. Men heaved crates, coiled ropes and wheeled supplies up gang planks into the waiting merchant vessels. The vibrancy of this place made Dain’s skin prickle. He’d waited his whole life to cross The Wash and see the mainland. His first impressions of Idriss didn’t disappoint.

  Dain’s gaze then flicked to Lilia. She was glancing around, her dark eyes huge as she took in her surroundings.

  He’d never have let her come here on her own. Not with Saul and Ryana as companions. He couldn’t stand Saul, and although he’d always liked Ryana he no longer trusted her. She’d been open with them about her past, but in doing so had made him doubt her character. All the years she’d visited the inn, she’d been wearing a mask. Who was to say she wasn’t still wearing one?

  Saul joined them, hoisting a pack onto his shoulder, his gaze resting upon Lilia’s face. “Where to now?” he asked.

  The question irritated Dain. He saw what Saul was doing, pretending to defer to Lilia when all he wanted was the stone about her neck.

  “That’s no longer your concern,” Ryana replied before Dain had time to speak out. She’d said little as they’d approached Idriss, and now her face was hard, her gaze narrowed. “We’ll travel without you from now on.”

  Relieved, Dain looked away so Saul wouldn’t see that Ryana’s words pleased him. She’d merely got in before him, for he had no intention of letting Saul join them either.

  Saul’s gaze widened before he barked out a laugh. “I don’t think so. I got you off Orin safely, you owe me.”

  Ryana’s jaw clenched. “We owe you nothing.”

  “He saved us,” Lilia spoke up then. Her face was serious, her gaze flicking from Saul to Ryana. “We should show a bit of gratitude.”

  “He has my thanks,” Ryana said before turning and taking hold of Lilia’s arm, “but from here on we travel alone.”

  Lilia shook her off. “You don’t make the rules. I’ve agreed to go to your Order—if that’s where the stone will be safe—but that doesn’t mean you’re in charge.”

  Ryana drew back, her face hardening. “You don’t want him with us,” she muttered. “You can’t trust him.”

  Lilia gave a tight smile. “Trust is a rare commodity at the moment.”

  Ryana flinched at that but held her tongue.

  “Plus, I’m the only one here with coin,” Saul interjected. He appeared unflustered by Ryana’s accusations, especially now that Lilia had taken his side.

  “I’ve got some bronze talents,” Ryana snapped, a flush creeping along her high cheekbones.

  “Enough to buy us a horse each, and to feed us during the journey east?”

  “I can sing for coin along the way.”

  Saul gave her a smug smile in response, the kind that made Dain want to punch that smirking mouth. “Face it, even if it’s just my money—you need me on this journey.”

  “We’ll walk,” Dain spat the words out, “and I’ll hunt for food if we need it.” He then turned to Lilia. “I can’t believe you’re even considering this. You know he’s a liar.”

  Lilia stared back at him, a flush creeping up her neck. “I’m not a fool, Dain—stop treating me like one.”

  “I’m not. It’s just that you’re—”

  “We need his help,” Lilia shot back, hands on hips now. “In case you’ve forgotten, The Brotherhood are still after us.”

  “Yes—and it’s him they’re after. All the more reason to leave him behind.”

  “Once they discover I don’t have the stone any longer, they’ll come for you,” Saul drawled, folding his arms across his chest. “How far do you think you’ll get on the Eastern Road without horses?”

  A tense silence settled between the four of them. Oblivious to the men working around them, or the wind that whipped against their clothing, they all stared each other down. Dain’s last hopes faded when he saw Lilia’s face set in stubborn lines. “We travel east as soon as we gather supplies and horses,” she said finally, “and Saul comes with us.”

  “I need time,” Saul told Lilia as they walked down the long pier toward the Bay Promenade, a wide strand that lined the mouth of the harbor. The cries of hawkers, peddling hot pies and pasties reached them. “I need to find a buyer for the boat and to purchase fast horses.”

  Lilia nodded, although her heart was thumping against her breast bone. The confrontation back there had upset her. Ryana and Dain now followed them a few steps behind, Ryana’s expression thunderous, Dain’s strained. They both thought she was an idiot.

  I’m being practical, she told herself. She’d studied the maps, she knew it was a long, difficult journey inland. The first part through the verdant Western Cradle, an area of farmland and market towns, was easy enough. However, she’d heard that the Rithmar Highlands was wild, empty country.

  “Can you have everything ready by tomorrow?” she asked.

  He pulled a face. “Hopefully.”

  “We can’t linger here,” Ryana spoke up from behind them. Her voice was clipped and cold. “The Brotherhood will be crossing The Wash as we speak.”

  “Idriss is big enough for us to get lost in,” Saul replied. “There’s an inn in the upper town where they’ll never find us.”

  Ryana muttered something from behind them, but Saul ignored her, his dark gaze focused upon Lilia. “I’ll take you there, and then I’ll return to the docks to find a buyer for the sloop.”

  They crossed the Bay Promenade, their boots whispering on slippery cobbles, and made their way toward The Tangle, the area of slums that covered the foothills of the mountain. A black obelisk loomed over
the entrance to The Tangle, casting a long shadow: Idriss’s Altar of Umbra.

  Now that they were ashore, Lilia had to crane her neck to see the jumble of grey-brown buildings built in steps up the side of the mountain. The creaking of iron to the south of the Tangle drew her attention, and her gaze shifted to where a great cage cranked its way up the sheer face.

  “What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the cage.

  “How rich folk travel up to the higher levels,” Ryana replied. “Perhaps Saul could save us a climb and pay for our passage.”

  Saul’s laugh rang out, echoing off the high buildings as they stepped inside the claustrophobic darkness of The Tangle. “I think not—best save my coin for necessities, don’t you think?”

  Lilia’s heart sank. After the day she’d had, she was exhausted—and it looked like a steep climb.

  The atmosphere within The Tangle caused all four of them to fall into watchful silence. The streets were shadowed and fetid with the stench of urine, rotting food and damp. Living up to its name, the web of narrow streets covered a vast area at the base of Mount Velar. Many of the buildings were crumbling with broken shutters and doors. Washing hung between the buildings, obliterating the overcast sky above and casting the slums even deeper into darkness.

  Suppressing a shiver, Lilia stepped a little closer to Saul; the darkness of the slums frightened her. She glanced nervously around, glad that she walked next to Saul. Watchful eyes peered out at them from doorways and the entrances to alleyways. However, most thieves would think twice about attacking a man weighed down with fighting knives.

  15

  Merchants’ Alley

  Saul led them to an inn on the fourth tier of Mount Velar. The steep climb up a network of twisting stone stairs seemed to go on forever. Lagging behind the others, Lilia stopped to catch her breath. Her thigh muscles were burning, and she felt as if she would be sick. She wiped sweat off her brow with the back of her arm and turned to look back the way they had come.