Chapter 10
The first rays of the sun made the edges of the shutters glow. Luitgard watched the brightening of them with relief. She had not slept.
The tiny room in which they stayed had only one bed-if it could even be called that-and it was far too narrow for her and Justin to share it. Though she had been greatly relieved when he had suggested it, she did feel guilty when he insisted he sleep on the floor. Her guilt had only grown stronger when she lay awake, staring into the darkness. She had considered offering to switch with him, but worried waking him up would be far more rude if he were managing to rest well enough where he was.
If she had been asked exactly why she could not sleep, she would have been unable to say. Was it the stress and fear of what lay ahead? Was it how easily they had been discovered? Was it simply everything around her that was new? She felt it likely that it was all those things. Yet when she thought about each one in turn, they did not distress her nearly enough to explain the churning of her stomach.
She heard Justin roll over and thought she also heard a sigh.
"Justin?" she whispered.
"Yes?" he whispered back.
"Did you sleep?"
"A little. You?"
Instead of answering him, she asked, "Does it ever bother you? Being alone?"
For a moment he said nothing. Then he replied, "I've never really felt any other way."
A painful prickle formed in Luitgard's nose as the urge to sob nearly overtook her usual sense. Through her years of discipline, she pushed them deep inside her, down into the secret place behind her navel where she always hid such things. "I know what you mean," she whispered back, when she was sure she would not lose control of her tears.
The closest people in her life were Sieglinde and Adalbern and it was not until she had left on her adventure that she realized how distant even they were. Her biggest trouble, she realized as she stared at the beams above her, was that having no one dependent on her during every waking moment made her realize how alone she had always been since Dragonfather had disappeared.
He had always understood her. He had loved her and he had been everything good in her world. It had been a long time since she had had such a close relationship with anyone.
She swallowed hard. More tears were pushed into the hollow in her gut.
"Are you alright?" Justin asked softly.
"We need to get ready," she said. "Arnold might already be on his way with the horses."
They both rose and cleaned their faces using a bowl of water that the inn keeper had given them. It took several more minutes for Luitgard to comb and re-braid her hair. Finally, it lay neatly against her back and they walked down the stairs.
Arnold had not yet arrived so Justin paid the inn keeper for some bread and they sat at one of the many empty tables to eat it. They had long since finished their small breakfast and were beginning to wonder if Arnold's promise would be kept, when they finally heard horses pull up outside the inn. They did not wait for Arnold to come inside but walked out to meet him.
"I apologize for being so late," Arnold announced when he saw them approach. "Against my protests, my wife insisted I send you off with proper supplies. I told her you had money enough to buy your own but she threatened to start giving away some of the jewellery if I did not do as she said."
He patted one of the large saddle bags slung over one of the two tawny horses he had brought with him. The horses looked healthy enough though there was little remarkable about them. Luitgard doubted a nobleman would have bothered with such as them.
"There is enough food to keep you fed for several days," he explained. "She included breads and cheeses. I think she even stuffed some kind of pot or pan into one of these. She even included one of her own dresses. She thinks you will find safer accommodations and less trouble if you look better than serfs with horses. I will have to explain to her how much generosity costs," he grumbled, then added with a grin, "Unless of course you happened to promise me more of that fabric as compensation for the trouble."
Luitgard looked down her nose at him but said nothing.
"Yes, yes," he said. "I know."
He turned to the saddle bag he had patted and checked that it was secure. "There are some blankets and tools in some of these too," he said. "There is even a small bit of room left for the few belongings you are carrying. You should have an easy ride to Vienna." Then he lifted up his hand and pulled off one of his heavy gold rings.
"Take this to a fabric vendor named Leopold in Vienna," he said. "Every merchant in Christendom knows him. When he sees this ring, he will help you in whatever way you ask."
"Thank you, Arnold," Luitgard said as she took the offered ring and enclosed it tightly in her fist. "Though I do not trust your motives, I appreciate all of your help."
He smiled at her again. "A smart girl, just as I thought," he said. "Keep thinking like that, and you will survive whatever it is you are so afraid of."
Luitgard nodded before stepping forward to stand next to the horse. She transferred her shawl and her comb into the least bulging saddle bag.
"That is a lovely comb," Arnold said. "As beautiful as something I would have sold."
"It was a gift from my grandfather," she said.
Arnold smiled and nodded. "I am sure he was a wonderful man. That comb likely cost a dragon's scale."
"Something I am sure you would fight an army to get for your shop," she teased.
He smiled, "Of course! But I told you last night. If I ever got another one, I would not be so foolish as to sell it this time."
"You really do believe you once had one," she said.
He smiled. "I dream of jewels."
She shook her head as she laughed but any lightness in her mood that their conversation had brought faded quickly as she secured the flap on the saddle bag and moved to grab the saddle. Her fingers had become cold and tense. The last time she had ridden a horse, she had been with Dragonfather, but she did not want anyone else to know that. She tried to pull herself up with little success.
Within a moment, Justin was by her side. "Let me help you," he said, bending and holding out his cupped hands for her to use as a step.
She took the offer and managed−though not entirely gracefully−to get herself onto the horse. She remembered enough to know not to put her leg over it. As silly as it was, she had to keep both legs draped over the same side. In that position, she was sure she would fall.
As Justin climbed onto his own mount, there were a couple of times that she was convinced she really was slipping from the saddle. Despite her inexperience and her fear, she managed to stay upright and on the horse.
"Thank you, Arnold," Justin called down to their unlikely helper. "I hope we see you again."
Arnold nodded. "As do I," he said. "I'm hoping you will bring me sacks of fabric and the stories behind your journey. I never did much like not knowing something."
They said good-bye and Justin urged his horse forward. To Luitgard's surprise, her horse followed without hesitation or instruction.
Arnold saw the reaction on her face and smiled broadly. "Yet another suspicion confirmed," he called as they drew away from him. "I picked that mare especially for you. I will indeed expect those stories when you pass through here again." He did not wait to watch them leave. He turned and began to walk back down the lane towards his shop.
Leaving the city was a simple matter but the road was busy with all kinds of travellers. Much of it was slow moving carts that held them up for several minutes until the traffic thinned out enough for Justin to lead them through the crowds.
Luitgard's fingers were uncomfortably clenched in tight fists around her reins. She doubted she would be able to stretch out her fingers again anytime soon.
The weather was pleasant and sunny. Though this seemed a mercy at first, after another hour beneath the sun's heat, Luitgard wished it would cloud over and rain. The heat on her face only exacerbated her exhaustion. Her shoulders began to slump. Her face began to dro
op. Her bent knee began to prickle. She had no idea how she would make it through the rest of the day and was now even beginning to wonder how she would fare over the next week it would take to get to Vienna.
The handle of the dagger pressed into her ribs. She forced her back to straighten and her eyes to open. She was the matriarch of the Mintharchs. If she could not handle a horse ride, how could she handle anything?
She wondered how Sieglinde was doing. Were the Goddess Maids running amok without Luitgard's firm presence? Would her sister priestess step up and fill that role now that it was needed?
Guilt twisted in her chest. Leaving her home truly did seem so much more selfish when she was on the road. Her hope of finding Dragonfather alive dwindled to nothing.
"We should take a short break," Justin called back to her.
She looked up and realized they were alone now. The faster traffic had left them behind and the carts had failed to keep up. For now, they had the peaceful lack of scrutiny.
Though she nodded in response, his back was to her. He pulled over to the side of the road where a small stand of trees opened near a stream. He dismounted and tied the reins of his horse to a tree branch. Before she had figured out how to get herself down, he was at her horse's side and reaching up to hold her waist to help her down.
"Thank you," she murmured, too exhausted to protest.
"There is a nice spot under that tree over there," he said. "You can lay down and have a rest. I will wake you when we need to get going again."
She did as he suggested and lay down upon the mossy earth. At that moment, the ground beneath her was softer, more comfortable, and more welcoming than any bed. Sleep claimed her with no trouble.
She was standing on the shores of the lake of her home. She was not far from the dying shack for she could see the Manor across the water from her. She smiled at her beautiful home and her pulse raced with her happiness to be back.
The sky was cloudless and vibrant blue. The trees jerked and swayed in the wind but she could not hear the leaves. She felt none of the breeze on her face or against her body. The birds were silent too. When she looked down, the water at her feet was as black as a raven's wing.
"Luitgard."
The whisper was clear in the absence of all the other sounds that should have been. Her heart raced faster as she realized whose voice it was. Deep and rough, a voice that could lull even the most unhappy child into peaceful sleep.
"Dragonfather?" she called.
"Luitgard."
She turned to face the direction from which it had come. She could see the dying shack.
She walked slowly through the trees.
"Luitgard."
"I am coming Dragonfather," she said.
When she reached the shack, she could see through the opening the silhouette of a man inside. She recognized that build; the height, the barrel chest, the round head.
"Dragonfather, what is it?" she asked as she reached the opening.
He looked just as she remembered. Not a single hair had changed its place. His blue eyes were focused upon her.
"Where are you Luitgard?" he asked.
"I am right here," she said, confused. "Do you not see me?"
"Where are you?" he asked again. Then his eyes went wide.
For the first time, Luitgard saw fear in his eyes. She had known him to be serious and joyful, but never afraid. He looked over his shoulder.
"This cannot be," he said. His body disappeared in a wisp of cloud in the shape of a wyvern.
Luitgard was about to call out to him when she felt the rapid movement of her shoulder. She awoke to see Justin smiling down at her. "Time to get moving," he said.
She did her best to nod her understanding but when he turned to go back to the horses, she stay resting upon the ground, staring at the movement of the water in the stream.
If dreams were omens, she had absolutely no idea what that dream had meant. Had Dragonfather been wondering why no one had come to rescue him? Was he in danger?
With an uneasy stomach, she pushed herself to her feet and joined Justin by the horses.
Courted Sanctuary Page 10