“Wait!” said Lucca. “I hope he won’t mind if I borrow this…” After a bit of struggling, he peeled the conductor’s jacket off and took the cap from his head. “Sometimes, it can be just as useful to hide in plain sight,” he observed.
They made it up the stairs unhindered. As Lucca had predicted, the station was crowded. Eli wondered how many people had just gotten off of The Train for the night, and how many were city-folk, come to look at The Train. They scooted along through the teams of people, not sure who or what to look for next.
It was hard not be overwhelmed. Eli felt as if everything magical she had ever imagined was happening all at the same time. The skies above the city were filled with flying beasts, some with riders. A great white castle rose like a snaggley tooth out of the hillside.
They circled around and waited. And waited.
No one came.
“Let’s go, Eli,” moaned Willin.
But go where? She couldn’t get back on The Train, like Lucca. It was too much to go on hiding and fearing all the time. She overheard two men gossiping in Traintalk about how many Railroad Barons were coming into town to witness the voting tomorrow. It was clear that the new Rassa Director had not yet been selected. Sela had been wrong. They had no friends in Dongor.
Indeed, it seemed as if enemies were filing in instead. A pack of guards marched up through the station, dressed in gray cloaks and carrying spears. They assembled in front of one of the cars.
A few moments later, several conductors escorted the Baroness and Sela out of The Train. They were both still wearing the same clothes they’d had on five days ago. The Baroness stood, tall and austere, but Sela looked shabby and old. How could they treat an old serving woman with so little respect?
The guard addressed the Baroness in a loud voice. “We are the officers of the Rassa Household. You are both charged with treason against The Train barons and for breaking your sentence of Exile. You must stand trial, but I assure you, it is only a formality. The punishment for returning from Exile is death.”
Eli swallowed hard, glancing down at Willin and Rinatta. They were watching, but from their lack of reaction, Eli determined that they were not listening as attentively.
Why couldn’t the new Director show up and reverse all of these horrible charges? Why would the Baroness go through all this trouble, if she knew she would be killed? And why even bother bringing along her children?
The children. They were somehow a key to this. The Baroness was not the type of woman who would have thought twice about leaving her family in Ugara while she conducted important business on her own. Why race with them back to Dongor, to cast a vote on the Rassa House’s heir? She was an Exile. There was no way for her to have any influence.
Or was there?
Was there something that would convince the Baroness she did have the power? Did she have something that would convince others?
Eli’s thoughts turned slowly back to the papers from the bottom of Sela’s emergency pouch. Birth records. Blood magic. Business wars and business marriages. Blood of the woman. Blood of the man. Nothing breaks the ties of blood, Majenta had said. Were there spells that proved such things? Did the Baroness think she had a claim to the Rassa House through blood? Through her children’s blood?
Eli hardly dared think such things. And yet, she had never known anything but the villagers’ rumors about the Baroness’ husband.
Things crashed together in her mind, making her dizzy. But she had to do something, before it was too late. The guards were starting to march Sela and the Baroness off down the station.
“Rinatta!” yelled Eli. “Tell them to stop!” Rinatta stared at her, to see if she meant it. “Go! Go!” Eli insisted. “You can make them stop. Order them to stop.”
“Are you crazy?” Lucca tried to fling out his arm to keep her next to him, but Rinatta pelted down after the guards. Eli, Lucca, and Willin all ran after her.
“Stop!” Rinatta shrieked, at ear-splitting volume. “Give me back my mommy!”
This last exclamation worked beautifully. The guards halted and stared at the tiny child, her hair flying crazily around her.
“You can’t have my mommy,” repeated Rinatta. “You hafta stop!”
The guard in front blocked Rinatta’s path with his spearshaft. “Little girl, get out of the way.” But another one called out, “She’s the traitor’s daughter. Might as well take her up to the castle, too. Shit, looks like the boy’s here with her. It’ll be a whole gallows family.”
“You better not do that,” Eli yelled. “This girl is your new director.”
“What?”
The question came from several voices at once, from the guards and also from Lucca. Even Rinatta sneaked a look at Eli, unsure of what was going on.
“How do you figure that?” hissed Lucca. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” lied Eli. “I’m sure. It’s the only thing that makes sense, anyhow.”
“Is this true?” The guard in front seemed to be in charge. He turned toward the Baroness, still suspicious, but with a new wariness.
The Baroness and Sela regarded Eli with the same surprise. At last the Baroness spoke: “Yes. It is true.”
“If you are lying—” the guard began.
“Blood cannot lie. Perform the spells,” challenged the Baroness.
“That is not for me to decide,” choked out the guard, looking more mystified than ever.
“Then bring us before those who can. It is a simple enough matter to sort out.”
“Yes—er, yes, ma’am.” The guard seemed to be rethinking his position, very carefully. “You all had better come along with us.”
Eli let herself be taken prisoner. But the guards took great care in escorting them, careful not to jostle them or scare the children. Let’s hope this was the right thing to do.
Perhaps even worse than the fear of hiding was the fear of waiting. To be sure, the Rassa clan received them more like honored guests than captured criminals, offering them wine and apricots soaked in honey. And yet, as Lucca pointed out, the walls of the castle courtyard were too high to climb.
“How much longer can this take?” she groaned. A sundial in the garden showed that over an hour had passed since the Rassa spell-casters left with the Baroness’ family and Sela to perform the ritual. It was the first time in weeks Eli had been away from Willin and Rinatta, and she found herself wild with unease.
“They said it wouldn’t take long,” Lucca reminded her. “Quit pacing.”
“Sorry for dragging you along this far,” said Eli, sitting down next to him in the grass. “I didn’t want to take you away from The Train. I should have thought—”
“There’s still half a day until The Train leaves again. I’m not off yet,” he told her.
The gate to the courtyard swung open. A servant came in, giving them both a formal bow. He spoke in Traintalk, slowly, as if he wasn’t used to it: “May I present the newly appointed Regent-Director of the Rassa House.”
Eli and Lucca sprang to their feet. But it wasn’t Rinatta who entered. It wasn’t even the Baroness.
It was Sela.
“Sela? What’s going on? Where are the children?” demanded Eli.
Sela wore a new tunic of jade green silk. “They are safe now. Matters have resolved themselves even better than I could have hoped. I thank you, Eli.”
“But how? Why? Who are you?” Eli wondered if she had ever known.
“My name is Mehra Selanna Vasri Vashani. I served as the director for the Vashani House until our Exile three years ago.”
“Vasri Vashani?” Eli echoed. “Are you the Baroness’ mother?”
“Anya is my daughter, yes. When we came to Ugara, we wanted to keep a low profile, so I took the role of her servant. We planned to wait there until Rinatta was much older, but the Director of the Rassa House’s untimely death forced us to move much earlier than we’d intended,” Sela said.
“But I heard you got exiled because of the Rassa House.
How can their Director be Rinatta and Willin’s father?” Eli asked.
“The Vashanis and the Rassas had dealings with each other going back generations. Their father privately agreed to join with our House, but the rest of his clan found out before our proposition could be put into action. They couldn’t take away his power as Director, so they charged us with an attempted takeover instead. They persuaded the other Barons that we alone had schemed to alter the balance of power on the Railroad. As Anya was with child at the time, Exile seemed the ideal stroke of justice. They never guessed they were sending away the heirs to their own fortune.”
Eli shook her head in amazement over these peculiar business rulings. “So now instead of needing to vote on which relative will inherit the title of Director, Rinatta gets everything?” Her mind reeled at the thought.
Sela’s smile was professionally modest. “Rinatta’s first act as Director was to nullify the Rassas’ charge of treason against the Vashanis. We are no longer breaking Exile.” The smile deepened. “Her second act was to appoint me, her grandmother, as Regent-Director until she comes of age.”
“Thank goodness!” Eli sighed in relief.
“She is only four,” agreed Sela. “She has many years left until she assumes her role. In the meantime, she needs to be surrounded by people who know her, who care about her, and care what kind of woman she will become.” Sela paused. “Eli, the service you have done our family can never be repaid. Without your cleverness and kindness, the children would never have been safe. If the Rassa clan had learned of them before we reached Dongor, I am certain they would not have stayed alive long enough for anyone to listen to their claim.”
Eli was sure the rat-faced conductor wouldn’t have hesitated to carry out such an order.
Sela turned to Lucca, who had been listening in fascination. “Young man, I do not know how Eli persuaded you to help her, but we are also in your debt.”
Lucca shuffled his feet. “It was nothing,” he said. “They were cool kids.”
Sela took an envelope out of her pocket. “I have here two first-class tickets to ride The Train. Eli, you have come so far, but there is still so much of the world left to see. You can keep journeying, until you get to Sao Lindros and return home to your family. Or you can keep riding as far as The Train takes you. When you are not fleeing great peril, it is a wonderful place.” She lowered her voice. “Or, if you choose, you are welcome to stay here in Dongor for a time. You can continue to work with the children, as their caregiver.” Her tone made it clear she knew it was a strange request: years’ more work, compared to a life of high adventure.
Eli didn’t know what to say. She had already seen that The Train was a wonderful place. How exciting would it be to keep riding? To feel again the melody of the wheels on the track beneath her, every moment rushing toward something new? If she reached out her hand, she could take it.
From down the hall, she heard Willin laughing—he had the most absurd cackle. How good to hear it again! She felt a strange pang. She couldn’t wait to see their faces. After all they’d been through, it would be so hard to say good-bye…
She didn’t want to say good-bye. She wanted to see them. To stay with them, cuddle them, to play and laugh, and not be looking over her shoulder in fear every ten seconds.
Rinatta burst into the courtyard, braids streaming behind her. “Willin hitted me!”
“Tattle-tale,” he accused.
“Oh, stop it, you two!” hollered Eli. She flung her arms around them and they bowled her over in a giant hug.
“Children, say good-bye to Eli now. She’s getting ready to go back to The Train,” Sela told them.
“You’re leaving us?” Rinatta said.
“Um, no. I’m not going anywhere yet,” Eli answered, and was almost deafened by screeching cheers.
“Yay!”
Willin and Rinatta each grabbed one of her legs, as if trying to stop her from ever getting away. Eli tried to shake them off but was laughing too hard.
“But we do have to go down to the station to see Lucca off, right?” She turned to him and smiled.
“Yeah, I think that’s right.” He smiled back.
“Awww,” groaned Willin, and tried to attach himself to Lucca’s leg now.
“We’ll keep an eye on The Train schedule. We’ll visit the station the next time it passes through. Will you come out and say hello?” said Eli.
“ ’Course!” promised Lucca. “If you ever get tired of these ragamuffins, you can always jump aboard with me.”
“And if you ever get tired of slinking, you can drop by for a real visit with us! This castle is going to be our new home! It’s huge!” Rinatta shouted.
Lucca raised his eyebrows. “Sounds like a plan,” he said.
“So will we be needing these?” Sela asked, holding up one of the new tickets.
“Not for me,” said Lucca. “I ride on my own.”
“Not today,” Eli amended for herself. “But let’s save them, Sela. Someday, we’ll need to ride again.”
Her journey wasn’t over, not forever. But for now, she had arrived.
# # #
Thank you for reading.
Check out other volumes in
The Stellar Guild on Smashwords:
Tau Ceti
(Kevin Anderson and Steven Savile)
Reboots
(Mercedes Lackey and Cody Martin)
On the Train Page 18