Ordella added the piece of wood to her pocket and pushed her hair away from her face. She stopped and grabbed Merisca's arm.
"What was that?" Ordella turned towards the dilapidated buildings. "Listen."
Eight
"It's coming from over there." Ordella pointed to the buildings. "Behind the last one."
There it was again. High-pitched. Certainly not an animal. More like a child's voice.
"Should we take a look?"
Merisca nodded.
They skirted the house's tumbledown walls and crept into the meadow beyond. A holly bush had grown up through the tall grass, and they ducked down behind it. Ordella peered between its spiny leaves.
"Get off me, you're hurting me!"
A stout, thick-set boy was lying on the ground. He was young. Younger than her. Perhaps twelve or thirteen. An older boy straddled his chest, pinning him down. He was much thinner than his victim, with mousy brown hair and a long ratty face.
"Only if you say it." The older boy pinched the chubby boy's arm.
"Just leave me alone."
"Say it," said the older boy. He pinched him again.
The fat boy burst into tears.
Ordella stepped out from behind the bush. "Get off him!" she shouted, walking towards them. "Get off him, right now!"
The thinner boy sprang to his feet. He glanced at her then sprinted off into the forest.
Ordella knelt down next to the boy. He let out a whimper, and she helped him sit up.
"Are you alright? Can you stand?" The boy nodded, sniffed loudly and wiped tears from his eyes.
"I'm fine. It happens all the time."
Merisca walked over to them.
"What's your name, child?" she said.
The boy hesitated. "I'm...er... Hob," he said. He blew his nose on his sleeve. "Hob. And that"—he gestured to the forest behind him—"was Rob."
"Hob and Rob." Merisca smiled and winked at Ordella. "Of course you are. You make quite the pair." Hob looked away. "And where are Hob and Rob from?"
"Our village is over there." He pointed past the tumbledown houses in the direction they'd just come from. Ordella raised an eyebrow at Merisca. The Islander smiled. He was playing them for fools.
"That's strange," Ordella said. "Because we've just walked that way, and I definitely didn't see any village." She turned to Merisca. "Did you?"
"No, I certainly did not," Merisca said.
The boy squirmed. "You must have missed it because it is there. I know it is. I left it this morning."
Ordella moved in front of the boy. "If your village is nearby, why didn't it suffer the same fate as these houses?" She pointed to the torched, timber-framed structures behind her. "Perhaps the Kelsharlans didn't see your village either."
The boy stammered and looked down.
"What are you up to?" asked Ordella. Hob stayed silent.
Merisca tapped her on the shoulder.
"I think I know what's going on here. Look over there."
Ordella turned towards the houses. She narrowed her eyes. Someone was slinking between the buildings. The thin boy, the one apparently called Rob. And her rabbit was clutched in his thieving hands.
She whirled back around. Hob leaped to his feet, barreled between her legs and dashed down the meadow towards his accomplice, a wide grin plastered across his face.
"Thanks for the food!" he shouted over his shoulder.
Not that you need it. She watched until his chubby form disappeared from view.
Merisca's face was creased into a smile. She clapped Ordella on the arm. "I think they probably earned their spoils after that performance," she said.
"I don't," Ordella said. She kicked at a nearby field thistle. She'd been looking forward to her dinner.
Merisca put an arm around her. "Never mind, Ordella. You can always catch us another one."
A clinking noise rang out from the trees at the opposite end of the meadow to the houses. Ordella spun around. What was that? She strained her ears. There it was again, followed by a snorting sound. Ordella scanned the trees along the back edge of the field. A slight movement drew her eye. There. Behind a group of birch saplings. Two mounted soldiers clad in dark green.
"Run! Kelsharlans!” She grabbed hold of Merisca's tunic and pulled her back the way they’d come. They hurtled past the holly bush, towards the houses.
“After them!” one of the men shouted.
Hooves pounded the ground and the whole meadow seemed to vibrate. Ordella glanced behind her. The two horsemen had cleared the trees and were now thundering across the grass, swords in hands.
"This way,” Merisca said, catching hold of Ordella’s sleeve and pulling her towards the trees to their right. Ordella didn't need telling twice. She followed her friend into the undergrowth. Branches and thorns tore at her legs, but she didn't slow down.
Surely the men must have seen where they’d gone, but perhaps their horses would find it hard to pick their way through the forest.
Ordella risked a look behind her. They could only have been running for a few hundred heartbeats, but already she could barely make out the point where they’d left the meadow and entered the woods. There was no sign of their pursuers.
“Let’s stop here,” Merisca said, yanking Ordella down into the hollow between two ash trees.
Ordella held her breath and listened. Nothing but the chirps of the forest birds and the creak of the tree’s branches above her head. No whinnying horses. No Kelsharlan voices. Ordella chewed her lip. But just because she couldn’t hear them, it didn’t mean they weren’t there. Maybe they’d decided to leave their horses by the meadow and continue the chase on foot. She turned her head.
"Stay still." Merisca held up a finger, paused for a moment, then smiled. "I think we've lost them, but let’s not take any chances. We’ll hide here for a while longer."
Ordella took a deep breath. Blood streaked her legs, and her feet were caked with mud and leaves. She hunkered down lower and tried not to think about the possibility of Kelsharlan soldiers crawling towards them through the undergrowth.
It felt like they’d been huddling in their hiding place for most of the day. Yet, when Ordella glanced through the tangle of branches above her, the sun was still high in the sky. She scanned the forest.
Surely the soldiers had abandoned their pursuit.
“Let’s get moving,” she said. “I know we’re probably safer staying here, but I can’t bear the thought of them creeping up on us. I’d rather be on my feet.”
Merisca nodded, and they plunged deeper into the Border Wood.
Later that day, they stopped again by the base of a splintered tree stump. Ordella stretched her arms above her head and breathed in deep gulps of air.
The trees in this part of the forest were smaller and thinner than those they'd passed earlier, and more spread out, with large swathes of undergrowth between their trunks. The ground in front of them sloped uphill.
"That way." Ordella pointed up the slope. The ground was more open than she'd have liked, but it was certainly preferable to going back the way they'd come. "When we get to the top, we might have a view over the forest. We can work out where we are."
Merisca nodded. Her breathing was measured. She looked like she could keep running all day.
Ordella held her breath and cupped her hand to her ear. Up in the high branches, leaves rustled in the breeze, and a pair of crowfinches traded verses of a shrill song. Ordella exhaled. No hoof beats. No harsh Kelsharlan accents. The soldiers must've been far behind by now, if they'd even continued the chase at all.
The slope was steeper than it'd looked from the bottom. Ordella's legs were like lumps of lead, and, every few steps, she lost her footing and had to reach down with her hands to steady herself.
Merisca was a dozen yards in front, but her pace seemed to be slowing, too. The Islander reached for the trunk of a slender birch tree growing out of the hillside. She grasped it and slumped down on the ground next to it. Sh
e stretched out her legs and faced downhill.
"I need to stop for a moment," Merisca said. She wiped her brow. "The bloodcap's poison. It's still in our bodies."
Ordella's head throbbed. "We should probably think about finding a place to make camp then." She ran her tongue over her teeth. "We need to find water, too."
Merisca clutched the birch tree and pulled herself to her feet. She took a step up the hill. Her foot clipped an exposed root and she slipped back. She reached out for a branch. For a moment, it held her in place, then it snapped with a loud crack, and Merisca was sent sprawling to the ground.
"There they are!" A deep voice boomed from the bottom of the hill, and hooves drummed the ground.
"Get up!" Ordella grabbed Merisca by the back of her tunic and hefted her to her feet. "We've got to get moving."
They scrambled up the hillside on all fours. Ordella's heart pounded and her muscles screamed with every step. She looked behind. The soldiers were still gaining on them, but the horses were finding it difficult to cope with the slope, their hooves slipping in the mulch.
Now was their chance! They had to forge ahead before the men abandoned their mounts and continued the chase on foot.
Ordella quickened her pace. She pushed down hard with every step, gripping the soil with her toes. With Merisca at her side, she made for a cluster of beech trees. She clenched the first branch within reach, pulled herself up, and turned around.
The soldiers had dismounted. Their horses had started to traipse back down the hill, but the men hadn't given up. They raced up the slope, their booted feet flicking up mud and leaves. It wouldn't be long before they closed the gap. Ordella bit her lip. At least they were only armed with swords and not crossbows like the sentries in the Warren.
"We've got to go faster," she said. "They're closing in."
A sharp whistle sounded from above them. Ordella skidded to a halt and peered up the hill. Where had it come from?
"There," Merisca said, pointing up the hillside.
A head bobbed up from behind a clutch of large rocks. It was Hob, or whatever he was now calling himself, two of his fingers in his mouth. The thinner boy crouched beside him.
Hob beckoned them forward. "Follow us," he said.
Ordella studied his expression. This had better not be another ruse. But the silly grin he'd worn earlier was gone. Something in his eyes was different.
The boys didn't wait for Ordella and Merisca to reach them. They hurtled up the slope, the older boy in front. His wiry legs tore through the undergrowth. Hob was no slouch either. His pudgy frame was surprisingly nimble, and Ordella struggled to keep up.
She looked over her shoulder. Their pursuers were close. The length of a large chamber in the Warren, maybe less. The lead soldier glanced up at them, his jaw clenched. He wasn't tiring at all, and the slope was leveling off.
"They're gaining on us!" Merisca shouted. "We're not going stay in front of them for much longer."
"Just keep going," Hob replied. "It's not far now."
What's not far? Ordella sighed. "Where are we going?" Surely the boys weren't leading them into a trap.
"Keep following." He ducked under a silver birch branch.
Merisca was slightly in front of her to the left and the boys were farther on still. Rob appeared to be leading them towards some kind of long, wide trench flanked by steep tree-lined banks. Ordella sidestepped a clump of nettles. He'd better know what he's doing. Once they were running in the channel, there'd be no option but to press on. There'd be no chance of escaping up the sides with the Kelsharlans bearing down on them.
Her legs were heavy, and her lungs burned. She sucked in air in rasping gulps. Hob had slowed down and was now just in front of her. Merisca had already gone past him.
With a couple of strides, Ordella caught up to Hob. The boy's face was bright red and he was panting like a dog. Droplets of sweat drizzled from his curly hair, soaking the collar of his brown leather vest.
"Keep going," she said. "You can't stop now."
She clutched his clammy hand and pulled him on.
The other two were way ahead now. The thin boy was already running down the channel, and Merisca wasn't far behind.
Ordella glanced over her shoulder. The soldiers were closing in like hounds scenting blood. She tugged Hob's arm with both hands. Rattling wheezes escaped from his mouth and nose, and his steps were slow and clumsy.
"You've got to start running," she said. But it was too late. Even if she left Hob behind, the men would still catch her.
Ordella let go of Hob, and he slumped to his knees. She thrust her hand into her tunic pocket and wrapped her fingers around the stone she'd used to bring down the rabbit. She pulled it out, its smooth surface cold against her skin.
She took a deep breath, raised the stone to the side of her head, and cocked back her arm. The lead soldier stared at her with stern brown eyes. She whipped her arm forwards, releasing the stone. It sailed through the air and arced down towards the soldier's bearded face.
He raised his arms in front of his head, and the stone thudded against his gloved forearm. He staggered back a couple of paces. His right boot slipped on the wet grass, and he stumbled, flapping his arms at his sides in an attempt to stay upright. His legs went from under him, and he slammed to the ground. The other soldier skidded to a halt, narrowly missing his prone companion.
"Get up!" Ordella bent down and grasped Hob's arms. She dragged him up from the ground and shoved him forwards. He coughed and spluttered, then spat out a string of phlegm. His breathing was ragged and labored, but at least he'd started to move.
"Keep going," she said. She didn't dare to look back. "We have to make the most of this chance. Don't stop running."
The channel was directly in front of her, and Merisca and Rob were now about a third of the way down. Ordella narrowed her eyes. Why were they slowing down?
The thin boy put his hand on Merisca's arm. He leaned in and whispered something in her ear. Then he fell to the ground, clutching his ankle, his face contorted. He screamed and cursed and rolled around.
"Help! He's hurt his leg," shouted Merisca. She crouched down by his side.
Ordella ran up to them. Rob groaned and grimaced, but something about the way he was holding his injury wasn't right. And why wasn't Merisca trying to keep him still? What in all Ellusia was going on?
She turned around. Hob, his face scarlet and his teeth gritted, was only a few yards away. Beyond him, the Kelsharlans had slowed to a walk, their swords drawn in front of them. Smiles split their bearded faces.
Hob stood next to her.
"Just play along," he said between wheezes.
Ordella bit her lip. She hadn't escaped the Warren just to put her life in the hands of a pair of swindlers, but what option did she have?
Merisca stood up and walked over to stand next to Ordella and Hob, leaving Rob whimpering on the channel floor.
"It's over," said the man she'd hit with the stone. He spoke the common tongue with a thick Kelsharlan drawl.
He pointed at Rob with his sword.
"He's got no more running left in him." The man grinned. "And, even if we gave the rest of you a head start, we'd be on to you before you cleared the valley." He flicked his blade at Hob. "And fatty here. We'd catch him sooner than that." His companion snorted, and the man continued. "Of course, you could stand and fight, but I don't think that would go in your favor either." The soldier eyed them in turn. "No, I reckon your only option is to give yourself up. A life in the Warren is better than being dead."
Ordella bristled. There was no way she was going back to that place. Not after all that'd happened. She planted her feet and glanced at the others. Merisca's face was calm.
"What's it to be then?" the soldier said. He hefted his sword. "Fight, flight or surrender?" He turned to his partner. "It's all the same to us. We get paid whatever you choose."
The soldiers advanced.
Ordella's heart pounded faster, and her wh
ole body shuddered. It was now or never. Whatever the boys had up their sleeves, now was the time to reveal it.
Nine
The soldiers were within spitting distance. Ordella took a deep breath and crossed her arms, clamping her trembling hands to her body. She glared at Hob, but he didn't notice. His eyes were trained only on the Kelsharlans.
"Now!" Hob shouted.
Something from behind her whistled past her cheek. It seemed to have come from up on the valley's ridge. The lead soldier staggered back as if he'd been punched in the gut, then he doubled over and collapsed onto the ground. Moaning, he clutched at a feather-topped wooden shaft sprouting from his chest.
The other soldier dived to his right. A second arrow fizzed through the air and thudded into his shoulder. The impact spun him around. He cried out and started to run back down the channel. Another arrow struck him in the back of the neck. He dropped to his knees then slumped face down in the leaves.
Ordella rubbed at her eyes with shaking hands. She started to turn to Merisca, but the ground spun and a pounding in her temples drowned out the sounds of the forest. She took a breath and walked forwards. Everything was distorted, as if she was being slowly whirled around underwater.
The body of the first soldier to fall was in front of her. His lifeless eyes stared up at the sky, and his hands still gripped the shaft protruding from his dark green tunic.
Ordella bent down beside him. The back of her throat ached, and she swallowed down tears. The soldier's bearded face shifted in and out of focus. She blinked.
Lord Skerrick now lay before her, his thin lips twisted into a smile. What in all Ellusia is happening? Ordella wiped sweat from her brow and looked away. Bile rose in the back of her mouth, and she retched and spat out a string of foul-tasting mucus. She wiped her lips on the sleeve of her tunic.
A quiet voice spoke from behind her. Ordella whipped around, and the whole world lurched, out of time with her movement. She planted her hands on the valley floor. Was someone trying to talk to her? There was the voice again, garbled and faint. Whoever was speaking must've been a long way off. She strained her ears, but it was no good. She couldn't make sense of what they were saying.
Slave's Gamble Page 6