Slave's Gamble

by Jay Stonesmith

  He hadn't mentioned Merisca yet. Surely that meant her body hadn't been recognized.

  "And the Kelsharlan dead?" Ordella said. "What became of them?"

  Hob shrugged. "I think Fellbrig was in charge of disposing of the bodies. I guess they were either buried in a pit or burnt, but I've been in here most of the time, so I don't really know."

  Ordella exhaled. If Hob was right, Merisca's secret had died with her, just as she'd wanted. The survivors of Oakhaven would forever speak of her as a coward or a deserter, but not as the one who betrayed them.

  "Dunder's body and the bodies of the others who lost their lives before we left for Gilmar haven't been found," Hob said.

  "What happened to them?" Ordella said. "I just don't understand why the Kelsharlans would go to the trouble of removing them." She gripped her lip between her teeth. What could they possibly have gained by moving the corpses out of the forest?

  She shuddered, remembering her journey on the back of the body cart, trussed up in a sack. Where would she have ended up had she not escaped? Perhaps Oakhaven's dead had been taken to the same place.

  Ordella shook her head. It wasn't important right now.

  She looked up at Hob and smiled.

  "Krafe tells me you have admirers. I'll wager it must have something to do with the story behind your scar."

  Hob ran his fingers across the wound.

  "It does indeed." He sat down next to her. "I'll start at the very beginning. When you shoved me down the tunnel."

  He told her of how he'd struggled through the narrow passageway until he reached the cave's main chamber. He'd found Jereth and delivered Fellbrig's instructions. Jereth had taken control from that point. He'd roused the people of Oakhaven and armed those able to fight. Then Jereth and Garvan helped them to leave the cave through the passageway.

  Flynn had been too weak to join the fight, so he'd stayed behind with Lera, the elderly and the young, and those who had been injured in the initial Kelsharlan attack.

  "Jereth instructed me to stay behind," Hob said. "He told me I had to protect those left in the cave."

  "That's a big responsibility," Ordella said.

  "I think he was trying to keep me safe. I don't think he actually believed I'd have to do anything."

  "But you did?"

  "I did. Sometime after the last of the fighters had filed out, a Kelsharlan soldier crept down the tunnel." Hob paused. "Those left in the cave weren't all in the same place and it was quite chaotic. Flynn was angry because he wanted to be out on the battlefield, and Lera and I were trying to calm him down. Some of the children were playing by the entrance to the passageway. I turned around to check on them, and it's lucky that I did. The Kelsharlan was approaching them with a dagger in his hand."

  Hob hesitated.

  Ordella stifled a smile. He was waiting for her to ask him what happened next.

  "And?" she said. Who was she to deprive him of his moment of glory? "What did you do?"

  "I did the only thing I could. I charged at him and threw him against the chamber wall. But he was strong. He caught me with his dagger." Hob tapped the side of his face. "Yet he couldn't keep me off him for long. I drew my own knife and plunged it into his heart."

  Hob sat up straighter.

  "Flynn called me a hero and said I'd saved the lives of Oakhaven's children, including his own son, who was being held by Garvan's daughter at the time."

  "Saving people seems to be becoming a bit of a habit for you," she said. "First you led Merisca and me to safety when we were being chased by the soldiers, and now this. What are you going to do next? March on Kelsharla itself and tear down the Warren's walls?"

  "You're mocking me," he said.

  Ordella took his hand. "I'm not. Who knows what you'll achieve in the future. I'm so proud of you, Hob."

  He placed his other hand on top of hers.

  "Thank you," he said.

  Krafe walked over, cradling a full mug in both hands.

  "Storytime's over I'm afraid," he said. He handed the mug to Ordella. "Drink this. Then you must sleep."

  Hob glared at him. "But I've only just got here."

  "Don't worry," Krafe said. "You can stop by again later. With her leg in its current state, I think it's safe to assume she's not going to run off, don't you?"

  "I suppose," Hob said.

  Krafe ushered him towards the tent's opening.

  “Goodbye, Hob the Hero," Ordella said.

  Hob turned and scowled at her, then his mouth split into a grin.

  "Get some sleep. I'll be back soon."

  Forty

  Something damp and cold moved across Ordella's forehead.

  She stirred, inhaled sharply, then opened her eyes.

  Krafe smiled down at her and continued to dab at her brow with a wet cloth.

  "She's awake." It was Hob's voice, somewhere off to her left. "Surely I can speak to her now?"

  Ordella turned her head towards him. She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the dimly lit tent.

  Her gaze settled on Hob's belt and the scabbarded dagger that was slung from it over his left hip. She'd never seen him wearing that before. Hob tapped the weapon, and a smile spread across his lips.

  Krafe gave her face a final wipe, then he helped her to sit up.

  "Drink this." He passed her a cup of liquid. She didn't even bother to examine it. It was bound to be as disgusting as all the other concoctions she'd had to take over the last couple of days. She raised the cup to her mouth and drained it in one gulp. A bitterness filled the back of her mouth, setting her teeth on edge. She winced, and shook her head.

  "Dorley you may stay for a short while," Krafe said, "but you must leave the moment I tell you to. Agreed?"

  Hob nodded.

  "Good." Krafe took the cup back from Ordella and returned to his workstation.

  "So," she said, "Tell me about the dagger. I know you're dying to."

  Hob grinned and drew the weapon from its sheath. He held it up in front of her.

  "Flynn gave it to me," he said. "After the cave entrance was sealed up again this afternoon, he got us all together and gave it to me. In front of everyone. Beautiful isn't it?"

  She nodded. The steel glinted in the light of the lanterns Krafe had rigged to the tent's roof trusses. It was less ornate than the dagger that had hung from Skerrick's belt, yet it somehow seemed more elegant. The blade was slender and polished to a high sheen.

  "Flynn made it himself. He said it was the first weapon he'd ever forged as an apprentice that his master didn't make him melt down." Hob slid it back into its scabbard. "He said giving it to me was his way of thanking me for killing the Kelsharlan soldier in the caves."

  "You deserve it, Hob."

  The boy's face reddened.

  "He said something about you, too. He said if it hadn't been for you fetching Fellbrig and the other Gilmarians, the people of Oakhaven would still be trapped in the caves." Hob looked over to Krafe's corner. "I'm sure Flynn and Lera will be in to see you later, if he'll allow it."

  "I heard that," Krafe said. "It will soon be time for you to leave us in peace, Dorely. There's only so much of your rise to fame one can stomach in a single sitting, and Ordella must be getting tired."

  Krafe turned around. He was holding two wooden buckets in his hands.

  "I need to fetch some water." He looked at Hob. "You have until I return."

  Krafe walked over to the tent's doors and pushed through the flaps.

  Hob rolled his eyes and made a face. Ordella smiled.

  "I hope they do visit, and Jereth, too," Ordella said. "But it's Fellbrig I really need to see."

  Ordella craned her neck and scanned the bunks opposite. Only two were still occupied, and the men, one an Oakhaven villager and the other a soldier from Gilmar, appeared to be sound asleep.

  "He promised to tell me about my father," she said.

  "Well, you'd better speak to him soon. He told everyone he's planning to return to Gilmar tomorrow m
orning. He offered to take Oakhaven's survivors with him, but Lera and Flynn said they were going to stay in the forest, so I doubt many will join him. Still, you never know. The city Gilmar is surrounded by stout walls and, after what happened here, you can't blame people for wanting security."

  Ordella studied Hob's face, and a lump started to form in the back of her throat. There wasn't a chance he was going to leave the Border Wood.

  "How will you survive in the forest? Surely the Kelsharlans will find you again."

  "The plan is to keep moving, striking camp whenever needed to stay one step ahead. That's how they did it in the days before Oakhaven. It's easier to stay hidden if you're always on the move."

  Ordella nodded and chewed her lip. Of course Hob wasn't going to leave his home and his family to go with her. It would be unfair of her to even ask. She couldn’t put him in a position of having to choose.

  The door flaps rustled, and Krafe staggered in with two full buckets.

  "I'm afraid your time is up, young Dorely.” He placed the buckets on the floor and walked over to her cot. "You promised to go without a fuss."

  Hob sighed and straightened his dagger.

  Ordella reached for his hand.

  "Find Fellbrig," she said. "I must see him before he leaves."

  Hob nodded and Ordella released her grip.

  "I'll see to it. I promise."

  *****

  The lantern flames above her flickered in the breeze. The tent flaps had been pinned back, and two of Fellbrig's men, Marden and Pike, shuffled through carrying a stretcher constructed from long poles of wood bound together with thick cord. A hide surface was stretched across the top.

  Ordella turned to Fellbrig who was sitting on a stool next to her bed.

  "Surely you aren't expecting me to travel all the way to Gilmar on that," she said. "I don't want anyone to have to carry me."

  The old man stroked his beard and smiled.

  "You can't walk more than a few steps, and there aren't any horses, so this is how it's got to be. You're just going to have to accept it, Ordella."

  She moved her leg. A jolt of pain ripped down her shin and into her foot. She winced.

  "Fine," she said. "I just don't want to be a burden." The men set the stretcher down on the ground at the foot of her cot. Fellbrig nodded to them, and they walked over to the tent's opening, blocking the doorway.

  "You're just going to have to swallow your pride."

  Fellbrig moved closer to her.

  "Are you absolutely certain about your decision?" he said. "With Flynn and Lera staying, I wouldn't be surprised if you are the only one who has chosen to join us."

  Ordella closed her eyes and swallowed. She'd miss Hob terribly, but it would be nothing like the pain Hob would feel if she persuaded him to leave the forest and come with her. Flynn, Lera, and Jereth were the closest thing to family he had left. It wouldn't be right to ask him to give it all up.

  "I'm certain," she said. "If I must go to Gilmar to learn more about my father, then that is what I shall do. It's more important to me than anything else." She let out a breath through her nose. "But I still don't understand why you can't just tell me about him now."

  The old man stroked his gray beard.

  "I know it must be frustrating, Ordella, but I'm afraid you will have to wait a little longer for the truths you desire. Your father was an extraordinary man. In Gilmar there are people you must meet who can help you understand the choices your father made and the decisions he took."

  "So he is dead then," Ordella said.

  Fellbrig raised his left eyebrow.

  "You spoke about him as if he isn't here anymore." Ordella continued. "You said he was an extraordinary man."

  The old man smiled. "You remind me of him, but I'm not going to be drawn into saying anything more on the subject until the time is right."

  He put his fingers to his mouth and whistled. The two men who'd carried the stretcher peered around the doorway.

  Forty-One

  Ordella pushed her palms against the stretcher, levering herself into a sitting position, her injured leg extended out in front. The platform moved to and fro as if she was captaining a boat across a choppy sea.

  In front of her, with the stretcher's poles braced over his shoulders, Pike faced forwards, his head bobbing above the stretcher's deck like a painted character on the ship's bow. Behind her, propping up the rear poles, Marden manned the aft of her strange vessel.

  "Just as we thought," Fellbrig said. "It looks like you might be the only one of Oakhaven's survivors to be joining us."

  Ordella glanced ahead. A small group of villagers had gathered by the trunk of one of the few sanctuary oaks left standing. Flynn stood next to Lera, their son cradled in her arms. Jereth was there too, with Garvan and his family.

  None of them appeared dressed for traveling.

  Ordella let out a breath. She'd been right not to ask Hob. The people of Oakhaven belonged in the forest. It would be cruel to force him to leave.

  But where was he? Surely he'd want to say goodbye. Ordella bit her lip and scanned the crowd again.

  Her eyes were drawn to a flurry of movement coming down the path.

  Hob, with a bow in his left hand and a full pack slung across his back, ran towards her. His face was red and his eyes blazed.

  "After all we've been through," he said. "Weren't you even going to ask me to come with you?" He fixed her with a stare, "And I thought we were friends. Don't you want me to join you? Is that it?"

  Ordella shook her head. "No, that's not it at all."

  A burning sensation ran through her cheeks. Pike and Marden stopped moving. She was suddenly acutely aware of how many ears were listening to her conversation, but she couldn't stop. She had to make Hob understand.

  "I didn't ask you because I didn't want to put you in a position where you were having to choose between Oakhaven and me," she said. "The Border Wood is your home,"—she gestured to the group standing in front of her—"and they are your family. Who am I to ask you to leave?"

  "It still would’ve been nice to be asked.” He paused for a few heartbeats. "Well go on then. Aren’t you going to ask me."

  "Hob, please would you come with me to Gilmar?"

  He flashed her a smile and nodded, then, almost immediately, his face became serious again. He rubbed his scarred cheek with his fingers and turned to Flynn, Lera and Jereth.

  "The Border Wood has been my home for as long as I can remember. Ordella's right. You are the only family I have." He took a step towards them. "You have given me a life I didn't expect, and one I probably didn't deserve." He paused. "I will always be indebted to you. But I fear our paths head in different directions."

  Tears welled in the corners of his eyes.

  "I must leave," he said. "I have to."

  A sob escaped Lera's lips, and Flynn put his arm around her.

  "You don't owe us anything," Flynn said. "The Border Wood is still your home, and always will be." Flynn hugged Lera tighter. "Wherever we make our camp, there will always be a place for you by the fire." He flicked his eyes to Ordella. "For both of you."

  "Thank you," she said.

  Flynn pointed to the dagger hanging from Hob's belt.

  "Have you named her yet?"

  Hob shook his head.

  "How about Sanctuary? In memory of this place." Flynn gestured to the trees.

  Hob sniffed. "It's not very scary."

  "Neither are you," Flynn said. "But you do have a habit of protecting those you care about and a knack of keeping them safe from danger." He pointed to the scar running down his cheek. "Even if it means putting yourself in harm's way."

  Jereth stepped towards him. "Flynn's right. The name fits well." He took Hob's hand in his own. "I'm relying on you to look after her."

  Flynn wiped his hand across his eyes. "And you,"—he nodded to Ordella—"look after Dorely, too, and see that he stays out of mischief." He ruffled Hob's hair. "And don't let all the kind w
ords that were spoken about him yesterday go to his head." He smiled and wrapped his arms around Hob, squeezing him tight. "Come and visit us soon, my boy."

  Fellbrig strode over to the group of villagers and shook hands with Flynn, Lera, Jereth and the others, then he walked back to stand in front of his men. He raised his hand, and the line started to march.

  "Ready?" Pike said from the front of the stretcher.

  "Ready," Ordella replied. The platform lurched forwards.

  Hob embraced Lera then jogged over to Ordella, his eyes red, and his face wet with tears.

  She reached out her hand, and Hob clutched it in his.

  "Thank you," she said.

  Hob nodded then faced forwards, his eyes trained only on the path ahead.

  Ordella stared back at Oakhaven's survivors. Lera was sobbing, her head pressed against her husband's arm. Flynn stared unblinking, his eyes following Hob's progress. His jaw was clenched shut as if he was trying to hold back tears of his own. And Jereth looked uncharacteristically restless. He shuffled from foot to foot and rubbed at his beard.

  He turned to Flynn and said something. A flash of surprise passed across the big man's face, then he nodded and clasped Jereth in a bear hug.

  After a few moments, he released him, and Jereth moved to stand in front of Lera. He took the baby from her and cradled it in his arms, then he planted a kiss on his forehead and passed him to Flynn.

  Jereth leaned in and whispered in Lera's ear. She bowed her head and smiled. Then she looked up, and Jereth kissed her full on the lips. Ordella gasped. What in all Ellusia was he doing?

  Lera's hand reached for Jereth's neck, drawing him in closer.

  Ordella focused on Flynn's face. His eyes opened wide, then he furrowed his brow.

  As if sensing Flynn's reaction, Jereth broke their embrace and, without looking back, strode towards Ordella and the Gilmarians.

  "Stop," Jereth said.

  Fellbrig raised his arm, and the column came to a halt.