by W. C. Conner
It is as I told you, Caron. Aimee will be safe inside the Forest. If you can’t accept that I would do everything in my power to protect our daughter after what happened at Blackstone, then you have not truly forgiven me. You still do not trust me.
Caron bowed her head. You’re right, Wil, she sent. Once again I have wronged you. Forgive me.
And, once again I will tell you, how could I not forgive you? You have reason to question my methods, if not my motives. I understand.
The group of wizards gathered around the large stone fireplace in the meeting room looked as one toward the door that had blown open. A flurry of snow blew in ahead of the two figures wrapped in furs.
“Here she is, Eldred,” Allen said happily over his shoulder as he shoved the door back into its opening. “I told you she’d be along soon.”
Eldred stepped forward as they entered and bowed his head. “Welcome back, Highness,” he said. “Were you able to accomplish that for which you journeyed here?”
She had not given thought to what she was going to tell the wizards upon her return. For that matter, she had not given thought to what she was going to tell Roland, though she did know what she was not going to tell him. Since their daughter would not be able to leave the Forest, she would let that knowledge be hers and Wil’s alone. Roland had earned ignorance of that potentially hurtful knowledge at the very least.
She walked to the fireplace and stood facing it as she warmed her hands, leaving the wizards to wait in silence. At last she turned to face them.
“It is not yet accomplished,” she said. “Wil has told me as much as he could about this threat.” She was thinking as she talked, trying to decide first of all just how much she really did understand, and secondly, how much she was willing to tell. She and Wil now had a secret that was theirs alone. Theirs and Aimee’s, but the little girl had no way to know it as a secret. She decided to tell as little as she could while staying within the truth.
“In the summoning he sent me at Confirth, I understood him to request that I return the talisman to him for the purpose of protecting my son. I discovered that he did, indeed, want it returned to him for a very special reason that involves the protection of Alexander. Once that was accomplished he asked that I carry it for him one last time.” I am sounding like Wil, now, she thought to herself, for, in truth, it does involve the protection of us all.
“And what is to be the result of your new charge from him?” Eldred asked.
Caron blinked at him a couple of times before she realized that she didn’t know for sure. It had to do with the darkness, that much she knew, but beyond that?
“I don’t know,” she said truthfully. “He didn’t say. One of the last things he did tell me was that I should rely on Allen’s senses. ‘Stay close to the prodigy,’ he said.” She looked at the boy where he now sat at the edge of the group, his furs steaming as they dried next to the fire, and wondered whether Wil had given her that advice because he foresaw a need for the boy’s exceptional healing powers in her future or for some other reason. Doubt crept into her mind and she reached out for Wil.
Am I going to need Allen’s healing again, Wil? Is that why you told me to stay close to him?
That is his strongest talent, Caron, but he is also a strong empathic and a talented seeker, particularly where the darkness is concerned. He has only faint talents in some abilities and none at all in others. Had he the talents in the others as he does in these two, he would undoubtedly be a Great Wizard, but he does not. It is his seeking you are to rely on.
The instantaneous contact with his mind reassured her. It was as if they were conversing in the same room whenever either of them had a thought they wanted to share. She smiled at the idea and then realized the others were staring at her as if awaiting an answer.
“Did I miss something?” she asked.
“I’m sorry, Highness,” Eldred said. “I asked where the talisman is. I don’t see it anywhere.” Caron blushed slightly as she answered.
“I placed it inside my clothing before I left the Forest to keep it warm in the snow I knew awaited us,” she said. “It is subject to the same discomforts as we are.”
As she finished, she had the sudden sensation that the talisman was exploring her body under her tunic and she squirmed slightly, hoping the others wouldn’t notice.
Stop that! she sent.
You’re the one who put me in this delightful place, Wil returned. I have enjoyed this part of the trip tremendously.
Despite her annoyance at his playfulness at this awkward time, she felt a flutter of desire in her stomach at the sensation of his touch. Not here, she told him, not now. The exploration stopped and she returned her attention to the wizards.
“I wish to go to Three Oaks now, Eldred,” she said. “Is there a horse I could borrow for a short time?”
“Your own horse is in the barn, Caron,” Eldred said, not realizing he had slipped into an old speech pattern until she cocked an eyebrow at him playfully.
“I was afraid you had forgotten my name, Eldred,” she said. “We were companions of a great adventure and you are welcome to use my given name whenever appropriate.” She smiled before turning to the door, and stopped with her hand on the latch.
“Would it be acceptable to have young Allen accompany me back to Three Oaks?” she asked. “I would very much like him to stay near me.” The youth looked up expectantly, hopeful that he would be allowed to go with her, to be once again near Angela.
“Of course, Highness,” Eldred replied, bringing a smile to the young man’s face. “As you said, Wil told you to rely on his senses as a seeker.”
“Thank you, Eldred,” she said, “and my name is still Caron.”
Smiling at the sheepish grin on Eldred’s face, she opened the door as Allen leaped from the hearth and followed her out into the snow which now fell only lightly. The wind had died down while they were inside so the trip to the barn was an easy one.
Once inside, Caron begged a moment of privacy during which she removed the talisman from inside her clothing and wrapped it warmly in its cloth covering.
Spoilsport, Wil teased. And just as I was getting comfortable.
His loud thought in her head reminded her that he had told her she no longer needed the talisman to contact him directly and she wondered within herself whether this would work. Would he be too constantly there? She waited for a moment in anticipation of a reaction from him to her closed thought, but none was forthcoming.
Did you hear me? she sent.
No, came his reply. Did I miss something?
She smiled as she replied, I was just thinking this could work very well. Now I can yell at you whenever I’m angry with you. There was a moment of silence.
I didn’t think of that. I guess I’m not such a great wizard after all.
Her snort of laughter caused Allen to look up from where he was tacking a pony for the trip to Wisdom, his own thoughts focused on Angela.
As the two of them rode past Scrubby and Mattie’s cottage, Caron asked Allen to run up quickly and let them know she had returned. “I’ll meet you at the inn,” she said, urging her horse to a canter.
Philip came out of the stable as Caron rode into the side yard and took her horse’s reins in hand as she dismounted. “Welcome back, Highness,” he said, beaming broadly. She reached out and tousled his always tousled hair just a bit more before walking to the side door and stamping her boots to remove the accumulated snow and slush.
Alexander’s unhappy voice greeted her as she walked into the common room and she headed immediately toward it. Thisbe looked up from where she sat, rocking the young prince in the attempt to calm him.
“Caron!” she exclaimed. “Thank the powers you’re back. He’s been wonderful the entire time you’ve been gone, but he has clearly missed you.” She stood and held him out to Caron who placed him in the crook of her arm and rocked him gently. He looked up at her, at the eyes that hypnotized all her men, and immediately calmed dow
n. Sensing the nearness of her breast, he began nudging at her tunic which she opened for him, then covered him with her cloak to keep him warm as he fed.
“We hired in a wet nurse and he has eaten hungrily,” Thisbe told Caron. “He has been a delight, but he clearly missed you.”
“You said that before,” Caron said, rocking and enjoying the sensation of the suckling even through the discomfort it caused after the prolonged separation.
She looked over at Thisbe who watched her as she rocked, staring at the lump of Alexander under her cloak. Thisbe was still the formidably attractive woman she had been when they had first met five years before – a woman even Tingle was challenged to keep up with. She was beautiful, intelligent, adventurous, successful… and barren. Caron’s sympathy suddenly welled up in her as she saw the longing and the need in Thisbe’s face.
I wish there was something I could do to help them, she thought, then flinched visibly as she received a reply to her thought.
That one may be beyond my abilities.
I didn’t expect you would hear that thought, Wil, she sent.
I know. I forgot to tell you that with our new ability to channel our thoughts to one another, you have gained access to some of my power. Certain of your wishes can come to pass as long as they are in my power. But please confer with me beforehand. I don’t fancy having to fulfill wishes from the bathtub or the privy.
Very funny.
Perhaps, but very true. As long as we’re talking about Thisbe, give her a hug and let her know it’s from me. I would very much appreciate that.
I will, and I’ll give one to Tingle and Scrubby while I’m at it. Oh, and Wil? How’s Aimee?
She’s waving at you.
She can see me?
No, but she knows how I look whenever we’re ‘talking’ like this.
Caron pulled back the cloak to look at Alexander. Say ‘hello’ to your sister, Alexander, she thought.
Amusement was in the tone of Wil’s reply. She’s waving at him, but now she wants to know what a brother is. I really do have my work cut out for me here.
Just ask me if you have any questions about little girls, Caron sent. You know how to reach me. With that, she broke the connection between them as she turned her attention fully on her son who had finished by that time and yawned hugely in preparation for sleep.
Caron handed Alexander to Thisbe and folded the two of them into a hug.
“This is from Wil,” she said. “He asked me to give it to you just now.”
As she released the hug, Thisbe looked strangely at Caron who realized she owed her an explanation.
“We can talk to each other in our minds whenever we wish now,” she told her. “I no longer need the talisman to do it.” As she finished, she realized she had not revealed that to the wizards and wondered whether that was an oversight or a deliberate omission. It had to be an oversight, she decided. Or was it? If a deliberate omission, why?
She glanced at Thisbe whose look was troubled as she turned Alexander over her shoulder to burp him before putting him down to sleep. It occurred to her that she wanted no one else to know of their ability to communicate without the aid of the talisman. “I wish I had not revealed that to you, Thisbe,” she said. “Please keep this knowledge a confidence to be shared with no one, not even Tingle – for the time being, at least.”
Thisbe spoke without looking up from the baby in her arms. “What are you talking about, Caron?” she said. “You shared no confidence with me.”
Wil? she sent.
You’re the one who made the wish that Thisbe not remember what you said, came the amused reply.
I thought you were teasing me about being careful with my wishes, but you weren’t, were you?
Your powers make you almost capable of making suggestions of that nature without my help, Wil returned. But the simple answer is ‘no’, I wasn’t teasing. Together we can project our powers a long, long way. I also wasn’t teasing you about being careful what you wish for.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the cold breeze that blew through the front door as Scrubby hurried into the common room of the inn followed shortly by Mattie with the children. All of them were so bundled up in layer upon layer of clothing that they looked like miniature bears.
She held out her arms to Scrubby who walked quickly to embrace her. When she released him and he started to step away from her, she gathered him back into her arms.
“That first hug was from me. The second was from Wil,” she told him.
“I’ll take them both and be happy with them,” he said, beaming. “How’s Wil? Did you give him back his arm?”
She shook her head. “We have one more thing that needs to be done before I return it for good, Scrubby,” she said. As she finished, she saw Little Wil’s eyes buried in the pile of clothing next to Mattie’s legs and held out her arms. He walked shyly over to her and accepted her hug.
“I’m going to marry you when I grow up,” he announced before turning and scampering back to the safety of his mother’s legs.
The sound of horses in the stable yard and men’s voices calling to one another turned her attention toward the side door that opened almost as she turned.
Roland strode rapidly through the door, not bothering to stomp the slush from his boots beforehand as he hurried to Caron and caught her up in his arms. Swinging her around one time before giving her a warm kiss of welcome, he leaned back to take one long look into her face before pulling her close to him once again.
“I missed you, Caron,” he said softly into her ear. “I worried for you.”
She reached up and stroked the side of his face fondly as he held her, knowing where his true fear lay. “There was never any danger, my love,” she said. “Wil would do nothing to hurt me.” He turned to look into her eyes once again.
“You were right about Wil, Roland, and I was wrong. I was very wrong. What he did for us was utterly unselfish. He sacrificed his daughter for the love we bear one another, and for our son, even knowing that he would lose me just as you said. He accepted my apology, though he told me it wasn’t needed.”
She hesitated a moment before continuing. “There is something else. There is another woman in his life now.” She averted her eyes from his. “She is as dear to him as life itself, and it’s obvious she loves him in return. I last saw them holding hands and waving me goodbye. It is clear to me that they were meant to be together.”
Caron felt Roland relax almost imperceptibly as she talked and her tension passed with his, even knowing that she had told him only as much of the truth as was needed to ease his mind.
They separated from one another as Mitchal stamped his feet at the door before entering. The relief in her head guardsman’s eyes was apparent and he smiled enormously, pleased at her return.
“Your journey was fruitful, Highness?” he asked, then continued as she nodded. “We found Allen with Philip in the stable. You carry the talisman still.” Again, she nodded. With a grunt, he turned toward the counter where Tingle had placed steaming mugs of hot spiced cider for the travelers. She could tell from the look in Mitchal’s eyes that he sensed secrets the others did not, because the others had not known her for their entire lives as he had.
Allen came into the common room from the kitchen where he had gone first, hoping to see Angela. “What kinds of demons did you see, my lord,” he said, directing his question to Roland. Caron’s brows lifted in question as Roland turned from his wife.
“I don’t know,” he said. “We’re not even certain they were demons. They were in amongst the trees as we hunted and we weren’t able to see them clearly.”
“Somebody in that troop needs to have a lesson in discipline for talking of it,” Mitchal said. “Which one of the troop broke the silence?”
“Why, they all did, Mitchal,” Allen replied, surprised at Mitchal’s anger. The guardsman rolled his eyes and leaned back on the counter, resignation written large in the gesture.
Caron turned
to Mattie. “Why don’t you see if you can find Angela or Philip?” she suggested, looking meaningfully toward Little Wil, still bundled up in his warm clothing. Without a word, Mattie nodded before taking the four year old by his hand and dragging him to the kitchen despite his plea to stay with the ‘beautiful princess’.
Caron turned back to Roland who almost cringed before the storm he felt was coming, but to his surprise, his wife remained calm. “Demons?” she asked.
He repeated what he had said after Allen had revealed the news the soldiers outside were still discussing at that very moment. “We couldn’t see them clearly, but from what we could see, they looked very much like some of the demons that attacked us at the crossroads as we traveled to Blackstone.”
“Aye,” Mitchal added darkly, “and they felt like them as well.”
“There is more than the darkness, then,” Caron said. “It appears her powers reach farther than Wil believed.”
“Her powers?” Roland said, a puzzled look on his face.
“Styxis is behind the purposeful movement of the darkness and it seems she has conjured up even more trouble than Wil suspected,” Caron replied. She paced away from the others and laid her elbows on the countertop as if in thought.
Wil, she sent, it appears Styxis has sent us more trouble. Roland and Mitchal saw what appeared to be demons through the trees when they were out hunting.
Roland appeared at her side. “I thought she was dead. I thought you killed her at Blackstone. What is going on?”
She turned to face him again. “Styxis and the demons that she had brought with her were banished from our world forever at Blackstone, not killed,” she told him. “Wil’s power may not be used to kill.”
“What about Greyleige? What about all the corrupted men that died at the moment of Greyleige’s death?” Roland demanded, his voice rising.
“Greyleige was destroyed by his own spell, and the ensorcelled unfortunates that turned to vapor before our eyes were killed by the absence of Greyleige’s evil spell that held them.”
“Why can’t he just kill them? It would all be so much easier if he just killed them all and ended it,” Roland said.