Return of the Crown (11 page)

‘
You old rogue, get back to whatever
hidey-hole you were in, and keep quiet. I’ll hold you to that
threat you just made. I expect a fine dinner, and an even finer
bottle of wine.’

Connor felt Magda’s energy slide along his,
then she was gone. He blushed; she really was an extraordinary
woman.

Focusing on the scrying bowl again, he looked
for Ravyn’s purple-blue thread. Locating a very faint trail, he
followed it into the forest bordering the grasslands. In a small
grove of trees, he spotted a campsite. A small stream burbled
alongside the camp. Three brutish looking men moved about the camp
gathering firewood, filling water skins, and tending their horses.
Ravyn lay unconscious and gagged by a small fire. Retreating into
the surrounding forest, Connor searched for Blade. If the boy was
nearby, he was excellent at camouflage.

Exhaustion crept up on Connor, so he withdrew
his thread. Hunkering down in his little shelter, he ate a meager
meal. Closing one eye, he slept, alert for the sounds and scents of
intruders.

Blade slunk from tree to tree, silence
cloaking him. The camp lay a few hundred feet from him. These rough
men had done nothing to cover their trail and made enough noise for
a deaf man to hear. They were not worried about being followed.

Blade clenched his jaw, anger filling him.
Who would be following them? Outlaws ran rampant in Aigerach since
Zelera took the throne. No decent folk were out at night. The few
knights that hadn’t been captured and tortured were hired by
wealthy land owners to keep their properties safe. The country
dissolved in a free for all, with no one looking out for anyone but
themselves.

The three men bumbled about their camp. A
tall lanky man took a girl off the back of his horse and tossed her
by the fire. Blade stared at Ravyn. Her dark hair fell about her
perfect doll-like face. She looked the same, but different. Her
hands and feet were bound, and she appeared to be breathing
steadily.

Creeping closer to the camp, the men’s voices
reached him. The tall lanky man dropped a load of wood by the fire.
“How long till we get to the caves, Tilgey? And,” he added with a
lecherous stare at Ravyn, “what we gonna do with the little
miss?”

“We reach the caves tomorrow, Cugh. Then we
wait for Zelera’s orders. Nobody touches the girl. You understand?”
Tilgey glared at Cugh, daring him to disobey.

“But, Tilgey, why don’t we just kill her now?
She’s heavy baggage. And she ain’t no fun; she’s unconscious. No
fun kissing the ladies if they can’t enjoy it too,” whined a pudgy
younger man.

“Oh yeah, Smuggit. A real lady pleaser you
are. Her highness will like me best; I’m much better looking than
you,” Cugh prodded Smuggit’s overhanging gut.

“Quiet! You imbeciles, Zelera said we ain’t
to touch her. I don’t want no more of that pain she gives. You two
idiots don’t know what it feels like; she ain’t zapped you yet.
It’s like a million bees stinging you right in your eyes. It ain’t
nothing you want to know about. That girl’s got to be in good
condition or the empress will kill us. Now get back to work, and
shut up.”

Blade sized up his opponents. He was
outnumbered three to one. They were slovenly and clumsy. He could
take on all three louts and win, but he couldn’t be sure of Ravyn’s
safety. One of them could slit her throat while he was disposing of
the other two. He had to wait and watch for the right moment. It
hurt him to see her lying there, dirty and bruised. He longed to
reach out to her, to tell her she would be safe.

Smuggit’s loud griping brought him back to
attention, “Tilgey, if she’s got to be in good condition, why’d you
hit her so hard? She’s been out for two whole days. Don’ t you
think Zelera will be pissed about that?”

“That blow to the head weren’t nothing.
Zelera said if she used too much magic, it’d wipe her out, and
she’d go into some kind of deep sleep. I hope she stays asleep till
Zelera gets her. She might be a wildcat when she’s awake, what with
her magic and all. Zelera put a spell on us to protect us from
attacks against our bodies, like magical armor. But what if she
knocks a tree over and it falls on us, or something like that? No,
sir, I don’t like magic; it never did me no good.”

The thought of magic sobered the men. Cugh
and Smuggit witnessed Tilgey’s agonizing pain when Zelera punished
him, and they wanted no part of it.

Ravyn was drifting in a black void, but
gradually scents and sounds drifted in to her conscious thoughts.
She could feel tight cords biting into her hands and feet. Light
flickered over her eyelids and she smelled campfire smoke. Harsh
voices filtered through her mind, and their words began making
sense. She’d been captured. She hadn’t heeded Connor’s warning, and
she drained herself of magic. She left herself helpless, an easy
target for these men. Hunger, thirst, and a myriad of aches and
pains nagged her. With effort, she shoved them aside, continuing to
feign unconsciousness. She had to wait for the right opportunity,
and then she would escape.

The fire crackled, and Ravyn could hear
smacking and slurping. A loud belch erupted.

“Damn, Smuggit, you’re no better than a pig.”
She heard someone gruff.

“Aw, Tilgey, I can’t help it. This ale does
it to me every time. Least I ain’t breakin’ wind.”

“Never mind that, she ain’t eaten in a couple
days. Try getting some broth down her. It won’t do her or us a lick
of good if she dies before Zelera gets her,” Tilgey ordered.

“How’ll I do that if she’s still out?”

“Put a spoonful in her mouth, then stroke her
throat; she’ll swallow. I seen my pa do that with some sick animals
before; he called it a reflex or something like that.”

A pungent odor assaulted Ravyn; she fought
the urge to gag. A cold spoon slipped past her lips and tipped
salty broth into her mouth. Fat hairy knuckles brushed her throat.
She schooled herself not to cringe and swallowed.

“Hey, it worked! Did you see that?”

“Of course it did, you moron; I told you it
would. Give her a cup of that, and take first watch. I need me some
sleep. We leave at dawn.” He grunted as he lay down on his blanket.
“The sooner we get her back to Zelera, the sooner we rest
easy.”

Every vile touch at her throat made Ravyn
want to scream, but her life depended on her ability to play
opossum. Finally, the spoon stopped coming. Rough hands rolled her
on her side. What was he doing?

“Hey, Tilgey, these cords is cutting into her
skin. Her hands and feet is all swollen.”

“Well, dunderhead, loosen them a bit, but not
too much. Do I have to figure everything out for you?”

The cords loosened around her wrists. She
flexed her muscles slightly as Smuggit retied the bonds. Then he
loosened and retied the cords around her feet.

“Damn, Smuggit, she sure is a pretty thing. I
swear it’s such a waste, her just laying there.” He dropped his
voice to a whisper. “Tilgey’s sleeping. What he don’t know won’t
hurt him.”

Ravyn felt a hand on her back. She felt for
the magic; it was there, but weak.

“By the Darkness, Cugh, if you touch that
girl, I’ll knock your teeth right outta your head. I’m not asleep,
you idiot.”

Cugh grumbled under his breath, and Ravyn
could hear him scuffling around. “I swear, Smuggit, when this job’s
done, I’m heading to town, and I’m drinking meself under the
table.”

“Yeah, I just want to find a big meal and a
lean girl.”

“You’re so ugly you’ll be lucky to find a big
girl that’ll look at ya.”

Ravyn lay waiting for Smuggit and Cugh to
stop talking. Soon all she heard was snoring. She listened to three
distinct snores. Smuggit was not keeping watch. She began flexing
her wrists and ankles, working the fluid out of her hands and feet.
The bonds loosened a little more, not enough to wriggle free. She
clenched and unclenched her fists, stiff fingers limbering. She
felt the magic simmering below the surface. Was it too soon to use
it?

Ravyn felt herself falling, wind whispering
past her cheeks. She landed hard on her stomach, the air whooshing
from her lungs, and the smell of horse tickling her nose. Dammit!
She’d fallen asleep! A rope wound about her, cinching her tight
against the animal.

“Should I ride with her, in case she wakes
up?” Cugh asked hopefully, patting her bottom.

“Nah, Zelera said this sleep would last 4 or
5 days. She ain’t going nowhere. And, stop touching her. Zelera
could be watching. You want her mad at you?” Cugh snatched his hand
away as if it were on fire.

She had a couple days until they thought
she’d “wake up”. That would be enough time to come up with an
escape plan. She flexed her hands against her bonds.

Blade trailed the noisy bandits. The two
younger thugs were croaking out a bawdy tavern song. Their off-key
ditty assaulted his ears. Blade shook his head. An entire army
could be following them, and they wouldn’t hear a thing.

They were sticking to the trail. It headed to
some caves a half day’s ride ahead. Would Zelera be there to greet
them? She rarely left Veris, and it was a long hard journey over
snowy passes. He exhaled deeply, letting out breath he hadn’t
realized he was holding. No, Zelera wouldn’t be there.

Blade turned his horse off trail, picking a
circuitous route to the rocky stronghold. The trail began ascending
into the hills, rocks skittering beneath his horse’s hooves. Blade
ran a comforting hand along his steed’s neck as the horse picked
its way up the slope.

As the sun reached its zenith, Ravyn’s
captors halted in front of a huge granite wall. Jagged peaks
grasped at the sky. Ravyn heard the saddles creak and the heavy
thud of the men’s feet on the hard ground. She peeked out through
long lashes to see several large caves pock marking the cliff’s
face.

A big man with heavy jowls and fat pink lips
was scrutinizing the caves. “Smuggit, take care of the horses.
Cugh, throw her in that cave there,” his chubby finger pointed to a
cave with a large circular stone next to the opening. “I’ve gotta
contact Zelera.”

“What do I do with her pack? You want
it?”

“Nah, there ain’t nothing of value in there,
I already checked. Toss it in with her for all I care. There’s a
few pieces of moldy cheese and some stale biscuits. If she wakes up
she can feed herself.” A gruff chuckle emanated from deep in his
chest. “Once we seal her in, I ain’t opening it till Zelera’s ready
for her.”

Cugh unlashed Ravyn from the back of the
horse, slinging her over his shoulders. His foul body odor
assaulted her nostrils. She trembled, trying to gain control of her
lurching stomach. Cugh tossed her on the ground, her head cracking
against the hard rock. A small moan escaped her lips, causing Cugh
to jump back.

“Tilgey, I think she’s waking up!”

“Get out of there and help me roll this stone
over the opening, you idiot!”

Ravyn heard scuffling and grunting. Opening
her eyes a crack, she saw daylight diminishing in a thin crescent,
and then all was dark.

Blade surveyed the stronghold from a rocky
niche. A frontal attack was out of the question as there was no
cover. He eyed the numerous caves and tunnels. Some reached through
the mountain to the other side.

Blade retreated from his hiding place,
slipping and sliding on loose rock as he descended the steep slope.
He skidded to a stop in front of his horse. Untethering the mare,
he patted her back. “If I don’t return before sundown, go back to
Magda’s. Don’t let these maggots get their hands on you.” He
ruffled her mane.

He worked his way over to the eastern side of
the rock face, out of the ruffian’s line of sight. Blade tossed his
pack over his shoulders and adjusted the straps. His fingers dug
into the cool granite, and he began the arduous task of scaling the
cliffs, hoping to find the back door open.

Ravyn wriggled her fingers, twisting her
hands within the cords. The rough rope fibers scraped her tender
skin. After several minutes her hands slipped free of their bonds.
In the chilly darkness, she fumbled with the bonds around her feet.
She felt like a rusty hinge, her joints and muscles screeching from
disuse. She stamped her feet to get the blood flowing. Her foot
bumped into her pack, and she bent down to retrieve it.

Like a mouse, she sniffed out the last few
bits of food, nibbling each precious morsel. The biscuits left her
mouth sticky and dry. Plink, plink, plink. The sound echoed off the
walls from the back of the cave. With outstretched arms, Ravyn made
her way deeper into the cave. Her fingers bumped into damp rough
rock. Running her hands down the wall, she found a small puddle on
the floor. She cupped her hands, filling them with the lucky
find.

After quenching her thirst, she stood again
and felt a slight stirring in the air. Stepping towards the draft,
she banged into a pile of boulders. They blocked an opening. They
were too big to physically lift, but with the aid of magic? Connor
said she could do anything if she believed.

Centering herself, she felt magic welling
within her. She imagined a rock lifting itself and rolling to the
other side of the cave to settle itself in front of the entrance. A
rumbling sound let her know it obeyed her will. She set her mind to
the next rock, and the next, until the front of the cave was
blocked and the back was open. Air rushed in, greeting her.

Tilgey held Zelera’s mirror in shaking hands.
He tapped the dark glass and summoned Zelera. He shuddered as his
reflection disappeared and Zelera appeared looking down her
aquiline nose at him.

“You had better have good news,” she
hissed.

“Your ladyship, we got her! We captured her
at the edge of Desolation. She just popped up there at the edge of
the grasslands, all wiped out, like you said she’d be if she used
too much magic.”