Sean Russell - The Shadow Roads

“There are rumors all around the castle that you traveled tosome distant place and saw magic performed …”

“We did not appear to travel far-a few days’ journey-but wewere in strange lands all the same. It all seems like a dream, now-or anightmare.”

“And did you meet a rogue there who called himself Alaan?”

Dease was taken aback by this. “Has someone told you of ourjourney already?”

“No one has. But you did meet such a man?”

Dease moved his hand on the smooth railing, gazing down intothe dark, trying to make sense of this new interest. “Well, I would not say Imet him. He was ill nearly unto death and hardly able to mutter a few wordsmost of the time, let alone carry on a conversation.”

“Then Toren did save him?”

“No more than a number of other people. We all foughtHafydd, who sought this Alaan to murder him.”

“How utterly strange,” Llyn’s voice drifted up from beneaththe canopy of leaves. A moment she was silent, the soft whispering of the windin the branches, like some languorous speech, too slow for man to comprehend.But then, Dease thought, the trees had so many years to live, why should theyhurry like short-lived humans?

“And Samuel and Beldor; did you ever find them?”

“Yes. Toren granted them immunity, as long as they neveragain set foot on Renne lands.”

She seemed to consider this a moment. “It is like Toren tobe compassionate, but not at the cost of justice. What transpired, I wonder, tolead him to make such a decision?”

“It was very simple, really: we needed Samul and Beld tofight Hafydd and his … supporters.”

“Ah,” Llyn said. “The Renne have made many such alliances inour history. Some for good. Some for ill.”

He could almost feel her staring up at him through theleaves, and he was suddenly uncomfortable, almost embarrassed.

“What became of Samul and Beld?”

“No one knows. It is something of a miracle that Toren and Isurvived and found each other. Many, I fear, were lost, including Samul andBeld, which would be for the better, in many ways.”

“I suppose it would, though I would dearly like to know whatthey were thinking, trying to murder Toren.” He saw her thick cascade of hairshake in the starlight.

“Beld did not need to think; he hated Toren completely. Samul…? Well, who ever knew what Samul was thinking?”

“I did not know him well,” Llyn said, “but it would seem tobe true. He was a hidden man. I wonder how many people came away fromconversations under the impression that Samul agreed with them, when he did notat all? There was never any truth to him. Nothing revealed. I wonder what madehim so?”

The question did not seem to really be addressed to Dease,but he tried to answer it all the same.

“I don’t know, Cousin,” Dease said. “He was always thus.Even when we were children, or so I think now.”

“I shall have to hear the story of your adventure in itsentirety sometime. I am delighted to see you have returned unharmed. And theblow to your head that you suffered trying to save Toren?”

“It is healed. The headaches gone”-he raised his hands, andsmiled-“as if by magic.”

“There is some good news, I’m glad to hear.”

There was the quick crunch and scatter of gravel as someonetrotted along the path.

“Your grace?” a maid said softly.

“What is it, Anna?”

“A company of men-at-arms has just arrived with a man theyfound wandering in a wood. He is said to be Lord Samul Renne.”

Dease closed his eyes, leaning his weight against the railing.

Suddenly his head throbbed, and the fatigue that had besethim seemed to cast its net over him again, dragging him down. He thought hemight begin to sob and went quickly from the balcony, collapsing into one ofthe chairs in the small drawing room.

Would he never be shut of Samul and Beld? Could they not dieor flee? As long as they remained alive he would know no peace. The truth wouldcome out one day,

Llyn’s words came back to him then. There was never anytruth in him .

She should have been speaking of me, Dease realized.

He turned to look back out toward the garden but caughtsight of his own dark reflection in the glass of the opened door. How shadowedhis eyes were. How contrived the look of his face. He was becoming more likeSamul each day, a hidden man. A man in whom there was no truth. And how wouldhe ever change that now?

There were a few cells hidden away beneath Castle Renne, thoughnothing like the “dungeons” one read of in stories. Dease made his way down theuneven stairs by the light of a lantern, careful with his footing. The stonetreads were crudely made, uneven and broken in places-easy enough to lose one’sfooting and stumble. He wiped away a cobweb that netted his face, then ran ahand over his hair to search for spiders.

He came into a passageway, its vaulted stone ceiling lost insmoky shadows. The air there was cool with a dank odor of newly turned soil. Aguard at the end of the passage rose quickly from the box he’d been loungingon, clearly worried that Dease would upbraid him for lazing on the job. Dease,however, could not have cared less.

“Lord Samul,” Dease said.

The man bowed nervously. “This way, your grace.” He lifted alantern from a hook set into the wall and led down a short side passage.Before a door with a tiny, barred window he stopped.

“That will be all,” Dease said, and the guard waddled off.

Inside the cell a candle flickered, offering dull illuminationto a cot, a small desk, and a single, straight-backed chair.

“Samul?”

A form rose from the cot, tossing back a blanket. “Dease?”Samul appeared in the candlelight, rising stiffly. He crossed the few paces tothe ironbound door.

“I’m glad to see you alive, Cousin,” Samul said, keeping hisvoice low.

“And you, Cousin,” Dease answered. “But what folly broughtyou here to Castle Renne? You must know that Toren will keep his word.”

“I was washed out of the Stillwater into a little tributaryof the Wynnd. I didn’t know at first where I was.”

Dease hung his lantern up on a hook by the door. It droveback only the worst of the shadows. The effect of this was to give to Samul’sface a cast of distress that was certainly not there. None of Samul’s emotionsever showed on his face-which had led many to speculate that he had nofeelings.

“I might have slipped quietly away, but when I heard war hadbroken out I knew I had to return to warn Toren. You will hardly believe me,but Hafydd has made a bargain with Death.”

“We know,” Dease answered. “One of the northerners, Fynnol,saw … you in league with Hafydd. Or so the Fael say.”

Samul’s hands came up and curled around the bars. “No,Dease! I had no choice but to pretend to serve Hafydd. It was Beld who made abargain with Hafydd, not I. In the Stillwater Hafydd approached me alone andoffered me a place of prominence in his court when he overran the land betweenthe mountains. He spoke very seductively about all that I could have andachieve, and gave me a small leather case, which he said contained an egg. Iwas to open the case and break the egg just before Alaan led us out of theStillwater. Out of range of Hafydd’s influence I came to my senses. But when Iwent to destroy the egg Beld found me and snatched the egg from my hand, andbroke it open. A wasp, flew out-I swear it is the truth-and Hafydd thenbelieved that it was I who had signaled him. But it was Beld.” He stopped totake a breath and collect his thoughts. “I saved Toren from Beld. Has he forgottenthat?”

“I’m sure he hasn’t. You also tried to murder him. He hasn’tforgotten that either.”

“And what of you, Dease? Have you forgotten your part?”