Katharine Kerr - Darkspell

“I will, Your Grace.” Ogwern rose and made a surprisingly graceful bow. “I’m most humbly grateful that Your Grace provides so much safety for us honest poor folk of your city.”

Ogwern walked backward, bowing all the way, out of the dreaded gwerbret’s presence. Jill assumed that he would run all the way out of the dun. Blaen turned to Cinvan.

“Come now, Warden,” he said. “Do you truly think that fat fellow is a thief? I find it cursed hard to believe, myself.”

“I know Your Grace has doubts, but I swear it, someday I’ll catch him with enough evidence to convince a whole roomful of councillors.”

“When you do, we’ll cut his hands off, but not before. Now, as for you, silver dagger, I don’t want you sneaking out of town the moment the gates open. Cinvan, we’ll take her under arrest.”

“But, Your Grace,” Jill stammered, “he drew on me first.”

“No doubt, but I want you at the malover to say that in person. Listen, lass, it’s not like I’m charging you with murder or suchlike. He poisoned himself, after all. It’s just that I know how little silver daggers think of the laws.”

“As it pleases Your Grace, then, but meaning no offense, Your Grace, if I’m to be put on trial for somewhat, I have a right to have some of my kin at my side.”

“On the morrow we’ll have naught but a hearing, but you’re right enough. If I think matters warrant full malover, then we’ll wait until you summon any kinsman within a reasonable distance.”

“He’s coming with that caravan, Your Grace, the one that was attacked. His name’s Rhodry Mael—I mean, Rhodry of Aberwyn.”

Cinvan made an odd choking sound, but Blaen tossed back his head and laughed.

“You started to say Rhodry Maelwaedd, didn’t you? By the gods, Jill! He’s my cousin, my mother’s sister’s son.”

“Then no wonder he looks so much like you, Your Grace.”

“Just that. All the great clans are as inbred as a herd of Bardek horses. Here, get up off the floor! A fine way I have of treating my cousin’s wife! It’s going to be blasted good to see Rhodry again. When I heard the news of his exile, I was furious, but Rhys was always a stiff-necked little bastard, and I know he’ll never listen to me about his folly. Cinvan, find the lady a chair.”

The only chair the guard room could offer was a wooden stool, but Jill took it gratefully.

“Well, in truth, Your Grace,” she said, “I’m neither a lady nor Rhodry’s legal wife.”

“He hasn’t married you decently, has he? Well, I’ll speak to him about that. Where’s your gear? Cinvan, send one of your lads after it. Gilyan will be staying in the broch tonight.”

After the warden was sent on his way, Cinvan got down to the grim job of searching the corpse. Blaen studied Jill with a small paternal smile. Among the noble-born, a man’s cousins were far more important to him than his brothers, who were rivals for land and influence. You’ve had a silver dagger’s luck, Jill told herself, but I wonder what Rhodry’s going to think of all this. Suddenly and profoundly she wished that he were there, so she could throw herself into his arms and forget all about this evil dweomer.

“Now, here,” Blaen said. “Since we’re practically kin, tell me honestly. You know more about this fellow than you’re willing to admit.”

“I’ve never seen him before in my life, Your Grace. But that other man, the one Ogwern hired me to protect him from? I’ve seen him, all right. Your Grace is going to think me daft, but I’ll swear to you that he had dweomer. He came into the Red Dragon to cause trouble. When I tried to stop him, he looked in my eyes and nearly ensorcelled me. For a minute I could neither think nor move.”

Behind them Cinvan swore aloud.

“Begging your pardon, Your Grace,” he said. “Look at this.”

The warden held up a medallion, dangling from a chain. It was a thin circle of lead, graved with a reversed pentagram, a Bardek word, and three strange sigils.

“It was around this bastard’s neck. I doubt me if the lass’s talk of witchcraft is as daft as it sounds.”

In his scrying fire Alastyr watched the Bardekian die, saw the corpse still drumming and twitching reflexively as the pale blue etheric double separated out and rose, floating over the dead matter below. He broke the vision, then sat back on his heels to think. Only a Hawk would carry poison such as that. The question now was, How many Hawks were there left? They never traveled alone, but the Old One might have hired only a pair—they didn’t come cheap, after all.

For a change Jill had done him a favor, he supposed, for all the good it would do her. The Hawk’s body might have been dead, but no doubt he’d make her pay before he went onward to the Lands of Husks and Rinds. Alastyr laughed under his breath and stood up—too fast, much too fast.

He gasped for breath, his head swimming, and a hazy golden fog crackled in front of his eyes. He had to exert all his trained will to push that fog away and keep from fainting. Crouched on the other side of the fire, Gan looked up and made a gurgling sound.

“Stay where you are,” Alastyr muttered. “I merely need to rest.”

Alastyr staggered to his blankets and sank to his knees, then flopped down with a groan. Much later he remembered that he’d forgotten to warn Sarcyn.

Since Blaen insisted on treating Jill as if she were his cousin’s legal wife, his chamberlain gave her a large chamber with its own hearth, a lushly embroidered bed, and silver sconces set along the walls. After a page brought her hot water, she had a satisfying wash, set the bowl of dirty water outside for a page to take away, then barred the door from the inside. Since she had done very little all day, her brief sword fight had left her merely nervous, not tired. For a while she paced around, watching the flickering candlelight dance along the walls. The room, the broch, were utterly silent, but all at once she was certain that she wasn’t alone.

No sound, not even that subtle difference in a room that means an extra body is soaking up sound—but she could feel someone watching her, a tangible presence. Feeling like an utter fool, she drew her silver dagger and prowled slowly around the chamber. She found not so much as a mouse in the corners and spun round to see nothing but candlelight and shadows. Yet something was there; she’d never been so sure of anything in her life, that someone was stalking her. For a moment, as she glanced round, she thought she saw a shadow fall twixt her and the candles burning in the wall sconce, but when she turned to look, there was nothing.

One cautious step at a time, she went over to the windows and threw open the shutters. No one was climbing up the smooth stone tower; far below, the dark ward lay empty. When she glanced up, she could see the stars, the great spread of the Snowy Road far above her—light, but cold, indifferent to her or to any human being’s plight. All at once she felt despair, a black sorrow in her heart, as if nothing mattered, not her honor, not her life, not even her love for Rhodry, nothing, since all that human life could be was a little fleck of light against the all-embracing dark, like one of those pinprick stars, indifferent and cruel. She leaned on the windowsill and felt the despair spreading, leaching away her energy and her will. Why fight? she thought. The night always wins; why fight it?

Far off on the horizon, beyond the sleeping city, the last quarter moon was rising, a pale glow against the black. Soon the moon too would slip into darkness and be gone. But she rises again, Jill thought, she rises full on her return. The moon was a promise in the sky, returning and growing into a great silver beacon, shedding her light on all, good men and evil alike, when her Darktime was done. “ Only to fade yet once again. ” The thought came in some other voice, not hers. Only then did she realize that she was fighting, battling an enemy she couldn’t see with weapons she’d never used.