Glissanda Read online

  “Meet them at the port?” But I know this is what he means. I shake my head. “No, it’s too risky. We just need to find them and take my family and—”

  Leif’s face falls serious. “But that’s just it. While I was getting the ales, the pubkeep told me to watch out for this group of Loyalists. It’s not just a few, Raven, there are at least fifty, he said. Only a handful stopped in at Alderwood, to meet up with the rest. There’s no way we’ll be able to take that many on.”

  I don’t answer him at first. I look toward the mountain range to the east, the direction we’d travel to reach the Treasoners. Their camp’s at least a week and a half away and another two weeks back to the Bastion from there, if we were moving at a relentless pace. And then how would we get ourselves and a group of Treasoners past the Bastion to the port without notice? It’s a ridiculous idea.

  Just the three of us taking on fifty-plus angry Loyalists? An even more ridiculous idea.

  But the Loyalists have taken my family, to present to King Araroa for treason. They’ll likely be executed immediately for such a crime, just as Queen Seraphine was. All to take revenge against me.

  I look in the direction where the South Coast lies, south of our valley, where I’ve never been. With no map and no guide—I doubt we’d be able to find Catriona, even if we turned back and tried—it’s foolish to assume if we continue on that way, we’ll come across the Loyalists, rescue my family, and be on our way back to Baldachin to rebuild in a matter of days.

  Foolish, but I’m nearly certain it’s the way I must go.

  Nearly. But not enough.

  “Fine. We’ll go with your plan, Leif. We’ll sort the details out when we find the others.” My voice is hard, words clipped. I give Pearl a small kick to move on, still not believing what I’ve just agreed to.

  To leave my family in the hands of the Loyalists. Who’d be happy for us all to be dead. Or worse: tortured.

  I ride ahead of the others into the old bearcat forest. As soon as I’m in the cover of the thick trees, the little evening light that was left is snuffed out. We make camp in the dark and since we’re still full from our dinner at the pub a few hours earlier, we don’t bother making a fire. We pull our bedrolls out as soon as we’ve got the horses unsaddled.

  “I’m going to sleep. I’m tired,” I snap at Leif, unrolling my bedroll onto the pine needles and crawling inside.

  He can’t hide the disappointment in his face, and doesn’t argue. “Can I sleep nearby, at least?”

  I tuck the wool around my shoulders. “Suit yourself.”

  Even as I curl up, my back to him, I still want to reach for him. To hold him close. Especially since I’m taking it out on him for not following my instincts … even though I know he’s right … probably.

  Despite my exhaustion, of course I can’t sleep. My heart won’t stop pounding, the thoughts won’t stop swirling in my head, visions of my mum and papa and Miss Lilith tied up. Barely subsisting on bread and water. Who knows what punishments they are enduring right now. My stomach turns in knots, I’m nauseated, knowing I’ve turned my back on them.

  I think about the Loyalists. Obviously they’d do anything for their King, whether he asks for it or not. And the Prince—that’s really who their loyalty lies with, who they’re protecting. I declared I would not oppose King Araroa, but I did lay my claim to the throne of Nadir. I am the rightful King when he dies.

  How will I ever convince these people of it?

  As we continue on through the forest, my mood does not improve, especially since the days have been growing shorter now that late summer is upon us. I lead our group through the towering trees, following the widening trail, more traveled now that the bearcats have departed. That is some consolation at least: while still feared, the bearcats have the run of Nadir again, most settling back in their ancestral mountains—the first time they’ve been back since exiled hundreds of years ago. King Araroa had promised me he’d not hurt them, and I’ve not heard he’s ordered otherwise. Yet.

  On our last day in these woods, I’ve pushed on until the very last light of evening. As we make camp, I wander around in the near dark, gathering up bits of wood for a fire. But every step I take among the ferns and spongy moss makes me even more anxious, knowing we must pass through Blackpool tomorrow—always an unwelcoming place—and then across the long moor toward the Zenith mountains. But what’s worse is knowing we’ve gone so far already that we can’t possibly turn around now and head for the South Coast. Can we?

  Maybe it’s not too late.

  I pile the smallest pieces of wood up, tucking a handful of dried moss underneath. I can’t get the flint to light it though; my hands are shaking with the knowledge of what I must say to Leif and Tui.

  “Here, let me try,” Leif says, appearing next to me. Tui is still getting the horses settled for the night.

  I try again. Fail. “I can do it,” I bark at him.

  “Sure you can.” He sits down on a log to watch, stretching his long legs out in front of him.

  I fail again. My face and ears are steaming now. Why can’t I do this one simple thing?

  Finally, on what must be my tenth strike, a tiny spark sets the moss alight. Moments later, growing flames lick toward the tower of kindling and it finally catches fire.

  I breathe a sigh of relief. But only a small one.

  What I must do next will be far more difficult.

  I sit beside Leif and together we watch the fire grow. The building warmth reaches us and I hold my hands out toward the flames. Night has fallen and there’s an autumnal chill in the air.

  Tui appears out of the dark and sets our pack of food down nearby. He tosses a few small pieces of wood on the fire. The moisture in the wood sizzles and hisses, then the fire catches, growing larger. He sits down and rummages through the pack, handing over a bread roll and some pieces of dried meat to Leif and me.

  “Blackpool tomorrow, eh?” he asks, then tears off a piece of the meat with his teeth. “How are we getting through this time?” He takes a slug of water, wipes his mouth with his sleeve.

  I take a deep breath. “We’re not. We’re turning back to find the Loyalists who’ve got our mums, Papa, and Miss Lilith. We don’t have time to find the rest of the Treasoners. They need our help. Now.”

  Tui’s arm stops in mid-air, his eyes going wide. Leif runs a hand through his disheveled blond hair, then rests his forehead on his palms. He shakes his head, slaps his hands on his knees.

  “Look, Raven. I know you believe this is the right thing to do and I understand it—I do. But we’ve got no chance of succeeding, or very little, at any rate. We just can’t face these bastards on our own. We need—”

  I stand up, my hands flying to my hips in defiance. “I don’t care if it’s the smallest chance in the world, I’ve got to take it. We can’t leave them … we just can’t …” I drop my arms to my sides and sink back onto the log next to Leif. He starts to reach for my hand, then thinks better of it. He turns toward me instead, and places his hands in front of him, pleading.

  “Raven, please. I know you think this is best, but … but I don’t believe it is. I won’t do it—I won’t let you put yourself into such peril. You can’t … we just … we need you. All of us need you and I’ve sworn to myself ever since I first laid eyes on you—nay, since I first heard of your very existence—that I’d protect you. I—”

  “Ha! You’re kidding, right?” I can’t believe what he’s just said. I shake my head. “You helped the Queen ensnare me, you allowed them to throw me in the King’s dungeon, you—”

  “Helped you get free.” His face is earnest, green eyes shimmering in the firelight, as though they too were full of sparks.

  All three of us are silent for a time. There are only the sounds of our crackling fire and an owl hooting in a distant treetop.

  “What do you mean?” I finally whisper.

  He takes a deep breath. “What I mean is, I was the one who convinced the Queen to give you the
key. I told her I’d keep you safe, always, if she did.”

  I don’t know what to say. If what he’s saying is true, then he’s the reason she was executed. But he couldn’t have known that …

  He continues. “Raven, if I let you go back, allow you to face those Loyalists without support, without your followers, then I will be going back on the promise I made to your Queen mother. I can’t do that.”

  I look over at Tui, silently daring him to disagree with me.

  He only shrugs. “Aw, Raven. You’re a Woman King, after all—your call is the final one. But in this case, I think Leif is right. We can’t do this without the others. The Loyalists would not only have your family then, but us too. They might kill us all. Who knows what they’ve got up their sleeves? I also think we need to return to the camp, meet up with Cat there as planned, hear what else she’s found out.”

  Leif sighs. “I’m not sure how to say this without sounding callous. But, Raven, I know you love your family, more than anything. Hell, I’ve been looking forward to meeting them myself”—he turns toward me, and takes both my hands in his—“and I promise we’ll find them, and soon. But I can’t give my support to something so dangerous … for you. You have so many more to think about now, besides just your family. You have thousands of Treasoners, thousands of Nadir residents who are holding hope that you’ll be in power one day. They’ve sworn to keep you safe. I’ve sworn to keep you safe. I cannot lend my support to such a foolish mission.”

  His bluntness makes my temper flare. But only for a moment as what he’s saying sinks in.

  I realize he’s right—I’m responsible for a great many more people than just the few the Loyalists have in their possession, as much as I love those people.

  I squeeze his hands in return. I look at him, then at Tui, who seems to have said all he can and is simply waiting for my decision.

  “I trust you—both of you”—I nod in Tui’s direction—“and although it kills me to leave them, I suppose finding the Treasoners would be best. Besides, I’m sure the Loyalists want to deliver our family to Araroa alive.” My voice breaks as I finally choke back a torrent of tears.

  I’m not sure of that at all.

  “They’ll not have the chance,” Tui says. “We’ll be greeting ’em at the port. I’ve got a plan simmering, don’t you worry. When we get back to the camp, we’ll set out right away with the others to meet them.”

  I take a deep breath and sit up straight, recomposing myself. “You’re right, Tui. You too, Leif. Thanks for … calming me down.”

  Leif squeezes my hands again. “Shall we get some sleep, m’lady?” Leif’s mouth curls into a half-grin. “A couple of hours, at least.” He winks.

  “Ha ha, very funny.” I can’t help but smile back at him. We’re planning on passing through Blackpool in the wee hours of the morning, so we really do only have a few hours to sleep.

  We spread our bedrolls out around the fire. Tonight, I let Leif curl his body around mine, how we usually sleep. He places a soft kiss on my ear, then whispers into it: “I promise, all will be well, Raven.”

  I open my mouth to reply, but then I’m not sure what to say first. There’s no way he can be sure of that—there’s far too much uncertainty in our kingdom. Too many people who want me to fail. Who want me to pay.

  “I hope you’re right,” I finally say.

  But as the warmth of his body seeps into mine, a deep sense of peace spreads through me as well, and I start to believe that perhaps he is.

  Although we’ve only slept for a couple of hours, I’m instantly wide awake when I feel Leif caressing my hair.

  “Morning, moonshine,” he says with a grin. It’s nearly a full moon, and the beams are streaming down through the treetops. The whole forest is aglow with silver light.

  His eyes sparkle and his white teeth flash. I reach up and grab the back of his head, pulling him down for a long kiss.

  Now, I’m really awake.

  He groans and tears himself away. “I suppose it’s time to go,” he says, “although I’d much rather stay right here.” I keep my eyes closed for just a few seconds longer, his scent of leather and peppermint lingering in my nose.

  “Me too.” I sit up and stretch my arms.

  I look around to find Tui’s already up. The horses are saddled and waiting. He finishes packing one of Pango’s saddlebags and ties it closed. “C’mon, you lovebirds. Let’s get on with it.”

  Leif and I both yawn in unison and finally peel ourselves off the ground to pack up our bedrolls.

  This time, we go around Blackpool entirely. So many trees have been felled in the surrounding woods to the north, it’s easy enough to wind our way through them until we’re certain the troublesome town is behind us. When we reach the moor, we push the horses into a run, hoping to make as many miles as we can today.

  We follow the road for a day. Thankfully we see no one. We veer north off the road, into the grasslands, to avoid the other towns ahead.

  A few days later, the Zenith Mountains loom ahead of us and we keep our eyes peeled for the landmarks we know will lead us to the camp. We follow a stream up the mountainside for a day and a half, until we reach the glowing blue pool, a white waterfall tumbling over the fern-covered cliff above. The camp’s only a few more hours away and it’s only midday so we stop for a rest.

  The day is warm and I pull off my boots, putting my feet in the water to soak.

  “Fancy a swim?” Leif is already pulling off his shirt and breeches. Soon he’s down to just his drawers. He climbs onto a large rock and dives in; his body slices smoothly into the clear blue water. He’s out of sight for a moment, then bursts up again to the surface, whooping as he does.

  “Come on! It’s freezing! But it feels amazing!”

  I don’t hesitate, pulling off my pants and tunic and jumping in after him. When I surface—gasping from the cold—Tui’s standing on the rock, then he dives in too.

  We swim around together in the chilly water, our whoops echoing against the rocks, into the treetops. I feel like a kid again, like when Tui and I used to swim in the river. Just for a little while, I forget my reality, with all its new responsibilities.

  I climb up onto a sunny rock. Letting the rays warm my goose-pimpled limbs, I close my eyes and study the redness behind my eyelids. Tui and Leif are still taking turns jumping in.

  The voice that echoes down from the ridge above makes me leap up. “The Loyalists will hear you from miles away, what with all the racket you all are making.”

  I can’t see—my eyes are blurred from the sun. But I know that voice.

  “Catriona! What are you doing here?”

  “Looking for you three, of course,” she says.

  As my eyes adjust, I watch her scramble down the cliff face, holding onto roots as she goes. Seconds later, she’s next to me, offering a hug.

  But Tui gets there first. He leaps from the water and showers the both of us with spray as he grabs her into a wet embrace. Catriona’s laugh echoes against the cliff.

  “Where are you all headed?” she asks, finally breaking away from the very damp Tui.

  I’ve been combing out my wet hair with my fingers, but I stop. “What do you mean? We’re going to the Treasoner camp, as we’d agreed.”

  Her face falls serious as she purses her lips together.

  “I’m afraid we need another plan. The Zenith camp is abandoned. The Treasoners are gone.”

  Chapter 5

  “Well this is just bloody fantastic!” I look out over the trampled grass, the area once filled with tents and animals and children running to and fro. Dozens of Treasoners had camped here for months, hiding out, waiting. And now they are nowhere to be seen.

  They’d left quickly too, from the look of it. Bits of clothing are scattered around, a few pots and pans. Even the ashes in the huge fire pit are still smoldering. I’m certain if they had time, they would have left no trace.

  “Aw, don’t fret, Raven,” Catriona says. “I’ve
already got a track on them. Looks like they are heading back toward the pass—”

  “Then we need to go that way too. I need to find them straight away. I need to get our best men and women and make for the port immediately.”

  During our ride to the camp—after I’d insisted on seeing it for myself—I’d told Catriona what we’d learned in Alderwood; she’d heard the same after surreptitiously asking around in Greenhollow, proving what the barmaid had told me was true. Not that that had eased my mind any.

  Catriona’d had the same thought as us: to find the Treasoners and get help. Opposing these bloodthirsty Loyalists by ourselves would be foolish … although I can’t shake the feeling that doing so might make us too late already. My family could be on a ship right now, heading for the port, only hours from the Bastion. Well on their way to being presented to King Araroa with their heads on a platter.

  I can’t let that happen. I just can’t.

  “Let’s go. We need to catch up with them. Quickly.”

  I throw myself atop Pearl and start, but something in a nearby bush catches my eye and I hop down to retrieve it. Sure enough it’s what I thought it was: Rosie’s little cloth doll. I study it for a moment, wondering how in the world she could have left it behind; I remember how attached she was to it, carrying it nearly everywhere. I tuck the doll carefully into one of Pearl’s saddlebags, then swing myself back upon my horse.

  My three friends have already left. I kick Pearl into high speed to catch up.

  It’s easy enough to follow in the Treasoners’ tracks: all the wagons and animals and footsteps have left ample evidence of where they’ve headed. We hardly need Catriona for this easy work.

  We make good time, winding through the trees, up the mountain toward the pass. I start to wonder if we’ll catch up to them in the next day or two.

  We’re almost to the pass when it grows too dark to see any longer. I consider telling the others I want to keep going—it’s just past the full moon and the sky is clear—but I know exhausting ourselves will do none of us good.