The Lost Endeavour Page 22

  He remembered the inn, sure he had seen her in the shadows. But there had been nothing, only her eyes focused on him. Would she search him out as she did in his dreams? The last few times he had seen her, he hadn’t been asleep.

  Belle had thought she looked tired, and she might be avoiding sleep herself. Maybe to keep from meeting him. He wasn’t sure how they had come to this. They had been close friends, and despite her calling him, he’d needed to be near her. Now it was almost like he no longer knew who or what she was. He had wanted something very different when she had come to him in the forest, when he’d held her close and her warm hands had worked across his skin.

  He shivered at the idea, surprised that he had wanted such a thing and that he could barely bring himself to talk to her now. Maybe it wasn’t Ana that wanted something different; maybe whatever linked her to the shadows had been toying with him.

  He turned away from the wall. He wasn’t going to find her now. No matter how hard he looked. If she didn’t want to be found, then she wouldn’t be.

  The mage had seemed impressed by her despite the regent’s fear, and Dray wondered what else the man had seen of her. Maybe the mage had managed to win her over. She had said she wasn’t safe. Was her warning a way to keep the king safe?

  He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He would never know, for he would never find her. Not the girl he could have asked, who would have told him anything. And they would all be expected in the throne room for the official presentation soon enough. He wondered what the regent might have done by the time they returned to the throne room, and if the sword master would accept his gift. Or did the man have other ideas for a mother to his daughter?

  Avers stood in the courtyard talking with some other soldiers when Dray came down from the wall. “Captain Sterling, I assume you will stand by the king this evening.”

  He nodded once and strode towards the barracks.

  “Do you have any request?” the man called after him.

  “No,” Avers called back. “You know how to keep a king safe, I’m sure.”

  “Not in the current world, but we will try.”

  Dray was tempted to turn around, but he continued on and then stopped at the practice hall. Something similar to the inn lay beyond. Avers had told him that much already. And instead of heading towards a hot bath and fresh clothes, he entered the halls. The upper windows were smeared with something and had been cleaned a little to allow light in, but he was all too aware of the shadows.

  “Why was she so cold?” he wondered out loud.

  “The ice cells,” a voice called across the space. Dray swung around to face the sword master. “She was kept in the mage’s ice cells, and the cold nearly killed her.”

  “How did you get her out?”

  “Salima,” he murmured, looking back towards the space still marked by blood.

  Dray waited, but the man said no more.

  “She would call for you,” the man said, swallowing down something that might have been regret. “The cleric was surprised she survived, but it seems her magic is strong.”

  “I should have protected her from him,” Dray said.

  “I doubt anyone could have come between them. The mage wanted her, and so here she is.”

  “But she is not the mage’s apprentice?” Dray asked, wondering if that was the right term.

  The other man shook his head. “She scares me,” he admitted. “Although I think she is more afraid of what she might be.”

  “She appeared confident enough when I saw her.”

  “Truly? She still seems like a scared child to me.”

  “Where is she hiding?” Dray asked.

  “I don’t know. She will return when she wants to. She might be here already,” the sword master said, looking around. “Or she is waiting for this evening in the throne room. Waiting for the king, to ensure he is safe.”

  “Is he?” Dray asked.

  “I don’t know. I’m sure the regent has a way to keep him locked away. The clothes?” he asked.

  “Ana,” Dray murmured. She was always looking out for him, and he had said himself that Ed wasn’t dressed as a king.

  He was headed back to Belle’s room when he met Avers on the way.

  “The presentation is delayed,” he said.

  “Why?” Dray asked.

  “The regent is feeling unwell after the events of the day. Tomorrow.”

  “Hmm,” Dray murmured, “that puts his discussion with the king off. And gives him more time to work out what he wants to do. Keep me informed.”

  “Where is the king?” Avers asked.

  “Safe,” Dray said. “Have you told the tribute, and the king’s friend?”

  The man nodded.

  “Then I will take the time to wash.”

  He turned back to the barracks again. Most of the soldiers were out. Only a couple moved through as Dray made his way to his own small space within it. It felt like an age since he had been back in the capital. He reached his room and pulled out fresh clothes before heading to the bathhouse.

  Other than the steaming tub, which would have comfortably held at least five men, there was nothing in the large space. He placed his fresh clothes down and looked through the steam. It was one of the few luxuries for soldiers in the capital. They were often gone long days, or weeks, and with the constant hot water, it was easy to become presentable again.

  His own clothes were stiff with mud and dirt. He wondered just how long he had been wearing them as he peeled them off and stepped down into the water. He ached far more than he realised, slipping deeper into the cloudy water. Ende had promised to stay with the king and his guest. Dray only hoped they had remained hidden when the guards had gone to announce the change in plan. He shook his head and then submerged it. The king had been looking after himself for long enough; Dray was sure he could survive another night.

  And Ende was something very different. He lifted his head above the water and shook it off before running his hands over his hair and his stubbled face. He reached for the soap and one of his knives by the tub, trying not to think of Ana as he dragged it over his skin.

  A salt bucket stood on the other side of the bath, and he stood and waded through the water towards it, stepping out to take a handful and rub it over his skin. When a cool breeze blew about his wet skin, he stepped back and sank into the water. The door was still closed behind him, and he couldn’t make out anything in the shadows. He was as clean as he could be without soaking for a week. After rinsing the last of the salt from his skin, he climbed out. Taking a clean sheet from the pile, he rubbed vigorously at his skin, before donning the fresh clothes. He dropped the sheet in the basket by the door, pulled his boots on and carried his armour and sword back to his small room.

  He set them on the chair and then sat on the narrow cot, leaning his head against the wall with his hair still damp. He felt much cleaner, but still drained. How long since he had slept? He closed his eyes, knowing no one would disturb him unless he was really needed. He wondered for a moment if he should have told the king where he was going.

  He was sure he was drifting when the cot moved as someone sat silently beside him. Dray maintained his pose, not giving away that he knew someone was there. There was a soft sigh as a head lay down on his lap. He gulped at the strange feeling in his chest as he rested his hand on her shoulder. It could have been his cloak, the same black, scratchy wool wrapped around her too-thin frame.

  “You smell better,” she whispered.

  He couldn’t speak, in fear she would disappear again.

  “Dray?”

  “Hmm,” he ventured.

  “What am I?”

  “I don’t know,” he whispered, running his fingers through her hair and pulling it back from her face.

  “You won’t talk to me,” she said.

  “I’m talking to you now,” he said.

  She sighed and closed her eyes again. He wondered how long he could hold on to her.

&nb
sp; He woke the next morning to the sound of footsteps running past his door. He stretched, then took in the warm figure curled against him. Her cloak still wrapped tight around her, her face peaceful, her head on his arm. He ran his fingers through her hair, longing to see her green eyes.

  “Captain,” someone called in the doorway, and he rolled towards them. “The regent is preparing for the presentation.”

  Dray nodded and rolled back to find the bed beside him empty. He sat up slowly, wondering if that was the last time he would see her. The last time she would sleep against him like the girl he had saved from a fall.

  The man stepped in and held up his armour. “I fear for the king.”

  Dray nodded and allowed the man to help him into the armour, then tied his sword to his belt.

  “Did you sleep?” the man asked.

  “I’m not sure,” he said honestly. “Although I did have a good dream.”

  Chapter 31

  Ana looked over the people gathering in the room. She felt the chill surround her again. She had slept well for the first time in she wasn’t sure how long. She had been safe and warm curled in his arms, but she didn’t feel that certainty now. People moved through the room quietly. She could taste their anticipation on the air. They too sensed there was more to the event than the presentation of the tribute.

  Ana pulled the hood up around her face, although she knew she couldn’t be seen. The shadows were hers alone, other than a little dragon hiding further down the room. Had Salima’s father allowed her out? Or maybe she had snuck out before he could keep her at home. Ana longed for her heat. She wondered if the girl would squeal if she plucked her from her hiding spot and moved her to the shadows behind the throne.

  Ende and Master Forest stood amongst the crowd, and there still seemed to be too many soldiers in the room. Ana couldn’t see Dray, and she wondered if she should have left him. But it would not have helped Ed if a witch had been found with his guard.

  The tribute entered and moved gracefully single file down the centre of the room. The watching crowd whispered. Ana closed her eyes and focused on the distant sounds. How beautiful they were, and how much the Near Forest loved the kingdom. Several men jostled amongst themselves, each expecting to be gifted with one of the women and guessing at which of the beauties before them that may be. She heard nothing from the sword master. Would he be gifted one of the women, or had that simply been a threat from the regent?

  He sat smugly on the throne, and although Ana was behind him, she could sense his condescending attitude. He glanced around from time to time, but if he was truly worried about her being in the shadows, he would have placed the mage. Perhaps he was busy with his new pets.

  She would need to find out what the girls were destined for, but not now. Ed was her first concern. He entered the hall as she thought of him, Belle on his arm and Dray a step behind.

  The tribute all turned his way and curtsied. Several members of the crowd bowed their heads, although most simply stood and openly stared.

  “Uncle,” he said, bowing his head towards the throne.

  “I don’t know you to claim such a title of endearment,” the regent said, pushing up from the throne quickly. “Who do you think you are to appear dressed this way?”

  Belle’s jaw worked, and Dray drew his sword without hesitation, standing beside the king he had promised to protect. Too many knew who he was for the regent to get away with this.

  “Our king is but a boy,” the regent continued.

  Ed glared at him. “I have been a man long enough now to know what is mine.”

  The regent scoffed. As soldiers moved silently over the doorways of the throne room, Ana wondered what she could do to help Ed this time.

  “How do you explain me then, Uncle?”

  “An imposter. You knew our king had fled, and you hoped to claim to be a man the kingdom has not seen. But it will not work, for they know the boy.”

  “How, when they have not seen me?”

  The mage made his way slowly through the silent crowd, his eyes on the shadows, but Ana doubted he could find her. She wondered if she could ask the shadows to take him far away.

  “You have used the powers of the witch,” the mage announced, snapping his fingers. The fine clothes returned to the ones he had appeared in the day before.

  Ana sighed but remained hidden.

  “I have done no such thing,” Ed said calmly, and Ana wondered at the young man who had appeared so uncertain when she had met in the mountains.

  “That is his father’s sword,” someone cried out across the room.

  “A copy,” the mage said, reaching out his hand. Ed drew the sword quicker than she expected—and the mage too, it appeared as he stepped back.

  “I am Edwin of Ilia,” he said firmly.

  “Prove it,” the mage whispered. Ed’s hair changed to a lighter colour, and his face didn’t quite look as it had. “You have been formed,” he said, his voice light, although he maintained his distance.

  The little dragon growled. As she stepped from her hiding place at the other end of the hall, Ende moved in front of her and Ana was sure she smelt cloth burning. They wouldn’t be able to keep that secret for long. She wondered what the little dragon could do when she was unleashed.

  Ed pushed Belle behind him as the other women of the tribute whispered amongst themselves.

  “You came to steal from us,” the regent said, taking a step forward. “Arrest him.”

  “What would I steal?” Ed asked, something more desperate in his voice.

  “The tribute,” the regent said as though it answered everything. Belle’s face paled as her jaw dropped open.

  “She is not part of the tribute,” Dray said, taking her by the arm and pulling her further from the regent.

  “And you, Captain Sterling, are not what you were. We have heard of your treachery to the crown.”

  Ana’s heart beat too fast. She wasn’t sure what she could do, or what she should do.

  “Arrest this imposter,” the regent cried, and several men moved forward.

  “You are mistaken,” Captain Barlow said. “I assure you this is the king.”

  “I second that,” the sword master said, stepping forward. “I have taught him most of his life.”

  “Are you certain that this man before you is the king?” the regent asked, stepping further into the room and holding out a finger towards Ed.

  The soldier stopped, taking in the changes the mage had made. He looked to Dray and then back to Ed.

  “Take him!” the regent shouted.

  Dray’s sword met that of another soldier’s as they moved forward. Belle squealed as two others pulled her away.

  “You have stolen what is mine,” the regent said. “She will be part of the tribute.”

  “No,” Ed pleaded, and Ana could feel his desperation flow across the room.

  “Ed!” Belle cried as two men dragged her towards the door.

  Ana could save her, but what would that mean for the others? Could she save them all?

  “Please,” Ed called into the increasing noise of the room. He sounded like the boy Ana knew from the mountains, the orphan. Belle continued to scream as she was dragged from the room.

  The mage stepped forward. He held out a hand, his head cocked to the side, then turned to the regent. “I want her.” He whispered it, but the sound travelled clearly to Ana’s ear.

  “Not this one,” she whispered, willing the shadows from the depths of the room. “Bring her to me,” she whispered.

  Someone screamed as darkness enclosed the room.

  “Hey!” a soldier called, and Belle screamed again before the candles flickered back to life.

  “Where did she go?” Ed asked. Dray shook his head, his sword still held to the neck of the soldier before him.

  “Arrest them all!” the regent screamed. Anger and fear flowed over Ana. “Get them from my sight so that I might continue with the formalities of the evening.”

&nbs
p; The soldiers who had been holding Belle looked at each other and then ran from the room.

  Two more soldiers moved in on Ed, taking him by the arms and manhandling him towards the door. Another grabbed at Dray, despite his sword so close to the skin of their fellow soldier. But he swung around, his sword slicing towards the man who approached.

  Ana had to act before either of them were hurt. She took a deep breath and appeared in the middle of the room. The world stopped around her.

  “I’m sorry,” she said to Dray, stepping forward and running her hand over his cheek. “Your Majesty, forgive me,” she whispered, turning to Ed and wrapping her arms around him before she pulled him from the room.

  “Where are we?” Ed stammered, stepping back from her, a fear she hadn’t seen before all too clear on his face. “I can’t leave the capital. I need to face him.”

  “You have,” she whispered.

  “Ed?” a voice queried in the darkness, and he turned. “Oh Ed,” Belle sighed, stepping into his arms and holding him tight. “Thank you,” she whispered. Ana nodded her head once.

  “This isn’t how it was meant to be,” he said.

  “How was it meant to go?” Ana asked. “Should I have let the mage take her?” She held out her hand to Belle. “Allowed the regent to take you away, lock you up where you couldn’t run away? Where he could have you quietly killed?”

  The anger was building in her bones, and she wasn’t sure why. She had abandoned Dray for this, to keep them safe, and yet she couldn’t leave the king to a fate she was all too aware of.

  He sighed, his hands clenched, not looking at her. Belle’s arms were tight around him.

  “Do you want me to take you back?” she asked, her voice soft and kind. “You want to be King, then be King, but don’t sacrifice yourself thinking the men in that room would back you.”

  He turned then and stared openly at her.

  “What happened to your face?” Belle asked.