Dragonfly

  "You have to be careful at the inn," Melletin warned. "The landlord is no friend to the resistance and a great enthusiast for the Empire. He's done very well by Fergox with all this traffic on the roads north."

  "Is there nowhere else to stay?" Ramil asked.

  "Why yes, indeed, but it is the last place Fergox's men would be looking for fugitives. If you brazen it out in the taproom there, they will hardly notice you.

  But ask for a private room for your giant and the lady. They will attract more attention and should keep out of the public areas. Yelena and I will fall in with you as if by chance. Professor Norling, I trust you will ensure they do not go astray?"

  The professor flapped him away with his hand. "Of course, Melletin. I was travelling these roads before you were born."

  The two fighters rode off on their hardy horses, urging them through the ice-covered ruts in the

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  churned-up road. Tashi drew her veil over her face, now seeing the world through purple gauze. On the wider path, the four riders fell into pairs.

  Norling dropped behind with Gordoc and began to quiz him on his fitness regime, probing the secret of the man's exceptional strength. Ramil rode with Tashi, though he sat high above her, awkward for talking.

  "Here, slacken the reins a little. Flake's mouth is tender and she's not comfortable," he said, noticing the mare fretting.

  Tashi did as instructed, keeping her counsel behind the veil.

  "You're doing well, for a beginner," he added, trying to strike upon a neutral subject.

  "Yes, that is surprising, considering my teachers," she replied coolly.

  Ramil believed himself reprimanded. They rode on in silence.

  "I'm sorry about what I said to you the other night," he said at length, knowing the words had to be spoken sooner or later. "I should've realized that you and Merl weren't ..."

  "Yes?"

  "Well, that you weren't."

  "That is very well explained, Ram." She laughed. The sound made his stomach flip over. "And I'd like to thank you for the flower."

  "Did you like it?" He wanted to ask if he had finally got something right.

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  "I'm afraid I sat on it." Her shoulders were shaking. He wondered for a moment what was so funny, then realized she was thinking of the dragonfly.

  He joined in good-humoredly. "I'm afraid our love tokens are doomed."

  That brought her up short. "Love token?" She glanced up at him, her eyes glinting through the veil.

  He looked down at his hands. "Why? What did you think it was?"

  "I didn't know. You'd just told me I made you feel bad."

  "But you said that Blue Crescent men present them to their ladies."

  "You listened to me? I mean, you were trying to be . . . ?" She floundered for a word.

  "Sensitive. Yes, I, Ramil ac Burinholt, obviously well known for my cultural diplomacy, was attempting to be the ideal lover."

  "But you don't like me . . . not like that!" Tashi protested. Her mind was trying to catch up with this new information. "Or are you merely trying to reopen negotiations on a marriage alliance?" she asked suspiciously. "Because if you are, I was going to argue with my sisters that they should offer our navy without that. I wouldn't want you to be yoked to someone you can't be happy with."

  "Tashi, look at me."

  "I am."

  "But I can't see you through that veil."

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  "Then you'll just have to trust me."

  Ramil smiled. "I wanted to give you the flower just as a boy would give a girl a present--not because you are a princess, or an ally, or for any of those reasons. It came with no conditions, no schemes, except perhaps the hope that you might like me just a little better."

  "Then I accept it and thank you." Tashi felt a burst of happiness. She'd got it al wrong: he did like her.

  "So what's next?" asked Ramil, feeling very pleased with himself.

  "How do you mean?"

  "What should a boy do now?"

  "On the Islands, you'd write a poem in praise of my eyebrow," Tashi said teasingly. "Around here, you'd kiss me." She spurred her pony forward, leaving him wondering.

  The Yellow Dog was a prosperous half-timbered thatched house

  strategically placed at the bridge over the river that formed the boundary with Kandar. As they rode up at dusk, the mullion windows on the ground floor streamed with light, indicating that the place was already bustling with visitors. Gordoc and Professor Norling took charge of the horses while Ramil negotiated for a private room for "his sister" to dine. The landlord was a fat, bald man with a sharp expression, his gaze flicking from side to side as he bargained, keeping an eye on the doings in the taproom. Ramil glimpsed Melletin and Yelena at a table, already embarked upon

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  supper, but they made no sign that they knew the newcomers.

  "You can have the room down the corridor, sir," the landlord said. "Though we're going to be pressed to find you a bed tonight. This lady--you say she's your sister?"

  "Yes." Ramil adopted the superior air and the guttural accent of the Southerners.

  "She'll have to share with someone, as will you, sir, with that old fellow you came in with. I'll see what I can do. A couple arrived just ahead of you.

  Perhaps I can sort something out with the lady."

  "That would be acceptable."

  "Your servant will have to make do with the barn."

  "He will be happy with whatever I tell him to do."

  "You know best, sir. Now I'll see to your supper."

  Leaving them alone in front of the fire in the little sitting room, the innkeeper bustled out, shouting orders to his staff as he closed the door. Tashi reached to remove her veil, but Ramil shook his head and put his finger to his lips. He strode to the door and opened it suddenly, revealing the innkeeper bent double on the other side. Ramil pretended not to notice the man's odd posture.

  "Where is my slave?" Ramil snapped.

  "I'll send him to you directly, sir," the innkeeper said in a wheedling tone, backing away.

  Ramil closed the door and sat down beside Tashi at the table.

  "Sorry, but you'll have to stay covered," he whispered.

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  "We've heard he's Fergox's man. No doubt he's paid to spy on travellers."

  "Oh well." Tashi sighed. "I rather like this veil. It allows me to be more myself somehow. I don't have to worry about what anyone's thinking."

  "But that's exactly why I hate it. I've no idea what's going on under there."

  The innkeeper soon returned with the supper on a tray, Gordoc behind him with the bags.

  "Where is the doctor?" asked Ramil brusquely.

  "He fell into conversation with some people, sir," Gordoc said, rather overdoing his performance by tugging his forelock. "Told you to eat without him. I'm to have mine in the kitchen."

  "Off you go. But don't forget to clean my boots before you go to bed!"

  Gordoc winked at Tashi as he left.

  The innkeeper served a hearty supper of meat, cheese, and bread, washed down with ale. He watched bemused as Tashi's share disappeared under her veil.

  "My sister is in mourning, sir," Ramil said, meeting his look. "Her husband served with me in the army but died at Midwinter."

  "Beg your pardon, ma'am," the innkeeper said obsequiously. "My sympathy for your loss. But you, sir, you fought for the great Spearthrower?"

  "Yes. I was part of the garrison at Felixholt. Too cold for my liking."

  The innkeeper leant against the mantelpiece, settling

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  in for a good chat. "So you were there when the witch escaped then?"

  "Indeed I was, to my great sorrow. My sister's husband was killed when that woman fled."

  The innkeeper spat on the hearth. "Curse the demon. What was she like?"

  "Ugliest girl you've ever seen." Ramil reached under the table and took Tashi's hand. "Glaring eyes like hot coals: Hai
r all stringy and colorless--not natural. Smelt of brimstone."

  "Aye, that's what the others are saying. They can't find her--they think she's fled into Gerfal by now, but Lord Fergox says he's going to root her out and see she doesn't bewitch any more with her spells." He shook his head. "If I were Gerfal, I'd throw her back into the sea where she came from. She'll bring them nothing but bad luck."

  "But bad luck for Gerfal is good luck for us, no?" Ramil suggested.

  The innkeeper chuckled. "I suppose you're right, sir. Just ring if you need anything else."

  Ramil sighed with relief when the talkative landlord finally decided to go, but he didn't get very far with his supper before Tashi swatted him in the stomach.

  "Hot coals? Stringy hair?"

  He laughed. "Shh! You know I was only saying what I had to say in front of him."

  "But those words occurred to you--you must have thought them!"

  Ramil scratched his head, knowing that he was probably damned whatever he said now.

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  "Well, your eyes can blaze when they're angry. I bet they're blazing now.

  And compared to us, your hair is pale--not that it doesn't have a most wonderful color. Um . . . stringy--well, you had been in prison for a while."

  "Ram!"

  "But you always looked beautiful to me." He put his arm around her. "May I?"

  he asked.

  She nodded, wondering what he was going to do.

  He leant forward and sniffed. "Not a hint of brimstone. Just mud and horses."

  "What!"

  "But I like horses."

  "Ram, if you were thinking of making more attempts at winning my affections, I don't think this is the recommended practice in any part of the known world."

  "So I still have a chance?" He pulled her snugly against him so she fitted in the crook of his arm.

  "Not like this you won't. And don't forget, we are supposed to be brother and sister."

  "Ah yes." He dropped his arm. "What a shame."

  Tashi shared a bed that night with Yelena. They locked themselves in a little room at the top of the inn, leaving the men sleeping in a dormitory on the floor below. "The house is packed with soldiers," Yelena said as she brushed Tashi's coppery hair for her. "Most are on their way north. It seems that Fergox is strengthening the garrisons on the road to protect his convoys."

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  "Yes, that's what I would do in his position," murmured Tashi as she took the brush and returned the favor for Yelena, sweeping the girl's long dark hair into a plait for the night.

  Yelena yawned. "Looking at you, I forget that when you say these things, you actually do have men and navies and things to order. You look no older than my little sister. How old are you?"

  "Sixteen."

  "Then you're younger than she is! I find it incredible."

  Tashi climbed into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. "So do I. Every day. But what I find more incredible is that you can fight hand to hand like you do."

  Yelena shrugged. "Takes practice, that's all."

  "Do you think you could show me?" Tashi asked tentatively. "I've been in quite a few situations recently where I could have used some clever moves."

  "Yes, like in Felixholt." Yelena nodded sympathetically.

  "Actually, I was thinking about when Merl trapped me in the stables."

  "Oh, I see." Yelena hid her amusement. "In that case, we'll start tomorrow as soon as we're clear of here. I think I'll enjoy that--my first pupil and she's a princess."

  "Goat-girl turned princess," Tashi amended. "That sounds a bit less exalted."

  Yelena poked her in the ribs. "Don't spoil it. I want my friends to be jealous."

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  Chapter 14

  Early the next morning, the travellers arrived at the crossing point into Kandar. Melletin advised that this was the best time: the soldiers would be tired and hungry after a night's watch, not wanting to stand about in the grey morning questioning strangers. To add further to the distraction, Yelena wore her skirts tucked over her knee and carried a pannier of bread purchased from the inn's kitchens, her job to engage the men in flirtatious conversation while her "husband" looked on resentfully.

  Ramil, Tashi, Gordoc, and Professor Norling crossed the bridge without incident, leaving Melletin and Yelena to their noisy argument in front of the fascinated guards. Hearing a bird call beneath her, Tashi looked over the parapet to see a white gull fishing in the river. The waters rushed beneath the stone arches seeming to drag the bridge with them as they hurried on to the ocean. The River Kand was deep, swift, and strong here. She

  remembered from her geography lessons on

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  Rama that it flowed out of the heart of Kandar, from a land of hills and forests. Wild animals abounded in this difficult terrain--wolves, bears, and great shaggy bison making their home in the densely wooded interior. The Inkar's people were not so flourishing. They lived a marginal existence: the nobles clinging to their castles on the crags, the peasants scratching what crops could be coaxed from the reluctant soil, fearful of the forests at their door. Only the flood plains to the east with their rich alluvial deposits offered any hope to the farmer, but these lands had been sequestered by the Inkar and turned into slave plantations, displacing the original inhabitants.

  "It's a sad place now," said Professor Norling to Tashi as they passed through the first sorry-looking settlement, children in inadequate clothes running along at their stirrups to beg. He threw them some coppers. "The Inkar's grasp of land management and social rights is weak to say the least.

  She's running a poor land into destitution, battening a huge army upon it like a parasite upon a frail host."

  On hearing the jingle of harness behind them, they turned. Melletin and Yelena were fast catching up, both grinning broadly.

  "How did it go?" Ramil called.

  "Would you believe it: he threatened to lock me up in his mother's house if I didn't behave!" exclaimed Yelena, sticking her tongue out at Melletin. "I threw a roll at him and he clipped me around the ear. The soldiers were all about to beat him up when I burst into tears and begged his forgiveness. We had a passionate

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  reconciliation and went on our way with their good wishes for our marital harmony."

  Melletin rubbed his lips. "Where's the next checkpoint, Yelena? I can't wait to do that again."

  "Watch it, sir: I'll report you," Yelena threatened, but she looked very pleased all the same.

  Melletin estimated that it would take them at least a week to cross Kandar.

  They rose early each day to make the most of the short winter daylight, taking the road that cut through the thick forest. Riding was uncomfortable as they trudged in sleety showers and gritted their teeth against the cold winds.

  There were few people on the road, apart from convoys of soldiers.

  Whenever these were spotted, the travellers left the highway and sheltered in the trees until they had passed. Ramil was thankful they had a guide who knew the country so well. Melletin seemed to have a sixth sense for anticipating trouble and unerringly led them to shelter at the end of each day.

  None of them fancied spending a freezing night outside with the wolves and roving soldiers for company.

  Five days into their journey, Mel etin cal ed a halt on a ridge looking down upon a forest valley. Outcrops of rock reared above trees like islands in a green ocean.

  "We've reached the wild zone," he explained.

  "You mean what we've passed through wasn't the wild zone?" Tashi asked.

  The forest pressing on either side of the road had looked very savage to her.

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  "I mean the ungoverned part--the resort of bandits and other desperate folk.

  Some of them are friendly to the resistance, but some, I regret to say, are friendly to no one."

  "And how will we find out?" Ramil asked. "Before or after they've attacked us?"

  "There's a secret sign. If t
hey approach us, we'll find out soon enough if they recognize it. Look to your weapons and keep alert. I would bet my sword on someone waylaying us before the end of the day: we are too tempting a target to be neglected."

  Before mounting again, Tashi collected a pouch full of stones and prepared a sling. She stayed close to Gordoc as the horses took to the road.

  "Don't worry, my pretty, I'll make sure no bandit touches you," he said cheerfully.

  They trotted on for hours, seeing no sign of man or beast. By noon they had entered a particularly dark, dense region of the forest. Ramil watched the trees nervously. The road surface was broken up, tree roots creating havoc with the stones that had once been set smooth in the ground. Ramil decided that if he was commanding a band of robbers, he would think this an excellent place for an ambush because the riders would have to mind where they were going and be unable to keep a constant watch.

  As if obeying Ramil's thoughts, a man dropped out of the trees ahead of Melletin and held up a hand. He had a coarse lined face with a rough black beard and moustache; his clothes were ragged and patched.

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  "Good people, you have neglected to pay the toll!" he called.

  Six more men dropped from the trees around them and three emerged from the bushes at the rear. One threw the leader a stout staff, which he caught and held out, blocking the way forward.

  Melletin raised his fist to his chest, fingers circled in an O.

  "We are friends, sir, and only wish to pass in peace."

  The man took no notice of the sign. Ramil's hand moved to his sword.

  "There is no peace to be had in Kandar. You must pay the toll."

  Melletin dropped his hand casually to rest on his hilt. "And what may that be?"

  The bandit scratched his chin, looking the party over. "Your horses, goods, and weapons." He caught sight of Yelena. "And perhaps the girl too."

  Yekna gave a disgusted snort. "Just you try," she muttered.

  "If you want that much, then you'll have to fight us for them," said Melletin, swiftly drawing his sword.

  The bandit leader raised his staff to meet the blow. A man swung from the trees to knock Melletin from the saddle. Like a squall blowing up out of nowhere, the skirmish became intense and confused: swords meeting staffs, men swarming from the trees. Gordoc and Yelena flanked the Princess in the rear while Ramil and Melletin took on the main attack. Tashi felled one man with a slingshot as he was about to stab Melletin