“Then I’ll make sure we only capsize near the shore,” Yavtar said with a laugh.
With Eskkar aboard and seated, Yavtar took one last check to ensure that the heavily loaded craft rode evenly in the water. He took his position at the stern, and gave orders to those still standing on the docks. The boatman at the prow cast loose the last of the ropes, and coiled it back into the boat, even as the men left behind waded into the water, pushing the boat out into the river’s current. Eskkar breathed a sigh of relief: under way at last.
Half the men with Eskkar had some experience with boats, another quality Sisuthros searched for while sorting out those who would go.
These men, at Yavtar’s order, began paddling, using slow and even strokes.
Yavtar’s crewman hauled up the small sail the vessel carried amidships, grunting until he’d raised the heavy linen to its full extent before lashing it in place.
Gradually the boat began to speed up as it edged into the middle of the river. “We’ll be safer here, “Yavtar explained, “where the current is swiftest. There aren’t many rapids between Bisitun and Akkad, and it’s easier to control the boat.”
Once in the center of the channel, they glided along, and Eskkar reckoned the pace to be equivalent to a horse’s fast walk. Glancing behind, he saw the other five boats strung out, each raising its own sails.
Yavtar spent plenty of time inspecting the sail and gauging the trim of the boat, moving the men around slightly, and showing them how and when to row. The experienced rivermen didn’t need the lesson, but no one said anything. Yavtar didn’t trust any of them to hold on to a paddle. He made sure a rope fastened each oar to the boat.
By the end of the first hour, they began to settle down. Everyone soon learned not to make any rapid movements, and if one man had to change positions, the others held still. To Eskkar’s relief, the boat seemed stable enough, and he gradually stopped worrying about capsizing. The desul-tory wind blew from the north, helping to push the boats downstream, and they cut through the water at a steady pace.
Though the boat held nine men, it carried little cargo, so the craft responded well to Yavtar’s handling. With everyone paddling, even with light strokes, the boat fairly flew along, picking up more speed when helped by the wind, which held steady until sundown. Then it changed direction, and Yavtar ordered the sail lowered.
Eskkar opened his mouth, then shut it again.
Yavtar saw the look. “It’s too dangerous at night, Captain,” he explained, a little more talkative now that he knew the soldiers could follow orders. “Hard to see rocks or anything else floating in the water. We would have lowered it anyway. We’ll paddle easy until moonrise.”
Eskkar grunted a little at that news. By now he knew that even light strokes moved the boat at a good pace. He learned to use a smooth, feathering stroke that took little effort. The paddling served as much to guide the boat and keep it centered in the river as to move it along.
When the moon rose, Yavtar picked up the pace. “I’ve never sailed through a whole night before, Lord Eskkar. It’ll be interesting to see how much river we can cover by dawn.”
In the moonlight, Eskkar could scarcely make out the boat behind them, still keeping its station and holding its distance. He hoped the other boats followed behind, all at their proper intervals.
Whether he rowed or rested, Eskkar kept his thoughts fixed on Akkad.
The possibility that Trella might be dead kept disturbing his thoughts, filling him with anger and anguish. He remembered the fear that had numbed him when she’d been stabbed in the street. She had almost died that day.
He remembered how he’d turned away as the healer dressed her wound, unable to watch her suffering.
At least then he could turn his thoughts to vengeance. Now he faulted his own actions for whatever might have befallen her. Eskkar had over-stayed his trip to Bisitun. He’d taken his pleasure with Lani, with hardly a thought to Trella, her well-being, or even the coming child. Whatever fate had befallen her, it would not have happened if he had returned earlier.
Instead he’d postponed his return again and again, telling himself Trella had everything under control, that he could do more good in Bisitun. Staring down at the river, he blamed himself for whatever evil had arisen, his thoughts as black as the parting water.
Grond must have known what thoughts troubled his leader. “Captain, there was nothing you could have done. The assassins left Akkad ten days ago. If we’d been in Akkad, if four men suddenly attacked you in the street, we might both be dead. Staying in Bisitun may have saved your life.”
“And what of Trella? I don’t know if she’s alive or dead. I just hope she’s still safe.”
“What you should be thinking about is how this plot came about,”
Grond countered. “How did this happen without Trella’s spies learning of it? Who could put such a plan together, gather enough men, ambush Bantor, and send assassins after you? None of the messengers, including the Hawk Clan riders, had mentioned even a rumor of a problem.”
Those same thoughts had plagued Eskkar. “It takes gold to bring that many men together, even with such a prize as Akkad at stake. I know of no one in Akkad who could devise such a plan.”
“And I don’t think anyone in Akkad could do this without some word getting to Lady Trella,” Grond offered. “Perhaps it’s this Ariamus. Who is he?”
He told Grond about Ariamus and the gloomy days in Akkad before the Alur Meriki. Grond grunted when Eskkar finished, but said nothing.
Nevertheless, talking it all over with Grond helped clear Eskkar’s mind. For perhaps the first time since the attack last night, he started thinking clearly.
He kept paddling, the slow, deep strokes occupying his muscles and soothing his mind, while he began running what little he knew in his head.
Bantor attacked on the road, a few hours from reaching Akkad. That would destroy any organized force of soldiers outside the city. Assassins trying to kill him in Bisitun. Eskkar’s death would certainly have disrupted the soldiers, and might have slowed down any response to word of trouble in Akkad. So someone wanted to keep soldiers away from the city, no doubt while they consolidated their control. His death, even the ambush of Bantor’s men, meant nothing without taking power in the city.
And Grond spoke the truth. Little went on in Akkad that Trella didn’t learn of sooner or later. Ariamus wouldn’t dare show his face in the city.
Despite the former captain of the guard’s fi ghting skills, he wasn’t capable of outwitting Trella. Ariamus, Eskkar decided, would need an ally inside the city, someone who could put together a grand scheme to seize power over the thousands that now lived there. That meant there must be someone else in Akkad, a disgruntled noble or wealthy merchant, even possibly a newcomer. Eskkar swore under his breath. He needed more information.
“There is nothing to do now, Captain,” Grond said, hearing the curse,
“except get to Bantor and Rebba. They’ll tell us what’s been going on.”
So Grond had come to the same conclusion.
“We’ll need to be careful, Grond, when we get to Rebba’s place. There might be a trap. Bantor and his men might have been captured days ago and put to the torture.”
Yavtar called out from the stern, telling them to take a break. Eskkar lifted the wet paddle and rested it across his knees. He wanted to keep rowing, to not waste a moment in delay, but the others needed their rest.
The boat kept moving, gliding with the current, every moment bringing him closer to Akkad.
The night passed quickly enough. When the men didn’t row, they slept at the oars. Eskkar checked his wound several times, but noticed no signs of bleeding. The pain had gone, though the arm felt stiff and sore.
Dawn found them many miles downstream from Bisitun. When Yavtar worked out how much they had traveled, he smiled for the first time since the voyage began. “We’re doing well, lord,” he announced. “More important, we haven’t capsized, lost any paddles, or drowned anyone, at least not yet. Your men aren’t bad sailors. I think we can pick up the pace, after the men have eaten.”