“Tyrus, get me to the window,” said Ava.
She began to tuck the sheet underneath her legs and nudge herself over to the side of the bed.
“Are you sure? You haven’t walked in days. Your legs might give out on you.”
“I need to see things for myself.”
Dekar came around and helped me guide her to the window. Ava didn’t shy away from his touch. Unlike the rift her and Ira always had, she and Dekar got along well.
She put her head down as sunlight touched her eyes. “Tyrus, I need my hand back or I won’t be able to see anything. If you’re unwilling to let me go yet, then grab my shoulder.”
I did, and she used the free hand to shield her eyes.
She stared toward Hol for some time. We all did, actually. Confirming what Ira said about the pulses.
After a minute, Ira couldn’t keep quiet. “Well? Was I right?”
“No,” said Ava. “It may be pulsing, but it’s not going to fade away. It would have done that by now if that were the case. I think its building up for another eruption.”
“You mean where we all feel like garbage again?” asked Ira.
“That, and probably more,” said Ava. “We need to leave Denu Creek, Tyrus.”
“And go where?” I asked. “If this is the end of the world, we can’t outrun it.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. I’d rather at least try to go somewhere else than just sit and wait for whatever hell that artifact is going to cause. Who knows, if we get far enough away from Hol, the effects might be weaker. Maybe it’s just the end of the Geneshans’ world, not everyone’s.”
“I could buy that,” said Ira.
“What about you, Dekar?” I asked.
“It’s worth a shot.”
“All right, then where do we go?” I asked as we all stared toward Hol.
The sky pulsed brighter than it had before, bringing in hues of purple to mix with the reds and oranges. For a moment I thought my mind had played tricks on me, until a small gasp from Ava.
She clicked her tongue. “I’d say as far away as we can, big brother. And soon.”
* * *
Ava wanted to stay up longer to discuss our plans, but her lack of strength betrayed her when she needed Dekar and I to hold her up. We carried her back to bed, forced her to stay awake long enough to eat another biscuit and drink some water. Then I told her to get some sleep.
She never liked being bossed around, which was a testament to just how tired she was since she didn’t argue once. As soon as she lay down, she was asleep. She didn’t even wake when we started talking about where we should go.
The discussion didn’t last long, though, when I remembered that both of our horses had died after the initial eruption so our wagon was essentially useless.
In light of that, I sent Dekar and Ira out to see what sort of animals were available in town. I told them to buy something decent with the junk we had been given.
It wasn’t long after that I closed my eyes as well, leaning over my chair, head resting on Ava’s bed.
Myra and Zadok nudged me shortly afterward. Both insisted I go sleep in the other room. They said they would take over. I didn’t protest. Ava’s condition had improved dramatically and my body ached from being stuck in too many awkward positions the last few days.
Worried about what nightmares might plague my dreams, I almost said a prayer to Molak to ease my mind.
Almost.
I fell asleep before I made that mistake.
CHAPTER 22
Two days later and life went on. People kept bringing us stuff, some junk, some valuable. Most of it I turned away only to find later that Ira had brought it back inside while I slept. We got into a couple arguments about that until I decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. Whatever was useless, I’d just make him leave behind anyway.
It took over a day to get mounts secured, mainly because Ira had been adamant about inspecting every horse in excruciating detail. He didn’t want to take any chances. The two he settled on cost nearly ten times what they normally would, but considering so many animals had died in the eruption, it had definitely become a seller’s market.
According to Boaz, normalcy had returned to Denu Creek. Even Jareb and his bunch had recovered enough to return to their homes and jobs. It seemed that Jareb could no longer draw up enough support to have me arrested for taking Zadok and Myra away from him. The town was more than split in our favor now.
I finally stumbled out of bed a couple hours after dawn. That was late for me, but I was still recuperating.
I shuffled over to a basin of cool water atop the dresser. I held my breath and dunked my head, using a hand to rub the water over my neck and head. I came up huffing for air. Reaching for a towel, I threw a few curses at Molak while drying myself. I hated the feeling of first waking up and thought the Father should suffer a bit himself because of it.
After a quick visit to the chamber pot, I dressed, and walked into the sitting room.
Dekar and Myra sat opposite each other at a small table supporting a flat, thin, board covered with military markings and various terrains. Wooden pieces of various colors, shapes, and sizes stood atop it. Each piece represented units a general might have at their disposal such as cavalry, siege equipment, archers, infantry, spies, various levels of mages, and so on.
Dekar had begun teaching Myra Crests.
I scratched the patchy stubble on my neck. “Have you been at it all night?”
“No,” said Dekar as he moved one of his cavalry units up into a flanking position. “But we were both up early and she’s a determined player.”
“You know he’s never lost before, Myra.”
“Yet,” was all she said, staring intently at the game board.
Dekar grinned in my direction. “She’s got skill, Tyrus. A good mind for strategy. Might be a natural.”
“That’s my girl.”
Myra whipped her head up wearing a look somewhere between a scowl and a frown. It wasn’t pleasant. “Don’t call me that,” she said.
“Sorry,” I said, unsure how else to respond. Any approach I tried at bonding with her had fallen flat, and in many cases only increased the gulf between us.
Fatherhood was much easier when all I had to do was patch her skinned knee or cut up her meat.
She put her head down. “Zadok and Ava are awake. There’s leftover breakfast with them.”
I could take a hint. “Thanks.” I took a step toward Ava’s room and stopped. “Where’s Ira?”
“Walking the horses,” said Dekar. “They’re eating better, but they aren’t quite back up to full strength yet.”
“Shouldn’t he be back by now?”
He grunted. “Maybe. I’ll go check on him.”
I waved him down as he started to stand. “That’s all right. I’ll go. Finish your game. I can wait to eat.”
I left the inn, passing Dinah on the way as I cut through the kitchen. She smiled and pointed me to some food. I grabbed a cold sausage, realizing I was hungry after all. I gobbled the whole thing in three bites. This one had a bit more pepper, which I liked.
I left through the back entrance and cut around an old storage shed. It was where Ira had moved our wagon.
The two horses he purchased were harnessed. However, neither the horses nor the wagon were moving. Ira stood next to them arguing with a handful of people from town. The only one I recognized immediately was Mayor Rezub. He still had the presence of someone who thought too highly of himself. I did have to give the man credit for holding that demeanor while squaring off against Ira. Ira probably had the skinny mayor by at least seven inches.
Given the angle I approached the group, none saw me at first. I wasn’t sure what was said next, but Ira’s voice rose significantly and included quite a few colorful phrases that were common during our stint in the military.
Mayor Rezub took a step back at the outburst, showing his first sign of wilting. His supporters took two steps back further, much keener on supporting him from a safer distance.