"I thought you were supposed to be good," Keeli said mockingly. "They said that Kaz himself trained you. Maybe he's not as good as they say. Maybe he won't last that long in the circus."
She was trying to goad Helati. The thought that Kaz might be facing death in the circus threatened to wreck her concentration.
What was happening to Brogan, she could not say. Neither he nor the third attacker were within sight.
Now the axe-wielder returned to the fray, but his swing was a little off. The second swing was not as shaky, but he left a bigger opening. Leaping away from Keeli, Helati thrust at the male's upper leg, near the muscle.
The blade cut deeply. The assassin did not scream, but fell to one knee. His axe he kept gripped in one hand, but he was badly wounded. Helati backed away, focusing on Keeli.
Blade clashed against blade. Keeli was good, but her moves were traditional, the type taught for generation after generation by instructors. Against most opponents, she would have been almost unbeatable, but Kaz, though more proficient with an axe, knew sword tricks that were outside all the usual rules.
Helati let herself be pushed back. She sensed Keeli's growing confidence that Kaz's mate was about to fall. Twice the assassin struck, and each time Helati yielded a little more.
When next her opponent attacked, Helati brought her blade under and around. Keeli tried to counter, but Helati instantly withdrew her sword, causing the former to overreach herself. Kaz's mate immediately lunged, making utmost use of the opening. She hoped only to wound Keeli, but the younger female twisted wildly in an attempt to sidestep the blade.
Her maneuver had just the opposite effect. Keeli's sword missed Helati's hand by a scant half inch. The force with which Keeli swung her blade brought her forward more than she had anticipated. The tip of Helati's sword sank deep into the other minotaur's chest.
Gasping, Keeli slumped forward. Helati barely had time to pull her sword free before her adversary fell to the ground. Keeli's life had already seeped away.
Helati did not waste time dwelling on her triumph. She eyed the wounded male, but he was clearly no threat. Turning her gaze to the side, she searched for Brogan.
She spotted him standing over Zurgas, the latter crumpled to the ground. The cleric was breathing heavily, holding his wounded shoulder. Helati took a closer look at the dead minotaur. The shaft of an arrow rose from Zurgas's throat. Somehow, Brogan had turned the arrow into a makeshift dagger. It was a reminder of just how skilled he was.
A scuffling sound reminded her of the third assassin. He was trying to drag himself into a position where he could either throw or swing his axe.
"I suggest you drop that before I kill you," she informed him.
"Kill me, then," he grunted in a familiar voice.
"No, she won't kill you. Not yet." Brogan walked up to the pair, gripping the wound in his shoulder. "Not until I've finished with you."
The assassin cringed. Helati had to keep herself from shaking.
"Keep away from me! I have the high priest's favor! You've betrayed your master!"
"The high priest isn't here," Brogan pointed out. "And if you doubt that I still have the power granted by Sargas, then I can think of a dozen fascinating ways in which to resolve those doubts."
The prisoner lowered the axe. He glanced from Brogan to Helati. "I yield to you! Not to him! I give my bond to you! I swear!"
"And how can she tell if you're a warrior of your word? You hunt us from the darkness, giving no warning, no challenge. That is not the way of honor, is it?"
All Brogan did was talk, yet each fierce word seemed to pierce the prisoner like the tip of a blade.
"I swear!"
Looking at Helati again, Brogan asked, "Do you accept his bond?"
She did by nodding. Brogan nodded back, then asked, "Will you allow me to question this one in your name?"
"I gave her my bond. I did not give it to you!"
"But I may act for her, if she desires."
Twisting around, the prisoner pleaded, "Mistress Helati! I've lived here for more than six months, acting as agent of the high priest, especially when he became suspicious of this one's information. I am Yestral."
Yestral. The name was familiar. "I know you. You helped build the storage house."
"Aye. My orders were to watch and report all. Then, when Keeli and her mate arrived, she informed me that the high priest wanted Brogan eliminated for his betrayal. Since your mate was known to be riding toward Nethosak, where it was assumed he would be captured or killed, she also commanded your execution. Keeli said she'd bring the pair of you together. Zurgas and I were to follow and await our chance. She would join us if able. I obeyed, but it wasn't to my liking."
"How many others?" asked Brogan. "How many other agents does His Holiness have here?"
"None! I swear!" Yestral's fear of the one-horned minotaur was palpable. "Mistress Helati! I'm your prisoner, not his!"
"All right, but you'll answer all questions when I ask them. Is that understood?"
"I swear by the horns of Sargas."
They were interrupted by the arrival of three other minotaurs. Helati tensed, then saw they were ones she was certain she could trust.
"You see?" said the foremost, a dark-furred, bulky male with wide eyes who acted as smith for the settlement. "I told you I heard weapon play."
The other two nodded. One of them looked at Helati. "Are you all right, Mistress?"
"I am, but Brogan is wounded."
He waved off assistance. "It'll heal right enough. Someone should take care of this one, though, Mistress Helati. We also need to dispose of these two carrion."
"Agreed." She pointed at one of the newcomers. "You. Get some help to drag these two back to the main part of the settlement. I want this one bound and locked up in the storage house."
They moved to obey. Brogan joined Helati.
"What of me?"
"I'll take a chance on you, but you have to tell me what you did that made him fear you so."
He smiled ruefully. "I've got something of a reputation. Much of it is exaggerated, but… seme of it isn't." His tone darkened. "I don't make excuses for that. I'll tell you anything you want to know about my past, but I ask that you leave that for tomorrow. I think I'm going to collapse soon if I don't tend to this shoulder."
Helati had almost forgotten about his wound. "Let me help you."
"I can minister to it myself. You have enough to concern yourself with. Get some sleep. Mistress." He nodded.farewell, then walked toward his dwelling.
"One more question," she suddenly called.
"What?"
"You seemed to know that something was going to happen. How did you?"
He looked somewhat guilty. "It seemed like the sort of ambush I might've planned once."
She made no attempt to stop him when he turned away. Perhaps there was reason to be suspicious of him, but Helati doubted that Brogan was lying.
What about Kaz? Yestral's words haunted her. Kaz had ridden into a trap, after all. They knew he would ride to Nethosak and try to rescue her brother. What had happened to him?
I have to go rescue him, Helati thought. I have to go after him before it's too late… but what about the children?
Brogan had offered to organize an armed force. She knew that if she asked for aid, he and most of the others would offer themselves, but to take so many into what certainly had to be the maw of danger…
I have to go alone. There's no way around it. Ayasha will have to tend the children. She loves them as if they were her own.
She shivered, thinking about that. It was fortunate that her friend cared for the twins so much. It was all too likely that if Helati did not return from Nethosak, Ayasha might find herself acting as mother to the young pair for the rest of her life.