The sword-dancer gazed up at her, blood staining his burnous. He gasped, “Elaii-ali-ma.”
“Not from behind,” Del told him. “Elaii-ali-ma doesn’t mean you can kill a man from behind. To do so could well result in you being called an oath-breaker. And now you have paid the price for it.”
Well, she didn’t exactly have that right. He could kill me however he liked, though taking me through the back wouldn’t add any particular luster to his name. But he didn’t hear the last of what she said. He was gone.
One-handed, Del began trying to tear the beautiful cloth from her body. “No woman should be cursed to wear this if she has to move! You can’t do anything dressed like this!”
“Oh, I don’t know.” I shrugged. “You can kill a man.”
Del stopped pulling at fabric. Her expression and tone was pure exasperation. “He would have beheaded you!”
That made me rub the back of my neck, of course. I noted the crowd we had drawn came from neighboring wagons as well as Mahmood’s. A glance at Mahmood’s face showed an expression of horror.
Del became aware of it, too. And an astonishing thing happened: she blushed. She handed her sword to me and began to unwrap the cloth with a kinder touch. Once done, she put the bundle into Mahmood’s hands. She raised her voice so that most could hear. “It’s very pretty.”
Well. It had been. Before blood stained it.
Del brushed by me, slipping between the two wagons. I followed to the tailgate. There I handed back her sword. “I think I forgot to say ‘thank you.’”
“How many more?” She shook the blade to shed blood droplets, then grabbed a section of her burnous to wipe it clean. “How many more to fight before they give up?”
“I don’t think they will give up, bascha.”
She sheathed in a practiced movement. “We should go home. We should find Rashida, find the horses, and just go home.”
I had never heard that tone from her. She saw my surprise, tossed her braid behind her shoulder, and asked me why I hadn’t known the sword-dancer was coming up from behind.
“Because I was looking at and appreciating a beautiful woman.”
She made a dismissive gesture. “Tiger, tell the truth.”
“That is the truth! Besides, who can hear in all this noise?”
The tension was leaving her body. She nodded. “Yes. All right.” She looked past me, eyes intent again. I swung around, a little on edge. Another sword-dancer.
“It’s Eddrith,” I said. “He was to meet us here.”
Del relaxed. “Yes. I remember.”
I waited until Eddrith reached us. Before either Del or I could speak, he said, “It’s already being passed around all of Marketfield.”
“What is?” I asked.
He halted, looked at Del. “How a Northern woman in a gown killed a sword-dancer.”
Del scowled. “I’m better when I’m not in a gown.”
Eddrith’s brows ran up. I just grinned. “Too bad you missed it.”
“Horses,” Del said, impatient. “A red-haired man.”
Eddrith nodded. “I’ve found the horses.”
I was startled. “You’ve found—? Well, let’s go take a look. We’ll come back for our horses after we’ve figured out what we need to do.”
Eddrith said, “Follow me.”
And follow we did.
Chapter 31
HARITH’S HORSES, EDDRITH EXPLAINED, were not the only ones present, but five of many. The horse areas were at the far end of the winding double line of wagons, which formed a huge semi-circle. There were no markers to direct the horse traders to specific areas; everyone, as they came in, simply took the spot they preferred. Apparently, most knew one another; there were friendly arguments over who had the best horses, and outlandish claims about what the horses could do.
Eddrith led us to the last wagon before the horse area. The three of us gathered there, trying to look as if we were in a casual conversation. Already customers walked the horse lines to see what was available before they began asking questions and haggling.
“Only five horses?” I asked. “I’m certain Harith had more. The corrals and paddocks were empty, their poles and planks broken in places. Any number of horses may have been driven out.”
Eddrith nodded. “But they would be fools to bring all of the horses to one fair. It would look too suspicious. A few this time, a few next time.”
That was probably the smartest thing Eddrith had ever said. I eyed him. “Have you seen this band of raiders before?”
He shook his head. “To my knowledge, no. But not all men draw attention to themselves with hair color, height, or memorable faces. You would be remembered. But I may even have met one or two on earlier visits. How can I say? It’s only your red-haired man who might be noticed.”
“Is he likely to come?” Del asked. “Surely he knows people notice him.”
“But how many are aware he’s a raider?” Eddrith asked.
“Well, that’s true,” Del agreed. “They stable their mounts in a livery well out of the way. It is likely the men don’t stay together while here. They are just men. People in town for Marketday.”
I looked beyond Del and Eddrith. Horse-boys, at their employers’ orders, walked out specific horses when asked to do so by potential customers. Some mounted, rode the horses in tight patterns. “Where are Harith’s horses?” I asked.
Eddrith indicated the direction with a lifted chin. “Four places down. The red-haired man I have not seen.”
“Go there,” Del suggested. “Ask about the horses. Tiger and I are too memorable, as you say. But if those men are engaged in haggling with you, they will be blind to us until our breath is in their faces. We need only one. He can tell us where Rashida is.”
“Zayid,” I said. “That’s the man we want. The others are incidental. But I expect we’ll have to kill them.”
“Divide them,” Del told him. “Have one bring out a horse. Ask him to show what the horse can do. But lead him in this direction. When he’s close enough, we’ll take him.”
“And have a little conversation,” I added. To Eddrith, I said, “Where is your horse?”
“Tied at my uncle’s wagon. He’s a tinsmith. He always sells wares on Marketday. He does well. I used to be his apprentice.”
“‘Apprentice?’” I echoed.
“Istamir is my home,” Eddrith explained.
“Is it likely these men are camping here, or elsewhere?” I asked.
“Here,” Eddrith answered. “They’ll hold the horses close.”
“Do you know where that happens to be?”
He shook his head. “Close. But if we capture the one man you mentioned, he’ll tell us, won’t he?”
“Maybe,” I said grimly.
“Let’s go,” Del said. “We’ve been here too long. Two of the men with Harith’s horses have already noted us standing here. It may be nothing, but we shouldn’t risk it.”
No. We shouldn’t. I looked at Eddrith. “Walk ahead of us to Mahmood’s wagon.”
Eddrith sighed deeply, then turned and began walking. Del caught my eye and nodded very slightly. Eddrith might be exactly who he claimed he was, a resident of Istamir once apprenticed to a tinsmith, but he was also one of an uncountable number of Northerners present. And all of them looked similar with pale hair, blue eyes, height matching or approaching mine. He was definitely a sword-dancer, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be a raider.
Del and I kept our distance from him as he walked. We wanted room to unsheath should Eddrith swing around and attack. But to carry bared blades as we walked would draw too much attention, so we left them riding above our shoulders. Anyone looking at us would see three sword-dancers; it was not worth comment that we were together. Probably we knew one another, they’d assume, just as merchants knew one another.