“Take it,” he said. “I don’t feel right having it around.”
Jerico accepted the cloth, then unwrapped it. Inside was the metal piece that had remained inside Sandra, poisoning her from within. Its red glow had dimmed, as if it were losing power.
“I believe it’s the tip of a dagger,” Cobb said, not looking at it. “But that’s thick metal. Don’t see how cutting through something soft as a woman’s belly would have broken it.”
“It was no ordinary dagger,” Jerico said, thinking of the strange magic that had possessed Valessa. Hearing this, Cobb chuckled.
“You’re telling me things I already know. There’s something foul about it. Stuck in her, it must have been killing her every moment.”
“It’s no wonder I couldn’t heal her,” Jerico said, staring at the metal as if it were a sentient evil. “I feel so foolish for not thinking to check her as you did.”
“Doubt you’ve ever needed to. Your abilities are amazing, Jerico. You probably could have stuck my son’s fingers right back on his hand if you’d been there, and had the time. But sometimes a good knife and a pair of eyes have their uses, too.”
Jerico put the metal piece into his palm and clenched his fist. Holy light shone through his fingers, and he directed every bit of his anger toward the metal. When he reopened his fist, nothing but dust remained. He lifted his hand and blew it on the wind, let it carry far beyond the farm. Cobb nodded in approval. Silence stretched between them, until Cobb turned, spat, and began again.
“Forgive me if I’m prying,” he said. “But what is Sandra doing with you, and not her brother? Last we heard, he’s still fighting Lord Sebastian. He set her out on a task? Are you some sort of bodyguard?”
“Why she is with me is her own affair. But I’m on no task from Kaide.”
“Then where are you headed?”
“To the Castle of Caves, to help Arthur.”
Cobb sighed.
“Not surprised, though I was hoping a good man like you had seen the senselessness of it all. All lords are the same. I told Jeb that when he rode off to fight, kill, and die like a bloody fool. They all want their taxes, all demand our worship, and all see us as nothing but cattle. The sooner this ends, the sooner the North returns to peace.”
“I’ve spoken with Arthur. He’s a good man, a better man.”
“Those not in power always seem so,” Cobb said. “Funny how all that fairness and honor vanishes once they’re the one sitting on a throne.”
Cobb turned and spat out whatever he’d been chewing on, then wiped his lips on his sleeve.
“Forgive me,” he said. “You’re a good man yourself, and I’m sure you’re doing what you think is right. I’ve got a few more years on you though, and I think they’ve hardened me like leather over a fire. Seeing Jeb get caught up in it didn’t help none, either. Reason why I ask…I doubt Sandra’s going to be ready to travel anytime soon. If whatever you’re doing is dangerous-and it sounds like it is-she can stay here. We could always use another if they’re willing to work hard, and she’s a pretty lady to boot. If she wants a normal life, I’m sure I could find a dozen men eager for her hand.”
“I’m not sure that’s what she wants.”
“Then what does she want?”
Jerico chuckled.
“I’m not sure I know that, either.”
Cobb shrugged.
“Just giving you the option. It looks like she’s already been hurt once traveling with you. I’d hate for it to happen again. Promise me you’ll think on it.”
“I will.”
Cobb stretched, and his back popped several times.
“I should join my family.”
“I’ll sleep on the floor in Sandra’s room, if that’s all right with you.”
“I thought you might,” Cobb said, and he smiled. “And Jerico…if it’s you she’s wanting, you might consider just how important taking down Lord Sebastian really is.”
He went inside. Finally alone, Jerico looked to the stars. He wanted to pray for guidance, but he was too damn tired.
“Tomorrow,” he promised the stars. “And thank you.”
Jerico returned to Sandra’s room. He put his hand against the side of her face, checking there was no fever. She slept deeply, with no appearance of pain. For that, he was thankful. Cobb’s words came to him, but he pushed them away. He had no energy for that. Beside her bed he found a blanket laid out for him, when and by whom, he could only guess. Wrapping himself in it, he closed his eyes and fell asleep within moments.
11
Darius was stunned to be awake. His back hurt like the Abyss, his left arm was asleep, and the red mark on his forehead would probably never vanish…but somehow, he was alive.
“Huh,” he muttered. “I’ll be damned.”
Well, maybe not quite, he thought with a chuckle. That was, after all, the entire point of what he was fighting against.
He ate his meager breakfast, always with an eye out for Valessa. It made no sense, really, why she hadn’t killed him in his sleep. How she’d mocked him, taunted him with that fate. She could wait, she’d said, yet Ashhur had commanded him to sleep, and no dagger had found his throat. It was a miracle, one he felt woefully unworthy of. Not that he’d complain. It was still vastly better than the alternative.
Darius caught sight of her only once as he gathered his things, watching from behind a distant tree. She looked like herself, plain-garbed and furious. When she realized she’d been spotted, she vanished. Darius saluted her direction, then continued east, toward the Gihon River. Once he reached it, he could follow it north to the Blood Tower. Sir Robert Godley, issuer of the bounty on his head, would be there. As he’d told Jerico, he’d explain everything and demand that the bounty be removed before anyone got hurt.
And if Robert refused…
Darius tried to not think about that.
Valessa bothered him little as the next days passed. Several times Darius felt a tingle in the back of his mind, and he’d turn, readying his sword. If she’d been planning to attack, she backed down at his reaction. At no point did he feel safe, nor relinquish his weapon. Even when he took a piss, he held the hilt in one hand, his dick in the other. Valessa might not think it honorable killing a man while he relieved himself, but he’d seen the madness in her eyes. As long as he died, he felt pretty sure she’d be content.
Every night he knelt in an open space or field, for he’d left the forest long behind him. He stabbed his sword into the dirt before him, closed his eyes, and slept. Every night, he expected death, and prayed Ashhur would take him. Every morning, he awoke shaking his head and chuckling.
It wasn’t until the fourth day that Darius encountered another human being. He walked a dirt path between great fields stretching north to south on either side. Gold wheat blew in the wind, and he ran his hands across their stalks. Half a mile beyond the Stronghold there had been a field, and a long time ago Darius used to play in it, weaving hidden from the world through the wheat when he was supposed to be performing his daily prayers. He’d been caught once, and that once was enough to ensure he never did it again.
His hand dropped to his side. Karak had stolen away his childhood. Surely that alone proved the destructiveness of the Stronghold. Lost in memories of rigid canings, forced prayers, and constant reaffirming of the chaos in his heart, he barely noticed the approaching wagon until it was right on top of him.
“Hold!” Darius called out, waving his arms at the approaching driver. A wagon meant supplies, and food, both of which he was running low on. What little coin he had should get him to the Gihon, and from there it was just a matter of time until he spotted one of their patrols along the river.
Two men sat at the front of the covered wagon, which was pulled by a pair of heavily panting oxen. Their clothes were the color of dirt and toil, their faces unshaven. They said something to one another, then issued a command with the reins. Darius knew nothing of how to drive a wagon, but he could tell when one wasn’t slowing. Frowning, he waved his arms again, making sure to keep his sword sheathed.