DARK HOURS
Chapter 8
Kayge?
Her gentle voice was full of fear
and hope.
“Emers.” Her name touched his lips,
and like a miracle the pain in his stomach was gone. The loud pounding inside
his skull was silenced, not muffled. Silenced. The sudden cessation stunned
him, and Kayge rocked back on his heels. Gasping for breath, Kayge wiped his
mouth. The slime covering him had dried, hardened. It almost revolted him, but
he didn’t dare use any of his precious water to wash some of it away.
“I’ve been covered in worse,” he
reminded himself.
It was another minute or so before
he could uncurl himself and stand. A chill overtook him, shaking him soundly
for a moment. Kayge felt awkward and uncertain, and grateful for the safety of
the leather and armor he was accustomed to wearing. Back in his Centurion garb,
he felt stronger and more capable, although he knew the uniform was not
responsible for his skill with the sword or dagger.
He still had to find Emers. And
then he had to find sanctuary for them. He prayed he would find both before it
was too late.
Too late for what?
Kayge started. It was then he
realized that he’d been in a haze. His mind had been fogged, distracted, and he
hadn’t been paying attention to where his feet had been taking him. He glanced
around but the tableau looked the same as it had for the past hour—trees,
brush, and more trees. The air smelled pure and cold, with no trace of wood
smoke or other scents of humanity.
A rock suddenly appeared, barely
missing him as it flew by. The tree beside him exploded with a rush of leaves.
A body slammed into him, knocking him onto the road and away from his weapons.
Kayge hit the ground first, nearly stunned by the impact, as the assailant
began to flail at him about the head and shoulders.
Kayge rolled, trying to dislodge
the person. Years of training and his infallible soldier’s instincts took over
as he reached for the small dagger he’d hidden in his belt. They struggled for
position on top, but Kayge managed to shove his arm under his attacker’s throat
and pin the man to the ground. He held the point of the dagger up to where the
man’s eyes could see it glitter in the spotty sunlight. The man stiffened with
fear, no longer the hunter but the hunted.
“Who are you? Why have you knocked
me onto the ground?” Kayge hissed into the man’s thin face.
The attacker tried to shake himself
free, to no avail. He was slighter in frame and nowhere near as muscular as the
once Centurion. The contest was brief.
“Again, I will ask you, but for the
last time. If you choose to remain silent, I can guarantee you permanent
silence when I slice out your tongue. Who are you?” He added a slap to the
man’s face to knock some sense into his attacker’s head.
The man knew he’d been bested, and
from the wide-eyed look he gave Kayge, he wasn’t accustomed to having lost the
element of surprise.
“G-Gilles.”
“What?”
“My name i-…is Gilles, my lord.”
“Very good, Gilles. Now tell me why
you attacked me. Was it for my money?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Was it for…”
A short distance away lay the
partially roasted haunch from the deer he’d slain. He had no memory of dragging
it along with him as he traveled down the road.
“Was it for the deer? The meat?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Was it for my…” Kayge glanced over
to where his blade lay glistening in the sun. “My sword? You were wanting my
blade, yes?”
“Yes, yes, my lord.”
“And you were going to kill me for
it, weren’t you? That was the plan?”
“N-no, my lord.”
Kayge pressed the tip of the dagger
into the man’s cheek, breaking the skin just enough to where a single drop of
blood appeared. At the same time, he grabbed the man’s tunic and twisted it, applying
pressure to the robber’s throat and nearly cutting off his air.
“Y-yes, my lord,” the man choked.
“And how were you going to kill
me?” Kayge caught a whiff of the man’s breath. His teeth were rotting in his
mouth. Like so many, he probably lived on a hand-to-mouth existence where any
day he could eat was a good day, and starvation or death were always waiting
behind the next tree. Already the Centurion could sense that all fight was gone
out of the man, all his meager energy depleted.
The man shifted a tiny bit,
exposing a length of braided horsehair wrapped around his wrist. Kayge nodded.
With a little more luck the man would have been able to loop the braid around
his throat. With a little more strength he would have been able to strangle
Kayge, or at least press him unconscious long enough to escape with the weapons,
the meat, and whatever monies and clothes he could have gained off his victim.
Or worse, he could have pounded Kayge’s head with a rock, thereby killing him
and never having to worry about him coming afterwards for revenge.
Luck, however, had not been on his
side.
Kayge glanced overhead, searching
the skies for any sign of the dragon, but the heavens were clear. If he hadn’t
abruptly stopped in his tracks, the rock the man had thrown at him would have
hit its target. It could have dazed him, if not knocked him out. Maybe even throw
him off-balance enough to where the attacker might have been able to get his
garrote around Kayge’s neck, as he’d planned to do.
He peered back into the frightened
man’s face. “Listen to me, Gilles. I will let you have half of my kill. Not my
clothing, not my weapons, nothing except half of the yearling if you will
answer a few questions for me. Do you agree to my offer?”
The man’s eyes lit up. “Yes, my
lord!”
Kayge smiled and eased the pressure
on his assailant’s throat. “A very wise decision, my man. Now, listen. Tell me.
Where am I? What is the name of this place?”
“Vouteré.”
A frown creased Kayge’s brow.
Vouteré? That was almost two day’s ride from Noranye and nowhere near
Lisstanbor. That told Kayge he’d somehow gotten turned around. Or the dragon
is responsible for my confusion. “Is there another village or town closer
nearby?”
There was no way the man would be
lying to him now. Not about their location, anyway.
Gilles nodded like a branch
quivering in the breeze. “Yes, my lord. Belissa lies in that direction.” He
pointed east. “It is a small but accommodating village. You could be there by
sunset if you leave now.”
Taking a deep breath, Kayge pulled
away from the man. “Tell me, Gilles, have you seen a woman recently? A stately
woman, perhaps from a prominent family. Golden hair. Alabaster skin.”
This time confusion filled the
little man’s eyes. He shook his head. “No, my lord. Not like the one you
described. I would have remembered one with hair of gold.”
In the fine balance in
distinguishing truth from lies in a man’s tone of voice, Kayge claimed no
expertise, yet he could tell the man was giving him his best knowledge. The
little man would have been happy just to get away with his skin, much less the
promise of a haunch of meat.
He tried to hide his
disappointment. Not because the man hadn’t seen Emers, but because he’d hoped
that the dragon may have vomited her up. But if Emers had not been seen on the
road or in the village, he couldn’t dismiss the fact that she might be there
now.
Alone and unprotected.
He had to find her before someone
realized she was without an escort. A shudder went through him. What humanity
could do to her would be worse than anything that dragon could do.
I cannot give up hope that I can
find her before that happens. I must believe hope still exists. I have to have
faith that it still exists!
He glared at the man. “Is there
another village along the way? Perhaps in another direction.”
“No, my lord. Belmeau is the only other
village for miles, until you reach Coueff.”
“And Noranye. How far and in which
direction does it lie?” He needed to be certain he hadn’t been aimlessly
wandering.
As he’d expected, the man pointed
behind him. “There, my lord. It lies in that direction, but it’s a good two,
three days’ walk.”
Two to three days’ walk. Or a
little more than a day when riding. That sounded right, considering he and
Emers had been on horseback.
Kayge got to his feet. True to his
word, he went over to the yearling, swiftly sliced the carcass across the
ribcage and through the spine, then gave the little man the hindquarters. In
truth, he was glad to be able to lighten his load for the journey ahead. Gilles
stared at the bounty handed him. He’d never expected to be given the prime
section.
“Bless you, my lord!”
“I was never here, do you
understand? If anyone should ask you about me, you will remain dumb. If not,
then I will find out, and I will come after you. And then I will kill you for
sure. Are we clear?”
Another nervous nod was his answer.
“Wo-would you care to have company during your journey?”
“I plan to confront the dragon that
has taken my beautiful wife from me, kill it , and reclaim her. Are you willing
to help me in my endeavor?”
“A d-dragon, my lord?”
“Big and fearsome. Most powerful
and ravenous.”
Gilles drew away. “No, my lord.”
He gave the little man a humorless
smile. “You have wisdom beyond measure.” Hoisting the remainder of the carcass
across his shoulders, Kayge sheathed his sword and dagger. Without another look
in the thief’s direction, the Centurion headed toward Noranye at a quick pace.
TO BE CONTINUED
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