Vanx cocked his ear and could hear Darbon’s footfalls closing in on the pool. “Call him again, Matty. He’s close.”
Before she did, she whispered a heartfelt thank you to Vanx. He heard her, but didn’t respond. He was already on his way back to camp to warn Trevin of what had happened.
A short while later, Matty and Darbon came back into the camp arm in arm. Matty, with her head on the young man’s shoulder and Darbon with a huge, satisfied grin on his face. Neither seemed to notice the leaves and twigs that were stuck to their clothes and in their disheveled hair.
“Get some sleep, Matty,” Vanx ordered. “You’ve got second watch with Trevin. Darbon, go get a bow.”
CHAPTER NINE
In a land across the sea
far beyond Harthgar and more.
There is a land of kings and queens
with an unforgiving shore.
The night passed uneventfully. Late the next day, as they hurried through the forest, Vanx felt as if there were eyes upon them. The day’s travel went well, even the crossing of a rough-flowing spring thaw river. The haulkattens, being feline, didn’t like getting wet, but Vanx and Darbon, along with Matty’s soothing voice, managed to coax them across.
While they were at the river, Trevin spent the time trying to cool Gallarael’s body with strips of cloth soaked in the frigid water. It was there that he voiced his extreme concern over the band Vanx had tied around her bitten arm.
“Vanx, I’m afraid,” Trevin said with tears pooling in his eyes. “What if taking it off of her makes it worse?”
“There is no worse, Trev,” Vanx said calmly. “I’ll do it so you’ll not have to live with the guilt if it goes bad, but she will lose the arm if we don’t let it get some blood.” Already Gallarael’s limb was pale and purple-green. Though it wasn’t as swollen as it had been on the first day, it was still twice the size of her other arm.
“I think I’d rather have a one-armed lover than a dead one with two.” Matty threw her two coppers in without being asked.
“Her arm needs to have blood flowing,” Vanx said plainly to them all. “If it doesn’t, then it will start to rot and infect her whole body. If there is any poison left in her, I’m sure it’s lost its potency.” Then, as if to punctuate the certainty of his statement, he leaned down and yanked at the knot.
“Ahhh!” Gallarael’s whole body shivered and she sighed loudly. After that she lay still, as still as stone. For a moment Vanx thought she’d died. In the silence, Trevin sniffled, and Darbon pulled Matty away before she could say something else inappropriate. In the few heartbeats of relative silence that followed, Vanx heard a branch snapping. The sound came from a distance, but it was on their side of the water flow. An icy tingle of alarm ran up his spine, but Gallarael muttered something, causing Trevin to rush close to her and start talking in comforting tones.
Throughout the rest of the evening Gallarael seemed no better, yet no worse, than before. With every mile they traveled her arm seemed to improve, but Vanx found no relief in it. His keen Zythian senses were telling him that they were being followed, or maybe hunted. Finally, after a late-day rest break, he told Trevin and the others of his suspicions. Not sure whether to follow Vanx’s instinct, or call him worrisome; the two men followed his lead and took up bows and quivers from the pack.
“I think you’re right,” Trevin whispered a short while later. “I thought I saw a flash of movement far off to the left.”
“Probably just a bird,” Matty chuckled at them. “Or a big squirrel.”
“Or another one of those peeping freaks we saw last night,” Darbon joked, causing Matty to harrumph to hide her fear.
“If it’s one of those things, Kobalts, I think they are called,” Vanx said in a quiet voice, “there will be more than just one of them this time.”
“What I saw was bigger and grey-colored,” said Trevin. “It was low to the ground like a big fox, or maybe a small wolf.”
“Wolf?” Matty asked, her voice now a sharp whisper and her eyes wide with concern.
“That’s what I said, woman,” Trevin shot back. Then to Vanx, “We should make camp soon so that there is enough daylight to set up some defenses.”
“Aye,” Vanx agreed. “You’re the military man among us, take the lead and mark our place.”
Trevin did so. He found a partial clearing that was barely big enough to contain their bedrolls. The animals were tethered and fed at the trail edge of the camp. Anyone following their tracks would come upon the animals before them.
“We’ll make no fire this night,” Trevin said. “We need one set of eyes up in yon tree, and another on the ground.” He pointed up at the tree. “The rope we set will clang the cups together if something comes from that way, and I don’t reckon that even the inhabitants of this fargin place would try to come over that tangle of blood thorn over there.” He paused and looked at Vanx. “Is there any more of your brew left?”
“I saved some of the last batch in a skin,” Vanx informed him. “There are enough of the herbs to brew another small pot. If we ration her intake, I think we can get her to Dyntalla alive.”
Trevin nodded. “Give Matty the skin.” He glanced up at the darkening sky through a small opening in the foliage. Taking up his bow and arrows, he started for the tree. “Matty will watch and tend Gallarael while I look out from above. Rest, Vanx, you’ve barely had any sleep. I’ve only seen your eyes closed twice since we left Highlake a week ago.”
“Aye,” Vanx agreed. He filled a cup for Gallarael from the skin and gave it to Matty. “Don’t be dallying with Darbon this night. He needs his rest,” he told her.
“I wore him out last night,” she said proudly and pointed at the young man’s bedroll. “Look.”
Darbon was already sound asleep.
Vanx gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder and found his own blankets. It took him only a few moments to find a deep, much-needed slumber.
Vanx dreamt of the Duchess of Highlake. She was smooth and round and full of wicked desire, but when she threw her hair out of her face and met his eyes, it was Gallarael he saw. She wasn’t lusting and intense like her mother was. She was dazed, with a cloudy film over her eyes. She did manage to raise her head and face him, though. Her gaze was vacant, her skin a jaundiced shade.
“I don’t want to die,” she croaked through cracked lips. “But if I do, take Trevin and run for your lives.” Her brows narrowed as if she were growing angry. “Promise me this, Zythian!” The skin of her face shrunk around her skull as if she were in a baker’s oven. Her cheeks and chin split open and sizzling flesh curled away from the bone. Her hair went up in a burst of flame and her eyes bulged, finally popping into dark, bloody spills of fluid. Through it all her jaw continued to move and her voice stayed firm. “Promise me Zythian, promise me you’ll take Trevin and run.”
Her visage was that of a red-eyed, gore-covered skull now, but the voice was still hers. “I died saving you! Promise me. You owe me as much. I saved you; you save Trevin.”
“I promise,” Vanx blurted out with a start. Trevin was shaking him awake.
“Shhh,” Trevin hissed in a whisper. “Wake up, man, but by the gods, be quiet about it.”
“Is Gallarael-” Vanx didn’t finish the question. He rolled to his hands and knees and crawled over to Gallarael’s side. To his great relief she was still alive, and for the first time since she was bitten, her skin was cool to the touch.
