reached for his sword.
Talsy said, 'Stop, or you die.'
He hesitated, shooting her an angry, puzzled look.
'He's here to protect the city from the Hashon Jahar,' she explained, 'and people still want to hurt him. He needs to stay up here for his protection, or do you want the Black Riders to destroy this city?'
The mob's shouts confirmed her statement, and he released his sword hilt. 'Filthy Mujar.'
She glared at him. 'Go down and tell the soldiers to send for reinforcements and bring us food and wine.'
The scowling lookout opened his mouth as if to protest her high-handed orders, then apparently thought better of it and headed for the staircase, shooting a last glare at Chanter. The Mujar wandered to the edge of the platform and gazed out across the land, his face deadpan.
She went to stand beside him. 'Is it three days from now, or from when the Hashon Jahar arrive?'
'Three days of protection is exactly that. Waiting doesn't count.'
'How will you do it?'
Chanter smiled. 'Wait and see.'
Chapter Eight
Talsy spent the night snuggled close to Chanter on the soft pallets the soldiers brought up, safe from Dolana's creeping cold. Good food and wine filled their bellies, and her only regret was that he only held her, but she was content. When the stomp of feet on the stairs woke her in dawn's cool light, she found her cheek cushioned on his arm, pressed close to him. Sitting up, she stretched. Chanter remained prone on the pallet, his eyes closed. He opened them when a group of panting people emerged from the stairway, a wheezing Tranton leading them.
Jashon followed, scowling, then a man in a gold-trimmed purple cloak. Tranton introduced him as Cusak, the governor, and he eyed them with a belligerent expression. Chanter gazed at something in the sky. Several advisors joined the crowd, then two servants with trays laden with steaming bowls of porridge, bacon, eggs and hot milk. The smell of food made the Mujar sit up at last and take an interest. He and Talsy ate while the governor fidgeted, looking sour.
'You could have been the richest man in the city, Mujar. Do you mock me with your free aid?'
Talsy glanced at Chanter, who ignored the man. She said, 'He can't be bribed.'
'I know,' Cusak said. 'No one can make a Mujar help. He'd have stood by and watched us all die.'
'That's right. If you help them they'll help you, but you can't force them.'
Cusak snorted. 'They mock us with their powers and reward us for good behaviour as if they're better than us.'
'They are.'
Jashon snarled, 'They're damned worthless yellow -' He broke off as Tranton elbowed him.
Cusak paced around, glaring at the Mujar, who concentrated on his meal. 'Why only three days?'
Chanter glanced up. 'It's enough.'
'What do you mean, enough? What if the Hashon Jahar are still there after three days?'
The Mujar shrugged and spooned his porridge.
Cusak reddened and stepped towards him. 'Answer me, damn you!'
Talsy stood up and blocked his way. 'He granted you three days, and he means that it's enough to repay you for freeing him. No Mujar will be trapped by a limitless promise of aid, it takes away their freedom.' She remembered, with deep shame, her attempt to make him stay with her indefinitely, which in turn reminded her of the finite nature of the clan bond. How would she react, on the day he broke it and left? Would she also be angry and curse him?
Cusak snarled, 'And then the Black Riders will attack us anyway.'
'If they're still waiting.'
'You'll die too. Doesn't he look after his clan?'
Talsy opened her mouth to answer, but Chanter said, 'No harm will come to my clan.'
The governor's eyes narrowed. 'If your clan is still in the city, you'll have to stay, won't you?'
The Mujar nodded. 'But only she will be safe.'
Talsy's heart swelled, and tears burnt her eyes. It did not matter that it was the clan bond that made him take care of her, or that his feelings towards her were a mystery and likely to remain so. If, indeed, he had any. Her affection for him could not be denied, and his loyalty to their bond filled her with joy.
Cusak looked incensed, and Jashon burst out, 'You bastard! You -' He broke off as the governor held up a hand.
Cusak spoke calmly. 'Mujar, what if I offered you clan bond?'
'No.'
'Why not?'
'I have a clan.'
'Her?' Cusak gestured at Talsy. 'I can offer you much more. Better comforts, more food, anything you want.'
'No.' The Mujar raised an impassive gaze.
Cusak approached Chanter, who rose to his feet and backed away.
Talsy stepped between them again. 'Leave him alone. If you harm him now, you break the Wish and he'll leave you with no protection at all.' She had no idea if this was true, but it sounded good, and stopped Cusak in his tracks.
The governor glared at her, his hands clenched. From his thunderous expression, she knew that the only thing he found more irritating than an obstinate Mujar was an uppity slip of a Trueman girl. Unable to threaten Chanter, he focussed his anger on her.
'You're an insolent little bitch.'
Tranton plucked at the governor's sleeve, distracting him. 'Your Grace, how long before the Hashon Jahar get here?'
Cusak swung away, scowling. 'The last scout said a couple of hours, no more.'
Talsy returned to her meal, and Chanter sat beside her, shooting the governor guarded looks. Cusak leant on the railing and glared at the distant forests beyond the cultivated fields around the city. When he finished his food, Chanter rose and went to lean against the rail on the far side of the tower. Talsy joined him, and he glanced at her.
'They should not stay here.'
'Why? Oh.' She remembered her reaction to her first experience of a manifestation of the Powers. The thought of these cruel, proud men cowering in terror at Chanter's power appealed to her, and she was tempted to say nothing. Chanter frowned, and she sighed, rolled her eyes and approached Tranton. Not caring whether they took her advice or not, she informed the hirsute man of Chanter's warning, leaving him to persuade the governor, if he could. Evidently he was unsuccessful, for Cusak stayed, though a few of the advisors left.
The wait seemed much longer than two hours. Tension stretched the time, the atmosphere thick with hatred and resentment. Cusak glared at Chanter, and Talsy glowered back, irked by his lack of gratitude on top of everything else. Jashon's thin face was fixed in a permanent scowl, while Tranton studied the scene with a supercilious smile. Chanter watched the wheeling crows, apparently disinterested in the Truemen and their ill- concealed emotions. His nostrils flared as the breeze lifted the hair from his neck.
The water used in his healing had washed off the blood, and no sign of his ordeal remained. Once again, he reminded Talsy of a wild creature gazing out of a cage, longing for the freedom of the wide open spaces that beckoned from without. Granting her Wish had trapped Chanter, but in three days he would be free again. She was certain that he would waste no time quitting this horrible city and the company of its hateful inhabitants. The Truemen's rancour galled her, and their sullen silence ate at her nerves.
When Cusak stiffened, it was almost a relief. He pointed across the fields. 'There they are!'
