normal conversation. Gwaynn could not help noticing the sound of awe in his voice. Vio noticed also and looked at Gwaynn for an explanation.
He just shrugged.
“Gwaynn was attacked by five Knights on Lato,” Krys said with a questioning look on his face. He would stop if he received any signal for Gwaynn to do so. Gwaynn’s face, however, just carried a bemused smile.
“He killed them all.”
“They’re overrated,” Gwaynn answered. “They may be a dominant force on horseback and as an army, but on foot, they don’t stack up to either of you. Perhaps they could defeat a weak weapons master, but it would take more than one.”
Krys frowned. “Master Kostek thinks very highly of them. He claims that the Deutzani could not have surprised and defeated the Massi without the help of the Temple Knights.”
Vio blushed at the turn of the conversation, but she said nothing and just stared at Gwaynn in wonder.
“Perhaps…and perhaps I was just lucky, but I’m telling you both now. I have faced graver dangers.”
The three of them moved back up the path and toward the main hall of the Mele Quarter. “Will you head for Mount Erato to continue training with Tar Nev?” Krys finally asked. Up ahead, Gwaynn could see the entire Leek family out of their house and waiting to greet him. Little Mari was already running his way.
“No, I’m going to Massi,” Gwaynn said simply. “And I would like you to come with me.”
Vio gasped, and Krys just looked stunned, but Gwaynn smiled and scooped up the running Mari and twirled her around. “You are so lovely,” he said, “by far the prettiest girl on the island.” Mari giggled. “Well, maybe it’s a tie,” Gwaynn added as an afterthought, “with Vio, Karin, Deidre and Shari.” Mari giggled more at that. Her mom, though beautiful in her own eyes, was not to be considered a pretty girl.
“What about my training?” Krys asked, secretly delighted to be going home with his King, and to begin taking upon himself the title of Massi Weapons Master.
“I will finish your training,” Gwaynn answered in such a serious tone that neither Krys nor Vio questioned it.
XIII
Tar Navarra rode into Solarii just after midnight on a dirty brown sway back he was forced to appropriate in Millvale. The horse, if you could call the beast that, was the best readily available animal in the town, and he could not waste time searching about for something better. He reached Solarii in a very bad mood, and to make it worse he was challenged, albeit briefly at the gate. Though the guards there said nothing, Navarra could feel their eyes going from him, to the horse and back. They undoubtedly were laughing at this very moment. Navarra tried to put it from his mind as he headed directly to the stables. No one was up at the moment, but it took only moments for him to find a stable boy sleeping in one of the empty stalls. Navarra kicked him on the upper thigh.
“Who…” the boy yelled, immediately alert. He sat rubbing the wounded spot on his leg, an angry retort on his lips, but he wisely closed his mouth when he recognized the Executioner.
“Saddle my horse,” Navarra ordered with a glare.
The boy stood up quickly. “Which…”
“Chaos. Have him ready in ten minutes,” Navarra barked, though Chaos was a mare. “I’m going to find something to eat and collect my dogs.”
The boy blanched at the thought of the large canines, which followed the Executioner about at times. The dogs were well trained, but whenever he was close to them he could swear they were salivating for a taste of his flesh, wanting nothing more than to attack and eat him. He got to work right away.
It was near one in the morning when Navarra finally left Solarii again. Chaos, a big dapple gray mare, trotted easily into the night with Vesania and Furia, the dogs, trotting along behind. Navarra would have liked to sleep, but the girl was already a full day ahead of him and he wanted to be back at the Fultan estate before noon tomorrow. He would travel another hour or so to an inn outside the hamlet of Danbridge. It started to rain before he was half way there and so he arrived cold, wet and angry.
He pounded on the door and woke an innkeeper named Lou, who was smart enough not to protest. In turn, Lou woke his son to rub down the horse. The dogs, much to the innkeeper’s dismay followed the large man dressed in black inside and up to the room at the top of the stairs. Lou started a fire as Navarra took off his wet clothes and hung them on a rack to dry.
“Wake me at sunrise,” Navarra said as the man was leaving. “Knock. If you try to enter they will kill you,” he added, motioning to the dogs. They happily jumped up on the bed as the Executioner climbed under the covers. He found sleep immediately.
?
Samantha arrived at Stanton Falls nearly an hour before noon, and though Nancy and Bane could use the rest, she still chafed at the thought of not moving on. She could feel the Executioner coming, and for the thousandth time wished she had put an arrow in him instead of his horse. With a sigh, she dismounted and allowed both animals to drink and then she led them a short way to a field where tiny new shoots of grass were just appearing. She hobbled them so they wouldn’t wander too far and then moved back to the falls. Stanton Falls were not high as waterfalls go, only about twice the height of a man, but the river was wide and the falling water created a thunder of noise making it impossible to hear anyone approaching. She moved onto a flat, damp rock far enough from the falls so that she would not get overly wet from the mist created by the falling water, then she knelt carefully on the water’s edge. She put her hair completely in the cold water to rinse off some of the dirt from her travels. She combed her fingers through it and when her hair felt relatively clean she twisted it dry as best she could then moved out into the meadow. She took the short ropes from the legs of Bane, but stayed near him in case she had to leave quickly.
The time past slowly, but thankfully Mr. Madres and Lonney arrived before noon. Samantha was extremely relieved to see them. She smiled shyly as they rode up to her. Lonney smiled back.
“I’m sorry to hear about your family,” Mr. Madres said, immediately all business.
Samantha’s heart sank as she was brought back to her sorrow. She nodded, but said nothing.
Mr. Madres didn’t say anything more on the subject, just dismounted and moved to Lonney’s horse and removed a couple of large saddlebags. He placed one set over his horse and another over Bane, then still without saying anything, removed the pack from Nancy then led her to Lonney and handed him the reins.
“What?” Samantha started, but stopped as the older man held up a hand.
“Lonney, take the mule and head back home.”
Sam could tell that Lonney did not want to, but he nodded. “Yes, father,” he said and took one last look at the girl in front of him before turning and heading back the way he had come.
When he was out of sight he turned to her. “I didn’t want him to know exactly where I’m taking you, though he is a smart lad, and has probably worked it out already.”
“Mr. Madres,” Sam answered, dismayed at the departure of Nancy, “why…”
“Tomm, my name is Tomm,” he said, glancing at her as he packed her things into the saddle bags. She was a striking girl, and apparently tougher than she looked, or else smarter.
“Tomm,” she said, feeling strange about using his name. “Why did you take Nancy?”
He moved back to his horse and mounted smoothly. Samantha did likewise.
“You were leaving very distinctive tracks,” was all he said and then began to lead her off to the north following the river toward Lynndon. “One horse leaves much more ordinary tracks than a horse and a mule.”
Samantha didn’t say anything. It was obviously true. “But won’t the Executioner follow Lonney now?”
Tomm sighed. “Possibly, if he is a poor tracker, most likely he will follow us. He knows you are fleeing undoubtedly to the ford at Lynndon. Once he realizes this, he will make to the ford at all possible speed.”
“Where are you taking me?” she asked as Tomm broke them into a trot, with luck they would reach the ford in the early evening tomorrow.
