You could have…”
“If I hadn’t, he would have killed me. If not today, then soon enough.”
Esk kar had acted instinctively, but he knew he’d done the right thing. Father and son both had to die.
“Yes, I suppose so,” Nicar agreed reluctantly. “Anyway, it’s too late to think about such matters. Let’s go to the marketplace and reassure the people. We’ve much to tell them, if we’re going to convince them to stay and fight.”
It was five hours after sundown before Esk kar blew out the flame from the lamp. Since the morning, they’d not had a moment alone in the long day that changed Esk kar’s fortune more than any day since his birth. He crawled under the blanket, where her waiting arms folded around him. For a long time they held each other, the events of the day still a whirlwind in their minds.
“We made it through the day, thanks to you, Trella.”
That was true enough. She had probably saved his life by warning him about Naxos. And by provoking Drigo at the right time, she’d guided the outcome as surely as his own actions.
In the market, Nicar had spoken to the crowd. He promised grain, silver coins, and new or better houses for those who stayed and fought. He guaranteed the craftsmen protection in their trade. Food and grain would be stockpiled in the village, enough to feed everyone until after the danger had passed. And finally, slaves and bound servants who worked on the wall would earn their freedom in return, and their owners would receive compensation.
Shouts of anger from some and cheers from the slaves greeted that announcement, but Nicar stood his ground. Orak had to survive, and the village’s defense needed skilled men. He repeated the warning that those trying to leave with critical tools or slaves would be stopped.
The other nobles and even Orak’s two priests spoke to the crowd. They all answered questions and stressed the need to stay and defend their homes and families.
Only Nicar’s pronouncement that Esk kar would be in charge of the village’s defense put the crowd at ease.
“Your words pleased the villagers, Esk kar. I could see they trusted you.”
In the market Trella had sat at his feet, her back to the crowd, to make sure that he didn’t forget anything of importance. He’d warned the people about the dangers of leaving Orak, the risk of traveling on the roads, and the bandits that would follow the barbarians. Again and again he assured them the barbarians could be driven away and that a wall would protect them.
He promised he would defend all of them.
And it had worked. In the end, most of the crowd roared approval of both Nicar and Esk kar as men who would save their families and their lives. They ignored Esk kar’s origins; he was one of them now, their protector. The shouting and talking continued long after Esk kar and the nobles left the marketplace.
“I hope we persuaded enough of them to stay. Many will need to work on the wall.”
Trella stayed silent for a moment, then clasped him tightly again before she spoke.
“I’ve never seen men killed like that before… I mean… so suddenly.
In Carnax I watched an execution, but I never saw men… killing like that… it was more bloody than I expected.” She pushed closer to him, moving her leg over his, rubbing herself against him. “And you could have been killed. When Drigo rushed at you with the dagger, I thought you would die. And I provoked him, wanted him to attack you, laughed at him until he lost control.”
“Men die all the time. And men like Drigo and his foolish child, they die more easily because they know nothing of real fighting. I’ve fought many battles, and I’ve learned something from all of them.”
“What of Naxos? He was no pampered brat, and he was standing close enough to you.”
Her concern was real. She’d been truly frightened for him.
“Naxos was different, but he was already beaten when the archers rose up behind me. If his men had been trained fi ghters, they would have rushed us when the first arrow struck, and the bowmen would have had no targets. Instead they just stood there, and their will to fight vanished. Killing him only made it easier to provoke Drigo and control his men.”
“And what would you have done if they had attacked you?”
He laughed softly in her ear as his hand found her breast. The touch excited him.
“Naxos and his guards were bullies, used to swaggering through the streets and breaking villagers’ heads. Guards don’t expect to fight archers.
That’s why they frightened so easily.”
But that arrow had passed closer than he liked to admit, flying just above his head. The archer and Jalen had split one of Esk kar’s new gold coins as a reward, an act of generosity he already regretted. A few silver coins would have sufficed. And that was in addition to the three silver coins he’d promised each of the archers.
She shivered under his touch, and her hand moved from around his neck to begin stroking his chest. “Now the people will follow you. Even the Families will do what you say, now that Drigo is gone.” She moved her hand down to his hip, letting her fingers explore.
“Drigo would have made himself ruler of Orak. It was better that he died quickly, rather than stand in our way.”
Her touch made him even more eager, and his worries faded as his desire hardened. The picture of Drigo running onto his sword flashed into his mind, and that image made him even more excited. Killing often did that, he knew, made a man lust for a woman, any woman, simply to prove that you still lived after the fighting stopped, that you’d survived and someone else was dead.
And what a woman was in his bed tonight, he thought, as his hands began to roam her body-one more precious than any in the village. Perhaps the killings had excited her as well. Women often became aroused after seeing a kill. She had, after all, helped bring them about.
The warmth in the bed grew, and not all of it from the thick blanket.
Trella’s mouth found his for a long kiss that left them both breathless.
“And what plans does my master have for me in the morning?” she whispered seductively, as her hand reached down to touch his manhood.
“Tomorrow will take care of itself.” He rolled onto her stomach, unable to restrain himself any longer and feeling her legs part easily beneath him. “Tonight you have much more important duties.”
The next morning Esk kar’s regular habits asserted themselves and he rose before daybreak. He dressed quietly and left Trella asleep in the warm bed. At the well he washed his hands and face in the cold water as the first rays of the sun reached over the eastern hills and covered Orak with its soft light. A long drink from a second bucket satisfied his thirst.
Then he strode toward the barracks room to wake the men. But the door stood open, and Gatus, dressed and wearing a short sword, emerged as Esk kar approached.
“I just woke them up, Captain. The lazy brutes will be surly all day. Not many went to bed early last night.”
“Thank you, Gatus.” His second in command must have arisen even before Esk kar. They went over the orders for the day as men still half — asleep stumbled forth into the sunlight. Nicar had stressed to Orak’s inhabitants that they must remain under control and go about their daily affairs, and the soldiers needed to keep order. Esk kar and Gatus had discussed these plans briefly last night, but Esk kar wanted to make sure the men kept busy for the rest of the day.
By the time Esk kar returned to his room, the sun had cleared the horizon. He found the door open to freshen the air. Trella had laid out their breakfast. Today the bread came from a baker who specialized in a different, more expensive type of grain. A glass bottle, scarcely taller than his thumb and with its own wooden stopper, held a handful of brown salt.
Water from the well now rested inside a graceful pitcher, next to another that contained weak beer. A new clay plate had also joined Esk kar’s increasing supply of worldly goods. Two dark — brown sausages, both larger than yesterday’s, mixed their aroma with that of the still — warm bread.
“Good morning, Trella.” He took her by the shoulders and kissed her, enjoying the taste of her lips. After a moment, she put her arms around his neck and returned the kiss. The sight of the bed only a step away began to tempt him. She must have sensed what he was thinking, because she pushed herself away.
“Good morning, master. You must eat. Corio will be here soon.”
