Arrows Of Change (Book 1) (23 page)

That was good news, at least.

Ashlynn came up the short stairs and joined them. She shot a
particularly charming smile at the captain as she said, “It’s a fine ship and
crew you have here, Captain Gause. Thank you for taking us on.”

It was hard to tell by moonlight, but Broden would swear
Gause blushed as he stammered out, “N-no, it be a pleasure to have ye. Kind
people, ye be. Be there anything else ye need?”

“No, not at this moment.”

“Yer sisters sorted, then?” Broden asked.

Ashlynn gave him a weary smile. “Finally, yes. I had to
answer about three dozen questions as I healed them, but they’ve all fallen
asleep now. They had no idea what this whole thing was about, or who was behind
the kidnapping, or anything.”

Broden was not surprised to hear that.

“Captain Gause, do you think we can hire a flatboat once we
reach Lakepoint? We’d like to go up the river and to The Grove, you see.”

Gause inclined his head toward Broden. “Yer man and I just
spoke on that. No use trying to fit all of ye and yer horses on one. Ye be
needing two, and this be high season for the flatboats, so odds be good. I know
a captain or two I can introduce ye to, if ye wish.”

Ashlynn’s smile this time was more genuine. “That’s very
kind, thank you. I’d appreciate that. None of us are particularly familiar with
this area of Trenena after all. How long will it take to reach Lakepoint?”

“A day, mayhap less, depending if we can keep up this
speed.”

“Excellent. In that case, it gives us all a day to rest.”
Turning to Broden, she suggested, “You’d best come down and choose a hammock to
sleep in.”

He blinked at her. “A what, now?”

“Hammock.” With her hands, she tried to illustrate it in the
air. “It’s what sailors sleep on. It’s a web of rope that’s strung out between
poles. You sleep on them.”

Broden eyed her dubiously. Sleep on rope? That did not sound
the least bit comfortable. “I think I will sleep on the deck, lass.”

“It’ll be fine,” she promised, amused. Grabbing his hand,
she tugged him after her. “Come on, I’ll show you.”

He could hear Gause chuckling behind him, and mentally
cursed the man for finding this funny. But no matter what the lass said, he was
not about to sleep on rope, no matter if it was tradition on a ship or not.

Needless to say, Broden did not sleep well that night. Everyone
claimed a man could sleep just fine in a hammock as long as a storm was not
about to toss him out of it. That was hogwash. Broden rolled out of it three
different times before giving up and sleeping on the deck. He awoke irritable
and bleary eyed. If a clear target had presented itself, he would have promptly
riddled it with holes, but he had no one to properly blame for his lack of
sleep except his own fool self for trying that thrice-cursed thingamajig to
begin with.  

There was a mess hall and kitchen in the bottom decks, down
the hall from the sleeping quarters. Broden followed his nose and found
breakfast being served up by a burly man that looked more like a blacksmith
than a cook. A line had formed in front of a low wooden counter, and Broden
joined it, looking about as he did so. There were exactly three tables, all
bolted to the floor, with round stools set around them, also bolted to the
floor. Half of his own group was already in the room, eating breakfast and
chatting with each other. Ashlynn, Seth, and Marissa were not there, so he
assumed them to be on the upper deck.

Three girls he’d only met briefly the night before were
gathered around one table with Amber. He studied them from the corner of his
eye as he waited for his food. Bria’s dark hair was no longer a tangled mess
around her face, but had been neatly braided and tied to hang over her
shoulder, plain grey dress looking washed and pressed. She had the Knolton blue
eyes and a heart-shaped face that matched her sweet nature. On her right was Catriona—Cat,
as she had insisted the night before—with her fair hair hanging freely down her
back, also looking clean and pressed in a white shirt and dark skirt. Unlike
her sisters, she looked wan and distressed, lines engraved in her fair skin and
around those sharp dark eyes.

On Cat’s other side sat Darisa, who had an arm around her
sister’s shoulders, and was speaking in a low, comforting tone. Darisa was the
only one that truly looked like a Knolton— dark hair with a slight wave, blue
eyes, olive skin. She could be Edvard’s twin, the more feminine version, if she
was only three years older. She also must be of a size to match Ashlynn, as Broden
recognized the dark blue shirt and riding pants she wore very well.

The cook slapped a spoonful of porridge into a bowl, handed
him a cinnamon roll, and a glass of fresh water. Mouth watering from the smell,
he nodded thanks to the man and went to join the table of girls. “Top of the
morning to ye, lassies.” They all looked up at him and smiled, and there be not
a man in the world that could resist a table of smiling, beautiful women. He
promptly sat down. “Ye all slept better than I in that specious bed, I hope.”

Amber chuckled, eyes crinkling up at the corners. “I saw you
roll out of it at one point. You really couldn’t stay in that thing, could
you?”

He grumbled a few choice words before remembering he had
nothing but women in front of him, and then he watched his tongue.

“I’m glad to have a chance to speak with you,” Cat said. Her
voice was the soothing type to listen to, as pleasant to hear as birdsong. “I
saw you several times last night and I must say, your archery skills are
impressive. I’ve never seen a man that had such true aim.”

“Ah, lass, ye will set this old man to blushing if ye carry
on so.”

“He says that,” Amber observed to no one in particular, “but
look at that grin. Don’t let it go to your head, Broden. After all, Riana is as
good as you are.”

“Aye, chip off the old block, she be.” His grin widened.

“Riana?” Bria asked in confusion.

“Me daughter,” he explained.

“Oh! You have a daughter?” Bria leaned further across the
table, eyes focused on him. “Ashlynn mentioned to us last night that Ash also
has a partner now. By any chance, is it your daughter that partnered with him?”

“Aye.” He snuck in a quick bite after he answered. Sitting
at a table full of curious women and eating was something of a challenge.

“You almost speak like a Terenian, but not quite.” Darisa
cocked her head in confusion. “Are you from here?”

Mouth full, he could only shake his head. Amber took pity on
him and answered in his stead. “No, he and Riana are from Cloud’s Rest. Ash
discovered them when he went up there to get more lumber.” She glanced at him,
but he encouraged her with a wave of the hand to continue the story. Amber knew
it well enough to recount, and it gave him a chance to eat.

She had a rapt audience. When she finished, Bria actually
clapped her hands together, like a delighted child. “I’m so glad! We were all
worried about Ashlynn and Ash running around as they did. I mean, if they would
at least work together it wouldn’t be as dangerous for them, but they always
seemed to choose to work on separate projects that took them to opposite sides
of the city. With you and Riana, we can rest a little easier.”

“But how did the pairings work out as they did?” Cat frowned
at the ceiling, finger going back and forth in the air as she worked things out
in her head. “I mean, wouldn’t it make more sense for you to pair with Ash and
your daughter with Ashlynn?”

Amber bit her lip, trying to hide her laughter, but failed
miserably at it. Broden gave her a glare that did nothing but encourage her.
“Lass. It be no’ that funny.”

“No, it is,” Amber insisted. “At least, to us it is.”

“We’re missing something,” Darisa stated certainly, eyes
shining with anticipation. “What? His daughter has a crush on Ash?”

“Oh, the crush is mutual,” Amber assured her gleefully.
“Don’t glower so, Broden. It’s not that bad.”

Easy for her to say. It was not her little girl flirting
with the man.

All of the women seemed to find this vastly entertaining,
and they leaned over the table, staring at him with open delight.

Darisa pressed the point. “Really? Ash has a crush on a
girl? I don’t think I’ve seen him like anyone since he was ten.”

“He was in pretty strict training when he started his
apprenticeship,” Cat pointed out to her. “Still, I’m glad to see that he isn’t
as obsessed with magic as we feared. Broden, what’s your daughter like? Aside
from being an amazing archer, that is.”

Broden could not help but boast a mite. “Too pretty by half,
like her mother. Hair the color of sunset, clear green eyes, fair skin. She has
a good heart, that one.”

“We’d think you were boasting except that she has to be that
pretty and amazing to catch Ash’s attention.” Cat sat back in her chair, and
for a moment, her fatigue and pain faded away. “So, she partnered with Ash,
even though you knew they liked each other?”

“Lass, there no’ be much in life a father will deny his
little girl if she wants it.” Which was true enough, as it went. “Besides, Ash
and I had a talk. He knows to behave himself.”

“Or he won’t wake up one morning,” Amber finished knowingly.
“Yes, we know how you fathers think alright. But I’ve never figured out why you
so readily partnered with Ashlynn.”

“Oh, lass reminds me strongly of me Riana,” he answered
easily. “Charming and strong and quick to jump into danger. Watching her, I
could no’ leave her be. Nigh on gave me a heart attack thinking what she be
getting into without someone to properly guard her back.”

Amber gestured toward him in a grand manner and said to the
other women, “And that, ladies, is why Edvard trusted both Broden and Riana
with his wizard-siblings. He quickly figured out that neither of them would let
their partners go into danger alone.”

Bria’s eyes became sad. “I wish now that I was a wizard too.
If I had been, maybe I would never have been kidnapped like that.”

There might be truth in that, but Broden did not want her
thinking that she was worth less than Ashlynn. These three women were good
ones, kind ones, and did not deserve what had happened to him. So he gentled
his tone as he assured her, “Lass, ye need no’ fear it happening again. I swear
that to ye. Why, Edvard had no notion that the Iyshian king would do the likes
of this. But now that he knows, he be making every precaution to make sure that
no person in his family will face danger again.”

“We know, Broden.” Bria’s smile flickered back to life. “Was
Edvard very upset when he heard what had happened to us?”

“Upset does no’ cover it.” Remembering, Broden grimaced. “I
have never in me born days seen a man that angry. If the Iyshian king had been
within reach of him, Edvard would have strangled him with his bare hands.”

Amber nodded vigorously in support of this. “We saw him the
next day, after he’d gotten the letter, and he wasn’t any calmer then. In fact,
he stayed mad for several days until he sent us to rescue you.”

Hopefully that anger had died down some now. Ashlynn had
taken a moment here and there to send a magical message to her brother, keeping
them posted on events. She could not do it often—something about needing strong
sunlight and wind to have enough magic to send a message that far out.  

Strong sunlight and wind…hmm. She might have all she needed
up top what with them being in the middle of the lake like this. “Amber, might
the lass be up on top sending messages back and forth to her brother?”

“Hmm?” Amber blinked as she switched topics. “Oh, yes,
that’s exactly what she’s doing. She said the conditions are perfect for it
right now.”

“In that case,” he stood and gathered his bowls, “I should
join her. There be some questions I want answered. Lassies, be there anything ye
needing or help yer wanting?”

“No,” Bria answered for all of them, voice gentle. “Thank
you, Broden. Right now, we’re simply healing and recovering our strength. If
that changes, we’ll certainly ask you.”

“Well enough, then.” He bade them a silent goodbye before
returning his dishes to the cook, offered a word of thanks, then went up the
short ladder to the top deck. He had to pause a moment when he reached the top
as his eyes adjusted to the strong sunlight of the morning. The air felt damp
up here, the scent of the water strong, but the wind felt good along his skin.

He found Ashlynn in the very front of the ship, well out of
everyone’s way, her face to the sun and her hands spread out as if skimming the
top of the wind. Not wanting to interrupt, he did not say a word to her, simply
settled nearby with his back against the railing.

She must have heard him come, though, as a moment later she
opened her eyes and turned to look at him. “Broden. We’ve got trouble in
Estole.”

“A good morning to ye too, lass,” he drawled. “I slept fine,
yerself?”

Ashlynn rolled her eyes. “This is no time for pleasantries.
Riots are breaking out in Estole on a near daily basis.”

His attention abruptly sharpened. “Riots?”

“Some of it is caused by Iyshian spies that are set to stir
up trouble. If they can cause enough of it, it will break the kingdom Edvard is
trying to build.” Her face drew together in a dark frown. “At least, that’s
what I’m assuming their plan is. Right now, we’re so fragile, it wouldn’t take
much. But some of the riots are from our own citizens and it’s because of the
housing shortage.”

It was his turn to frown. “I thought Ash stayed behind to
build houses.”

“He hasn’t been able to focus on it. At the same time the
riots started, Iyshian soldiers started raiding our borders. Between dealing
with the raids, and dealing with the riots, Edvard’s guards and Ash are
stretched too thin. He just doesn’t have time to build the houses too. It’s
being left up to the carpenters instead, and while they’re good at their jobs,
they aren’t nearly as fast.”

He rubbed at his forehead, feeling a headache coming on. “In
other words, we need to be there. Now.”

“Yes. Ash simply can’t handle the work load—no one can, it’s
asking a person to be in three places at once—and Edvard can only do so much
with the people he has.” Ashlynn wrung her hands together in a rare gesture of
helplessness. “I was afraid of this. I mean, I had to come. The party would
never have survived that wizard who attacked us. But I was afraid if I did
come, the Iyshian king would take advantage and do everything to destroy Estole
while I was gone.”

In a kingdom as small as Estole, every person was vital.
Broden had seen that for himself. Especially a person like Ashlynn, who could
do the work of twenty people. If she was missing, then it made it hard, if not
impossible, to make up for her absence. Oh, that Iyshian king be a crafty old
codger, alright. By kidnapping the girls, he won no matter what Edvard decided
to do. If Edvard had frozen, not daring to do anything for fear of his sisters,
he won. If he sent a rescue party with one of the wizards, the king won, too.

Rubbing his palm over his face, he asked her grimly, “How
bad, Ashlynn?”

“Bad.” She sounded old and tired as she answered. “Two
buildings destroyed right down the framework, almost, with several near-fatal
injuries. This all in the past three days, mind you. If we don’t get back soon,
the guard is simply going to be overrun with problems and the whole structure
we put into place before leaving will simply collapse. But I don’t know what to
do. We can’t go much faster than this—my sisters aren’t in any condition for it.
They were captive for nearly a month with little to eat or drink and in those
horrible chains. They simply don’t have the physical strength to go tearing
across the countryside at high speeds.”

“Aye. I saw them this morning and saw that with me own
eyes.” He let his head
thunk
back against the wood and stared blindly up
at the sky. “Ye said afore that going by sea all the way to Estole be the
safest path. How safe?”

“Very. The Iyshian king has no control over the sea. I mean,
they could still be attacked by pirates or run across a mother storm, but it’s
safer than going across land.” Her mouth hung open for a moment, closed, then
she hummed thoughtfully. “You’re not thinking about splitting away from them,
are you? Sending them by ship home and us going across Trenena by ourselves?”