The Channel (The Gifted Book 2) (24 page)

Craen paled slightly but quickly regained his kingly composure. "You left him in the hands of Argeon?" So many questions were running through his mind.
How did Kaurl get away? Why did he leave Taulin? What happened?

"No!" A look of disbelief swept across Kaurl's face as he tried to hide the pain his father caused with his accusation. "He's with an old friend of ours, Daen Mallaur and two of Daen's companions."

Queen Herand joined the conversation that had kept her oldest from acknowledging her presence. "The guardian? He's returned? Where has he been?"

Kaurl glimpsed his mother from the corner of his eye but couldn't take his eyes off his father. He needed to know that his father didn't think he would abandon his own brother. "Yes, the guardian. And I didn't ask him. I got the sense he was still on official guardian business when we met."

The king felt some of his distress melt away as he lowered himself, with dignity, to the trunk at the end of the bed. "I'm sorry, son. Of course, you wouldn't abandon your brother."

The queen slipped out of bed and stood between Craen and Kaurl. "Why don't you fill us in on what you've learned?"

Kaurl looked at his mother's diplomatic expression. Always the peacekeeper, he thought to himself.

Kaurl sat in one of the reading chairs, his mother in the other, and filled them in on everything he'd learned.

"Who are these companions of Daen's? Do you trust them?" The king's demeanor had calmed considerably, but he was still concerned, as any father would be.

"I didn't get a chance to find out much about them before Daulr arrived with your message. We left right away, but Taulin seemed fine with them. You know he's a good judge of those who can be trusted."

The king nodded. "Yes, yes he is." He stood as a sign that the conversation was over, for now.

Kaurl kissed his mother on the cheek and bowed to his father before saying goodnight, feeling better that was still in the good graces of the king.

~~~

It didn't take long for Rhea to reach the camp she'd seen in her mind's eye. As she got closer, she could hear the men's voices echo off the trees in front of her, making it easier to find them as the light started to fade.

She slowed her pace as she left the road, stepping carefully on the dried leaves and twigs that carpeted the forest floor. When she got within a few feet of the edge of camp, she crouched down against a tree to listen.

"We stay as long as it takes. Stop complaining."

Rhea could see that the man who spoke wore a black band around his arm, but the others around the fire did not. She watched as the man with the black band set his sights on a young man sitting at the fire.

"Haurld, aren't you supposed to be patrolling?"

"Commander, Mearlin and Danbr ain't back from their patrol yet."

Ah, he's a commander, she thought to herself. Knowing her mother held the same rank, she wondered what a high-ranking officer was doing on patrol.

The commander scanned the wooded area for a sign of his men. "They should be back by now," he mumbled.

One of the others continued to talk, ignoring the commander's concerns. "I heard a rumor that the warriors attacking us aren't really Laundan warriors. There are reports out of Taulomi that they're impostors."

"You know better than to believe what you hear at the tavern," another warrior cautioned.

"It's true!" yet another commented. "They found the bodies of six of them. Their uniforms were cut open."

"That don't mean nothing," the naysayer added. "It just means someone got the best of them, and rightfully so. They've got no business coming into Sentran or Taulomi without permission."

Haurld was watching his commander, watching for him to confirm the rumors, or not. "Aren't we gonna attack back, sir? Laundan needs to be stopped, if they're really Laundan warriors."

"We don't have proof that they have attacked anyone in Sentran, but the queen has sent a message to King Craen, warning him that attacks on Sentran will not be tolerated. We're to await our orders."

"Do you hear that?" One of the men by the fire stood and faced north. "Look!" He pointed over Rhea's shoulder.

Rhea looked around the tree upon which she was leaning and didn't like what she saw. Her friends were being escorted into the camp by the two warriors that had been on patrol, the ones she'd missed.

"What do we have here?" The commander stepped closer as they dismounted. "A guardian?"

"Commander," one of the new warriors called out, as he walked Rhea's horse into the camp. "One in their group is missing."

The commander acknowledged her horse and turned to Daen. "Your name, sir."

"Daen Mallaur. These are my companions, Randell and Taulin."

One of the warriors drew his sword. "Prince Taulin of Laundan. He spies on us!"

The commander stepped forward and placed his hand on his man's arm. "Lower your sword, man. The prince isn't going to hurt anyone." He turned to Taulin. "Are you?"

Taulin shook his head slightly but didn't say anything.

The commander studied Taulin's face, trying to read his intent. "So tell me, Prince Taulin, why are Laundan warriors attacking travelers in Taulomi? Are we next? Is your father trying to start a war?"

Taulin stood still as a statue, his face expressionless as he thought about how much to tell him. "They're not Laundan warriors. I'm here investigating the attacks."

The commander was quiet for a moment, watching the prince carefully for any sign of deception. "Whether that's the truth or not, it's not my call to let you go. Until there's proof that Laundan isn't attacking Sentran, consider yourselves prisoners. Men, tie them up. Haurld secure their horses."

Crap! Now what?
Rhea needed to think. She needed to intervene, but how? She watched the warriors strip her friends of their weapons and tie their hands behind their backs before placing them in a circle near in the center of the camp. Their horses were tied with the others, on the northern edge of the camp, near where Rhea sat observing.

She watched as Sedare's reins were tied to a rope suspended between two trees. He lifted his head and snorted before nodding his head down and up again.

Haurld who tied the horses laughed. "Would you look at this one? Something has him riled."

The other warrior waved him off. "He's just spooked. He'll calm down."

Haurld wasn't convinced. He stared out into the falling darkness, trying to see what the horse sensed. Rhea watched him strain his vision, but he finally gave up. Before settling in next to the campfire, Haurld approached his commander. "Sir, what about the other rider? He could still be out there."

"Take three men and find him. The rest of you, keep watch." The commander turned and headed for his tent. He needed to write a message to the queen.

25
Attack

Rhea studied the camp activity, trying to discern the best way to reach her friends without someone running into her. She wouldn't be able to move quickly to avoid someone as she would make too much noise and be noticed. It looked like she would have to circumvent the camp and come in from the west, between the tents, as most of the activity was on the east side of the camp, near the fire.

She slowly stood, deliberate not to make a sound. She took two careful steps towards Sedare who still stood with wide eyes and ears alert. She held her hand close to his nose. "Shh. Don't give me away."

Sedare calmed his body language, comforted in the fact that Rhea had acknowledged him.

She stroked his forehead. "I'll be back." She carefully stepped to her right, towards the tents. The leaves under her feet crunched with each step. Crunch. Another step, crunch.

She had never noticed before now just how loud one's footsteps were in the woods. With each step, she stopped and checked to see if anyone had heard. She turned after the first tent and slowly worked her way to her friends, the whole effort feeling like it took forever.

She was thankful for the talking and the shuffling of the warriors' feet as they went about their business. Their movements kept the warriors from hearing her.

She squatted down next to Daen and whispered in his ear. "Now what?"

Daen cleared his throat. "Commander!" Daen waited for the commander to step from his tent before continuing.

"This is the last time you will summon me. What is it you want?"

Daen acknowledged the commander's statement with a nod. "What do you plan to do with us?"

"You'll be taken to the guard station in Cauhill. If what you say is true, you'll be released soon enough."

"May I ask when you will be taking us there?" Daen quickly asked, before the commander slipped inside his tent again.

"No! Be quiet." He stepped back into his tent.

"I'm sorry I missed the two on patrol," Rhea whispered into Daen's ear.

He shook his head. "Don't worry."

"What do you want me to do?" Rhea asked.

"Start by loosening our ropes," Daen whispered. "Randell, are you getting anything from the commander?"

Randell leaned towards Daen. "He seems honest enough."

One of the warriors stepped closer. "Stop talking!"

Daen and Randell stilled as the warrior stood over them, inches from where Rhea was crouched beside Daen. She held her breath, afraid he would hear her breathing, or worse yet, her pounding heart.

When the warrior stepped away, she proceeded with her attempt to loosen the ropes, but they were too tight. Then she realized, even if she got them loose and they got away, the warriors would come after them. No, they needed to be freed by the commander.

"I have an idea. Hang tight." She stood and moved slowly towards the commander's tent. The path was fairly clear of loose leaves as they'd been packed down by the frequent comings and goings of the commander and his men.

She moved the tent flap just enough to slip inside, hoping the subtle movement wouldn't draw any attention. The commander was sitting on a stool at a small field table, writing in a journal. She needed to get his attention but not just hand herself over. She hoped her idea would work.

Assuming apparitions weren't something he saw every day, she was going to try and shake him up, make him fear her, a little. Then, she would have his undivided attention for a moment, and hopefully, that would be long enough to make her request before he called for her capture.

Just as she was preparing herself for the confrontation she was about to have, she started to hesitate, wondering if her idea had any merit. With a silent sigh, she pressed forward as she didn't have any other ideas.

Stepping further into the tent, she called to her little helpers to repeat what she'd done in the Youngs' kitchen, when she looked like a ghost. Not knowing for sure that it worked as planned, she braced herself, her hand on the hilt of her sword, before clearing her throat to get his attention.

When he stood quickly, his eyes wide, almost falling back over his stool, she knew she had gotten his attention in the way she'd planned.

"What are …?" the commander stammered.

Rhea spoke quickly and quietly before the he could yell for help. "I need you to let my friends go. We're on an important mission."

His rapid breathing started to slow as he regained his composure. "Who ... what are you?"

Rhea held her hands to her side, palms forward, hoping he would see she meant him no harm. "Let's just say I'm from Sentran."

He pointed at her, apparently not hearing her. "But, how are you doing that?"

Rhea shook her head. "I can't tell you." She could see from the look on his face, he was finished being spooked.

His posture changed, and his hand slowly reached for his sword. "We'll see about that."

Rhea quickly raised her hand and spoke softly, yet urgently. "Commander, stop. I don't want to hurt my own people, but I will if it means protecting the realm. Now, please let my friends go."

With his hand on his sword, his expression turned puzzled. "Your people? Who are you?"

There was a voice from outside the tent. "Commander, are you all right?"

The commander spun around to face the tent flap, concerned that his man would try to enter. "Yes. Return to your post." He turned back to Rhea and glowered. "Tell me who you are or I will run you through."

Rhea needed to think fast. She hadn't planned this out very well and when one flies by the seat of their pants, one risks a few complications.
She knew who she was but would anyone else?
No. Not likely. Then she remembered what Taulin said, about her mark. "Tell me, how do you know someone is from your royal family when you've never met them?"

He thought for a moment. "Assuming someone I trusted wasn't here to introduce me and they were the real thing, they would know what to do. But it would be a very unusual situation that I wouldn't at least know of a member of the royal family."

Rhea slowly pulled her coat open. "I'm not well practiced at this but I assume Sentran's royal mark would be sufficient. Right?"

The commander didn't say anything. He was too stunned. No one knew about the mark. He wasn't even supposed to know, but the queen had entrusted him with that information when her brother had gone missing, and he had been forced to confirm that any dead body found was not him.

She dropped her coat from her left shoulder as she released the tie that held her shirt closed. She opened her shirt, just far enough, as she slowly became solid. "Do you know this mark?"

He stood silent as he stared at what shouldn't be possible.
Who was this woman? Was that truly what it looked like, what she said it was?

Rhea focused on his energy, watching the intensity of his aura fluctuate, as he tried to process what was happening. She wished she had Randell's ability to read the fluctuations. She would ask him for a lesson when time permitted.

He raised his eyes to hers as she closed her shirt and lifted her coat back onto her shoulder.

"Commander!" a voice shouted from outside the tent.

Without taking his eyes off of Rhea, he shouted, "Go away!"