The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 2 Blood Honor and Dreams (49 page)

Jail watched Marrow for a moment and looked
back to her, his expression clouded with worry. “I’m afraid they
will enact their punishment today. Normally there is a delay of
several days when the guilty is a member of a high house. It
usually requires the vote of a council. This isn’t normal, however,
and Valor isn’t of a house that is favored by High Commander
Kellis.”

“Then we don’t have much time. Fetch Wisp and
Neph. Tell Sovann to keep things in line here. I’ll get my horse
and we will all go together,” Jala said and turned on her heels to
head for the stable.

“Jala, they won’t listen to you as a High
Lady. What are you planning to do?” Jail called behind her.

“Repay Valor. He saved my life and now we
will save his,” she replied. Her mind was working frantically to
form a plan. There would be five of them. That wasn’t good odds
against the assembled might of the Justicars. Then, of course,
there would be Cassia and Devron. She sincerely doubted either of
them would miss the chance to watch a rival executed.

Loud cursing echoed out from the stable as
she approached. Stepping inside she found Finn holding the tether
to his mare as she reared back from Marrow her eyes rolling. By the
way the floor was churned she had been throwing a bloody fit from
the moment Marrow entered.

“Marrow, if you don’t get the hell out of
here I’m going to skin you!” Finn roared and his grey mare backed
away from him quickly, her muscles tensed to bolt. He hastily began
to croon softly to her and held a hand out to steady her. The mare
stood quivering the indecision clear in her large brown eyes.

As you wished she is not saddled. I’m
going to wait outside now before that vein in his forehead bursts.
He really does have an impressive temper
, Marrow said, rising
from where he had been sitting and letting out a feline yawn as he
sauntered toward the door lazily.

“Did you send him in here?” Finn demanded,
his voice low but filled with irritation. She could feel his
emotions coursing through their link and felt a moment’s guilt.
Finn’s concern for Valor was almost overwhelming and made his anger
seem pale in comparison.

“I did, so you would wait for me,” she
replied as she led her black gelding from his stall. As always the
horse was steady and unconcerned with all of the commotion. She
wrapped the tether around a post and went to fetch her saddle, only
to find Finn blocking her way, his frantic mount dancing at the end
of her lead once more. He held the rope firmly with one hand but
his attention was fully on Jala. Jala raised an eyebrow at him and
started to step around him. He moved, blocking her way again, his
expression stormy.

“You aren’t going,” he said firmly. “They are
begging for a reason to arrest you and I won’t have you anywhere
near them. I will handle this.”

“We will handle this and I am going. We don’t
have time for this argument, Finn. Valor’s time is dwindling with
every word we speak. So, unless you intend to knock me out as he
did you, I suggest you move,” Jala shot back, her voice every bit
as firm as his had been. Her violet eyes locked with his green ones
and for a moment they simply stared at one another, willing the
other to back down.

“They won’t listen to you,” Finn said
finally, his voice calmer and she hastily cut him off with a raised
hand. He blinked at her in shock but she ignored his stunned
expression. Stepping around him, she calmly picked up her saddle
and carried it back to the gelding.

“I don’t intend to ask them, Finn. I’m
working the details out now but as far as I see it there are only
two ways into my district - through the portal stones and through
the main gate. I am provisioned for a siege if they push me,” she
said calmly as she placed the saddle on the black and began to
cinch it. “You are wasting time we don’t have, Finn. Now saddle
that half-trained bitch and let’s go.”

Finn blinked again at her tone and words and
nodded faintly. “You would risk a siege for Valor?” he asked
quietly as he picked his own saddle up from the dirt.

“Or you, or Wisp, or any of my friends,” she
said. “I will not simply sit by and allow something like this to
happen. I cannot fathom what Chastity did to get arrested, but I
cannot imagine it is any worse than what Cassia Avanti does on a
daily basis.”

“I really hadn’t considered that option. Do
you think we can hold them out?” Finn asked, sounding
intrigued.

“That is why I’m leaving Sovann behind. If it
comes to that, I’ll have him disable the portal stones and begin
the wards on the walls to keep the bastards from climbing. They can
drain our magic if we use it directly against them. I don’t think
they can drain wards,” she explained and leaned back waiting for
him to finish with his mare.

“I had planned to simply cut him free and
escape,” he said as he pulled the girth tight. His mare snorted and
danced away but he seemed oblivious to her antics. “That had a lot
of risk to it, though,” he added thoughtfully and picked up his
bridle.

“You think?” she asked dryly and shook her
head at him. “I plan to see Chastity safe as well. Your plan didn’t
factor her in did it?”

“Well, if I could get to her, it did. Valor
was my main priority though,” he said, a bit chagrined.

The others are approaching
, Marrow
informed her politely and she mounted motioning for Finn to do the
same.

“Jail and the rest are here, let’s go,” she
said, already turning her gelding toward the stable door.

“Command sets well on you, Jala,” Finn
commented with a smirk and mounted the skittish mare who seemed to
walk more on her hind legs than all four as she exited the
building.

Her companions watched her expectantly as she
approached and she marveled at how swiftly they had prepared. Wisp
and Neph were fully armored and the small Fae had her bow strung
across her back. A full quiver of her deadly black fletched arrows
was tied to the saddle and she looked ready for war. Jala raised an
eyebrow at the swords that Neph wore but the mage simply raised an
eyebrow at her in response, offering no explanation. She had never
seen him carry blades before, but the sight was reassuring. With
magic being limited it was nice to know that the mage had back-up
defenses. “What’s the plan?” Wisp asked, once Finn had joined
them.

“If Kellis won’t listen to reason, than we
retrieve Valor and Chastity in whatever way we can. I doubt they
have Devony there but if you see the child she is to be rescued as
well. We can’t use magic directly against them but we can use it on
the surroundings for advantage. If possible, Neph, I would like to
divide our enemies if it comes to a fight,” she said, her voice
calm despite the churning in her stomach. There was so much that
could go wrong today and the thought of losing one of her friends
in the fight made her sick. There was no other option that she
could see, though, aside from letting Chastity and Valor die, and
that simply wasn’t an option in her eyes.

Neph nodded his agreement and cocked his head
to one side watching her. “And then what? Once we have stirred the
hornet’s nest what do we do?”

“We retreat back here and you and I seal the
main gates. If it comes to that, Sovann will disable the portal. He
is working with Emily today so she can guard him while he does so.
If anyone manages to get through the portal before he can seal it,
she will make short work of them,” she explained and turned her
gelding for the gates.

“So we put ourselves under siege then,” Neph
pressed as he nudged his horse up beside hers.

“Do you have a better plan?” she asked,
hoping he would. She didn’t like the thought of sealing them into a
corner of the city with enemies on all sides.

He shook his head slowly and turned his gaze
toward the inner city. “If we do this, we will have to plan on
finding a way out of Sanctuary very soon. We can hold siege for a
while but our enemies are no fools. They will find a way in sooner
or later.”

“But where do we go once we are out?” Wisp
asked from behind them. Neph looked to her with a raised eyebrow
but it was Finn that answered.

“I’ve put thought into it. Once we are done
with today, Wisp and Valor can leave the city. I can get the two of
them out without much difficulty. They can work quietly on
restoring a bit of the land in Merro. Once they have had a week or
so at that, we work on getting out everyone that wants to
leave.”

“It might be best to send you, as well Finn.
They already have warrants for your arrest and after today they
will want you more than ever,” Jala said, quietly not liking the
thought of being parted from him at all but realizing it was for
the best.

Finn snorted in amusement. “If you think I’m
going to leave you here without me you are mad, woman. Besides you
will need me here for the contacts I have in the city.”

Jail nodded his agreement. “None of us have
the connections Finn does with the Underworld of Sanctuary, and
escaping here will require the help of the smugglers, I’m
afraid.”

“Do we even know what they were arrested for?
Chastity is from Arovan. I can’t imagine her breaking laws,” Wisp
said as they passed into the inner city. Even from the gates of the
Merrodin district they could see the crowds surrounding the Hall of
Justice.

“It’s going to be tough getting horses
through there,” Neph muttered as he surveyed the milling
people.

“Valor was arrested for killing Justicars.
Why he was fighting them to begin with, is anyone’s guess. I’m not
sure as to the charges against Chastity, however,” Jail said.

“We will find out soon enough,” Finn said as
he pushed his mare up past all of them and headed for the crowds at
a light canter. The mare was shaking her head in protest at the
crowds and began to dance sideways as they neared the people.

“Well that will clear the way unless they
wish to be trampled,” Neph said dryly. “I believe I miss his old
horse more than he does. May the bastard who killed it burn in the
Darklands.”

“It’s Valor’s doing. He is the one that found
this one for Finn,” Jala said, urging her gelding into a trot
toward the path Finn was creating. She glanced down at Marrow and
motioned toward the crowd. “Give us more room please.” The Bendazzi
paused in his steps and let out a loud roar that had people falling
back in such haste she worried some would be trampled. Without
hesitation, Neph and Wisp fell into place on either side of her and
Jail took the spot behind. Marrow coursed ahead of them snarling
and growling whenever the onlookers were too slow in moving.

Jala surveyed their surroundings cautiously
and noted that on this side of the square the majority in the crowd
seemed to be commoners. Closer to the dais in front of the Hall
however, stood ranks of armed guards in Avanti and Rivana house
colors. “Bloody hell,” she muttered. It had been too much to hope
that it would just be Justicars they had to contend with.

“Clear the way for High Lady Merrodin,” Finn
called loudly as they neared the thickest of the crowds. “Clear the
way now!” he bellowed again when the people continued to mill in
confusion. His horse began to dance in place obviously unhappy to
have so many people near her, and between that and an added roar
from Marrow the crowds backed away quickly.

Jala pressed her gelding into the vacated
space and nodded her thanks to Finn. She could see Chastity now
between two Justicars. The woman’s pale blue dress was ripped and
stained, but her expression was defiant. It took her longer to
locate Valor, but found him eventually toward the back. He was
being held up by two Justicars and from the looks of him she
doubted he could stand on his own. His head hung limply and blood
soaked his outer tunic.

“I hope some of that is the blood of those he
killed. If not, he could already be dead,” Neph muttered beside
her. She nodded her agreement and searched the dais for any others
she recognized. Cassia stood looking resplendent in a red and white
dress near High Commander Kellis and just behind her was Devron
Rivana dressed in his customary garish style. Both were maintaining
a bored expression but she could see the gleam in their eyes. They
were enjoying this immensely. There was no sign of ally houses
however and she felt her heart sink. She had hoped to spot someone
that might help them in this endeavor.

Valor are you awake
? she asked
cautiously through a mental link. The knot in her stomach relaxed a
bit at the fact that she was able to establish the link at all. If
the knight had been dead the magic would have failed.

Jala, go back home. It isn’t safe for you
here
. Valor’s response was weak but he did respond. That was
also a very good sign.

Don’t move. I’m going to try something
before we start this. Show no reaction if you can manage it
,
she said hesitantly. She wasn’t sure if it would work or not but it
was worth a try. Holding the link between them she pulled on the
healing magic and sent it toward Valor. Warmth spread down her
limbs as the magic pulled from her reserves and she felt light
headed for a passing moment. She smiled at the drain however. That
meant it was working.

What are you doing
? Valor asked in
amazement and his voice held a bit more strength.

Getting you ready to kill more Justicars.
Stay as you were for now though. Let them continue to believe you
are too weak to stand. If they won’t allow me to resolve this
peacefully, we are going to get you out of there in whatever
fashion we must
, she explained. She wasn’t sure what the
Justicars were waiting for but she was grateful for the delay.
Cutting the link between herself and Valor she pushed her horse
forward again, closer to the dais.

“Careful, don’t get yourself blocked in,”
Finn muttered as she moved past him.