The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 3 From the Ashes (58 page)

“I really hate that damned veil,” Valor
muttered in a perfect echo of her father’s earlier words.

“Pretty pointless isn’t it,” Badger agreed
with a firm nod. “Only the damned spooks would be stupid enough to
marry a beautiful woman and cover her up from head to toe,” he
added and then seemed to realize Ash rode on the other side of him.
Coughing lightly Badger grinned sheepishly and shrugged toward Ash.
“Present company excluded from that remark of course.”

“No insult taken. I find the veil ridiculous
as well. The only reason Jexon forces her to wear it is to lower
her self-esteem and irritate her friends,” Ash said calmly.

Tipton’s Warehouse on Saltshore Avenue.
That is the answer I’m getting from just about everyone I scan on
the biggest merchant. If I’m not mistaken, though, I think that is
the one Neph threatened
, Jail informed her through a link, and
she immediately turned her horse toward the dock district. If she
was lucky she might manage to reach the warehouse before Jexon
realized she was in the city.

Fortune, it seemed, still showed her a bit of
favor and there was no sign of her husband or any of his officers
on their way to the merchant. Pulling her horse to a stop, Jala
dismounted in front of the shabby warehouse and looked up at it
with doubt. The paint was peeling from the walls and most of the
boards looked to be rotting. With a sigh, she tossed her reins to
her father and headed up the rickety stairs to the door. She paused
before opening the door to read the badly faded black lettering
that proclaimed the place as

ip on’s Merca ile

Had Jail not insisted that this was the
place, she wouldn’t have believed it was still in business, by the
looks of it. With a shrug back to her friends she opened the door
and stepped into the dimly lit interior of the shop.

A square built man of middle years sat behind
the counter with ledger books spread out before him. He looked up
sharply at the sound of the door and his face transformed from grim
concentration to a smile in a breath. “Ahh, Lady. Welcome,” he said
in an overly chipper voice, though it was obvious from the look in
his eyes that he wasn’t sure what to think of her garb.

“Good afternoon,” Jala began as she slowly
walked toward the counter, her eyes roving over the stacks of rope
and various other supplies that lined the walls. By the manner of
goods he carried it was clear that Tipton was more accustomed to
provisioning ships than armies, but there was a possibility that he
might be able to handle her order.

“Local girl, eh? I wasn’t sure with all of
that covering you, but that’s definitely a Greenwild accent,”
Tipton said with a grin, his eyes locked on the fine weave of her
veil. Silk was rare in the Greenwild and any who could afford it
were wealthier than most in Brannaford.

“Actually Merro, though I was raised near
here,” Jala said quietly and she watched the man’s expression
change at once.

“You tell that bastard Neph that I will have
no trade with Merro. I don’t give a rats ass who they got playing
High Lady down there I’m not buying it and I won’t be selling
nothing to anyone from there. Figures he would try to send a local
girl in here hoping he could get a better deal. After the way that
bastard acted the last time he was here I woulda thought he would
have had more sense than to come back.” The volume of his voice
rose with each word in his tirade and Jala was nearly covering her
ears by the time he finished.

Slowly, Jala reached up and pulled her veil
free, revealing her face and hair. With her other free hand she
unclasped the pin that was holding her curls in place and shook her
head letting them fall free before locking her gaze once more on
the merchant. “Actually, I am High Lady Merrodin,” Jala said
softly, allowing the man to stare blankly at her face and eyes.
There was no mistaking her for anything other than Elder Blood and
she knew it. Her days in Sanctuary had taught her that much. “I
apologize for any offense that Neph may have given in my absence.
He is Delvay and they are different from us in their manners.”

The man was still staring at her, his
expression caught somewhere between shock and anger. Slowly he
nodded, though what he meant by the nod she couldn’t guess. It was
possible that he was simply agreeing that Neph was rude.

“I have an army outside of Brannaford’s
walls. I’m sure you have heard rumor of it,” Jala said as the
silence stretched between them. The man nodded once more his
expression still one of utter bewilderment. “Our supply ship has
been delayed and I’m in need of food and medicinal provisions for
my soldiers. I’ve been told that you are the one to speak to about
such orders.”

“I usually supply ships, but I might be able
to handle enough to last you for a while if the price is right,”
Tipton said cautiously his interest returning again.

Jala nodded and exhaled slowly. “My finances
are in Sanctuary’s bank, actually. I can offer a promissory note
with my signet upon it, but I cannot offer hard coin,” she
explained in a quieter voice. This was the difficult part. In most
other cities they would have had a bank or a money changer to
handle such things, but Brannaford wasn’t large enough for such
things.

“You expect me to hand over supplies enough
for an army for nothing more than a piece of paper with your mark
on it?” Tipton demanded, the volume of his voice rising once
more.

“I had hoped you would be willing to accept a
note of credit for the supplies. The gold is there, Sir. You simply
have to cash it in. I’m sure that the short trip to Sanctuary would
be more than worth the gold you will charge me for supplies,” Jala
returned in what she hoped was a charming voice.

“Sanctuary is held by rebels right now, or
had you forgotten that. I’ll not do business for paper, lady.
Either bring me coin or find some other fool to deal with,” Tipton
declared loudly as he crossed his arms over his chest.

The sound of the door rattling open drew both
of their attention. Valor stepped through the door silently and
closed it behind him before crossing the room to the counter. With
a faint nod to Jala he dropped his bridle down heavily on the
counter and looked up to meet Tipton’s eyes. “Those are real
sapphires and that is truly a golden bit. Give the lady what she
wants and be grateful she offered to buy it rather than simply
taking it with her army,” Valor said quietly.

“Yes sir,” Tipton agreed hastily with greed
lighting his eyes. Quickly he snatched the bridle from the counter
before Valor could change his mind and looked to Jala. “Food you
say and Medicines. Of course. Give me but a few moments to check my
inventory and I’ll bring you a list of what is available.” He
nodded to them both again and swiftly disappeared through another
door into the warehouse itself.

Jala watched him go and turned her eyes back
to Valor. “You didn’t have to do that, Val, but thank you,” she
said softly.

Valor nodded and smiled faintly at her as he
leaned back against the rickety counter. “I was getting sick of the
golden bit jokes anyway. You owe me another bridle though,” he
replied his eyes tracing across her face.

“I have missed you, Val,” Jala admitted
quietly, then cursed herself for an idiot when he looked away the
moment the words were out of her mouth. “I mean I missed everyone
of course, but I was so used to you always being there beside me,”
she added, trying desperately to salvage the situation and failing
miserably.

Valor’s mouth opened and then closed again
and he slumped farther back against the counter. Raising one hand
to his face he rubbed at his eyes and nodded slowly to her. “Missed
you too, Jala,” he said at last in a voice that was barely above a
whisper. She could tell there was more that he wanted to say, but
he had apparently thought better of it.

The door opened once more and Ash leaned
inside long enough to catch Jala’s eye. “Jexon is riding this way
and he doesn’t look happy,” he warned her.

“Shit,” Jala hissed as panic seized her.
Quickly she twisted her hair back into a semblance of order and
clipped it back into place before frantically tugging the veil back
on. Moving swiftly to the dirty glass of the window she did her
best to use her smudged reflection to straighten her dress and
ensure that the veil was on straight.

“That was fear,” Valor said quietly behind
her.

Turning back, Jala shook her head slightly.
“I gave him my word, Valor. He expects me to wear the veil,” she
said in a voice that was far calmer than she felt. In truth, her
heart was hammering so hard in her chest she was amazed Valor
couldn’t hear it.

“There was a time that you never would have
lied to me,” Valor said as he pushed off the counter and stood
straight.

“That wasn’t a lie, Valor,” Jala
objected.

“It wasn’t the truth either, Jala,” Valor
returned as Tipton came bustling through the door once more waving
papers in his hand.

“This is everything in the warehouse. Now if
you will just sit with me we can mark off what you need and get it
packed up for you,” Tipton began apparently oblivious to the
tension in the room.

“If it’s edible or medicinal we will take it.
I’ll send my men to fetch it,” Valor said as he turned and stalked
from the store.

“What?” Tipton fairly yelped his eyes locked
on Valor’s back as the door slammed shut behind him.

Jala watched the dust falling from the
ceiling from the force of the door and glanced back at the
merchant. “I don’t want to argue with him. Do you?” she said
quietly.

Tipton shook his head slowly, his eyes still
on the door then looked down at his list sadly. “Are you sure that
you have enough wagons to haul this much?” he asked with a note of
hope in his voice.

“If we don’t, I’d find more if I were you,”
Jala said quietly, her attention focused once more on the window
and the steadily approaching form of her husband. Ash was right. He
did look angry, though she couldn’t begin to guess why. By all
rights he should be pleased that she had managed to secure
supplies. Without her intervention they would have had no choice
but to return to Merro.

“The scouts say they aren’t more than two
days off,” Badger spoke loudly enough for everyone in their small
group to hear the words clearly. Jala glanced over at him and
nodded faintly. She wasn’t sure if he had been speaking to her, or
Wisp and Sovann who rode just behind them.

“My archers are ready and fully equipped,
thanks to Sovann,” Wisp said with a quick look to Jala to ensure
she had caught the full meaning of her words.

Jala nodded and bowed her head to Sovann.
“Thank you for working as hard as I’m sure you had to,” she said as
she straightened in her saddle once more and pulled the end of her
reins from Legacy’s grasp. “We don’t eat leather,” she said softly
as she leaned forward to kiss her son on the top of his head.

“Mothers are so bossy, eh kiddo,” Badger said
with a grin and winked at his grandson.

“You didn’t let me eat leather when I was a
child,” Jala pointed out calmly as she folded the reins back once
more.

“Actually that’s what you teethed on,” Badger
returned.

“What?” Jala demanded her head whipping back
around to face him.

Chuckling softly, Badger nodded and pointed
right at her. “And that was the exact tone of voice your mother
used every time she caught you chewing on it,” he said with a wide
grin.

We have issues, Jala. One of our scouts
just returned riding like demons were after him
, Jail said
quietly in her mind. None of her other companions stomach riding in
the front ranks for long with Jexon, but Jail had taken to it
daily. He kept a very close eye on her husband and was quick to
inform her of anything interesting that he heard or saw.

What is it
?
Jala
asked as she
slowed her horse allowing the others to ride ahead. After weeks of
travel the others had become accustomed to her odd behavior and no
longer even bothered to glance her way when she stopped for no
apparent reason.

The thundering of hooves from behind her drew
her attention and she watched a company of the Arovan knights ride
by, led by Valor himself. Apparently they had gotten word about the
scout as well.

The Avanti, from the looks of things.
Either our earlier scout was very wrong or they’ve used magic to
get the jump on us
, Jail relayed quickly.

Fight coming
? Marrow asked, his yellow
eyes still watching the disappearing knights.

“It would seem so,” Jala said as she kicked
her horse to catch up with her friends once more. Badger looked
over at her as she slowed her horse beside him and raised an
eyebrow as she handed him Legacy. “Take him to mother, please,” she
said quickly, then turned to Wisp. “I want a squad of your
specially equipped archers guarding my family as well as no less
than six of the knights. Make sure they are people we can trust,
Wisp.”