Page 54 of Shadows of Winter

When luck blesses you, do not question it.

~ Winter Moon Priest Dazibaru

Aware of the men gaining ground as she sprinted down the tunnel, Kaylina abandoned her idea of evading them by ducking into the alcove. They were too close behind. She would have to run past the pool, along the river, and hope to reach Vlerion before they caught her.

But as she exited the tunnel, rounding the corner too quickly, she slipped on damp rock and fell. Her hip struck the walkway, and she pitched into the water. The iciness of its cold embrace shocked her system.

“Got her!” one man cried from the tunnel.

With no time to climb out, Kaylina took a deep breath, ducked under the surface, and pushed off the lumpy rock side of the pool. Her clothing and shoes dragged at her, but she swam fast anyway, staying underwater as she put yards between her and the path.

A need for air would force her up by the time she reached the middle of the pool, but neither of those men had ranged weapons. If they wanted to get her, they would have to follow her in. She might not be a fighter, but she’d grown up around the water and played with and raced other children often. She wagered she could out-swim the northern men, and if she bought enough time, Vlerion might return.

Shouts came from behind her. The water garbled their words, but the men sounded pissed. Kaylina took more strokes, the chill of the water invigorating her.

Since the light from the torches didn’t extend below the surface, she couldn’t see a thing. As fast as she was going, she prayed to Anglari, the Sea Moon god, that she wouldn’t smash into a rock.

With her lungs demanding air, Kaylina risked coming up and turned to face the tunnel. Zerek crouched there, glaring around the pool as he searched for her. Legdar had raced to the dock.

Though she wanted to suck in great gasps of air, she forced herself to breathe quietly. They hadn’t figured out where she was yet. The light from the torches didn’t stretch to the center of the pool. She treaded water silently.

“You see her?” Legdar grabbed something out of his boat. A blunderbuss.

Kaylina winced. She hadn’t considered all the weapons they were stashing. Maybe she should have angled toward the dock and hidden under it. But they could have reached her more easily there.

“No, but she can’t hold her breath forever.”

“Why don’t you swim out and get her?”

“Why don’t you? I’ve got a concussion from that damn rock she hit me with.”

“And be eaten by one of the fur sharks? That’s worse than a crack in the head.”

Kaylina wiped water out of her eyes and glanced around. She’d never heard of a fur shark, but maybe she shouldn’t have assumed the pool would be safe. The gods knew fresh-water lakes and swamps on the mainland back home were filled with alligators and turgoraks.

Near the pipe pouring water into the pool, the surface rippled, stirred by more than its flow. Was that a fin?

“There she is.” Zerek pointed at her.

Keeping her head up, Kaylina treaded backward to put more distance between her and the men. The fin or whatever it was had disappeared. Maybe she’d imagined it.

On the dock, Legdar raised the blunderbuss.

Kaylina prepared to duck below the surface, but he called out instead of firing.

“Come on, girl. We don’t need to be enemies. Come tell us what you know about the rangers, and we’ll take you back to one of our headquarters. Our leaders might have a use for you.”

Zerek looked toward the river. “You hear something?”

He jogged along the walkway toward the dock.

“No, I haven’t heard anything since those screams.” Legdar kept the blunderbuss pointed toward Kaylina as he responded.

“The other boat should have been here by now.”

“Best assume it’s not coming.” Grim-faced, Legdar called into the water again. “Come tell us what you know about the rangers. How many are down here? Why are you down here? Answer a few questions, and we’ll give you some coin or help you with your inn. We’re not rich, but we’ve got connections. And we’ll run the kingdom before long. It pays to pick the winning side.”

Something brushed Kaylina’s leg. Something large.

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