Page 34 of Weaving Winter

“I heard about Bran,” Quen said before we could say a word. “Several of the men are looking into it.”

“First, that man who joined the Lorani about a month ago—who is he? Could he be a spy?” Fenling motioned for him to sit on the bed and he gratefully sank down on the mattress.

“You mean Gutan?” Quen’s expression went from curious to concerned. “What makes you think so?”

Fenling motioned for Tonyah to tell Quen what she’d told us.

“Crumbs on a bed. You could be right about that. He’s a tight one with information about himself. I didn’t feel comfortable with him when he joined us, and that comfort level never grew. I kept waiting for something to happen.” Quen shook his head. “Then again, we had several new recruits. I’ll look into it. All right, what I see: we need to get the Lorani out into the wilds, without any of the new members knowing. We need to rescue Bran, and we need to protect both of you from the prince. You must get out of the gates and ride till you reach the forest.”

“I think I know where you can stay if you want protection—at least for a day,” Sparrow broke in. “Pardon me, Mistress, but I might be able to help.”

“Where?” Fenling asked.

“There’s an old witch woman who lives just inside the northern treeline to Bramble Fel Forest. She helped my mother get pregnant with me, and she helped again when my father hurt himself. I think she’s some relative of mine, but my parents died before I could ask them about it. I’ve lived inside the castle walls most of my life, but my mother told me about her, a little.”

“What’s her name and do you know the path to her house?” Quen asked.

Sparrow nodded. “I do. And her name is Giselda. She belongs to the People of the Winds.”

“We can make for her house,” Fenling said. “Quen, do you really think you can get the Lorani out safely?”

“I think so. If asked, I can lie and say that we expect Bran to join us later, that we thought he had business with his brother, but we had to get back on the road in order to make our usual camping spot before the winter gets any worse.” Quen frowned, shaking his head. “The prince has lost his way. The locals are grumbling a lot. And we were well-allied with several other nations before he came to power. He’s destroyed so many of those contacts and commitments.”

“We’ll ride out at dark. I hope we can manage without being caught,” Fenling said.

Quen gave me a thoughtful look. “I owe you my life. The two of you get out of here. I’ll muster the Lorani and we’ll meet you in the woods. We’ll figure out a way to rescue Bran and smuggle him out.”

“Should we make for this Giselda’s house, then?” Fenling asked.

“I guarantee she’ll welcome you in,” Sparrow said.

“All right,” I said. “We have to go somewhere. And it’s cold out there.”

“Then as soon as twilight hits, we’ll sneak out. Quen, you should get back—be sure you’re not followed, whatever you do.” Fenling sighed. “I hate this, but we don’t have a choice.”

“I’m worried about one other thing,” I said. “What if they do trace me back to Renmark and Goriman?” Both paths—the prince or the sheriff—promised to be a bad end for me.

“I wouldn’t worry about that,” Fenling said. “The prince wants you for himself.”

“Either way, I’ll get moving,” Quen said. “We’ll meet you at the witch’s house in a day or two. Stay there for three days, and if we don’t come by then, begin working your way south.”

“I just wish we could free Bran before we leave,” Fenling said.

I placed my hand on her shoulder. “I can go alone, but I think he’s right. If they arrested Bran, they’ll come after you. You know I’m right. The princess may be pissed at my presence, but I only represent a threat to her bedchamber. You…you’re a threat to both her and the prince’s very way of life. If they’re worried about Bran, they’re worried about you, too.”

She sighed, then nodded. “You’re right. What I did this morning—walking out on the princess—will be just the excuse they need. All right, we leave tonight. Quen, don’t let us down. Please.”

“I’ll do my best.” He turned to me. “You, take care of yourself. I will do everything I can to repay you for what you did for me.”

And with that, our path was set.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Come dusk, Tonyah led us out through a secret entrance in the castle wall, which was hidden by evergreen bushes that never lost their needles. It was snowing again, for which I was grateful. The snow would cover our tracks at the rate it was coming down. Fenling took the lead, next to Sparrow, while I followed with Tonyah. Sparrow had managed to sneak our horses out of the stables and they were waiting for us near the castle wall. I gave Yaran a quick hug, then swung up on his back.

As we silently headed down the rocky path of the valley that surrounded Eleago, the forest loomed ahead, a dark silhouette against the silver sky. There was an eerie green glow surrounding the trees, and it flared against the backdrop of night. I kept glancing over my shoulder, but I could neither hear nor see anyone following us. That didn’t mean that no-one was hunting us. But, at least, if there was someone, they weren’t near enough to worry about.

We stayed silent, keeping close enough so that we didn’t lose our way. Fenling had a feel for the area, but the trail was rocky and we had to slow down as we came into a large patch of fist-sized stones. The last thing we needed to do was to hobble one of our horses.

---