Page 69 of The Empire and the Wolf King

He dropped the body down, crouched over it, and dug through his pockets, pulling out a vessel. Then I saw him turn on a flashlight and lean over the body for a moment. It seemed as if he were writin’ something. Then he shined the flashlight down on the vessel in his other hand. He yelled, “I daena ken how tae!”

I yelled, “I will do it!”

He jogged tae me, and I passed him Kaitlyn. He passed me the flashlight, sayin’, “Ma, ye okay, Ma?”

She nodded.

I raced over tae Asgall’s lifeless body, yellin’ over m’shoulder, “Get somewhere safe!” I looked down on Asgall. I had barely known him, yet he had caused so much pain and suffering, and had come close tae almost defeatin’ us.

Here he was diminished, dead, defeated, with the words on his shirt:

Archibald

Killed

Asgall

June 18, 1775

My son had avenged us.

Using the flashlight beam I looked over the vessel numbers — the code was right for the landing spot at Riaghalbane. The message would be received.

I put the vessel in the dead man’s hands and gave them a twist and leapt away, I froze, glancing back tae see if it worked.

It did. The body seized, vibrated, I scrambled away as a furious wind swept around the field, a blast hit me from behind, throwing me tae the ground. I wrapped my arms over my head and held tight while I was buffeted and blustered and the wind beat the hell out of me.

As soon as it died down enough tae get tae my hands and knees, I lumbered up and crawled. Then I got tae my feet and ran, followin’ Archibald who had fled tae the stables at the other end of the field.

As I ran up I said, breathlessly, “Ye hae horses?”

Archibald said, “Aye, two!”

The stable boy looked verra frightened by the storm and our bloody clothes and the pallor of Kaitlyn’s face and our frantic conversation. Archibald passed her tae me and began tae unhitch two horses from a post.

I asked, “Are ye still with me, mo reul-iuil? We are goin’ tae get ye tae a physician.”

Archibald said, “There is one on the opposite side of town and I hae a modern first-aid kit with me.”

“Good!”

He said, “Ma, will ye hold on?” He drew one of the horses in front of me. “We’ll get ye tae the physician and use the kit on ye.”

She nodded weakly. “That’s good, we can make it.”

I said, “Mo reul-iuil, is that the royal we? Because I ken I can make it, tis ye that I am worried on.”

“I’ll make it, I promise, it’s… it’s fine.” She leaned away and weakly retched on the grass.

Archibald said, “Nae, Ma, ye canna, ye hae tae be well.”

“I am, tis just a nervous stomach, the excitement…”

Archibald drew over a second horse who looked as if he were a descendant of Sunny. I was loadin’ Kaitlyn ontae the smaller horse when Archibald’s horse nudged m’shoulder. “Och, is this Stormy?”

“Aye, Grandmother gave him tae me from yer stables..”

“Where’s Mario?”

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