Days of Air and Darkness - Katharine Kerr [115]
“She escaped,” Menw said.
“She was never there,” Shaetano growled. “Or the castle would have repelled my brother’s attack.”
“Both wrong. I saw her flying round overhead, but there was no catching her. She deserted her pack. She has no more use for them, truly, with Elessario safe in Carra’s womb and about to be born.”
The two of them goggled at him. Evandar grinned.
“I didn’t want this wretched ragtag excuse for a rebel army prowling round my borders, working malice while my back was turned. One thing at a time. I learned that from Dallandra, truly: one thing at a time.”
A few at a time, the men of the conjoined Host rode back, walking tired horses across the plain, where the dust swirled thick over the last of the rebel weapons and buried them. Far fewer warriors returned than had joined the chase; some had wandered away, others had fallen back into a shared existence, as flames will spring out of a fire when a wind rouses it, only to merge again into the general burning.
“Now what?” Shaetano said.
Evandar glanced at Menw.
“We’ve chased her from the air and trounced her pack here in the land of fire,” the lieutenant said. “In the land of earth, your pavilion stands, and our women wait for us. She’ll not stay there long. I say we look for her in the sea.”
“And I agree.” Evandar raised his horn. “Back through the forest, then. We’ll follow the silver river down to the shore.”
“I do not understand this delay.” Cadmar spoke quietly, but the tendons in his jaw bulged from the effort to keep his voice down. “Jill, I’d expected a relieving army before this. I truly did think Drwmyc would have ridden to our aid straightaway. I’ve never stinted him when he’s called upon me, and if Cengarn falls, the whole north country’s in danger.”
“We did see those two messengers approach, and your men told me they seemed to be wearing the gwerbret’s colors.”
“True spoken, and we thought they’d got away safely, too. What if we were wrong? What if they ran into a Horsekin patrol?”
“The enemy might have caught them on the road, sure enough.”
“And if they did, my allies don’t even know our enemy’s strength, do they? Ah, ye gods! If only we could send them messages, but well, that’s the worst of being sieged, isn’t it?” The gwerbret managed a rueful sort of smile. “Ah, by all the ice in all the hells!”
“Your Grace, I’ll think on it, but truly, I’m not sure what can be done.”
Jill took her leave of the gwerbret and started back to her chamber. She was planning on scrying, though not for the gwerbret of Dun Trebyc and his men—since she’d never seen them in the flesh, she couldn’t scry them out. As she was stepping out of the great hall, she nearly ran into Yraen, lounging against the wall in the sun. He straightened up and made her a bow.
“Is your lady about?” Jill said.
“She’s in the women’s hall with Lady Labanna and the others, so she gave me leave to go.”
“Well, truly, there’s no need for you to sit in front of the door like a dog or suchlike.”
“So she said. Uh, well, just now?” Yraen glanced about, almost furtively. “Well, I was just coming into the great hall, you see, and so I overheard your talk with the gwerbret, about his allies and the delay and suchlike. And well, I’ve a thought or two about that.”
“Then spit them out, if you please.”
“It’s going to sound daft.”
“I’m the best judge of that. Come along, tell me.”
“Well, the first hire that Rhodry and I ever rode together, it was about three years ago, now, but it was a feud, and we rode for a certain Lord Erddyr. He’s one of Gwerbret Drwmyc’s vassals, you see.”
“Hold a moment. Is this the hire where Rhodry had that wretched enchanted whistle?”
Yraen gaped.
“Enchanted?” he said at last.
“Well, what else could it be? Certainly plenty of strange beings thought the thing worth fighting over. You see, Rhodry told me some of this before he left.”
“Did he tell