DragonKnight - Donita K. Paul [11]
“How could you do that?”
Granny Kye carried a pot of tea to the table. “We’ll talk of that as we eat. Sit, children.”
After Granny asked Wulder’s blessing on their food and fellowship, they passed around the simple fare. Heavy crockery served as their dinnerware. The bowl from which the minneken ate looked like an acorn cap. Her tin drinking cup had no handle. Miniscule eating utensils were also fashioned out of tin.
The tea in Bardon’s mug tasted spicy. The dark brew warmed his throat and took the edge off his trepidation concerning these women. He bit into a chunk of bread and savored the sweet, nutty taste. His appetite awakened, and for a few minutes, he concentrated on enjoying the food.
He noticed the silence around the table. He rarely ate alone and expected chatter during the meal. In the palace dining hall, rapid social prattle would have accompanied each repast. Bardon would answer appropriately but allow those more skilled in social graces to carry the conversation. When out on expeditions, the men swapped stories. Bardon listened well.
Shifting uncomfortably, he wondered if he should initiate a conversation. He wiped his mouth with the napkin provided. “So, how long have you been staying in the mountains?”
“We spent the winter here,” said N’Rae.
“Alone?”
“Grandmother is never alone for long. We had visitors every week. Sometimes twice in one week. They came through the gateway.”
“Sir Dar didn’t mention a gateway.”
“It’s in the cellar. Have you ever been through a gateway? I thought I would suffocate.”
Bardon thought Sir Dar had left out several important details about this little cabin getaway. Perhaps one of them was the presence of the ladies. He practiced his court calm and answered civilly.
“Yes, I have. It’s uncomfortable but an expedient way to travel across the continent.” Bardon slowly ate the rest of his fish, then put down his fork. “I think it’s time you ladies tell me what service you require of me.”
“An escort to the Northern Reach,” stated Granny Kye.
“We’re going to rescue my father,” said N’Rae.
Oh, is that all? Bardon couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of his thoughts. And what outrageous ideas does this little minneken have? The squire leveled his eye upon the smallest member of their party.
Mistress Seeno solemnly returned his gaze. “I have been charged to be N’Rae’s protector.”
His training in diplomacy had, indeed, been effective. He didn’t sputter the absurdity of a three-inch-tall, rodentlike lady being anyone’s protector. He also managed to stifle an immediate objection to a journey starting at the southernmost region of Amara and proceeding past the northern border into a barren, sparsely populated land. Instead, he posed a question, hoping for a rational answer.
“Who is your father?” he asked N’Rae. “What are we rescuing him from?”
“My father is Sir Jilles. Wizard Risto holds him captive.”
“Risto is dead.”
N’Rae squirmed in her seat. “Well, yes. We had heard that. But the stronghold is now under the possession of Crim Cropper and Burner Stox. I guess I should have said that they now hold him captive. But he was first taken prisoner by Risto.”
Bardon crossed his arms over his chest. If Sir Jilles’s capture is common knowledge, why hasn’t someone else made an effort to penetrate this stronghold and bring out the prisoner? “Why have you chosen this time to begin the quest?”
Granny Kye poured more tea into each mug. “The knights have been under Risto’s spell for many years. At the end of the appointed time, the spell must be renewed, or they will die. Risto is dead, as you pointed out. However, the spell remains intact until the Wizards’ Plume blazes across the heavens and passes beneath the Eye of the North.”
Bardon recalled the beautiful new addition he had seen in the sky only the night before. “This Wizards’ Plume wouldn’t be a comet rising from the southwest, would it?”
“Yes, indeed,” Granny Kye smiled at him. “You’ve seen it?”
Bardon managed a polite smile in return. “Yes, I have.” So much for a harbinger of peace and contentment.
Granny Kye offered tea to Mistress