Dragons of the Valley - Donita K. Paul [99]
“Really?” Bealomondore stroked his chin. “From my position this morning and yesterday and …” He looked around at the battered tents, the men sleeping on the ground in the middle of the day, and the women who washed and fed the army. They all looked ragged and incapable of enduring much more. “And from right here, right now, everything looks dismal and bleak. I see nothing brighter in the future. Another day of fighting. Another day of death. People dying, the land scorched. I hate this.”
Paladin didn’t answer, but Bealomondore’s glance at his face told him how the young ruler felt. Prince Jayrus may have ruled over a peaceful principality of kimens and dragons, but he’d been tutored by a genius. Bealomondore suspected the man could offer advice that would shorten the days of conflict. King Yellat scorned the very man who could help him most.
Once inside the tent, Paladin went immediately to Tipper’s side. Bealomondore checked on his men who were out of commission and then settled in the spot where he had slept.
He watched the quiet interchange between his princess and her prince. How did he know that Paladin had answers for this awful situation? He knew because Paladin relied on Wulder.
Darkness hid the marauders, but Sir Beccaroon had located four by their scent and breathing. Two mariones and two emerlindians.
He’d left Lady Peg and Verrin Schope in the Amber Palace in Ragar. He expected them to venture out of the city, on their way to aid the army, in a day or two. Staying another night indoors did not appeal to him. But he wished he had Verrin Schope with him now. The wizard could enter a man’s mind and discern his objectives.
Beccaroon had no idea why the four men waited in the bushes while two men sat by a campfire. The four men hidden had eaten first, then taken blankets to their hiding spots. Blankets and weapons. And they didn’t sleep. They guarded. The two men in the open talked, and their accents proved them to be Baardackians. The scenario spelled trouble of some sort.
A trill like a bellringer bird signaled a message of some kind. The two men nodded to one another and continued their charade of camaraderie.
“Yo, the camp.” A voice came from the road nearby. “May I enter?”
“Certainly,” said one of the men. He pulled a knife from his belt. “Show your face. Are you friend or foe?”
A well-dressed traveler stepped into the yellow light of the fire. His shambling walk revealed his age, and he led a horse by its reins. An instrument case hung across his back by a fancy strap that made a patterned red sash over the man’s chest. “It isn’t a good time to be camping alone, and I thought I might implore you to allow me to stay.”
“We’re Baardackians, but we’re not part of this war,” said the man who held his knife out of sight behind his thigh. “In fact, we’re dodging their army as well. We don’t want to be conscripted into fighting for our king. My name’s Ephen, and this is my brother, Avid.”
Avid nodded. He still sat and looked relaxed, but Beccaroon didn’t trust him. Avid removed his cloth hat and scratched fingers through his thick blond hair.
“Yeah,” said Avid, “King Odidoddex wants to rule the world, but he gives you no reason to love him. Taxes, commandeering, conscription, and mockery of justice. He’s got no one to say, ‘Long live the king,’ where we come from.” He reached for a pot. “Do you want some soup?”
“I don’t mind if I do.” The stranger came forward. “I was supposed to reach my destination in time for a banquet, but my horse is lame, and we’ve been walking for over an hour.”
“You’re heading to the capital?”
“No, the other way. I’m a minstrel, and I was to entertain at Sir Inger’s mansion. My name is Thur the Third Bard of Themis.”
Ephen laughed out loud. “Our treat. Some entertainment for providing your meal and safety through the night! Eat up.”
“Boscamon favors us,” said Avid. “It’s just like the trickster to provide the stories we need to feel at home in this land. You’ll sing us a tune or two of history. We don’t know many of your Chiril ballads. Since we may end up living