Kushiel's Justice - Jacqueline Carey [227]
"It would take weeks!" I protested. "We'd lose his trail altogether.”
Adelmar shook his head. "I'm sorry.”
I sighed. "Then we'll follow him without your blessing.”
"And you'll die doing it," he said bluntly. "You don't have enough men, boy. I can keep the peace in Maarten's Crossing, and the Skaldi have no quarrel with the Yeshuites. You and your men, you're another matter. You'll be challenged before you've gone ten leagues. If you're lucky, you'll end up a slave in someone's steading. Take my advice. There may be things worth dying for, but revenge isn't one of them. Go home, find a pretty girl to warm your bed. Marry her, start anew." His mouth twisted. "A good-looking D'Angeline lad like you, I imagine you could take your pick.”
"Not quite," I said. "My lord, will you forgive me if I take a moment to convey your words to my men?”
He waved a hand, then reached for a stack of papers. "Go ahead.”
I told them, speaking in Cruithne, quick and low. Urist grunted at the bad news. "You sent a man to fetch Talorcan when you first found the trail, right?" he asked Kinadius, who nodded. "I imagine he'll bring a sizable delegation, all right.”
"But no suitable bribe," I said. A second thought struck me. "Elua! Did we leave word for him after we decided to follow the pilgrims' route?”
In the excitement of the hunt, no, we hadn't.
"It's not too late," Urist said pragmatically. "We can send word back to Zoellen town. Send word to Queen Ysandre, too, asking for bribe money." His hard gaze rested on me. "Do you reckon she'll agree, or is she too angry at you for bedding her daughter?”
I raked a hand through my hair, tense and frustrated. "No. I don't know. It's what Drustan would want. I daresay she'll put aside her anger to honor his wishes. Urist, are you suggesting we wait here and let the trail grow cold?”
Adelmar set down his papers, cocking his head and watching us.
"Not all of us." Urist shrugged. "Send a couple of the young ones to fetch Talorcan and plead with the Queen. Imriel, Kinadius …you should wait here to meet them. The old guard and I will follow the bear-witch's trail into Skaldia, see how far we get." He glanced sidelong at Brun, his fellow veteran. "Like old times, eh?" Brun grinned and nodded slowly.
I thought about Dorelei's head turned on the table, her lifeless eyes. "I can't let you do it. Not without me.”
"Why not?" Urist asked. "It's all we've ever known, lad. We're warriors, we're not afraid of a warrior's death. You're young. You've known grief, aye, but you've got a beautiful girl at home waiting for you." His gaze softened. "Don't throw your life away, lad.”
I thought about Sidonie, too. The way she had touched Urist's arm and thanked him, the way she hadn't asked me not to go. The guilt that lay between us. I loved her, I loved her so much it hurt. But I knew, for a surety, that if I let Urist and his men ride into Skaldia to face death while I waited in safety for reinforcements at Maarten's Crossing, the guilt would eat me alive. "I can't do it, Urist. It's too much. Either we all stay, or I ride with you.”
"I'm not staying," he said curtly.
"Then I'm going with you," I said.
We were deadlocked and stubborn, and we would have stayed that way a long time if Adelmar hadn't interrupted. "You seem to be quarrelling with your Alban commander," he observed in Caerdicci.
"Yes, my lord." I didn't bother explaining. "We will send for a delegation and a proper petition. But some of us will follow the magician's trail.”
He pursed his lips, picked up a stack of papers and squared them, tapping them on the side table. I was silent, watching him wrestle with an inner decision. "What if I told you there was another way to find him?" he said at length. "A better way.”
The gist of it was this: Adelmar of the Frisii knew where Berlik's pilgrims were bound in Vralia. He was a careful man and he kept careful