Master of Chains - Jess Lebow [13]
Liam carried Samira across the room and placed her on the bed. She clung to his neck, continuing to sob.
His mother grabbed him by the arm. "Liam, answer me. What happened?"
Liam disentangled himself from his brother's widow and turned to look down on his aging mother. He remembered what she had looked like when he was a child. Her curly locks had been a beautiful auburn. Her skin had been smooth and tan. Now, though, her bushel of hair was a salt-and-pepper gray, and her skin had bunched up in folds and wrinkles, transforming into a soft, pale whiteness.
"Liam." She shook him. "Liam. What's wrong with you?"
Liam looked her in the eyes. The same sadness that had consumed him upon seeing Samira at the door welled up again.
"Ryder's gone."
"I know that," she said, miffed. "But when is he going to be back?"
Liam put his arms around her. "He's not coming back, mother. Ryder is dead."
"What? Dead?" His mother shook her head. "What are you talking about? He can't be dead. Where is he?" She squeezed his arm tighter. "Stop fooling around and tell me what's going on here."
Liam took a deep breath. "Ryder and I ambushed a carriage today… a carriage from Zerith Hold." Liam stuttered a bit, not really wanting to recount the story. He already knew his mother's reaction. "It was… it was one of Lord Purdun's carriages. We were only after a letter, a treaty that was to be signed by High Watcher Laxaella Bronshield, the Baroness of Tanistan. But the carriage was a setup. We were attacked by more than a dozen of Purdun's elite guards."
"But why?" His mother held her hands to her face.
"Ryder and I are… were part of the local resistance."
His mother let go of his arms. "The Crimson Awl? All those stories about bandits robbing Lord Purdun's coaches and mercenaries roaming around attacking his guardsmen… that was you? Liam, why?"
"Because we had to," said Liam. "Lord Purdun is an evil, evil man. He takes our crops, taxes our livelihoods, and imposes unfair laws." Liam had endured arguments with his mother on the topic before. They had never seen eye to eye. "But more importantly, he was in the process of putting together a treaty that could have ruined everything we've worked for, perhaps irrevocably." Liam took a breath, holding up his hand to keep his place, making sure his mother didn't butt in, as she was wont to do.
"The Awl is not a large organization," he continued. "We are all farmers or craftsmen. We don't have the means to fight a large-scale war. We've made progress against Baron Purdun and his guardsmen. Their numbers dwindle, and they have trouble recruiting new members. The people of Ahlarkham believe in what we are fighting for, and they refuse to help Purdun keep us down. But if Tanistan sent men as well, all of the work we have done would be lost. All our sacrifices would have been in vain."
"And what about Ryder's sacrifice? Did he know about all of this?" his mother demanded.
Liam nodded. "Ryder was our leader. The organizer. He planned most of the raids, and I helped him."
His mother suddenly got angry. "What has Lord Purdun ever done to you?" She hit him across the chest. "You and your foolish notions of right and wrong. How many times has your father told you to keep your nose out of the baron's business? Now look at what you've gone and done. You've gotten your brother killed, haven't you? And we'll never get him back." She began to cry. "This is all your fault, Liam. All your fault."
"No it's not, Angeline."
Liam turned around to see Samira sitting up on the bed. Her eyes were wet with tears, but some of the color had returned to her cheeks.
"Ryder knew what he was getting himself into." Samira stood up and placed her hand on Liam's shoulder, standing beside him in defense. "He knew the risks just as well as Liam did."
"How can you say that, Samira?" said the matriarch through her sobs. "Your husband is dead."
"I know that, Angeline."
"Do you not grieve?"
Samira wiped the tears from her eyes, the pain on her face turning visibly to anger. "How dare you say that to