Mistress of the Night - Don Bassingthwaite [84]
Feena stared at him-and raised her eyes to Selune's crescent.
"Moonmaiden's grace," she whispered, "aren't we just the best people to give each other advice?" She smiled and sighed, "Thank you, Keph." She picked up the wine bottle and offered it to him. "How about a toast? To the two most gullible fools in Yhaunn."
"Not so gullible anymore," Keph said. "And never again in Yhaunn."
He reached for the bottle-
–and let it slip through his fingers to tumble onto the ground.
"Listen!" he gasped.
Feena heard it too: a wild cascade of hooves in the night. Someone was riding hard and fast along the Ordulin road. A sudden foreboding struck her. She grabbed the glowing rock and willed the magic to fade. Darkness wrapped around them. Keph ran for his horse and Feena scrambled for the crest of the hill and a better view. Staying low, she scanned the road's length.
A lone rider moved in a broad patch of bright moonlight, galloping west from Yhaunn like a madman. Or a madwoman, Feena thought. As the rider drew closer, Feena slid down from the hilltop. Keph was already mounted, his overstuffed saddlebags abandoned.
"Is it the Sharrans?" he gasped.
"No," said Feena. "The rider travels in moonlight. It's one of my people."
"What do you want to do?"
The hoofbeats were even closer.
"Wait," she said. "We'll face her. I think I know who it is. If she finds us, then she deserves to."
Out on the road, the rider slowed then stopped. The horse whinnied in alarm as its rider pulled hard on the reins, wheeling the animal around and back to a narrow gap in the hedgerow. Heels kicked into the horse's side and sent it cantering across a field of swaying grain toward the hill.
"Feena!" shouted Julith. "Feena, where are you? I know you're close!"
Feena stepped forward and called, "Here!"
Julith spun her horse around, then slid out of the saddle and ran toward her.
"Feena! Moonmaiden's grace, Feena-thank Selune I found you."
Her hair was wild, blown and tangled by her ride. She spread her arms. Feena hesitated, then opened her arms to accept the young priestess's embrace.
"I'm sorry, Julith," she sighed. "So much happened. There was too much to say. I just couldn't stay in Yhaunn any-"
Julith stiffened, staring up. "Who-?" she gasped. Feena twisted her head to see Keph looming over them on his horse.
"Keph Thingoleir," Feena said. "That's another story." She ran a hand over Julith's flushed, wind-burned face. "What are you doing out here, Julith? Why come after me?"
"To warn you." Julith hugged Feena then pushed her away. "We found Jhezzail. Mifano and Velsinore are coming after you and they're bringing half of Moonshadow Hall with them."
Feena's eyes went wide. "What are you talking about?"
"They mean to take you back by force, Feena. They think your attack on Mother Dhauna was deliberate."
"But you don't," Feena said. The realization felt like a weight lifted from her.
"I know you would never do something like that of your own free will," Julith said as she dug into a satchel that she wore slung at her side. "They're going to be an hour or so behind me. The only reason I managed to get out ahead of them is because they were arguing over the best magic to use to find you. They'll be working together by now and on your-trail."
"How did you manage to find me, then?" Feena asked.
"Unlike Velsinore and Mifano," the younger priestess said with a smile, "I know you, Feena. I knew that if you were running, you'd be heading back to Arch Wood. I just rode in the right direction, and while I rode, I prayed to Selune to guide me. And she answered my prayer."
"I-" Feena pressed her lips together, then exhaled slowly. "Thank you," she said.
"Don't thank me just yet," said Julith. She pulled out a gray bundle tied up with a leather strap. "This is how you carry your clothes while you're in wolf form, right?" Feena blinked and nodded. Julith breathed a sigh of relief. "Good." She thrust the bundle at her. "That's a robe. Take off your clothes, change into