Benjamin Ashwood (41 page)

“Strange,”
replied the voice.  It sounded like silk whispering over steel.  “They didn’t
have scouts out so why a rear guard?  Regardless, we must move quickly for The
City now.  Brons, send a runner to alert the Sanctuary we’re coming.  And let
them know someone got away.  Whoever it is they probably aren’t stupid enough
to return to The City, but if they do and they start talking...  Well, that
will be handled by the Mages.”  The voice trailed off ominously.

“Should
we dispose of the bodies sir?”

“No,
there isn’t time for that now.  We must move faster than planned.  It makes me
nervous this person wasn’t part of the column.  I don’t like not knowing who it
was.  If somehow they understand what they just saw, they could alert the
girl.  Without Reinhold in the way, Gulli can take our gold to lock up the arms
supply from Venmoor then cut off Issen and the rest of the Alliance.  But Lord
Gregor is too hard headed to break just because of that, we need his daughter.”

Damnit. 
Damnit.  It ran through Ben’s head over and over as he followed behind the
Coalition forces.  He had stayed in hiding while they gathered up and started
marching.  Now he was as close behind them as he dared.  He had to get to The City
and warn Amelie before they got there.

He
knew he could pass them in the night and one person could move faster than a
party of hundreds.  His biggest concern was how to contact Amelie and Meghan
once he made it to The City.  Lord Jason had mentioned sending a runner to The
Sanctuary so they must be in cahoots.  The Sanctuary was at Argren’s Conclave
but apparently that didn’t mean much to them.  Being involved in a kidnap plot
for one of their own members, it was unexpected but not surprising given what
he’d been finding out over the last few months.

The
slaughter of Reinhold’s men weighed on him also.  But not as much as he thought
it would have.  It was a tragedy and he couldn’t help but think of the men he’d
gotten to know like Henrick and their families, but they were the ones who had
marched and they had intended to engage Gulli.  None of Reinhold’s men that Ben
met were unwilling to do violence and many of them were eager.  Live by the
sword and die by the sword he thought.

That
evening brought his first chance to get around the Coalition men and nearly got
him caught.  As the sun set, he started moving more cautiously but not enough
so.  It was only a flick of light on top of a nearby hill that alerted him to a
sentinel.  These men were professional soldiers behind enemy lines.  They had
sentinels stationed around the camp and were eschewing fires or other signs
that would give them away.  The lone sentinel lit a pipe just in time for Ben
to see him before drawing too close.

He
looped wide into the countryside and walked well clear of the boundaries of the
Coalition camp.  It cost him a bell to get by, but caution ruled over speed.

Once
in the clear, Ben set a fast ground covering pace.  Fortunately, the moon was
only a few days away from full so light was not a problem and the open road was
easy to navigate for a single person.  The solo hike through the darkness
reminded him of when he left Farview.  The sense of dangerous excitement he
felt that night wasn’t too far different from what he felt now.

Two
nights of long marches and cold camps later he made it back to The City in the
afternoon.  He shaved a day off the time it had taken to get to Arrath with
Reinhold’s men.  Whatever he was going to do had to be finished by morning.  After
that, the Coalition men may be there.  Jason would push his troops hard and
once they made it to The Sanctuary, there would be nothing Ben could do.

He
thought about going straight to the warehouse to enlist the help of Renfro and
their men but attacking the Mages would be futile and likely a death sentence
for anyone he spoke to.  Stealth was the only option and more men couldn’t help
him with that.

He
would have gone to Saala of course, but he was out of town escorting Tomas. 
Rhys had left with Lady Towaal.  The Issen Consulate was another option but they
were unlikely to believe Ben and if they did, they’d probably send a
representative for an official discussion with the Sanctuary.  The Consulate
would also be the first place Jason checked if Amelie escaped.

That
left Mathias.  The barkeep was his friend.  He may be willing to help and he
wasn’t directly tied to Amelie so no one would suspect.  But what was Ben even
asking him to do?

The
Flying Swan Inn was crowded as usual when he arrived and he peered around the room
nervously.  He chastised himself though when he realized he didn’t know what a
Coalition man would look like and they wouldn’t know him either.

Mathias
approached him and instantly saw something was wrong.  “The kitchen or my
room?  Let me get some ale.”

“Your
room,” replied Ben tersely.  “And no ale tonight.”

Mathias
frowned but led Ben through the common room without further questions.

“Tell
me what’s going on?” asked the barkeep when they were out of earshot of the
common room.

It
burst out of Ben in a rush, “Reinhold and all of his men are dead.  There are
Coalition forces within half a day of here intending to kidnap Amelie or
worse.  And somehow, they are working with people in The Sanctuary.”

“Wait,
what!”  The war scarred veteran fell into his chair and stared incredulously at
Ben.  “Are you sure?  How could you be sure?  Never mind.  You wouldn’t make
this up.”

“I
am sure.  I saw the ambush on Reinhold and saw all of his men killed.  Just me
and one other who was guarding me got away.  I hid and overheard them talking
about their plans.  One more thing, Lord Jason is the one leading them here.”

“Damn!”
exclaimed Mathias.  “We have to get that girl out of there tonight.”

“I
know,” Ben quietly responded and rubbed his hands over his face.  The pace to
get back had been punishing and he was exhausted.  “But how?”

Four
bells later full dark had descended on The City.  Ben and Mathias were bobbing
in a small dingy in the river just north of the island.

The
gates to the Sanctuary were heavily guarded and not worth considering.  The
walls surrounding it were high and smooth as glass.  Even with a grappling hook
it would be noisy and maybe not even possible to climb up.  A hook might just
slide off.  Getting back out with Amelie and Meghan would be even worse.

Once
Mathias calmed down, he pointed out that the water side was the only option for
stealth.  There were parks open to the water which rarely had people in them
during the day and they both hoped would be empty at night.

They
rowed closer.  Mathias silently dipped the oars into the water and muscles
bulged as he propelled them towards the bank.  The small boat glided through
the slow moving current.

“I
don’t see any guards,” whispered Ben.  He was perched at the bow and scanning
the grounds intensely for any signs of life.

“They
must think no one is stupid enough to assault this place.  That or they have
some magical ward we’re about to trip,”

Ben
stared back at Mathias.  “A magical ward?” he hissed.

Mathias
shrugged as the boat bumped up against the thick grass of the island.  He
whispered back, “I don’t know, I’ve heard about it in stories.”

“Shit.” 
Ben cursed his friend for not saying something sooner.  But what other choice
did they have?  No other entry point was feasible.

“If
I trip some ward, if you see something happen, get out of here,” instructed Ben. 
“There’s no use both of us getting caught and this isn’t your fight.  Worst
case, you can alert the Consulate tonight and maybe they can do something.”

“Those
political hacks?  I’m sure they’d manage to get a meeting called by the end of
the week.  This is it.  I will wait out here as long as I can.”

Ben
nodded curtly and slithered off the bow of the boat onto the gently sloped
riverbank.  He had a good idea of where the Initiates Quarters were.  For a boy
used to navigating the woods and hidden landmarks around Farview, it would be
no challenge to keep that fixed in his mind.  The problem was that neither he
nor Mathias knew what else was in the compound or how he would find Meghan and
Amelie once he got to their building.

Worry
about that later he told himself.  For now, he was in an open park with three
squat buildings visible.  It was late evening so lights were still on in some
windows but he could not see any people.  They hoped that coming now instead of
the middle of the night would disguise any noise he made as normal activity.

He
set off in a low crouch for a wide gap between two of the buildings that he
thought would lead in the direction of the Initiates Quarters.  So far so
good.  No alarms were raised and no rush of guards with weapons drawn.

Well
into the park, he found a path and started following it but quickly jumped off
when he heard the telltale jingle of a man in armor.

Ben
squatted down next to the thick trunk of a tree and waited.  Near two of the
buildings he’d been about to pass between, two figures popped in and out of the
intermittent light from the windows.  Two guards on their rounds and from their
pace they were in no hurry.  They drew closer and he heard the low rumble of
their voices in conversation.  Before they came close to his hiding place, they
turned around another building and kept walking into the darkness.

So
they do have guards and they worked on patrols he thought.  It would make it
easier to see them coming but he had to be aware at all times.

With
the guards out of the way, he scuttled forward and moved between the two
buildings right where they had passed.

Halfway
there he stopped and stood upright before continuing at a normal, if somewhat
hurried pace.  If anyone caught a glimpse of him it would be better to look
like he belonged than sneaking around.

Staying
on the path he found worked well.  It was well maintained so there was no risk
of noisily stumbling over something and it seemed to go in the direction he
needed.  Away from the river, the grounds became wilder with tall grasses and
stands of trees similar to what he saw at the front gates.  It made sense, if
the Mages were interested in strolling on the grass they would do it near the
fresh air at the north of the island by the water.

Luckily,
the buildings of the Sanctuary were spread out and the place had more space
than they needed.  He encountered people two more times but these groups were
carrying some small object in their hands that emitted a low, steady yellow
light which they shined in front of them.  It made it easy for him to move off
into the darkness and avoid detection.  The guards must intentionally be in the
dark to not give away their positions or spoil their night vision.

The
buildings he could see were non-descript and impossible to identify a purpose
for from the outside.  One did give him pause.  It emitted a noxious sulpherous
smell and an angry red light pulsed behind closed doors and shuttered windows. 
He stopped and observed for a few heartbeats then hurried past that one.

In
only half a bell he’d moved all the way across the grounds and found his way to
the Initiates Quarters.  He was confident he was in the right place because the
hedge-walled garden was the only one like it he had seen during his normal
visits or this night. 

Three
stories of white stucco and the length of a city block.  Staring up at the
building he still couldn’t figure out how he was going to find Meghan and
Amelie inside without alerting anyone else.

He
began to circle the building, peering in the lit windows hoping he’d get
lucky.  Maybe both girls will be together and sitting alone in a room on the
first floor.  He ruefully shook his head at the stupidity of the thought but
right now he didn’t have anything else.

After
a couple of windows he saw that the first floor was all common areas.  There
were rooms that looked like they were for studying, a mess room, a large steamy
washroom and other open rooms that he couldn’t easily identify a purpose for. 
Most rooms had the lights on still and he saw several young women going about
their evening tasks.  Many of them were reading books and he saw some small
groups debating chalk writing they’d put on a blackboard.

He
made it around one side of the building with no sign of Meghan or Amelie but he
was hopeful.  A lot of girls were awake so he might see them.  If he could at
least find where they were he thought a plan might materialize.

On
the far side of the building he had to pass a brightly lit entrance.  He
counted to one hundred and hadn’t seen or heard anyone so he held his breath
and walked through the light, hoping he looked like he belonged there.

Almost
to the other corner of the building he thought he was safe until he heard a
soft voice loudly and pointedly clear it’s throat.  He paused mid-step.

“Excuse
me.  Do you care to explain yourself?” demanded a young female.

“I...”

“Don’t
bother.  I saw you looking in the washroom window.  Hoping to catch a peek?”

Running
wasn’t an option.  She would simply raise the alarm if he did anything other
than turn and convince her she didn’t need to.

“I’m
sorry ma’am, I believe I am lost.  Are the guard’s barracks near here?  I
wasn’t sure so I was trying to figure out which building this is.”  Maybe if
she thought he was trying to reach the guards she wouldn’t think she needed to
call them herself.

She
crossed her arms and scowled at him, “you are not out for a casual stroll deep
in the night looking for the guard’s barracks.  This is the Sanctuary, do you
think I am stupid?  Let’s try that again, and if you lie, I will know.”

She
was standing in the light of the entrance and was a pretty young woman, close
to his own age.  She wasn’t screaming for help yet.  That was something.

“I… 
I’m looking for my sister,” he stammered.  Could she really tell if he was
lying?  He didn’t know but he did want to find Meghan in addition to Amelie. 
It was at least partially true.