Circle of Thieves: Legends of Dimmingwood (10 page)

His voice hoarsened. “Why’d he do that, do you think? I
never counted him a friend. If anything, we were closer to enemies. I just wish
I knew what made him do it. You know?”

I cleared my throat. “I can’t tell you that. The man feared
nothing so long as I knew him. He lived hard, and I suppose in the end…” I had
been going to say in the end he had got what was coming to him, but suddenly
that seemed wrong.

I raked a hand through my hair and asked the question that
had been on my mind all night. “Why did this attack come now? The Skeltai have
never troubled the outlaws before. Do you suppose they were just looking for
more victims and stumbled over us?”

He gave me a look. “What do you believe?”

I ground a pebble beneath my boot, stalling for time, before
giving in and admitted the truth. “I think they came looking for us. The
sentries said they just poured in out of nowhere, as if they knew where our
lookouts would be posted and how to avoid them. They must have been watching us
for a long time.”

“Is it because of the circle then? Are they punishing us for
our interference?”

I nodded woodenly, knowing what it meant. This attack was my
fault. I had disregarded Rideon’s orders and started the circle, and now the
entire band had paid the price.

Dradac cut in on my bitter thoughts. “It’s no use laying
blame. All we can do now is move on from here and lay our plans with better
care.”

He sighed. “I’ll tell you what I’d like to know more than
anything, and that’s how they found us in the first place. If the Fists can’t
find us and even the Praetor has never managed to discover the identities of
anyone in the circle, how is it the Skeltai can discover so much from so far
away? They must been transporting their people in and out of Dimming constantly
and you know what that means. For every one of their scouts we’ve seen sniffing
around the forest and the woods villages, they’ve half a dozen more we never
get a look at. They could be watching us right now, and we’d never know it.”

“I suspect it’s worse than that,” I said. “They’re not
sending people here to spy on us; I believe they’ve found some way to do that
from where they are.”

“You mean they’re opening up small portals like windows all
over the forest?”

“I don’t know. Not quite like that, I don’t think. Holding
those portals open takes a lot of magic, and I doubt they’d waste that much
strength.”

He looked at me oddly, and I realized I was exhibiting too
much knowledge for someone who was supposed to be as ignorant of magic as the
next fellow, so I rushed to add, “I mean, I imagine that’s how these things
work. But then who knows what the savages are capable of?”

He shifted as if uncomfortable, and I wondered if he knew I
was lying to him.

“Well,” he said after an awkward pause, “One thing is sure.
We can’t withstand another attack like this one. Luck was with us this time,
but we can’t count on that again. What’ll we do if there’s another attack?”

I shook my head miserably.

“Rot you!” he snapped suddenly. “You’re our leader. You must
give us orders!”

“I’m only
Ilan
,” I told him sharply. “
Hound
or
Little Dog
as you’ve called me most of my life. I’m just as confused and
frightened as everybody else right now. No secret circle or cursed magical bow
has changed that.”

There was a silence after my words, and I realized it was
the first time I had admitted to anybody but Hadrian that the bow was more than
mere wood and string. There was no taking back my words, and I wasn’t sure I
wanted to. I was weary of keeping secrets. Lately it seemed like the biggest
ones in my life had to be kept even from the people I cared about most. I
thought briefly of Terrac and wondered what his reaction would have been if I’d
ever confessed to him that I had been born with magical talents.

Dradac cleared his throat, and the sound brought me back to
the present. I could sense his confusion and knew the significance of my
admission hadn’t been lost on him. I braced myself for whatever was coming and
promised myself I wouldn’t even try to wiggle my way around his questions. He
had a right to know.

But to my surprise, the words that came from his mouth had
nothing to do with magic or the bow. “Just tell me what to do,” he said
earnestly. “Command any of us in the circle, and we’ll follow you.”

I was astounded. “Didn’t you hear what I just said? I told
you I have an enchanted bow! Don’t you have questions about that?”

He smiled slightly. “Do you think I didn’t know the moment I
saw that bow there was something powerful about it? You think I’ve failed to
note the changes in you since you took it up? Even the Skeltai scout knew there
was something special in you and in the bow you carry. The others know it too,
and not just members of the circle. Everyone was talking after last night’s
battle of the skill you fought with, and how you never took a scratch. I even
heard Kinsley say just before he died that it was you who turned the tide in
our favor.”

“That’s ridiculous,” I said. But inwardly I wondered.
Kinsley had never particularly liked me. Why should he praise me with his dying
breath if there was no truth to it?

Dradac went on, “Call it what you want, but I saw you fight
last night and watched you through all the weeks leading up to this, as you
formed the circle to challenge the savages when no one else dared. I’ve seen
you grow up before my eyes overnight, and I can tell you change that sudden
isn’t natural. The truth is you haven’t been the same person since you found
that bow. You might have started out as Rideon’s
Hound
or Brig’s
Little
Dog
but you aren’t either anymore.”

His words shook me. Hadn’t Hadrian tried to tell me the same
thing, tried to warn me against the bow’s influence? Could both these men who
knew me so well be wrong in their assessment? I wanted desperately to think so,
wanted to deny anything was different. But deep in a cloudy corner of my mind a
sibilant whisper stirred to life. I tried to silence it, but it refused to
leave me alone inside my head. The bow wanted its presence and its power to be
recognized. Inwardly I gave in.

Yes, I know. You are the bow. You are the barra-banac,
and you want everyone to know it. Well, we all know your power now, don’t we?
Even I.

Suddenly I felt like laughing, but it would have been a
nervous, wild laughter. I held my breath until the desire passed.

Dradac unwittingly came to my aid, as he interrupted my
thoughts. “You’re cold and weary. There will be time to talk of these things
later, if you choose. Or not. I won’t press you or speak of this before others.
Come now, let me take you back to camp where you can rest.”

I said, “We both know there will be no resting for some time
to come. There are wounded to be looked after and new perimeters to be set up.
The Hand will not want to be surprised again.”

He nodded agreement, and we both helped the other up.
Together we trudged back to camp.

Chapter
Eleven

We returned to find things in a state of disorder. Weapons
and belongings were being shifted out the mouth of the cave, and the wounded I
had left inside were now being carried out and settled on the frozen ground.

I snagged the arm of a passerby. “What’s happening? Why are
these wounded men bring dragged out into the cold?”

The stout man shrugged. “The Hand’s orders. He wants us all
out of Boulder’s Cradle by nightfall.”

Dradac stepped in. “Where does he mean us to go?”

The other outlaw shrugged. “Don’t know, Dradac. Scouts is
out now looking for suitable shelter. The Hands says it’s no good staying in a
place what’s known to our enemies. There’s nothing to stop them coming back.”

“But these men cannot be moved,” I protested. “Many are
seriously wounded and the trip would finish them. We’ll see enough losses over
the coming days as it is.”

The outlaw raised a surprised brow at my vehemence, and I
realized I was coming dangerously close to criticizing Rideon’s orders.

As if his thoughts followed the same vein, Dradac nudged me
sharply.

I let the man go back to his work but told Dradac, “I’ve got
to speak to Rideon. He’s wrong about all of this. If the Skeltai are determined
to find us, they have the means to search us out anywhere. We would be better
off standing out ground here than running while dragging injured men with us.”

Dradac frowned. “You be careful, Ilan. You can’t talk to the
Hand like you do everyone else. He’s still the captain of the band, and he’s
got a fine temper besides. Remember the time he gave you and the priest boy
that walloping a couple years back?”

I did.

“I’m as acquainted with Rideon’s famous temper as you are,”
I said, “but somebody’s got to persuade him to see reason. If he’d done
something about the Skeltai invaders when the raids first began, we might have
driven them out before it came to this. I’m not about to stand silent now and
let his short-sightedness cost us again.”

I clambered onto an overturned log in the center of camp and
called out, “Hold on, everyone.”

No one obeyed so I raised my voice. “I said hold! We aren’t
moving anywhere, so drag those provisions back inside.”

That got their attention. The activity in the clearing died
down and someone called out, “What’s going on? Has the Hand changed his mind?”

“Not yet,” I admitted. “But I think he’s going to reconsider
his orders once I’ve spoken with him.”

“Why? What’s to reconsider?” another outlaw asked. 
“Rideon says we should be gone before the raiders return.”

I said, “I don’t think they’re coming back. They could have
wiped us out last night if that had been their intention. I know you’ve all
heard by now about the attacks on the surrounding woods settlements. The
raiders usually come in greater numbers. I know. I was at Hammond’s Bend and
saw the destruction there. Do you think our attackers couldn’t have wreaked the
same damage on us?”

Having committed myself this far, I launched into the story
of how a few of us had discovered the origins of the strange invaders. I
carefully left out references to the existence of the circle, since that secret
wasn’t mine to tell. But I explained as much as I knew of the Skelatai’s magic
and of how their shamans used it to create portals that let their warriors out
wherever they wished. I finished with my theory that last night’s attack had
been intended as a warning to us not to interfere in the fate of the woods
villages

“Interfere?” someone asked. “Why should they suspect us of
that?”

I hesitated. How much was I prepared to reveal? I wanted to
look to Dradac for reassurance before speaking for him or the others in the
circle but feared even that one glance would be too revealing, so I kept my
eyes carefully averted. Instead I looked out at the dozens of faces turned
toward me and asked myself if they were ready. Ready to join the fight against
the Skeltai, even if it cost them their lives. The silent voice whispered at
the back of my mind, but I ignored it. I had no time for distractions now.

I opened my mouth, prepared to confess all, but before I
could get the words out, a familiar voice spoke up.

“A good question. Why indeed should anyone suspect us of
interference?”

I felt my stomach clench. Even after all these years Rideon
could still make me squirm in my boots.

“You don’t answer, Hound,” Rideon continued softly.
Reasonably. “Enlighten us. How is it you’re so knowledgeable about these
invaders? How can you be certain they won’t strike at us again. More importantly,
what have you and your little circle of friends been doing in secret to bring
their wrath down on us?”

As he stepped out the mouth of the cave and into view, I saw
that his lean face was as cool and expressionless as ever, except for a slight
tightening around the mouth and a dangerous glint in his eyes. How much did he
know?

He seemed not to expect an immediate reply from me. His gaze
moved over Dradac at my side and flickered over the audience, as if searching
out others likely to support me. When his attention returned to me, he smiled,
a baring of teeth that was neither friendly nor reassuring.

“Why such an uneasy face, Hound? Are you wondering what I
know?”

My stomach twisted in knots, and I realized I had only a
very short time to set things right before events got out of hand.

“I don’t know what you’ve heard, Rideon,” I said, “but I
promise none of it is as it seems.”

“None of what? You mean the secret circle you and your
friends formed against my orders? Those moonlight meetings at Horse Head Rock,
where you and your treacherous followers gather to plot against me? Or the
whispering and scheming behind my back to subtly undermine my authority? Are
these the things you speak of?”

He cocked his head to one side and watched me like a hawk
eyeing something he meant to devour.

I struggled to keep my face expressionless as I worked out
how I should respond.

Seeming to take my prolonged silence as an admission of
guilt, he said, “If you fear by answering you will further incriminate
yourself, allow me to put your mind to rest. Let me answer the one question
that is no doubt burning in your mind. How much, how much? Isn’t that what
you’re eager to know? How far my knowledge extends?”

His look was triumphant as he declared, “I know all! I’ve
had your clandestine rebel meetings observed from the beginning, have watched
your every careful move and laughed at your ignorance. I know the names of your
contacts and of your dealings with the Praetor. I even know how long you’ve
been in his pay.”

At this disclosure, a ripple of angry exclamations spread
through the listening outlaws. I sensed their anger and distrust turning
against me.

I tried to stop it.

“My dealings with the Praetor had nothing to do with you or
the band, Rideon. I’ve remained loyal to you, even if I haven’t always agreed
with your decisions.”

I was no longer speaking for my captain’s benefit but for
that of my outlaw brethren. I turned to them now, saying, “Many of you have
known me since I was a child. I was with you from the beginning. Can you
believe I would sell you to the Praetor and his Fists for a handful of coins?
You saw what the Fists did to Brig. Can anyone believe after that I would ever
be persuaded to spy for the Praetor?”

I saw looks of doubt flit across a few faces and didn’t need
my talent to know I was swaying some.

But Rideon wasn’t among them. Arms folded across his chest,
he shook his head at my defense. “Your disloyalty after Brig only shows you for
the traitorous cur you are. What was the plan? Hand us over to the Praetor in
exchange for a pardon and a hefty reward?”

“If that’s what I had in mind I could’ve done it long ago,”
I pointed out.

He didn’t seem to hear. “I regret wasting my time or efforts
in the raising of you,” he said. “I saw something in you when you were small. I
thought it was promise, but now I realize I was mistaken.”

He looked away from me then, as if I had suddenly become
invisible, and directed his attention instead at the others gathered around.
“What,” he asked them, “is the penalty for treachery?”

When no one spoke he answered himself. “The punishment is
death.”

With a sense of unreality, I watched him unsheathe his
black-bladed sword.

My hands moved to the knives tucked inside my sleeves but I
never reached them, as I was suddenly gripped from behind and dragged backward.
I struggled until I recognized the arms that held me.

“Be still,” Dradac whispered sharply in my ear. “If you
fight him you won’t walk away.”

He raised his voice. “I mean no disloyalty, Rideon. There
isn’t a man here who wouldn’t die for you. But many of us would fight to defend
Ilan. She’s one of us.”

“He’s right, Hand,” someone else spoke up. “Surely we’ve
seen enough of our own slaughtered.”

Rideon glared at the speaker. “I mark you for this betrayal,
Javen. I know you for one of her circle.”

“Then mark me as well.”

There was a shift in the crowd as Ada stepped forward. Kipp
and another man followed and suddenly all the members of the circle were
crowding forward to join me, as well as some others who hadn’t been part of our
cause.

Rideon surveyed us with contempt. “Traitors,” he growled.

“No, not traitors,” Dradac said. “Only good steady men,
loyal to you and to each other. But if you mean to kill Ilan here, it seems you
will have to slay half your band as well. And I don’t think a fight among
ourselves is what any of us want. Not now. Not today of all days.”

Rideon glowered, but I thought I also saw a glint of
admiration in his eyes when he said, “Perhaps the Hound is cleverer than I
thought. She’s managed to sway my own men against me, something I never thought
possible.”

Guilt swept over me, but I pushed it down deep. I owed my
captain nothing. Not anymore.

Dradac said, “None of us wants to see the band divided, but
there is a simple solution, a way to dissolve the hostility and end everything
peacefully. Let Ilan go her own way. Be one of us no more. She won’t be here to
make further trouble for you, and you will have your band whole again.”

I was stunned at what I was hearing. I had expected my
friends to argue for my innocence, not my exile.

Rideon too seemed briefly taken aback and looked closely at
Dradac, as if suspecting him of some trick. “That is the sparing of her life
all you want then?” he asked.

“That and no repercussions against those who stand beside
her today,” Dradac agreed.

Rideon conferred quietly with a handful of his advisors. I
could see they were urging him to take Dradac’s offer, but I knew our captain
wouldn’t do so unless he was convinced within his own mind. Rideon was never
one for listening to the words of others.

When he returned his attention to us, he said coolly, “I’ve
made my decision.”

Sensing the tension among Dradac and the others, I stepped
to the front of the crowd to face my fate. I wouldn’t let Rideon or anyone else
see me hide behind my friends.

“I have considered the Hound’s treacheries and they are
many,” Rideon said. “I cannot allow her to continue sowing decision among the
band. How could we ever trust her again? No, despite the long years she has
spent as one of us, sentimentality must not sway me into jeopardizing the
safety of the whole for the protection of one.”

His gaze met mine, and it was as if we were the only two
present. Did I detect a flicker of regret in his eyes or was I seeing only what
I wished to see?

He said, “From this day forward you will live out your life
banished from the shadow of Dimmingwood. To set foot in this forest again will
mean death for you. You’ve had difficulty following my orders in the past. I
hope this one is clear enough for you?”

My guts felt twisted in knots. This was happening too fast.
That word
banished
reverberated through my head like the last ring of
steel clashing against steel. Banished from Dimming, never again to walk
beneath the green leaves, to smell the pine in the air, and hear the endless
whisper of wind rustling through the treetops? There were other forests in the
world but none of them were home. Where would I go? Would I ever see my friends
again? If he had planned it, Rideon couldn’t have worked out a more painful
punishment for me. I suspected he knew that very well.

These thoughts played through my head in seconds, but I
wouldn’t let my feelings show. I wouldn’t grant Rideon that pleasure.

“I understand,” I said, forcing the words through stiff
lips. Remembering I had a final duty as head of the circle, I added, “I don’t
know what falsehoods you may have heard, but I swear on my life that there
never existed any secret circle. In all I did, I acted entirely alone.”

I held my breath and waited for Rideon to call my lie. He
must have known I was only trying to protect my friends. But to my surprise, he
made a show of accepting my story, saying, “Very well. You were the lone
traitor and will be the only one to suffer for your deeds. It is as well. We
need no further schism within our members.”

He raised his voice to ensure everyone heard. “I’m willing
to forget the names and faces that took the part of the traitor today, but only
if they disperse immediately. All of you get back to your work. There is
nothing else to be seen here. The source of the trouble is departing for good.
”

There were curious stares from the handful of outlaws who
dragged their feet, reluctant to leave without seeing the conclusion between
Rideon and I. But soon they had all scattered and returned to their work. Ada
and Dradac were the last to move away but leave they eventually did. They had
no choice.