Ravenmarked (The Taurin Chronicles) (45 page)

“Esma.”

“And you are an earth guardian?”

She swallowed hard. “I-I am.”

“Were you on this side of the boundary?”

“No. I was in the forest, in a sacred grove, and Mac Rian’s men surprised me. They brought me back here.”

Braedan put the dagger back in his belt. “What were you doing?”

“I was performing a sacrifice that is required of us. It is a sacred ritual.”

He stepped closer to her. She tensed. He dropped his voice. “What does Mac Rian want?”

She hesitated, her eyes steady on his.

“You must know. You were left there, weren’t you? You baited Mac Rian’s men. Why?”

“He seeks the Brae Sidh. He wants an earth guardian to reveal the Brae Sidh village.”

That bastard.
His belly clenched.
He’s after the same thing I am.
“Is he working with someone else? Do you know?”

“I don’t know. I only know what we have heard his men say as they’ve trampled through our holy places.”

“Do you know why he seeks the Sidh?”

“For a treasure he cannot touch or use. It’s a fool’s quest. Our prophecies say that a god must wield it and a man with the blood of Aiden and Brenna must carry it. I don’t know why he seeks it.” She paused. “I don’t know why you seek it, either.”

His heartbeat quickened, and he fought to maintain composure and resolve. “I don’t know what—”

“You seek Cuhail’s Reliquary, but you must know—it holds only death for you. Abandon your search and return to Torlach. You are not the rightful heir, but if you return now, before you do more damage to Taura, you might yet be a good king.”

The rightful heir.
Pieces clicked into place.
This is why the dark man said he would find the heir. He never said he would kill her. He believes she exists, and he wants her to carry this reliquary for him.
He shuddered.
I destroyed the sayada and imprisoned servants of the kirok for him—for a promise of help in gaining my throne. I am no better than he.
“What is this reliquary?”

“It is the key to healing the earth. It holds the relics of sacrifice from the great battle between Alshada and Namha—Cuhail’s sword, the tears of the Syrafi chieftain, and the animstone of the first Brae Sidh queen. In the wrong hands, it is chaos and death.”

Gods. I thought it was a fool’s quest. I thought I’d never find it. I thought I could make a show of looking for it and eventually he’d give up.
“Who would want this reliquary?”

“The Forbidden,” she said. “The creatures who live off human transgressions. If they control the relics, they can release Namha and enslave all humanity.” She tsked. “How does a man become king of Taura without knowing these things? These are all written in the kirok scriptures and the tribal wisdom books.”

He crossed his arms and turned away.
I’m no better than my father. I’ve betrayed the tribes for ambition and greed. I’ve put the very existence of the Sidh at risk. And if this woman is right, I’ve put my country, my people, even the world in danger. All for a throne.
 
“Esma, I have to leave you here, but I’ll get you out. And I will leave my own men to guard you to ensure that the Mac Rian men don’t abuse you. Will you promise me you will stay here? Don’t try to escape?”

“Because you carry Hrogarth’s blade, I will trust you.”

He went to the door. “I’ll return as soon as I can.”

Malcolm waited outside. Braedan drew him aside. “I want my own guards on her door. No one goes in or out of there without my permission, and we’ll feed her with food from our stores. Nothing of Mac Rian’s goes in there.”

Malcolm nodded. “Yes, sire.”

“Mac Rian intends to go to battle with the wolf tribe tomorrow. I need to know before then what happened here six years ago.”

“Why?”

“Because if I’m going to abandon one of my nobles, I need a fucking good reason. Treason, preferably. Gather the guards and captains, and all of you see what you can find out. I’ll meet you in the camp later.”

“Where are you going?”

“Hand me your cloak.” Malcolm removed it, and Braedan threw it over his shoulders and pulled the hood up. “I need to disappear for a while.”

“Majesty, I don’t think that’s wise.”

“I’ll be fine. I’ll go by the guard tent and get something else to wear, and I’ll send Ewan over to relieve you. You can relay my instructions.
 
Where did Mac Rian go?”

“I strongly suggested he and his men might want to wait for you elsewhere.”

Braedan nodded. “If I’m not back by the evening meal, come looking for me in the forest. Bring her with you.”

Malcolm frowned. “I don’t like this.”

“Trust me.”

Braedan dressed in common peasant clothes and wove through Kiern to the woods on the north edge of town, hiding in alleys and behind houses to avoid Mac Rian’s men. He found a quiet copse of trees far from prying eyes and curious ears and lowered his hood. “I know you’re here,” he called. He drew Hrogarth’s dagger from his belt. “I know you’re watching this. I need to talk to you.”

Birds erupted from the trees in a sudden rush, flapping and fluttering in panicked flight. The brush at his feet rustled as some small creature dove away from the clearing. Not even a beetle stirred.
As if a mountain cat approaches,
Braedan thought. The hair stood up on his arms.

“You have an earth guardian. What are you waiting for?”

Braedan startled and whirled around. The man stood in a shadow, his hood drawn up to hide his face and his arms crossed before him. “You lied to me. You betrayed me to Mac Rian. You set him to the same task. Why?”

“I need the reliquary.”

“You need a bunch of molding artifacts from two thousand years ago?” Braedan shook his head. “I can’t see what power they could give you.”

The man’s face betrayed no emotion. “You owe me. You don’t need to know why I want them. I helped your men into Torlach, and I told you where the heir was hiding. You need only repay me.”

“Or what?”

“Or it will cost you your life.”

A chill ran through Braedan. “Have you found the heir yet?”

He didn’t miss the flicker of irritation that crossed the man’s face. “That is none of your concern.”

“It is my concern. If there is an heir to the Taurin throne, she is a threat to me. It’s my right to know where she is.”

A muscle twitched in the man’s jaw. “I have not succeeded in capturing her yet, no. But I know where she is.”

Fury rose in Braedan’s chest. “And when you find her, you plan to use her to carry this reliquary for you—to get this power for you so that you can unseat me?” The man said nothing. “Damn you.”

The man sneered. “The status of my soul has never been in question. I will have the reliquary. Whether you find it or someone else finds it is no concern of mine.”

“I’m done with you. You broke our agreement. This is a fool’s quest, and I will not pursue it.”

The man lunged at him and knocked the dagger from his hand. Skin met skin, and the man held his wrist in a fierce grip. Braedan’s throat constricted, and the air around him thinned to nothing. The pain drove him to his knees. Visions of evil things he’d done hovered around him—a girl he’d threatened into bed, a man he’d falsely accused of theft, drunken moments he couldn’t remember. Over them all, Daron, his head on the Noble Gate, convicting Braedan of murder.
I shouldn’t have ordered it done. I should have exiled him.

The man’s mouth curved with casual, detached amusement. “I will not kill you today. But if you break faith with me, I will come back. Your soul is lost, princeling. Your body is just a matter of time. And if you want a noblewoman in your bed, take Olwyn. Your father enjoyed the pleasures of her body. She knows how to please a man, I assure you. Take her, and your descendants will rule in Taura for generations.”

He released his hand, and Braedan gasped as air, welcome and sweet, rushed to fill his lungs. He collapsed onto his side. “I’m . . . done . . . . No . . . more . . . .”

“You’ve made your choice.” He disappeared in a flash of light.

Braedan rolled onto his back, grateful for the autumn air.
Igraine. He’ll go after her.
But no—he once said she had powerful protection.
But what could protect her from him?

He needed help. He stood on unsteady legs and set out at an easy walk on the north side of Kiern, gaining strength with each step. He would go around the city to the forest. He needed to find the traitha of the wolf tribe. He needed to know the relics were safe, and he needed the tribe’s help. Mac Rian had to go.

***

Finding the wolf tribe wasn’t difficult. In fact, they found Braedan the moment he stepped into the trees. He heard the rustle of brush moments before someone tackled him, and then rough hands hauled him to his feet. The next thing he knew, a massive, leather-clad tribesman had bound him to a tree.

The ropes cut into Braedan’s arms and legs, tightening every time he moved, and he grunted as one of the wolf tribe’s warriors pulled tighter. “I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “I sought you, remember?”

The man sneered. “Our traitha gave orders: any Taurin in the forest is to be captured and executed. I assume he meant pretender kings, too.”

Braedan’s mouth twisted. “Fetch your traitha. I would speak with him.”

“He’s here.”

Braedan turned. A lithe, graying tribesman stepped out of the trees, arms folded. The blue lines over his face were similar to Hrogarth’s, but Braedan thought this man’s seemed more graceful, more subtle.
He could still kill me without breaking a sweat.
He bowed his head as low as the ropes would allow. “Traitha, I beg an audience with you.”

The man spat. “Your friend has one of our women. Why should I waste my time listening to you?”

Braedan kept his head low. “I’ve spoken with your earth guardian. I want to treat with you.”

“Speak.”

Braedan straightened, working stiffness from his jaw. “They say the enemy of my enemy is my friend, but I wouldn’t presume that much on you. Not yet.”

The traitha frowned and grunted. “You and Mac Rian are enemies?”

“Can we speak privately?”

The man signaled to the warriors, and they melted into the surrounding forest. He stepped closer to Braedan. “Say what you have to say.”

Braedan wet his lips. “You know I seek the same thing Mac Rian seeks. Help me rid Taura of Mac Rian, and I’ll abandon my search.”

He tilted his head. “How can I know you won’t break faith with me? How do I know you won’t just lure us into something and take what doesn’t belong to you?”

Braedan nodded toward his weapons. “Look. I carry a blade given to me by Traitha Hrogarth.”

The traitha crouched to pick up the blade. He frowned. “Hrogarth gave you this blade?”

“Yes, along with the promise of a tribal spear in Taura’s heart if I didn’t get all Taurins out of the forest.”

He straightened and pressed the point of the blade to Braedan’s neck. “I could rid Taura of all its problems right now.”

Braedan’s heart raced, but he fought the urge to turn his head away from the knife. He stared the traitha in the eye. “Do it, then.”

The tribesman stood very still, the blade steady against Braedan’s neck. For a moment, Braedan expected to feel a warm rush of blood drain from his body, and he resolved not to scream.

The tribesman lowered the blade and sliced through the ropes. He stepped back as Braedan stepped away from the tree. “I could ask you to pick up your sword now. I could insist that we fight to the death.”

“You could, but it would be a death sentence for your earth guardian. My men have been told to kill her if I am not back by sunset.”
Lies on top of lies. At least that one was for a good purpose.
He paused, rubbing his wrists. “May I know your name, traitha?”

“Edgar Wolfbrother.”

Braedan bowed low. “I have no wish to remain your enemy. Mac Rian threatens my throne, and he sits in a seat that he stole. He deserves to die. I wish for you to help me rid Taura of his poison. In return, I offer the tribes opportunity to renew relations with Taura.”

Edgar sneered. “Do you not realize the irony? You threaten the tribes and the Taurin heir and sit in a seat you stole.”

Braedan’s jaw tightened.
I realize more than you know.
“We can discuss my sins later. Right now, let’s discuss our shared enemy.”

“How many men will he bring?”

“Five hundred, at dawn tomorrow. He says you sent Esma across the road to curse his estates. He’ll use it as an excuse to attack.”

“How many did you bring?”

Braedan hesitated. “Another thousand.”

“Do you intend to join him?”

Braedan crossed his arms. “That depends on you.”

Anger flashed across Edgar’s face. “We have abided by the treaty, unbeliever. Your father pushed the tribes away from Taura. He made us unwelcome in the cities and refused to see our traithas, so we retreated to the trees. We seek nothing but the freedom of the forest. You threaten us. Why shouldn’t we slaughter every one of you?”