The Assassin's Tale (Isle of Dreams) (68 page)

‘So modest,’
sighed Phantom.

Xerxes laughed
then gazed around the room, holding his arms out wide, ‘What do we have that
the elves want?’

A short silence
fell while the twins looked at him uncertainly.

‘Konrad,’
breathed Mistral. 

‘You want to
give them Konrad?’  Phantom asked in surprise.

‘No!’ 
Xerxes looked shocked.  ‘He’s a brother, albeit a damned miserable
one.  We just want to use him as bait.’

‘Oh, that’s
just so much more morally acceptable,’ muttered Phantom.

‘Does he know
about it?’  Mistral asked, giving Xerxes with a knowing look.  She
felt Fabian stiffen by her side but he didn’t say anything.

‘Thought you’d
be a bit sensitive about that,’ said Xerxes breezily.  ‘No, he isn’t aware
of it.  But don’t feel bad for him because right now he’s hiding outside
this settlement with Columbine and Golden.  They’re waiting for us to go out
hunting so they can follow and pick off any wolverine we injure.’

‘And how
exactly do you know this?  Or do you have the Sight as well as Elven
Song?’  Mistral demanded.

‘No, that’ll
be you with the mind-reading trick sister.’  Xerxes grinned at her. 
‘The trail Grendel left was clear.  Even with the snowfall we knew that
you’d be able to find it.  Konrad’s a good tracker too; he’ll have also
been able to follow us here without any bother at all.  Saul’s been
keeping an eye out for them and spotted them arriving just before
nightfall.  They’re obviously waiting for us to head out with the
intention of following us, or why haven’t they come to join us?’

Mistral
frowned.  She didn’t feel comfortable with the idea of using Konrad as
bait.  He was still Ri after all; a fellow apprentice, a brother. 
However, if what Xerxes said was true, then he obviously had an agenda of his
own.

‘I’ve seen
them Mistral.  Xerxes isn’t trying to convince you with lies,’ Saul said
quietly.  ‘They arrived last night and have been hiding out on the east
side of the settlement ever since.  Despite the fact that our horses are
in plain sight, they’ve made no effort to come and find us.  They
obviously want to remain hidden – which is a bit of a joke really since I
spotted Golden without even trying.  For someone with nymph blood she has the
stealth skills of a minotaur!’

‘Can’t stand
to have her beauty hidden away I expect,’ Phantom muttered scathingly. 

Xerxes
shrugged, disinterested in Golden.  He locked gazes with Mistral and
raised an eyebrow, ‘Well sister?  What’s it to be?’

Mistral held
his gaze for a long moment then nodded slowly, ‘I can see in your aura that
you’re telling me the truth Xerxes, but Konrad is still a brother and I’m not
comfortable with the idea of using him as bait.  He could be killed by
those elves.’

‘And so could
we all Mistral.’  Brutus pointed out.  ‘And it would be because of
him.  You of all people know that!  He didn’t care when you took an
arrow because of him!’

‘I chose to go
on the hunt,’ Mistral said dismissively.  ‘I don’t blame Konrad for me being
in the wrong place at the wrong time.  I don’t really think what you’re
planning is right, but I won’t stand in your way.  I’m starting to fully
appreciate that Qualifying is all about dirty tricks and cheating.’

‘At last
you’ve seen the light,’ exclaimed Xerxes, rolling his eyes.  ‘Now, if we
can all get down to the plan –’

‘Phantom,
would you mind telling us the details in a few minutes?  I just need to
have a word with Mistral,’ Fabian murmured and before Mistral could say
anything he dragged away from the other apprentices.  Pulling a stool out
for her, Fabian waited until she had sat down before taking one opposite
her.  Mistral gazed at him across the table and was surprised to see that
he was angry.

‘Is this about
Saul?’ she began with a frown.

‘No, it is
not.’  Fabian said shortly.  ‘When were you used as bait?’

Mistral sighed
in exasperation, ‘Does nothing escape you?’

‘Very rarely,
now please explain because right now there is no way I am letting you on this
hunt.’

‘Oh, not this
again!’  Mistral scowled.  ‘What’s changed since this morning?’

‘First of all,
I now know that you were shot by elves out for vengeance, and they never give
up on a target.  Their tenacity is what makes them such fierce
warriors.  I’ve seen elves get off their death beds to finish an enemy
before allowing themselves to give in and die!  And secondly, I am
ill-disposed to permit you to hunt with those so-called brothers who freely
admit to having used you as bait without your knowledge!’

‘Fine, I’ll
explain about the bait part.’  Mistral said quickly, taken aback by
Fabian’s sudden anger.  ‘We went on a manticore hunt and Konrad told the
others that manticores found the scent of females irresistible.  They
didn’t tell me because they thought I’d be reckless if I knew that the
manticore would be drawn to me.  And they were right not to tell me.
 I would’ve climbed right into its den if I thought my scent would lure it
out.  And as for me being shot by the elves, it’s exactly like I said to
Xerxes – it was my decision to go on the hunt, I can’t blame Konrad for that,
can I?  We were fleeing from the elves when Cirrus stumbled and I dropped
behind.  They just got a lucky shot in.’

‘No Mistral,
elves do not get lucky shots.  They would have been aiming for you. 
I assume that you were with Phantasm when he convinced the elves that he knew
nothing of the Contract on their kinsman?’

Mistral nodded
mutely.  There was an icy edge to Fabian’s voice she had not heard
before.  For the first time she glimpsed the assassin in him and it
unnerved her. 

‘The moment
they questioned Konrad and realised he was lying they would have known that
Phantasm had lied to them also.  You are all marked.’  

A tense
silence fell between them.  Mistral could hear Xerxes telling a joke and
the others laughing but it could have been coming from a world away.  She
was locked in the icy world of Fabian’s black stare.  His expression was
cold, detached; he was almost like a stranger to her.  With a stab of
agony Mistral realised that it was because of her, that she had caused the man
she loved to become an assassin again.  And she couldn’t bear it.

She leaned
across the table, whispering urgently, ‘Fabian, please listen to me!  You
mean more to me than anything!  This hunt, Qualifying, Sight, it’s nothing
to me!  You are all I want and if you don’t want me to go today, then I
won’t.  I swear I will always do whatever you want me to.’  

Fabian stared
at her a moment longer, his gaze burning into hers with a power that was both
mesmerising and frightening.  Finally he exhaled a long breath and reached
across the table to take hold of her hands, instantly reminding her of the
night in The Cloak and Dagger when he had first held them.

‘Why are you
smiling?’ he demanded sharply.  ‘I am sat opposite you fighting the urge
to kill Konrad for daring to use you as bait, and you are smiling at me!’

‘Because I’m
reminded of the first time you ever held my hands,’ she shrugged, still
smiling.  ‘It makes me smile.’

Abruptly his
expression changed.  He drew her hands to him, turning them over to run
his fingers across the palms, caressing them with his light touch.

‘I am so sorry
Mistral,’ he murmured, his black eyes suddenly eloquent with sorrow.  ‘I
can’t explain to you how hard I find this … willingly placing your life in
danger … I can’t stand it!  Every fibre of my being wants to take you away
from this accursed hunt.’

‘We won’t go
on the hunt,’ whispered Mistral.  ‘We can leave, right now if you want
to.  We can go home.’

‘Ah,’ Fabian
closed his eyes and sighed deeply, slowly opening his eyes again with a look of
resignation on his face.  ‘You have no idea how much I want that. 
But you must go on the hunt today.’

Mistral stared
at him dumbfounded.  He was worse than her for changing his mind at the
drop of a hat.

He smiled
ruefully at her expression, ‘How can you Qualify for your second year if you
are at home with me?’  he asked softly.

‘Oh, please
just take me home,’ she begged.  ‘I don’t care about Qualifying, my second
year, Sight –’

‘Or the
twins?’  Fabian asked quietly.

Mistral stared
at him blankly.

‘They need you
Mistral.  They need you today, for your hunting skills and they need you
next year.  I know they are strong with each other, but you three … you
have a bond… and I think it is no coincidence that you have come to the Valley
at precisely the same time.’

Mistral
frowned in confusion, ‘How can it be anything but a coincidence?  I’d
never met them before I went to the Valley!’

Fabian sighed and
looked thoughtfully down at her hands, running his fingers gently over them
before raising one to examine it closely, kissing the palm tenderly in a way
that made her long for him to drag her from the tavern and insist that she go
home with him right away.

‘Some things
are not for our comprehension,’ he sighed, gazing at her deeply.  ‘I have
seen many things in my life Mistral, and can only explain a small portion of
them.  The Isle has many powerful enchantments cast on it to ensure our
concealment from the rest of the world.  Who knows what effect spells of
that power have on us poor souls who live here?

‘There is
nothing I want more than to take you away from here, but I am going to do what
is right for your future.  We are going to stay and hunt together. 
And I think we both know,’ Fabian paused and looked her in a way that stole the
breath from her lips.  ‘If I took you home now I don’t think I would ever
let you leave again.’

Mistral’s eyes
widened, she gazed wordlessly at him for several long seconds.  Realising
that she had stopped breathing she suddenly drew in a deep breath.

‘I really
don’t care about anything else right now,’ she whispered hoarsely.

‘And neither
do I,’ he murmured, running a finger across the inside of her wrist to trace
the white line of a scar.  ‘But we should.’

‘Want to know
the plan?’  Phantom’s bright voice sliced through their private world with
the brutality of a sword stroke.

‘What?’ 
Mistral stared at him dazedly.

‘For the
hunt?’ 

‘I really
don’t give a –’

‘Please have a
seat and tell us what we missed,’ Fabian said smoothly, kicking a stool out
from under the table for Phantom to sit on.

Mistral drew
in another deep breath and looked beseechingly at Fabian.  He smiled at
her and kissed her hands gently before he released them and turned his
attention to Phantom, who was almost bouncing up and down on his stool with
excitement.

Mistral
glanced at him irritably, ‘Have you been drinking cider Phantom?’  she
asked sharply.

‘One or two,’
he replied carelessly.  ‘But just listen to this plan Mistral!  It’s
going to be a riot!  We’re all going to head out together to scout for the
wolverines, wearing full armour of course – just in case the elves decide to
get in early ... Konrad, Golden and Columbine will follow for certain ... then,
once we’ve located the pack, Xerxes wants to position us so that we can pick
them off with poisoned bolts and arrows then use Elven Song to drive them to
us.  The other elves will hear it of course, and come straight to us – but
then they’ll see Konrad and be preoccupied with trying to kill him and ignore
us so we can clear up the pack and make our exit!  Brilliant isn’t it?’

There was a
short silence while Fabian looked steadily at Phantom.

‘And what if
the elves decide that you make better targets than Konrad?’

‘Well they
won’t though, will they?  It’s Konrad they want for taking the Contract on
one of their tribe!  They won’t care about us hunting a few Blackheart
Wolverines!’

There was a
brief pause while Mistral stared at Phantom in disbelief. 

He seemed
oblivious to her lack of enthusiasm and resumed his seat-bouncing, ‘Sounds like
a good plan doesn’t it?’ 

There was
another protracted silence then Fabian finally said, ‘Well, it sounds like the
start of a plan.’

‘Great!
 Let’s get going then!’  Phantasm cried, leaping to his feet and
grinning excitedly. 

Mistral
watched him walk across the tavern before rounding on Fabian.

‘It’s a
terrible plan and you know it!  What did you agree to it for? 
They’re going to draw the elves right to us!’

‘I know,’ said
Fabian quietly.  ‘But to be perfectly honest, the elves already know where
we are.  As soon as we leave this settlement we’re marked.  It
wouldn’t matter what plan was made, it’s going to end up being a fight on two
fronts; wolverines and elves.’

Mistral
exhaled slowly and looked at Fabian again, her gaze imploring.  

‘So we hunt …
and we fight … and then?’

Fabian laughed
and rose to his feet, ‘You Qualify and we get on with the longest damned year
of our lives.’

‘The things I do
for you,’ Mistral sighed, accepting his outstretched hand.

Fabian smiled,
‘You must love me.’

‘You have no
idea how much,’ she replied airily.  ‘Now, will you just check the strap
on my armour at the back please, it feels a bit loose –’

The
apprentices were more than happy for Fabian to join them on the hunt and were
all in characteristically high-spirits while they checked their armour and
weapons.

‘This is the
most upside down hunt I’ve ever been on,’ Brutus said to Cain as they rode out
of the small settlement.  ‘The hunters, that’s us – are really the
twice-hunted and we’re setting up one of our own to be prey and turn one set of
hunters on the other!’

‘Say that
again … but more slowly and without the hiccup in the middle,’ said Cain with a
puzzled look on his face.