The Channel (The Gifted Book 2) (11 page)

Daen dropped to the ground behind the log upon which he was sitting. Randell dove over it to join him. Taulin dropped behind the rock upon which he'd been perched, pressing his back to its side, taking cover from another attack. He looked up to see that Rhea hadn't moved. She hadn't taken cover.

Just as he was about to reach up and pull her down, two more arrows were released, but this time they came straight for her.

Taulin watched in horror, thinking he wouldn't get to her in time. She raised her hands and stopped the arrows, but this time, without really thinking about it, she flipped her hands and wished for the arrows to return to the sender.

The two thuds and subsequent screams indicated the arrows found their owners.

~~~

Lanne rode behind Gaibel with Beth bringing up the rear. For a time, it seemed the torches weren't going to be necessary. The tunnel was wide and straight, allowing the light from outside to illuminate the space. But then they made a sharp turn to the right, and the tunnel narrowed, and the light was gone.

Lanne looked over her shoulder, seeking that which had allowed her to feel she was still in the open, but all she could see was the light from Beth's torch and blackness behind her. A chill ran through her, and her body shuddered.

"Are you all right, Lanne?" Beth called forward.

"I'm fine. I'm just not fond of close spaces." She took a deep breath and tried to relax.

They continued in the narrow passageway, turning left and right, descending and climbing through the dark corridor. Not quite half way through, they passed an opening on their right—another tunnel.

Lanne hesitated as she passed by and tried to see beyond the cobwebs that practically filled the opening. She called forward to Gaibel. "Where does this lead?"

Gaibel pulled up and looked over her shoulder. "I am told it leads to a dead end."

Lanne took one last look at the opening and nudged her horse forward.

About halfway through, their torches started to flicker and die. Beth retrieved new torches from the pack behind her saddle and lit them, exchanging the exhausted torches for the new ones.

Gaibel heard a noise a short time later and she knew it could be only one thing. She stopped her horse just before looking back to Lanne and raising her finger to her lips. Lanne brought her horse to a halt close to Gaibel. Beth had already stopped, being used to her commander's ways.

They sat quietly in their saddles, the occasional creak of leather echoing off the tunnel walls as the horses shifted underneath them.

Lanne tilted her head and gave Gaibel her best what's-up look.

Gaibel shook her head and closed her eyes, barely breathing, listening for a sign but hearing nothing. She was about to give up, assuming the tunnel's acoustics were playing tricks on her, when the sound of a horse snorting echoed around them.

Beth drew her sword and turned in her saddle, thrusting her torch back into the darkness. Nothing. She couldn't see a thing, but she'd heard it, just as Gaibel and Lanne had.

Lanne pressed her hand to her mouth, her eyes wide in the darkness, fighting to see beyond Beth's torch. She looked to Gaibel for reassurance, but Gaibel simply shook her head and nudged her horse forward again.

Gaibel knew the tunnel wasn't a place to engage someone who meant them harm. She'd known they might be followed into the narrow passageway and now she had her evidence. But their spies would have to wait. She needed to get Lanne to safety.

The tunnel started to level out and become wider. The ceiling rose abruptly as they entered an underground cavern. Their torch light reflected back to them from shiny crystals embedded in the rock walls.

Lanne was mesmerized. It looked just like the night sky she'd seen when spying into the other world, the world where she hid Rhea. She twisted in her saddle and peered at all the sparkling surfaces in the cavern until her eyes fell upon a spot void of the sparkles.

Before she could say anything, Beth rode her horse up next to her. "It's another tunnel." Beth gazed to the spot to their left. "It leads off into several other tunnels, but they are all dead ends."

"Have you ever explored the tunnels?" Lanne asked.

Beth shook her head. "No. It didn't seem worth it."

Lanne couldn't argue that point. Why explore tunnels that ended in nothing? She'
d never been an adventurer, but something about the old unused tunnels called to her.

Shaking off the mysterious feeling, Lanne nudged her horse into the small shallow stream that appeared to flow out from the mountain wall on her right and reentered the mountain wall on the other side.

Gaibel's horse had just stepped out of the water when she shifted to look over her shoulder. "We're almost to the other side. We're going to pick up the pace now."

Once Lanne and Beth cleared the stream, Gaibel tapped the reins lightly, and her horse took off at a slow canter with Lanne and Beth following close behind.

The light from the outside became a small dot in the distance and grew quickly. They emerged from the tunnel to find the day had changed from dry to damp and dreary. A thin mist wrapped around them as if they'd rode into a cloud.

They quickly extinguished their torches with the small metal cup that hung upside down at the opening of the passageway and then stacked their torches with the others left by travelers that had come before.

Gaibel turned to Beth. "Take the high trail and wait for them. Don't approach. Just see what they do. I will see you in Eaton as planned."

Beth nodded. "Yes ma'am." She turned left to enter the trail that ran above and behind them. The path was rocky and had she been required to head north, she would have had to dismount.

Lanne looked up over her shoulder to see Beth sitting high in her saddle above the tunnel entrance. At that angle, she looked fierce and majestic.

Beth nodded and coaxed her horse behind a grouping of trees and vines, out of sight of the tunnel.

"Come. Let's go." Gaibel nudged her horse into a run.

Lanne followed Gaibel down the well-used trail that led to the road that would take them into Eantan.

"How much further?" Lanne asked as she rode up beside Gaibel. She'd never been to Eantan via this route and wanted to get a feel for where she was.

"Another hour."

Lanne could see the tension in Gaibel's jaw. "What's going on?"

Gaibel turned in her saddle. "I believe we're being followed."

Lanne jerked her head over her shoulder, an almost involuntary act. "For how long?"

"Since sending the message to the king."

That long?
"If someone was following us, wouldn't they have tried something by now?"

"It depends on what they're trying to accomplish. Remember who we're meeting."

Lanne gasped. "Oh my gosh. Rhea."

Gaibel glanced at Lanne and returned her eyes to the road before her. "Why didn't you ever tell Terrwyn her real name?" Gaibel tried to keep the tone of her voice level, but she'd been a little upset that her daughter didn't use the name she'd been given. Deep down, she knew it made sense. She knew there wasn't a way to ensure her real name was known, but it still bothered her.

"It would have caused too many questions. I had to be careful what I said. What if someone got too close and overheard me talking to her?"

Gaibel glanced at Lanne as she rode beside her.

For a moment, Lanne didn't think Gaibel was going to say anything, but then she nodded. She could see the understanding in her cousin's face, but the pain in her eyes pierced her heart.

"Thank you for keeping her safe." Gaibel's voice was strained.

"She'll know you soon. She'll understand." Lanne wanted to reassure Gaibel that Rhea ... that Terrwyn, would love her someday, but the words wouldn't come.

Gaibel didn't say anything, but pushed harder, faster. She needed to focus on getting to Eantan and ensuring her daughter's safety.

12
Packing

Time returned to normal as Rhea came out of what felt like a trance. Her heart was racing, and her hands were trembling. She ran towards one of the would-be assassins. "I'll check on this one, you check on the other."

"Rhea! Wait!" Daen shouted.

She pointed in the direction of the other shooter. "On the other side of the stream, about thirty yards out, you'll find the other."

She reached the man whose arrow was released seconds after the first. He was dead, with an arrow lodged in his chest. But, instead of the nameless face of a murdering monster, she knew this man. Bestian.

Rhea hated him for what he'd done to Randell, was furious with him for his attempts to kill her and her friends again. As she looked upon his angry looking face, she felt different. This
kill
was different than the madmen who had attacked them earlier. Knowing who he was changed things for her.

Her lungs refused to expand, to allow her to breathe.
She did what she had to do. Right?
Yes. He'd been warned. Daen told Bestian and Gauvin before they set them free that if they came after them ... Her knees trembled and finally gave out, dropping her to the ground, closer to the man she'd just killed. This time she couldn't hold back, she fell forward to her hands and lost the contents of her stomach.

Voices around her, voices that she'd blocked out, came rushing back to her. With her eyes closed, she sat back on her heels and took a deep breath before turning to see if Daen had found the other shooter.

She could feel Randell standing next to her. He was surveying the area around them. "I don't see any others." He placed his hand on her shoulder. "You going to be okay?"

She nodded and stood, kicking leaves over her the remains of her earlier snack. She took a stabilizing breath before reaching down and relieving Bestian of his bow and quiver. "These may come in handy later."

Randell reached to stop her from touching the dead man, but he wasn't fast enough. His heart ached for her. He couldn't imagine what she was feeling as he looked onto the face of the man who had kidnapped him and tried to murder him.

He couldn't bring himself to feel sorry for the guy. He'd been given too many chances to stop what he was doing, but he didn't, and now he was dead.

Rhea pushed her wobbly legs to take her from the scene. She was committed to not falling apart. She'd saved the lives of her friends. She had defended herself. She'd repeatedly given them warnings, but they wouldn't stop.
She didn't do anything wrong. She didn't do anything wrong.
She kept saying that over and over in her mind as the guilt pressed the air from her lungs.
If she didn't do anything wrong, then why did it feel so bad?

Tears threatened to fall from her eyes, but she held them wide, refusing to blink, refusing to let the tears escape and make her appear weak.

Randell watched Rhea as she slowly made her way back to the clearing. He took a step to follow but stopped, deciding to relieve Bestian of his sword and the knife and pouch tied to his belt. He tossed the pouch in his hand, testing its weight. "I wonder where he got this."

Rhea reached the clearing just as Daen and Taulin returned carrying items retrieved from Gauvin.

"I warned them. I told them not come after us." Daen locked onto Rhea's eyes and saw the sheen of tears. He reached out and took her into his arms. "I'm so sorry. It was supposed to be me. I was supposed to rid us of them if they returned."

Rhea accepted the embrace for a second but then pushed back from his arms. "What's done is done."

Taulin was staring at her intently, but Rhea didn't care.

Daen still held Rhea's shoulders, turning her, trying to get her to look at him. "What just happened?" Daen's face was a mix of emotions: fear, anger, pride, curiosity.

"It was similar to what happened to me during the sword fight. Time slowed. I didn't want you hurt. It was me," she lowered her voice, "but it wasn't me alone."

"But how did you do it?" Daen asked. "I mean the arrows. They ..."

"I did that. I sent them back." She nodded. Her voice was straining, a whisper. "I just wanted them to stop."

Daen took her into his arms again. "Thank you. Are you going to be all right?"

Rhea stepped back. "I will be." She was numb now, working on autopilot. The little mundane things seemed to be all she could handle. She pressed her hand to her mouth. "I need some gum or toothpaste." She made her way to her belongings.

Daen watched her, concerned that at any moment she'd fall apart. "Randell, keep an eye on her while I check for any other life in the area."

Randell watched Rhea disappear behind her horse

"I see two horses, not far from here," said Daen a moment later. He pointed past Bestian's body. "I'll go get them. They shouldn't be left tied up."

Taulin was waiting for Rhea when she stood and turned around. "Excuse me, but do you want to tell me what just happened? Who are you?" He pointed into the trees where the dead bodies lay. "And who are they?"

There wasn't much she could tell him for certain, but since he was now in the same cross-hairs as they were, he had a right to know something. "My name is Terrwyn Gaulette, daughter of Commander Gaibel Gaulette of the Taulomi realm. Someone either wants to capture me or kill me. As for what just happened, my gift just saved us from two men who have been trying to capture me since ..." She stopped, letting her comment just hang there, hoping he wouldn't notice.

Taulin didn't say anything. He just watched and waited for the woman in front of him to finish. He wasn't sure if he'd gone
addle from her beauty or the circumstances of the day had distracted him.

Rhea shook her head and looked into his eyes. "Everything else about me is speculation." Their faces were inches apart now and her voice was soft. "Now you know who I am. What I am is still open for debate."

Rhea watched Taulin take in what she'd just shared, and wondered if he would say something, but she wasn't going to wait to find out. She stepped back from him and started to load her horse with her gear.

They'd just finished when Daen returned with two more horses in tow.