Wizards (20 page)

"It could be either," I admitted. I wouldn't be the slightest bit surprised if I was using magic subconsciously. I could never remember a time when I hadn't been able to see whatever I wanted, provided it was visible in the first place.

"Are we going to hop to them?"

"That might not be the safest plan. I'll hop us beyond them and then we can meet them head on. Given the way the ground slopes over there, they'll think we've come over the brow of a hill. Not everyone I meet in these places is friendly towards wizards."

Jenny nodded in approval of the plan and held out her hand.

We landed out of sight on the other side of the hill. One day I was going to have to investigate how my powers always put me exactly where I wanted them to. It was as if they were cheating and looking ahead.

"Act nonchalant and don't say anything when they greet us. I'll try and touch one of them to learn their language and then teach you. Just smile and look pretty until I do."

"I understand, oh great Welsh Native Tracker. You wantum squaw keepum plenty quiet."

"Chance would be a fine thing," I said under my breath. Why were girls so sarcastic?

The tops of the wagons came into view first. They were more like gypsy caravans now I could see them up close. They'd been gaily decorated once, but sand and the glare of the sun left their painted sides grey and faded. Each horse was being steered by a walker. The walkers themselves were dour looking men in faded red and purple clothing. Each man wore a sombrero and carried a large knife in a belt at their waist.

We got within fifty feet before they noticed us. The wind was blowing into their faces and they kept their heads down. To say they were taken aback by our presence would be an understatement. A closer description would be to say they looked profoundly shocked.

"Alit treddle bim?" the man leading the nearest caravan asked. I walked towards him with a wide smile on my face and hands open in front of me where he could see them. He frowned but made no attempt to reach for his knife.

"Alit treddle bim?" he repeated when I made no answer. He put out his hand in greeting and I grasped it gratefully. With any luck, we would soon be home and dry.

"Do you go with God?" he asked for the third time as I absorbed the language from his mind.

"We go with God," I replied and I saw the relief on his face. "This is my wife," I said waving towards Jenny. She had moved forwards as soon as she saw me take the man's hand and I held out my hand to her. Jenny took the hint and I fed her the language as I pulled her close.

"My wife and I are searching the trail for an errant child. Have you seen her?"

"We caught a witch woman. My son keeps a knife to her throat in vigil until we get her to town. Father Drog prefers all witches be brought to him to burn the evil from the creatures himself rather than allow them the quick and easy death of cold steel."

"I understand. This may be the one we seek. She displayed disturbing evil and was about to be tested when she fled from us." I wondered how I made this stuff up. It seems I absorb some of the local culture along with the language and I knew at some deep level that this was the right thing to say. Jenny frowned at me, so maybe the culture didn't take when I passed the language on.

"She appeared out of the very air itself the night before last. Her witch power must have been drained by her travel because we were able to capture and bind her without trouble. I will show her to you but you must stay clear of the wagon when I open the door."

"You do not see us as Children of God?"

"You wear strange clothes like the witch women, and speak in an accent unfamiliar to me. You understand that I must protect my family from strangers, lest they turn out to be demons in disguise."

"As would any prudent head of the family," Jenny chipped in. I could see the man's face go through a mixture of emotions as Jenny spoke. In the end, he nodded.

Our actions must have looked strange to anybody watching us. Jenny and I walked around the lead caravan giving it a wide berth. The other two men flanked us, staying at least ten feet away. The man we talked to walked to the back of the wagon and shouted out.

"Tyden, it is I, your father, Grimpt. I am about to open the door."

"What is the word of God, father?"

"Kill all witches," Grimpt replied with a grin on his face. I guessed his son passed some test by asking for the phrase.

Grimpt unlatched and opened the door at the back of the caravan and swung the door wide. Sitting on the floor of the wagon with his legs splayed wide in front of him was a scruffy fourteen year old boy with the wildest eyes I've ever seen. He held Bronwyn in front of him with a knife pressed against her neck. The knife had already pricked her neck many times and her neck was stained with blood. Her hands and feet were tied with rope and a similar piece of rope gagged her mouth. Bronwyn looked terrified and who could blame her?

"Strangers, father," the boy said in something close to terror.

"Come to view the witch woman, child. There is nothing to fear." Grimpt turned back to me. "Is she the one you were looking for?"

Jenny turned away so that the men couldn't see her face.

"She is the one," I agreed. "A witch just as we feared. She deserves to be burnt."

A murmur of approval rose from the men and I saw Grimpt and his son Tyden relax at my words.

"We will not trouble you further," I told them. "Come Jenny."

'Ask us to stay, ask us to stay', I thought at Grimpt as hard as I could. I walked to Jenny and took her hand.

"Stay strangers and break your fast with us. I take it you have come from Barren?" Grimpt asked to my intense relief.

"Indeed we have. We would be happy to accept your hospitality."

"Then it is decided. My companions here are Yuldu and Aldar. They are my brothers."

"I am Jake and this is my wife, Jenny."

Grimpt swung the door of the caravan shut on his son and Bronwyn, making sure its latch closed.

"Walk with me as we approach the campsite," Grimpt suggested. "Your wife may ride one of the wagons if she wishes."

"It would only make her soft," I replied, to general chuckles. "She may walk at the rear of the wagons if that pleases you."

"Well said," Yuldu commented. "My wife and daughter hide in my wagon against the sun. Your wife could make their acquaintance if you so desire."

"If God approves," I said piously. Many of these words and phrases seemed to be built into the language, like please and thank you.

Yuldu unlatched the door of his wagon and introduced Jenny to his wife Kallif and daughter Sinfal. Jenny climbed into the wagon and then its door was latched tight from the outside. It seemed the men didn't trust their wives and children enough to let them come and go freely.

The campsite was over two miles down the road and it took us nearly an hour to reach it. The heat was getting to me by the time the wagons were neatly parked around a small oasis. Small shrubs growing by the dirty looking pond provided a windbreak against the endless wind.

I still needed to figure out a way to rescue Bronwyn. The boy holding her was far too jittery for me to attempt to drag her away from him. He would stab her on the slightest excuse. I really must practice more magic, because I didn't have any trick lined up I could be certain would work. Even giving the boy a magical order to sleep would take a second or two to take effect and it would take less time than that for him to slit her throat.

I was working on the idea that if we stayed close to these fanatics I was bound to get an opportunity to rescue Bronwyn eventually. I wasn't sure Jenny would understand what I was up to, but there was no way to let her know.

The women were let out of the wagons. After Grimpt went through the same knocking and password ritual with Tyden, I discovered things were more desperate than I thought. Bronwyn looked alert when I saw her earlier, but when she was pulled out of the wagon by Grimpt and Tyden, I saw she was desperately dehydrated.

"She needs water," Jenny told them.

"That would require us to loosen the gag and she would cast a spell upon us." Grimpt said grimly. "She will live long enough to burn."

Jenny moved close to Bronwyn. She made as if to turn away and I tensed as I saw the look in her eyes. Her foot kicked out backwards, knocking Tyden's knife out of his hand.

Then all hell broke loose.

As soon as I saw the look on Jenny's face I knew she was going to do something foolish. I was moving towards Bronwyn before she kicked the knife from Tyden's hand. I can't really say I formulated a plan, but I grabbed Grimpt by the shirt and pulled, dragging him away from the girls.

Jenny followed up the kick by turning around and pushing Tyden to the ground. I found myself standing in front of Jenny and Bronwyn in a defensive posture as Grimpt's family pulled their knives and advanced towards us.

"Get us out of here." Jenny said.

This sounded like an eminently sensible idea and I backed towards Jenny. She would know to hold onto Bronwyn so I could take both of them with me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw movement as Jenny grabbed my shoulder. There was no time to worry about it as I hopped us to the Bat Cave.

"That went well, considering the risks you took," I said to Jenny cheerfully as I turned to face her. As anticipated, she held Bronwyn who looked close to collapse.

"Not as well as you think."

Jenny tilted her head to one side and I followed her gaze. Tyden was backing away like a frightened rat with his knife ready in his hand.

"How the hell did that happen?"

"He grabbed Bronwyn's ankle as you hopped. Take care of him Jake. I've got to get these ropes off Bronwyn and give her some water. She's burning up."

"Allow me."

I waved my hand. The ropes untied themselves and fell to the floor. I started after Tyden. I could have made him fall asleep but he might hurt himself falling. He couldn't help his upbringing and I found I almost sympathized with him. The sooner I got him to accept I wasn't going to hurt him, the sooner I could hop him back.

The boy retreated until there was nowhere left to go. He put his back against the wall and pointed the knife at me. His hands shook as I got closer.

It was hard for me to put a phrase together in his language. Now we were back in Wales I found I was thinking exclusively in English.

"We go with God," I said hopefully.

Tyden stiffened and urine ran down his leg. His trousers only came to his knees so I got a better view of this than I wanted. He went rigid and dropped the knife, his eyes rolling. Tyden slid inelegantly down the wall into the pool of urine.

"I didn't think I was that frightening."

"Meep, meep, meep." [Who’s the little human? Shouldn't he be housetrained? And, by the way, I'm not cleaning that up.]

I turned to find Fluffy standing a few feet behind me, up on his back legs and head tilted looking at the boy. I sighed. Seeing a dragon had undoubtedly caused Tyden's faint. I must admit a part of me hoped I really had been that frightening.

"Sorry, Fluffy. He's from another world and was terrified. Seeing you sent him over the edge."

"Meep?" [Really?] Fluffy sounded far too pleased with himself.

"Jake. I need you."

I hurried back as Jenny sounded urgent. Tyden would keep. It didn't look as though he was going anywhere.

"Jake, you have to help her. She's not drinking."

I dropped down to my knees in front of Bronwyn. When I touched the girl I felt the heat of fever.

"I'm not really a healer, but I'll give it a go."

I commanded Bronwyn to recover. 'Get better, get better' I thought over and over again as I stroked her cheek.

"It's working." Jenny tilted a glass of water in front of Bronwyn's lips and she gulped it down. The girl's face took on a healthier color as she drank. She opened her eyes and stared wildly at me for a few seconds before she relaxed. I took my hand from her face and picked up the ropes. I’d need them for Tyden.

I went back to the boy and picked up his knife. He was still out cold and it didn't seem fair to tie him up. I settled for tying his feet. Just so long he didn't run everything would be fine. I’d need him awake before I hopped him back. I wasn’t going to leave anyone unconscious in a desert. I'm not that kind of guy.

"You're Jake Morrissey," a croaky voice said. I turned to find myself facing a furious Bronwyn. Jenny stood behind the eleven year old with a smirk on her face.

"Guilty as charged."

"Kids at school say you have the sight. I said you were a fraud." Bronwyn looked beyond me to the boy on the floor. "Are you going to kill him? If you don't, I will."

"No one is going to die," I said firmly. I saw that her anger was directed at the boy. I supposed that made some kind of sense.

Bronwyn looked like a pretty little girl in her photograph. In the flesh she looked older. She was certainly striking, with raven black hair and a creamy white oval face. She looked more like thirteen than eleven to me.

"He raped me, repeatedly," Bronwyn said without a trace of emotion. Then, before I could stop her, she walked over to the unconscious boy and began to kick him, viciously. I dragged her off him. She struggled against me as I pulled her away.