Page 140 of Sword & Shadow
He didn’t wait for her to respond; he wanted to relieve her of that difficulty. Instead, he turned and walked away, refusing to look back. He stuck his foot in the stirrup of his saddle and swung onto his horse. Auden and Rafferty joined him. They guided their horses away from camp. And all the while, Deckard kept his eyes on the road ahead of him, even as he left his heart behind.
Part III: Moors & Marshes
Would that I could be free of him; then I may love, my soul untainted.
Yet, he haunts me, and I forsake him not.
Quote from Lias, heroine of the novel,Drakeblud Manor
It was suggested that Rouland Blount I was the most egregiously cunning man. The early records remark on his charm and handsome countenance, while the latter accounts reveal his more diabolical nature. Though he was granted a duchy by King Thourton and given a place on the royal council, it was not enough for the then-duke. Many said Blount wormed his way into Thourton’s good graces, seeking to take the place of the king’s childless state. Many letters and documents note the relationship between the king and duke, showing their growing friendliness and regard for one another. There is, in fact, an existing will that notes a change in Thourton’s lineage, marking Blount as his heir should he never have a son.
Many suspected Blount’s intentions, but they were all written off by the king, some even flogged or imprisoned for their sentiments. However, Thourton’s affinity for the duke was, as we now know, faulty. Thourton’s late marriage to the youthful Carin Doyle produced a child. A month after the announcement, Blount enacted his coup, murdering the king, his wife, and unborn child, and instituting the fifty-seven-year reign of King Rouland Blount I.
Excerpt fromA Complete History of West Auld, written by Lord Edmaund Fishere, Earl of Mouroc, published posthumously in 1575
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
It took the rest of the day for Ilain to regain consciousness. She remained in a motionless slumber until sunset while Evylin, Thom, and Ethenn waited cautiously in the woods. The fear of pursuers from Sutterlund Reach and the need to keep watch over Ilain kept them from venturing out of their small encampment. In fact, they hardly spoke, the three of them alert and waiting with bated breath for Ilain’s recovery.
It was an unfortunate turn of events for Evylin, as it allowed her far too much time to regret her decision. Throughout the day, she fought back the tears that threatened to overwhelm her. She shoved down her emotions, clinging to reason as her only remaining salvation. She couldn’t fall apart. Not now.
Whether spoken or not, she was the inherent leader of their new band. While Thom was the highest-ranking soldier, since Evylin and Ethenn were Warriors, both outranked him in military prowess by default. Ilain would lead their route through the moors of southern Wauld, but she wasn’t nearly as strategically minded as the soldiers and would defer to their suggestions. And Ethenn—well, he abdicated all authority handed to him.
Without Deckard, they would naturally look to Evylin. Which meant she couldn’t wallow in her self-pity.
Instead, Evylin spent the day quietly working with Ethenn, teaching him to tap into his Warrior senses. It wasn’t hard to train him to keep his eyes and ears magically heightened, and they both stood guard around the camp. They took turns on watch, napping to recover from their long night in the Wind Keep. During his shift, Ethenn went out to ensure they hadn’t left a trail. A valuable decision, as only an hour later, they heard men searching in the woods around them. They hunkered down, remaining low and silent in the brush as they waited for the patrol to pass.
While they watched, it was Thom’s job to take vigil over and care for Ilain when he wasn’t catching up on sleep himself. He sat by her side, a strangely contemplative look on his face as he checked her vitals at semi-regular intervals. His gentleness and reflective demeanor gave Evylin pause, and she began to wonder if the flirtations between him and the Fire Mage might have come to mean more than mere playful banter.
When Ilain finally roused from her slumber, it was as though she simply woke from a normal night’s rest. She stretched, looked up at Thom, and scrunched her nose. “What a frightfully unwelcome thing to wake up to,” she said, then slapped his cheek playfully. “Wipe that furrow from your brow, Thomas. I’m not going to die.”
Instead of saying something normal like “I’m happy you’re all right,” Thom glowered and grumbled, “My name isn’t Thomas.”
Ilain sat up, her lips curling in a dubious scowl. “You’re not serious. Your name is justThom. That’s not a name. It’s a nickname.”
Thom gave her a bland glare. “I just spent the last twelve hours watching you sleep. Do you mindnotbaiting me? Maybe you could even pretend to be grateful.”
Ilain’s coppery brows rose. “You were watching me sleep? That’s creepy, even for you.”
“My apologies for wanting to be sure you lived.”
“You’re forgiven.” Ilain rose then, straightening the folds of her skirt. She looked around the clearing, sparing a smile for Evylin and Ethenn before continuing her inspection. “Where are the others?’
Ethenn turned to Evylin.
Swallowing past the tightness in her throat, Evylin motioned toward the road, gesturing well away from their camp. “They left,” she said.
Ilain narrowed her eyes. “To go where?”
“The Time Keep,” Evylin said, then forced herself to explain the rest. “We decided to split up. They’ll go directly across the continent while we loop down through the moors.”
It took several seconds before Ilain processed Evylin’s words. “Whose stupid idea was that?” she asked.
“Technically, Auden suggested it, but I agreed.”
“I did too,” Ethenn added.
Ilain’s vibrant gaze flicked between the pair. “When did you two decide to go daft on me? What an idiotic plan. What good will splitting up do for us?”
