Shards of a Broken Crown (41 page)

“You’re
not the first to say that,” said Owen, “but the politics
. . . the nobles will never stand for it.”

“They will
if the King orders it,” said Erik. “And someday Patrick
will be King.”

“Now
there’s a chilling thought,” joked Owen.

Erik said,
“He’ll grow up.”

Owen laughed.
“Listen to you. You’re the same age!”

Erik shrugged.
“I feel older than my years.”

“Well, you
are,” said Owen, “and that’s a fact. Now, get out
and find those Hadati and ask them if they’re crazy enough to
do as you ask. If they say no, I will not be surprised, as they
strike me as being a smarter than average bunch.”

Erik rose,
saluted casually, and departed. When he was gone, Owen looked at die
map and said to die orderly, “Send for Captain Subai, please.”

Jimmy pointed.
“Up there.” He had commandeered a horse and sent two men
back to Port Vykor, riding double. He had ordered die other ten men
to accompany him in his pursuit of Malar, and he knew die spy had
only one possible destination.

Jimmy was
certain now that Malar Enares was a Keshian spy. A simple thief would
have taken Jimmy’s weapons and gold. He only took Jimmy’s
horse to have a spare as he fled to Keshian lines. The fact he had
first taken the Prince’s orders to Lord Duko was the single
most indicting evidence.

Captain Songti
and the other men looked uncertain about the young noble’s
orders, but they obeyed. As they stopped to rest their horses, Songti
said, “Lord James—”

“Jimmy. My
grandfather was Lord James.”

“Lord
Jimmy,” amended Songti.

“Just
Jimmy.”

With a shrug,
Songti said, “Jimmy, you move with certain purpose, and don’t
seem to be following tracks. Can I assume you know where this
fugitive is heading?”

“Yes,”
said Jimmy. “There are few places a man can safely travel
between Kesh and the Kingdom, and there is only one crossing point
near enough where he stands a chance of finding a Keshian patrol
before running into ours. It’s up there”—he pointed
to a distant range of low mountains—”in the high desert.
It’s Dulsur Pass. It’s a very narrow little defile that
empties out at the oasis of Okateo. Very popular with smugglers.”

“And
spies,” suggested Songti.

“Yes,”
said Jimmy.

“If you
know of this place, sir, why not keep a garrison there?”

Jimmy shrugged.
“Because we find it as useful to keep open as the Keshians do.”

“I don’t
think I’ll ever understand this society of yours, sir.”

“Well,
when the war is over, you may return to Novindus should you wish.”

Songti said, “I
am a soldier and I have served Lord Duko most of my life. I wouldn’t
know what to do back in Novindus. None of us would.”

Jimmy motioned
it was time to resume riding. “Well, as sure as the sun rises
in the east, there are those down in Novindus building their own
little empires as much as Fadawah is here.”

“Some of
the younger men might wish to return,” said Songti as he
remounted. “But most of us who have been with Duko for a while
will make lives here, in your Kingdom.”

“Then it’s
time for you to begin thinking of it as our Kingdom.”

“So my
lord Duko instructs,” admitted Songti as he motioned the patrol
forward.

They rode up a
dusty trail, into plateau country, long rolling vistas of dust, tough
dry plants, and sun-bleached rock. A dry wind struck, and grit
collected in a man’s eyes, nose, and threatened to peel skin
from bone. Even water tasted gritty when drunk, as the fine, powdery
sand got everywhere.

They reached a
high plateau and Jimmy pointed upward. “The oasis is at the top
of that.” He pointed at another plateau, easily a thousand feet
higher than the one upon which they stood. Looking backward, they
could see the lowlands leading down to Shandon Bay.

Songti said,
“From here on a clear day you can see the bay, I think.”

“More,”
said Jimmy. “On a very clear day I have been told you can see
the peaks of the Calasitius Mountains to the north.” He urged
his horse forward and they continued, moving upward.

Night found them
resting in a large pass, sheltered from the wind and sand. They sat
on the rocks, their saddles behind them or under their feet. The
horses were staked out a short way away. Jimmy ordered a cold camp
against the possibilities others were nearby, or that Malar was
looking over his shoulder.

Jimmy knew that
he stood a fair chance of overtaking the spy if he didn’t know
his way through these hills as well as Jimmy. He might have been a
boy in far Rillanon, but his grandfather made sure he and his brother
knew every weakness along the border with Kesh: smugglers’
coves, trails, goat paths, creeks, and gaps in the mountains. And
Lord James’s knowledge had been encyclopedic, Jimmy remembered;
he had made sure his grandsons knew of every potential attack
corridor into the Kingdom.

Chewing jerked
beef, Captain Songti said, “Are you certain we’ll catch
this spy?”

“We must.
He stole orders to Duko and knows too much about the lack of defenses
in Krondor. The orders also detail our plan for dealing with the
threat to Land’s End.”

“We have
encountered a few of these Keshians. They are determined fighters.”

“Keshian
Dog Soldiers are not known for cowardice. Occasionally their leaders
are, but if they’re ordered to fight to the last man, they
will.”

“If we
catch this man, we avoid a big fight?”

“Yes,”
said Jimmy.

“Then we
shall have to catch this man.”

“At first
light we leave,” said Jimmy. He gathered his cloak about him
and said, “Wake me just before.”

Akee and his men
spread out along the base of the cliff. Erik said, “What’s
the best way to proceed?”

They had carried
bundles of weapons and dry clothing wrapped in oil-treated canvas,
swimming the route Erik had previously discovered. The plan was to
get to the top of the cliff in the darkness, and just before dawn,
Subai’s Pathfinders, as well as a few dozen Krondorian
regulars, would make as much noise as possible at the far end of the
defenders’ wall, hoping to make them think the Kingdom forces
were attempting to circle the barricades on the hillside. They would
retreat as soon as engaged, with Subai and his Pathfinders climbing
the steep hillside and up into the mountains. Once past this barrier,
they’d start their journey along the western slopes of the
mountains, making their way to Yabon. The Krondorians would retreat
with a lot of noise, apparently in disorder.

The hope was
this would allow the Hadati and Erik to slip in behind the defenders
and reach the gate. If they could get it open, Greylock promised they
only had to hold it for two minutes. He had two companies of cavalry,
light bowmen who could cross the gap in less than two minutes, and a
company of one hundred heavy lancers, who could sweep behind the line
and clear the wall of defenders.

From above the
cliffs came the sounds of men shouting as Greylock’s probing
attacks were withdrawn. The defenders had been dealing with them
since noon, and as the sun set, Owen was quitting the attacks. Erik
prayed the attacks had kept the defenders busy enough not to peer
over the cliffs. Otherwise there might be a very nasty reception
waiting for them at the top.

Akee looked
upward and said, “Pashan is our best climber. He goes first and
carries a cord. If he reaches the top, we will tie the cord to a rope
and he will pull it up.” With a slight smile, Akee added, “Even
you should be able to reach the top of the cliffs with a rope to hang
on to, Captain.”

Erik said, “I
am flattered by your confidence in me.”

The man named
Pashan took off his weapons, the long blade most Hadati carried over
their backs, and the short blade carried at the belt. He was short,
compact, and his arms and legs looked powerful. He stripped off his
soft buckskin boots and handed everything to a companion. He took the
light cord and carefully coiled it around his chest and shoulder, so
he wore it like the plaid most Hadati wore when sporting clan dress.
The bulk of it trailed behind him to a coil resting on the sand. Akee
had instructed the men to be careful it uncoiled without any hitch,
lest Pashan be pulled off balance by unexpected resistance.

Pashan adjusted
his kilt and started to climb. Erik glanced to the west. The sun had
set a few minutes earlier, and now they were watching a brave man
carefully scale a cliff face in failing light. It would be dark
before he safely reached the top.

The minutes
dragged by and upward the man climbed, each hand and foot moved
carefully, testing the grip or footing. Like a fly on a wall, he
moved slowly upward, slightly to the right of his starting point.

Erik was amazed.
At first he was twenty feet above, then thirty, then forty. At fifty
feet he was a third of the way to the top. He did not stop to rest,
and Erik decided that hanging on the face of the rocks was no more
rest than climbing would be. At no time did Pashan’s rhythm
change. A step, a grip, a shift of weight, and up he would move.

As darkness
descended, it became more difficult to see him moving among the
rocks. Erik lost sight of him in the inky shadows between the rocks,
then he caught sight of movement; Pashan was now two-thirds of the
way to the top of the cliffs.

Again he
vanished into the gloom and the minutes dragged by. As the night
deepened into darkness—no moons would rise until near dawn this
night—finally the cord began to jerk up and down.

“Tie the
rope,” instructed Akee.

The remaining
cord was cut and tied tightly around the end of a much heavier rope.
When it was secured, they tugged three times firmly on the cord.
Pashan rapidly pulled the rope upward.

The rope
continued to pay out, then jerked up and down again. The first jerks
had been the signal Pashan had reached the top of the cliffs and to
tie the rope. The second signal indicated either he had tied off the
rope, or he was now digging in to hold it. The second man up the rope
would be the smallest remaining. He would join with Pashan and hold
the end. Each man after would add his strength as the larger men
climbed.

The second man
had his weapons tied in a bundle slung over his back and started up
hand over hand, using his feet to boost him along the surface of the
rocks. Erik was amazed at how fast he climbed.

Then the third
man went up.

The night’s
silence was cut by the distant sounds from the enemy’s camp,
but not alarms or the sounds of fighting. Slowly the squad of fifty
Hadati hillmen reached the summit, and at last Erik and Akee were
alone on the beach.

“I’ll
go after you,” said Erik.

Akee nodded and
was up the rope without a word.

Erik waited,
then gripped the rope. He was never a good climber, so he wanted to
be last in case he slipped. If he was going to fall to his death, he
wasn’t about to knock Akee off the rope behind him.

Erik found his
feet to be of little aid to him as he struggled up the rope. He was a
powerful man, with a huge upper body, yet he was also a heavy man.
His arms were burning and his back cramping with pain as he reached a
point near the summit. Suddenly the rope began to move and for an
instant Erik felt a stab of panic before he realized he was being
pulled up.

Akee reached
over the edge of the cliff, took Erik by the wrist, and with a yank
hauled him up to safety. With a whisper, he said, “Someone
comes.”

Erik nodded,
pulling his belt knife out and looking around. They were in a sparse
stand of trees, pines and aspens, and as far as he could tell, he and
Akee were alone. The other Hadati had somehow managed to vanish into
the woods.

Akee quickly
moved to cut off the rope tied to a tree nearby and cast the remnants
off the cliff. Then he pulled Erik away and they slipped off into the
woods.

From a short
distance he heard men walking, and one spoke in the language of
Novindus. “I don’t hear nothing.”

“I tell
you, I thought I heard something, like someone moving around.”

“There’s
no one here,” came the first voice.

Erik hugged the
side of a small oak, glancing through the lower branches of a pair of
star pines as two figures emerged from the other side of the
clearing. One carried a torch. “This is a fool’s errand.”

“Then
you’re just the man for the job,” said the other.

“Very
funny.” They reached the clearing before the cliffs and the
first man said, “That’s a long way down, so don’t
get too close.”

“Don’t
need to tell me, lad. I have no love for heights.”

“Then how
did you get up the wall at Krondor?”

“Didn’t,”
said the second man. “I waited for them to blow up the walls
and walked in.”

“You were
lucky,” said the first man. “See, no one here. What did
you think? Someone was sending monkeys climbing them cliffs, or some
sort of magic thing?”

“I’ve
seen enough weird magic things to last me my lifetime, that’s a
fact,” said the second man as they turned to retrace their
steps to the camp. “What about that demon thing and the Queen,
and them snake priests? If I never see magic again in this life, it’s
fine by me.”

“Did I
tell you the time I met that dancer in Hamsa? Now that was magic.”

“Only six
or seven times, so spare me . . .”

The voices faded
off into the night. From behind Erik heard a voice say, “They
think the woods empty.”

“Good,”
said Erik to Akee. “Then we can wait until just before first
light to make our move.”

Erik said,
“Spread the word. Have the men stay where they are, out of
sight. We gather an hour before dawn.”

Akee vanished
into the gloom without a word.