SummerDanse (3 page)

Later, as Traz and I packed our things, he burst out, “It was great!” he said. “Oh, I wish you’d seen.”

“Seen what?” I pulled my thoughts away from Mama and Papa and our burning house.

“Breyard. And Oleeda’s face, too.”

“Oh, right. What did you do?”

“All I had to do was touch his head with my staff and concentrate for a moment. No effort at all. His eyes blinked open, and he asked where he was. You should’ve seen Oleeda. She couldn’t believe it.”

“I know how she feels. I couldn’t believe it, either, that time when you woke up after breaking your leg, and it was all healed.” I gave him my warmest smile. “I really appreciate it.”

He gave a little shrug. “What’s the point of having power if you don’t use it?”

What point, indeed?

It took forever for me to fall asleep. I lay trying not to toss and turn as everyone else’s breathing slowed into the rhythm of sleep. First, I thought about my parents. Why had dragonmasters taken them? Why had they left Breyard behind? Then Anazian’s handsome face floated in my imagination, laughing at me as I tried to escape his gaze. And how would we be able to resettle at the desert lake with no resources? Overriding everything: why were the dragonmasters after us?

Eventually, my mind wearied of its frenzy, and I fell asleep.

A woman stood before me wearing a brown robe, her face shrouded in a deep hood. I stood there on my guard, poised to flee if necessary. Yet there was no threat from her. Music filled the air, a high-pitched melody that pierced my spirit. A voice began to sing in harmony, and after a moment I realized it was the woman. She lifted her hand and beckoned to me, and when she turned, I followed.

Her movements were silent, and I summoned my maejic so that I could walk silently, too. The woman led on, through the trees, silent as a ghost. After awhile, I recognized where we were going: just ahead was a stone circle, an ancient monument from time out of memory.

I hesitated at the edge of the circle, wary of entering it with the unknown woman who now stood in the center. Just as I summoned the courage, someone placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Donavah, what are you doing here?”

I jolted awake to find that I really was standing at the stone circle, and Grey stood next to me. I shivered in the cold air. “Grey? What happened?”

“You were sleepwalking. Chase got me up.”

I looked around for the hound. “Where ...?”

“I told him to stay at the cave. I was afraid he might try to wake you.” He put an arm around my shoulder and led me a few steps away from the circle. “Then I end up having to wake you myself. Are you all right?”

“Cold,” I said. “I don’t understand what’s happening. I’ve never walked in my sleep before.” Then I remembered that night on Stychs when Shandry had followed me. We’d never told Grey about it, because I’d been on watch and didn’t want to admit to him I’d fallen asleep.

He glanced back toward the stone circle and shuddered. “There’s something evil there. Can’t you feel it? Something horrible would’ve happened if you walked into there. C’mon, let’s go back before you freeze.”

He drew me close to his side, and I felt a little warmer. And not all of it was due to his body heat. It felt both good and confusing to be so near to him. My heart sped up a little, then I worried that he would perceive it. I told myself not to be stupid; after his relationship with Shandry, which had ended only days before when we’d returned to Hedra, it couldn’t be possible that he’d be interested in me, not that way. Could it?

But as if my thought triggered something in him, too, Grey stopped walking. We were almost to the path but still under cover of the trees. Silver moonlight filtered through the branches, not providing enough light to see details clearly, but instead making everything glow with gentle luminosity.

We faced each other, and Grey took my shoulders in his hands. My blood pounded in my ears as he bent his head toward me. For a split second, my mind said I should push him away, but when my hands touched his chest and I felt his heartbeat through his shirt, my own heart flopped over. I let him kiss me.

Colors exploded in my soul, and the taste of his lips left me breathless. One of his hands rose to my neck, and the touch of his skin on mine sent a shiver of pleasure through me. I broke off the kiss for a moment and lifted a hand to touch his face. He smiled and pulled me close again. I closed my eyes as his lips touched mine.

Then he let out a strange little gasp, and the full weight of his body fell against me. I staggered backwards.

“How very touching,” someone said with a nasty laugh as Grey dropped to the ground. There, bloody knife in hand, stood Anazian.

Word has arrived from Barrowfield, and I am displeased. Oh, Tegar and Mellas are taken, and that is good. Yet not all has gone according to plan.

Idiot Royal Guardsmen! I gave explicit instructions that none were to be harmed, yet they left the brat behind, dead. That he fought is no excuse, and I shall have the tongue and hands of the man who killed him.

Further, the dragon and the girl escaped! Again! Responsibility for that can be lain on Tegar. Ironic, for he does not know that slaying several of my dragonmasters, while fruitless in regard to himself, saved his own daughter from capture. Temporarily, of course. I have already sent my son a bird with tidings. He will know what to do to correct the situation.

Ah, I shall savor the look on Tegar’s face when he learns into whose power he has fallen, when he looks on me again after all these years.

I stood frozen in shock, unable to speak or think as I stared down at Grey. Before I could gather my thoughts, Anazian grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me toward him.

“You will not escape this time,” he said, his voice threatening and assured. He stood tall, took a huge breath, and whispered a single word, one I’d never heard before but overflowing with power.

A flash of blue light blinded me. It felt like something was squeezing me on all sides, and I thought my skull would crack. I screamed, but no sound reached my ears.

Then the pressure disappeared, and I sucked in a breath of air. Anazian still gripped my wrist, and he started walking, tugging me along in his wake. I stumbled along behind, trying to gather my scattered wits.

When I finally became aware of my surroundings, I saw that the trees had changed. No longer were they the pines I’d grown familiar with. Around us now was an oak wood, and just ahead, a forest of darkness: ancient, wizened trees I didn’t recognize whose canopy let no moonlight through at all. What had happened? Where were we? I pulled against Anazian’s hold on me.

He stopped and turned to me. “I have no patience for any of your childish whining.” Despite the harsh words, his voice sounded breathless and a little weak, much as I felt. “You can come with me of your own will, or I can force you to do as I say. You choose.”

I glared at him, though I was sure he couldn’t tell in the nearly pitch darkness. But of course, the truth was I knew I had no choice in the matter at all. He knew it, too. When he turned and started walking again, I forced my feet to follow. We entered the dark wood.

The vibrations coming from the trees didn’t feel anything like those near the cave. As we walked, I concluded Anazian had somehow transported us from one place to another, and I had no idea whatsoever where we were. I reached out for Xyla or any of the other dragons, hoping we hadn’t gone far, but the brooding of the trees pressed in on me, reflecting my thoughts back. It almost hurt.

We hadn’t gone far when we entered a small clearing. The moon had risen high enough to shine down onto a small thatched cottage and a stable. Anazian led me to the stable, opened the door, and went inside. He made a limp motion with his hand, then let out a disgusted sigh.

“Took more out of me than I expected,” he muttered under his breath. He closed the door behind us, and I heard the bolt slide home. “Don’t move,” he commanded, and not wishing to crash into anything in the dark, I obeyed.

A moment later there was a spark that grew into the flame of a lantern. Two horses in stalls nickered softly. Taking up most of the space, however, was a wagon on which stood a large cage made not of metal or lumber but of raw branches about two inches in diameter.

Anazian took my arm and forced me to the side of the wagon. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then reached up with his free hand and ran it across the branches. They quivered for a moment, then softened and grew lax, leaving an opening.

“Get in,” Anazian said, pushing me.

“What?” I exclaimed in disbelief.

He spun around and faced me, taking hold of my upper arms so tightly I was sure I’d have bruises. He brought his face near mine, and his eyes burned with a terrifying fire. In a low voice so threatening it almost stopped my blood in my veins, he said, “Do as I say, and do it now. My patience is gone. If you want to be both alive and in one piece an hour from now, get into the cage. This instant.”

He shoved me at the wagon, slamming me into it and almost knocking the breath out of me. I didn’t need to be told twice. Forcing air into my lungs, I climbed unsteadily up, then squeezed my way through the opening. The branches seemed to give a little bit more as I passed, though the bark of them scraped my skin and snagged at my clothes.

Once I was inside, Anazian ran his hands across the branches again, and they straightened at his touch. He stood watching me, a satisfied expression on his face. “That will do,” he said, turning away.

“What are you going to do with me?” I asked in a small voice that shook with fear.

Anazian turned back to me. “And you thought you were so smart. I daresay you’ll find out soon enough.”

A hatred deeper than any I’d ever felt before flared in my heart. I bit back any more questions, not wanting to give him any more fuel for his humor.

Anazian took the lantern and left. I listened without moving until I heard the sounds of the cottage door opening and closing. Sure that he was really gone, I pressed myself against the branches that formed the bars of the cage.

They didn’t budge.

I ran my hands across them just as Anazian had done, trying to find the flexible part. Perhaps I’d got turned around in the dark. I crawled to the other side and tested the cage. Nothing.

One at a time, I pushed, pulled, and tried to twist each bar. With the same result: they were as fixed as if they were iron.

Carefully, I tried to stand, but the top of the cage wasn’t quite as high as my shoulders. It, too, was made of more of the branches, and I tried to find a weak spot among them. To no avail.

Now convinced I was caged like a beast, I wept. First, tears trickled down my cheeks, and knowing I was alone, I did nothing to stop them. But they offered no relief to my pent-up emotions, and soon I was beating my fists on the floor in frustration. I screamed at Anazian, demanding he free me and take me back where I belonged. I even threatened to kill him if ever I got my hands on him.

But all this outburst did was leave my hands bruised and aching, and my throat raw.

Eventually the storm subsided into quiet sobs and finally into silence. The vision of Grey lying on the ground filled my mind. Was he dead? Could he be alive? The horror of it all swept over me and took my breath away. Perhaps Chase had found him; surely he would’ve known from their link that something had happened. I imagined the brown and white hound using his cold nose to prod Yallick awake, then leading the mage to where Grey lay bleeding. Maybe Traz had healed him as easily as he’d healed Breyard. Yes, I was sure Chase wouldn’t let his master die cold and alone in the dark. But would there have been enough time? I moaned in despair that I could well be the cause of Grey’s death.

Once I’d grown calm enough to think clearly, it occurred to me that I’d been acting like a witless animal, as if I didn’t have any power of my own. I sat in the center of the cage and closed my eyes. Not that doing so made a real difference, but following a long-established routine helped my concentration.

When I summoned my maejic, though, nothing happened. I tried speaking to the horses, but they didn’t respond. I opened up to receive the life vibrations around me. When we’d passed through them, the woods had felt bitter and hateful; now, there was nothing. I tried to warm myself, something I’d learned while crossing the mountains on foot. By this time, I didn’t expect anything to happen so wasn’t prepared for the blast of power that rebounded onto me, churning through my head and heart. I sat frozen, willing it to pass. When it finally did, it left my head throbbing and my ears ringing.

I lay down and tried to sleep. But a bare wood floor is hard to sleep on, and while it wasn’t as cold in the stable as it was outside, neither was it comfortable. When light started to outline the chinks in the board walls, I had had no sleep, and I needed badly to relieve myself.

If there was a window in the stable, it must be covered over, for the whole day it never grew much lighter.

And, indeed, the whole day passed. My stomach growled and I grew thirsty. These were things I knew from experience I could endure, at least for a short time.

But nature’s call cannot be ignored forever, and eventually I found myself screaming once again for Anazian to let me out.

At last, desperate for relief and unable to hold it any longer, I took my best guess as to which corner of the cage was lowest and did my business in it, hoping I hadn’t misjudged and wouldn’t be crawling around in my own mess before long.

The hours crept by. I must’ve dozed at some point, because the stirring of the horses woke me up. They must be getting hungry, too. What on earth was Anazian playing at, leaving me trapped in this cage and even letting his own livestock go hungry?

The stable walls had gone completely black again, and it was growing more difficult to ignore my hunger and thirst. To judge by the stamping and whinnying of the horses, they felt much the same.

When, then, I heard the sound of a door slamming, I thought it must be my imagination, which, between the fear, the discomfort, and the renewed darkness, had already begun overreacting.

But a moment later, the stable door opened and Anazian strode in carrying a lantern. He was clean-shaven and had combed his hair. Back before I knew he was a traitor, his vanity had amused me. Now it made my anger smolder deep in my breast. Here I was, starving, thirsty, and almost literally sitting in my own stink while he’d spent the day pampering himself. I bit back the words I wanted to spit at him and satisfied myself with staring insolently at him.

He set the lantern on a table and walked past the cage as if it didn’t exist. He put hay in the manger and poured oats into a bin. Soon the horses were munching contentedly while Anazian spoke to them in a comforting tone, his voice so low I couldn’t hear the words.

When he passed the cage again, he wrinkled his nose and made a face as, presumably, he caught scent of my mess. Next instant he was at the side of the cage, running his hands along the bars, which again grew pliant and flexed at his apparent command. This time, they left a larger opening. He leaned through and grabbed me by the collar of my shirt, dragging me out and tumbling me to the ground.

“Fah!” he exclaimed. “How dare you?” He reached down and pulled me to my feet, where I struggled to keep my balance after spending most of a night and day cramped and unable to stretch out, standing or lying down, to my full length. “How dare you do such a thing?”

I glared at him for a moment. “How dare you leave me in there so long?”

He slapped my face so hard I pitched to the ground again. Whatever weakness had overcome him last night, he was over it now.

“You will keep a civil tongue in that mouth or I will tear it out.”

Another jailer had used that same threat against me once, and now, like then, I believed it. I struggled to my feet, wiping a trickle of blood from my mouth.

“Now, sit there.” Anazian pointed to a stool next to the small table on which the lantern sat. I did as he said. He picked up a thick stick from the table and began rolling it between his hands. “Let us arrive at an understanding,” he continued. “I am in charge, and you will do as I say. You have had displays of some of my power, but believe me when I say that there is much you don’t know and can’t even imagine. I am itching to show off, so I suggest you not tempt me. Have I made myself clear?”

I nodded. A lump had risen in my throat, and tendrils of fear began to snag at my heart. My breath came in ragged shudders.

He breathed on the stick. “I daresay you remember the rapport I have with trees?”

As if I could forget. What seemed like a lifetime ago, he’d embedded my hands in the trunks of two of them, leaving me to die from exposure to the elements. Except that Grey had found me, thanks to Chase, and rescued me. An image of Grey lying blood-soaked on the ground at my feet filled my mind.

Anazian had paused, obviously expecting an answer, so I nodded again as I blinked tears back. He gave me a handsome smile.

“Then this should come as no surprise to you.” He stepped up to me and held the stick to my neck.