The Lord of Lies: Strange Threads: Book 2 (20 page)

Time started,
and the soldiers on either side of Yalenna were startled to find her sitting there. Tarzi also choked a little.

‘Priestess!’ she said, wiping her mouth. ‘Where did you spring from?’

Yalenna, however, was distracted. ‘Excuse me,’ she said, sliding backwards off the seat. ‘I left Captain Jandryn – I must go and find him.’

A thought stopped her, and she turned back to Rostigan.

‘When?’ she asked.

Rostigan wondered if he really meant to go through with it. A cold chill crept down his arms, and he had no more appetite for the food before him.

‘Soon,’ he heard himself say. ‘Today.’

She gave a little nod and left.

‘What was that about?’ said Tarzi.

He stared at his oats and let the spoon sink away. ‘I’m not sure,’ he replied.

It wasn’t the first time she had vanished from his presence, so hopefully Jandryn wouldn’t be overly concerned, but it had happened at rather an awkward moment. She rounded a corner to find him coming down a corridor, speaking to two other guards. When he saw her, relief showed on his face.

‘Leave us,’ he told his underlings. Once they had gone; ‘Did time stop again?’

‘Yes.’

‘Where did you go?’

Speaking with
Rostigan
was maybe not going to be a popular answer.

‘Just checking that everything was all right. I was going to wait it out, but it lagged a little.’

Jandryn glanced out a window at the sky, and she knew what he was wondering.

‘Not as long as last time,’ she said. ‘The day’s natural cycle will not be interrupted. Captain, we must speak to Loppolo. It is time for the army to march.’

‘Yes, Priestess.’

There was a question in him, however, and she could guess what it was.

‘Yalenna … er …’ He shifted his feet.

‘You heard me mention your blessing? I was not sure quite when things stopped.’

He cleared his throat. ‘Yes. You said you would tell me what it was, and the next moment you were gone.’

‘Well then, it is only fair to tell you now.’ She arched an eyebrow at him. ‘To be lucky in love.’

His eyes opened wide in astonishment.

‘Which you have very much been.’ She prodded a finger into his armoured chest. ‘But, if you’re not very careful from now on, and visit at night when you’re supposed to, your luck will not last. Now, enough of this nonsense. We must go to the king.’

She turned away, leaving him opening and closing his mouth, with no words coming to the fore.

They walked
a row of street-side stalls, Rostigan fumbling unconsciously with his coin purse.

‘It’s a bright day,’ he had said. ‘We should go for a walk. I’ll buy you something nice.’

‘Look at these!’ Tarzi exclaimed, picking up a spiky fruit. ‘I’ve never seen their like before.’

‘Two please,’ said Rostigan to the vendor.

Tarzi set about peeling hers, exposing a soft yellow flesh. Messily she sucked on it, and her eyes lit up with delight.

‘It’s nice!’

Rostigan scratched at the skin of his idly, but couldn’t really be bothered with it right now. He certainly wasn’t hungry.

‘Something’s the matter?’ Tarzi said.

‘Mmm.’

Fruit wasn’t much of a gift – he needed something better. A moment later, the market presented him with a stall of musical instruments. He nodded at it, and Tarzi cast an eye over the wares with mild interest.

‘Look at this one,’ he said, picking up a lute elaborately carved with flowery spirals.

‘Ah, yes,’ gloated the vendor, ‘I see sir has an eye for quality. That is an old lute indeed, carved by the famous Redrelli in fact, right here in Althala! It came to me only recently, but I can guarantee its authenticity, and also that it won’t last long.’

‘It’ll
break?’ said Tarzi.

‘What?’ The vendor looked aghast. ‘No, miss – I simply mean it will sell easily.’

‘Well congratulations on your imminent good fortune, then.’

As they drew away, Rostigan asked quietly, ‘You wouldn’t like a new lute?’

‘Why, with all those carvings? What if I want to thump the sides, those silly spirals would get in the way. Redrelli indeed! Maybe his instruments are good for hanging over mantles and never being played, but I prefer my trusty old friend, with me for many years now.’

She gave her lute a pat.

This was no good. This wasn’t making it any easier at all.

‘I have to go away for a while,’ he said. ‘Hopefully just a few days.’

‘What? Where?’

‘I’ve something to do, of great importance.’

For a moment she stared off, sucking on the spike-fruit pip as if she hadn’t heard him.

‘Tarzi.’

‘Where are you going?’

‘I am sorry, songbird, I cannot say.’

She didn’t scowl, or raise her voice, but he could sense she was angry.

‘Is Yalenna going?’

‘No.’

That surprised her, made her indignant.

‘Rostigan, what
can you possibly have to do all on your own? You’re just one warrior – a good one, yes, but you belong with the army. You just told me they’re about to march and fight the Unwoven!’

‘I mean to join them in time for that.’

‘Then what is it? I can’t believe you won’t tell me. I’m not asking to come, if that’s what concerns you.’

‘You go with the army too. If you want. Perhaps you can keep their spirits high. Please Tarzi, believe that I’m trying to do what’s right, to help us all. There are good reasons why I cannot speak of it.’

‘Is it dangerous? What if you don’t come back?’

He stared at the ground. Her concern was real. There was every chance he went to his doom, but he could not tell her that.

‘I’m coming back.’

He wished he could believe it.

‘Tarzi, I swear it.’

She didn’t look like she believed it either.

‘And when I do, I’ll tell you all about it.’

Probably not.

‘Please don’t be angry.’

He grew a little frustrated himself. This was exactly why he had never wanted a travelling companion in the first place, especially one so attached to him. It made life difficult.

Why hadn’t he just made up a lie? If he did survive and make it back, Tarzi would never rest until she’d learned where he had gone. He had done himself no favours by deferring the problem to his future self. Was it because he expected to fail? If he was dead, he would no longer care.

‘I am going
with a band of soldiers to seek out more worms,’ he said. ‘There have been a spate of attacks in neighbouring areas.’

‘What?
That’s
your big important secret?’

‘Yes. I didn’t want to tell you because … well, I thought, after your recent adventure, you might consider yourself a veteran of such things, and be eager to place yourself in harm’s way again.’

She stared at him intently. ‘So instead, with my safety firmly in mind, you send me with an army going to fight opponents possessing strength beyond any mortal man?’ She shook her head. ‘You make no sense. There’s something you aren’t telling me.’

He did not know what else to say, just stood there scratching his arm.

‘Fine,’ she said, coldly.

‘I’ve left the curltooth in the room. Maybe you can have a little of it with this fruit you like?’

He held out the spiky thing he’d been carrying, and for a moment she stared at it dully. Then a tear fell from her eye and she walked away without taking it.

Sighing, Rostigan moved on. He was going to have to better remember his old talent for lying very quickly if he was to have any hope of return. With half an eye he watched for somewhere secluded from which he could threadwalk, but could not make up his mind to leave just yet. There was, perhaps, one more task before he left.

Maybe.

Was it
what a good man would do?

Rostigan moved through the recruit’s camp with his shoulders hunched, as if that could somehow shield him from the stares. Already he had asked an officer or two where he might find Cedris, and they, of course, had no idea who he was talking about – for a start, there was more than one Cedris in the army. He was pointed towards a kind of administration tent and, after a short stop there, he made his way towards an area where at least one Cedris of the right age and description was supposed to be camped.

He passed row upon row of neatly lined tents, everything about them in order. Most were tied closed, so he had no idea if the boy was inside any of them or not – probably not, since it was daylight. Just when he was about to stop and ask someone else, he thankfully heard a familiar laugh. At the edge of camp, a group of recruits jousted as others watched on. Among the pairs of combatants, a young man with a shaved head had just fallen on his rump, who Rostigan thought he vaguely recognised, and a young woman stood over him, grinning in triumph. Rostigan searched for the source of the laugh, and saw Cedris watching on from a log.

‘Too bad, Artanon!’ Cedris called to the fallen recruit. ‘I really thought you might beat her this time.’

‘She’s faster
than a starving wildercat,’ replied Artanon dourly. Still, he was accepting enough as his opponent offered a hand to help him up.

‘Cedris,’ said Rostigan.

Cedris glanced around, gave an exclamation of pleased surprise, and rose instantly, brushing himself off. ‘Skullrender! I wasn’t expecting to see you here. How goes it?’

‘May we speak?’

‘Of course.’

Rostigan led him away from the group a little, and came to stop staring at the ground. Now that they were here, he found it hard to know what to say.

‘Is everything all right?’ asked Cedris.

‘Hmm? Yes. Well. Maybe.’ He forced himself to meet Cedris’s eyes. ‘Listen … we are friends, are we?’

‘I certainly hope so. By the Spell, I would not be here if it weren’t for you and Tarzi.’

Rostigan wasn’t sure that was anything to be thankful for.

‘It is Tarzi,’ he said, ‘who I wish to speak to you about. There is,’ he took a deep breath, ‘something I must do. I cannot share what it is, but suffice to say it is dangerous. I fear … that I may not return.’

Cedris nodded seriously. ‘I see.’

‘If I haven’t joined the army by the time it reaches the Pass, it is likely I am gone for good.’

‘But Skullrender –’

Rostigan waved his hand dismissively. ‘You will just have to trust me on that.’

Cedris
frowned. ‘What can I do?’

‘I have not fully explained the risk to Tarzi, which has of course infuriated her. The truth is, I was cowardly about it. That’s why I’ve come to you.’

‘I’m not sure I understand.’

‘If I don’t come back, I wouldn’t want Tarzi wasting her life mourning me, for overlong anyway. I would want her to move on … and if there happened to be someone else with whom she might be happy, I’d want her to know I would be glad for her. For them.’

Cedris nodded, but a moment later his eyes widened. ‘Oh.’

‘You take my meaning?’

Cedris shifted his feet. ‘I believe so. But … and don’t mistake that I care for Tarzi, which of course I do … and I would always look out for her … but she and I … well …’ He shook his head.

Rostigan imagined the boy was simply being cautious, or polite. ‘I thought perhaps you two shared a bond,’ he said. ‘That maybe, if the circumstances had been different …’