Mwellrets, off in pursuit of someone, she thought. But who?
The moon disappeared behind the clouds again, and the rafts slid away into the fresh darkness, making for shore behind the labored efforts of determined rowers. When the rets reached shore, they clambered from the rafts and disappeared into the jungle. Aboard Black Moclips, the sounds died away to isolated mutters and soft moans. Soon, even those faded.
Hunter Predd leaned close. “Someone got away from them.”
She nodded, still listening, watching and thinking about what it meant. An opportunity, she believed. But how was she to take advantage of it?
“How many did you count in the rafts?” she asked.
“More than a dozen. Fifteen, probably. Mwellrets.”
“All of them, I’ll bet. All that’s left.” She thought of the dead ones aboard the Jerle Shannara, strewn across the decking in company with Hawk amid the wreckage of the rigging from the storm. She blinked the image away and made a quick calculation. Black Moclips would carry a crew and fighting complement of thirty-five. Subtracting the Mwellrets and the two Federation soldiers dead aboard the Jerle Shannara, that left a crew of perhaps eleven or twelve.
Hunter Predd nudged her arm. “What are you thinking?”
She looked right at him. “I need to get aboard.”
He shook his head at once. “Too dangerous.”
“I know that. But we have to find out if any others from the company are held prisoner. We won’t get a better chance.”
His leathery features creased with doubt. “You’re still injured, Little Red. If you have to make a fight of it, you’ll be in trouble.”
“Trouble of the sort I don’t need to hear about later, I know.” She looked off toward the airship, a dark shape suspended over the water. “All I want is a look around.”
The Wing Rider followed her gaze, but didn’t say anything. He hunched his shoulders and studied the darkness with an intensity that surprised her.
“How do you plan to get out there?” he asked finally.
“Swim.”
He nodded. “I thought as much. Of course, now that someone has escaped by jumping overboard and the rets have shoved off on the rafts in pursuit, I don’t suppose those men left aboard will waste their time keeping an eye on the bay.” He looked back at her. “Will they?”
He kept the sarcasm from his voice, but his point was well taken. A watch of some sort would be keeping a close eye on the surrounding waters for anything suspicious. She could approach by swimming underwater, but it was a long way and she was not as strong as she needed to be to try that. Nor could she count on the moon staying hidden behind the cloudbank. If it emerged at the wrong time, she would be silhouetted in the water as clearly as if by daylight.
“On the other hand,” he continued quietly, “they won’t be expecting anyone to fly in.”
She stared at him. “On Obsidian? Can you do that? Can you drop me into the rigging?”
He shrugged. “It’s still too dangerous. What do you think you can accomplish?”
“Have a look around, see if anyone else aboard is one of us.” He held her gaze in an owlish, accusing look, and she grinned in spite of herself. “You don’t believe me?”
“I believe you’re telling me what you think I want to hear. But I read faces better than most, and I see something more in yours than what you’re saying.” He cocked his head. “Anyway, I’m going aboard with you.”
“No.”
He laughed softly. “No? I admire your spirit, but not your good sense. You can’t get from here to there without me, and I won’t take you unless I go, as well. So let’s not debate the matter any further, Little Red. You need someone to watch your back, and if this matter turns sour, I need to be able to tell your brother that I did everything I could to protect you.”
She gave him a rueful look. “I don’t like it that you can see so clearly what I’m thinking.”
He nodded. “Well, it might be that it will help me save your life somewhere down the road. You never know.”