who are brighter than I am, Sparhawk. It’s taken me a long
time to put it together. I’ll tell you one thing, though, if he
breaks her heart, I’ll kill him, brother or no.’
‘Will you at least try to make some sense?’
‘She told me that she loves somebody else – has
she’d come right out and said it in so many words.’
‘Alcan wouldn’t do that.’
‘How did you know it was Alcan?’ The big blond man jumped
to his feet. ‘Have you all been laughing at me behind my back?
he demanded pugnaciously.
‘Don’t be an ass. We wouldn’t do that. We’ve all been through
exactly the same thing. You didn’t invent love, you know.”
‘Everybody knows, though, don’t they?’
‘No. I’m probably the only one – except for Melidere.
not much gets past her. Now what’s all this nonsense about Alcan
loving somebody else?’
“I just put it together myself.’
‘What did you put together? Try to make a little sense,
‘Didn’t you hear her singing on the day we left?’
‘Of course I did. She has a beautiful voice.’
‘i’m not talking about her voice. I’m talking about the song
she was singing. It was “My Bonnie Blue-Eyed Boy.”
‘So?’
“It’s Berit, Sparhawk. She’s in love with Berit.’
‘What are you talking about?’
“I just noticed it when we sat down to supper.’ Kalten buried
his face in his hands again. “I never paid any attention before,
but when I looked into his face while we were talking, I saw it.
I’m surprised you haven’t seen it yourself.’
‘Seen what?’
‘Berit’s got blue eyes.’
Sparhawk stared at him. Then, being careful not to laugh, he
said, ‘So do you – when they’re not bloodshot.’
Kalten shook his head stubbornly. ‘his are bluer than mine.
I know it’s him. I just know it. God’s punishing me for some of
the things I’ve done in the past. He made me fall in love with
a girl who loves somebody else. Well, I hope He’s satisfied. If
He wants to make me suffer, He’s doing a good job of it.’
‘Will you be serious?’
‘Berit’s younger than I am, Sparhawk, and God knows he’s
better looking.’
‘Kalten.’
‘Look at the way every girl who gets to within a hundred
yards of him starts to follow him around like a puppy. Even the
Atan girls were all falling in love with him.’
‘Kalten.’
“I know it’s him. i just know it. God’s twisting His knife in my
heart. He’s gone and made the one girl I’ll ever feel this way
about fall in love with one of my brother-knights.’
‘Kalten.’
Kalten sat up and squared his shoulders. ‘All right, then,’ he
said weakly, ‘if that’s the way God wants it, that’s the way it’s
going to be. If Berit and Alcan really, really love each other, I
won’t stand in their way. I’ll bite my tongue and keep my mouth
shut.’
‘Kalten.’
‘But I swear it to you, Sparhawk,’ the blond Pandion said
hotly, ‘if he hurts her, I’ll kill him.’
‘Kalten!.’ Sparhawk shouted at him.
‘What?’
Sparhawk sighed. ‘Why don’t we go out and get drunk?’ he
suggested, giving up entirely.
It was cloudy the following morning. It was a low, dirty-gray
cloud-cover which seethed and tattered in the stiff wind aloft.
It was one of those peculiar days when the murk raced overhead,
streaming in off the gulf lying to the west, but the air at the
surface was dead calm.
They set out early and clattered along the narrow, cobbled
streets where sleepy-eyed shopkeepers were opening their shutters
and setting out their wares. They passed through the city
gates and took the road that followed the north coast of the gulf.
After they had gone a mile or so, Vanion leaned over in his
saddle. ‘How far do we have to go?’ he asked Flute, who nestled,
as always, in her sister’s arms.
‘What difference does it make?’ the Child Goddess shrugged.
‘i’d like to know how long it’s going to take.’
‘What does “how far” have to do with “how long?”‘
‘They’re the same thing, Aphrael. Time and distance mean
the same thing when you’re traveling.’
‘Not if you know what you’re doing, they don’t.’
Sparhawk had always admired Vanion, but never quite so
much as in that moment. The silvery-bearded preceptor did not
even raise his voice. ‘All I’m really getting at, Divine One, is
that nobody knows we’re here. Shouldn’t we keep it that way?
I don’t mind a good fight now and then, but would bashing our
way through crowds of drunken Edomish peasants serve any
real purpose right now?’
‘You always take so long to get to the point, Vanion,’ she
said. ‘Why didn’t you just come right out and tell me to speed
things up?’
“I was trying to be polite. I think we’ll all feel much better
about this when Sparhawk’s got Bhelliom in his hands again. It’s
up to you, though. If you want the road from here to wherever it
is you’ve got Bhelliom hidden awash with blood and littered
with corpses, we’ll be happy to oblige you.’
‘He’s hateful,’ Aphrael said to her sister.
‘Oh, I wouldn’t say that.’
‘You wouldn’t. Sometimes you two are worse than Sparhawk
and Ehlana.’
Sparhawk moved in rather quickly at that point. Aphrael was
coming very close to saying things which she shouldn’t be saying
in the presence of the others. “Shall we move right along?’
he suggested quite firmly. ‘Vanion’s right, Aphrael, and you
know he is. If Rebal finds out that we’re here, we’ll have to
wade through his people by the score.’
‘All right,’ she gave in quite suddenly.
‘That was quick,’ Talen said to Khalad. “I thought she was
going to be stubborn about it.’
‘No, Talen,’ she smirked. ‘Actually, I’m sort of looking
forward to hearing that vast cry of chagrin that’s going to
echo from every mountain in Daresia when our enemieS
hear the sound of Anakha’s fist closing around Bhelliom again.
just lean back in your saddles, gentlemen, and leave the rest
to me.’
Sparhawk awoke with a start. TheY were riding along the brink
of a windswept cliff with an angry sea ripping itself to tattered
froth on the rocks far below. Sephrenia rode in the lead, and
she held Flute enfolded in her arms. The others trailed along
behind, their cloaks drawn tightly around them and wooden
expressions of endurance on their faces. The wind had risen,
and it pushed at them and tugged at their cloaks.
There were some significant impossibilities involved here, but
Sparhawk’s mind seemed somehow numb to them. Normally,
Vanion rode protectively close to Sephrenia, but Vanion didn’t
seem to be with them now.
Tynian, however, was. Sparhawk knew with absolute certainty
that Tynian was a thousand leagues and more away, but
there’ he was, his broad face as wooden as the faces of the others
and his right shoulder as functional as ever.
Sparhawk did not turn round. he knew that another impossibility
was riding behind him.
Their horses plodded up the winding trail that followed the
edge of the long, ascending cliff toward a rocky promontory
which thrust a crooked, stony finger out into the sea. At the
outermost tip of the promontory stood a gnarled and twisted
tree, its streaming branches flailing in the wind.
When she reached the tree, Sephrenia reined in. Kurik walked
forward to lift Flute down. Sparhawk felt a sharp pang of bitter
resentment. he knew about Aphrael’s need for symmetry, but
this went too far.
Kurik set Aphrael down on her feet, and when he straightened,
he looked Sparhawk full in the face. Sparhawk’s squire
was unchanged. His features were rugged, and his black beard,
touched with silver, was as coarse as ever. His bare shoulders
were bulky, and his wrists were enclosed in steel cuffs. Without
so much as changing expression, he winked at his lord.
‘Very well, then,’ Flute said to them in a crisp voice, ‘let’s get
on with this before too many more of my cousins change their
minds. I had to talk very fast and even throw a few tantrums
to get them to agree, and many of them still have grave doubts
about the whole notion.’
‘You don’t have to explain things to them, Flute,’ Kurik told
her in that gruff voice of his, a voice so familiar that Sparhawk’s
eyes filled with sudden tears. ‘Just tell them what to do. They’re
Church Knights, after all, so they’re used to following orders
they don’t understand.’
She laughed delightedly. ‘How very wise you are, Kurik. All
right, then, gentlemen, come with me.’ She led them past the
gnarled tree to the brink of the awful precipice. Even though
they were very high above it, the roaring of the surf was much
like heavy thunder.
‘All right,’ Aphrael told them, ‘i’m going to need your help
with this.’
‘What do you want us to do?’ Tynian asked her.