Regis said, “They came and took away my sword, and Danilo’s dagger.” For some reason the loss of the dagger seemed to grieve him most. I had no time to wonder why. I went and hauled at the senseless guardsmen’s sword-belts, gave one to Regis, belted the other around my own waist. It was too long for me, but better than nothing. I gave the daggers to Marjorie and Danilo. “I have repaid my kinsman’s theft,” I said, “now let’s get out of here.”
“Where shall we go?”
I had made my decision swiftly, “I’ll take Marjorie to Arilinn,” I said. “You two just get away as fast and far as you can, before all hell breaks loose.”
Regis nodded. “We’ll take the straight road to Thendara, and get the word to Comyn.”
Danilo said, “Shouldn’t we all stay together?”
“No, Dani. One of us may get through if the others are recaptured, and the Comyn must be warned, whatever happens. There is an out-of-control, unmonitored matrix being used here. Tell them that, if I cannot!” Then I hesitated. “Regis, don’t take the straight road! It’s suicide! It’s the first place they’ll look!”
“Then maybe I can draw pursuit away from you,” he said. “Anyway, it’s you and Marjorie they’ll be after. Danilo and I are nothing to them.”
I wasn’t so sure. Then I saw what I could not mistake. I said, “No. We cannot separate while I send you on the route of danger. You are ill.” Threshold sickness, I finally realized. “I cannot send the heir to Hastur into such danger!”
“Lew, we must separate.” He looked straight up into my eyes. “Someone must get through to warn the Comyn.”
What he said was true and I knew it. “Can you endure the journey?” I asked.
Danilo said, “I’ll look after him, and anyway he’s better off on the road than in Beltran’s hands, especially once you’ve escaped.” This was true also and I knew it. Danilo was quickly separating the contents of Regis’ saddlebags, discarding nearly everything. “We’ve got to travel light. There’s food here from Regis’ journey north ,..” He quickly divided it, rolling meat and fruit, hard bread, into two small parcels. He handed the larger one to me and said, “You’ll be on the back roads, further away from villages.”
I stuffed it into the inside pocket of my riding cloak and looked at Marjorie. “Can we get out unseen?”
“That’s easy enough, word won’t have reached the stables. We’ll get horses, too.”
Marjorie led us out a small side door near the stables. Most of the stablemen were sleeping; she roused one old man who knew her as Kermiac’s ward. It was eccentric, perhaps, for her to set forth at nightfall with some of Beltran’s honored guests, but it wasn’t for an old horse-keeper to question. Most of them had seen me with her and had heard the castle gossip that a marriage was being arranged. If he had heard of the quarrel, this would have accounted for it in his mind, that Marjorie and I had run away to marry against Beltran’s will. I’m sure this accounted for the looks of sympathy the old groom gave us. He found mounts for us all. I thought tardily of the escort from Comyn, who had come here with me.
I could order them to go with Regis and Danilo, protect them. But that would make a stir. Marjorie said softly, “If they don’t know where you’ve gone, they cannot be made to tell,” and that decided me.
If we rode hard till morning, and Beltran’s guards slept as I had insured they would, we might be beyond pursuit. We led our horses toward the gates; the groom let us out. I lifted Marjorie to her saddle, readied myself to mount. She looked back with a faint sadness but, seeing me watching, she smiled bravely and turned her face to the road.
I turned to Regis, holding him for a moment in a kinsman’s embrace. Would I ever see him again? I thought I had turned my back on Comyn, yet the tie was stronger than I knew. I had thought him a child, easily flattered, easily swayed. No. Less so than I was myself. I told myself firmly not to be morbid, and kissed him on the cheek, letting him go. “The Gods ride with you, bredu,” I said, turning away. His hand clung to my arm for a moment, and in a split second I saw, for the last time, the frightened child I had taken into the fire-lines; he remembered, too, but the very memory of conquered fear strengthened us both. Still, I could not forget that he had been placed in my charge. I said hesitantly, “I am not sure … I do not like letting you take the road of most danger, Regis.”