Devan Chronicles Series: Books 1-3 (69 page)

Julia shook her head. “That helps, but it’s not what I was talking about. War costs money—lots of money. From where do such lords get their money?”

“Outside the kingdom,” Keverin said grimly.

“The sorcerers—” Jihan began.

Julia shook her head. “Not them, well maybe, but I was thinking more of Kirstal and Hringham. We have letters from both Meagan and Scalderon. Both of them are taxing their people into ruin. Where is all that gold going?”

“Supplies… war supplies?” Jihan said with a frown at Keverin. “It might be that they’re taxing so heavily in order to raise armies.”

“If so, we should turn around.”

Julia shook her head. “We need to know what they’re up to. Why not send Kinnon on ahead?”

Kinnon was their best scout. What he did was close to artistry in his opinion, yet he hesitated. Kinnon had lost his brother to the Hasians last year and he hadn’t been the same since. His brightness had dimmed into something hard and cold. Where before it had been his brother Ged who had been prone to brooding, now it was he. It was almost as if Kinnon had died that day and not Ged.

“Brian!”

“Lord?” Captain Brian said as he kicked his horse into a brief trot to come alongside Keverin.

“Your opinion on Kinnon’s squad?”

“The best we have, my lord, and veterans all. Sergeant Kinnon is the best scout in the fortress and his men aspire to match him. They never will, but they’ll come close and keep trying. For pride, and for him, my lord.”

“What of his mood?”

“Mood my lord?” Brian frowned. “I don’t think I—”

“The death of his brother hit him hard.”

“Yes my lord, of course it did, but none would let such things interfere with duty, least of all Kinnon. Might I ask…?”

Keverin nodded. “I’m considering whether to send Kinnon’s squad on ahead to investigate the situation at Herstal. Think you they’re ready?”

“Yes my lord.”

“No doubts?”

“None my lord! They’re veterans and they were good before Kinnon took them on. They won’t fail you.”

“That agrees with my thinking on the matter.”

Brian was confused. “Then why…?”

“Why did I ask you?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“I asked because you’re his captain, but you’re new to your position. I wanted to hear your reasoning.”

“I see,” Brian said stiffly.

Keverin noted Brian’s tone. “Marcus recommended you for the position. You’re young for it, but I decided to take his advice. I can see that I was right to do so.”

The stiffness in Brian’s posture eased. “Thank you, my lord.”

“Order Kinnon to go on ahead and scout the situation. Tell him to pay particular attention to the horses. I would know just how many guardsmen we will find upon our arrival.”

“At once my lord!” Brian saluted and turned his horse to ride back.

Julia watched Brian ride away then turned to Keverin. “That was good of you.”

“He deserves to know that I have faith in him. Marcus was right to promote him.”

“I know, but it was still nice for him to hear it from you.”

Kinnon galloped away at the head of his squad and was quickly lost to distance. He would take to the trees at some point and scout the lay of the land.

“Tell me more of Herstal,” Julia said watching Kinnon out of sight. “For what is he most known?”

Keverin shrugged. “His father, perhaps?” he said looking at Jihan for confirmation.

“Before my time, I’m afraid,” Jihan said with a quick smile. “I know
of
him though.”

Keverin nodded. “Lord Grier was a good man, though I think unsuited to the life that the God gave him. He was a less than average lord, but as a man, there were few better. He used to spend a good deal of his spare time on the hunt. He invited my father many times.”

“I remember,” Jessica said. “Kevlarin enjoyed his company.”

Keverin nodded. “I was only a boy, but I know father respected him.”

“So what went wrong with his son?” Julia said.

“I don’t know. Meagan is nothing like his father. Grier spent a good deal of his time working with his dyers. I’ve heard it said that he would actually get down in the vats with his men to clean them. He was always looking for new ways to make Herstal dyes the best. Meagan would never lower himself to do that.”

“Your cloak was probably made using Herstal dye,” Jessica put in. “You won’t get a blue that rich using anything else.”

Julia stroked the material of her cloak. “I didn’t realise. I thought this came from Lomond.”

Keverin smiled. “It did. Lomond is one of Herstal’s biggest customers and always has been. Chogan relies upon the tried and true, but Blaise is different. He told me that he’s been experimenting with other suppliers.”

Julia nodded. “I remember you two discussing that. Have you decided?”

“I know nothing about pigments and what not. Blaise has a positive knack for it. What do I know about coal tar and chemicals—nothing. It’s like listening to a mage when Blaise gets started on the subject! He would do better asking Mathius and Lucius to join him, not me.”

“You could learn.”

“I suppose.”

Keverin was not at all enthusiastic and had no intention of joining Blaise in shaking up the dyer’s industry. He had enough to do without trying to become a merchant prince like those in Japura. He would never admit to it openly, but he had a lot of sympathy with traditionalist lords like Chogan. Although they didn’t see eye to eye on the issue of peonage, he agreed with Chogan’s views regarding a lord’s duty to his people. A lord’s traditional place was to provide governance and protection to his people. It was a duty that Keverin felt well equipped to discharge. He’d learned from his father all he needed to know about merchants and trading. Kevlarin taught him to invest gold wisely, but take no active part in the myriad of schemes proposed to him each year. That advice had stood him in good stead over the years. Athione’s treasure was increasing slowly but steadily, and like his father before him, he had time for the things he considered more important than gold.

“Blaise will be disappointed,” Julia said interrupting Keverin’s reverie.

“He knows me well enough to guess what my decision would be. I would do him a disservice if I tried to meddle with the trade he and his people know so well.”

“It might give Meagan pause if he heard you were backing Blaise,” Jihan said with a grin. “I can almost hear the howls from here!”

Keverin and Jihan laughed over that but Julia had a distracted look upon her face. A moment later she smiled grimly. Jessica noticed and leaned in to ask what had occurred to her, but Julia just shook her head unwilling to divulge her secret.

Keverin shielded his eyes as he checked the sun’s position. Thinking it would be beneficial to give Kinnon some time to work, he conferred with Jihan and it was decided to stop for an early meal. Midday was a candlemark or more away, but Kinnon could use the extra time.

* * *

Kinnon would have agreed with his lord had he known his thoughts. As it was, he was cursing under his breath and wondering how he was to cover such a wide area of forest in the time available. He couldn’t of course. That being true, there was no point in trying. A half-arsed job of scouting was worse than useless. It would lead to a false feeling of security when in fact there was none. Lord Corlath—Purcell’s eldest boy—had found that out to his cost just last year. He was dead, and his men with him, because he forgot that basic lesson.

When Kinnon judged his squad was close enough, he ordered they dismount and proceed on foot. He left Danil in charge of the horses and told him not to unsaddle them. Secure in the knowledge that Danil had the horses in hand, Kinnon led his nine men deep into the trees. There was no talking. Each foot was placed carefully and precisely to prevent noise. Kinnon did it as easily as breathing—without thought. His father had taught him and Ged the way of the deep forests and there was none better in the land. Kinnon’s squad tried to emulate him with varying degrees of success, but the result was very nearly perfect.

No one heard them.

But then again, Kinnon mused as he edged through the undergrowth, there was no one around
to
hear them. He didn’t seriously expect to find anyone this deep in the trees. If he was right, he would find what he was looking for camped near the keep or even within the town of Herstal itself. There was no logical reason for an army to camp within—

“Down!” Kinnon hissed with a patting gesture in the air behind him.

His squad instantly obeyed. The ground seemed to writhe for a moment then cease. The guardsmen were as close to invisible as made no difference. Kinnon took one hasty glance back to satisfy himself that his apprentices had remembered their lessons. They had. He cocked his elbow and raised a clenched fist.

Hold here.

Kinnon eased forward and into the cover of a fallen tree. He slithered into a hollow under the rotted trunk and carefully peered through the undergrowth at what had alerted him. It was an encampment. Not large at first sight, but it was a sprawling mess. The more he studied it, the more he realised that it could be very large indeed. There were no orderly rows of tents to count. No picket lines to easily estimate cavalry. Even the latrines were out of sight somewhere. The more he thought about it, the more he realised that such a disorganised camp was in fact very clever. He scanned the area for a banner, but there was nothing. There was no resemblance to one of Lord Keverin’s orderly encampments, the tents were set at all angles and positions with no two the same. It gave the impression of being haphazard, but Kinnon wasn’t fooled. Someone had gone to great lengths to make the camp appear this way. Might there be more of these? His eyes narrowed. There could be, he thought grimly.

Kinnon eased himself backwards and out from under the tree. He raised his fist and pumped it once. The ground writhed and his squad converged upon his position.

“We have ourselves a camp.”

“The captain was right?” Hanlon said in surprise. “That boy is full of surprises. Who are they?”

“That’s what we’re here to find out. Circle around in pairs, and watch each other’s backs. Remember what I taught you about cover and movement. Stay still and you’ll fool the keenest eyes. We meet back at the horses. Hanlon, you’re with me.”

Hanlon nodded.

* * *

Keverin listened to Kinnon’s report in silence. He didn’t know quite what to make of it. Neither did Kinnon even though he had seen it. The encampment in the forest was a puzzle. No banners to indicate allegiance, purposefully disorganised as if they wanted it to be mistaken for a brigand camp, and then there was the keep itself.

“Tell me again what you found at Herstal,” Keverin said.

“It’s like a festival, m’lord. There are banners of almost a dozen lords flying over the keep, and hundreds of guardsmen in the town. They’re walking around stuffing their faces and swilling ale like it was mid-summer’s eve. There was some right big ships in the harbour—under Lethbridge and Ascol banners they was.”

“Scalderon too?” Julia said.

Kinnon nodded. “Aye, lady, he’s there. I recognised his banner right off.”

“Wait a moment,” Julia said and went to fetch the satchel of letters from her horse. “What about…” she said rummaging in the satchel. “Horton of Choma?”

“Aye, him too. There was Herstal, Kelvadon, Choma, Ascol, Penola, Godstone, Lethbridge, Atherton, and Chaidren Ridge. There might have been others, but I didn’t dare go closer.”

“That’s fine,” Keverin said. “You did well.”

“Thank you, m’lord.”

“Go and find yourself something to eat while we decide what’s to be done.”

Kinnon saluted, bowed to Julia, and went to join his mates. Keverin waited until he was out of earshot to speak. He didn’t want his words carried to the men. There was no point in worrying them until they knew for sure what this all meant.

“Are they all in there?” Keverin said to a distracted Julia as she went through the scrolls.

“Not all. Atherton and Chaidren Ridge aren’t, but the rest are. I don’t know that it means anything. As Jihan said before, they might have sent messages verbally or not at all. What are we going to do about this?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing!” Julia said in a shocked voice. “What do you mean nothing?”

“There’s no law against holding a celebration or gathering of lords like this. They do no wrong, and we have no say in Meagan’s guest list.”

“But it must have something to do with Athlone’s plan.”

“Possibly. Probably it does, but that doesn’t change matters.”

“He’s right Julia,” Jihan said. “We would look foolish indeed if we tried to make something of this.”

“What of Hringham?”

“Ah now, that is an entirely different matter,” Keverin said with enthusiasm. “I can and will talk to Meagan about that.”

“Talk?” Julia said suspiciously. “Just talk?”

Keverin nodded once. “Just talk.” Of course she didn’t know that the talk he had in mind for Meagan would flay the hide of him. The sword wasn’t the only way of dealing with weasels.

They reached the town of Herstal late in the day. Keverin and Jihan decided not to visit Meagan immediately, instead they busied themselves with setting up a strong camp outside the town. Julia watched the preparations with concern, but Keverin put her mind at rest by assuring her that he didn’t seriously expect an attack. He just wanted to be careful. Caution cost nothing, he assured her.

The next morning saw Keverin waiting for Julia outside the camp. He patted Cavell’s shoulder and mounted. “That should do it don’t you think?” he said nodding at the camp walls.

Jihan laughed. “In more ways than one.”

They had proceeded on the assumption that Herstal was hostile territory. The tents were arranged in neat rows with wide avenues between, and earthen walls had been quickly thrown up to ring them. The baggage carts were ranked hub to hub in the centre and the horses were picketed within the rampart, not outside of it. Half of Jihan’s men were on the walls standing watch with half of his. Anyone with half a brain could see just by looking that it was a war camp.