The Assassin's Tale (Isle of Dreams) (44 page)

She
immediately tried to move her leg again, testing it to see if it would bear her
weight.  Grimacing at the resulting stabs of pain she hauled herself up
into a sitting position and was about to pull the bedsheet back and get out
when Serenity’s voice brought her up short. 

‘Mistral? 
I sincerely hope that you are not thinking of trying to escape from my care
again!’ she chided in a cool voice.

Mistral looked
up guiltily to see Serenity walking across the room towards her. 

‘Toilet,’
Mistral muttered on the spur of the moment and continued to pull back the
bedsheet, stopping with a burst of horror when she realised that her trousers
were missing.

Serenity saw
her expression and gave her a tight-lipped smile, ‘Yes, I’m afraid I had to cut
your trousers off to get at the arrow head, it was a bit of a mess, now – do
you want me to help you to the toilet?’

‘No!  Er,
it can wait,’ said Mistral quickly sliding the bedsheet back over herself.

‘Good,’ said
Serenity, settling herself quietly in the chair next to Mistral’s bed. 

Mistral looked
at her apprehensively.  Serenity had a look on her face that Mistral knew
too well.  She was about to try and get Mistral to “talk about things”.

‘How are you
Mistral?’ she asked gently.

Mistral sighed
inwardly and cast an uncomfortable glance at Konrad.  She hoped he was
unconscious, or dead.

‘Fine,’ she
muttered indistinctly, adding unnecessarily.  ‘Leg hurts a bit.’

Serenity fixed
her with a searching look and Mistral could feel her own gaze slipping as she
struggled to hold eye contact.  Serenity did not have the Sight but she
was incredibly perceptive when it came to people’s emotions, it was one of the
things that made her such a good healer.

‘Don’t lie to
me Mistral, I only want to help.  I know that you haven’t been feeling
yourself since your return from The Desert Lands.’

Mistral said
nothing and stared at the rain sliding down the window with a fixed expression
on her face.  There was no way she was even going to think about that,
never mind talk about it.

‘Are you
struggling to read auras?’  Serenity suddenly asked.

Mistral stared
at her in surprise.  How did she know that?

Serenity
nodded sadly although Mistral hadn’t said anything, ‘Sometimes with gifts like
yours, when the bearer has been very ill or traumatised in some way, their
abilities are affected.  It’s usually temporary and should come back when
you recover fully.’  Serenity’s gaze drifted over her face questioningly,
as if assessing Mistral’s state of mind.

‘But how can I
get better if I don’t know what’s wrong with me?’  Mistral whispered.

‘Listen to
your dreams, they usually hold the answer.  The unconscious mind can tell
you things that you block out when you are awake,’ Serenity paused and frowned,
catching the expression that flickered across Mistral’s face.  ‘You are
dreaming aren’t you?’

Mistral closed
her eyes and shook her head.

Serenity
patted her shoulder soothingly, ‘I’ll get something to help you sleep
Mistral.  Let your mind wander – you’ll find the answer soon, I know you
will.’ 

She stood up
and glided silently across the room and vanished into the apothecary storeroom.

Mistral
slumped back against the pillows.  This was all she needed, more vile
potions and sympathy.  Things couldn’t get any worse.  She stared
morosely at the grey sky outside the window once more and groaned under her
breath, ‘Somebody ... please kill me now.’

‘Happy to
oblige, just as soon as my shoulder is better,’ said Konrad faintly.

Apparently
things had just got worse.  Mistral shot him a wary glance, how much had
he heard?

‘You know,’ he
continued in a stronger voice, opening his eyes and looking at her, ‘you may
not be dreaming at the moment but you do talk in your sleep.’

‘What?’ 
Mistral demanded in a horrified whisper.

‘Hmm,
something about it being winter.’  Konrad muttered and closed his eyes
once more.

The twins
arrived after training to visit her.  They sat down beside her bed wearing
identical glum expressions.

‘Feeling
better?’  Phantasm asked after a moment’s pause.

‘This is
getting a bit like déjà vu,’ muttered Phantom under his breath, looking around
the Infirmary distractedly.

‘I feel
great,’ said Mistral sarcastically, ignoring Phantom’s comment.  ‘What’s
with your faces?’

‘What ever do
you mean?’  Phantom snapped back, looking offended.

‘You look like
you went to bed with Golden and woke up with Grendel!’ 

Phantom pulled
a disgusted face and Phantasm sighed. 

‘Master Sphinx
was not best pleased to wake up this morning to the news that two of his first
years have arrows sticking out of them.  He’s been bawling at us for most
of the afternoon and we’ve all got punishment detail.’

‘Torture
detail more like,’ Phantom added sourly.  ‘We’ve all been assigned tasks
in the village for the next two weeks.’

Mistral looked
blankly at their downcast faces.  She failed to see what could be so bad
about running a few errands in the village.  At least they weren’t stuck
in the Infirmary with a bad leg and Konrad for company.

‘Swap,’ she
said coldly, pointing at her leg and tilting her head meaningfully towards
Konrad’s supposedly sleeping form.

The twins
immediately looked contrite. 

‘I suppose you
want us to break you out again?’  Phantasm asked with a sigh. 

‘If you can
fit it into your busy schedule!  However I will be needed some trousers,’
snapped Mistral a trifle ungratefully.

‘Don’t talk to
me about schedules!’  Phantom began in a warning tone.  ‘On Monday
I’m working in the tannery at Toothe and Nayle prepping troll skin for
armour!  I’ll
never
get the stink off!’

Mistral shot
him a dark look, ‘I promise you can moan to me until midnight but get me out of
here first!  Serenity won’t be gone long!  She’s only in the
Refectory!’

‘Trousers,’
said Phantasm shortly, handing her a bundle of black cloth.  ‘We thought
you’d need some, sorry but we had to raid your room.’

‘Thanks,’
Mistral took the pair of trousers a sigh of gratitude and began to pull back
the bedsheet before stopping and looking pointedly at the twins.

‘Er, how about
a little privacy?’    

‘Oh for crying
out loud!  I’ve strapped up parts of you the others would pay to see, and
now you pretend to be modest?’  Phantom exclaimed leaping off his chair
and walking over to the long window to stare moodily out at the blackening
sky. 

Phantasm
rolled his eyes.  Mistral and his twin argued like siblings, it was
occasionally amusing but more often than not just plain tiresome.  He
unfolded himself from the hard wooden chair and strolled over to Konrad’s
bed.  Mistral heard him begin a murmured conversation with the half-drow
as she pulled back the bedsheet and examined her tightly bandaged leg. 
There was a little seepage of blood but nothing major.  The bruising
appearing around the edge of the bandage told her that extracting the arrow
head had given Serenity a few problems, but bruises were just colouring to
Mistral.  Nothing that wouldn’t be gone in a few days – unlike the dead
weight she seemed to be constantly carrying around inside her.

She swung her
legs over the side of the bed and yanked her trousers on, pulling them
carefully over the bandages with a wince of pain before resting both feet on
the floor and trying to stand.  Her leg hurt badly but bore her weight
without buckling and she was grateful that Phantasm wouldn’t have to carry her
again.

‘Ready?’ 
Phantom demanded, spinning around with an impatient look on his face. 

‘Boots –’

Mistral’s
muffled voice came from under the bed as she knelt and peered around for the
missing items of footwear.  

‘Take your
time.’  Phantom muttered bad-temperedly and tapped his foot.

By the time
Mistral had located her boots and unceremoniously stuffed her bare feet into
them her leg was alive with a burning ache that stretched from her hip to her
knee and her strapped ribs were on fire.  Seeing the look of pain that
crossed Mistral’s face when she tried to haul herself to her feet Phantom was
immediately repentant, gliding swiftly to her side and helping her up.

‘Sorry,’ he
muttered apologetically.  ‘I’m just grumpy about having Master Sphinx in
my face again.  Next year is seriously looking like it’s gone down the pan
–’

‘No, I want to
talk to you about that.’  Mistral said through clenched teeth while she
was supported across the Infirmary by Phantasm.  ‘But let’s just get back
to your room where we won’t be overheard,’ she finished with a loaded look in
Konrad’s direction. 

They were
halfway along the corridor outside of the Infirmary by the time Phantasm caught
them up.  His face wore the familiar irritating lofty expression that
immediately told Mistral he had found out something of significance from
Konrad.

Smiling
lightly, Phantasm wrapped an arm around Mistral’s waist and between them the
twins half-carried her along the corridor, ignoring her increasingly
bad-tempered demands to be allowed to walk.

‘You’re
getting a bit skinny Mistral,’ commented Phantasm when he helped his brother place
her carefully her on one of their narrow beds.

‘No lectures
please.  I’ve had a full day of Serenity doing her caring and sharing
bit.  Just tell me everything that Leo said and why you’re looking so smug
after speaking to Konrad.  I don’t think he’s ever had that effect on
anyone before.’

Phantasm
settled himself next to his brother on the opposite bed, his eyes glowing with
excitement, ‘You remember our first run-in with those elves?’

Mistral nodded
and kept her face expressionless.  It had been at the start of her journey
to The Desert Lands.  She hoped that Konrad hadn’t mentioned her nocturnal
mumblings.  There was no way the twins would be fooled into thinking she
was talking about the seasons. 

‘And how they
wanted revenge on a Ri warrior for carrying out a Contract on one of their
brothers?’

Mistral felt
herself sag with relief; it was back to the Konrad conspiracy theory again.

‘Well Konrad
pretty much admitted to me that it was him who carried out the assassination on
the elf.  He said that the elves were on them the moment he and Saul got
into the forests last night, asking questions and dropping threats just as they
did with us.  It turns out that Konrad doesn’t have my skill at lying,’ he
paused and looked a touch smug, ‘because the elves didn’t believe his attempts
at feigning ignorance so he and Saul ended up making a run for it.  They
were just lucky to be in the forests at the time.  If the elves had been
able to get a clear shot at them they would both being burning in the village
square by now.’

‘Did Konrad
say who ordered the Contract?’  Phantom asked thoughtfully.

Phantasm shook
his head, ‘No, he said that Master Shacklock didn’t even let him keep the
Contract to read, something about “record keeping”.’

‘More like
“dodgy Contract burning” if you ask me,’ snorted Phantom.

‘I agree, it
all seems highly suspect.  What I’d give to know who bought that
Contract!  And why –’ Phantasm mused broodingly. 

‘Back to the
real world,’ interrupted Mistral, bored by the pointless speculation.  ‘I
have a foolproof plan of how to get you all off the hook with Leo.’

The twins
looked at her suspiciously.  Mistral’s plans were never fool proof.

‘I’m not
interested in staying for a second year,’ she said flatly.  ‘You know I’ve
pretty much lost the ability to read auras – although I did see a green haze
around Grendel the other day, but that was probably just his odour.
 Anyway, I’m also fed up with being injured and stuck in the wretched
Infirmary all the time.  It’s becoming more like my bedroom than my dorm
room is!  So,’ Mistral went on more slowly, ‘what I’m suggesting is that I
go see Leo and confess to the hunt being my idea.  He’ll be only too glad
to finally have a valid reason to chuck me out of the Valley, you know as well
as I do that Caleb and Barak have been pestering him to get rid of me.  So
it’s a win-win situation – you’ll be back in Leo’s good books since you’ll be
the only ones left with a gift, the other apprentices will be off the hook and
I’ll be free of the Valley, Leo, the Lieutenants … Columbine –’ Mistral’s gaze
grew slightly wistful.  ‘I can travel ... pick up hunting work when I need
to from the villages – they won’t care that I haven’t Qualified –’ she sighed
and drew herself from her reverie.  ‘This way everyone gets what they
want.’ 

The twins
stared at her in silence. 

‘And you
thought of this just now?’  Phantasm eventually asked.

‘No, it’s been
on my mind for a while,’ she admitted quietly, thinking to herself that to be
precise she had thought daily about leaving the Valley since getting back from
The Desert Lands.

‘Well, it’s
completely unacceptable, so just forget it,’ said Phantom bluntly.  ‘And
as for you not being able to read auras anymore, why don’t you speak to
Mistress Lightwater?  She’s fairly knowledgeable about how gifts work.’

‘Done that
already,’ Mistral muttered dully. 

‘And?’
 Phantom prompted.

Mistral
shrugged.  She didn’t want to talk about her dreams, or lack of them.

‘She just said
to give it time.’

Phantasm gave
an exasperated sigh, ‘Look, as much as I know how you would love to be a
martyr, I’m certain that Master Sphinx wouldn’t let you go even if you threw
one of your full-on tantrums and spat in his face!  I’ve told you before,
he is
very
ambitious and I think we figure largely in whatever plans he
has!  And don’t feel guilty about us being on punishment detail.  We
all chose to go on the hunt and can take the punishment.  Even my brother
can cope with a week of scrubbing out the toilets in The Cloak and Dagger –’