The Myatheira Chronicles: Volume Two: Beyond the Veil (81 page)

He pointed at a ship two piers down, the sight of it hidden amongst the high mast frames of those around it. Callum continued to move toward the vessel, his smile widening with every step. “Do you see it?” he asked excitedly. “The Levadis flag! It is attached at the bow.”

The closer they came to the ship, she fought against the desire to fall upon her knees and cry out her thanks to the gods. Her father’s ship. It was there. She could touch it! Obvious damage had been incurred to the framework since she’d seen it last, but it remained intact. Callum investigated the exterior, fingers running along the paint, coming to stop at what looked to be an arrow embedded in the surface. She hurried to his side, peering quizzically over his shoulder as he pulled it free. “Is that a pirate arrow?” she inquired.

“No, this was fired from a Namiren weapon,” Callum twirled the shaft between his fingers. “They must have encountered one of their ships while passing through the Nahpoa. Namorea is very territorial about their water and if they saw the Levadis flag, they would attack. King Galidric still holds a grudge over the fact that the Vor’shai defeated him twice during his reign.”

“You would think he would eventually learn to stop attacking us, then,” Aiva rolled her eyes.

Callum grinned, snapping the arrow in half to discard it absently into the water. An inquisitive gleam was in his eyes, searching the rest of the vessel. “I don’t think this ship has been docked long,” he said suddenly. “If I had to wager a guess, I would say Edric’s men reached the port before our fathers did. They must have gotten a later start than Edric let on and the Namirens probably didn’t help.”

“If they haven’t been here long, they could not have gotten very far. Perhaps we can catch up to them sooner.” Aiva let her eyes scan the dock curiously. A second ship bearing the Tanispan colors floated in the water closer to the end of the pier. She hoped Callum was right. The sooner they could catch up with the others, the better. “We should get some food so we can be on our way. At least we know they are here. That is a significant weight off my shoulders.”

“Mine as well,” Callum agreed. “Let’s get moving. I thought I saw a stable a few streets back. We can get the horses and look over a map while we eat. There are several taverns in town. Finding a place to dine won’t be difficult.”

“We just need to avoid the rum,” she grinned.

With a half-hearted smile Callum nodded, patting Aiva on the shoulder while guiding her away from the ship. “I wouldn’t concern yourself with the rum,” he sighed. “Keep your head down and avoid eye-contact with anyone we meet. The locals can cause more trouble than the alcohol and right now we need to avoid any unnecessary headaches.”

Callum spread the map over the table, drawing a line with his index finger between two points. “This is where we need to go,” he directed. “From Dackdyn, we head northeast to intercept a road leading into North Pointe. If it was up to me, and I had men to disperse, I would stop in the city of Targas, which is just south of North Pointe. From there I would send scouts ahead to investigate the layout and learn what they could about Osahar’s business endeavors. Unfortunately, we have no way of knowing whether our fathers are headed in the same direction we are. Not to mention my father may not think the same way I do. If he does, then we stand a good chance at crossing paths with them in Targas.”

“Or sooner,” Aiva nodded. The map looked like nothing more than lines and dots to her. Everything in this city set her on edge. It was hard to hear anything spoken between her and Callum over the din of conversation, drunken laughter and angered shouting filling the room. An occasional fight broke out, men scrambling to join at any chance they had. Cheers erupted whenever a punch was thrown, drawing Aiva’s attention away from the task Callum diligently attempted to keep her focused on. A gentle tap on her hand forced her eyes to him again. “I’m sorry,” she frowned. “I can barely hear myself think in this place.”

“As you can tell, no one else here knows what it means to think,” Callum smirked. He smiled at the waitress as she approached, his hands rolling the map up to move it out of the way, creating a space for her to set their plates. “Thank you, miss,” he nodded politely. Aiva was impressed to see that the woman made no attempt to catch Callum’s eye, her gaze settled on another table, unaware that he said anything at all.

The smell of food was enough to distract her from the commotion. Her stomach screamed for something to eat. Throughout their journey on the boat, the sailors lived off little more than bread and rum. They tended to have a few drinks and then forget about eating.

Talking was out of the question while food was in front of them. Once in a while they would start to say something, the words lost to the crowd. Aiva couldn’t wait to be out of there. Fresh air would do them some good. Her only concern was the rain. It continued to pour, making the roads muddy and harder to traverse. Knowing that the other men would be on foot, her hopes were high in the possibility of catching up to them with the help of their horses.

A few tables away Aiva could hear what sounded like two men arguing, voices quickly rising into slurred shouts, fists pounding against wood. Hesitantly, she slid further into her seat. She didn’t want to be anywhere near the edge if the men took to fighting. This didn’t seem the place to cause trouble. “We really shouldn’t linger much longer,” she said loudly, leaning across the table to help carry her voice. “I worry the crowd will get rougher as the night goes on.”

“That is a well-grounded concern,” Callum agreed. He finished the last of his soup, pressing the empty bowl away from him. “In fact, I think it would be wise for us to find our way to the exit now.”

She waited only long enough for Callum to collect their belongings and toss some coins on the table before moving to stand. Her skin crawled at the bodies packed into the room, pressed against each other, making it difficult to find a path toward the door. Once on her feet she felt a hand slap against her rear, causing her to jump in surprise. From behind her a man started to laugh, calling out drunkenly. “Hey! What you doin’ with a scrawny boy like that? Why don’t ya come over ‘ere and I’ll show you what it’s like to be with a real man.”

Callum climbed out of the booth, tightly taking Aiva’s hand in his. “As much as I would like to punch that man, it’s best to keep our eyes down and get outside,” he frowned. “If we acknowledge him, he will provoke a fight.”

Nodding in understanding, she started to follow Callum through the crowd. His hand was slipping away from hers, the people pushing against them, forcing them apart. There was no etiquette in a place like this. Polite requests for anyone to move were either unheard or ignored, some of the men blowing smoke into her face while she tried to push by. The smell was sickening. Everyone around her was sweaty and covered in dirt, rum spilled down their clothes, the rest of them drenched from the rain outside. Up ahead she could see Callum trying to find his way back to her.

A hand reached out to wrap around her slender waist, pulling her deeper into the tavern with a hard jerk. She fought against the grip, her anger rising at the incivility of these people. “Let me go!” she shouted, struggling to break free of the hold. The man remained firm, laughing loudly into her ear.

“I thought I told ya to come ‘ere,” he grinned.

“If I wanted you to touch me, I would have taken you up on your offer.”

His hands slid up her bodice to grab at her chest. He was pressed against her back, head leaning over her shoulder, breathing in the scent of her hair. “I don’t see your kind ‘round these parts much. I just want to show ya a good time.”

Panic rose in her throat, making it hard to breathe. She had no control over this situation the way she had with Odell in Vailetta. There were too many people. No one cared what this man did to her. If she screamed for help, the other patrons would ignore her.

Callum continued to fight his way through the crowd. A group of men stood in his path, taunting him, pushing him in every direction. His eyes flashed angrily as he drew his arm back, a solid punch connecting with one of them, a brawl breaking out only a few feet away. Aiva hoped it would distract the man holding her captive. Instead it only helped him to drag her further away.

She needed to think of something. Callum was trying to get to her, but she couldn’t rely on him solely. If anything, he needed her help. There were too many against him. He was climbing on top of a table, kicking outward at the crowd to push them away, calling to her desperately. Her arm reached for him, screaming his name.

Reflexively she brought her elbow upward, feeling it strike solidly against the man’s face. A stream of curse words flooded from his mouth, spinning her around to face him. She gave no thought to her actions, winding back to deliver a precise and well-aimed punch directly to the man’s nose, causing him to stumble backward from the blow.

“You bitch!” he shouted angrily, clambering forward to reach for her, disoriented. “That whore broke my nose!”

Stepping just out of his reach she followed Callum’s lead, using the chairs to climb onto a nearby table. It was the only way to move through the room without being slowed by the crowd. People shouted profanities at her as she knocked over glasses and plates, leaping from one table to another until she felt Callum’s hand in hers.

The pain in her knuckles was excruciating. It burned unlike anything she’d felt before, numb from the force of the punch. Her vision swam while Callum continued to guide her toward the door, bursting onto the street, instantly drenched by the relentless rain. They didn’t stop running until they were to their horses, the sound of Callum’s laughter echoing through the air around them. “Aiva, you punched that man!” he tossed his head back. “My gods, you should have seen his face. Most women would have gone for a slap but you… that was a good solid punch.”

“Yes, I know. I was there,” she winced, clutching painfully at her right hand. “I thought it was supposed to hurt the target more than me.”

“Well, if the bones in your hand aren’t used to the force, it can injure them,” Callum nodded. Careful not to apply too much pressure to her favored hand he helped her onto the saddle, handing her the reins. “I will take a look at it when we get out of town. Right now, we need to keep moving before he decides to come after us.”

Callum leapt onto his horse in a fluid motion, snapping the reins to signal it forward. He took off at a canter, quickly working into a full gallop down the streets. Aiva gritted her teeth through the pain. She needed her hand to keep her balance. Trembling under the strain she tightened her fingers around the leather, heels digging into the sides of the horse to follow after Callum. Rain pelted her in the face almost painfully from the speed. How Callum was able to see remained a mystery to her. All she could do was hope to keep close and not fall behind.

They rode until the sky overhead turned a dusky shade, shadows stretched along the path around them. Trees lined the road, providing a natural canopy from the rain. Callum gave a verbal command for his horse to slow, drawing up on the reins sharply. Doing the same, Aiva felt the horse slide to a stop in the mud. “Why are we stopping?” she asked, letting out a deep breath to finally be free of the constant pound of water against her. “We aren’t lost, I hope…”

“No, not at all,” he chuckled. Expertly, he maneuvered his horse to Aiva’s right side, gesturing for her to hold out her hand. “I want to look at that hand of yours before we lose sunlight. Does it still hurt?”

“I don’t know. My body has been frozen for the last several miles,” she grumbled. “Before it went numb I do believe it remained rather uncomfortable.”

Accepting her outstretched hand Callum looked it over, inspecting it with a scrutinizing gaze. He bent each knuckle, his eyes focused on Aiva to see her reaction, alert for any indication of pain. She felt nothing. Her body tingled from the cold, shaking noticeably in Callum’s grasp. “You are like ice,” he frowned. Filled with concern, he pressed one of his hands against her cheek, staring at her in consternation. “We should not keep you out in the rain. I know you are anxious to reach your family; I am also, however, I cannot risk your health. You are already beginning to worry me.”

Desperate for him to change his mind, she turned a pitiful gaze in his direction. “Please, do not stop,” she begged. “Targas cannot be far. We’ll have plenty of time to rest once we reach the city.”

“Even traveling through the night, Targas is still at least a two day ride. That is too far for someone who may already be ill.”

“I am fine. Why do you not believe me?”

“Because you tremble, Aiva. Your hand is swollen yet you feel nothing. If you are truly that numb, it is possible your body is giving other signals of its ailment and you are simply not aware of it due to the cold.”

“Then we should keep going before I thaw,” she argued. “If I give my body a chance to develop the sickness, we will never reach our fathers. We need to keep going. Two days is not that long.”

“It is when you’re sick. That’s two days and two nights of no rest and little food.”