the Leathermines

Back to Chapter 39

 

War council.  There had been gatherings, meetings before.  That morning, after the morning household gathering and meal, many people stayed in the Great Hall for the news and serious business of the day.

Dreng was in charge.  There was no doubt about that.  He had taken a white sheet from the laundry, since he knew where it was, and put it on the floor.  Starting from the middle of the Midlands, people were creating a map.  Charred sticks from the fires were used to mark mountains and rivers and cities.  The land around the Salam-Dir  household was well marked and the different wards tried to put their blood households on the map, too.

It took close to an hour for the map to come together.  Some discussion happened between those marking and those observing.  The map was fairly complete and attention started to drift, so Dreng stood and paced the outside of the map.

“We have here the kingdom that we live in.  It is made of land and water and mountains.  But more importantly, it is made of people.”  Dreng stood on the mark for the Capitol City.  “Right now, people who are led by my son are in control.”  He turned and pointed at Jake.  “You have the most current news from outside.  Tell us.”

Dreng went back to his bench seat and drank from a mug handed to him by the laundress that had been his escort the day before.  Laun noticed the hand on her leg and smiled.

Jake stood and looked around the room.  He had a voice that was light and timid at first but then he forced power behind it for people to be able to hear.  “I came from the South about three weeks ago.”  He stood on where his household was.  “We had only sent a token group to the Festival that became the coup, but we had word later that they had been attacked and killed before reaching Lord Falmir’s land.”  He looked around and caught the eye of several people, mostly from the Southern areas, including Jaso.  “We had some...problems with what we thought was a pirate raid on our docks while our people were on the road.  We were able to defend our selves and thought nothing of it.”

Jake steadied himself and a tear was down his face as he said, “A usurper with a writ signed by the false King came to our door, claiming that he was now in control of the lands.  My Uncle had not heard, none of us had heard, of the troubles yet, and did not think anything of bringing in the man and his entourage to discuss it.  That was a mistake, as within hours, our people were dead, slaughtered. I-”  He swallowed hard.  “I ran.  I took what I could and ran.”

Jaso held up his fist and waited until Jake saw.  “Sir, are the roads controlled by Falmir?”

Jake nodded.  He walked along the path he took, noting the blocks he had to go around, the bandits he had to fight.  The news he was able to glean from those running was dire, those who stayed, not as much.  Innkeepers and livery for hire were all scared to go against Falmir, to say anything against Falmir.

The main news was that Rosemond was behind Falmir.  They controlled him and his men and now had nobles in most of the land.  The West and North were not as solidly under his control, but they were starting to push before the weather changed and travel would be difficult at best.

Laun raised her fist and Jake almost bowed to recognize her.  “And the rumor of this households’ demise?”  There was a smattering of chortles.

Jake nodded.  “Yes.  There are lists of nobles and households that have been killed.  Yours,” he motioned to the banner, “is one of the largest that is said to be wiped out.”  He stepped to an area on the map.  “There was an Innkeeper and his wife who were particularly quiet when your household was brought up.  I think her name was Marie...  She mentioned that she had family here and that she missed her cousin Laun.  I am assuming that is you, Lady.”

Laun smiled.  It was good to know that Marie and her people were still well.

“As I was leaving she did say that, because of the bandits killing you off, that it may be safe to hide in this area for a while.”

A few more questions were put to the guest and he left the map to let others have the floor.  The list of noble lands taken over was read off, marked on the map.  The usual harvests and transportation was noted on the map.  Any details people could remember from the flight from the Festival were brought up, examined and used or discarded.

They came to a reasoning in about another hour or so that they really did not have as much information as they wanted, did not have access to troops to fight Falmir and his people.  A listing of the protector teams was made and a new rotating schedule was discussed.  Many of the nobles volunteered to take shifts, most having not done so before.

Laun did not stand up, but she did get the group’s attention.  “Family, and guest, it is my opinion that this has been a very useful meeting.  We still have people in the world who we are waiting for, and I hope they return soon.  Until that time, we need to keep eyes and ears open more than ever.  To do so, we may need to send another mission out.  I have an idea, and anyone who wishes to help, please come see me after this.  Thank you all.”  Many people heard the dismissal in her voice and the meeting was over.

Laun’s idea was one to find out more about the closest lands she knew had been taken over, Lord Helmic’s.  Fount was at her side and caught on immediately to what she was proposing as she started to discuss it.  He did not like it.

“Your plan would put our people in the middle of enemy territory, and there is little that can be done to get them out if there are problems.”  His grey eyes were dark as he spoke, showing he had more emotions going through him than were already on the surface.

Laun nodded as she said, “Yes.  You are the best person to know the difficulties of the castle and keep, but you also know it for it’s usefulness.”  She turned and put fingers delicately on his cheek.  “I ask nothing of anyone I would not do myself, my love.”

Fount had flashes go across his face and he fixed on worry.  “No.  You are not going on this one.”  Echoes of the negative statement went through the small group surrounding Laun.

Edgar looked like he wanted to stand, to leave.  The brows above his eyes were so pinched, it looked like he had only one eyebrow.  His emotions were running hot and hard but his voice had the tone like he was ordering some of the wardsmen to practice as he said, “If this is what you wish, Lady, I will support you.  And I will be at your side.”

Laun looked across the group and smiled.  “Thank you, my love.”

Jake was in the back of the group, watching.  He was very surprised when she seemed to declare two of the men of the household as her hearts one.  He did not stay to hear more of the planning as it truly did not interest him what sneaky way this Lady was trying to get information.  Jake made it outside and to the stables.

There were more horses and mules in the shelter used as the stables than really should have been there.  His own were tied to a post near the front.  A stablehand waited to be noticed before saying, “Sir, do you wish to pasture your mules?”

“I guess so.”  The leads were untied and handed to the young man.  He backed out of the stable and went towards the outer courtyard.

At the main gate, he stopped.  The woman that was there leaning against the stone wall asked, “Can I help you with something, sir?”  She was idly kicking the staff she had in her hands out, letting it swing back to her foot to be kicked again.

“Um, I need to pasture my mules, but I don’t know where to go.”

She nodded knowingly.  “Hold on a moment.  I’ll send you with someone.”  She leaned forward and waved at someone behind him.  “He needs to pasture the mules-the harvested North field?”

Another woman was behind him and answered the first.  “Ya.  We have a line out there with only a few mounts.  And Bessie.”  She started walking and said over her shoulder, “Keep up if you don’t want to get lost!”

It only took a few minutes to get to the pasture, but Jake was out of breath keeping up with the woman.  She held her staff across her chest as she jogged and she bounced in her stride.  She was wearing sandals and a short tunic that rode up and showed her ass as she went.  Jake was watching her more than the road and almost fell when a stone turned under his foot.

She heard him swear and turned in mid stride and then back again, continuing on when she saw he was still following her.  They got to the pasture and the mules were tied onto the end of a long rope that was anchored to a large tree at the edge of the field.  There were some horses and a cow already grazing on the remaining stalks left from the harvest the week before.  He patted the mules and felt the leg of the one that had a limp.  It was better and looked like someone had put some sort of ointment on it in the night.

Jake was startled by two people coming through the field from one side to the other, seemingly bursting from one wooded side to run across to the other.  It looked like a man and a woman together, not chasing each other, but side by side.  The man had a bow, strung and over his head, and a short sword at his hip.  She had one of the staves that she used to push the browning bushes to the side before they disappeared into the woods again.

He turned towards a noise behind him and heard one of the bird calls that seemed to have been at all hours of the day and night after he arrived at the farmer’s huts.  The woman who had escorted him was making the call, and waited for a returned call before saying to him, “Do you want to join us for training?  Or does your arm hurt too much?”  She had real concern in her voice for his arm.

It had been hurting for weeks.  He thought he had hidden it, but if someone just looking at him could tell, he was not living up to the training he had gotten at his Uncle’s side.  “I am well.  I would at least like to see the training.  The demonstration last night was impressive.”

She barely nodded and disappeared into the woods.  He had to launch himself into a full run to keep up with her.  He could see her just ahead and avoided most of the logs and branches and pits the woods seemed to have in his path.  That was, most of them.

As Jake came through the edge of the woods, one low vine caught his foot and he tripped.  He landed between two people who were sparring, his face going only inches from a bared sword before hitting the dirt.  There was laughter, but hands to help him up and check to see if he was hurt from his fall.  He was more wounded in his pride than anything else.  The people around him did not allow him to withdraw and handed him a wooden sword when he was able to stand.  There was the Dance Master, drumming in the shade of an oak on one side of the clearing and many couples sparring.  There seemed to be a silent conversation between several of the women, and one of the men, and Jake was pulled to a clear spot by one of the women.

His muscles remembered many of the drills his Uncle had taught him which saved him more than he knew because he kept getting distracted by the lack of clothing on many of the women. Some had short tunics, some just had skirts.  All were handling the staves they had with an expertise that made the demonstration the night before seem ordinary.  The one man down to just a loincloth was also distracting as his stomach muscles rippled whenever he lifted the bow he was using and tightened right before releasing the arrow.

Jake knew he was distracted as the woman he was against was suddenly against him, her arm around his waist and her breath lingering with his.  Her voice was breathy as she said, “If you don’t want to do this, we could do something else.  But until you say stop, pay attention.  I will hurt you otherwise.”

He automatically said, “Yes, teacher,” as she let him go.  He mentally kicked himself and focused on the tunic clad woman who was lightly turning the staff in her hand with a few fingers.  She was balanced on her feet as if she could sprint at any moment, the sway she had timed to the beat the Dance Master was drumming.  She stepped to the side, to flank him, and he turned, solid and unyielding.

That was his downfall, though every fighting teacher he had would have said his feet were planted well, his stance was good and his focus right.  Nan tossed the stave in the air, dropped and swept his feet from under him and caught the stave right before it hit him in the face.

All the wind was knocked out of him, both physically as well as emotionally.  He became angry, more at himself than at Nan.  But she was the one who had gone through his hard-learned defenses and he felt he needed to take it out on her.  He rolled over and pushed himself up.  He felt encumbered by the belt at his hip and he let it drop to the ground.  He picked up the wooden weapon he had dropped and faced Nan again.

She circled him, a slight smile at the corner of her eyes.  He tried to move, to face and follow, but found his feet were rooted to the ground.  He found that too late as he tried to turn and tripped himself up, falling sideways towards his opponent.  She went to one knee and caught him before he hit the ground.  She kissed him on the nose and pushed him back onto his feet.

Jake growled.  He flexed his feet in his boots and tried to stand on the balls of his feet.  He felt a cramp start up, but he refused to let this woman be able to constantly defeat him, even if his body seemed to be on her side.  She nodded and continued to circle.

He wanted to strike at her, but he just couldn’t do it.  She was strong, she was holding a weapon, but she was a she.  He was able to block a few of the strikes she threw at his sides, but she changed her tactics and he found the butt of her stave heading for his stomach, and there was nothing he could to about it.

She pulled the strike, hitting him not too softly, but hard enough that he was going to have a bruise.  He let go of his need to not hit her and swung the practice sword at her.  She was able to duck out of the way, but she yelled, “Yes!” and sped up what she was doing.

There was a flurry of strikes and blocks for both of them.  High was his strong area, so Nan started to go primarily for his legs.  He saw what she was doing, and saw a consistent opening as she went for his legs for the third time.  He realized how fast the weapon was moving in his hand and tried to pull back right before he connected with her hip.

Nan was down and Jake was by her side before his practice sword hit the ground.  She was not yelling, but the sound that came out of her was more than a simple groan.  Jake ripped the tunic to get to where he had hit her and saw the bruise already forming.  Others were around him and had hands on her.  He tried to back off as others pushed in, but her hand found and held his tunic.

“You aren’t getting away that easily,” she hissed out between her clenched teeth.

She was carried back to the keep by most of the people who had been training.  Staves went under her, hands supported her.  She clenched Jake’s hand over every jarring step.

As they were stepping into the Great Hall, someone draped Jake’s forgotten belt over his head.  He did not have a chance to thank whomever it was before being involved with setting his sparring partner down on one of the tables.

Both Pillar and Lucaris ran into the room within minutes of the call having been given.  They poked and prodded and gave Nan something to drink and slathered something on the bruise and had cold, wet cloths draped over the darkened skin.  Lucaris rounded on Jake and looked like she wanted to say something before she saw how tight Nan and Jake were holding their hands.  And the way he was trying not to show how much that arm hurt.

“You!  Show me!”  Nan let go long enough for Jake’s tunic to be pulled off and grabbed onto him again.  The healer was on tip-toe to see the wound.  She did not look pleased.  She took one of the cloths that had been brought for Nan and slapped it onto the wound.

“Ow!”  Jake could not hold that in as the force of the cloth and the way Lucaris was scrubbing at the old blood both hurt.  He was glad he was holding onto someone because his arm would have struck out at the healer if not.  A pot of something appeared in her hand and she slathered a green, foul smelling ointment on the wound.  Jake had to turn his head at the strength of the smell.

Nan was yet again making a sound that was unpleasant.  She had started to throw up, barely missing someone beside the table.  Everything that she had eaten for first meal was being ejected, along with the elixir in the tankard.  She seemed embarrassed about it and put her other hand over her eyes after she was empty.

Pillar was done poking and prodding Nan’s hip and was now massaging where it was not turning almost black.  “The body sometimes does that when there is a trauma.  You will feel better soon.  Nothing seems broken...”

Pillar had stopped talking when Nan had shaken her head slightly.  His eyebrow went up and she did a little shrug.  “I haven’t been able to keep anything down for two days.”  Her voice was soft, but it carried to the healers.

The shamen looked at each other, a meaningful conversation in that split second.  Another drink was forced on Nan, Pillar making her sip it slowly.  Lucaris looked like she was going to prod the bruised hip, but instead placed her hand on Nan’s stomach right above her crotch.  She nodded after a moment, a worried smile on her face.

Laun had come to beside the table and watched the healers.  She saw the grip Nan had on his hand, the pain she was in.  She also heard ‘not broken’.  Lady Laun turned to Jake and said, “We have a tradition around here.  You hurt your sparring partner, you take care of them until they heal.  I hope you weren’t thinking of leaving any time soon.”    Laun leaned down to Nan and said, in a softer tone, “I hope you didn’t do this on purpose.”

Nan shook her head and smiled through her pain.  Her smile went away and Laun was pulled out of the line of fire by someone who had been there for the last round of vomit.  Laun put her head to Nan’s head but did not feel any heat, other than the embarrassed flush that had started in the woman.

Lucaris took Laun’s hand and pulled her to the side.  “It is early, but it looks like she may be bringing another member into the household in about eight months.”  Laun’s eyes went wide once what the healer had said sunk in.  Laun calculated both directions.  A summer baby, early summer.  And conceived after they got back from the Festival.  But not by much.

“Does she know?”  Lucaris shrugged and went back to tend to the injured.

Laun stepped around the spot being cleaned on the floor and put a hand gently on Nan’s stomach.  It did seem a little rounder, a little fuller.  Laun looked into Nan’s eyes under her hand and said, “Let yourself be taken care of.  Make sure the bruise is fully gone before you try training again, all right?”

Nan nodded.  “Thank you, Lady.”

Laun went to Jake’s side and looked at the old wound.  “I thought you had something there.  It takes beating up one of my protectors for you to get it looked at?”

Jake shook his head and was about to say something when Laun put her finger gently on his lips.  “If you are going to stay, you need to find a place in the household.  Right now, you are going to take care of Nan.  Be aware, she will tire you out...once she is feeling better.”  Laun winked and turned away.  Jake was not sure what she meant and looked at the woman holding onto his hand.

Laun slowly walked through the busy people around her, letting them stop or go as they wished, until she made it to Orgia’s domain, the kitchens.  Laun sat on the bench right inside the door and waited until Orgia saw her and came over.

“We are still cleaning up from the feast last night.  I swear, the more dishes we make, the number we clean gets...  Laun?”  The older woman sat on the bench.  “What’s wrong?”

Laun smiled and shook her head slightly.  “Not wrong.  There may be a baby coming.”

Orgia’s eyes went wide and she hugged Laun strongly.  “I knew you would do it!”

Laun laughed.  “No!  Not me.  Nan.”  Laun’s eyes were watery as she looked at the chatelaine.  “It is early, and I remember Hellon’s miscarriage.”  The women both looked grim for a moment.

Orgia came to an instant decision.  “Well, if she is pregnant, she is going to have to have a room without drafts over the winter.  I think I know the one.”

Laun watched as Orgia stood and called to one of her staff.  He was told a list of things and he ran off, counting on his fingers as he did so.  The chatelaine was the true heart of the household, and Laun knew it.  She left the older woman to her business and went out through the back kitchens to where the vegetable gardens used to be.

It was an enclosed yard, not like the front courtyards with access to the roads.  This one had been tended by the household staff to provide the vegetables and fruits that the outside fields could not.  The bandits had swept through them, looking for people and destroying the plantings.  Except for one.

There was a little bench that was by the South wall that was hidden by roses.  The roses themselves were far past blooming, the woody vines starting to drop leaves to show the rosehips.  Laun picked one of the rosehips and carefully chewed it, spitting out the hard seeds.  She remembered Lady Hellon showing her the roses after they had bloomed.  Laun had declared at three years old that roses, even though they were pretty while in bloom, had no use because you could not eat them.  Lady Hellon had reached out right then and eaten one of the growing rosehips.  And then told Laun of the rose petal jelly her mother used to make.  She had looked sad for a moment and said that she was going to have Orgia make some in the summer.

It had become a small tradition after that.  Lady Hellon would have Laun pick the biggest, most perfect blooms and they would be made into just one pot of rose petal jelly.  They would share one meal with the jelly on fresh bread and then Lady Hellon would finish off the jelly her self over the course of the summer.

Laun sat on the hidden bench and felt tears welling up.  Not just for the loss of her Lady, but for the child that may be brought into the world at a time of war.  Life was disappointing in some aspects.  Unfair.  But, as Laun looked at the hand she held out to the cluster of rosehips, she saw the traces of the scars on her hands, on her wrists, and knew that the most unfair, the most unkind, had happened to those who were not with them.  She could not forget the people who had died.  But she could not ignore the people she still had around her.

She sat, alone, for close to an hour.  She watched through the thorns people coming and going in the gardens, some digging into the mound that held the household’s potatoes.  She thought of plans to take a small dance troupe to the NestWood to scout for information, and possibly take it back for Dreng.  That made her think of Falmir, the first son who had disposed of those who may have gotten in his way of the crown, but for her.  She had been born and raised and then fate kicked her in the ass and made her warn the King.  And Falmir must be her father.  After finally talking with Dreng about her mother, it was clear what happened, and when.

There had been a change-over in the Dresden family and her mother’s father became ambassador to Rosemond.  A party, a gathering of close to 100 nobles and hanger-ons were at the King’s Palace in the Capitol City.  Falmir and several of his friends had been flirting, teasing some of the younger noble ladies.  Dreng remembered how Lennie had looked at Falmir at the party, wonder and youthful crush on her face. And then the face she held in place at the trial four months later when she could not hide Laun any longer.  Lennie had avoided Falmir’s condescending sneer.

Dreng had held Laun’s hand and apologized.  She remembered that he asked forgiveness for not seeing what had been in front of him the whole time.  And that he was happy that she had come to Salam-Dir and had grown up such a wonderful Lady.  And that he had found her to become her Grandfather.

Grandfather.  She was getting used to calling him that.  It was used to good effect with Jake from the South, once he put it together.  Laun liked the wide look he had given her as she dragged him to meet Dreng.  She had to stop doing things for shock, for effect.  It was going to get her into trouble.  And she was not always going to have people around her to protect her.

Protectors.  There was a team that seemed to be carefully looking in the gardens.  Laun looked up at the sky and it was not time for evening meal, so they were probably not looking for her.  Laun sat still and watched them through the greenery.

One of them stopped and bent down.  He clicked his tongue without looking up and his partner came over.  They both looked at a spot on the ground for a few seconds before one of them carefully picked up something.  Laun could not see from where she was what it was at first.  They stood and she stood and she could see that it was an arrowhead.  They carefully looked along the trajectory and one followed a line to the wall as the other left the garden.

Laun had to know.  She came out of her hidden area and walked to where the protector was standing and looked up where she was looking.  “What are we looking at?”

The protector jumped and almost dropped the arrow on the broken shaft.  “Lady!  You startled me!”

“I apologize, but still - What are we looking at?”

The protector pointed over the wall and said, “Someone was on the land.  We found some footprints that led away from the keep and some broken arrows by one of the gnarled trees.  You know, the ones with those nasty roots?  The footprints ended about fifteen paces from the wall and it looked like they had been there for a while.  We found a broken arrow near the wall on the other side and could not find the rest of it.  We came in here to see if it had shattered at the top of the wall or bounced in somehow.”  She held up the sharp, barbed arrowhead.  “Found it!”

“Good thinking.”  Laun held out her hand and the arrowhead was placed carefully on her palm.  The head was sharpened on all the outer surfaces, four main edges and then a row of barbs along the bottom.  If it wasn’t so deadly, it might have been beautiful.  The shaft that remained was a dark color, more green than black.

A call from the other side caught their attention.  A small stone came over the wall and landed on the ground.  “Yes!  Right there!”  Laun looked to either side and saw that they were almost center of that particular side of the garden.  Laun picked up a stone and marked the wall with a large circle.

She stepped back and looked around.  There were tree limbs hanging over the wall from both sides.  There wasn’t a good way to look over the wall, and it was not as defensible as the other side of the keep.

“Get the trees cut back from inside and cut down outside.  Clear out the underbrush and trees from the other side of the wall to at least five paces.  Have the carpenters build a walk along the wall and here,” Laun pointed to the corner, “we need lanterns put in the wall.  It is too dark here at night.  You.  Are in charge of making sure that the gardens are patrolled and protected.”  Laun leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.

As Laun was walking away when she heard a call over the wall to her partner of, “Get out the axes!  We are making firewood!”

It made Laun think.  If someone had been there, even with patrols, there were blind spots that needed to be found and taken care of.  She grabbed one of the younger servants and told him to get Dreng and Edgar to the Great Hall.  She had another servant run and get a few of the nobles.  Another servant was sent to get the protectors that had gone back to the training grounds.  Laun did not have to send for anyone else as the word that Laun wanted a meeting spread, bringing everyone who could come into the Great Hall running.

Another white sheet was sacrificed.  Laun was already making a plan of the castle, the keep and the grounds.  She had sent one of the women to get some of the cosmetics and was using colors to help with the map.  Water and trees and road were all slightly different colors.  Again it took a while to create the map, the topography and the known paths through the woods.

Laun made sure that the walls of the keep and castle were all drawn on the map, noting the garden in particular.  She sat down and let others continue after her legs decided to start cramping.

“We had people within fifteen paces of the garden’s walls.”  Laun held up the arrowhead.  “This was in the dirt of the path, shot by someone who came, shot and left.  They were here...”  Laun looked at the protectors who had found the arrows.

“Lady, the day after the last rain.  From the deep nature of the footprints that we first found, and the problems the person had getting out through the old tree grove, it may have been right after the rain stopped.  And only one.”

Laun nodded.  She turned to Dreng and asked, “How many people should we send to track the footprints?”

He considered it and said, “One team, if it looks like he came in and went out the same way, one each direction if the tracks split.”

“Thank you.  And add a runner to the team.”  There were a few nods.

One of the nobles was looking at the map closely.  “Perhaps we need to put a barrier at the stream, here.”  He pointed and Laun did not see the need, but Dreng and several others nodded.

Laun bowed her head and said, “If you would make sure it is done, I would appreciate it.”  She laughed at the look on his face, but he bowed to her and stepped back.

A plan formed, people volunteered, or were volunteered, to put things into action.  It was obvious after the meeting that morphed into dinner that the simple, fun household could not return to the bower on the hill.  They had been invaded.  They could not let that happen again.  Laun was not the innocent, protected dancer any more.  She saw the possibilities of the future, and most of it was bleak.

They had to take what they had and use it to create the best outcome they could.

The evening meal was spread out over longer than usual as different groups would form, talk about something and then break up, other groups forming and continuing conversations and plans.  Extra sweet mint tea was brewed, a hogshead of ale broken into to keep the talking going.  Multiple groups went out into the night to do some night scouting and think about how the land would be vulnerable.

Laun asked to be escorted to her chamber when it was close to midnight.  Her back and legs were hurting and she could not think straight anymore.  Several people stood and offered their arms.  Laun took the closest one and made her way out, saying good night to many who were still in lively conversations.

Laun wanted comfort.  She was in physical pain that could be soothed.  The mental pain was something she had to push to the side and try to let the relief of her aches be enough.

She asked for a massage from those with her.  She was stroked and massaged and held and then fondled and stroked and made love to until she fell asleep from the wonderful exhaustion that kind of release brings.

Laun’s eyes flew open in the early morning.  She was being held from both sides by her men.   Edgar was at her back with his arm on her waist, Fount facing her and his legs tangled with hers.  Laun could hear other breathing in the chamber and could just make out a few bodies under the covers by the low night lamp.  Nothing sounded out of place.  But something had woken her.

She closed her eyes and tried to force sleep into her brain again.  But it was not working.  Her eyes were open on their own again.

She started to move out from between her men, disturbing them a little, but they were still asleep as she reached the edge of the bed.  She reached over and moved a lock of hair out of the face of the stablehand who had fallen asleep on the floor at her feet.  Laun carefully stepped over her guard and went to the chair.  She sat, she took inventory of her physical being, and let the pain that was in her mind poke out for a few minutes before she pushed it away again.

She had her robe on to chase the chill in the air away.  She pulled it closer when she thought she heard scratching.  She went through the tapestry at the anti-chamber and heard the scratching again.

There was a protector team at the door.  Laun did not have to hear anything from them, she just motioned into the corridor and they started to walk to the Great Hall.

Blankets were around people and fires were being brought back up at both ends of the room.  Laun ignored her pain and started to run towards the far end of the Great Hall.  She held out her arms and found that Kelli, cold and shivering, was in them.  Laun could not hold herself and Kelli up and found they were in a pile on the floor.  Kelli was sobbing into Laun’s shoulder, not trying to say anything, but crying as though she had been at it for days.

Geralk was on one of the benches, the firelight showing that he was very tired and not in good shape.  He raised a hand to Laun and just sat looking into the fire.

Laun looked around.  The third was not there.  Ben.  He was not there.

Lady Laun motioned for help and hands were there to get the women off the floor.  A bench was moved and they sat, more blankets around them and others to hold the blankets to them.

Kelli finally had her sobbing under control enough to say, “They took Ben.  They know about us now.  I think they killed him.”  And Kelli started crying again.

Laun looked over to Geralk.  He nodded and turned away slightly.

Laun just held Kelli.  That was all she could do right then.

There was a slight commotion and Orgia came in.  Geralk stood and limped a few steps in the time it took the woman to run to him.  She fussed a little, but helped him to walk out, and presumably to their shared bed.

Laun took Kelli by the chin and looked into her face.  The firelight made the streaks of tears and snot glisten on the girl’s face.  “Come and sleep with us.  You are safe, now.”  Kelli nodded and several people helped the two women to the chamber, a guard of several teams standing outside.

No one in the chamber had woken.  Laun made Kelli wipe her face as Laun cleaned the girl’s feet.  There were blisters under the dirt and Laun knew how that felt. Laun helped Kelli to the bed, the stablehand waking and instantly up on his feet.  Ali helped guide Kelli into the gap in the bed and then support Laun as she placed her feet next to sensitive parts of others before pushing her way into the pile.

Edgar’s impulse to hold Laun close made Kelli gasp slightly as his arm went around her and pulled her in.  Fount stirred and found that Laun was backside to him.  He wrapped his arm around her waist and went back to sleep without knowing what had just happened.

There were hours before the sun would be fully up.  Laun knew that they would tell the story, but right then, they needed to rest.

Chapter 41