View Single Post
Old 10-31-2003, 12:19 PM   #133
Ealasaide
Shadow of Tyrn Gorthad
 
Ealasaide's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: The Fencing Lyst
Posts: 810
Ealasaide has just left Hobbiton.
Sting

Kaldir

"I wasn't always the monster you see before you," Kaldir said softly as he pushed past Benia into the courtyard. In that instant when he had stood over her, his fingers touching the silver chain that graced her satin cheek, he had very nearly leaned over the few inches that separated them and kissed her. She had been so close, the enchanting kohl-lined eyes, so hypnotic. The only thing that had stopped him was the knowledge of her feelings toward him. That and the presence of Mrs. Banks, but even he understood that fear and revulsion were hardly the emotions upon which he could build a courtship of Benia, or even a seduction, for that matter. So, he had wrenched himself away, falling into his usual pattern of gruffness and anger, but this time it wasn't without a stab of bitterness.

"I wasn't always the monster you see before you."

He had not intended to say anything else to her, but the sentence had popped out on its own. He needed her to know that he hadn't always been the abhorrent creature she saw before her. Perhaps if she knew that...

He let the thought trail off unfinished. Whatever Benia Nightshade thought of him, in that instant, he had also come to the decision that he was taking her nowhere near Harad. The tribesmen who had offered him the bounty on any Painted Sand people he happened across would kill her on sight. He would not allow that to happen, but he was still unwilling to let her or Mrs. Banks go free. Whatever his original reasons for keeping them were, he had noticed that now, for some strange reason, the two of them had a calming effect on him, soothing the sharp and jagged edges of his mind. True, keeping track of them was like riding herd on two kittens, which had irritated him no end at first, but now? Now, he knew that, despite their more troublesome qualities or even Miss Nightshade's charms, he needed them.

He walked across the small courtyard to where the horses waited and swung himself easily into the saddle of the gray horse. There was something about the mere presence of the desert woman and the hobbit that kept the worst of the memories and flashbacks at bay. True, he had had a difficult moment back in the side street when Dulrain had offered him his grandfather's sword, but it had never taken him completely out of himself the way the flashbacks had in the past. He had been able to fight his way through it fairly quickly, and he credited that ability to the presence of his two companions. He didn't understand the why, but, if that's the way things worked, he wouldn't argue. Particularly not with Naiore so close. If he intended to take on Naiore Dannan, he would have to have all of his faculties intact. If he lost control for even a second, that silken garrote would find its way back around his throat. He closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, Benia and Gilly were finally coming out the door of the wine shop where they had dawdled for a moment after his exit. Benia was veiled again
and Mrs. Banks looked thoughtful but scared. No doubt Benia had explained about Naiore. He waited silently as the two of them mounted their horses, noticing, too, that Benia's ankle seemed to have improved greatly. That was good. She would be less vulnerable now. When they seemed settled onto their mounts, he dug his heels into the flanks of his horse and led the way out of the courtyard. They had a lot to do and much ground to cover before they could call it a day. He squinted toward the horizon. Storm clouds hovered dangerously low in the west like a bruise against the blue of the sky. With the wind blowing steadily to the north, he hoped the storm would ride the wind past them into the northlands. Rain, especially a heavy one, would destroy Naiore's tracks. If that happened, it was possible that he would never find her again. He quickened his pace.

As the afternoon sun shifted gradually across the sky, the rains never arrived. Kaldir, with Gilly and Benia in tow, searched a series of Barrold Ferny's little hideaways. Some had been used recently, others had been empty for quite sometime, but all showed evidence of Ferny's questionable housekeeping standards. They reminded Kaldir more of troll holes than anything else.

The last one he intended to search in the northern part of the town, the one that he had been putting off, was a cave high up on Bree Hill. More a stronghold than a hideaway, the cave sat atop a steep and rocky incline and was accessible by way of only one path. That path led upward across a wide expanse of open ground. It was the ideal location for a last stand on the part of the occupants of the cave, but, if the occupants had any kind of skill with a bow, it was almost impossible to attack. Turning his small party in the direction of the cave, Kaldir frowned. He should have looked there first. It was exactly the sort of place that Naiore would choose to hole up in.

At the foot of the trail, Kaldir dismounted and studied the ground. A lot of traffic had passed that way. Bending close to the ground, he could distinguish five distinct sets of prints. Two men, two elves, and...a hobbit? He glanced over his shoulder at Mrs. Banks. Well, hobbits did have a way of turning up in unusual places. He remembered the small shadow he had seen the night before on the road outside Bree as he had had his little chat with Barrold Ferny. In retrospect, he wished he had given chase. He was fairly certain now that it had been a spy of Naiore's.

Turning his attention back to the trail, he saw there were several comings and goings, but the top set of tracks seemed to be leaving. He looked up the hill. He had missed them. The question now was whether to go all the way up as far as the cave or to follow the departing tracks back into Bree. His guess was that they would make for the Northern Gate. It was not only the closest, but the least carefully watched of all the gates into or out of Bree. Where they went from there was anybody's guess. Finally, he decided that while searching the cave would spend precious time, it would still be prudent to do so. One never knew what clues such a place might yield.

Leading his horse by the reins, he led the way up the steep path to the place where the underbrush ended at the base of the rocky slope. He turned to Gilly and Benia and bade them to dismount.

"Take off your veil, Miss Nightshade," he said to Benia as the two women dismounted. "You will need your eyes and your ears. The one we seek has been here and she is no longer alone. We must be cautious. She may have left others to guard her back."

As Benia removed the thick layer of fabric, Kaldir reached into the pouch on his belt and extracted Gilly's little knife, which he pressed into the surprised hobbit's hand. To Benia, he handed her own dagger as well. Following Benia's glance to her sword which had been lashed to the back of the gray horse, Kaldir shook his head.

"No, my lady," he said smiling. "You must make do with just a dagger for now."

Turning once more to Mrs. Banks, he told her to wait at the edge of the undergrowth with the horses. If anyone approached, she was to cry to out or whistle loudly, something to warn them up ahead. Then, she was to leave the horses and hide. Miss Nightshade would come with him. He took a small elven-made bow from the back of his horse and nocked an arrow to the string. He was ready.

Cautiously, Kaldir stepped out into the open. His eyes scanned the area surrounding the mouth of the cave for any sign of movement, but there was none. Only stillness. He moved slowly forward up the path with Benia close behind him. When they reached the mouth of the cave, they found it both deserted and undefended. Kaldir lowered his bow and stepped inside.

Unlike the other locations they had searched that day, the smooth stone floor of the cave had been swept clean, leaving no footprints for him to study... further evidence that Naiore had been there. Knowing her affinity for tidiness, Barrold must have cleaned the place out for her in advance. But they had left some debris. Bloody ropes lay on the floor, their knots still intact, their ends severed by the stroke of a very sharp blade. Beside them lay an empty vial. Kaldir picked it up and sniffed it cautiously. He recognized the smell. It was an herbal oil, something used in healing. Someone, undoubtedly the individual who had been bound, had been treated for his or her injuries. Vanwe, perhaps. He couldn’t see Naiore taking the time to treat the injuries of a scoundrel like Ferny.

Placing the bottle back where he had found it, Kaldir turned to go, but stopped at the sight of Benia. She stood just inside the mouth of the cave, her dagger still sheathed in her hand, but a look of deep sadness on her face as she stared at the cut and bloody ropes. Kaldir took her elbow and guided her out of the cave and back down the slope to where Gilly waited with the horses. When she glanced back, he shook his head.

“Whoever it was has been treated for her injuries,” he told her. “If Naiore wished her dead, we would have found not ropes but a body.”

“Who do you think it was?” she asked.

Kaldir shrugged. “My guess is your friend from the inn, Miss Vanwe. She is none but the daughter of Sauron’s Ravenner. But, of course, it is only a guess.”

Benia nodded, her eyes dropping to the dagger in her hand. By then, they had reached the horses and Gilly.

Following Benia’s gaze, Kaldir closed his hand around her hand that held the knife.
Ealasaide is offline