Vengeance Born (The Light Blade #1) (21 page)

She stilled, her breathing ragged against his chest, her body so tense she felt like steel in his arms. It didn’t matter just as long as she didn’t move away. Away from him she’d erect a barrier he had no chance of breeching. He rubbed her back slowly, soothingly.

Lady
help him find the right words to ease her pain. “Hesia doesn’t see you as nothing. Neither do I.”

He kept his voice soft, calm, doing everything he could to leash the raw anger he felt for her father. He wanted to kill Savyr. The abuse meted out to Annika went against his every belief that a child, human or demon, should be loved and cherished.

“I can’t take away your past, or make the things done to you hurt less but I can tell you what Hesia sees in you because I’ve witnessed it, too.” He pressed his cheek to the top of her head. “We see a strong, determined woman who refuses to believe everything her father told her. Defying a parent and daring to stand against abuse designed to break you, that takes courage.

“You became a healer with your special Gift. Instead of hiding or using it to elevate your status among the
Na’Reish
you chose to help the human-slaves in your father’s keep. You aided them and suffered because of it, but it didn’t stop you. That shows incredible compassion. Your intelligence and bravery has saved countless lives, mine included.

“The
Lady
has given you these qualities and the courage to fight what you’ve been taught. How else do you explain Hesia’s friendship with you? Or my desire to want the same for us?”

Annika slowly lifted her head. While her expression remained pinched with fear and her violet eyes were still flecked with yellow, he saw a faint stirring of hope deep within her gaze.

“I want to trust you.” She swallowed hard. “But wanting to and being able to are two different things.”

“Meet me halfway. Please.”

Her chin dipped in a jerky nod. Relief and excitement made his pulse race in relief.

“
Lady’s Breath
, this isn’t going to be easy…” She stiffened in his arms. “What will your family or friends say?”

Unease gnawed at his innards but he pushed it aside. There was no doubt there’d be opposition. He was probably a fool for ignoring the issue, for not considering the implications but he just wanted to deal with what was happening between him and Annika.

“Let tomorrow worry about itself, Annika.” With
Her
help they’d get through whatever trials lay ahead.

Kalan cupped her cheek with his hand. She stared at him solemnly for several long heartbeats, her expression so vulnerable it made his heart hurt. Then, her eyelashes flickered closed and she leaned into his touch. That small show of trust made him want to shout in triumph.

“Soon we’ll be in my home, where we can bathe then sleep what’s left of the night.” He smoothed his thumb over the curve of her cheek and her bottom lip before dropping his hand. “Let that be enough for now.”

“All right.” Her reply was husky, tired.

“Thank you,” he murmured, and tugged lightly on their joined hands. “Come on, let’s finish this journey.”

They covered the remaining distance to the city in less than a quarter hour. Annika tugged up her hood to cover her face as Kalan hailed the watchmen standing on the wall. As he announced his name a commotion broke out within the watchtower. A heartbeat later a metallic winching sound came from behind the huge double gates and they cracked open.

As they entered the city, they were surrounded by a number of men and women wearing leather armor with the
Lady
’s sun etched into their chestplates, all quite vocal in their greetings. Kalan acknowledged each of them with a grin and an arm clasp.

Even without the identifying Light Blade symbol on their armor, Annika sensed
Her
Gift within each of them, some more strongly than others.

She moved back as a barrel-chested man, much older than the others, pushed his way toward them. He brandished a lantern in one hand, while the other rested on the hilt of the sword at his waist. His face was as weathered and brown as a nut, a striking contrast to his silver grey hair. His gaze swept over her then Kalan, bushy eyebrows rising swiftly.

“Commander?”

“Yevni!” Kalan’s grin widened. “It’s good to see you!”

The man shoved the lantern into the hands of a younger warrior then embraced Kalan, laughing and slapping his back hard. She peered around at the circle of grinning faces and wondered at the friendship the two men shared. Neither looked enough alike to be blood-related; perhaps the man was an instructor.

The old warrior held him at arm’s length and looked him over. “The Blade Council made an announcement about the
Na’Reish
attack on Durrat over a sennight ago. We thought you dead!”

“I would have been if it hadn’t been for Annika.” Kalan turned and motioned her closer. “She helped me escape the
Na’Reish
fortress.”

“Then you are most welcome within our walls.” The warmth in the warrior’s voice left her feeling uneasy. Ducking her head, she nodded in thanks, hoping he wouldn’t question the hood. “How is it you helped him escape?”

Kalan broke in before she could answer. “The story is long and complicated but rest assured, Yevni, you’ll hear it. Right now we’re both tired.”

The tall warrior grunted. “What are your orders?”

“Send a messenger to Councilor Benth’s quarters. Let him know I’ve returned. I’ll meet tomorrow with the Council.”

Yevni nodded to one of the warriors. She raced off down a wide cobblestoned street, her bootsteps echoing loudly off the buildings on either side.

“Oskan, accompany Kalan and his friend to his apartment.” Yevni grasped his forearm tightly. “Your return will bring back hope among our ranks, Commander.”

“Thank you.” He motioned her to follow the young man holding the lantern.

Annika looked left and right, curious about the buildings around her. Most were two-story structures made of stone with double doors spaced at intervals. They reminded her of the storage rooms in the fortress, only they were much bigger. No light came from the few that possessed windows: they were dark and quiet.

She longed to ask Kalan questions about the city as they walked its streets but was reluctant to reveal her ignorance with a stranger listening in. The stone buildings changed to smaller wooden ones. These were poorly constructed and none were taller than a single story. Very few were made entirely of the same material and bits seemed stuck or added on over time. The ramshackle houses were similar to the human-slaves’ quarters within the fortress.

As they moved deeper into this area, a rank odor intensified with every step. Her nose wrinkled in recognition: rotting garbage and human filth.

Several times they passed what she thought were three or four individual houses but it looked as if they’d been joined together so that they became one long row of connected buildings. Some had small overhanging rooves and benches or chairs had been placed on the ground beneath them. A few had lines of washing strung up.

She moved closer to Kalan. “People live here?”

“The workers in the city,” he replied softly. “It’s known as Coppertown. They’re paid copper chits when they hire on as labor. Most are good, decent people but, unfortunately, it’s also where the vagabonds like to live. This area by far is the largest within the city and easiest to escape notice or get lost in.”

Annika remembered the first time Hesia had mentioned the human custom of money. The idea of swapping colored pieces of metal for supplies had seemed absurd, especially when the
Na’Reish
levied tithes within their Clans and took what they needed from the lower-caste craftsmen. For those wanting to curry favor, owning human-slaves with particular skills was a way of settling a debt or gaining an advantage.

Coppertown gave way to more stone buildings, only these ones had well-constructed awnings, most made of shingles or tiles. Small pieces of bright-colored cloth cut in the shape of triangles hung on lines tied around the support poles. Whatever they signified they’d certainly be attractive and eye-catching on a breezy day. Large, thick shutters covered windows and empty stalls stood pushed against the walls.

“This is Bartertown, where all the guilds sell their crafters’ wares.” Kalan pointed to one of the buildings. “See the signs above the doors? This one sells carpentry tools.”

Annika peered at the swirling designs carved into the lintel. She’d mistaken the etchings as patterns. Some had small painted pictures accompanying them. The next one had a person sitting in front of a loom, perhaps a weaver’s or clothmaker’s stall.

“How many live within the walls?” she whispered.

“Almost ten thousand,” he replied. “There are several districts within the city. Coppertown, Northgate, and Lakeview are all housing areas. The Business District includes places like Waterside Dock, where the fishing boats come in from the lake, the factories we passed behind us are in Eastgate, and Bartertown belongs to the guilds and their crafters sell their wares from their holds. Then we have places like the Salesyards and the People’s Market. The traders and farmers from outside the city come in at the beginning of each week, on market day, to sell their animals and produce.

“The Entertainment District backs onto Guild Square. That’s where many come to find work. We’re headed for the
Lady
’s compound. We have about a thousand Light Blades living there.”

“You only have a thousand warriors?”

“On duty, yes. Another five thousand live in the city or out on farms in the countryside. The Barracks work on a three-monthly rotation. If we had to, we could call them all in but to have them living here full-time isn’t fair to their families and it puts a strain on the city’s resources.”

Still, six thousand warriors weren’t a lot.

“Kalan, the
Na’Hord
number almost fifteen thousand.” She kept her voice low so only he could hear her. “If my father ordered every
Na’Reish
male young and old to bear arms that number could easily be increased to twenty-five thousand.”

His jaw tightened. “We knew their
Na’Hord
outnumbered us but it seems we’ve underestimated their strength. That information needs to be passed on to the Council.” His gaze met hers. “Thank you.”

Annika nodded as they entered a large, cobblestoned court. Guild Square. From behind the southern line of buildings, drifting on the evening breeze, she heard the faint strains of music, the only sign of life other than the watch in the sleeping city.

She shot a swift glance at Kalan. He walked head held high even though dark shadows ringed his eyes. He was home, safe, in familiar territory. She tugged at her hood, more aware than ever of the stark differences in their worlds.

Sacred Lake had watchmen. No Patrols or
Vorc
enforcing a nightly curfew. The slave quarters within the
Na’Reish
fortress were locked from sunset to sunrise and any blood-slaves kept within Clan homes were chained to the hearth so they couldn’t escape. Here, people were free to walk the streets.

“This is the
Lady
’s Gate.” Kalan’s soft statement drew her from her thoughts. “We’ve reached the Light Blade compound.”

Their escort spoke to the warrior on duty and they passed with a minimum of fuss. A series of buildings were scattered around the compound, all built in a similar style to the stone structures within the Business District. They crossed an open parade ground.

Peering at a thin building to their left, Annika wondered why it was the only one where some of the windows glowed with light. Shadows of people passed the windows. She was on the verge of asking Kalan what that place was but then bit her lip. There would be time for questions later.

“I’ll take my leave here, Commander.” The young warrior halted at the edge of the parade ground. He handed over the lantern. “Sleep well.”

Kalan nodded and the man headed back toward the gate. “Your eyes are a deep violet, Annika,” he murmured as he steered her along a wide pathway bordered with a garden on one side and a formal arrangement of monoliths that stood at even intervals on the other.

“I’m curious.” She waved a hand at the standing stones. “This is so different to the fortress. You have stone gardens inside your keep. Plants grow in boxes on the sills of some of the buildings. There was even a forest of trees on one of the streets with a small statue sitting in a pool of water. There’s nothing like this in the
Na’Reish
fortress.”

His soft chuckle carried on the night air. “There’s more, but if I begin telling you we’ll be up for the remaining hours of the night.”

“I’m sorry.” The garden pathway led them to a three-story building. He motioned her through an open doorway. “My questions can wait until morning.”

They walked through long corridors and climbed flights of stairs until they reached the third level. Annika smothered a jaw-popping yawn as they reached the end of yet another corridor.

“We’re nearly there.” A weary smile curved Kalan’s lips. He stopped in front of another door, pushed it open, then ushered her into a large room reminiscent of her father’s inner chamber. But that was where the similarity ended. While her father preferred lavish surroundings, the best of everything to remind others of his status, this chamber was decorated simply.

Kalan left her by the door as he went around lighting braziers on the walls of the chamber and a stand full of candles, each as thick as her arm. Light filled the room and her eyes widened when she saw the intricate rug beneath her feet. Geometric circles in shades of blue patterned the weave. She stepped off it, afraid she’d mark it with the dirt on her boots.

“You live here?” she asked as Kalan lit the wood stacked in the great fireplace to her left. The crackling of tinder and scent of burning wood was soothing.

“Most of the time.” He dusted his hands. “During the warmer months I tend to spend more time on the training grounds with my warriors than here.”

“Do all Light Blades live in chambers like this? Is that why there are so many buildings in the compound?”