Verath the Red (Dragonwall Series #3)

Chapter 15 - A Story Owed

Celenore

Claire woke to muted voices. She rubbed her eyes and turned over, then turned again, certain that a rock was jabbing her in the back. She groaned. Her body hurt, sore from riding, exhausted from magic. She wanted nothing more than to curl in a ball and go back to sleep. But everything began to return, coming back like a bad dream. The moment she thought of Hiondel and Lilly, she knew sleep would never come.

Some of the Drengr and Riders were still up, huddled around the fire. How long had she been asleep? Fighting the urge to hunker beneath her blanket and hide from them forever, she peeled it back, immediately struck by the cold. It didn't matter that she was dressed warmly, it crept through her clothing and cloak, forcing her to gravitate towards the large fire still burning in the center of camp.

"Lady Claire! Join us." Faedrol's hushed beckoning was impossible to ignore. She'd have to face the rest of them sooner or later. She couldn't hide forever.

She took a seat beside him, close enough that the heat from the flames was addictive. She almost scooted closer. "What time is it?" she croaked. The others sitting with Faedrol greeted her with nods and murmurs of her title.

Faedrol looked up at the sky. "Just about midnight from the looks of it. Did you get some sleep?"

"A bit," she said, hesitant as she waited for the inevitable. Waited for them to say something about the attack, about the green flames that had enveloped the Vodar, or about what she'd done to help Koldis heal the injured.

Jovari and Koldis chose that moment to appear, taking seats beside her, greeting the others. A wave of relief washed over her. Perhaps there'd be no awkward conversation after all.

Faedrol perked up. "You know, I haven't forgotten that I owe you a story, Lady Claire."

She could have hugged him. Instead, she grinned. "About Koldis, right? Something funny I hope?"

"Oh great." Koldis offered Faedrol his best glare.

"Is this the one about the bandits?" Jovari asked.

"The very same." Faedrol chuckled.

"Now you've got me interested," she said.

It was Hannah who spoke. "I think I'll do a better job of it than you, my love." Faedrol shrugged.

Hannah shifted closer, tucking her feet beneath her. "It was nearly fifty years ago, now," she said. "Rumors of bandits reached the capital. We generally don't concern ourselves with bandits. They're mostly harmless in the grand scheme of things, and most local villages have soldiers on hand to address things of this nature. This particular bunch of brigands began patrolling the roads in Galadhal. The Royal Road."

"The Royal Road?" She looked at Koldis.

He shrugged. "The one that leads from the Gable Forest directly to the capital. The main thoroughfare." She nodded.

Hannah continued. "The bandits were brutal. They believed it was their right to exact an impossible tax on those who wished to travel. A tax few could pay. They didn't simply rob their victims, they found places to string them up, hang them from trees, and where there weren't trees, they simply mounted their heads on spikes. It got so bad that travelers refused to use the road. There weren't exactly a lot of alternatives. Traveling over open country doesn't offer much cover."

"So...what did you guys do?" She shifted her position to get a better look at Hannah. Hannah was lanky for a Rider, and quite pretty, with chestnut skin and a feline face. Her dark eyes danced in the firelight.