Fall of Angels (The Saga of Recluce #6)(143)

Nylan nodded. "He's also been sneaking arrows out of the tower."

"You didn't say anything?"

Huldran's eyes widened as they moved from Ayrlyn to Nylan and back again.

"I didn't know. All I knew was that every time he went hunting he came back with a few arrows missing, sometimes more than a few shafts. Then the morning he left, Fierral told me he'd taken fifty shafts hunting. I just thought he was a poor shot, but didn't want to admit it. Now ..."

"It makes sense," pointed out Ayrlyn.

"Narliat's departure was no accident, either, then," Nylan continued. "That bastard Gerlich has something arranged." He turned to Huldran. "Can you clean up? The healer and I need to find the marshal."

"Yes, ser."

The engineer and the healer headed toward the tower.

"Where is she?" asked Ayrlyn.

"Up in the tower, I think. I carted Dyliess around this morning. Bricklaying is slow with an infant strapped to you, but she liked the motion, I only had trouble if I stood still."

Nylan and Ayrlyn found the marshal on the fifth level, working with one of the newcomers. Saryn sparred with another and Fierral with a third. At a break in the sparring, Nylan motioned to Ryba.

The marshal stopped. "With two of you, it must be serious." Ryba turned to Saryn. "Desain needs to stop letting her wrist droop."

"I can manage that." Saryn laughed.

"And Fierral," added Ryba. "Nistayna doesn't have any follow-through. She's afraid she'll hurt someone. If she doesn't, they'll kill her."

Ryba racked her wand, and the three walked up the stone steps.

On the top level of the tower, Ellysia sat in the rocking chair, holding Dephnay on her knee with one hand and rocking the cradle containing Dyliess with the other, the cradle that now rested at the foot of the two separated lander couches.

"Thank you, Ellysia," said Ryba. "You can go now." She crossed the room and opened both windows wide.

Behind her Ellysia shivered as the wind gusted into the room, then stood and picked up Dephnay. Dyliess started to murmur the moment the unattended cradle began to slow.

As Ellysia, shivering, her face flushed, started down the steps, Ryba eased Dyliess from the cradle. "You're about to wake up anyway, little one."

Ryba sat in the rocking chair and unfastened her shirt. Dyliess began to nurse, as greedily as always, reflected Nylan.

"What is this problem?" asked the marshal.

"Gerlich is gone," said Ayrlyn. "He also took all the silvers from the lower strongbox."

"I checked the golds this morning. They're all here," Ryba said flatly. "He doesn't have enough coin to do that much."

"He still stole close to four golds in silver and copper," pointed out Ayrlyn.

"He took everything he could sneak out, including more than fifty arrows, a packhorse, and some of the more battered blades," Nylan added.

"Those blades he took are worth close to five golds. He could buy close to a score of armsmen," explained Ayrlyn. "Hired blades are cheap here."

"Life is cheap here," said Ryba. "Look at those cairns." Her head inclined toward the open tower window.

"You think he'll do that?" Nylan's guts already gave him one answer.

"He will, and he will be back, with an army behind him," agreed Ryba tiredly, shifting Dyliess from one breast to the other.

"You see this?" asked Nylan.

"Not all of it, just a fragment, just enough."

Ayrlyn frowned, but said nothing.

"What Gerlich took won't be enough, and he knows it," Ryba pointed out.

"Narliat left earlier than Gerlich," said Ayrlyn.

The triangle rang for the evening meal.

"He's acting as Gerlich's advance agent. Gerlich tries to let someone else face the dangers first." Ryba looked down at Dyliess. "Easy there ... easy ..." A rueful smile crossed her face.

"Should we beef up the standing guard?" asked Ayrlyn.

"For how long? We still need food. We need to get more things working, like the smithy, and possibly a few cows or goats. Not every guard can nurse, and we won't always have guards with infants at the same time. Guards have to work and guard, or Westwind will fall. I don't know when Gerlich will try his attack. The only thing we can do is make sure that all the guards have their weapons at hand, whatever they're doing. Fierral can build a permanent watchpost on top of the ridge, with another warning triangle. Outside of that. . ." Ryba shrugged.

Nylan and Ayrlyn exchanged glances.

"What can we do, besides what we're already doing?" asked Ryba. "Let's go eat." She slipped Dyliess from her lap into the carrypack, stood, and headed down the stairs. "You've eaten, little pig. It's your mother's turn."

Ayrlyn glanced at Nylan and shrugged.

He shrugged back.

As they entered the great room, guards were still straggling in. Nylan almost stopped short at the third table below the first two. It only had one bench, but three of the new guards sat there, flanking Istril and Weryl.

Nylan paused. "Hello there, young fellow."

Weryl gurgled. Nylan patted his shoulder.

Istril smiled. "He's good."