The Outcast (Summoner #4)(37)

Already the weather was becoming warmer, and the sun was high in the sky when they reached what Sergeant Caulder told him was Raleighshire’s edge, the border marked by a bridge of wide stone, arched over a rushing river.

Beyond, a savannah of yellow long grass swayed in the breeze. The horizon was broken by a row of jagged mountains, with the plains beneath populated by herds of four-legged creatures that Arcturus could not see clearly from where he sat. It was a marked difference—shocking in the contrast between green and yellow, and separated only by the broad river of dark water.

On they went, the wheels rattling along the cobbled bridge and onto the hard-packed mud path on the other side. To Arcturus, who had never been so far south, the warmth was a miracle. To have to undo the top few buttons of his jacket, at this time of year? Unheard of.

Now he could see the animals, like the deer of the north but with twisting horns and a ribbon of black separating their white-furred bellies and the sandy coat above. They were strange creatures to be sure, and he had no idea what they were.

“Gazelles,” Sergeant Caulder said, smiling at the look of wonder on Arcturus’s face. “You’ll be hunting them soon enough.”

“How?” Arcturus breathed, watching as the beasts cavorted in the sun, springing as high as a man was tall and dashing back and forth just for the joy of it. Nearby, a pair of males rutted, their sharp horns locked as they butted and shoved each other for supremacy, their short black tails wagging frantically in the excitement of it all.

“Crossbows, most likely,” Sergeant Caulder said. “Or with your demons, if they’re fast enough.”

Arcturus smiled at the frolicking animals, knowing he would find it hard to bring himself to kill one.

He closed his eyes to enjoy the warmth of the breeze and smell the tang of the new world. Somehow, the anxieties of his new life seemed to fade away, replaced by the gentle creak of carriage wheels and the soughing of the breeze.

*

“Wake up, lad!”

Arcturus opened his eyes, only to find himself slumped against Sergeant Caulder, his head resting on the man’s shoulder.

He jerked away, embarrassed, but the grizzled soldier only smiled and pointed at the carriages, where Alice and Josephine Queensouth were standing, rubbing their eyes.

They were in the middle of a town square, surrounded by stone-walled houses. Men and women stared out from windows, curious at the visitors, while others called in greeting as Edmund Raleigh strode about, organizing rushing servants who were removing the luggage from the carriages.

Arcturus felt like he had slept for hours, but the sun hadn’t set, and it cast the world in a dim orange glow as it hung above the horizon.

“Wake up, or we’ll miss hunting this evening,” Edmund called out to the still sleepy Queensouth twins, stepping aside as a pair of overzealous servants tried to lift a heavy trunk.

Arcturus stumbled into one of the servants accidentally as he passed, and the trunk tumbled to the ground, spilling its contents.

“Watch it,” Zacharias yelled out from within the confines of his carriage. “If anything’s broken, I’ll take the skin from your back as payment.”

But there was nothing to break within … because a skinny, pale-faced girl lay sprawled on the ground.

“Owww,” she groaned, rubbing her head.

“Elaine?” Arcturus asked, unable to believe his eyes.

“A stowaway,” Edmund said, smiling with amusement. “Would you look at that.”

Elaine scrambled to her feet, her thin arms crossed defiantly as she glared at them. Her chest heaved with emotion, and her face was red and sweaty from her confinement within the trunk.

“I’m not a stowaway, I’m a visitor,” she said, narrowing her eyes at Edmund. “It was rude of you not to invite me. Everyone else was invited. Even Arcturus, and Zacharias doesn’t even like him.”

Arcturus reddened at Elaine’s bluntness, even as Edmund chuckled at her shameless attitude.

“You’re right,” he said gently, putting an arm around her hunched shoulders. “It was jolly rude of me. Only … your brothers told me you were all going home this weekend, and I assumed that meant you too. My mistake.”

“Big mistake,” she huffed, even as she allowed herself a small smile.

Edmund knelt down and unraveled a small summoning leather from his pocket, no larger than a handkerchief. A flash of white later and a purple-shelled Mite demon had materialized in the air, its beetle wings buzzing as it hovered in front of Edmund’s face.

“What are you doing?” Elaine asked as he rummaged through his satchel and began to scribble a rough message on a scrap of parchment.

“Your parents must be worried sick,” he said, signing off his message with a flourish of his quill. “Especially with all the riots yesterday. I’m sending my Mite to let them know you’re safe—I bet they have half of Vocans looking for you by now.”

She blanched at his words and lowered her head. Arcturus couldn’t help but feel sorry for the poor girl. He could imagine it was hard for her, being the youngest with three older brothers. She was probably left out all the time.

“Are you going to send me home?” Elaine asked in a small voice.

“No,” Alice said firmly, stepping away from her carriage and giving the girl a hug. “You can stay in my room this weekend.”