The Banished of Muirwood (Covenant of Muirwood, #1)(79)

Are you cold? You seem like ice. Where are you?

She could almost smell him. No, she could smell him. She could even smell the wine on his breath. Somehow, her thoughts were entwining with his and she was sharing his sensations.

I am cold, she thought to him, almost in spite of herself.

Where are you, Maia?

She did not want to commune with him, but the warmth was so inviting she could not resist it. He took another swallow of spiced wine and it felt as if it went down her throat instead. It warmed her from the inside.

Hautland, she found herself thinking. We were caught in a blizzard crossing the Watzholt.

So we are talking now? I sensed you before, but you did not respond. I can feel the cold. Are you in danger?

She could feel his warmth and he could feel her chill. It was a strange intimacy, their minds weaving together like this through the Medium. She was grateful for it. Her body stopped trembling.

She stared at the wall of the snow cave, but in her mind, she saw the interior of his pavilion, looking much as it had the night they had spent together. She flushed with embarrassment.

I am hunted, she thought back to him. What do you know about the Victus?

It is a secret order within the Dochte Mandar. They are the ones hunting you. Corriveaux is one of them. My spies watch for them, but they are subtle. What do you know about them, Maia?

She breathed out slowly. Nothing. I heard they were strong in Hautland.

Their origin is Naess, but Hautland seems to serve their interests the most. I have heard they torture people for information. Or bend them to their will. Be careful.

I will. Thank you, Collier.

Do you need help? She could feel the urgency in his mind, his desire to aid her. I could send a ship for you. Let me help you.

She realized she would need a ship to reach Naess. There was no way to route by land. She had assumed she would hire passage on a cargo ship bound to the northernmost kingdom. Part of her resisted letting Collier help. Another part of her wanted to confide everything to him and beg his help.

Please. Let me help you.

She wriggled under her cloak, uncertainty wrestling inside her. Maybe one thing.

Yes! Tell me.

I need a ship to carry us to Naess. I may not . . . return. They may kill me.

I will not let them, Maia. Trust in that. You need a ship. You will get a ship. I will send the Argiver to Hautland. The captain’s name is Stavanger. He can be in the port city of Rostick in two days. Is that soon enough?

Maia felt a flush of warmth, of appreciation. Yes. It will take several days for us to cross Hautland. Thank you, Collier.

She felt his thoughts warm with delight. I wish I could do more. You are very cold. I do not like that. She could feel anger in this thoughts.

It is just a storm, Collier. I will be all right.

It reminds me of what I heard about how Lady Shilton treated you. She locked you in a room without a fire. She felt his thoughts begin to blister with heat. I could kill her for all she did to you.

Maia blinked, surprised. You knew?

Of course I knew. I have spies in your father’s court. Deorwynn was very vocal in her hatred of you. She gave her mother strict orders to break your will. Yet you did not succumb, not even when they stripped everything from you. Every person who ever mattered to you. Every gown. She could feel the bubbling hate inside him. When you are crowned my queen, you will never wear rags again.

Maia felt strange, almost giddy. You were watching over me?

Much good that did, he returned blackly. Remember, Maia, that it was your father who broke the plight troth between us. You and I were promised as infants. I have always thought of you as my future wife. Together, we will rule all the kingdoms. Believe it. You and I.

She could feel the ambition in his heart as well. His thoughts were burning with it.

Thank you for helping me, Collier. I will look for the Argiver in Rostick. She wondered if he might abandon his army to try and join her, but she doubted it. The desire to conquer other lands ran thick in his blood. I learned there is another kishion in your camp. I do not know who it is, but I thought you should know.

That is truly helpful, thank you. Let me return the favor. You have been traveling awhile now, Maia. You may not have heard the latest news from your father’s court.

Maia was concerned. What news?

His thoughts were sardonic and contemptuous. Your father passed a new act. The Act of Submission. Every man, woman, and child must recognize him as the sovereign ruler of Comoros, independent of every other power, including the High Seer. The Aldermaston of Augustin has already sworn it. Do you remember the previous chancellor, Tomas Morton? The one before Crabwell. He was a maston and refused. Well, he was just beheaded in Pent Tower. Your country is in an uproar over it.

Maia’s heart crushed inside her chest. Her father was breaking every vow. Every covenant.

No, she thought with dread.

The Dochte Mandar will unite against him. I tell you, Maia, Comoros will be invaded. If I do not do it, someone else will claim it. Let me claim it for you. You are the rightful queen.

She squeezed her eyes shut, miserable at the news. No, Collier. No, do not hurt my father. Even now, after everything he had done, she could not bear the thought of losing him or seeing him usurped. As long as he lived, she would hold on to the hope he could change.

Still, she could not silence the thought that her father might have finally gone mad.





CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN