The Ciphers of Muirwood (Covenant of Muirwood #2)(106)

Lady Deorwynn glanced at the small crowd assembled below. She could hear the murmuring of voices, see the sneers of contempt as Trefew hauled her toward the scaffold and the stone plinth that awaited her. There was a hooded headsman standing there, his hands resting on the pommel of a great sword that looked cold in the dawn light. She prayed it was sharp. There was Crabwell, smug as a lap spaniel. Not her husband, of course. Though he had ordered enough murders, he was a coward when it came to seeing blood shed. Many of the earls from the Privy Council were assembled, though. None of them gave her any looks of sympathy. They were reveling in her downfall.

Let them.

She mounted the steps to the scaffold, trying to control her riotous feelings, desperately working to keep her legs from buckling. The wind caused some of her hair to stray before her eyes, and she lifted the heavy manacles to smooth it back. She stared at the executioner, a man paid for the horrid task of ending a criminal’s life.

There was something about his bearing, his size, which was . . .

By the Blood, no!

She saw the scars just under the hood. The icy blue eyes. Part of one ear was missing. He was smiling. He seemed to be enjoying himself as if he were out for a stroll on a riverbank. It was the kishion she had hired. He had not received full payment for his services yet. If he killed her, he never would. What was happening? Why would he be there?

The kishion grabbed her arm and forced her to kneel in front of the plinth.

“Farewell, madame,” he whispered hoarsely. “I serve another now.”

She closed her eyes. The last thing she heard was the sound of his boots as he stepped away from her.

Falling.





EPILOGUE





Sabine Demont had visited every kingdom and people, including the benighted realm of Naess. Her journeys on the Holk had led to the waterfalls of Avinion, the lush vineyards of Mon, and the snow-capped mountains of Hautland . . . to countless ports and shores where she had eaten dishes of melted cheese, meat of every kind, fruits and vegetables that always surprised and delighted her. She loved people. She loved learning about their habits and traits, not just individually, but collectively. She had seen some customs and traditions throughout the kingdoms that were pleasing and some that were offensive, and had quietly longed for the quiet glades and mountains of Pry-Ree, her homeland, her people.

Standing on a scrub-choked hill overlooking a vast lake, she saw the dazzling realm of Assinica and wept for its simple, elegant beauty and the knowledge that the Victus were about to demolish it.

From the crest of the hill, she could see the armada at anchor.





AUTHOR’S NOTE



There is something magical about a second book, at least for me. I am normally on a fast journey to bring my readers through the roller coaster of events, but I like to slow things down (just a little) in book two and delve more into the relationships between characters. That is why Blight of Muirwood is my favorite of the original trilogy and Ciphers will likely be my favorite in this one.

When my oldest child finished reading the original Muirwood series (after staying up nearly all night to finish it—as a parent I wasn’t happy with her sleepiness the next day, but as an author I was more than flattered!), she told me that Colvin and Lia had never had their maypole dance. She looked me in the eye and said that I had to make up for it in the next series. I looked at her, sighed, and then as usually happens, my imagination started to spark with some ideas. One of the guiding principles of the Medium is that it connects things, like a bridge between elements, a conduit between the living and the dead. But it has power over time as well. Astute readers from Blight remember that Garen Demont’s army evaded destruction from the Earl of Caspur by entering an abbey on one day and showing up in time to save Muirwood on another day. The jump was only a few days. But bridging centuries isn’t any more difficult. I have to admit that I enjoyed bringing Lia and Colvin back for a cameo as well. That was fun to write.

I will also admit that I loved bringing much of the action back to Lia’s childhood abbey. Muirwood itself is a character in the story with its own personality. There are certain places I know that feel like the abbey grounds to me.

I titled this book Ciphers because the word has many definitions. In modern times, it means a code to scramble letters to help conceal a message’s true meaning. Another definition is “one that has no weight, worth, or influence.” In Maia’s day, women were like ciphers. They were not permitted to read for fear of them becoming hetaera. To challenge this notion, and to help further the Covenant of Muirwood, the Aldermastons of Muirwood trained girls in secret. Even their title misconstrued their true purpose and identity. As a medieval history major in college, I discovered evidence of female spies at work in the political kingdoms. More on this in my next trilogy!

As Maia has proved, even someone completely shunned and forsaken is never powerless. It begins with a thought.