Raven Flight by Juliet Marillier Read Free Book Online Page B

get back up there and warm yourself, and I’ll be off. Red Cap’s only got the wee one for company, and it’s not much of a talker.”
* * *
    I reported back to Regan. His eyes showed the same excitement as Tali’s had earlier, filling me with anxiety. So much hung on the success of this council, and Regan could not fully understand how hard it might be to persuade the Good Folk to our cause. Although he was pleased with the news, the overall mood was somber. Folk were not doing their usual work but sitting in the dining area, talking in low voices about the loss of Cian’s two companions, who could not even be offered appropriate burial. I had a word with Eva and Milla on the subject of feasts and gifts, then found myself so weary I could hardly force my eyes to stay open, though it was still day. Tali ordered me to go to the women’s quarters and rest, since I’d be a liability in the training area if I was half-asleep. I did as I was told.
    I slept, and dreamed of Flint. Flint standing by a pallet where a solidly built young man lay sleeping; Flint with his hands on either side of the man’s face, singing or chanting. Richly dressed folk seated all around, watching him. Their faces intent, their eyes … avid. When I woke, my stomach was churning. I only just reached the privy before I was violently sick.
    I knew Flint was an Enthraller. I understood that he must sometimes—perhaps often—practice his craft under the king’s orders, using it to turn rebellious subjects loyal or to ensure that the canny skills of people like me were used only for Keldec’s purposes. It was said many of the Enforcers were enthralled men, rendered by the process into themost reliable fighting force a leader could have. Knowing Flint only complied with the king’s orders to keep his true purpose secret did not stop me from being repelled by it to the point of physical sickness.
    Milla came by as I was retching into the privy hole and insisted on wiping my face and sitting me down in the dining area to be fed sips of broth. At supper, Fingal inquired after my health and suggested a peppermint tea with honey, which would be efficacious even though there were no fresh leaves, only dried. He would, he said, have suggested I sleep in the infirmary for the night, only Cian was still there recovering from his long journey. Andra, usually more interested in what was going on in the training yard than domestic matters, offered me one of her blankets for the night, since the cold might keep me awake. Big Don made me sit in his usual spot at table, close to the fire. I thanked everyone. I could not explain that my sickness was of the spirit, not the body. As Regan’s spy at court, Flint had to act as if he were a loyal subject of the king, even if that meant using his gift to ill purpose. The cause must come before matters of conscience for all of us. Already people had died because of me. If I could not come to terms with this, I would weaken the rebels. I would become a liability.
    There were eight women at Shadowfell, including me. We were outnumbered four to one by the men. The women’s sleeping quarters accommodated six of us; Milla and Eva shared a tiny chamber off the kitchen. At first I had foundit difficult to be so close to the others, though having shelter and a proper bed was a rare luxury for me. As it turned out, the fighters were usually so tired after the long day’s work that they fell asleep almost as soon as their heads touched the pillow.
    That night I lay on my bed with my blankets up to my chin, forming in my mind a letter I would never write. I told Flint how much I missed him, how I worried about his safety, how I hoped he might return in springtime. How, even though I had a mission to accomplish, my pathway felt lonely without him. How I forgave him the things he must do, and hoped the day would soon come when he need no longer bend to Keldec’s will.
    Across the chamber Tali was awake too, and restless. She