Lewan winced at the thought. The bright mood that had grown in him darkened. He could still remember a great shambling mound of earth and mud rising, almost in the shape of a man, and burying his master. Had it been real? Or part of a dream brought on by the poison in his veins?
Ulaan had been unable to tell him, only said that all would be made clear in time and that he should not leave his room.
He heard the door to his room open, then footsteps. He walked back through the double doors of his balcony and through the filmy curtains fluttering in the morning breeze.
Ulaan had returned, bearing a large platter of food and drink. Behind her, coming into the room, was the most striking woman Lewan had ever seen. She stood a bit taller than Lewan, and she walked with the bearing of a queen. Her black hair hung in dozens of braids well past her waist, and tiny rings of gold and jewels sparkled among them. A circlet of fine chain ringed her head, and tiny rubies dangled from finer chains on her forehead. Her dress, fitted tightly from wrist to neck and down her torso, flowed out in a loose skirt beneath her waist. Tiny red jewels were sewn into the seams, complementing the silky fabric that flowed between deepest red and the warm yellow of a dusty-sky sunset. Her skin was darker than Lewan's, but where his was weathered from years of sun, wind, and rain, hers was flawless and smooth. Her dark eyes looked out beneath sharp eyebrows, arched in what was something between amusement and offense. With dawning horror, Lewan realized he'd been staring. No, not staring. Gawking.
He snapped his mouth shut, averted his eyes, and bowed.
Ulaan set the platter on the table by his bedside, bowed to them both, and fled the room, closing the door behind her.
"I am Talieth, Lady of the Fortress," said the woman.
Talieth. He'd heard that name before, when Sauk's men had dragged him into the camp. The half-orc had tried to calm his master by saying, Talieth will explain everything when we get to the Fortress.
"Please take your eyes off the floor," said the woman.
Lewan obeyed, but he could find nowhere to look. He could not hold the woman's gaze, and anything lower than her face put him in even more dangerous territory. She had ordered him to look up, so he settled for a spot just over her left shoulder.
"I don't know where you are from, young man," she said. "But here, it is considered polite to give your name when introducing yourself to the lady of the house."
"1, uh, I-" Lewan swallowed hard and took a breath to calm himself. "I am called Lewan."
"Called by whom?"
"My… my master. Berun."
Lewan risked a glance at her face and was surprised to see a look of genuine sorrow there.
"That is part of what we must speak about, Lewan. But first"-she spread her hands, as if presenting a gift — "I bid you welcome to Sentinelspire. I hope Ulaan has fulfilled her duties in making you comfortable."
"Uh, she has, my lady. She brought me these clothes. I told her how hungry I am and she, uh-" Lewan gestured at the platter of food.
"Forgive me, Lewan," said Talieth. "You've been through quite an ordeal the past few days. Please. Sit. I will speak while you refresh yourself."
Quite an ordeal. Lewan had to force himself not to grit his teeth as he walked to the table and sat upon the stool. He looked to the platter-anything to keep his eyes off Talieth. Beside a large metal pitcher of water and a silver bowl of wine was a plate of meat sliced almost parchment thin. Rare beef, he thought, though he couldn't be certain. Beside that was a small loaf of dark bread and various raw vegetables and fruits-most of them out of season, yet they seemed fresh off the vine. He poured water into the empty cup, drained it, then set about devouring the food.
An ordeal. Those words reminded Lewan exactly why he was here. These people had hunted him and his master, bound them, speared and poisoned him, and… and Berun was dead. The grapes he'd been chewing seemed to turn to ashes in his mouth. His spirit, which had been lifted at the wondrous sight of the fortress, sank, and in its place a hot anger filled him. It didn't banish his fear, but his desire to defer and mind his manners before this "lady" was suddenly gone.
Lewan forced himself to swallow, then asked, "Why am I here?"
"You are here to rest. After what happened, you need it."
"What… happened? What happened… happened because of you."
Lewan risked a glance up. Talieth stood beside the foot of his bed, looking down on him. He could not tell if she was angry or shocked at his boldness. Her lips pursed as she considered his words, then broke into a very unladylike grin.
"Bold," she said. "I admire boldness in a man." She sat on the stool next to him and smoothed her skirt as she gathered her thoughts. "What happened out there was… unfortunate. Sauk had orders to bring your master here. It grieves me that Sauk had to resort to violence-gods know he probably didn't hesitate-but you must understand, Lewan. We are in desperate need. Your master was our best hope."
"Not anymore," said Lewan. He managed to hold her gaze for a moment, but he dropped it and looked back to his food. Still, his voice did not tremble when he said, "My master is dead because of Sauk."
"I'm sorry, Lewan," said Talieth. Lewan looked up in shock at the tone in her words. Her voice seemed on the edge of breaking. Tears welled in her eyes. "So sorry. I… loved him, too. Once. Did he ever speak of me to you?"
Lewan tried to hold on to his anger, but seeing the lady's sorrow, he could not. He even felt a twinge of guilt for telling her the truth. "No, lady. No. My master… I never knew him as anything but Berun, a servant of the Oak Father. His life before… I'm sorry, lady, but it's all very new to me. He never spoke of it."
"Well, then"-she wiped at her tears and took a deep breath through her nose, forcing herself back into the calm composure of the lady of the manor — "it seems that you and I have many things to tell one another. I would very much like to speak with you of your master. I… miss him. Very much."
Much to his horror, Lewan felt tears rising in his own eyes. His throat felt suddenly thick. He would not cry in front of this woman. His rising tears made him angry.
"Berun would be here now," he said through clenched teeth, "if not for you. You and your cursed half-orc and his band of murderers."
"Really?" Lewan heard the ice in Talieth's voice, but when he looked up there was fire in her eyes. "Was it I who killed your master? No. Or was it the half-orc and his men? No again. According to every man there, including the 'cursed half-orc,' the earth rose up and swallowed your master. You dispute this?"
Lewan scrubbed the back of his sleeve across his eyes before the tears could fall. "Well?"
"No," he said, and the petulance in his voice only made him angrier.
Talieth wiped her own tears, then stood and paced the floor before the cold fireplace. "Believe me or not," she said, "I do miss him. But you saw it yourself. It was not me or anyone I sent who killed your master. Sauk and his men are hunters, the fiercest and most cunning in thousands of miles, and there was nothing they could do to save him. You saw it yourself."
Lewan's head felt thick with unshed tears. He reached for the pitcher of water, but his hand shook so badly that he simply grabbed the handle and squeezed. "My master would not have been there were it not for you. Do you dispute that? "
"And he would not have been there had he not tried to escape," she said. "Had he come as I asked. As I begged. Lewan. If we are going to go through all the what-ifs and what-might-have-beens, this will take a very, very long time. Time, I'm afraid, we do not have. You know why we needed your master?"
"He… he never had the chance to tell me." Lewan released his grip on the pitcher and put both hands in his lap. They curled into fists, and he fixed his eyes on them as he struggled to keep his voice from breaking. "He and Sauk talked in camp. Quite a lot. But I was kept apart. I-"