“Don’t you find it odd that the Red Flange disappeared without a trace?” the dragon asked by way of an answer. “I’m aware they are using dark magic to aid them, but surely I would have seen something. You would have detected something. And I know they did not go limping back down the mountainside to lick their wounds. They would not have given up so easily.”
Ellyesce hissed in a breath. “Are you suggesting–”
“Someone inside Cahrdyarein’s walls is feeding them information. I cannot prove it, but all my dragon senses are prickling with suspicion. I cannot ignore my instincts.”
The elf stared at him numbly. When he finally found his voice, Ellyesce said, “And you believe Keiron is this nefarious person? Are you mad?!”
Jaax whipped his head around, his eyes snapping with malice.
“I am cautious!” he snarled angrily. “I am worried for my ward’s safety, and I am discounting nothing I deem even remotely suspicious until I am convinced, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I am wrong in what I’m feeling. I do not like the attention he gives Jahrra because of the way he behaves when she is not around.”
Jaax drew in a great breath and forced himself to relax. His slight suspicions of Keiron had him on his guard, but learning of the Resai’s growing interest in his ward had wound him even tighter.
“The sooner we leave this place, the better,” he snarled softly.
Ellyesce, unmoved by his friend’s sudden flash of anger, sniffed and said, “And, when will that be?”
Jaax tilted his head toward the heavens, the sky still clear save for the smudge of dark clouds on the far horizon. “Two nights from now would be an opportune time. A storm approaches, so we can leave and let the snow cover our tracks.”
“Why not leave tonight?” Ellyesce asked.
The Tanaan dragon tilted his head toward the ground. He studied his scaled fingers a few moments before answering, “As much as I want Jahrra removed from Keiron’s influence, I will not keep her from enjoying the ball tomorrow night.”
He grinned and looked up at Ellyesce, a glimmer of sadness in his eyes. “Jahrra has had to miss out on so much in her life, and I cannot say what the dismal future holds for her. I will not deny her one evening of celebration if I can help it.”
Ellyesce smiled back at his old friend, placing a hand against his scaly arm. “Very well, my friend,” he said.
He turned to walk away, but Jaax said, “Ellyesce.”
The elf paused and looked over his shoulder. “Don’t tell Jahrra. I want her to enjoy her evening without having to worry about preparing for yet another departure.”
Ellyesce quirked an eyebrow. “And you don’t want the potential spy catching wind of our plans?”
Jaax nodded, his face grim. “That, too.”
Ellyesce left then to return to his own lodgings. Jaax thought about their discussion, hoping his suspicions were false but knowing from past experience that he had better prepare for the worst. This new information regarding Keiron’s growing attachment to Jahrra had him worrying again, and he couldn’t help but chastise himself for overlooking that particular detail.
Perhaps you are wrong, his inner voice mused. Maybe Keiron’s interest is purely innocent, and he has no devious plots up his sleeve.
Jaax wanted to believe that, but again, his instincts refused to leave him be. He was very tempted to find Jahrra and tell her they must flee Cahrdyarein, but she was so looking forward to the Equinox ball. He had seen it in her eyes and heard it in her voice. Making her leave before enjoying the celebration would be cruel, and he could not bring himself to do it. Not this time.
“I hope you know what you are doing,” he grumbled to himself as he studied those dark clouds moving in from the west. Yes, a late spring snow storm would be most welcome in helping them make their surreptitious retreat from the city.
Still eager to get some sleep before making a sweep of the mountains outside of Cahrdyarein, yet again, Jaax tucked his head under his wing with the hope that his dreams, for once, would not be filled with darkness.
Jahrra woke the next morning only to find the world outside blanketed in a fresh layer of snow. Although she had been enjoying the spring weather only a few days previous, she smiled at the winter scene before her. This high in the mountains, any sort of strange weather could occur late in the season. She did, however, find it ironic that snow should fall on the day of the Spring Equinox of all times.
“Dervit,” she called back into the cabin.
The limbit, who had been snoozing on his couch, jolted awake.
Jahrra stifled a snort of laughter. “Since practice is likely to be canceled this morning, what with the snow and the upcoming ball, would you like to take the horses for a ride?”
Dervit blinked the sleep from his eyes and stretched. “Sure,” he said through a yawn. “Let’s see if Ellyesce wants to go, too. He mentioned having the day free from meetings with the regent and his dignitaries. They need to make the steward’s hall ready for this evening’s event.”
Jahrra grinned and darted across the street to knock on Ellyesce’s door. The elf, already awake and dressed, gladly accepted Jahrra’s invitation. They returned to her cabin where she proceeded to make breakfast for the three of them.
An hour later, they were guiding the horses down one of the trails encircling the city, the one running closest to the base of the great wall. Jahrra and Dervit rode atop Phrym while Ellyesce led Gliriant close behind. Their breath misted the air, the snow all around them thick and deep in some places.
“A shame this storm couldn’t wait until after the foray tonight,” Ellyesce remarked, dusting a clump of white powder from his shoulder. It had fallen from a tree branch above when a rambunctious squirrel made a leap from an adjacent tree.
“I don’t know,” Jahrra threw over her shoulder with an impish grin, “I kind of like how it makes the world look.”
And she did. The crisp cleanness of it, the fresh, vibrant white. It almost made her forget about her worries concerning the Red Flange and the potentially dangerous journey to Nimbronia. A journey that was fast approaching. They had been in Cahrdyarein longer than a week now, and Jaax had wanted to leave within a fortnight. Jahrra had let the time slip by without noticing it, but now, with the ball that evening and Keiron’s growing attentions, she was reminded of the fact that this was all temporary. Sighing, she tightened her fingers on Phrym’s reins and tried to enjoy the time she had.
Ellyesce and Dervit let Jahrra choose their path, so she led them toward the Round, the place of stone where Keiron had asked her to accompany him to the ball. She wanted to see what the waterfall looked like after a fresh snowfall. Since they were taking the perimeter path around the city, she hoped they might stumble upon the trail leading to the Round in the opposite direction. The snow made things a little more difficult, but after passing several signs naming a number of destinations, they finally came upon one that stated To the Round. Jahrra smiled.
“Keiron showed me this place a few days ago. I thought you both might like it.”
The trail threaded its way through a small grove of trees, curving around stone and stump alike. It appeared they were the first to use the path that day, for no other tracks were present. Fortunately, the trail itself was wide and obvious, a ribbon of flat white against all the other snow. A while later, the familiar sound of trickling water met Jahrra’s ears. A narrow stream sliced through the fresh snow, spilling down the rocks piled below the trail to the right. Jahrra concluded the water originated at the spring behind the Round.