He hoped he was making the right decision.
“We’ll continue on cautiously,” Kai whispered, more to Finn than to Iseult.
Still, he nodded, then took off at a jog.
Nearing the riverbank, he pushed his body to move faster. A row of buildings concealed him from the main road, but occasional doors opened in the backs of homes and establishments. To his left, the River Cair thundered, too wide and violent to be used as a possible means of escape. The shouting seemed to be dying down to be replaced by the low murmur of arguing voices.
Nearing the final buildings and stables before the gates, Iseult slowed, his hand on the pommel of his short sword. He peered around the nearest building to see a dozen or so figures silhouetted in the moonlight. He recognized Maarav first, arguing with another man, though he could not tell if the man with whom his brother argued was wearing the customary dark brown uniform of An Fiach. Several more men stood in a line, near a row of horses tied to a horizontal post.
“We are but simple travelers,” he heard Maarav explain, “hoping to make it to the next town before our caravan departs without us. The only way we will accomplish that is to travel through the night. We only stopped here to purchase more horses.”
“No one leaves until the Captain approves it,” the man said in reply.
Iseult sighed. Now that they’d drawn attention to themselves, there was no way Kai and Finn would be able to depart with everyone else. He was prepared to turn around to report his findings, when Maarav cocked back his fist and punched the soldier square in the nose. Chaos erupted, accompanied by the metallic sound of blades being drawn.
He debated going back for Kai and Finn, but adrenaline and instinct took over. He drew his blade and launched himself out of hiding and into the fray. They needed to end this before the other soldiers could rush out of the taverns and inns. Hopefully Kai and Finn would see what was happening, and would use the distraction to sneak out on their own.
Iseult’s blade met with another man’s, just before he could bring it down across Anna’s back. He couldn’t help but think, as he turned to knock another man in the head with the pommel of his sword, that he should have left Maarav and the others behind, escorting Finn to safety. A fainter, secondary thought coursed through his mind, that by the gods, it felt good to enter into battle again, for a cause that truly mattered.
Kai could hear the sound of blades meeting, and the thudding of footsteps as the fight broke out. Since Iseult had not returned to them, he knew he must have joined the fray, which meant the rest of their party was also involved.
“We shouldn’t go any closer,” he whispered, his back pressed against the wooden wall of a guard tower beside Finn’s.
“They may need our help,” Finn argued, moving to peer around the building. Naoki was beginning to struggle against her grasp. Finn had shown no change in attitude at his proclamation of love, and he half wondered if she’d even heard him. He truly hadn’t expected her to return the sentiment, but she could have at least said something. Of course, he’d only said that Malida thought he was in love, not that he actually was.
He sighed, knowing now was not the time to dwell on it. Glancing down at the bundled dragon, he gently pushed Finn’s shoulder back against the wall, then moved around her to assess the fight.
It was difficult to tell in the darkness, but Anna, Maarav, Iseult, and Sativola seemed to be doing most of the fighting, while Ealasaid and Tavish had snuck off to a row of horses tied near the gates. Bedelia and Rae where nowhere to be seen, though they could have just been fighting outside the gates.
Taking in the short expanse between the horses and the gates, and hearing doors slamming open and shut down the main road as others heard the fight, Kai made his decision. He turned back to Finn and motioned for her to follow.
Still struggling with her dragon, she jumped at the opportunity. Together they hurried forward, keeping to the shadows near the city gates until they reached the row of tethered horses where Tavish and Ealasaid were covertly untying reins from the post. Ealasaid glanced at them, her eyes wide and startled, then relaxed.
With a smile and a wink, Tavish handed Kai the reins of a horse he’d freed. “They’re looking for the two of you,” Tavish whispered. “Use the distraction to escape.”
Nodding to Tavish in thanks, Kai helped Finn and Naoki onto the horse’s saddle, then climbed up behind them. He would have liked to stay and aid in the fight, but Finn’s safety had to be his priority at that moment, lest Iseult kill him later.
With one arm around Finn’s small form, and the other gripping the reins, he jabbed his heels into the horse’s side and galloped toward the gates, skirting around the fight.
They sped through the gates without interference, only to be met by three guards on horseback, barring their way. Finn screamed as Naoki escaped from her arms, tossing the cloak aside to fly past Kai’s head and onto the ground.
Letting out guttural squawks, Naoki took flight, then spiraled down through the air toward the men. Their nervous horses pranced and bucked, throwing one of the men while Naoki dove in and out, pouncing to the ground, then springing erratically upward. Bedelia and Rae appeared from the darkness, drawing the soldiers’ attention away from the dragon.
While Finn shouted for Naoki, Kai urged their horse forward, taking off into the dark trees away from the road.
Finn gripped onto the saddle’s pommel for dear life, while Kai’s arms trapped her on either side. She could hear the thundering of hooves behind them, but did not know if it was their companions or some of the soldiers. She tried a few times to glance back, but it was too dark to see much of anything.
“We’ll find them once we’re safe!” Kai shouted, pressing the insides of his arms more firmly around her to keep her from turning.
“What about Naoki!” she shouted back. She couldn’t see her little dragon anywhere.
Kai’s arms did not slacken, and instead he flicked the reins to urge the horses on. “She’ll find you! She can track your scent better than any wolf!”
Finn’s heart shuddered. She wanted to tell him to go back, but what could she do if they did? She wasn’t sure she could survive another incident of her odd powers running amuck, melting the skin from a man’s bones, or swallowing them up with the earth. It was probably better for her to be far from any fight. She trusted Iseult to find her again, but of Naoki, she was unsure. What if one of the soldiers harmed her? Most men would run the other way at the sight of a Faie creature, but some would be brave enough to fight.
“We have to go back!” she shouted finally, making up her mind. Branches whipped at their cloaks, threatening to pull them from their mount, yet Kai did not allow the horse to slow.
“They are after you and I,” he cautioned, his voice near her ear. “Everyone is safer without us.”
Tears streamed down Finn’s face, but she could not argue. This was all her fault. Everyone was attacked because An Fiach wanted her. And Kai, she reminded herself . . . though they likely only wanted him because of her. She was a danger to everyone.
They rode on for what seemed like ages, until their horse tired and slowed to a walk. Kai had kept them away from the road, which was likely wise if An Fiach was looking for them specifically. He now guided their horse deep into a copse of trees, near a rocky crag mostly obscured with vegetation. The deeper shadows within the foliage seemed ominous to Finn, or perhaps it was just her mood.