One of the men turned to engage the squire. The other two attacked William, who barely had room to deflect both strikes with his larger sword. A devastating weapon in the field, the hand-and-a-half or “bastard” sword was a liability at close quarters.
Jazhara lifted her hand and a nimbus of crimson light erupted around it. She cast it at the closest of William’s opponents and watched as the light harmlessly struck the ground near his feet. “Damn,” she muttered. She hefted her staff and stepped forward, leveling a jab with the iron base at the side of the man’s head.
The intruder sensed or saw with his peripheral vision the attack and ducked aside. Whirling to face his new foe, he made a wicked slashing attack at Jazhara, causing her to fall back.
But she had freed William to concentrate on one foe only, and he quickly killed his man. James also dispatched his opponent, then used his sword hilt to strike Jazhara’s attacker at the base of the skull. Rather than stun the man, it served only to distract him, and he turned as Jazhara lashed out again with her staff. The sound of breaking bones was unmistakable as the iron heel of the staff crushed the back of the man’s head.
James looked around the room and said, “What black murder is this?”
William had thrown down his sword and was kneeling beside Talia, cradling her head in his lap. The girl’s face was pale and her life flowed out by the second. “Oh, William . . .” she whispered, “Help me.”
William looked down despairingly. He glanced at James, who shook his head slightly, regret clearly showing in his expression. William then looked at Jazhara and entreated, “You were one of my father’s finest students. Can you perform a healing?”
Jazhara knelt beside the young soldier and whispered, “I’m sorry, William. Her wounds are too severe. Even if we were to send for a priest. . . it would be too late.”
James knelt on the other side of the girl. “Talia, who did this?”
Talia looked up at James. “They were after Father. I don’t know who they were. The leader was a huge bear of a man.” She coughed and blood trickled from her mouth, staining her lips. “He hurt me, William. He really hurt me.”
Tears streamed down William’s cheeks. “Oh, Talia, I’m sorry . . .”
Suddenly the girl’s distress seemed to ease. James had seen this before in those on the verge of death. For a moment their eyes brightened, as if the pain had vanished, as if the dying stood upon the threshold of entering Lims-Kragma’s Hall. At this moment, they saw clearly in both worlds. Talia whispered, “Don’t worry, William. I swear by Kahooli, I will have my vengeance!”
Then her head lolled to one side.
“No . . . Talia!” William sobbed. For a moment he held her, and then slowly he placed her on the floor, and gently closed her eyes. At last, he rose and declared, “They must pay for this, James. I’m going after them.”
James looked toward the doorway of the inn. If the intruders had been seeking Talia’s father Lucas, that was the way the old man would have bolted. He said, “Wait, William. The Prince will have my head if I let you go off alone. You’ll have your revenge and we’ll be there beside you. Now, tell us what happened.”
William hesitated a moment then said, “Right. Martin and I had just ended our shift. We headed over here for a drink, just like always, and that’s when we saw them run out of the building. Half a dozen of them, with that big bastard leading them. Martin tried to halt them, and they attacked us without so much as a word. If you hadn’t come along, I’d no doubt be lying alongside Martin.” He gestured toward the dead soldier.
James inspected the carnage. In addition to Talia, they had slaughtered everyone else in the inn. The other barmaid, Susan de Bennet, lay sprawled on the floor in the corner, her head severed completely from her body with what looked to have been a single blow. Her red tresses fanned out around her head, which lay a foot away from her body, her blue eyes still wide in shocked amazement. The other patrons were likewise hacked to pieces.
“Why?” asked James. “Why charge in and kill everyone in sight?” He looked at William. “Did the big man go after Lucas?”
“No. Some other men went out through the back. Once those five murderers backed me inside the inn, the big bastard and some others fled down the street.”
“Do you have any idea where they were heading?” asked James.
Before William could answer, the building seemed to rock as the night was torn by the sound of a thunderous explosion. James was first out the door, with William and Jazhara close behind him. To the west, a fountain of green flames rose into the night as rocks shot up into the air. As the sound of the explosion diminished, the rocks began to rain down. James and his companions ducked beneath the overhanging roof eaves, and waited.