Erik nodded. Obviously, he had news about those who hadn’t survived the sack of Maharta or the exodus to the City of the Serpent River.
The reunited members of Calis’s company were quickly free of the royal docks, and Erik led them to an inn close by often used by soldiers from the palace. Erik suspected that every employee of the inn was in the Prince’s service; de Loungville had made it clear he preferred his men to frequent the inn of the Broken Shield rather than others farther into the city proper. As the drink was decent for the money, the women were friendly and agreeable, and it was close enough to visit without neglecting his duties at the palace, Erik was satisfied to give the inn his business.
Since it was early in the afternoon, business was light Erik signaled to the barman for a round of ales, and as they sat, Roo asked, “Luis, what happened to you? We thought you lost crossing the river.”
Calis’s company had been forced to swim across the mouth of the Vedra River to reach the city of Maharta, each man fully armed, and many had not reached the far shore. Luis rubbed his chin with his good hand.
“I nearly was,” he said, his Rodezian accent lending an oddly musical quality to his words. “Cramped up just a few yards short of that little island you all crawled onto before you continued on, and by the time I got my head back above water, I’d been swept south of it So I tried to reach the far shore and started cramping again after a while.”
He shook his head, and suddenly Roo realized how much older he looked. A man of not yet middle years, he now had noticeable grey in his hair and mustache. He let out a long sigh as the bar man set pewter jacks of ale before them. He drank deeply and continued. “I didn’t wait when the second cramp hit I dropped my shield and sword, pulled my belt knife, and started cutting off armor. When I could get above water again, I was half-drowned, and I didn’t know where I was.
“The sky was dark and all I knew was I didn’t have much left. I saw a boat and swam for it” He held up his ruined right hand. “That’s how I got this. I reached out for the gunwale and got a hold of it, when a fisherman smashed it with an oar.”
Erik visibly winced and Roo said, “Gods!”
“I must have shouted,” said Luis. “I blacked out and should have drowned, but someone hauled me in, as I came to on a boat full of refugees, sailing out into the open sea.”
“How did you get to the City of the Serpent River?” asked Roo.
Luis told his story, about the desperate fishing folk who sailed past the warships heading after those fleeing the harbor proper, ignoring the little boats that were fleeing the estuary near the city. “We started taking on water,” he said, looking off into space as he remembered. “We landed a day northeast of the city, and those of us not inclined to trust their future to the sea went ashore. They repaired the boat, I suppose, or they were taken captive by the invaders. I didn’t stay around long enough to find out”
He sighed. “I owed someone there my life and never did find out who it was who pulled me out and why. We were all brothers and sisters in misery.” He held out his hand. “Besides, this was starting to throb and puff up, black and angry.”
“How did you fix it?” asked Roo.
“I didn’t. I considered cutting it off, truth to tell, it hurt so much by the third day, and I was sweating from the fever. I tried the reiki Nakor taught us, and it helped the pain, but it didn’t keep me from burning up. But the next day I found this camp with a priest of some order I’ve never heard of. He couldn’t magic it, but he did bathe it, then wrapped it in a poultice of leaves and herbs. Gave me something to drink that broke the fever.” He was silent a moment, then said, “He told me it would take some powerful healing magic to restore my hand, the kind the temples charge a lifetime’s gold to undertake, and he also said it would be a chance thing; it might not take.” Luis shrugged. “As I am unlikely ever to have the wealth needed, I will never know.”
He pushed his now empty ale jack away and said, “So now I am here, and as I understand it, a soon to be pardoned and freed man, and I must consider my future.”
Erik signaled for another round of ale. “We all faced that.”
“If you don’t have any plans,” Roo said, “I could use a man with a good head and some familiarity in dealing with people of importance.”
Luis said, “Really?”
Erik laughed. “Our friend has realized his ambition and is currently working hard at marrying the ugly daughter of the rich merchant”
Jadow fixed Roo with a narrow gaze. “You’re not taking liberties with that tender child, are you?”
Roo held up his hands in mock defense. “Never.” He shook his head. “Fact is, she appeals to me little more than you do, Jadow. She’s a nice enough girl. Very quiet. Not as ugly as I imagined, really, and there’s a hint of something when she manages a smile, but right now I’m fighting a two-front battle.”