The Blight of Muirwood

Lia frowned. “Am I forbidden to see you?”

He looked down at her and shook his head. “No, the prohibition is over. I am a guest now, a personal guest of the Aldermaston. It is only natural that his hunter would be asked to accompany me or be seen with me. It is not an uncommon practice among my peers to hunt and hawk. I enjoy it myself. There is more, though. When our little army returned to Comoros with the young king for the coronation, Demont gave me a formidable task. He had depended on me during the battle and knew that my father had sworn, at one time, allegiance to his father. He told me about the existence of his niece – a secret that I knew from my father. I had been told of it as a child. You see, when the old king destroyed Pry-Ree, he wanted to ensure that no prince would rise in the future to unite the people against him. Years ago, the lord prince of Pry-Ree married Demont’s sister. They were husband and wife when the old king began his invasion. She was great with child at the time, and he had to leave her to defend his lands. During the war the child was born – a daughter. Sadly, the birthing killed the mother.” He looked at her seriously and Lia swallowed, unable to keep eating.

Her heart burned inside her.

Colvin’s voice was soft. “Much we do not know. Those who survived say the lord prince was so bereft losing his young wife that the Medium ceased aiding him. He fell into an ambush and was killed by the king’s men. His head was fixed to a spear in Comoros. The Pry-rians were crushed. The child was taken into the king’s custody and hidden in an Abbey. She was to be raised a wretched.” His eyes were intent on hers. “Lia, I was asked to find this child. I believed…I truly believed it was you. You were about the right age. The orb spoke to you in Pry-rian. I did not think it likely that they would put the child so near Pry-Ree as Muirwood, but that alone does not invalidate it. You do bear some resemblance to the Demont family. Not your hair but your face, your countenance – it is hauntingly like that family’s.”

It took a moment for Lia to swallow. “Almaguer thought so,” she whispered.

“Demont told me that I needed incontrovertible evidence. He sent me to the archives. I was not to tell anyone of my mission – only to search the records to find out what happened to the prince’s daughter. I knew the year when Pry-Ree was lost. I found a tome written in the king’s own hand after much searching. The child was taken by the king and banished to Sempringfall Abbey.”

Just as the Aldermaston had said, Lia thought.

“It is a small Abbey, noteworthy of nothing, in the eastern part of the realm, near the sea. Demont was already dealing with rebels, and so he sent Edmon and I to the Abbey for the girl. She was there, living by another name. The Aldermaston had lived there when she arrived and knew her true identity, though he had never spoken it for fear of the old king. He released her into our custody with a warning. He was told by the king’s men that if she ever escaped, his Abbey would be burned to the ground. The king’s men swore they would find the child and kill her and any of her offspring. He charged us to protect her, and we have kept that charge. The Pry-rians want her back naturally as she is the only surviving heir.”

He crouched near her, so close she could see her reflection in his eyes. His expression was almost painful to look at. “I thought it was you, Lia. I had hoped that by not keeping my promise to you, I would be able to bring you far better news. I am sorry I abandoned you. For the last year, I have been at various Abbeys while Ellowyn is taught to read and scribe in our language, Pry-rian, and Dahomeyjan. Three languages, instead of one. Her head nearly burst! My sister, Marciana, is her companion. It has been a…difficult transition for Ellowyn. She was a lavender at Sempringfall. When I met her, she smelled like that bunch of flowers I saw you with this morning. The scent reminded me of you.” He stopped and breathed deeply, staring down at the grass. “Knight-mastons are being murdered, rebels are skulking in the woods, the Privy Council has threats of war from three other kingdoms, and I…I must coax a girl to read who is terrified of learning, who is terrified of the Medium, and who would rather be washing clothes in a trough.” He looked at her, being open with his disdain. “When the latest threat to her life came, we were at Billerbeck. I suggested we come to Muirwood. This is the oldest Abbey in the realm. Your Aldermaston is very wise and may help her to master her fears. But most importantly, I wanted to be able to tell you in person why I could not come earlier and apologize for neglecting you. The Aldermaston will not let you become a learner in the cloister. You must continue to serve until your obligation is fulfilled. But my oath to you still binds me. It is a duty which I will, for once, enjoy. I am forbidden to teach you now how to read and engrave, Lia, but I am not forbidden to share with you what I know and what I have scribed in my own tome.”