Aerenden The Child Returns by Kristen Taber

Author:Kristen Taber [Taber, Kristen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction
Publisher: Sean Tigh Press
Published: 2012-08-23T14:16:32+00:00

CHAPTER NINETEEN

THEY FOLLOWED Faillen in silence, their nerves raw, and their senses tuned to the slightest sign of an attack. Once they left the cover of the forest, the field offered no protection and no change in scenery. Miles of grass stretched out before them, green disappearing into the blue of a cloudless horizon. The sun welcomed them from its journey mid-way across the sky, but it failed to provide additional warmth against the crisp wind whipping from the north. Though they remained unprotected, vulnerable in the bright daylight, their one comfort was that the Mardróch had nowhere to stage a sneak attack. Unless they had the ability to turn themselves into field mice, the hunters were as exposed as their prey.

They walked for half an hour before Faillen stopped. Aldin lifted his head from his father’s shoulder and stretched out his arms, reaching his hands into the air in greeting.

“Mata,” he cried.

A woman ran out of nowhere to scoop him into her arms. She buried him in a hug, her long red hair covering the boy’s head before she raised him to smother his face with kisses. Tears streamed freely from her bright green eyes. Joy spread a broad smile across her plump, red lips. “You fool,” she said to him, though her words did not carry chastisement. “You fool,” she said again, pulling him in for another hug. He giggled, reached up to touch her face and traced a finger down her cheek, connecting freckles.

She lifted her head to look at her husband, love shining on her face, and then turned her attention to the newcomers, her happiness dissolving into surprise.

“Outsiders,” she said, her voice hushed. “Faillen.” She spoke no more, but the accusation hung in the air, along with a worry that Meaghan did not need her power to see. The risk of exposure Faillen had brought with him had broken a rule, an understanding between them that turned the woman’s body rigid and her face stiff.

Instead of responding to her, Faillen took Meaghan’s hand in his. “You are welcome here,” he said, then turned to Nick and did the same.

As it had with Neiszhe’s village, solid matter materialized where only air had been. But here, there was no village. The protection spell hid three huts, no bigger than four hundred square feet each. Their thatched roofs and rough mud stucco spoke of the care taken with their construction.

The woman clutched her son tighter in her arms. Her worry turned to panic, the strength of it almost overwhelming Meaghan’s senses. Meaghan stepped forward. The woman stepped back. Meaghan offered a friendly smile, hoping the gesture would ease the woman’s mind. The woman did not return it. Instead, her eyes beseeched Faillen for an explanation.

“Our secrets are safe with them,” he told her. The statement had the same effect on her as Meaghan’s smile. The woman pursed her lips and anger mixed with her worry. Faillen turned to look at Meaghan. She sensed he felt trapped. He needed

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