Haelend's Ballad by Ian V. Conrey

Author:Ian V. Conrey [Ian]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ian Conrey
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

In the Valley of Shame

T

he steps creaked as Adelyne carried a clay pot full of hot stones. The smoke from the downstairs hearth billowed against her as she pushed open the door, made of crudely framed limbs. She set the pot down and picked up a cloth. Sarah sat in the far corner, covered in a thin blanket as she nursed the baby. Beside the back wall, Lilly slept soundly on a straw pallet just below a small open window, covered only by a tattered sheet. A cold breeze occasionally made its way into the room, blowing the sheet back.

“I think the smell’s been bothering Acton,” Sarah said in a dry voice. Beneath her disheveled hair, her cheeks had lost color. “Every time a gust comes in, he starts crying.” She eyed Lilly with a half-smile. “She doesn’t seem to mind, though.”

With the cloth in her hand, Adelyne set the stones beneath the wool blanket beside Lilly and a few beside Sarah. “Acton,” she said. “I like that name.”

A gentle laugh made Sarah’s eyes crinkle at the sides. It was the first time Adelyne had heard her do so.

“What is it?” Adelyne asked as she sat down beside her.

“Nothing, it just reminded me of . . .” Her eyes dimmed, and her smile faded. She resituated herself to lay Acton down on her lap, who was now fast asleep. “I don’t know what to do,” she admitted. “I don’t know how we’ll make it without Geoffrey.”

“You don’t have to worry about that right now,” Adelyne replied. “You’ll be taken care of, and one day Geoffrey will be back. You’ve still got hope.”

“How?” Sarah looked up with red eyes. “If he isn’t already executed, he’s what? Drafted to Daecland? How’s he ever going to come back? Are they just going to let him go? Is he just going to walk back home?”

Adelyne thought hard for an answer, but she found her own self getting discouraged. She was a Dark Horse. She was supposed to help win back Sunder. But even she knew that not all Sunderians meant well. What if the wrong person took control afterward? No. She couldn’t think like that. She needed to focus on the good. “If we win back Everwind, there’s hope that we’ll get the Daecish out of Sunder for good.”

Lines formed across Sarah’s forehead as if she was only getting more upset. “You don’t understand. If we fight the Daecish, that’ll only seal his fate from us.” She closed her eyes. “Our actions are probably going to kill him and everyone else they’ve taken.”

Adelyne held in her breath. She’d never thought of the consequences of their actions for those who were drafted. If they took back Everwind or even all of Sunder, those in Daecland would be lost. Would her father be killed? Part of her hoped so, but the other part hated herself for even thinking it.

Sarah broke into a sudden loud sob. “Geoffrey’s not coming back,” she cried. “And our fate’s as good as his.

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