Buried Heroes by Beth Ball

Author:Beth Ball [Ball, Beth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781952609008
Publisher: Grove Guardian Press

Flick stopped by their tent the next morning before he traveled into the woods with the other loggers. He directed them to the nearest route to Trudid, a shortcut that would shave two hours from their journey.

“What if we followed the loggers instead and tried to speak with Turdoch one more time?” Iellieth asked after Flick bid them farewell.

“I don’t think it would do any harm, and it could help matters,” Marcon said. “He seems the kind of man to appreciate persistence.”

“Do you think he’ll be more willing to listen to us this time? If I approach it differently?”

“It is certainly possible, lady.”

“I should have been more cautious before. Mara’s been so kind to me. She doesn’t seem the kind of person to hold a prejudice against someone, but I hadn’t adequately considered her feelings toward loggers.”

They packed their belongings and followed the workers, who were trickling down a path into the Stormside Forest.

“When I was little, Mamaun told me legends of the tree protectors—forest spirits and ancient, walking trees who would enact the will of the woods. She was curious about elves and the old stories when she was younger—that’s how she knew so many tales. My grandmother forbade her from studying them, so she read in secret.” The early morning breeze stirred the leaves around them. Iellieth paused on the path and closed her eyes. Before their move, she and Mamaun would play games in the forest behind Aurora, reenacting the ancient stories her mother read to her each afternoon.

Iellieth opened her eyes and relocated herself in the present, inside a northern branch of the same forest. “The one thing she was adamant about with my stepfather, when we were back in Io Keep, was that I be able to study what I wished so long as I also dedicated myself to the subjects they selected.”

“And what did you choose to explore?”

“Languages and cultures first. Katarina and I love to read, and her brother Aravar would bring back novels and stories from the far reaches of Caldara for us. She used to travel, but she prefers to stay in Io Keep now. They granted me a personal section of the castle gardens as well. I wonder who’s tending it now.” Surely Mathilde had found someone she thought was worthy of the task.

“Do you miss your home?”

“You’re asking because I sound nostalgic?”

Marcon nodded. “That is part of it, yes.”

Her recent good-byes tugged on her heart. “I miss Katarina and Scad. I haven’t many friends in the castle. That tends to happen when you grow up an outcast.”

“Or an orphan.” He smiled. “But here you are, well on your way to finding a new home with the druids.”

“I have been scared to allow myself to hope for that. They could easily change their minds, or Mara could be overruled in the council.”

“Mara doesn’t seem the type to easily take no for an answer.”

Iellieth laughed. “No, I’m sure you’re right. Then neither will we.”

Her happiness at this thought was cut short by the sounds of the logging ahead of them.

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