Taken In (The Red Enchanter Book 2) Read online

  The lead ranger stepped forward. “Are you sure? I can have my men check. Sometimes-”

  “I said, he’s dead. Now get out of here.” She was thrilled at the look on their faces. They were frightened of her.

  The men began to back away. “We’re going.” said the leader. He turned to leave and then stopped. “It is customary to take the head back to the Master Enchanter. I have a knife.”

  The Master Enchanter. Nora could still remember the feel of the robe on her shoulders, the soft silk slipping between her fingers. She could have done it; she could have ruled them. She could still do it.

  “You’re not cutting off his head!” Lucy cried.

  Nora was brought back into the present and she was horrified. She was already forgetting who Killian was. “I want him for myself. I want his brain. Now leave us.”

  The men turned and left, disappearing into the woods. As they went Nora felt their energy going with them. Her mind began to clear, thoughts of ruling Firesea ebbed away. Suddenly she was aware that someone was shouting at her.

  “Nora!” Logan yelled. “We have to help Killian.”

  Lucy was sitting on the ground holding his hand. “He’s almost gone.”

  Healing Killian would attract the attention of Firesea, the rangers could come back. But it was too late to worry about that now, Killian could not die. “Take the arrow out and get his clothes off.” Nora said.

  Logan pulled the arrow out of Killian’s back. With the help of his son Kip they took off Killian’s jacket and shirt. Nora could use Firesea energy to do what she wanted and that included healing enchanters from Firesea.

  Once Killian’s clothes were removed they rolled him onto his stomach and Nora applied her hands to the wound. Blood began to ooze around her fingers. She hoped there would be a sign that something was happening, heat, cold, anything. Several minutes passed without any change to her or Killian. Lucy was sobbing next to her.

  “Come on Killian. You can’t leave me now.” Nora told him. She felt panic rising inside of her. Rowan and Killian in one day. She couldn’t lose them both. She couldn’t lose either of them. Killian was so quiet and steady; everyone took him for granted including her. Without him nothing made sense. She pressed harder but she was sure nothing was happening. “I don’t know what else to do.”

  “Try the pen.” Lucy said.

  “No, I’ve tried that before. It doesn’t heal everything inside the body.”

  “Your name is Nora.” Finnegan said from atop his horse.

  The last thing she needed was him chiming in. “I have to fix him. Damn it Killian, you can’t leave me. We have to find Rowan. I can’t do this alone.”

  “Nora, you’re doing it wrong.” Finnegan said.

  “What?” She looked up at him; there was a glimmer of his old self in his eyes.

  “Put one hand on his chest and one hand on his back, over the wound. It will keep the healing power between your hands.”

  Kip stepped in and turned Killian on his side. Nora did as Finnegan suggested. A few seconds passed and then her hands began to warm. “I think it is working!” Her fingers grew warmer and warmer. Suddenly Killian coughed and opened his eyes. The wound appeared to be healed.

  He looked at her and smiled weakly. “Thanks.”

  Nora kissed his forehead and stroked his hair. “I’m sorry.”

  He took her hand. “Why are you sorry?”

  “I started to forget you. It happened again. Maybe I shouldn’t come. I almost let you die.”

  Killian kissed the back of her hand. “You won’t let me die. You’ll always remember in the end Nora.”

  “I hope so.” She wanted to believe it but she was frightened. During the war there had been several instances where she had lost control and forgotten who she was.

  “We should get moving before we’re overrun by rangers.” Killian said.

  “Are you sure you’re ready?”

  “Yes.” He sat up.

  Lucy handed him his shirt. “I’m so glad you’re all right Daddy. We all are.”

  Killian put on his shirt and jacket. Logan and Kip helped him to his feet. “I can take it from here.” he told them. He looked up at Finnegan. “Do you think you can ride on your own for a while?”

  “I think so. I’m feeling better.”

  “Good.” Killian patted his brother’s knee. He helped Nora onto her horse. He sat behind her and put his arms around her. “I won’t let you slip away.”

  It seemed so easy wrapped in his arms. She looked up at him and smiled. “I love you Killian, no matter what happens, no matter I say, I love you.”

  He pulled on the reins of the horse, it began moving forward. “I love you too Nora. It’s not going to be like the last time. We’re going to find our son and then somewhere to call home.”

  Chapter 8

  They made it through the pass without another incident. Lucy remained in front. She was unafraid. The war had taken away her fears. It had taken everything from her. She sometimes looked back on the girl she used to be and wondered where she went to.

  She was only thirty years old but in enchanter terms she was a spinster. When she was young she dreamt of being swept off her feet and marrying a handsome man. She had long ago given up that fantasy.

  Lucy was relieved to be out of New Wildbush. The settlement they had made with the mortals had been suffocating. Even though they built the town together and worked side by side the resentment was always bubbling underneath the surface.

  The sky was getting dark, it was nearly sundown. She looked back at her brother Kip. “Can you take my place for a few minutes?”

  “Sure.” He picked up the reins of his horse. “You know, I was just thinking how much you look like Mother.”

  Lucy supposed she did. It was a compliment, her mother had been beautiful. She rode to the end of the line. As she passed her Uncle Finnegan he grinned at her. “I own a house in Chilton!”

  “I know you do.” she said. Nora and her father were at the back. Nora was sitting in front of Killian. She had fallen asleep, her head was resting on his chest. Lucy let her horse fall in line with theirs. “Daddy, I think we should break for the night.”

  “We have to keep going. They could have him halfway to Firesea by now. What he must be going through, he must be scared out of his mind.”

  Lucy was just as worried about Rowan but they couldn’t stumble around in the dark looking for him. “Are you sure they’ll take him to Firesea?”

  “Yes.”

  Lucy looked at Nora. “She can’t go there.”

  “I know. But I can’t stop her from coming, she’s his mother.”

  If Nora went to Firesea she could forget everything and turn on them, it had happened before. She was safe around a few Firesea enchanters, but anything more than that and she would be out of control. “We can bring her to just within sight of the wall then we can go in.”

  “What about the rest of them?” he asked. “I can’t protect them all. I should have gone by myself.”

  “No. You were right to bring them. We’re a family, we stick together.” She hesitated. “And I couldn’t stand it in New Wildbush anymore.”

  “I’m sorry that I failed you Lucy. You were supposed to have a better life than this.”

  “It’s not your fault. It’s just hard not to think about what could have been.”

  “I know.” Killian reached for her hand. She took it.

  “I shouldn’t have said that.” She started to cry. “We have to find Rowan, nothing else matters.”

  He squeezed her hand. “We will find him. I have no intention of letting Dante have my son.”

  She let go of his hand and wiped her eyes. “Maybe we should keep going.”

  “No, you’re right. We have to rest and eat. We’ll be no good if we arrive in Firesea exhausted. We have to be ready to fight.”

  “All right.” She picked up the reins. “I’ll find a spot.” She started to leave.

  “Lucy.” Kill
ian said. “When we have Rowan and we’re all safe we are going to find Arden”

  She nodded and then maneuvered the horse to the front of the line. “Thanks Kip, we’re going to stop for a while.”

  Kip rode next to her. “We’ll find Rowan, don’t worry.”

  “I know.”

  “I for one can’t wait to get to Firesea. They killed Mother and Casper. I’ll show them what I’ve got.”

  “It’s not going to be easy. Firesea are powerful enchanters, it’s different there.”

  Kip shrugged. “We’ll see.”

  Lucy rode ahead and began looking for somewhere to camp. They didn’t need much, just a flat piece of land. Killian’s words echoed in her mind. Arden. She had thought of him every day since they were separated fourteen years ago. For a time he and Nora were prisoners together. They had tried to stay together, but Arden had been sold into slavery and taken away. He could anywhere by now, or he could be dead.

  She pictured the sandy haired boy that had helped her escape Firesea. He was older now, just as she was, he probably looked different. Firesea had tortured him, leaving him scarred from head to toe. She wondered if he still pulled at the sleeves of his shirts self-consciously. Whatever he did now, whatever had happened to him, it didn’t matter. She loved him, she always had.

  Lucy had assumed that Killian had forgotten about Arden, they had never met. Perhaps her father knew more of her true feelings than she realized. Perhaps Nora had told him, Lucy had often confided in her. The horse whinnied as a breeze kicked up and blew in their faces. Lucy dug her heels into the horse’s side. They galloped towards a clearing at the edge of the woods. Lucy felt like she was waking up from a long slumber, she felt alive for the first time in years.

  Chapter 9

  While Finnegan had been atop the horse his brain had been putting itself back together. By the time they stopped and made camp the memories that had been floating around in his head began to make sense. Just before dawn he woke up and found Killian keeping watch, he had been up all night.

  “Why don’t you take a break?” he asked as he sat next to his brother.

  “I’m fine. But how are you?”

  Finnegan sighed. “I remember what I did to you. I sent you away as a child. And I kidnapped your daughter.”

  “I know.”

  “I don’t know what to say.” He picked at a blade of grass in front of him. It was still dark and he couldn’t see Killian’s face.

  “There’s nothing to say. I forgave you long ago.”

  “You shouldn’t have.”

  “It doesn’t matter now.”

  “But-”

  “It doesn’t matter anymore.” Killian said firmly. “We can’t change the past. I’m giving them another hour and then we have to get going. We can be in Firesea today, we’ll have Rowan by tonight.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “I have to be.”

  “What about Nora?”

  “What about her?”

  “She’s uncontrollable. When you were on the ground passed out, after that arrow hit you, you didn’t see what she was like. If you bring her near Firesea-”

  “Let me worry about Nora. We need someone to take over as the Master Enchanter, someone to take control. Dante has manipulated the circle so much that they can’t see what he really is.”

  “I tried years ago to tell some of the rangers about Dante. Nothing ever came of it.” Finnegan said. “I guess the enchanters in Firesea want Dante to rule them.”

  “They need you.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you are the rightful heir.”

  “I know, but I’ve been banished.”

  Finnegan thought he saw Killian shrug. “Something has to be done or another generation will grow up under Dante’s rule.”

  “What’s your plan?”

  “I don’t have a plan Finn. I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m making it up as I go along. What else am I supposed to do?”

  Finnegan put a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t know, but you can’t just walk into Firesea.”

  “I don’t care how I get in. Rowan is just a boy, he knows nothing about the war, hardly anything about enchanters, and even less about Firesea.”

  Behind them Finnegan heard someone stirring. “Do you really think I should be the Master Enchanter?”

  “You would have been if-”

  “If I hadn’t cast my spell and sent you away.”

  “Yes, but I told you that doesn’t matter now. I’m not losing to Dante again. He took Rowan as a means to lure us out.”

  “Why now?”

  Killian stood up. “I’m not sure, but we’ll know soon enough. Come on, help me with the horses.”

  Finnegan stood up and followed his brother. He could really be the Master Enchanter. It seemed impossible but maybe there was a chance for him after all.

  Chapter 10

  Rowan was taken to a tent and chained to one of the support posts inside. He was given a blanket and a pillow. Exhaustion allowed him to sleep. When he woke up the next morning a ranger, as he heard they were called, came in and unlocked the shackles around his wrists. Another one threw him a red shirt and black pants and told Rowan to put them on. They waited while he dressed. The clothes were too big, the hem of the pants dragged on the ground.

  After letting him use a nearby stream to relieve himself they brought him back to the same big tent that he was in the night before. Constantine was there dressed in red armor. “Father wants you and me to return to Firesea at once. He’s going to continue north.”

  Rowan felt himself starting to cry.

  “I can’t let you go.” Constantine said. “I have to put a collar on you, all slaves wear them.”

  Constantine took a thin gold band from one of the rangers and held it to Rowan’s throat. The band wrapped itself around his neck several times. It wasn’t tight but he could feel it there, reminding him of what he now was.

  “You won’t be able to cast your spell with it on.” Constantine said

  A flap in the tent opened. Four men stepped inside. Rowan noticed they were wearing the same gold bands and the tiniest pair of suede shorts that laced up the front.

  “These are my personal protectors.” Constantine said. “They travel everywhere with me.” He looked at them. “Are we ready?”

  “Yes sir.” The protectors surrounded Constantine and they marched out of the tent. Two rangers standing behind Rowan made sure that he followed them. A wagon pulled by two chestnut horses was waiting outside. The men helped Constantine onto a padded seat in the back.

  “You can sit with the driver.” he told Rowan.

  The seat was high up; one of Constantine’s protectors had to help him into it. The driver, a wiry old man, stared at Rowan’s red and brown hair. As he got settled he noticed the protector’s arms. They were covered in scars, long thin lines that stopped at his hands.

  As soon as Rowan was seated the wagon began to move. He turned around and watched the camp disappear. Rangers were already dismantling the tents and loading horses down with gear.

  The four protectors walked alongside the wagon. They each had a dagger strapped to their thigh and carried a short spear. Rowan was unshackled, he could jump off the wagon at any point, but there was nowhere to go and the protectors looked more than capable of catching him. The one that had helped him was at the front axle of the wagon. His scars not only covered his arms, but his chest, back, and legs as well.

  He must have sensed someone was staring at him; he looked up and smiled at Rowan, his eyes lingering on his hair. His gaze shifted to Constantine. “May I speak to him?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is your hair from a spell?”

  “I don’t think so.” Rowan answered. “My father has red hair.”

  “Really?”

  Rowan remembered his mother and sister talking about a man with scars. Maybe that was commonplace among enchanters, he didn’t know. He stared at the back of his sandy
blonde head hoping he might say something else. A few minutes passed before the protector looked over his shoulder. “What’s your name?”

  “Rowan Cramer.”

  The man stopped. “Cramer? I was wondering if it was you.”

  “Arden, keep walking.” Constantine told him.

  “Yes sir.” He put his head down and started moving. After a few minutes he looked up. “May I speak to him again?”

  Constantine sighed. “I suppose so. He’s the one my father has been looking for. He’ll be my personal slave. Perhaps later on we’ll train him to be a protector like you.”

  Rowan’s mouth dropped open. “Would I have to dress like that?”

  Arden saw his face and laughed. “It’s traditional, and it’s not so bad, you’d get used to it.”

  “No laughing today Arden.” Constantine said. “I have a headache.”

  “I’m sorry sir.” Arden looked at Rowan. “Lucy Cramer must be your sister.”

  “Yes.”

  “Is she?” Arden hesitated. “Did she make it through the war?”

  “Yes. Are you the man with the scars? I heard her talking about you with my mother.”

  Arden’s face broke into a smile. He started to speak again and then looked up at Constantine. “We can talk later. It’s a long way to Firesea.”

  They didn’t arrive in Firesea until after dark. Rowan couldn’t see much of anything besides a high wood wall and rows of closely built houses inside. The wagon pulled up in front of a white timber home. Constantine was helped off the wagon and went inside. Arden offered his hand and Rowan jumped down.

  “Come on.” Arden put a hand on his shoulder and they followed the protectors inside. They walked down a bright hallway and up a wide staircase. The house was fancier than anything Rowan had ever seen. He couldn’t help but gawk at the splendor.

  They stopped at the second floor and then turned into a room, inside were several low sofas. An open doorway revealed another room beyond. A couple of the protectors went inside it.