Chaos and Retribution Box Set, page 80
part #1 of Chaos and Retribution Series
Aislin peered over the edge warily. She knew the cliffs were high, but she’d never realized how high they were before. Not really. It was an awfully long way down, even for a bird, and she was not a bird. She decided to stay well back from the edge.
“I feel like I can see forever up here,” Liv said. “Isn’t it great?”
Aislin discovered that if she looked out to sea instead of down the cliff it wasn’t nearly so scary. Liv was right. She could see a long ways. The sea spread out before them to the horizon, waves gently rolling across its blue-green face. Gulls were visible as white dots, along with the larger pelicans. She could see a pod of dolphins playing near the surface.
After looking for a bit, she located Treylen’s cottage and pointed it out to Liv. “That’s where my friend lives. You can’t see him right now, though.”
“I wish so much we could go down there right now,” Liv said. “But my mom will never agree to it, and I can’t even get my dad to either. I guess I’ll have to keep trying. Maybe if they know I’m with you it will make them feel better.” She dangled her feet over the edge and sighed.
“What are you doing up here?”
The girls looked up and saw Brecken. He was on top of the wall, walking toward them, holding his arms out to either side for balance.
“You know Mom would flip if she saw you up here,” he added as he came up to them.
“Yeah? Well, you’re not supposed to be up here either,” Liv told him.
“She wouldn’t care. I’m practically grown up. I can do what I want.” He crossed his arms and stared down at his sister. His sandy hair had fallen down over his eyes and he shook his head to flip it back. His eyes were a startling blue color that Aislin had never seen before, like the sky before a storm. She stared at them, for some reason unable to look away.
“You’re only fourteen. You’re not that grown up,” Liv retorted. “You’d be in just as much trouble as I would. Besides, you’re standing and we’re only sitting. We’re much safer.”
Brecken’s blue eyes shifted to Aislin. “I see you have your little friend visiting again.”
Aislin wanted to protest. She didn’t like being called little, even if she was. But with him staring at her like that she was having trouble getting the words out. She felt her face get hot and looked away.
“She has a name, you know,” Liv said. “It’s Aislin and you better be nice to her.”
“Aislin.” Brecken said the name slowly, as if it had some deep meaning he was trying to understand. Aislin liked the way he said her name. “I never heard that name before.”
“That’s because there’s no one like her. She’s special.” Liv turned to Aislin. “This is my brother Brecken. He’s a butt most of the time.”
For some reason that made Aislin giggle a little. That started Liv giggling too. Soon both girls were giggling. Brecken shook his head in disgust. “Unbelievable,” he said, and stalked off back the way he’d come, still walking on top of the wall.
╬ ╬ ╬
After that first day the girls got together for several days in a row. They explored the palace and the castle grounds. They played games that Liv dreamed up. It was all very new and exciting for Aislin. It was frightening too, though she wasn’t sure why.
Then one day Aislin knew she had to go back down to the sea again. She’d been too long away. She asked Liv if she wanted to go too, but Liv’s mother didn’t even let her finish the question before saying no, so the next day Aislin went alone.
Randel was waiting for her by the front gates of the estate the next morning. He had a flask of water and a satchel bulging with food. He’d learned early on that it was best to be prepared when he went down to the sea with Aislin. It was almost always a day-long affair.
“So I heard you made a friend,” he said after they passed through the city gates and were following the path that led down to the beach.
“I don’t know,” Aislin said, uncomfortable talking about it. “Maybe.”
“Maybe? What does that mean?”
“It means I don’t know. She’s all right, I guess.”
“You guess?”
“Stop talking about it already,” Aislin said. “You talk too much sometimes.”
Randel laughed. Even when Aislin got angry at him, he hardly ever took it personally. In the years he’d been escorting her around he’d learned a lot about how she was. “I’ve been told I do,” he admitted. “You don’t want to talk about your friend, I’m okay with that. You want to talk about something else?”
“No. I’m in a hurry to get to the sea.”
“Does that mean you want to race? I want to race. I think I can beat you this time.”
Instead of answering, Aislin took off running. He caught up to her pretty quickly, but he didn’t pass her. Instead he made lots of huffing and panting sounds, sounding like he was dying. Aislin knew he was pretending, the same as she knew he was pretending he couldn’t run any faster. It was what he always did when they raced.
When they got to the beach, Randel collapsed on the sand, groaning. Then he pounded on the ground in mock anger. “Why won’t you let me win at least once? Why?”
Aislin left him there and ran into the sea. It felt good to be back in the water again, and for a while she lost herself in it, savoring the feeling of returning home, the feeling of safety and completion. But all too soon she began to feel restless. She found herself missing Liv’s incessant chatter, the silly things she said, the way she threw her head back when she laughed.
Aislin swam back to shore. Treylen was sitting under his favorite tree. Randel was down the beach a way, poking at something on the sand. She flopped down beside Treylen and looked up at the top of the cliffs, hoping to see Liv sitting up there on the wall, looking down at her. She kind of thought she saw Liv, but she couldn’t be sure. It was awfully far away.
“Something’s not right,” she told Treylen. “Something’s missing.”
“Your shoes?” he said, gesturing at her bare feet.
She made an irritated noise. “You know I never wear shoes unless I have to.”
“Is it something inside you then?” he asked.
She thought about it for a moment. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“Like an emptiness?”
She looked at him briefly, surprised. “How did you know?”
Treylen scratched the top of his head before answering. He was mostly bald. He only had a fringe of hair left and it was pure white. “What you’re feeling is called loneliness.”
“No,” Aislin said firmly. “I don’t get lonely.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I’m positive.”
Treylen had this little smile on his face. Aislin knew that smile exactly. It was the smile he got when he was right about something, and she knew he was right, but she didn’t want to admit it. She didn’t like that smile. Mostly because she hated being wrong.
“Quit it,” she said irritably.
“Loneliness is when you feel sad because you miss someone you care about. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Aislin shook her head. “She’s only a friend. I don’t really care about her.”
“Really?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. His eyebrows were very bushy.
“You’re doing it still,” she told him crossly. “Stop smiling like that.”
He put on a stern face. “Is this better?”
“No. Now I think you’re making fun of me.”
He looked out to sea. “It’s okay to care about your friend, Aislin.”
Aislin got up and walked down the beach for a while. It didn’t make her feel any better. When she came back Treylen was still there. He had his eyes closed.
“I don’t like it. It’s scary.” She frowned. “That doesn’t make any sense. There’s nothing to be scared about.” She waited for a minute, and when he didn’t respond she added, “Is there?”
“When those two men chased you, were you scared?” he asked.
“No. Not really.”
“That day when the drunken man came down on the beach and started waving his sword around, were you scared then?”
“No.”
“People don’t scare you.” Treylen still had his eyes closed.
“No.”
“But your friend does.”
“No. No, she doesn’t.”
“You just said she did.”
“Okay, you made your point!” she snapped. “You’re making me mad now.”
“It’s scary to love someone,” he said, opening his eyes and looking at her.
“But why?”
“Because then so many things can go wrong. And if they do, you’ll get hurt.”
Aislin stood up. “Sometimes I think you’re just a crazy old man.”
He nodded. “Sometimes I do too.”
“Why do you have to make things so confusing?”
“It’s how life is,” he said with a sad smile.
“Does it get better when you grow up?”
“Not really.”
“You’re not making me feel better, you know.”
“I know. Why don't you have your friend come down to the sea with you?”
“She can’t. Her mother won’t let her.”
“She’s afraid something bad will happen to her daughter, who she loves very much.”
“So I have to be lonely because she’s scared?”
“It looks like it. For now anyway. At least you still have me. And Randel.”
“It’s not the same.”
“Don’t tell Randel that. You don’t want to hurt his feelings.”
“What about your feelings?” Aislin asked.
“I’m like you. I don’t have any.” But when he said it he had that little smile Aislin found so irritating.
Then his expression grew more serious. “Have you given thought to practicing with Seaforce some more?”
Treylen had first told Aislin about Seaforce a few months before. Seaforce was what Treylen called the raw power that resided in the sea. It was what Aislin used to control the water and create creatures within it. Treylen had been trying ever since to get Aislin to agree to learn more about it, but she’d been resisting.
“Maybe another day,” she said.
“That’s what you always say.”
“Because it’s boring, that’s why.”
“I know it’s boring, but you’re going to need it someday.”
“You don’t know that for sure,” Aislin said sullenly.
“Wouldn’t you like to know more about your power anyway?” Treylen asked.
“Not really.”
“Controlling water is nice, but water has its limits, and the day may come when you need something stronger.”
“Nothing is stronger than the sea.”
“You’d be surprised.”
╬ ╬ ╬
“I know I’ve said it before, but I’d give anything for your hair,” Netra said the next morning while brushing Aislin’s hair. “You spend all that time in the sea. You never brush it. You never spend any time on it at all. But look at it,” she marveled. “It’s not tangled at all. If I tried to do what you do I’d have to cut all mine off and start over.”
Aislin ignored the comments. She’d heard them before and, the truth was, she couldn’t care less about her hair. “I want to go up and see Liv again today.”
“Okay, but I’m not going to be able to take you. I have too much to do. Randel will have to take you.”
“Can’t I just go by myself?” Aislin asked.
“Really? After what happened when you went to buy candles? Which we still need, by the way.”
Aislin didn’t argue with her. She hadn’t expected her mother to agree to it. Mostly she’d asked out of habit. “So long as Randel doesn’t follow me around the whole time while I’m playing with Liv,” she said sternly. “I don’t want him interfering.”
“I don’t see any reason why he needs to,” Netra said. “He can wait at the gates until you’re done.”
“Good.” Aislin jumped down off her stool and headed for the door.
“I’m not done brushing your hair,” Netra protested.
“It’s fine, Mama. You said so yourself. It doesn’t matter if it gets brushed or not.”
“It matters to me. I like brushing your hair.”
“Maybe some other time.” Aislin opened the door and stepped outside.
“Aren’t you forgetting something?”
Aislin set her jaw stubbornly. “I don’t want to wear shoes.”
“Not that. Remember what we talked about?”
Aislin’s brow furrowed as she thought about it. “Oh, right. Goodbye, Mama.” Her mother had been working on her to say hello and goodbye.
“Goodbye, Aislin. That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
“It wasn’t so good either.” Aislin ran off, leaving her mother shaking her head.
“To the castle it is,” Randel said when Aislin ran up to him and told him. He got his short sword out of the guard hut and strapped it on. “Are we going to see your new friend?” he asked, once they were out on the street and walking toward the castle.
“Not we,” she corrected him. “Me.”
“Don’t tell me you’re ashamed of me,” he said, putting his hand on his heart and giving her a sad look.
She was unaffected by his theatrics. “Sometimes.”
“That’s not good. I’ll try to be more guard-like today then.” He pulled his shoulders back and started marching. “Maybe if I’m serious enough they’ll offer me a job. I think I’d be a great castle guard.”
“They’re not going to give you a job. You already have one.”
“What job is that?”
“Making sure I stay out of trouble,” she said with exasperation. “Stop being so silly. And walk faster. I’m in a hurry.”
Randel snapped to attention and saluted her, the effect ruined by the big grin on his face. Aislin made an irritated sound and walked even faster. She wondered what Liv would have for them to do today.
When they got to the castle gates, she told Randel, “You wait here.” Then she hurried inside.
“I think I’ll just wait here!” he called after her.
Aislin wondered if she should say goodbye to him, then decided against it. It was only Randel. He wouldn’t care anyway.
Liv was sitting on the steps in front of the palace, tossing pebbles at a statue. She jumped to her feet when she saw Aislin, then ran to her and gave her a big hug.
“I missed you sooo much!” she exclaimed. “It was so boring here without you. I was so lonely I could have cried.”
For some reason that made Aislin feel good, knowing that Liv had been lonely too and it wasn’t only her. “What are we going to do today?” Aislin asked.
“I think we should go into the city,” Liv said. “Let’s go ask Mommy if we can.” She grabbed Aislin’s hand and they ran into the palace.
But Bonnie shook her head when Liv asked her. “It’s not safe for two little girls alone in the city, and I don’t have time to go with you today. I finally got your father to agree to let me throw out that awful furniture in our rooms and if I don’t get on it right away he’s liable to change his mind.”
That’s when Aislin surprised herself by speaking up. “We wouldn’t be alone. Randel can go with us.”
Bonnie turned to her with a raised eyebrow. “Who’s Randel?”
Now both of them were staring at her, waiting for her answer, along with a maid who was cleaning the floor. Aislin froze, suddenly unable to speak.
“Well?” Bonnie asked, her hands on her hips. “Out with it, child.”
“He’s a guard at the estate,” Aislin said in a voice barely above a whisper. “He goes with me whenever I leave.”
Bonnie thought about this. Liv started pulling on her dress. “Please say yes, Mommy. Please.”
With a frown, Bonnie twitched her dress out of Liv’s grasp. “What have I told you about doing that?” she grumbled. Then she looked back at Aislin. “Let’s go meet this Randel. I want to get a look at him.”
Randel was sitting in the shade, leaning up against the castle wall. He jumped to his feet when he saw Bonnie approaching, a look in her eye that said she meant business. She wasted no time.
“Are you Randel?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He stood at attention.
“Aislin says you escort her around.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She looked at his sword. “Can you use that thing?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Do you say anything else?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Are you simple?”
“Yes…I mean, no, ma’am.”
“And Netra trusts you to look after her daughter?”
“Yes, ma’am. For a couple of years now.”
“What do you know? A whole sentence finally.” She looked him up and down. “Do I need to tell you what I’ll do to you if something happens to my little girl?”
Randel gulped and swallowed visibly. “No, ma’am.”
“Have her back by midafternoon. Don’t let her go near any taverns and for the gods’ sake stay away from the Warrens.” The Warrens were a grimy network of narrow streets, the poorest part of the city. It was where Wulf Rome and Quyloc had grown up. Since becoming king, Rome had made an effort to clean the place up, but it still wasn’t a very good place.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Bonnie turned to Liv. “You listen to Randel and do what he tells you, you hear me?”
Liv nodded, grinning hugely and shifting from one foot to the other in her eagerness to be off. Bonnie bent and wrapped her in a big hug. “Be careful,” she told her gruffly.
Once she let Liv go, Liv grabbed Aislin’s hand and pulled her through the gates at a trot.
“Wait for Randel!” Bonnie yelled after her.
“Don’t worry, ma’am,” Randel told her. “I’m used to running after Aislin. They won’t leave me behind.” Then he ran after them.
They were a few blocks down the street and a little ways ahead of Randel when Liv leaned in close to Aislin. “He's very dashing, don't you think?”
“Who?” Aislin asked, confused.
Liv glanced over her shoulder at the young guard. “Randel.”
