Jeb scrutinized Ethan for a long moment, as if trying to see what was going on inside his head. Finally, he nodded. "Very well. But you should at least let me take Kat with me. I have a feeling that your road is far more dangerous than mine."
"I"m staying with them," Kat insisted.
He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "But why? What do you owe them?"
She smiled up at him. "Nothing. I just...I just know that I must."
"You should listen to Jeb," Jonas eased in. His tone was one of a concerned father. "He seems to be a good man. He"ll look after you, I"m sure."
Kat swung around to face him, frowning. "I don"t need looking after. I go where I want."
Jonas was unmoved by her sudden sharpness. "Did you not say that a princess always pays her debts? Did Jeb not just save your life?"
"And I will repay him," she countered. "But first I have to...I..."
She hesitated, lost for words. Eventually, she flicked a frustrated hand. "I just know I need to go with you, that"s all."
Jeb sighed. "You are your own woman now, so I won"t force you to come my way. But if you change your mind, you know how to find me."
A tiny smile grew from the corners of Kat"s mouth. She embraced him tightly. "Thank you. And I really will repay you one day."
"I know you will, la.s.s." He eased away from her and turned to the others. "You"d better not linger. The Grendil will be on your trail soon enough. But if you press your pace you can stay well ahead of him."
Markus nodded respectfully. "Thank you again."
Jeb chuckled. "You"re not as I imagined, Specter. And for that I am grateful. I would speak with you privately before I go."
This time Markus did not deny the name and followed him to a spot several yards away. They talked in whispers for a couple of minutes before returning to the others.
Jonas and Ethan said goodbye to Jeb, and Kat gave him a final fond embrace.
"You see," she said proudly as they watched him vanish into the forest. "Thieves aren"t all bad."
"So it seems," said Jonas.
"What did he say to you?" Ethan asked Markus.
"Nothing that concerns you," he said abruptly.
They headed east as fast as they could manage. Markus constantly checked for signs of pursuit, but to everyone"s" great relief he could find no cause for concern. Making things even better, Jonas" illness appeared to be completely gone and he was easily keeping pace. Though it was well into the evening before they stopped, he was showing no signs of fatigue.
The meager meal they shared that night was far from satisfying, but their lack of provisions prevented anything more than a small repast.
Jonas positioned himself by the fire directly across from where Kat was settling into her bedroll. After a few minutes she could feel his gaze and sat up.
"How long have you known you could use magic?" he asked.
Kat scrambled to her feet, her eyes wide. "I don"t know what you"re talking about!"
Jonas smiled and held up his hand. "Calm down. There is nothing to fear."
She took a step back, as if readying herself to flee. "I don"t use magic."
"Of course you do," he said. "And if you had the proper training you"d be quite good at it."
"When did she use magic?" asked Ethan. "I didn"t see it."
Jonas laughed. "That"s because she has become very skilled at hiding it." He turned to Kat. "Haven"t you?"
She stood silent, a terrified look plastered across her face.
Ethan moved toward her. For a moment it looked as if she would run, but he held out his hand and gave her a friendly smile. "Come on. You"re safe with us. I promise."
Kat allowed herself to be sat back down.
"I suspected it when we first met Specter in the street," Jonas began. "She vanished in an instant. Still, I wasn"t certain. It was possible she was just very quick. Besides, a thief would be good at disappearing. But when we were at the lodge, then I knew for sure."
Kat wrapped her arms around her knees and began rocking back and forth. "How did you know?" Her voice cracked; tears welled in her eyes.
"Because you healed me of course," he replied.
Markus leaned back on his elbows and nodded. "I thought it was odd...you recovering so quickly and all."
"I didn"t do anything," Kat insisted.
"Not intentionally, no," Jonas said. "But you have a natural gift. I"ve felt healing magic many times. And I could feel it coming from you as you cared for me."
Kat was now weeping openly.
"Why are you crying?" asked Ethan. "It"s nothing to be ashamed of."
"I"m a monster!" she shouted. "An unnatural monster!"
"You are nothing of the sort," snapped Jonas. "Magical ability is a gift."
"But she"s right," said Markus. "People would see her that way if they knew."
Ethan gently lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. "No one will ever know but us."
"Indeed," Jonas added. "As a matter of fact, I was hoping you could help Ethan with his own magic abilities...a.s.suming he has some."
Kat frowned and wiped her eyes. "Why would you want that? He would be an outcast...like me."
"I already am," said Ethan. "We all are. There are things you don"t know about us."
Jonas cleared his throat.
"What difference can it make?" Ethan continued. "It"s not like she"ll go running off to the Empire."
Jonas sighed and held up his hands. "Very well. Do as you wish."
Over the next few minutes Ethan went on to explain how he had arrived in Lumnia, then repeated what little Jonas had told him of his past. Kat stared at him in awe. By the time he finished, her tears had ceased and a fragile smile was lingering on her lips.
"When I was a little girl my mother told me about the time of the mages," she said. "But my father put a stop to it when he found out. He told us the mages were cruel tyrants, and that the Emperor destroyed them so we could be free."
Jonas clenched his jaw. "That is not true. Does this world look free to you?"
Kat shook her head, but said nothing as Jonas continued.
"The mages kept peace throughout the Five Kingdoms. They healed the sick. They fed the hungry. They created wondrous works of art and music, some so magnificent they would take your breath away." His eyes grew distant, and his voice soft and sorrowful. "I didn"t fully appreciate it at the time. But the world I knew then was as near to paradise as any man could ask for."
"I don"t understand," said Kat, frowning. "This place...Earth. If Ethan was taken there as a baby and you came back with him, how is it you can remember the time of the mages?"
"The magic Lady Illyrian used to take us there was forbidden," he explained. "It seems for good reason. The portal does something to the pa.s.sage of time though I don"t know how it works. What is only minutes in one world can become years, even centuries, in the other. But I"m afraid I don"t know anything more than that."
"And you think the dwarves will be able to tell you?" she asked.
"Possibly," he replied. "We"ll find out when we get there."
"If you get there," corrected Markus. "You still have to deal with the fact that the Empire wants Ethan dead."
"Then it"s fortunate that we have you to protect us," said Jonas.
Markus shook his head. "I told you I"ll take you as far as Tulani. From there, you"re on your own."
"You would abandon your best friend?" asked Kat, appalled.
Markus shot to his feet, startling her. "Don"t speak about things you know nothing of, girl. And don"t presume to know me."
Kat quickly recovered her composure. "You"re right. I don"t know you. But I do know that you don"t abandon a friend when he needs you most."
He gave a hollow laugh. "Is that what you think they are? My friends? I have no friends. It was friends who landed me in this wretched place to begin with." He pointed to Jonas. "Now this one wants to march into certain death." His finger shot over to Ethan. "And this one is so b.l.o.o.d.y stupid that he"ll follow. Well, I have no intention of being led to my death by a fool and his crazy notions of a world that no longer exists. The mages are gone, and no one can bring them back. The dwarves will either kill you or turn you over to the Emperor. That"s a fact. So if my friend chooses to ignore my advice, so be it."
"I have no intention of bringing the mages back," said Jonas. "Nor do I think it is within my power to do so. You say the dwarves will kill us. Perhaps. But if the Emperor knows a mage has returned to Lumnia he will not stop hunting Ethan until he"s dead." He waved his hand dismissively. "So go if you want. Go find some hole to crawl inside and let your hate and anger consume you. Personally, I would rather die than live like that."
His final, contemptuous words sparked a rage in Markus that no one could have antic.i.p.ated. Grabbing the hilt of his sword, he started toward Jonas. Ethan sprang up and leapt in front of him, but Markus would not be denied. Snarling, he shoved Ethan hard to the ground. Jonas scrambled backward, in his haste tripping and landing awkwardly. His eyes were now wide with fear as Markus drew his sword.
With a desperate cry, Ethan hurried to his feet and threw his shoulder low into Markus" midsection. Markus let out a grunt, but Ethan"s slight frame was not enough to do much more than force him to take a single step back.
Quickly regaining his balance, Markus rammed his left elbow hard into the center of Ethan"s back. He winced but held on. Markus twisted slightly and landed a second, even harder blow. This one drove Ethan to his knees.
With a face now crimson with fury and thick veins bulging from his neck, Markus smashed the hilt of his sword into the side of Ethan"s head. He followed this up with a sharp jerk of the knee that sent him toppling over onto his back. Blood gushed from Ethan"s open wound and his eyes glazed over as he struggled to retain consciousness.
Markus sheathed his sword and drew a small dagger. Kat was screaming for him to stop, but his rage was making him oblivious to all but the object of his wrath. Straddling Ethan"s chest, he pressed the deadly steel to his throat.
Somehow, Ethan managed to regain his focus, but the weight of his friend had him pinned down and helpless. Kat rushed toward them with a knife in her hand, though to little effect. Markus easily grabbed her by the wrist and twisted. She let out a cry of pain and dropped the weapon. In a rapid single motion, he shoved her away.
By now Jonas was on his feet, fumbling with his sword, trying to draw it. "Stop right now!" he shouted.
His words had little impact. Markus pressed the blade down a fraction, drawing a thin trickle of blood from Ethan"s neck.
The hatred etched deep into the scars of his best friend"s ruined flesh was terrifyingly evident to Ethan. His heart was racing. "Don"t do this, Markus." he pleaded. He held his breath, awaiting his fate. Was this to be his end? For some crazy, illogical reason, the 101st Airborne motto sprang to mind.
"Rendezvous with destiny," he murmured.
He had no idea if his friend had heard him, but Markus suddenly became absolutely motionless for what felt like an eternity. Then his hands began to tremble. A moment later he threw back his head and let out a feral roar that might well have come from a badly wounded animal. With a sharp movement of his wrist, he flicked the tip of the dagger in a shallow line across Ethan"s cheek and heaved himself up. After glaring briefly at both Jonas and Kat, he stormed away into the night.
Jonas rushed over to Ethan"s side. "Are you hurt?"
Ethan sat up, gingerly touching the wound on his face. "I"ll be fine."
Kat tore a strip of cloth from her shirtsleeve and doused it with water. After cleaning his wound, she retrieved her dagger and sat staring outward into the forest.
"I don"t think you need to worry," said Ethan. "If he was going to kill me, he would have done so already."
Kat"s focus remain fixed. "I don"t trust anything that man does."
Jonas looked at her with an amused yet respectful expression. "She certainly came to your defense in a hurry," he said just loud enough for Ethan to hear.
He smiled, even though his head was throbbing like crazy. "Yes she did. And so did you."
"That"s my job...you might say. Though I admit that when it comes to fighting, I"m not a very useful protector."
"In France, I saw brave men turn coward and cowards become heroes in an instant," Ethan told him. "You never know what you can do until you"re faced with it."
Jonas nodded. "I have found this to be true as well. I sometimes forget that you were a soldier. Your face is so young."
"Markus always said when I"m sixty, I"ll still look twenty." He lowered his eyes. "I wish I could have said something."
"Markus is consumed by anger. And only he has the remedy." Jonas sighed. "There was nothing you could have said or done. Once a man starts down the path of self-loathing, the world around him changes. Its injustices reinforce the very thing that eats away at his heart until he can no longer see that good still exists."
"Even so, there must be something I can do," Ethan said. But he knew Jonas was right. He had seen the same thing in his mother the sadness and anger that ate away at her soul, finally driving her mad. Regardless of what he tried, he had been powerless to help her. That was what Markus was now facing - the same pain and torment.
"The only thing to do now is get some rest," Jonas remarked. "Whether Markus is with us or not doesn"t change the fact that we are pursued by the enemy."
The enemy, Ethan considered. At this point he would have preferred the Krauts. At least he knew why he was fighting them.
Jonas checked the gear and cleaned Ethan"s wound one more time before they laid down to sleep. It took Ethan more than an hour to still his mind. Kat had eventually relaxed and taken a place near the fire though her dagger remained in her hand, even as she slept.
Some instinct woke Ethan about an hour before sunrise. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, he saw the shadowy figure of Markus sitting on a felled tree a few yards away. He was hunched over with his arms draped across his knees, staring into the dwindling fire.
Ethan rose and took a tentative step forward. Markus glanced up and made room beside him. Unsure what to say, Ethan simply sat down and folded his hands.
"When you spoke to Jeb the other night," Markus began, "He told you that I was a bounty hunter and a.s.sa.s.sin for the Empire."
Ethan nodded. He had suspected that Markus was listening at the time, and now tried to recall the exact words of the conversation. "He said you weren"t well liked, even among the Hareesh."
"He"s right. And for good reason." His friend"s voice was distant and filled with pain. "My anger toward you isn"t really about my ending up in Lumnia. Or even the hardships I was forced to endure here. h.e.l.l, the Krauts were about to get us anyway, so the b.l.o.o.d.y portal probably saved my life. "