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Erie
‘I hurt Ana.’ Lya
‘Of course I’m not angry.’ Erie
She steeled herself and tried to keep her voice light and friendly. She couldn’t afford Lya
‘And how do you feel, darling?’ she asked.
Lya
Erie
‘Shall we go and see where the Al-Drechar are?’
‘I don’t think they like me,’ said Lya
‘Oh I’m sure that’s not true,’ admonished Erie
‘Then can we go and watch for Daddy?’ asked Lya
‘Thank you, darling,’ said Erie
Reluctantly, Lya
She slowed as they approached the Al-Drechar’s rooms. Already anxious that the only sound in the house was the wind whistling through the empty frames and holes in the roof, Erie
Erie
‘Who’s that man, Mummy?’
Erie
‘Ilkar, thank the Gods. Lya
Lya
‘Never mind,’ said Ilkar as he jogged up. ‘Gods falling, Erie
Erie
Ilkar smiled. ‘Which way?’
In answer, Erie
She grasped the handle with her free hand and pushed the door inwards.
‘Oh no,’ she said, stumbling to a stop and putting a hand to her nose and mouth. In her arms, Lya
Ilkar came to her shoulder and Erie
‘Erie
Erie
‘Please don’t let them all be dead,’ she said. ‘Please.’
‘I’ll do everything I can,’ said Ilkar softly. ‘Now go. Get outside and get some fresh air.’
Erie
Ilkar looked into the dining room and could see what had driven them to come here. It was dry. Probably the only room in the house that was. There was a fireplace opposite which still put out residual heat and the windows had been battened shut, shutters over fractured glass.
The dining room table had been pushed most of the way to the left and in the centre of the room, four beds, all occupied; at least one of which had to contain a corpse. He walked into the room, the stench almost overpowering. His eyes watered and he gagged suddenly.
He had to get some air through. Hurrying to a door to his right, he pushed it open and found another bedroom, its single small window torn from its frame. He took in a huge deep breath, wedged the door open with a sofa and walked quickly over to another door which swung on creaky hinges, letting him into some kitchens. He was halfway back with a chair to wedge open the swing door when he stopped, straightening and frowning.
He put down the wooden kitchen chair and walked back to the ovens. They were hot, flames flickering inside the grills. There was no food ready for preparation and no water ready to place on the hot plates but unless he was mistaken the ovens had been fired up recently, the flames were bright, and the grates looked full.
‘Hello?’ he called, walking across the kitchen towards a pair of doors opposite the entrance to the dining room. ‘Hello?’
He drew his sword and put a hand on the leftmost door, pushing it open. A cold store. Empty of life. He let the door swing back and paced right, turning the handle of the other door which swung in. He took half a pace back.
‘What, by all the Gods, do you think you’re doing?’ he asked in low, plain elvish, not believing what he was seeing.
A male voice came out of the mass of huddled bodies; he could count six and there might be more.
‘Waiting for the end. Praying for deliverance.’
‘From who?’
‘Lya
Chapter 36
Ilkar persuaded the group of elves to leave their hiding place and move into the kitchen. He had been forced to explain exactly who he was and what he was doing here before any of them would so much as look at him, let alone do his bidding. There were eight of them. He hadn’t seen the two small children. While one of the young elf males put on water for hot drinks, Ilkar sat the others down, all the time mindful that in the next room, the Al-Drechar were dead and dying. He had to get these people moving.
‘I’m finding it hard to understand what’s going on,’ he said, addressing himself to a couple who seemed the most willing to speak. They were an old pair, had probably been with the Guild two hundred years or so and yet their confidence had been completely shattered.
‘You haven’t been here,’ said Arrin, the husband. His wrinkled face held piercing blue-green eyes and his hair, once black, was thin, grey and straggled. ‘It’s all happened so quickly.’