The Foster Children of Time

Chapter Fifteen: Spam and Plans

Chapter Fifteen

Another stranger, this one with braided ginger hair, hopped out of the lower branches of a white ash behind Caroline, landing sprightly on his feet.  He knotted the weighted net that snared the Wolf King’s horseman as he cursed and struggled beneath it.

            “There, there, chap,” he chided the trapped man.  “Do be a delight and keep still.  Hello!  What’s this?”

            He knelt down and picked up a matchbox-sized metallic object that had fallen beyond the reach of the net, handing it to Tony. 

            “It looks like a communications device, Rumil” said Tony, examining it from all angles. 

“Like a radio?” asked the stranger standing in front of Caroline.  He was a broad-shouldered man standing just over five foot three, with straw-colored hair and a short beard.  He wore an earth-toned broad brimmed hat and a heavily patched jacket over an un-tucked shirt with greasy looking tails.  His accent called to mind some remote backwoods expanse of Appalachia. 

“Something like that.  We can’t stay here, Doren.  We need to get back to the safe house.  There’s no telling if this guy has already sent word back to Selwys Castle, and we already know they’re watching this village closely.”

            “And once they catch wind of what’s happened here,” said the one called Doren, “the Wolf King’s men will be crawlin’ all over this area.  Come, girl,” he said, nodding at Tegwyn.

            Tegwyn stood rooted to the ground.

            “Come!” he repeated in a more irritated tone of voice and took a step towards her.

            Caroline stepped forward. 

“Get away from her!” she warned, glaring at the man.

“Come on, guys!” broke in Tony.  “We don’t have time for this.  We’re all friends here.  Tell your friend to come along, Caroline.”

“We won’t harm you, girl.  We have our quarrels with the Elves, but we do not stoop to kidnapping.  You will be returned when it is safe.  Or perhaps you want to go back and take your chances with the Wolf King’s men who will soon be occupyin’ your happy little Elf village.”

“Caroline, these guys are alright.  They’ve been hiding me for the past couple of days and they helped me track you down.  Your friend will be fine.  Trust me.”

Caroline relented.  She took Tegwyn by the hand and they followed Tony and his new companions.  Doren led them without hesitation through increasingly dense growths of forest, down winding animal paths, into dry gullies and ravines that appeared without warning under their feet and back up again.  They continued for almost three hours without stopping, carefully stepping over puddles filled with musty leaves.  Caroline thought she was about to collapse from exhaustion when Doren signaled everyone to stop.  He whistled once and an echoing whistle came from a dense growth of Elderberry.  Doren sighed and pushed aside some brush, revealing steps leading down to a pitted wooden door.  They walked in.

Inside it was dark, the only light provided by the wobbly flame of a few tallow candles positioned about the room.  Caroline made out three people sitting around a table in the center of the low-ceilinged room.  Two stood up as soon as they entered.

“Vanaya! Garsen!” cried out Tegwyn, recognizing them immediately.

Vanaya embraced the girl, then turned to Doren with anger in her eyes.