Castles - Book 5 - The Frencolian Chronicles (complete)

Chapter Four

 The previous day's hail had chilled the air with freezing breath and icy rain pelted down with gusting fury.

Jobyna and Ellice huddled in the flapping tent. A soldier tossed a knapsack of dried meat and fruit in through the tent opening.

Bored beyond description, Jobyna wondered how Brownlea and the other horses were managing in the storm. She hoped they had found shelter.

Lightning lit up the charcoal sky and thunder crashed violently causing the horses to neigh with fright, terror-stricken. It was nigh impossible to hear her own voice above the storm so Jobyna gave up trying to talk to Ellice. There was nothing to do but rest, and wait. Elliad did not return from his latest exploits.

Four days passed painfully.

The laughing stream was now a wailing torrent. Morning brought a strong southeast wind. By midmorning, the storm was retreating and Jobyna told Ellice, "I'm going to check on Brownlea."

Jobyna felt the wind grasp her hair and clothes, twisting and turning, tugging boisterously at the hem of her skirt. She drew her cloak around her.

Carrying dried apples and dates, Jobyna whistled and called.

A soldier approached, blocking her way. She smiled at him and said, "I just want to see how my horse is. See, I have fruit for him." Brownlea was no longer her horse, but Elliad's. Brownlea will always be mine, in my heart, she thought, comforting herself.

The horses were corralled by a number of men-servants and soldiers bearing whips. Jobyna wondered how they had managed during the storm. The men stood as she approached. With a gentle whinny, Brownlea lifted his head and walked to her. As she laid her head against his, her tears ran on to his rain-drenched nose. Brownlea licked her hands affectionately as he finished the fruit, nuzzling into her neck.

Raising his head suddenly, Brownlea pulled away from Jobyna. The girl looked around. In the distance, she saw horses approaching. Elliad, it must be Elliad, she thought and hurried back to the tent, breathless and concerned.

The arrivals —knights and soldiers on horseback— ordered camp to be broken and commanded they move off north as soon as possible. Jobyna found herself swept up by Berg riding Speed. With a terrified backward glance at Ellice, they were racing along the soggy valley floor.

Berg urged the horse on at a startling pace. Jobyna cried out when he drove Speed straight into turbulent river waters, sending showering spray splashing upwards. She had worried about the way Elliad pushed the horse, but Berg was much more reckless. Using a short-cropped whip, he drove the horse to its limit.

After an hour, Jobyna could see the path they followed was growing wider and they came to several cross-paths, turning north or east each time. Berg had relaxed his grip and eased off with the whip. Speed traveled at a more comfortable pace.

Mid-afternoon, Jobyna's eyes focused on a large walled castle ahead. It was like nothing she had seen before. Compared with Frencberg Kings Castle, it was small; the construction and layout quite different. It had no moat around it but was completely walled, enclosing towers into the corners of its high walls. A conglomeration of buildings could be seen; they did not appear to be in any particular order, some were three stories high, with thatched roofs. To the back was a building with numerous arches, reminding Jobyna of the stables back home. Large domed entrances graced the center. A paved road led through the narrow gate in the wall.

Pulling the horse up abruptly, Berg was met by soldiers leading another horse. Swinging Jobyna down off Speed, he lifted her up on the back of the other horse and mounted behind her. Briefly, Jobyna cast her eyes around the courtyard. The sight made her throat constrict and her stomach heave. Dead bodies, obviously there some days, lay strewn here and there. Mutilated remains were bloated and purpling, soaked with the rains. Instinctively, she recognized Elliad's trademark of death. As the newly mounted horse galloped out the way they came, Jobyna wondered, Why the desperate haste, and where am I being taken?