Ranger's Apprentice - Rescue

Chapter 24

"Are you sure we're getting close?"

Gilan nodded, only halfway listening to Annalise. They'd slept just long enough until Gilan could see by the rising sunlight. Then he'd woken her and they had set out, Annalise riding double with Gilan on Blaze.

Halt's trail was fairly easy to follow. Gilan figured he'd probably given Abelard the command that told the little horse to press his hooves into the ground harder than usual. Typically, the command was used when a Ranger was being followed by an enemy. It allowed them to slip from the saddle and hide in a good ambush position, but their horse maintained the same pressure when stepping on the ground. This way, any follower would have no indication that the horse's load had lightened.

But Halt had clearly done it while still atop Abelard. The deepened hoof-prints were easy to see and follow. Gilan made a mental note to thank Halt for that when they caught up to the man.

"How can you know that we're getting close?" Annalise's curious voice piped up from behind Gilan. He smiled easily over his shoulder at her.

"Because the tracks are fairly fresh," he replied kindly. "And they're getting fresher by the minutes."

Annalise was silent then, and Gilan turned his eyes back to the direction Blaze was heading.

He drew a breath of shock as his eyes fell on what was clearly the scene of a fight. From atop Blaze, he could tell even from a distance what the horrible dark stain on the grass was. Blood. And lots of it. It trailed from an open area in the field that Gilan was currently in, away toward the woods on his left.

"What the..."

His voice trailed off as his mind worked at the possibilities. This could easily be anyone or anything's blood. Any bandit, any wild animal that had been hunted and killed by either poachers or another animal.

But it could also be Halt's blood. And as usual, that single possibility weighed on Gilan's mind the most.

He tried to focus on the millions of other possibilities to keep himself calm, but it was difficult. The thought of Halt being injured in a way that caused this much blood loss was terrifying. Behind him, he felt Annalise begin to lean forward, trying to see what had caused him such alarm.

"Umm, Annalise?" Gilan asked quickly, keeping his tone carefully casual. "Could you do me a favor?"

Just as Gilan had intended, Annalise sat back down behind him.

"What do you need?" she asked. It was clear by her tone that she still wanted to know what was in front of them. But as with most commoners, she was wise enough not to refuse a Ranger's request for help.

"Could you grab my water canteen?" he asked.

It was a feeble distraction, but it was enough to give Gilan time. He wanted to get past the bloodstained spot without Annalise seeing it. He didn't want to upset her. At first, the only thing he could think of was to speed past the place, but that would give the girl an obvious hint that there was a problem. This, Gilan thought, worked much better.

"Sure," she said politely. Gilan waited until he felt her lean down before he turned Blaze's head to the left. Gilan smiled to himself, admittedly proud of his trick. The water canteen was on the opposite side of Blaze's body that the bloody area now was. As Annalise bent to the side, she also moved away from the horrific scene.

By the time the girl leaned back up, they were already in the woods and headed forward again.

"Here you go, Ranger," she said, handing the canteen over Gilan's shoulder. He smiled, shaking his head.

"Oh it's not for me," he told her. "I thought you might be thirsty. We've been riding for hours and it's quite hot out."

Beneath them, Blaze snorted.

You haven't offered me any water, and I'm doing all the work.

Gilan smirked down at his horse.

I promise to make it up to you when we find Halt.

Blaze flicked her tail and shook her mane. Apples?

Gilan stifled a laugh.

Yes, alright. Apples it is.

Blaze let loose a sound that sounded suspiciously like a joyful laugh. Gilan rolled his eyes.

"Thank you," Annalise said suddenly, and Gilan started with surprise. He'd forgotten she was there in the midst of his conversation with Blaze. Suddenly, he felt rather silly about talking with his horse. He hoped Annalise hadn't noticed.

"You're welcome," he told her.

They rode on for another hour or two, Gilan following the clear trail that Halt had left him. He frowned as he caught a glimpse of something ahead, through the many branches. It looked like the woods grew continuously thick here, and yet, he was certain Halt's trail led into the woods.

"Duck down," he told Annalise before doing so himself. He urged Blaze forward and the mare obediently walked through the underbrush and trees.

And almost as if it appeared out of nowhere, there was a small break in the trees. It wasn't exactly large enough for Gilan to consider it a clearing, but it was big enough for what Halt had clearly intended the place for. Immediately, as soon as the trees fell away, three identical whinnies cried out.

Gilan frowned deeper.

"Is that...?" Annalise began to ask. She stopped as Gilan nodded slowly.

"It's Abelard and Tug," Gilan said, peering worriedly at the two familiar Rangers' horses. "But I don't see Halt or Will."