Chapter Ten

The Lost Boy

Two weeks into our stay, we left Simnel early, back on horseback and led by Maria, who had borrowed a plough horse from one of her neighbors.

It was nice to be back in the saddle, though I thought Amber had been rather enjoying a life of ease, eating meadow grass and frolicking with the handful of working horses in Simnel. But this journey had a purpose, and the steep path we took led higher into the hills, along old, narrow paths that had once been used by traders, but had long since fallen into disuse.

"Some say there were once roads here," commented Maria, as we rode. "But the stone is all grown over or robbed out for building. Back before my grandad's time, our folk traded with… whoever lives out there, beyond the horizon."

"Why did it stop?" I asked.

"Who knows?"

Nicolo said nothing.

It was lunchtime when we crested the final ridge and looked down onto a vast expanse of grassy wilderness that seemed to stretch on forever; the Great Steppe.

"It was here," said Maria, barely loud enough to be heard above the rushing wind that scoured the hilltop. "Or hereabouts. It's so long ago now, I can't be sure. But somewhere around here is the place where I met your father."

Nicolo still said nothing, but I saw his violet eyes scanning the grassland before him, perhaps thinking he might see someone coming the other way to meet them.

We all dismounted and led the horses down the ridge a little way to find somewhere out of the wind to tether them. While Maria and I prepared lunch, Nicolo walked back up to the ridge, to stare once more. Somewhere out there was the secret of his ancestry, a secret he might never unlock.

My mind went another way. What with the excitement of the journey, the simple pleasures of Simnel and the happiness I'd found with Nicolo, it had been a few days since I'd thought of the boy with the violet eyes kept imprisoned in Balduin's secret room. I felt guilty for how long it had been. I vowed to myself, then and there, that when we returned, I would redouble my efforts to free him.

Perhaps I would bring him back here. His people, too, must lay beyond the hills. For all I knew, maybe he was even a relation to Nicolo.

"How long has Nicky been courting you?" asked Maria in a soft tone as she faced me.

"He didn't tell you?" I didn't want to contradict whatever Nicolo might have told his mother, and the story of how we met was not one a man would necessarily tell his mother.

"He seems somewhat reticent to talk about you."

"Oh." I'd hoped he'd been effusively singing my praises.

"Same way you are about him," smiled Maria, recognizing my disappointment. "The both of you appear too afraid to admit you might feel something, because you're not certain if the other shares that feeling?"

She was a smart woman. "It seems so simple when you put it like that," I smiled.

Maria shrugged. "If you make enough mistakes in life, then you get to become one. Look," she drew me close, "I may not know my boy, but I know my boy . No years apart will break that bond. So, believe me when I tell you that he loves you most ardently. I can see it there, in his eyes."

I felt my heart swell. "I love him too," I admitted for the first time ever, both to myself and out loud. Glancing down, I realized what that love was built on—lies.

Maria smiled. "I had a feeling your feelings were deeper than you let on—his, as well. Don't let the grass grow, Charlotte. Moments of happiness can be fleetingly short and then you're left with only the memories." Her eyes drifted up the hill to where her son stood. "Only very seldom in life do you get a second chance."

It was good advice. But my situation was more complicated than I could admit.

***

It had been important for Nicolo to see where he'd come from; important for him to see and for Maria to show him. But there wasn't much more to be said or done about it. Perhaps, one day, Nicolo might strike out here to discover more about who and what he was. For now, though, he wouldn't do as much because who and what he was tied him to Balduin.

And that was why I made the decision I had. I decided that before we returned to the Gath, I would tell him the truth—about Balduin, about the boy he kept locked up, and about me. Or perhaps just after we returned...

Maybe it was selfish, but I wanted to enjoy this precious time we had together, removed from the pressures of Court and Castle. Nothing bad happened in Simnel.

But, as we rode down the final slope towards the village, with the sun already half hidden behind the skyline, we could see a flurry of activity; torches being lit, people rushing hither and thither.

"Something's wrong," breathed Maria, her eyes going wide.

Nicolo kicked his horse into a trot and we hurried on. No one said anything, but from here, it looked as if the disturbance was centered around Maria's house. As we clattered down into town, the bustle of people parted around us. They were search parties, I could see that now, rushing off in their different directions.

"What's going on?" Nicolo used the commanding tone I hadn't heard since we'd left the Gath, instantly getting everyone's attention. But no one answered. No one was willing to answer. Instead, they looked at each other, each seeming to urge the other to answer the question, but none willing to step up.

Now it was quiet, I heard a noise coming from the house I'd come to think of as home; a thin, reedy wail of a child crying.

"That's Cady," I breathed to Nicolo.

"Where's Peri?" asked Nicolo, sharply, and this time his voice was so stern, that half a dozen people felt they had to answer.

"No one knows. Cady said she saw him going into the woods, but he's not been seen since lunch."

Fortunately, Nicolo's horse was beside that of his mother, so he was able to catch her as she collapsed in the saddle.

"Help me."

People rushed forward to take Maria, in a dead faint, down from the horse.

"Take her home," Nicolo instructed. "Where's Ranolf?"

"The forest. Leading the search party."

"What are the rest of you doing?"

"Spreading out," someone replied. "He's been gone long enough he could be anywhere and Ranolf's covering the forest."

"The forest is huge," Nicolo shook his head. "If that's the last place Peri was seen, then that's the place to start. The forest needs to be searched properly. Form groups of five and follow me. Charlotte," even though he was the commander again, he still didn't speak to me like my master, that part of our relationship appeared to be over for good. "Speak to Cady. She saw Peri last, she knows him best. She may be keeping something to herself if she's afraid of getting in trouble or she may know his favorite hiding places—every boy has them."

I nodded. I had no idea how to talk to a distraught girl, but I wasn't going to let down Nicolo or Maria.

"Let's go!" Nicolo started off towards the woods, with the people of Simnel hurrying after him. I was fairly sure he could have led them into hell and they would have followed.

Jumping off Amber, I ran back into the house as fast I could. A handful of women were fussing around Maria, who seemed to be drifting in and out of consciousness—she'd gotten one son back, only to lose another. Upstairs, I could still hear Cady crying and I dashed up to find her in her room, Ranolf's mother looking after her.

"Cady?" I asked, as I entered.

"Go away!" she yelled at me, stopping me short, outrage coloring her small face. "Why aren't you out looking for him?! You're better than all the men put together! Why aren't you looking for him?"

I took a deep breath, trying to find the right words to get through to the highly emotional little girl. "Because I need your help, Cady. Because if I'm better than all the men put together, then so are you."

Cady looked up from her bed.

"I'll go and get you a drink of water," Ranolf's mother excused herself.

"I can't help," she insisted, shaking her head. "I would if I could."

I went and sat beside her. "I bet you can. All the men charged off to search for Peri—which is what men do. But women are different, Cady, women think. I bet if you think, then you can help."

Her face screwed up as she tried not to cry. "I don't know where he is!"

"You're stronger than you think, Cady. And smarter than you know. Remember my first morning here when you tricked your father?"

She almost smiled.

I pressed on. "Maybe you don't know where your brother was going, but I bet you know his favorite places. Because the two of you like playing hide and seek, and I bet he never beats you except when you let him, right?" She nodded. "I bet you know where he goes when he's done something wrong and wants to hide. I bet you know where he hides the things he doesn't want you to find, even if you don't let him know that you know."

Cady looked torn. "I'm not supposed to tell."

"You promised Peri?"

She nodded.

"Well, that's important, true. But you have to decide if, right now, keeping Peri's secret is as important as you and me finding him and bringing him back safe."

Cady turned her tear-stained eyes up to me. "There's a place…"

Minutes later, I was on Amber's back and riding hell for leather towards the forest and into the trees. "Where's Nicolo?!"

Someone pointed and I wove Amber through the trees as quickly as I dared. "Nicolo!"

I saw him. He'd dismounted for the search and his anxious face was lit by the flickering orange light of a torch.

"Charlotte?"

I practically hurled myself off Amber's back as I yanked her to a stop. "The waterfall," I gasped. "There's a hiding place behind the waterfall."

"Come on!"

"There's more." I ran beside him as we dashed for the lake. "It's a natural tunnel through the rock leading to a grotto, but in summer, when the snow melts and the water gets higher, it can flood unexpectedly." My heart was in my throat as I explained that last bit, but I refused to allow myself to think the worst.

***

We ran around the edge of the lake, as close as we could get to the falls, before diving in and swimming up through the curtain of water. Nicolo hauled himself onto a rock ledge then pulled me up after.

"There."

Hidden by the curve of the water-carved rock was a hole, leading down. It was below the water level.

"Hold this." Nicolo unstrapped his sword and tugged off his jerkin.

"It's not very wide," I said anxiously.

"Wide enough."

"But you don't know if it gets narrower."

"Then I'll damned well find out."

"No. I can go."

He looked at me and some of the anger from my denying him was in his eyes. The longer I looked into them, though, I realized it wasn't anger. It was concern.

"You damned well won't."

"I'm slimmer and smaller than you, Nicolo. I will fit."

"And my lungs are bigger than yours. I can hold my breath longer and I'm a stronger swimmer."

"But…"

Nicolo rounded on me. "I won't allow you to go and that's final!" He breathed back some of the worried anger. "Besides, Peri will come with me, Charlotte. He's going to be scared, but he'll come with me."

He was right about that. He'd been smart enough to send me to talk to Cady because he knew she'd open up to me. I had to be at least smart enough to let him do this.

"Be careful."

Nicolo nodded, stripping off his shirt, "that thought never occurred to me."

He knelt, took a deep breath, then dove into the tunnel.

As he vanished, I felt my heart clutch tightly in my chest. He was strong, smart, brave and determined, but if he got stuck down there… If it got too narrow, then would he have the sense to come back? Or would he keep trying, desperate to find Peri and, in the process, doom himself? That determination might be his worst enemy.

"Charlotte!" Ranolf burst up from the water below me and I hauled him up to join me on the ledge. "Someone said… Have you found him?"

"We think we know where he is," I said, cautiously. "Nicolo has gone in to get him."

Ranolf looked older, as if ten years had descended on him since this morning. "My little boy…"

"Nicolo will get him," I said, with more confidence than I felt. "He never gives up." That much was true.

Ranolf sank to the ground, his back to the rock wall and cried softly to himself, unable to do anything. Even though I didn't exactly know what to do, because I was hardly someone well-versed in emotion, I reached out and held him to me and he allowed me. The seconds ticked slowly by, clocking up into minutes which took their slow toll.

There was a cave in there, so provided Nicolo had reached it, then this long wait didn't mean… it didn't mean anything.

How long did I wait before going in? But if I met him coming the other way…

No. It was time. I had to go.

But just as I'd made up my mind to go in, a figure erupted from the tunnel.

"Peri!" Ranolf practically screamed, jumping away from me as he scrabbled across the rock to reach his son, gathering the little boy up in his arms to drag him out of the tunnel. He hugged Peri to him tightly, both of them crying.

"I got stuck," was all Peri said, between sobs.

I looked back to the tunnel mouth for what had to be the longest ten seconds of my life.

Nicolo's head burst forth and as soon as it did, I grabbed him as he took in great and heaving mouthfuls of air. Meanwhile, I pulled against him as hard as I could to help him out. He lay back against the wall, looking at Peri and Ranolf with a smile on his face.

"What happened?" I asked.

"He'd got his foot caught between two rocks," answered Nicolo, quietly. "He couldn't move and the water started rising."

I now noticed the bloody scratches around Peri's left ankle.

"He kept struggling. Panicking. Making matters worse," Nicolo went on. "I had to calm him down before I could get him free." He shook his head as he looked up at me and gave me a smile that caused tears to prick my eyes. "There wasn't much air left in there, Charlotte."

"I was scared to death," I admitted. "I was seconds from going in after you."

He reached out, threw his arms around me and pulled me close. "I know—which was why I told myself to damn well hurry." Then he chuckled and kissed me, clearly noticing the fear in my eyes because he quickly added, "it's okay now, Charlotte."

For the second time that day I saw, in my mind's eye, the little boy with eyes so like those of the man before me, caged like an animal.

Yes, when we returned, I would tell Nicolo the truth, and we would save that child as we'd saved Peri.