As Galveston said, a guard knocked on his door in the early hours of the morning. Kyosti grabbed his pack and answered immediately; he hadn’t slept all night anyway. He caressed a couple of his plants goodbye, locked his door and hid the key where Rodriguez would find it.
The docks, where Kyosti lived, were of course already bustling with fishers, some heading out into the sea, some already returning for the market. They climbed the hill back into the main city, heading for the docks where he could catch a boat to Mearpe. But instead of taking Kyosti to the main gate out of the city, the guard led him down through a dark, quiet neighborhood on the western wall.
Kyosti looked around. There was no one, and not even a sound. “Why are you bringing me here?” he whispered.
“Hush, we’re almost there,” the guard snapped back, then opened a gate to step into a garden right next to the wall. They walked for a moment down a cobblestone path through bushes and trees.
Kyosti gasped loudly.
The guard swore and whirled to glare at him. “Be quiet and hurry!”
Kyosti ignored him, instead rushing over to a tree growing in the middle of a rock field. Trimmed into a rounded shape, with branches reaching all the way to the ground, the tree was covered in white flowers.
“How---how??” Kyosti gasped, cradling a flower in his hand. “How did they get it to flower now? It’s autumn, the leaves should be gone by now---!”
The guard grabbed his arm, glancing nervously at the nearby house. “We need to go now! We can’t be seen here!”
He had to physically drag Kyosti away from the tree, only letting him pull off a couple of the flowers for a keepsake. Kyosti tucked them carefully into his credentials book like the precious treasure they were, looking longingly back at the tree.
I’ll come back for you, he thought.
At the very back of the garden, a small, narrow door sat in the wall. The guard took a key from around his neck and unlocked it. “How long has this been here?” Kyosti whispered. “We have gates to this city, you know. This is a serious security concern!”
The guard ignored him and yanked the door open.
On the other side was a narrow overhang and a set of stairs heading to their left out of sight, Below them was the sea, crashing on the cliffs below the city wall.
A cloaked figure stood pressed against the wall, staring out to see. They turned when the guard pushed Kyosti out the door, then lowered their hood.
It was the queen, her hair slung over her shoulder in a braid. “You’re late,” she snapped. “It’s almost dawn.”
The guard bowed low. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty.” He shot Kyosti a mean look.
Kyosti bowed too. “I didn’t know you would be seeing me off; I’m also sorry to have kept you waiting.”
“It’s not the keeping me waiting that’s the problem,” she returned. “We must move quickly.
From under her cloak, she drew out a long, thin box of dark wood. “This was something I couldn’t show you in the throne room. This is the real reason I need you to visit the Seers.”
Kyosti took the box from her. It felt like it had something heavy in it. “What is it?” he asked before he thought.
Galveston grasped his arm, and he jumped. “Listen to me, soldier,” she whispered, her eyes boring into his. “Put that in your bag, at the bottom. Never take it out. Never open it. You must deliver it unopened, safe, and sound to the Seers, do you hear me? It’s your Queen’s command.”
He bowed on reflex, curiosity burning in his heart. “Your command is my very wish, Your Majesty.”
There, on the narrow steps, just inches from the sea, the guard helped Kyosti stuff the box awkwardly into his backpack, between his clothes and food, out of sight. The queen glanced anxiously toward the door into the garden, down the stairs that looped around the wall, and up into the dawn sky.
When they were done, the queen took his hand, gentle like she hadn’t been before. “Soldier…”
Kyosti and the guard stared at her in astonishment. Galveston looked like she was almost in pain.
Slowly, she withdrew her hand. There was a strange look in her eye, like regret. “Well,” she said slowly. “Come back. And then we’ll talk.”
________________
Ooh the mystery keeps increasing 🌝 I thought for sure the soldier was a traitor who was gonna try and assassinate Kyosti. I presume that's on the horizon ...
ReplyDelete