Son of Truth (Follower of the Word) Read online

  But at what price?

  10

  The man who held Nierne stank of sweat and refuse. He gripped her forearm harder, and she cried out in pain.

  “This way,” he said with a snarl and led her across the deck. Aren and the other men were lined up along the railing. Beyond the railing were golden sandy hills beneath a blue sky. Not one puffy cloud in sight. And the air was unusually warm. She could see a small dock just beyond the railing and a plank leading from the ship to the dock.

  The man holding her kept right on walking, right past Aren and past the men.

  “Wait!” Nierne pulled away from the sailor. “Where are you taking me?” He ignored her. “No, wait!”

  He led her to the other side of the deck and toward a door into the captain’s cabin.

  “What are you doing?” she asked. “I’m supposed to go with them!“

  The sailor yanked the door open and shoved her inside the dim interior. Nierne fell to the floor. “No, wait!” She turned and scrambled to her feet. The door shut in her face. There was a faint click as the door locked.

  Nierne hit the door with her fist. “You can’t do this! Captain Drake promised to free me!” She hit the door a couple more times. Couldn’t anyone hear her? She opened her mouth to shout then stopped and leaned against the door. She heard muffled voices on the other side.

  “Shut her up!” she heard someone say on the other side.

  Nierne filled her lungs. “Someone, help me!” She hit the door again.

  The door opened, and Nierne fell forward. Large strong hands caught her. She looked up—

  A scream tore from her mouth.

  The sailor pushed her back inside. He wrenched her hands behind her and tied her wrists together. The coarse rope scratched her wrists. Nierne screamed again.

  The sailor swore and pulled out a dirty piece of cloth. “We need to shut that mouth of yours.” He rammed it into her mouth and tied it behind her head. The cloth tasted like sweat. The sailor turned and left the room, locking the door behind him.

  Nierne breathed through her nose. She tried shouting once, but the cloth muffled her voice. So she worked her hands. The rope burned her skin as she rotated her wrists. Nothing. She looked around.

  The room was large compared to the small cabin she and Rowen had shared when they’d first boarded the ship. An intricately carved mahogany desk sat against the opposite wall from where she lay. An old, stained map hung above it. Farther inside the cabin was a large bed covered in a burgundy spread. A nightstand stood on either side of the bed, each with a lamp on top. Behind the bed were a dozen small square windows. Blue sky filled the little slits of glass. A hint of pipe leaf scented the air.

  Only one person on this ship could possess such a nice room.

  Captain Drake.

  Nierne backed up against the wall. What was she doing here? Then it hit her. Her lip began to quiver. Everything made sense. She would not be going with the Aren and the others. She would not be freed. Captain Drake was going to keep her, despite the bargain he had made with Rowen.

  Nierne bowed her head and placed her cheek on her knees. Word, why? Why are You letting this happen to me? Have I not done everything You asked? Have I not followed You? Hot tears coursed down her cheeks. Why have You left me? Nierne sniffed and stared at the tiny windows.

  Her eyes went wide. Nierne jerked her head back up. What were Captain Drake’s plans for her? She remembered the dark burn in his eyes. Her breath came in short, hollow gasps. She had to find a way to escape.

  The floor shifted beneath her. Nierne looked down at the wood planking. The ship moved. She gasped and looked back at the door. They were leaving.

  No, no no! Nierne struggled to her knees and crawled toward the door. As soon as she was close enough, she lay down on her side and stretched out one of her legs. One, two, three… Nierne kicked out with all her might. Thwack!

  Sharp pain erupted along her foot and leg. Nierne grunted and pulled her leg back again. One, two, three… Thwack!

  The pain intensified. Nierne panted and drew her foot back to chest. Come on, Rowen. Hear this. Hopefully the sound would reach down below where Drake had left Rowen. She readied herself for another kick. Thwack! Thwack! Thwack—

  The door flew open, letting in bright sunshine. A man’s silhouette filled the doorway.

  “I tried to be nice.” Drake walked into the cabin and looked down at her. “I was only going to have you tied up. But you leave me no choice.” He held out a wad of damp linen and bent down.

  Nierne tried to back away. She twisted her head back and forth as he thrust the cloth beneath her nose. She held her breath. He covered her face with the cloth. Stars danced across her eyes. She could not hold her breath much longer—

  Nierne sucked in air through her nose. The cloth smelled sickly sweet. Another breath. Her body started to go limp. Nierne fought it, writhing on the wooden floor. Her last vision was of Drake bending over her with a look of grim satisfaction.

  • • •

  Blurred images. Cold bitter liquid poured down her throat. Using the bucket inside a cramped cabin. Rope tightened back around her wrists. Every time the world would come back into focus, a damp cloth would be pressed against her nose, Nierne would smell the sickly sweet scent, and everything would go black again.

  Her head rattled against something solid. Nierne blinked sluggishly. Hot stifling air pressed against her body. She worked her mouth around the cloth tied across her face. Her hands were pulled behind her. She blinked again. She could see wooden planks. Bright sunlight seeped between the cracks. Nierne turned her head up. Dull brown canvas hung overhead.

  She lay her head back down. Her mind began to clear more. Where was she? The ground beneath her bounced, causing her head to slam into the wall behind her. No, not ground… Nierne struggled up. She looked around, more alert now. She could feel the floor moving beneath her. Then it bounced again. Not like the swaying of the sea. More like bumps in a road.

  She was no longer on the ship.

  Nierne looked around and found herself in a small wagon. Beige canvas was stretched above her and fastened to the wooden sides of the wagon. The canvas flaps were tied at the rear, so she couldn’t see outside. Two shadows sat at the head of the wagon, beyond the canvas.

  Nierne scooted across the floor and looked out one of the cracks between the wooden planks. Bright blue sky hung over brown scrub brush. Sandy hills rose up along the horizon. One lone tree stood against the sky. She watched the scenery pass. The wagon bounced again.

  Where in all the Lands was she?

  Nierne tried to remember her time on the ship, but she couldn’t recall leaving it. Sweat poured down her face. So hot. She tried to twist her body to wipe the sweat from her head on her shoulder, but her hands were still tied, so she could not reach any part of her clothing. She finally sat back against the wagon side and let the sweat slide along her hairline and down the sides of her face.

  She listened to the steady creak-creak of the wheels, and she closed her eyes. She dug deeper into her memories. How long had she been on Drake’s ship? Think, Nierne, think. Unless she’d been asleep for weeks, there was no way they had sailed around Hont yet. So that left only one country. Her eyes flew open. She twisted her head and looked between the wooden boards again. Harsh brown landscape. Stifling heat.

  Temanin.

  “Almost there,” a voice grumbled ahead of her. Nierne whipped her head toward the front of the wagon.

  “About time.” Drake’s voice.

  Fear grabbed her by the throat.

  “How much you think you’ll get for Red back there?”

  Get?

  “Enough to make it all worthwhile,” she heard Drake say. “You know how Temanins like exotic beauty. Between that hair of hers and her pendant, I’m sure Lady Meira will pay quite a bit.”

  Pay?

  “So you really think she’s from the Thyrian Monastery?”

  The wagon bounced. Nierne fell sideway
s. Grunting and huffing, she inched her way back to sitting.

  “Don’t see how she could have gotten that pendant otherwise,” Drake said. “Spent some time in Thyra a couple years back. Only those who are part of the Monastery are allowed to wear that pendant.”

  “She could have stolen it.”

  “Perhaps. But she would have had to kill the one wearing it. Don’t see Red doing that.”

  “I dunno. She’s a fighter.”

  “Not a killer, though,” Drake said.

  Nierne looked down. She could see the thin gold chain from which hung her pendant. The coveted symbol of her position in Thyrian society. Her future purpose and her past salvation. Everything she had lived for. Now it marked her as rare commodity.

  That, and her cursed red hair.

  Nierne sat back and closed her eyes. That’s why Drake had kept her. Not for himself. No, he was too much a man of trade. A man governed by gold. He had kept her to sell her.

  Words from a particular scroll flew across her mind. She remembered the scroll because of the ornate drawings and gold inlaid border. The scroll came in a scarlet-covered case with gold tassels. She had been commissioned to copy it by the fathers. Nierne remembered the ball of excitement inside her chest when she’d opened the case and pulled the fragile parchment out. It was one of the most beautiful scrolls she had ever seen. Until she’d begun to read it.

  Nierne slowly opened her eyes and stared out at the wooden boards across from her. It had taken eight painstaking weeks to copy the scroll. Words of blood and torture and death. The history of the Temanin Empire, written out in all its glory. She’d finished copying the scroll over two years ago, but to this day she could still see the words inside her mind. She knew very well what slavery in the Temanin Empire would mean for a woman like her.

  The wagon began to slow. Raw fear swept away the heat, leaving Nierne shivering. Words of a panicked prayer rose, then the wagon jolted to a stop, throwing Nierne on her side, and her prayer evaporated. Before she could struggle back up, the canvas flap was pulled back.

  A tall, lanky man with a face full of black hair looked in. “She’s awake.”

  “That’s all right.” Drake pulled the other flap away and looked in. Nierne stared back, and shrunk away from his dark gaze. He smiled at her, his missing tooth making him look even more hostile. “Lady Meira will want to see her awake. Get her out.”

  The other man heaved himself into the wagon. Nierne leaned away. He grabbed her by the arm. “Out you go, Red.” Nierne tried to pull back. He dragged her across the wagon by the arm. The man scrambled out. Nierne fell out of the wagon behind him, her arm twisting under his grip as she fell. She let out a muffled cry, and choked on the cloth tied across her mouth. She hit the ground with a hard thud.

  Drake looked back. “Watch it there, Lanzo. Don’t damage the woman.”

  Lanzo grunted and pulled Nierne to her feet. Fear made her balk. Her feet felt as though the ground had swallowed them up to her ankles. She couldn’t move.

  They stood on the dusty road near a large spindly tree. Its naked limbs reached for the azure sky. Heat rained down from the bright desert sun. Ramshackle buildings stood on a hill in the distance. Nierne could see dark shapes shuffling between the drab dwellings. A dog barked somewhere nearby.

  Lanzo looked back at her with a blazing look on his face. “Move it, Red!” He came around and gave her a hard push that uprooted her feet. Nierne stumbled forward. Before she could gain her balance, Lanzo pushed her again toward Drake. She scrambled forward, her shoulder screaming from his viselike grip.

  Drake led the way toward the lone tree.

  “So where is she?” Lanzo reached Drake’s side beneath the tree and let go of Nierne.

  Nierne panted through the gag and stepped away from the men and leaned against the tree. Its shade barely warded the bright sunlight.

  “Lady Meira said she would be here. Said so in her message— Ah, there she is.” Drake pointed toward the end of a long winding road. A crimson litter moved in the distance with a man on each corner. They were dressed in long white sarongs that reached muscled calves and sandaled feet. Their sun-kissed chests were left bare to the sun. A black hair knot topped each head, their dark tails swinging with each step. Nierne could see sweat glistening across the men’s heads and chests as they drew closer. None of them looked her direction.

  A monster of a man followed the litter, a head taller than the slaves and almost twice as wide. As he drew closer, she saw his face. It looked deformed, as if it had been broken in several places and never put back together right. Tufts of shorn black hair covered his head. He wore a light tunic and pants. Wet spots formed around his chest and under his arms.

  Nierne felt something tug at the back of her head. A moment later the gag dropped from her mouth. She worked her jaw, grateful to feel air on her face again.

  The litter stopped just beyond the tree’s shade. In one smooth move, the four men lowered the litter. The large monster man came around the litter. He pulled back the bright red curtain of the litter and waited.

  A slender hand emerged from the curtains. The man gently touched the hand and helped a woman from the litter. She was an older woman, but age had not marred her beauty. Her dark blue dress moved like shimmering water as she exited the litter. Bare arms jingled with gold and silver bangles. Her dark luxurious hair was pulled back, revealing large golden hoops that hung from her ears. She looked at Drake, and disdain filled her eyes. She let go of the man and made her way toward those under the tree.

  “So this is the woman,” Lady Meira said in a deep feminine voice. She stopped a few feet away and turned her full gaze on Nierne.

  “Yes,” Drake said, straightening.

  Lady Meira looked again at Nierne. Nierne flushed and looked away. Lady Meira’s eyes reminded her of Lord Tala’s. There was a long pause. “She is pretty enough,” Lady Meira said finally. She began to walk around Nierne. “I like the hair… Not very tall, but she has curves…” As Meira spoke, Nierne curled her hands into two tight fists. She remembered a man saying that about her years ago, when she was only a child.

  Lady Meira stopped in front of her. “Show me your teeth.”

  Nierne’s mind slammed back into the present. “Wha-what?” she said, and looked up.

  “Can’t you hear? Or are you deaf? Show. Me. Your. Teeth.” Lady Meira stared into Nierne’s eyes. Nierne gritted her teeth and parted her lips. Lady Meira looked down. “Nice, very straight.” She turned away. Nierne closed her mouth with a snap. “How much are you asking for her, Drake?”

  Nierne watched Drake’s face light up with greed. “Five thousand gold pieces.”

  “Five thousand gold pieces?” A dark undertone entered Lady Meira’s sultry voice. “I don’t think so. I could get two girls from one of the other traders for less.”

  “But with hair like that?” Drake pointed a finger at Nierne.

  Lady Meira turned back toward Nierne. “I do like the hair. I have never seen a color like that before.” She raised a hand and brought it toward Nierne’s face. Nierne turned away. She felt Lady Meira finger one of her curls. Nierne thought she was going to retch. “Four thousand then.”

  “No,” Drake said firmly.

  Lady Meira dropped her hand and turned around. “I will not pay an extra thousand just for red hair.”

  Drake lowered his voice. “She’s never been touched. Worth the extra thousand.”

  Nierne felt as though she had been punched. Her mind began to spin, and her cheeks grew hot with embarrassment.

  “I’m supposed to believe you did not have her yourself?”

  “When I could sell her for an extra thousand?” Drake said in mock surprise. “If you doubt me, ask her. And don’t miss the pendant she wears.”

  Lady Meira turned around. Nierne took a step back. A rushing sound filled her ears. She wanted to run. As if sensing her sudden impulse, Lanzo placed a hand on her arm and squeezed.

  Lady Meira reached ou
t her finger and pulled at the thin chain around her neck. Nierne swallowed, her heart thudding against her ribcage. “The Thyrian Monastery,” Lady Meira murmured with a hint of excitement. She looked at Nierne. “A woman scribe. Such a rarity.” Nierne’s mouth went dry. Lady Meira dropped the pendant and ran a finger slowly down the side of Nierne’s face.

  Nierne jerked away and fought down a gag.

  Lady Meira pinched her chin and yanked her face back. She stared at Nierne with narrowed her eyes. “But the pendant doesn’t mean she hasn’t been touched.”

  “Then ask her,” Drake said.

  Lady Meira continued to hold her face. “Well?”

  Nierne felt her face grow even hotter. She tried to shake her head, but Lady Meira’s gripped prevented that. “No,” she whispered. Word, where are You?

  “So you’ve never been touched by a man?”

  Nierne swallowed. “No. Not like that.”

  The fingers let go of her chin.

  Nierne looked away, ashamed. She felt like an animal.

  “This is a prize indeed.” Lady Meira looked back at Drake. “A woman scribe who has never been touched. Nice curves, young—and that hair!” She glanced one more time at Nierne. “I’ll take her. Five thousand.” Her tone rang with finality. “I have a special guest coming in a few days. He will enjoy her company.”

  Blood rushed away from Nierne’s face. “No, please!” she cried. “I can’t! I’m about to take my vow. I cannot—”

  “You are a slave now.” Lady Meira looked at Nierne coldly. “My slave. And you will do as I say.” She drew a beaded pouch from around her neck.

  Nierne lunged forward. “No, wait, please—”

  The large monster man moved so quickly around Lady Meira that Nierne barely had time to blink before he clamped a meaty hand around her arm. “You will not touch her ladyship!”

  Nierne looked up into his piggy little eyes. His fingers bit into the fleshy part of her arm, holding her firmly in place. Nearby, Lady Meira ignored both of them and poured gold out into a box Drake held. Clink, clink. Nierne watched the gold fall. Numbness stole over her body.