Kaylan returned to the inn to find L’Aryk and Xander speaking in hushed voices by the hearth.  Romaca was seated in a chair next to them with his eyes closed.  His head nodded in time to his snoring.  Kaylan empathized with Xander for losing his mother at such a young age.  She knew all too well what that could do to a person.  She was raised by Bruhndahl and his wife but Lisette was not her real mother.  She and Makail never failed to remind me of that fact, either, once that rowdy sailor boy said what he did.  L’Aryk turned to stare at Kaylan in horror when she walked through the door without Vatia.  Kaylan sneered at him as she past them to head directly to the stairs.  Xander, still too bold for his own good, stepped over to stop Kaylan.  She gave him a menacing look and, although he was taller than she, he backed away from her without a word spoken.  Kaylan ascended the stairs to her room and with great relief closed the door behind her.  She locked the door against any undesirable late night visitors. Historically speaking, those events did not happen often to the Marshalls but once in a lifetime was too much for her taste.  She now tried to take as many precautions as possible to prevent an unnaturally shortened lifespan.

She removed her travel clothes and lay on the bed with her back against the kitchen’s chimney wall to keep warm.  As exhausted as she was, sleep did not come quickly.  Many of the things that Vatia had told her swam through her mind in a maelstrom of confusion.  She closed her eyes in hopes of closing off her thoughts.  She slept but only lightly, waking often when her dreams betrayed her to fires and a sweet melody from long ago.  Somewhere, a great distance away, Kaylan could hear a voice that sounded as pure as crystal and as smooth as a fish swimming through the ocean.  It was both beautiful and mesmerizing even though she could not comprehend any words in what she heard.  It was several hours before dawn when Kaylan finally succumbed to exhaustion.  Her eyes closed and she was asleep before she realized it.

Kaylan woke the next morning just as the sun was rising in the east.  She was no longer exhausted but she did not feel completely rested either.  She knew when she set out to find the dragon dagger that it would be a challenge.  If not, someone else would have claimed it by now.  What she had not anticipated was having the worst parts of her childhood resurrected.  There were parts of it that she had worked very hard to forget and, until last night, had been successful at doing so.  These were the things that as an adult she did not understand any more than she did as a child.  Tuck it away for a later date, Kaylan, she told herself.  While traveling was the perfect time for meditations, this was one memory that would have to wait a while – a long while.  It can at least wait until I get back to the Fortress.  No need to worry about it right now.  I have more pressing issues to consider at the present. 

Kaylan proceeded to dress for another long day in the saddle.  She checked her map to make sure she knew the route she was going to take to Capri.  It was not but a two day ride from Shackles but this was mountain trappers’ territory.  Most of the trails in this area were marked by the hunters and traders.  The occasional travelers using the trails just had to know what the marks meant otherwise they could end up without a leg, or worse, if they misread a marking and walked into an animal trap of some kind.  The hunters of this particular region had crude but efficient traps that were capable of dismembering an animal upon contact.  They were not pleasant contraptions and if you ever found yourself caught up in one it was entirely too late.  This, of course, was a bloody tragic event Kaylan wished to avoid.  Shaking the images from her mind she repacked her bags, slung them over her shoulder, sheathed her swords and left the room to get breakfast before she left.  She was hoping to leave this pitiful village before the other villagers started their day. 

L’Aryk was in the kitchen instructing the cook for the day’s preparations.  He turned when Kaylan entered.  He motioned to her that he would be with her momentarily but did not attend to her until he had finished with the cook.  In the meantime, Kaylan grabbed a slab of fresh baked bread layered with goat butter and a couple slices of cheese while she waited.  A serving girl walked past with a tray of ale mugs one of which Kaylan relieved her.  L’Aryk, determining he should assist Kaylan before she helped herself too much more, approached her carefully.  “My apologies for the delay, Madam.  How was your evening, Ma'am?” he asked timidly.

Kaylan chewed her bread and swallowed before she answered, “Entertaining.”  She looked at him with little expression on her face.  He swallowed hard and attempted a smile.  Kaylan rolled her eyes, “Oh for the love of the Gods, the weaver is fine.  She was still alive when I left her last night.”  He allowed a sigh of relief to escape then asked if there was anything else he could do for her.  She explained that she wished to leave as soon as possible but wanted to eat breakfast and make sure that Shadow had also eaten before they left.  L’Aryk was relieved to hear she was not staying another night and rushed around to get her meal and additional provisions for her travels.  He yelled to Connor to take care of Shadow. Without looking at L’Aryk or Kaylan, Connor stalked out the back door to the stables behind the inn.

It was a little less than an hour later that Kaylan was mounted and ready to ride out.  She motioned for L’Aryk to come over.  “I have something for you,” she said.  She took a few coins from her vest pocket and dropped them into L’Aryk’s outstretched hand.  She resisted the urge to laugh at the surprise on his face.  Not only did she pay him the full amount of a night’s lodging fare but she tipped him generously as well to make up for what he lost by the sudden vacancies due to her visit. 

In as emotionless a tone as she could manage without laughing, she said, “You run a fine establishment, L’Aryk.  You might want to teach your boy, Connor, and your young tanner friend some manners, though.  You could have earned more had they been more respectful young men.”  She saw his ice blue eyes change to a dark steel grey when he heard this for he now knew that even though she was not required by law to pay him anything she would have paid much more if they had shown her the proper respect.  Kaylan raised an eyebrow at him to indicate she understood his look and, likewise, fully expected him to understand hers as well.

“Yes, Madam, you are most generous, in light of this,” he stammered fighting to keep his feet planted until she rode away.  Kaylan suspected the two boys were in for a flogging but better for him to give it than she for if she had decided to punish them herself, the two boys would have died on the spot last night.

Kaylan clucked to Shadow and they walked slowly out of the village toward the hunters’ paths that wound through the dense forest to Capri.  She would have to ride until after dark tonight and start out before sunup in the morning.  With any luck I’ll be there by late evening tomorrow night.  I’ll stay in the hills though until morning.  No reason to relive another night like last night. 

So much of her reputation was based on isolated incidents, the brutality of which was considerably exaggerated.  She did nothing to dispel the rumors, however, for over the years she discovered that an overstated reputation did much for resolving unpleasantness without the necessity of actual violence.  There had been times that action was required and, though it grieved her to do so, she acted in the best interest of her king and his kingdom – always.  She tried to avoid these circumstances whenever possible.  King’s Marshall or not, history had proven that killing never resolved problems – it merely gave false purpose to another to justify future deaths. 

Kaylan kept to the trail that evening but slept under the cover of the thick underbrush.  Shadow stayed close by but was too large to find refuge in the foliage.  Kaylan assessed that the trail was too narrow for any form of major fighting.  She decided that should they encounter undesirable company, it would have to be a one on one fight.  That was something she knew she could handle.  It was not common for a Marshall to get attacked.  However, it was not unheard of either.  It did nothing to ease Kaylan’s mind now that Vatia had also mentioned the possibility of an “accident”.  None of these thoughts made for a restful night’s sleep and Kaylan rose stiff and sore the next morning about an hour before the sun.  She stretched her aching body as she ate the cheese and dried meat that L’Aryk insisted she take with her.  Then she saddled Shadow who seemed just as anxious to be on their way. 

The trail they followed was heavily padded with fallen evergreen needles.  Shadow’s hooves made a steady but muffled thumping along the path.  On occasion a stray snowflake managed to pass through the thick canopy above to find gentle purchase on some part of the pair.  Kaylan tried to gauge the time of day but the overcast skies and the forest canopy made it incredibly difficult.  She was able to keep track of the distance she covered by the markings on the trail compared to the ones on her map but even that was not completely accurate.  What little light managed to pierce through the blanket of leaves above allowed her to know it was not yet dusk.  They rode, not with any speed but at a steady pace, through the dense forest until they reached the Crooked Goose Crossing which was the last main stream before they reached Capri.  The stream zigzagged twice before emptying into an odd shaped pool that also had two other smaller outlets.  Its remarkable likeness to a goose’s body was what gave it its name and made it such a marvelous landmark.  Regardless of the weather, it was easily identifiable. 

Kaylan urged Shadow across the shallowest section of the stream to stand at the edge of the woods on the opposite side.  She looked down into the valley at the quaint town of Capri.  The cloud bank had cleared off and the amber rays of the setting sun left the town mostly in shadows.  Kaylan realized they had made better time than she had expected.  She dismounted to select a level spot to bunk for the evening.  In this area, the ground was not as rooted but there was little to no underbrush to protect her.  Their only advantage was that they were well away from the main trail lending itself to fewer chances for anyone to stumble upon them unexpectedly. 

Shadow lay down in the shallow ravine Kaylan found that paralleled the stream.  She wrapped herself in her heavy traveler’s cloak and tucked herself into the hollow of his heavily muscled neck.  This was his way of protecting her while she slept.  At least, she thought with a smile, with him here, I will sleep better than I did last night… hopefully.  I need to have my wits about me tomorrow before I go interrogating people.  Tomorrow will be more productive.  I just know it.  With that, Kaylan fell asleep and dreamt of a heritage she desired to be hers but knew in her heart that it belonged to someone else.  Becoming Marshall, for her, was by pure circumstance rather than blood heritage as was traditionally the preferred form of appointment.