Camp was silent, so silent that he scarcely dared to breathe as he lay in his bed, straining his ears to hear any hint of noise beyond the walls.
Nothing. There was nothing to hear, no one was astir except perhaps the sentries on watch, and he’d find a way to slip past them easily enough.
It’s now or never, and there’s no time like the present, as they say.
Phelan took a deep breath and sat up slowly. His side ached, but it was the gnawing, itching ache of a healing wound, not the sharp pain of a wound liable to rip open again. He’d be able to cut out the stitches after a few days on the road, and then all would be well.
They’ll be safer without me. He gathered his things quickly—his backpack, his staff, two pouches of herbs and the first sword that had come from Matthew Astoris’s forge. He tugged on his boots and wrapped himself in coat and cloak. He’d have to travel fast and light.
“But where will you go, Wanderer? Where will you wander to this time?”
He winced at the sound of her voice and shook his head, pressing a finger against his lips. Ériu’s ghost wasn’t amused, her pale brows knitting on her ghostly face.
“They care about you, Phelan. Why are you running from them?”
“I have to protect them,” he hissed in a whisper. “Leaving is the only way I can guarantee that they’re not going to pay the price for sheltering me.”
“They’re targets by themselves, Uncle. You’ve said it yourself.”
“They’ll be less attractive ones once I’m gone.” He fastened his cloak around him and tugged up his hood. “Don’t tell them where I’ve gone. Don’t help them track me.”
“I won’t have to,” she said. “The only tracker that could ever hold a candle to Thordin was my mother, and she’s been reborn into one of the Seers. They’ll find you unless you’ve somehow managed to convince Thordin not to help them find you again.”
“He’ll understand why I’ve left,” Phelan said, snuffing the lamp. “He’ll leave well enough alone.”
“Will he?”
“I have to trust that he will.” He felt an uncomfortable flutter in his stomach. “He’ll understand my reasons and he’ll do what I need him to do.”
“We’ll see,” the girl’s ghost said. “We’ll see.”
He cast her glowing form a glare in the darkness and ducked out into the corridor and the night beyond.
