She was in the Dolma.
48
Jael couldn’t breathe. She was blinking so quickly to try and clear the smoke from her eyes that she could barely see either. ‘Biddy!’ she cried hoarsely. ‘Ido! Vella!’
Aleksander was beside her, yelling into the smoke just as desperately. He peered around, but there were walls of flames everywhere they turned now. Flames that had leapt from building to building, consuming Tuura in one devastating, hot rush of destruction.
Part of him would have felt relieved to see such an end to Tuura, as though it were justice somehow, if only Biddy wasn’t lost in there.
‘I’m not leaving!’ Jael screamed.
‘Nor am I!’ Aleksander screamed back, and he grabbed her hand, and they ran as far as they could until they reached another wall of searing flames.
‘Ido! Vella! Biddy!’ Jael tried to quell her panic as she listened. She closed her eyes, desperate to see something that wasn’t despair.
She tried to shut out all the smoke, to just be in the darkness.
Opening her eyes, she ran to the right. ‘This way! Biddy! Biddy!’
And then, through the flames, she saw a small, dark shape rushing towards her, another one following quickly behind.
The puppies. Both of them!
They were on fire.
Jael and Aleksander grabbed one each, rolling them on the ground until the flames were out. Jael snatched their ropes as Aleksander charged into the fire looking for Biddy.
‘Biddy!’ he yelled, shielding his eyes as a building crumbled beside him, burning debris, crackling and spitting at him. ‘Biddy!’ He saw her then, lying on the ground, not moving at all. Racing to her, Aleksander scooped her into his arms, trying not to inhale any more smoke as he turned and ran back through the flames.
Axl had not wanted to wait in the forest.
He had seen the fire burning against the sky, and he’d ordered two of his men to help him onto a horse, and with Amma beside him, they had ridden to the fort.
But when they arrived, the crowd of Tuurans standing outside the gates made it impossible to find anyone he recognised at all. Axl panicked, squinting in the darkness, trying to see his sister, his mother.
Anyone.
‘And where have you been, King of Brekka?’ Edela smiled wearily, so pleased to see her grandson as he sat up on his horse not noticing her at all. ‘Not hiding at the back like Lothar, I hope?’
‘Grandmother!’ Axl burst into tears. He couldn’t believe it. She looked half dead, he was certain, but there she was, leaning against Entorp.
Alive.
Axl turned to slide off his horse, waiting for one of his men to help him limp to Edela, who quickly wrapped her arms around his waist. ‘There, there,’ she soothed, feeling him shudder against her. ‘I’m not dead yet!’
‘Edela!’ Amma cried as she hurried off her horse. ‘I can’t believe you’re alive!’
‘Yes, but not for long, I think, if I don’t sit down,’ Edela coughed.
Axl’s eyes were up on the burning fort, then racing around the people before him. Some he knew. Some he thought he might know.
But not everyone was there.
Gisila hurried towards her son, throwing her arms around him.
‘Where’s Jael?’ he asked over her head. ‘Where’s Aleksander?’
‘Where’s Biddy?’ Amma wondered.
Gisila was beside herself, her eyes barely leaving the gates. ‘They’re inside. They’re all inside the fort!’ Hands to her face, she waited, holding her breath.
Kormac turned to her. ‘I’ll go and find them,’ he said quickly.
‘No!’ Gisila gripped his arm, not wanting to think that she’d sent another person into those flames. ‘No, please, don’t go! Please, Kormac!’
He turned back to her, squeezing her hand, staring at her with a calm certainty that eased Gisila’s shoulders away from her ears. ‘I’ll be right back, I promise.’ And turning to the gates, he started walking, but before he could pace out two steps, Jael burst through the smoky entrance, nearly knocking him over, two singed dogs running behind her.
‘Jael!’ Gisila sobbed. ‘Jael!’ She looked past her daughter, who quickly dropped to her knees, desperate to breathe. And there, behind her, was Aleksander with Biddy in his arms.
‘Biddy!’ Entorp hurried to help Aleksander as he laid Biddy down on the grass.
Jael gave the puppies’ ropes to Kormac and hurried to Biddy, bending over her still body. ‘Biddy?’
Entorp dug into his leather satchel and pulled out a jar of salve. Uncorking it quickly, he lifted the jar to Biddy’s nose, dipping his finger into it, rubbing the stinking paste under her nostrils.
Jael almost vomited.
Jael couldn’t take the smell anymore. Scrambling to her feet, she hurried away from them all and bent over, vomiting, her hands on her knees.
‘The puppies are fine,’ Kormac smiled, leading them towards Biddy as she sat on the ground.
Ido and Vella looked just as singed and sooty as she did. They lunged for her, paws on her chest, licking her face.
‘Oh, get away from me!’ Biddy spluttered, trying not to cry. ‘Get away from me, you filthy creatures!’
Wiping her hand across her mouth, Jael hurried back to Biddy who still smelled terrible, but she wrapped her arms around her anyway. ‘What were you doing?’ she grumbled.
‘Well, now you know what’s it’s like to watch you being brave!’ Biddy grumbled back, pushing her off, trying to stand.
‘Jael,’ came Eydis’ tiny voice, almost lost amongst the noise and the reunions and the relief and the coughing most of all. ‘Jael, where’s Fyn?’
Beorn was mute as he stood in the bow, thinking of the men burning in that temple. He dropped his head to his chest, sick of the smell of smoke.
Entorp was attending to Fyn’s wounds inside the house.
He would live, Beorn was sure.
‘You’re sure?’ Jael wondered anxiously, glancing at the entrance to the house. She wanted to go and see for herself.
‘We don’t have enough hands,’ Beorn said flatly. ‘Not anymore.’
‘They’re coming,’ Jael assured him. ‘My brother is coming. He’s bringing enough of his men to get us to Andala quickly. We’ll take those ships too,’ she said, nodding at the three merchant ships that rolled against the pier behind them. ‘We’ll get as many people back to Andala as fast as we can so we can head for Oss.’
‘If we’re not too late.’ Beorn felt a sense of exhaustion that was so deep he couldn’t see hope anymore.
‘We’re not,’ Jael assured them both. ‘I promise you, Beorn, we’re not. I’ve seen it. We’ll save them. We’ll save them all.’
THE END
Epilogue
When Thorgils closed his eyes, he imagined Isaura sleeping in that big bed all alone. No doubt not all alone, he smiled to himself. Mads was likely there, wriggling next to her, thumb in his mouth. Somehow, despite how much the little boy looked like Ivaar, Thorgils had developed quite a soft spot for him.
The feeling wasn’t mutual.
He grinned as he walked to the edge of the mist-touched cliff, remembering Mads’ furious face whenever he came near; turning away from him as quickly as he could.
Sipping from a water bag, Thorgils yawned, trying to blink himself into the morning. His was not a comfortable bed, and Torstan’s snoring had been as ear-splitting as ever. No wonder he had never found himself a wife. Irritating, wifeless Torstan, who was snorting and spitting beside him. ‘Do you mind?’ Thorgils grumbled at his friend. ‘I’m trying to enjoy the dawn chorus over here!’
‘Oh, well forgive me!’ Torstan snorted some more, scratching his head and yawning, trying to see past the thick bank of clouds in the distanc
e. Squinting, he stepped forward, creeping his way carefully towards the edge of the cliff. ‘Thorgils,’ he said slowly, watching the long line of ships emerge from under the clouds. ‘I think they’re here.’
The Characters
On the Island of Oss
Queen Jael Furyck
King Eadmund Skalleson
Aleksander Lehr
Thorgils Svanter
Eydis Skalleson
Brynna ‘Biddy’ Halvor
Gisila Furyck
Axl Furyck
Amma Furyck
Fyn Gallas
Evaine Gallas
Morac Gallas
Runa Gallas
Entorp Bray
Torstan Berg
Sevrin Jorri
Beorn Rignor
Tanja Tulo
Odda Svanter
Otto Arnwald
On the Island of Kalfa
Lord Ivaar Skalleson
Lady Isaura Skalleson
Ayla Adea
Bruno Adea
In the Kingdom of Hest
King Haaron Dragos
Queen Bayla Dragos
Haegen Dragos
Irenna Dragos
Karsten Dragos
Nicolene Dragos
Berard Dragos
Jaeger Dragos
Morana Gallas
Meena Gallas
Yorik Elstad
Egil Asgun
In Tuura
Marcus Volsen
Gerod Gott
Hanna Boelens
Kormac Byrn
Branwyn Byrn
Aedan Byrn
Kayla Byrn
Aron Byrn
On the Island of Bara
Lord Frits Hallstein
Lady Falla Hallstein
Borg Arnesson
Rolan Arnesson
Toki Arnesson
In Saala
Lord Rexon Boas
King Osbert Furyck
Oleg Grenal
WINTER’S FURY
available now on Amazon
THE BURNING SEA
available now on Amazon
NIGHT OF THE SHADOW MOON
available now on Amazon
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About the Author
Upon discovering that her chances for inventing a time machine were rather slim, 8-year-old A.E. Rayne decided to pursue a career as a writer instead. She completed a Bachelor of Communication Studies, majoring in television, then trained as a graphic designer, while dabbling in poetry, and continually plotting her first novel.
A.E. Rayne survives on a happy diet of historical and fantasy fiction and particularly loves a good Viking tale. Her favourite authors are Bernard Cornwell, Giles Kristian, Robert Low, C.J. Sansom, and Patrick O’Brian. She lives in Auckland, New Zealand, with her husband and three children.
Night of the Shadow Moon is the third book in her
epic fantasy series, The Furyck Saga. She is currently
busy writing the fourth!
Connect with A.E. Rayne
a.e.rayne@aerayne.com
http://aerayne.com/
Copyright © A.E. Rayne 2018
All artwork © Cap & Anchor Design Co. Ltd
A.E. Rayne asserts the moral right to be identified
as the author of this work.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters, and places described in it are the work of the author’s imagination.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Amazon ASIN: B076483B2J
For more information about A.E. Rayne
and her upcoming books visit:
www.aerayne.com