The Rangers of Aleera

Chapter 8

Ainnileas didn't ask any more questions about Jelina after their talk in the Wilds. But she turned the tables on him the first night they camped after leaving her once home.

"How does a trader learn how to use a spear and sword like that?" They'd had a run-in with a couple of the Wilds giant spiders near the eastern edge of the forest. She'd seen his skill with the blade then. It seemed to be like second nature to him. Odd, she thought, for a simple villager who made his living trading.

"Believe it or not, I was once a soldier in the king's army."

She paused and studied him. "Truly?" Jelina hadn't pegged him as a soldier. She should have guessed when she saw his skill.

He nodded. "I resigned to be with my family. My children needed to have their father in their lives, not a man who was never there."

"How many do you have?"

Ainnileas smiled. Jelina know he was thinking about them. "Three. Two sons and a daughter. She's nearing fifteen years. My boys are eight and three." His eyes then turned sad. "My youngest never got the chance to know his mother."

"What happened?" She realized after she'd said it that she might have sounded insensitive. "If I may ask," she added, belatedly.

"She died in childbirth. When my son took his first breath, she took her last."

"I'm sorry."

"Death is a part of life, right?"

She smiled. She had said something similar when he'd showed sympathy towards Ruarc and Alistair's deaths. "Then I'm sure they'll be overjoyed to see their father still lives."

Ainnileas nodded. "I am sure they will."

~~~

The two of them passed into a lightly wooded grove. Aleera was known for its beautiful forests and it had plenty of them, many with less ominous histories than the Wilds and the Whispering Wood to the east, in the general direction they were heading. They hadn't gone far when Jelina suddenly stopped, every muscle tense and the in a fight or flight mode he hadn't seen her go into before. This was different than the tenseness of facing a Wolf Brother, but he couldn't quite place his finger on the difference.

"What is it?" Ainnileas asked.

"Back away slowly." Her very voice was tense. He did as she said, watching her, and was glad to see her doing the same. She kept searching the grove until they had backed right out of it.

"Jelina?"

"There were signs that slavers were in the direction we were heading."

If Ainnileas hadn't known better, he would have said she was afraid. He knew her enough to know that Rangers were fearless, and she was no exception. Anyone insane enough to take on a good-sized pack of Wolf Brothers had to be.

Jelina looked at him. "We'll... need to go around to avoid their traps."

"Lead on." Ainnileas wondered if she would teach him the signs. And why she sounded distracted.

~~~

Jelina was glad Ainnileas didn't comment on her wanting to go around the grove. The Moldovan slavers' traps were cunning and hard to free oneself from. She'd known a Ranger, a man named Richard, who'd tripped one and ended up several feet up a tree trapped in a net. The slavers had been close enough that Ruarc, Alistair, and another younger Ranger and their collective Wolfhounds had to fight them off while Jelina freed their prize. Thinking back, she probably looked quite comical hanging upside down from a branch with her long braid hanging beneath her like a vine as they cut the thick ropes that made up the net, being the only one agile enough to climb the tree the way she did. They had been hard-pressed to escape once the slavers saw what she was. It was not an experience she wished to repeat. The detour added two days to their journey but it gave the Ranger peace of mind.

~~~

It was mid-morning when they arrived at the sleepy little village. The houses were spread out throughout the village and at the far end was a Temple of Elohim. Shepherds were tending their flocks and shopkeepers were haggling their goods.

Ainnileas gave a happy sigh. "Home, sweet home," he said and moved forward. He stopped once he realized Jelina hadn't followed him. He turned and saw her still standing at the edge of the village, Tristan next to her. "What's wrong?" A shepherd and two shopkeepers were staring at her. In the daylight, it was obvious what she was.

"You know I won't be welcome here. If their stares are an indication."

"They stare at everyone."

She gave him a look that said she'd seen straight through that. "I have no place here and it was agreed that I would take you home." She held her hand out. "I guess this is farewell."

Ainnileas slowly clasped her hand. "I guess so," he sighed. He would miss her company. "You've opened my eyes, Jelina. Elohim willing we meet again."

"Hopefully, in better circumstances."

He smiled and place his other hand over hers. "Luck be with you in all your battles." You don't have to leave. He wanted to invite her into the village. Invite her to his home. Allow her time to rest before she continued her duty. Stay.

"Go to your children. Farewell, my friend."

Ainnileas hesitated, not ready to part ways with her, but not brave enough to voice his thoughts. Jelina pulled her hand free and turned away. She gave him one last look before she and Tristan walked away. He was a fool. He should go after her and tell her to stay and rest. That he would vouch for her. He had no problem facing a pack of Wolf Brothers practically unarmed, yet he couldn't go after a friend and invite her to stay and rest. Jelina and Tristan quickly disappeared from his view. Ainnileas sighed and turned away. It was too late to chase after her now. He needed to find his children and let them know that he was still alive. But he could not push the elven Ranger from his mind. Or his heart.