Taraquin

Chapter 61

Baschera wakes to a commotion in the inner courtyard of Brinonberg Palace. He quickly rolls out of bed to his feet, but pauses as he feels the need to stretch. He continues across the room, as the commotion grows louder. He pulls back the large curtains and enters the open balcony to see Fallon being led across the courtyard in chains by a group of King's Guards. Mixed emotions instantly consume him as he hustles back into his room and begins pulling on his tunic and boots. He hops toward the door as he pulls on his second boot.

As he exits his room, he runs down the hall and then skips multiple stairs as he jumps down them in a hurry. He enters the inner courtyard and quickly notices the last of the group heading into a hallway entry on the west side of the courtyard. He quickly follows the King's Guards as they turn from the hallway and lead Fallon down into the bowels of the Palace. He catches up to them as they enter the large dungeon.

He watches intently as they unshackle her in a small dungeon cell with rock walls. The dark cell without windows contains a thin mattress stuffed with straw that lays on the cold rock floor, and a bucket for her to relieve herself. They leave her and lock the steel barred door behind them. Two of the Guards post up on either side of the door, as the others leave the dungeon.

Cries and pleads for release echo throughout the dungeons, but Baschera hears only silence as he stares at Fallon. Her eyes light up as she finally notices him. She walks to the door of her cell and grabs the bars. "The claims about me are false," she insists.

"I saw you at the Rebel meeting in Lanagan with my own two eyes!" he retorts as he walks toward the cell. "How do you explain that?"

"I thought I could infiltrate the Rebels and help get Isabel back, but someone recognized me and I fled," she explains.

"That doesn't explain how you were quickly able to find this meeting after traveling all the way across the kingdom," he retorts.

"I went to Fegan and paid for a ride on a shipping vessel that took me across Coral Bay and upstream to Ruzgon Lake. The vessel stopped at Chanute, but I intended to go home and see what my father had heard. However, while I looked for another vessel heading upstream from Chanute, I overheard an interesting conversation at a pub. The two men spoke of recent Rebel attacks in Asbury and Iola. They talked of the large battle and how they were barely able to escape with their lives. As they went outside to relieve themselves, I questioned them before I killed each of them. They told of the Rebel meeting in Lanagan," she explains.

"Seems awfully convenient," he implies.

"I'm telling the truth!" she shouts. "I also wasn't the only one discovered trying to infiltrate the Rebels. As the Rebels showed off Isabel like a captured wild animal, somebody recognized Lord Ezra as well. We fought our way out of the Citadel and ran as they chased us through the streets of Lanagan. We eventually became separated near the stables as they cut us off. Find him and he'll validate my claims."