The Prince's Mark

Chapter Thirty

Now left with a man who didn't understand Aodehsh, Pendaer kept his eye on him. The guard responded in kind, moving in front of Pendaer and staring him down. Even though Tracou had given him a disguise that had taken some inches off of him, he was still taller than the guard. Neither of them said anything, but Pendaer kept clenching and unclenching his fists.

Ina put a hand on Pendaer's elbow. "Pe—" She coughed and tried again. "Pedr, you shouldn't bother with him."

But Pendaer ignored her. He glowered at the old man as though he was solely responsible for everything that had happened to him in Winlea. The old man's gaze was less intense than Pendaer's, but unyielding.

They hadn't even gotten inside the castle yet! Tracou groaned. They couldn't take Pendaer anywhere.

Only ten or so minutes passed before the guard returned, but standing there watching Pendaer be silently angry at someone made it feel a lot longer.

Again, the sentries spoke among themselves. Whatever the message was, the old man clicked his tongue and turned away from Pendaer, who stared after him with a smirk on his face.

The youngest guard gave Ina a bow. "I'm sorry, Ina ferch Angharad. The famed Yash Acharya will meet with you. Please, follow me."

"Even the dezmek?" Pendaer blurted, earning him a glare from Tracou.

"Ah, yes, even the dezmek..." he said, head tilted just slightly. "Does he have a wand?"

Ina shook her head. "No. He's accompanying me as a Dezmerian trade representative and has forfeited his wand to me for the duration of this excursion."

In reality, Tracou had his wand securely tucked into his sleeve. Once his magic was in place he didn't have to keep his wand in his hand to keep the magic flowing. As long as he kept his wand against his skin, didn't sleep, and stuck close to Pendaer, Pendaer's disguise would hold. Tracou could only hope that this wouldn't take more than a few days.

The guard grimaced, mouthing some of the words Ina had used. It took a moment, but soon understanding dawned on him. "I see. That's fine. Please, follow me."

As they walked, Ina's head swiveled about, looking at everything she could. For someone who had never seen a castle before this behavior was normal. Tracou would have done the same had he not used the rat to scout the day before. But Ina was supposed to be the daughter of the Aodehsh elite, someone familiar with the finer things in life. Tracou watched her, unsure of how to convey this without saying too much.

Pendaer spoke up for him.

"Ina ferch Angharad... What has your father said about your wandering eyes?"

Ina slowly turned to him, perplexed. "What did he say?"

Pendaer gritted his teeth, which looked rather terrifying with his new face. "He said not to gawk and everything you see."

"Hmm... I don't remember that," Ina said. But she kept her gaze forward from that point on.

Once inside the castle, Tracou tried to scan the area for the entrance to the dungeon, but the guard ushered them toward a staircase heading upward.

"It's a bit of a climb, I'm afraid."

For a human, the amount of stairs was enough to leave them panting, but not enough for it to be a problem. Tracou climbed the stairs with great difficulty. The staircase was dimly lit, with only a few torches along the cold, dark walls. He kept his eyes on the stairs themselves—they were well worn, countless footsteps having eroded them into steep stone hazards. Once they reached a door, Tracou had to lean against a wall to stay upright.