Stalking Darkness

his head sheepishly. “Oh, you noticed that, did you? She was a fine-looking woman, that Gwethelyn. Thinking back to that night I caught you out, I don’t know if I was more angry or disappointed. But in the end I’d say meeting you brought me luck, so there she is. The
Green Lady’s
a fine ship and she’ll do us all proud.”
    Since they were already dressed for the part, Alec and Seregil put in a suppertime appearance at Wheel Street, then slipped back to the Cockerel after dark. Once there, Seregil went straight to his room and rummaged out his tattered beggar’s rags.
    “Are you going out tonight?” asked Alec, leaning in the doorway as Seregil changed clothes.
    “There are some thieves and nightrunners I want to speak with. I’m not likely to find them in daylight. I probably won’t be back before you go, so get some rest and leave early. Before I go, though, let’s hear what you’re going to tell Micum. Things happened pretty fast today. I want to be sure you’ve got everything straight.”
    Alec recited as best he could what Seregil had told him about the prophecy and dreams. Seregil made one or two corrections, then nodded approval.
    “Just right. I don’t know what Micum will make of all this but at least he’ll know what’s in the wind.” Clapping on his old felthat, he stepped past Alec and began dusting himself with ashes from the hearth.
    “I’ll come back as soon as I’ve talked to him,” said Alec, “I could be back by nightfall.”
    “There’s no need. Stay the night and come back in daylight.”
    Alec opened his mouth to protest further, but Seregil forestalled him with an upraised hand. “I mean it, Alec. If we are in danger, then the more care we take the better. I don’t want you getting caught out in some lonely place after dark.”
    Still slouching unhappily in the doorway, Alec frowned down at his boots. The truth was, he suddenly didn’t like the thought of leaving Seregil alone here, either, though he knew better than to say so.
    Seregil seemed to guess his thoughts just the same. Adjusting a greasy patch over one eye, he came over and grasped Alec by the shoulders. “I’ll be all right. And I’m not shutting you out of anything, either.”
    Despite the patch, tangled hair, and ridiculous old hat that partially obscured his friend’s features, Alec heard the warm earnestness in his voice clearly enough.
    “I know,” he sighed. “You missed a spot.” Reaching over, Alec smeared ashes over a bit of clean skin just under Seregil’s right cheekbone. His friend’s one visible eye widened noticeably. Strange feelings stirred again, and Alec felt himself blush.
    Seregil held his gaze a moment, then cleared his throat gruffly. “Thanks. We don’t want any telltale signs of cleanliness giving me away, do we? I’ll take a run through the stable dung heap before I go, just to make sure I’ve got the right odor about me. Take care.”
    “You, too.” Alec felt another twinge of unease as Seregil headed out the door. “Luck in the shadows, Seregil,” he called after him.
    Seregil looked back with a crooked grin. “And to you.”
    Left to himself, Alec set about packing the small bundle for his journey. But he soon found himself repeatedly packing and unpacking the same few items as his thoughts wandered over the harried events of the day, and his strange unease over Seregil’s departure.
    •  •  •
    That night Alec’s nightmare returned, but this time there was more to it.
    In the end, when he turned to look for his pursuer, blocks of stone slid out of the wall beside him, tumbling to the floor with a hollow crash. Gripping the headless arrow, he forced himself to go to the opening in the wall and look through. He could see nothing but darkness beyond, but he could hear a new sound, one that was at once as ordinary and as inexplicably terrifying as the sight of the simple arrow shaft
.
    It was the booming grumble of the sea battering a rocky shore
.

29
H ARBINGERS
    A lec opened his eyes well before dawn. Too anxious to sleep, he dressed quickly and went down to the stable to saddle Patch.
    A damp grey mist hung over the city, presaging a foul day, but in the Harvest Market the first traders and stall keepers were already preparing for the day’s business. Alec paused to buy a bit of breakfast, then headed for the gate. To his surprise, pikemen of the City Watch stepped out to block his way.
    “State your name and business,” one of them said,