Wanderlust - Chapter 30: Chapter 30

Tanden woke up groggy and confused. His arm ached, but it took him a second to remember the wound. With a groan, he pushed himself up with his good arm. His right arm was wrapped in clean white cloth, with dots of blood seeping through near the cut. Tanden turned his attention away from it, dwelling wouldn't help.
Soren was asleep and seemed peaceful enough, Tanden didn't want to bother him. Across the room, Acell was leaning against the wall wearily, his gaze on the door. He was wearing a black tunic that Tanden instantly recognized as one of his own.
Tanden cleared his throat to get Acell's attention. "You drugged me?"
"I didn't drug you," Acell replied, with a glance in his direction. "You fought me. The physician thought it was best."
Tanden narrowed his eyes. "You let him?"
"My job is protecting you, not catering to your every desire."
"Could have fooled me. When was the last time you wore one of my tunics?" Tanden asked. "I'm pretty sure it was after we played that game and I cut—"
Acell's gaze flickered to his own chest, almost like he'd forgotten about the fancy tunic he was wearing. "I ripped off mine to bind your arm, and I've been in this room ever since. Don't be antagonistic. I'm one of the few people on your side right now."
"I'm not being antagonistic, I—" Tanden caught Acell's look, paused, and sighed. "I'm sorry. This is all... I fucked up. I guess I know I should feel bad about it, but I don't. Do you have any idea what's going on?"
Acell shook his head. "Honestly, I'm waiting for the king's men to burst in and arrest both of you at any moment. Nothing to do but wait and see what happens. Maybe your brothers have it all under control."
It was possible. Or maybe they'd simply delayed the inevitable. "Are we stuck here?"
"I don't think you are, but I have a feeling the guards outside would strongely suggest against leaving. They couldn't stop you, of course, but..."
"They'd stop Soren?"
"I think so."
Tanden turned his attention to Soren, carefully shifting to get closer without moving the bed too much. As gently as he could manage, he stroked Soren's hair. "I'm sorry, mate," he mumbled. "I made everything worse. I know I should've listened to you, but I was so angry..." He went silent, continuing to stroke Soren's hair while letting his eyes run over Soren's various injuries. An idea came to him all at once, and he knew he had to follow through. "I won't let you get arrested," he said firmly.
Acell looked surprised when he got to his feet. "What are you doing?"
"Leaving. Do you remember my old first mate, Vosh? I need you to go find him." Tanden knew he sounded crazy. Given his recent behaviour, he didn't blaim Acell for the expression of doubt that flashed across his face. "I'm clearheaded, I know what I'm doing. I need you to listen to me."
"We should stay here," Acell said.
Tanden stepped in front of him. "Did you love me?"
"Don't start that, sir." Acell shook his head. "You know I did."
"So then please listen to me. Not as my knight, as my friend. I need to get Soren out of West Draulin. I can't have him shipped back to Zianna to sit in jail until the king decides whether or not he's guilty. Not in the condition he's in now. The guards and the other prisoners will turn on him." He was pretty sure of that outcome, and it terrified him. "I know you met Vosh once or twice. Do you remember?"
Acell nodded. "I remember. But you're asking me to break the law."
"No I'm not," Tanden said in a rush. "Not if we move quickly enough. He's not under arrest yet." It was hard to stay calm when they had a limited amount of time to work with. He clasped Acell's shoulder with his left hand. "Please."
Tanden knew he'd won when Acell met his gaze. It took a moment, then Acell blinked and shrugged off Tanden's hand. "Stay here," he grumbled. "I swear, if you get me arrested, my wife will kill you. She's fierce. But I'll do this, because I love you. You had better be here when I get back."
"I will be," Tanden promised. "Have Vosh dress up like a knight."
Acell cast him one last glance before he slipped out the door.
It felt like an agonizingly long wait before there was a knock on the door. There was a second of doubt, and Tanden felt his heart skip a beat. But it wasn't guards who walked in, it was Acell, followed closely by Vosh.
Somehow Tanden had forgotten just how comforting Vosh's presence had been, but it came back in a rush, and his shaky plan suddenly seemed more possible. He didn't try to hide his relief, and wrapped his arms around Vosh in a hug.
"Thank the Goddess you were in the city."
"I hear you're the one who started the fire," Vosh said. "Not entirely surprised, Cap'n. This my replacement, then?"
Tanden stepped out of the way so Vosh could approach the bed. "He's more than that."
"Aye, figured as much. Looks like he's a handsome lad under the bruisin'. Reckon you never could control yourself 'round handsome Crelans. So, what exactly am I helpin' with?"
Both men turned to him expectantly. "You're going to escort us out of the fort," he explained. "And then to the Wanderlust. If anyone stops us we'll just claim that we're moving Soren so the physician can keep a closer eye on him. It's only the king's guards we need to worry about, in any case. I can talk our way through any West Draulin men."
Vosh crossed his arms. "The port's chaos, Cap'n. The fire's been hard to contain. Nobody would be able to follow once we get you down there, but I'd worry about the Wanderlust. She might not be seaworthy."
It was a simple comment but it hurt. Tanden felt a pang of regret. "Do you think she's in danger?"
Vosh shrugged. "Dunno, to be honest. But at the very least, we can get you to the port. Though, surprises me a tad that you'd be runnin' away from this."
"It's more complicated than that," Tanden replied, but he didn't elaborate. They didn't need to understand in order to help. He had relied on the two men before; he knew he could do it again. "I'll wake Soren up."
He hated to do it, but they had to move. "Soren, mate..." He gave Soren's shoulder a gentle shake. "We've got to go. You need to get up."
It took a little more shaking before Soren groaned. "Go where?"
"Home, mate."
"We are home."
Tanden couldn't help but chuckle. "No. Our real home. The Wanderlust. Come on, mate, here..." It was hard to be gentle while lifting someone up, but he did his best by slinging Soren's arm over his shoulders and pulling him to his feet.
Soren wobbled, but managed to stand. He eyed Acell and Vosh in turn. "Guessin' this isn't 'xactly what we're supposed to be doin', aye?"
"Not quite," Tanden agreed. "Vosh, can you take him? Be careful, mate."
Vosh slipped under Soren's other arm and took his weight. Tanden ran his hands over his tunic, wondering for the first time if he should have changed. His clothing had dried, but the cloth was slightly crusty with salt water and stained with blood and smoke. With everything going on, looking presentable hadn't crossed his mind. But there wasn't time for that now. He nodded towards the door firmly.
"Let's go."
Soren wasn't exactly sure what was going on. Bits and pieces of the evening's events floated through his head, but in an incomprehensive order. He wasn't even sure if he knew the Crelan who was half carrying him through the fort.
What he did know was that Tanden was nearby, and he seemed well enough. There was bandaging around his right arm, and Soren remembered seeing the long gash, so that made sense. He still couldn't puzzle out the state of Tanden's tunic, and he was fairly certain Acell was wearing a tunic far too expensive for a knight, but neither of those mysteries seemed particularly important in the moment.
Tanden was nearby, and no matter what risky thing they were in the middle of doing, that at least meant Soren could keep an eye on him. Not that he could do much good. It was simply comforting to know.
They were stopped multiple times, and Acell did most of the talking. A few times Tanden talked, in his usual elaborate way. No one could argue with him when he talked like that. Who would even want to?
Vosh—the man's name was Vosh. Suddenly it sounded very familiar. Was he another of Tanden's old lovers? That seemed unlikely. Where had he come from? Could Tanden just snap his fingers and have loyal men appear to help him? That seemed likely. If anyone could, it would be Tanden.
There was a glow over the city, even though the sky was dark. It tugged at Soren's memory. Then the port opened up in front of them, and it was on fire.
Memories clicked together like puzzle pieces. Soren pulled away from Vosh and grabbed Tanden's arm.
"What happened?"
Tanden turned to him, his eyes wide. "I didn't think—I wouldn't've—"
"You didn't think? I told you—I begged you to stay with me! Did you kill Toliver?" Soren wasn't entirely sure why that made him so angry. He certainly didn't care about Toliver, but he cared about Tanden, and his retaliation had been reckless. That much was clear.
Tanden shook his head. "No, I didn't find him." He looked at the fire again, horrified and entranced. His usual calm demeanor had cracked earlier in the courtroom, but now it was entirely shattered.
Soren grabbed his chin and turned him away from the port. "Did you start it?"
Tanden blinked. "Did Lorca touch you?"
"Who the fuck is Lorca?" Soren remembered the question. He remembered most of what had happened since the guards had dragged him into the courtroom, and Tanden had kissed him. Everything that came before that was gone.
It might have been the swearing that snapped Tanden out of his daze. He took Soren's arm and tugged him to the side of the road, into an alcove around a doorway. The fire was out of sight, but it was impossible to ignore the sounds coming from the port.
Tanden flung his arms around Soren's shoulders and hugged him. Even though it hurt, Soren hugged him back, leaning back against the wall for support. They stood like that for a long time, with Acell and Vosh flanking the doorway.
When Tanden let go, he didn't back away. "I don't know what happened, Soren... I was scared, and furious. I thought you were dying, in the courtroom. And then when you said it was Toliver, I couldn't stop myself. I think if I had found him, this wouldn't have happened. But the man I found, Lorca, said he was there. He said he held you in place while Toliver beat you, and he said they wanted to... try you out. So I killed him. But I couldn't make it easy."
"He was alive when you started the fire?"
"He wasn't going to be for much longer," Tanden said. "I wasn't entirely in control of myself. Toliver hurt you to get to me, regardless of what you think, that's why he did it. He knew it would hurt me. And I can't have that happen. The thought of you getting hurt or killed because of me terrifies me. I needed to get rid of the threat. I will never hesitate to protect you, Soren."
Soren didn't know what to say. So instead of saying anything, he kissed Tanden. They probably would have continued for quite some time, if Vosh hadn't leaned into their little alcove.
"Cap'n, I see the Wanderlust. She's out on the water."
Tanden's expression brightened. "She's safe?"
"Aye, mate, she's safe."
They hurried down to the port. People were rushing everywhere, doing whatever was possible to save the ships and boats. Plenty of fishing boats and smaller ships had pulled away from the port. The larger ships were harder to move, but a few of them had made it. The Navy's section of the port was better off, anyhow, with more men working to douse the flames.
They moved as quickly as Soren could manage, and made their way down the stone pier the Wanderlust usually moored at. There were always a few rowboats around, mostly used to get around the ships to make inspections or repairs. There was one there, upside down on the end of the pier. Vosh and Acell immediately started to flip it and shove it into the water.
Vosh hopped into the boat first, and reached up to help Soren down, when they were interrupted by a shout.
There was a split second where Tanden considered just pushing Soren into the boat and sending the two of them off. But he thought better of it, and turned to face his brothers.