Free Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder Page B

racket. Goel and his men could track me by listening to the rattle of the leaves and the snapping of branches. All they had to do then was wait for me to fall, or exhaust myself.
      Once I slowed down, taking care not to make any noise, I could hear the men on the forest floor. They called my position to each other, closing in.
      “Hold up!” a voice said right below me.
      My muscles jerked in shock.
      “She stopped.”
      I kept climbing. My progress was a nerve-racking snail’s pace, but quiet.
      “We have you,” Goel called. “Come down now and I’ll only hurt you a little.”
      I bit back a sarcastic reply to his “generous” offer. Instead, I continued to move through the trees. The men remained silent, and soon I had no idea where they were. I paused on an upper branch to search for some sign of them, but saw nothing but a sea of green leaves.
      Then my imagination kicked in. I felt trapped. My face burned with the sudden belief that Goel’s eyes were on me. Panic pumped in my heart until I remembered the instruction Irys had given me back in the jungle-seek with your mind, not with your eyes. Using my magic still wasn’t instinctive.
      Taking a deep breath, I pulled my bow, concentrated on the smooth wood against my fingers, and projected my awareness down to the forest floor.
      The men had spread out. They searched a wide area to my right. I couldn’t sense Goel below. With a sick feeling crawling along my skin, I swept the treetops. Goel had climbed into the canopy. He followed the trail I had left in my haste. Black thoughts of inflicting pain colored his mind.
      When he reached the place where I had begun to travel with more care, I waited. He hesitated for a heartbeat, but spotted another sign, continuing on toward my location.
      It was only a matter of time before Goel found me. I considered using my magic to force him off my trail. Could I make him fall asleep? Probably, but Goel would eventually wake up and track me down. I could try prompting him into forgetting who he searched for, but for that I would need to delve deep into his mind and such an effort would drain my remaining strength.
      Think. I had to take Goel out. Unless Cahil had another tracker, my chances of escaping improved without Goel on my tail. A plan began to form in my mind. I slid my bow back through its holder on my pack.
      Keeping light contact with Goel’s mind, I picked up the pace and continued on my route for a while, making sure to leave a trail. When I reached a small clearing in the forest, I swung down to the ground, landing with a hard jolt. Leaving nice deep boot prints, I walked across the clearing, and broke through the underbrush on the other side.
      Now came the hard part. Retracing my path, I returned to the tree from which I had jumped. The grapple would leave marks, so I used it to throw the rope over the tree branch, and then I shimmied up. Hopefully, the rub marks on the branch would make it appear that I had gone down to the clearing, not up. Then I looped the rope and hung it around my shoulder and torso so my hands were free.
      Goel was now close enough to hear me. I made a small grunt like I had hit the ground hard. With the utmost care, I climbed higher in the tree. Goel came into sight. I froze.
      He inspected the branch I had used to drop into the clearing. He leaned over and peered at the forest floor.
      “So me prey has gone to ground,” Goel said to himself.
      He swung down and crouched by my marks. His thoughts focused on how much he would enjoy torturing me. Sleep, I projected into his mind. Sleep. But he was wide-awake and the command raised immediate suspicions. He stood and glanced around the clearing.
      Damn. That wasn’t working. Don’t look up; I projected as I moved to a lower branch. The leaves shook, but Goel didn’t notice. Triggering my switchblade, I cut a three-foot section of rope. I wrapped the ends around my hands as