Free Valley of the Ancients: Book Three of the Restoration Series by Christopher Williams

instead. I bring messages back and forth and sometimes I will do a bit of trading."
    Half priest and half merchant, Flare thought and had to fight to hide his smile. "Could you tell me how to get over the mountains? My plans were to try and find a way, but that could take weeks, if I even managed it."
    "I can do better than that," Abner said, his smile getting even wider.
    Something in the other man's tone bothered Flare. Abner sounded too pleased about something. "What do you mean?"
    "We would be honored to show you the way," Abner said with a small bow. "You can accompany us."
    "Accompany you?" Flare repeated dully. Honestly, it wasn't the worst outcome as far as Flare was concerned, but it was pretty high on his list. Judging by the look of abject horror on Sadah's face, and the plate of food she had just spilled, she wasn't too pleased with the idea either.
    "Yes, Sadah and I would be ecstatic if you would join us on our journey."
    Flare's first thought was that it must be a trick. Perhaps Abner was hopeful of getting a reward or something, but that just didn't seem right. Out of necessity, Flare had gotten better at judging people, and he just didn't think Abner was the kind of man to stab him in the back, although, he had been fooled before.
    "Master, perhaps," Sadah began to say, but she cut off abruptly at a look from Abner.
    "I don't trust you," Flare said bluntly.
    Sadah bristled and climbed to feet. She looked poised to spring but she held her tongue.
    Abner did not react angrily, instead he only bowed his head. "I would not expect you to, you just met us. I assure you, however, that we mean you no ill will."
    Flare studied the other two for a moment and then sighed deeply. These two were the best chance he had. Regardless of his like or dislike of the situation, he had to go along.
    Sensing Flare's acquiescence, Abner's ever present grin got even bigger.
     

Chapter 4
     
    On the morning of the fourth day after joining up with Abner and Sadah, Flare found himself high up in the mountains. The journey so far was a mixed affair. Sadah did not like him and she didn't bother to hide it. Abner, on the other hand, seemed to be overly friendly to both of them, only occasionally snapping at Sadah when she let her true feelings show through. Flare and the girl had come to an understanding. He chose tov> & ignore her glares and rude comments and she chose to let him. On several occasions he had considered bending the girl over his knee, but he thought that Abner might object, and he really needed the old man's help.
    Besides Sadah's issues with him, things were going fairly smoothly. He got along well with Abner and they had settled into a bit of a routine. Even Sadah did her tasks without complaint.
    In addition to knowing a way over the mountains, there was another benefit to traveling with Abner. He carried spare cloaks and blankets. As they moved higher up the sides of the mountains, the temperatures continued to drop, especially at night. On his own, Flare would have been sorely pressed to stay warm enough, but Abner was only too happy to share his extra cloaks.
    There had only been one disagreeable situation between Abner and Flare. On the first day of their journey together, Abner headed to a small village nearby. When Flare learned of their destination, he flat out refused to continue, going so far as to tell Abner and Sadah to go on their own. It had been one of the few times that Abner's grin had disappeared, but Sadah had only looked relieved. In the end, the old man had grudgingly given in and they had turned more westward, climbing higher in the mountains.
    Their journey quickly turned from walking to climbing and Flare was forced to let his pack horse wander away. It worried him that he would no longer be able to outrun any pursuers, but the exhausted horse probably wouldn't have been able to outrun anybody as it was. He watched it meandering off, headed back down the mountain, and he hoped that it wouldn't