The Piper's Pursuit Read online

  Katerina was behind their backs, leaning over Hennek’s desk. When Otto turned to look behind him, Katerina quickly straightened and moved to follow. The guard looked askance at her but said nothing.

  As Steffan and Hennek stepped outside the room, Hennek waited for everyone to leave. Just as he stuck his hand in his pocket, no doubt to retrieve his key so he could lock the door, Steffan put his arm around Hennek’s shoulders and said loudly, “How about that drink you promised me. I need something to soothe my disappointment.” He had to think of something quickly, and it was the only thing that came to his mind.

  Hennek blinked, then said just as loudly, “Now you are talking sense! A little wine cheers the heart. How much more so the stronger spirits? Come! You will taste my ale man’s best drink.”

  Hennek led the way toward the dining hall, forgetting all about locking the little door.

  Steffan forced himself not to glance over his shoulder. He could only hope Katerina was taking advantage of this opportunity and that Otto and the other guard were not paying any attention to her.

  * * *

  Katerina went around the corner and backed into the shadows. Otto and Herman never looked her way as they made a few grunts and comments under their breath, then went out the front entryway.

  Katerina hurried to the door of Hennek’s study. She opened it and slipped inside, closing it carefully behind her. She stepped to the large sheet of parchment. She’d seen Hennek peering down at it while he talked to Otto before, but he never left any of his papers out, and he also never left the door of his study unlocked.

  Her eyes drank it in, trying to devour every detail, but it made no sense. It must be some kind of map, but there were no names, and nothing that looked familiar. There were several symbols, Xs and lines, tiny boxes with four sides and boxes with three sides, markers for something, but she didn’t know what. Some other symbols looked like trees, perhaps indicating a forest, and there was a drawing that looked like a pile of rocks, possibly signifying an outcropping of boulders.

  If only there were some words to help her decipher what this was a map of.

  At one end was what looked like a gate. Could that be one of Hamlin’s gates? She closed her eyes and imagined the east gate. Did it fit with this picture? There was the hill east of town, and yes, there was a rocky area just there. Perhaps this was a map of the area east of town. Yes, that was the very hill where the Beast of Hamlin had attacked her and Steffan, and that was the forest at the edge of which she found little Bridda.

  She bent her head even closer to the map. What did these Xs and circles and boxes mean? There was a black space just behind the rock outcropping. Could that be a hole? Could the symbols indicate something underground? A tunnel? A mine?

  Katerina’s heart pounded so hard it hurt her chest. This could be the place where Bridda had been for the last five months. Were the other children being held there? She stared at the map, trying to memorize every mark and detail, every symbol.

  Her foot bumped into a long wooden box on the floor beside Hennek’s desk.

  Katerina flipped open the lid. Inside were more pieces of parchment of various sizes, some folded and others rolled up like scrolls. She drew out the one on top, unfolded it, and laid it on the desk. It was also a map, only this appeared to be more detailed, and it seemed to show one long passageway, with side passages, as well as many Xs and the same symbols from the other map.

  Where was this place?

  Did she dare take this map with her? Would Hennek realize she was the one who had taken it? There would be terrible consequences if he caught her. It was likely he would kill her.

  She glanced quickly at the other papers. They appeared to be ledgers, records of amounts of money. Perhaps they were proof of Hennek’s corruption. She would have to risk taking the map and some papers since she needed evidence she could show the Duke of Hagenheim.

  Her hands shook as she grabbed a handful of rolled-up parchments, including the long, narrow piece of parchment that she had been studying. Her breath was shallow and her knees weak, but Bridda’s face rose into her mind’s eye. She stuffed the parchments up her sleeve and stepped toward the door.

  Voices came from the dining hall. Hennek and Steffan were in there. Should she go into the hall so Steffan knew she was finished in Hennek’s study? Or would that look too suspicious?

  She thought for a moment, then headed into the kitchen through the door down the corridor.

  The cooks, Hilde and Grette, were standing at the door between the kitchen and the dining hall, peering through the crack.

  “Are there any sweetmeats?” Katerina deliberately made her voice loud.

  Hilde and Grette jumped and spun around, clasping at their throats. “You frightened us nearly to death,” Hilde whispered.

  “Forgive me.” She kept talking loudly. “I believe I found something.” She lifted up a cloth and did indeed find a soft pastry, fat with filling. But the words were for Steffan’s ears, if only he wasn’t dull of understanding.

  Nine

  Steffan only pretended to drink the strong drink Hennek had poured for them. Perhaps it was because he was so intent on what Katerina was doing, but he wasn’t as tempted by Hennek’s liquor as he had thought he would be. The smell was still familiar and enticing, but given a choice between getting drunk and Katerina, he chose the girl.

  He did his best to nod and smile at appropriate times while Hennek talked on and on about himself. Then he heard Katerina’s voice in the kitchen. He focused his gaze on Hennek’s face, but he was listening intently to Katerina.

  “I believe I found something.”

  The words were muffled, but there was no mistaking them.

  She said something else that was too low for him to make out. Then he heard her say, “I think I’ll go hunting.”

  Other female voices, a bit lower than Katerina’s, answered her.

  Hennek kept talking. Indeed, he seemed too intent on telling how his leadership had improved life in Hamlin to have heard Katerina. “Except for the rats, which you will rid us of, eh, Lord Steffan? To win the hand of a beauty like Katerina?”

  Steffan smiled. “You know”—he pushed his chair away from the table—“I should go now and plot my strategy for getting rid of the rats. I have many ideas, actually.”

  “Ideas? Won’t you share them with me?”

  “Oh, poison them, trap them in a net, drive them into the river. Many ideas.” Steffan stood and headed for the door.

  Hennek was still talking. “You hardly drank anything.”

  “Thank you! I’m off to find some rats.” Steffan hurried out the front door before Hennek could say another word.

  Steffan glanced around. As if his words conjured them, a herd of chittering rats was scurrying down the cobblestone street. People scrambled to get out of the way. Steffan waited for them to pass and caught sight of Katerina hurrying around the corner of the narrow street that bordered her stepfather’s house on one side. She must have gone out the back door. Steffan trotted after her.

  He caught up with her. Her face was lit up and her eyes seemed to sparkle in the sun. He glanced behind him.

  “Is anyone following us?” she asked without looking at him.

  “No. Wait.” He saw movement. It was the man who had been with Otto earlier. “Yes, there is someone. One of Hennek’s guards.”

  “We shall have to lose him. Keep up with me.” She suddenly darted down a side street and broke into a run.

  Steffan ran just behind her. At the end of that street she hastened down another street, then another and another. Steffan no longer saw the guard following them. But when they reached the town gate, he’d probably be there waiting for them.

  They suddenly came to a dead end—the town wall was directly in front of them. But Katerina kept going forward. A narrow alley led along behind the back wall of a house, just wide enough for a couple of people, and Katerina went down it a short way, then looked up at the wall.

 
An opening was there, about a foot above her head. She started climbing. When she reached the makeshift window in the wall, she stuck her head into it and wiggled and squirmed, then, pushing her feet against the wall behind them, she disappeared from view.

  Steffan blew out the breath he’d been holding while he watched her shimmy through the opening in the wall, then he did his best to climb up as well. Thankfully, there were several jutting stones that made good foot- and handholds, and he pulled himself onto the bottom ledge.

  This was harder than she made it look. Especially since he was wider than she was, and his arm was still throbbing. He scraped his elbows as he pulled himself through, his sword, which was strapped across his back, scraping the top of the opening.

  He tucked his head as he fell to the ground on the other side and landed on the back of his shoulders. At least the opening wasn’t as high off the ground on this side as it was on the other side.

  “Are you all right?” Katerina squatted by his side. Her face hovered over his.

  Steffan lay on his back. “Just catching my breath.”

  “I may have some evidence of Hennek’s corruption from his study. I also found two maps,” she whispered. “I’m wondering if they could be of a mine underneath the town.”

  “There is a mine underneath Hamlin?” He sat up.

  “I’ve never heard of one. But what if there are more children, like Bridda, who are still alive? This could be where they are.” Her eyes were wide and her jaw was set.

  “Let’s go get them.” His heart leapt as he jumped to his feet.

  Katerina took off at a gentle run and Steffan kept up with her, running by her side.

  “I have to warn you,” she said. “It appears the entrance to the supposed mine is very near where we saw the beasts. I don’t know what those animals have to do with this mine, but I have a feeling Hennek is involved.”

  “You think Hennek is responsible for the missing children?”

  “Yes. And there may be guards near the entrance. It could be dangerous.”

  Were they foolish to attempt to rescue the children by themselves? Just the two of them? But she was so brave, how could he dissuade her? If he suggested they wait until he could go to Hagenheim and fetch his father and his soldiers, he’d look like a coward. Besides, she might insist on going alone. And he couldn’t allow that.

  Still, he had to try. It was the wise thing to do.

  “I can go to Hagenheim and get help. If your stepfather has guards protecting the mine, and if they overpower us and kill us, we will have failed these children.”

  She slowed her pace, then stopped, staring out at the hill they were heading toward.

  “If you know anyone who’s not on Hennek’s side who could help us . . .”

  She shook her head. “Perhaps you are right.” She let out a long breath.

  “So you will allow me to ride to Hagenheim tonight?”

  “You can’t get to Hagenheim in one night.”

  “No, but I can leave tonight and get there in two days. Will you wait until I come back before you go looking for the children?”

  She only looked at him with troubled, downturned brows, biting her lip.

  He had his answer. “You have to come with me, then.”

  “I don’t obey commands from you.” Her eyes widened along with her stance.

  “I won’t go to get help unless you come with me.”

  “It matters not to me if you go get help or stay.” She huffed out a breath, uncrossed her arms, and bit her lip again. “I want to do my best for the children. But if we are killed . . .”

  Perhaps she wasn’t as stubborn as he’d thought. His heart warmed at the intense look on her face.

  “Then we shall travel to Hagenheim and get help. Do you have anyone here who could assist us?”

  “There is one guard who is very loyal to me and would never tell Hennek. His name is Hans.”

  Was that the guard whom she seemed so friendly with when he arrived? Why did she trust him so much? A pang went through him. He wanted her to trust him that much.

  “But could we at least go and take a look?” She turned her intense look on him. “Don’t we need to confirm that there is a mine? Come on.”

  It probably wasn’t wise. But then again, if they couldn’t find the mine, how would they find the children? And what real evidence did they have that the children were still alive and hadn’t been eaten by the Beast of Hamlin? Besides that, his curiosity was getting the better of him. So as she started walking away from the town wall, he followed her.

  After skirting the area around the gate, they made their way toward the hill where they’d killed the beast.

  Just before they entered the forest, Steffan glanced over his shoulder. He didn’t see anyone following them, but of course, the guard they slipped away from might guess they were coming this way.

  Steffan laid his hand on his sword, remembering times he’d used it in battle, when he’d killed and injured men who were only defending their homes. But he shook his head to rid himself of the images. He’d rather remember how he and Katerina had slain the Beast of Hamlin, an act that, no doubt, had saved people’s lives.

  Even if he and Katerina never received the acclaim for killing it.

  They were making their way up, keeping off the path so they would be less likely to be seen or followed. Katerina was quite close to him when her arm brushed against his. She snatched her arm away and mumbled something as she moved farther away.

  His heart sank at the way she flinched. Would she flinch away from Hans?

  He was jealous. He wasn’t sure he’d ever felt that particular feeling before, not over a woman. If he was honest, he might admit that he’d felt jealous of Valten for being the firstborn son and getting an inheritance, and jealous of Gabe when he married a woman of considerable fortune, and jealous of his sister’s husband when Steffan’s father gave him a castle and land, which came with great honor and power. But this was a different feeling.

  This woman had him wishing she liked him, trusted him, admired him.

  And it wasn’t only because he considered her a challenge. She was beautiful. And intriguing. And she cared more about finding those children than about her own interests. Here he was contemplating the honor and attention he could get from saving these children, but she truly cared about them. She loved the people of her town in a way that reminded him of how his father felt about the people of Hagenheim.

  Still, she was quite stubborn. She didn’t trust him or like him, and she clearly didn’t want him to get too close. She would hate him if she knew all that he had done, all the wrong, stupid things, the bad choices, the ways he had disappointed his family. The ways he’d hurt people.

  They were nearly to the spot where they’d been attacked by the wolf earlier and seen the other one run away. He strode forward to get ahead of her. “Be careful,” he said.

  “Why?”

  “I just have a feeling we’re not safe here.”

  She turned her head enough to look him in the eye. “Are you saying you are a prophet?” Her smile was brief, but it still sent a warmth through his chest.

  “I’m not a good enough person to be a prophet.” He became aware of how near she was as she turned her whole body to face him.

  “I should think if you were a bad fellow, you would be telling me how good you are. Besides, where is it written that a prophet must be exceptionally good?”

  “Very well. Perhaps I am a prophet.” He rested his hand on his sword hilt. He still had the feeling that danger lurked nearby, so he glanced around, listening, checking for any signs that someone or something meant them harm. But he was quite enjoying this less defensive side of Katerina. He didn’t want to let the opportunity escape him.

  “I prophesy that you will learn more about me, and I shall learn more about you.”

  “Oh?” She raised her brows at him.

  “You shall be surprised to find that, although I am a mighty warrior capable of
courageous and mighty feats of valor, I am also quite trustworthy.”

  “But this does not agree with what you said about not being good.”

  He sighed. “I have not always been so trustworthy. When I was younger I defied my father and was often angry. I teased my sisters to tears sometimes, and I was reckless. But almost a year ago, I decided I wanted to be a better man.”

  “So you were not always a kindhearted prophet?”

  He shook his head. He used to think of himself as a kindhearted fellow, but now he realized he’d done many things that were not kind at all. “I never wished to hurt anyone, but sometimes my thoughts and actions were wrong. I trusted people who were not worthy of my trust, and I rebelled against the people I should have been faithful to.”

  She had a thoughtful look on her face as she stared back at him. What was she thinking? Had he said too much? He wanted her to know the real Steffan, but at the same time, he was afraid she wouldn’t like him if she saw all the ugliness of his past.

  Perhaps it had been too long since he’d been to confession. He should stop talking, or he might just tell Katerina everything he’d ever done wrong.

  “Shall I tell you what I’ve heard about you?”

  He groaned. He knew it was bad, but he was curious if it was the truth.

  Ten

  Katerina studied Steffan’s face. It was a handsome face, even with the scars. Sometimes they made him look dangerous; other times they gave him a vulnerable look. But when she asked him if he wanted to hear the rumors about him, he made a low sound in this throat.

  “Mostly that you are the rebellious one of the Duke of Hagenheim’s children and that you joined the Teutonic Knights against your father’s wishes. But since you are not actually a Teutonic Knight, I suppose that is false.”

  “It is nearly true.” His expression was a bit sad, not jocular or bold, which were his usual expressions. “I am the rebellious son, and I fought with the Teutonic Knights in Poland, with the intent of becoming one of them. But I changed my mind.”