The Telastrian Song by Duncan M. Hamilton Page B

talk to you about. I need a favour.’
    ‘Name it and it’s done,’ Ranph said.
    Soren shifted uncomfortably in his seat. ‘I need you to look after Alessandra for a while.’
    Ranph furrowed his brow. ‘Why?’
    ‘I have to go back to Ostenheim.’
    ‘Having done that myself, I’d strongly advise against it.’ He paused for a moment. ‘You’re going after Amero?’
    Soren nodded.
    ‘Then you’re a bloody fool. You’ve got Alessandra back. Find somewhere quiet, settle down, raise a family. Forget about Amero. He’ll get what’s coming to him eventually. No point in getting yourself killed trying to make that happen a bit sooner.’
    ‘Don’t you think I haven’t tried all of that?’ Soren said. ‘He’s still sending people after me. The arrogant bastard obviously can’t stomach the fact that I got away from him. He tried to have me killed in Auracia, in Shandahar and in Estranza—twice in the same day. That’s where we were before now. Things were quiet there for a while, and I was beginning to hope that he’d given up. No such luck. If it was just me, it wouldn’t be an issue—I’ve no ties to anyone or any place. But it’s only a matter of time before Alessandra gets hurt and I can’t have that. I won’t drag her halfway around the world and back again running from him. She deserves better. One way or the other, it won’t end until one of us is dead. I’m going to do my best to make sure it’s him.’
    Ranph looked at him carefully. ‘I’ve seen that face before, so I know your mind’s made up, but this is just as bad an idea as it was the last time.’
    The last time was the night Soren decided to leave the Academy, and Ranph was right. It had been a bad decision, one Soren had regretted ever since.
    ‘This might be a bad idea, but at least this time it’s for the right reasons.’
    Ranph said nothing for a moment. ‘I want him dead just as much as you. He stole nearly everything I owned, I’m pretty sure he was responsible for having my father killed, and likewise for me getting done over in that alley where you found me. To top it all, I have the constant worry that he’ll send someone here to try and kill me. From what I’m told, I’m the last Elector Count of Ostia still drawing breath. This might all look well and grand,’ he said, gesturing around him, ‘but when I arrived here I didn’t even have a pot to piss in. The house was a ruin and the fields were a wilderness. If you’re going, I’m coming with you. I want my son to be able to see the house and the land that his family have lived on and worked since before the Empire fell. In any event, I can’t let you run off to get yourself killed on your own.’
    Soren started to shake his head and opened his mouth to speak, but Ranph cut him off.
    ‘Sara is here to keep an eye on Alessandra, not that she needs it. And there’s Farro, my brother-in-law and a banneret, not to mention a dozen other men keeping the place safe. Amero’s death is as valuable to me as it is to you. This place is like a fortress, I’ve made damn sure of that. Every time the nanny takes Rikard outside, I worry that assassins might arrive. I don’t let Sara out of shouting distance of the house without at least two bodyguards. I’ve trained the farm hands with weapons, so they can all fight well if they need to, and I’ve four Bannerets here all the time. You had a bow pointed at you from the moment you stepped onto my driveway until I gave the all clear. There are times I feel like I’m under siege here, and that won’t change until Amero’s dead.’
    ‘You need to be here to look after your family, Ranph, and I need to know that Alessandra is as safe as she can be while I’m away. You’re the only person I trust with that. I need you to do this for me, if your family isn’t reason enough to stay here.’
    ‘My family is the reason I want to do it. I have a responsibility to my son, and to make sure that he receives all of the