2 Defiler of Tombs by William King

“There are Old Ones in these hills. We’ve seen them. Or if it was men, maybe they were acting on behalf of the Old Ones.”
    Kormak thought of the winged being he had seen before the attack. Again he noticed the curious stillness with which she held her hands when she mentioned Old Ones. She was clearly restraining herself from doing something.
    “Why wait till now to do so?” Kormak asked, although he half suspected he knew her answer. There was civil war in the south, orcs along the borders. If the Old Ones wanted to work mischief, this would be the time to do it.
    “You think this Morghael may have nothing to do with this then?” Sir Brandon asked. He sounded sceptical, as well he might, given what Kormak told him.
    “He might be in it together with the Old Ones,” Aisha said. “Some of them would be pleased to see chaos come to the lands of men.” There was a peculiar emphasis on the way she said the word some.
    “I can believe that,” said Sir Brandon. Like all Sunlanders he believed the worst of all the Old Ones. Not without reason, Kormak thought. Aisha looked as if she was considering saying something and then thought the better of it.
    “We’d better be getting back to the wagon,” said Kormak. He considered pushing the woman to find out what she knew, but he was starting to think that she would speak in her own good time.
     
    They rode on from the barrow heading north back onto the road. The great wolf padded along, sniffing the air and growling. It did not seem upset, it seemed angry or as if expecting some ambush. Aisha rode ahead, talking to it, as if it were a person.
    Brandon looked at Kormak sidelong. “What do you think of her?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “She is not what she seems, is she?”
    “Who is?”
    “I mean she is not just another Tinker. Maybe she’s not a Tinker at all.”
    “So you finally worked that out.”
    “We can’t all be clever as you, Guardian. I suppose you are going to tell me you suspected that all along.”
    “What does it matter?”
    “What is she?”
    “She is a witch.”
    “You think she is in league with this sorcerer we are chasing, the one who is opening the barrows?”
    Kormak shook his head. “I do not think she is his ally. But she has some personal interest in this matter, I am sure.”
    “If she is not what she seems why are we riding with her?”
    “She is where we can keep an eye on her. If she’s an ally, she’s a useful one. If she’s an enemy, we’ll know soon enough.”
    “If we don’t wake up with that wolf’s jaws on our throats or a knife in our hearts.”
    “You sleep with your armour on.”
    “Bloody uncomfortable it is too. I have not done that since the orc wars.”
    “You’ll get used to it. Anyway, something tells me we’re not going to wake up dead, not until Mistress Aisha or whatever her name is, gets what she wants.”
    “You seem very sure of that. You think she’ll spare you because of your pretty face?”
    “I think she’ll spare us because she wants something. You asked me why I let her ride with us. Maybe it’s her who is letting us ride along.”
    “I don’t like this, Kormak. I don’t like this at all. We’re alone in these hills, with no allies, on the trail of some dark sorcerer, heading towards a place with some truly nasty people in it.”
    “I can give you one more thing to worry about, if you like.”
    “Go on. A man should have a hobby. Worrying is mine.”
    “I think the Old Ones are mixed up in this.”
    “Oh great,” said Brandon. “Old Ones too.”
    “Enjoy,” Kormak said.
     
    “Did you have a good chat with your friend Brandon?” Aisha asked as Kormak rode up beside her. Kormak had to fight down the suspicion that she knew everything they had been talking about. Some witches had the sight that way. Some shared the senses of their familiars and wolves had very good ears.
    “Yes,” said Kormak.
    “Was it about me?”
    “Yes, in part.”
    She smiled lazily. It reminded