As dawn approached, Murtagh slowed his run to a walk. He felt as though he had been running for days rather than the few hours since he left Tornac to face his death alone. He was desperate to stop moving and rest somewhere just for a moment to fully accept what had happened back at the city. He knew there was no way Tornac could survive the injuries he had been dealt, but it still tormented Murtagh knowing that he had died to help him flee his own torment from a city that wanted to kill him or use him for their own means.
With the anger and pain eating away at him inside and the physical pain from the fighting and running, Murtagh had nothing left to give at that moment. He found a small patch of trees where he hid himself from view of anyone who might be passing. It wasn't much in a way of cover and it certainly wouldn't fool the soldiers that would soon catch up to him, for he knew his tracks would be followed now that they had been discovered escaping the city.
A few hours later than he intended, Murtagh awoke to find the sky dark once more and life still coursing through his body. He had been certain the soldiers would have caught up with him by now and killed him. A feeling of unease swept over him, he drew his sword and made to check the surrounding area for any sign that the kings men were waiting for him to walk into a trap.
Content that there was no sign of anyone else having been there while he was asleep, Murtagh pulled his supplies from his bag and filled his stomach and quenched his thirst. He readied himself and set back out to his destination; the estate of a man whom Tornac trusted. It wouldn't take him much longer to arrive there, Murtagh estimated just after dawn at the latest and if his calculations had been correct.
As he walked through the night, that previous sense of unease returned to him. He was already on edge due to Tornac's death and the fact that the soldiers hadn't caught up with him yet, but as he continued on his journey he began to feel like someone was following him. He tried moving quickly, in and out of the shadows and the trees to catch whoever it was but each time there appeared to be no-one there. Not even an animal appeared to settle his thoughts but at times he thought he could also hear someone following him. Noises that sounded like the slight scuff of a shoe on the ground and yet each time he tried to find out what it was, there was nothing to be seen.
As he guessed it, dawn was just breaking when Murtagh arrived at the town of Tornac's friend. Unsure how the man he was about to meet would take the news of Tornac's death, Murtagh decided it would be best to be ready for any outcome of their meeting and so he found a quiet place to rest and regain his strength in case a fight was necessary.
He awoke with a jerk a short time later feeling as though he had been roused from his sleep by someone standing over him but once again he couldn't see anyone. Deciding that it would be best to get the meeting over with, Murtagh packed up his things and went to look for the man who would decide if he had a home or not.
He had no difficulty finding the house he was looking for, it was the biggest in the town and situated on the outskirts further away than any other house. A small, round bellied man with short, dark hair and a fuzzy beard stood at the entrance seemingly awaiting his arrival.
"Are you Tornac's boy?" the man asked, eying Murtagh in the same way many had looked at him back in Urû'baen; with distrust.
Murtagh nodded in reply and approached the man with caution. They sat on a bench outside the house and Murtagh told the man all about his escape from the city, how they were betrayed by someone and that Tornac had died because of it. The man listened intently, showing no hint as to whether he believed what he was being told or not. Eventually, after a moment of silence he spoke again:
"A deal is a deal, young man. It is most unfortunate that we have lost a man such as Tornac, but I will stand by our deal even in his death as he was a good friend to me. You can stay here, but I will require your help in return with doing work around the house and on the land. However, do not think that because Tornac trusted you that I will do the same. You are still the son of Morzan. Wait here and I'll send someone to show you where you will be staying."
Murtagh watched him leave, unsure what to make of the man yet grateful that he had chosen to let him stay despite him being the son of a traitor and responsible for Tornac's death.