The Legacy of Mount Drood

Chapter 4

The roasted rabbit and acorn tea gave Jep a feeling of great comfort and satisfaction. Dry and dressed once again, he lay on the grass across the crackling flames from his host, watching the small man as he performed his cooking and cleaning chores.

"I have to thank you, Derrick, for sharing this fine meal. My pack contains little but dried meat and bread, a diet I have grown weary of these past days. Tell me," he said, sitting up, "where are you from? It seems a long way from anywhere to be pulling a mule loaded with sacks."

"I come from everywhere and nowhere, Jep. My needs take me where it is necessary to fill them." He poked at the fire and lit a gnarled old pipe with the hot ember. "Recently I have come from a place known as Nygard, beyond the Great Plain."

"But what do you do? Where is the Great Plain and this other place you call Nygard?"

Derrick rose from his spot and went to the wagon where Dolly the mule was tied. He undid some straps and dragged one of the sacks back beside the fire. Jep sat up further, his curiosity well aroused. Sparks from the waning fire climbed high above the camp in a dizzying spiral, fading into the deepening purple sky above the treetops and the smell of the burning pine filled his nostrils with its pleasant scent.

From inside the sack, Derrick withdrew a leather bundle tied with fine rope. He pushed the sack aside and opened the leather carefully on his lap, tilting slightly toward Jep. The firelight seemed to dance across the bundle with an almost blinding glare, and Jep sat back shading his eyes.

"What is that?"

"That, Master Jep, is what I do. It is some of the finest hand-crafted jewellery in all the land." He held the packet around the fire for Jep to admire.

Taking one of the pieces, Jep held it up to the light, awestruck by its beauty. Delicate, lacy chains supported a shimmering green jewel in an unbelievably intricately tooled setting. "You did this?"

"You doubt me, sir?"

"No. No... I-I'm just... it's beautiful."

"Don't let my appearance fool you my friend. It is unwise to look too prosperous or healthy when moving alone about the land. There are many who would slit your throat and leave you in a ditch for far less than what you hold in your hand."

"And how do you know I'm not one of those?" Jep asked, returning the piece.

Derrick grinned, showing a row of surprisingly white teeth. "Your earlier display of gullibility disqualifies you, I think. Besides..." He showed Jep the gleaming blade he'd concealed in the folds of his garment before slipping it back into its sheath.

"So you weren't sure." Jep accused, regaining a little of his dignity in the face of his host's taunt.

"In truth? You never can be." Derrick folded and retied his packet and slipped it back into the sack, returning it to the others next to Dolly.

The two men fell silent, each contemplating the situation from their own standpoint and deciding that they would both be safe enough to attempt a good night's sleep.

*****

"And since you advised me of this you say their son has disappeared?"

"Yes, M'lady. It must have happened almost immediately after I received the report." Consiflore watched Queen Hella carefully. He could almost see the gears turning in her evil mind.

"And have we... inquired as to his whereabouts?" Hella drew a lazy finger across the bodice of her gown. Consiflore knew immediately what she implied. Had he pressed the Pennistyles for information.

"Indeed, M'lady, the mother was most forthcoming when she saw the questioning of her husband, who I might add, showed remarkable endurance."

"And what did we learn, dear Count?" Hella wet her lips and leaned forward.

"He left heading south, with the wooden case." Consiflore rose as Hella stood and glided toward him, her black eyes shining hungrily. "Neither parent would reveal the contents, M'lady, but we suspect it is indeed the long hidden, Key."

"And the parents today, Consiflore?" Hella touched the lapel of his jacket, smoothing the material with her long, painted nails.

"Sadly, M'lady," the Count smirked, "only the mother remains. She is a guest of the castle guardhouse."

"Aaahh... well I suspect she will confirm our suspicions some time soon. Meanwhile, what steps have you taken about the boy?"

Consiflore took Hella's fingers in his and gazed daringly into her eyes. "At this moment a small force of riders is racing south to pick up his trail. I expect good news very soon." He paused, waiting for a response, and getting none, he kissed her fingers and bowed his way out of her chamber.

*****

Great tufts of sod and mud flew from the pounding hooves of the horses. Foam and saliva blew in ragged streams from their mouths, pulled back viciously by the reins. The lead rider suddenly raised his hand and the band thundered to a nervous stop, fighting to control the snorting, excited mounts.

"What do you see, Captain Gar?"

"We'll camp on this ridge for the night. If our little friend lights a fire anywhere, we should see it from here."

"Unless he's much farther away," the soldier ventured.

Gar swung his horse around and bumped the mount of his subordinate. The crimson patch he wore over his scarred, empty eye socket, looked like dried blood in the waning light. "If we don't find him, Sergeant, you had better find someplace far away to spend the rest of your days." The grating voice sent a shiver of fear through the band of riders and they busied themselves with the business of dismounting and setting up camp.

"No fire. We eat at first light." Gar swaggered through the camp, kicking away the preparations his men had made to cook dinner. "Tend to your horses and then rest. Two men will watch each third of the night." He made his way to a small hillock above the campsite and settled himself on the grass, wrapping his cape about him for warmth against the cooling evening.

Stars twinkled among the thready clouds, and a pale moon appeared almost apologetically, its weak light barely reaching the earth. Gar took a flask from within his cape and drank greedily of the red wine. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and spat onto the ground beside him. Consiflore had warned him that failing to bring the boy back to Graf was not an option if he wished to live out his life in relative peace.

The rewards would be great for all concerned, the Count had said, and Gar meant to have his share, whatever it was. He checked the rest of the men and identified the sentries then lay back and closed his eye. Almost immediately, his head filled with the visions that had haunted him throughout most of his life.

Gar's father was a private soldier in the service of a very wealthy family; his mother worked in their kitchen preparing and serving meals for the family and their other servants. Gar and his two sisters worked in the fields and assisted with the farm animals. They meant nothing to the household and were treated as such. The only bright spot in Gar's life was the presence of Myra, the family's eldest daughter, who, unlike the others, treated the help with common decency and respect.

Gar was infatuated with Myra, and connived to be around her whenever possible. She would laugh in kindly appreciation of his attention and, without undue encouragement, engage him in conversation, displaying a sincere interest. It was during one of those moments with Myra while feeding the animals, that, egged on by the younger daughter, Pricilla, he was confronted by her suitor, a foppish, arrogant man who classed Gar no higher than the surrounding livestock.

A fight ensued, during which the suitor, having the distinct advantage of being armed, slashed Gar across the face with his sword, blinding him in one eye and having he and his family dismissed from service. Gar never saw Myra again.

Gar's father banished him from the family for bringing them into disgrace, and for several years after, he became a soldier for hire, building a reputation that struck fear into all who knew him. He vowed one day to exact his revenge on the man who stole his love and his sight. He moaned aloud, waking with a start and looking around guiltily to make sure his men hadn't heard.