Escana (7 page)

'They
lock all the scum in a barn at night, set some of the dogs patrolling
it so they can't escape. That'll be your new home, I don't want you
here any more. You're a disgrace to my name and a curse since you
were birthed, I've had enough of it.'

He
should have been reeling from shock, he should have felt something,
not this hollow emptiness.

'As
you say, father,' he said, making for the door once again.

'Don't
call me that, I'm not your father. Get out of my sight.'

There
was nothing left for Jakob here, he complied.

H
e set out
west then, following the trails of the cart that had been left in the
dirt road. His father had delivered his final judgement and he had
accepted it. No, not his father. Thom, it was just Thom now.

He told himself that there was
nothing keeping him here in this dismal little hamlet. In spite of
this some unbidden feeling implored him to remain in Escana a little
bit longer to see how everything played out. If this was the feeling
of one of the threads that the stranger had spoken of then he should
probably follow it to its conclusion before searching for The Six.
Assuming that Gooseman was innocent that was.

It
all sounded so logical in his head but in truth he had no idea how he
was going to complete this task. He was no hero, he had not been
imbued with any power or skill that he hadn't previously possessed,
why was he expected to prevent something that an entire Empire was
incapable of stopping?

In
spite of the questions swirling around in his head, Jakob felt a
great sense of freedom after his final confrontation with Thom. He
had spent so many years in subservience to a man who so clearly hated
him. As a child he couldn't understand why his sole carer could be
both vehemently opposed to him and refuse to abandon him. Over the
years he had realised that he must have reminded him of his wife. The
mysterious woman who died giving birth to him, that Thom never spoke
of or even gave name to no matter how much Jakob had implored him in
his younger years. Was the memory of her death so painful that even
after all this time he could not acknowledge her existence?

It
all seemed irrelevant now that Thom had disowned him. He was his own
man now, free to do whatever he pleased and go wherever he wanted
without having to answer to the unreasonable demands of a tyrant.

He
knew Jimmy wouldn't be awake if he trudged back to the Chipped Flagon
so he decided that a pre-emptive scouting of the area surrounding
Harvester's homestead would give him a better idea of what to expect
this evening.

Jakob
loved roaming, he felt like it was in his blood to traverse every
area of the world he could find. There was an unspoken beauty in the
freeness of the land surrounding the hamlet, differing so much from
Daelovia city with its enclosed spaces and back alleys.

He
sucked in the free air, wondering whether he could decline Harvester
and survive off the surrounding forest. It certainly wouldn't be a
pretty life but he had a feeling it wouldn't be too long before he
knew what he needed to do here. All thoughts of his previous
encounter melted away in the morning light.

It
was a strange feeling, knowing that there was some invisible path
that he would be compelled to follow, it seemed to contradict his own
sense of freedom. Were his actions now a result of his own choices or
was he inadvertently following something entirely predestined?

There
was only one way to find out, to stride boldly forward onto whatever
path this strange land had provided for him, if any. Was he to become
the brash and fearless hero that drives the narrative onward? His
head pounded in response, it was too early to think of such things.

The
surrounding forest eventually gave way to more arable land, as sure a
sign as any that he was drawing closer to the plantation. Did
Harvester own all of this land or were these smaller farms he was
passing?

He
met a gangly youth on the road, he looked barely older than sixteen
summers and seemed awkward in his own skin.

'Hello
there,' Jakob called out, waving at the boy.

The
boy initially nodded at him, thinking that Jakob was calling out some
general greetings, then slowed as he realised he wanted to speak.
'Can I help you?'

Jakob
gave what he hoped was a friendly smile. 'I'm looking for the
Harvester homestead, how far out am I?'

The
boy eased somewhat at this question, waving his hand out amidst what
appeared to be familiar territory. 'This whole area is Harvester's
fields, you'll be wanting to head another mile or two west on the
main road, then you'll come to a large gate. Knock on that and you're
as good as there.'

Jakob
hated directions but these seemed simple enough, there hadn't been
too many gates on his journey so far and he had a feeling this one
would stand out.

He
waved the boy farewell and continued to wander down the road. The air
had a distinct tang now, brought about by livestock grazing in the
fields on either side of the road. He peered over one of the hedges
and spotted a man with a pitchfork guarding a nearby barn, he looked
very bored.

It
would appear that even in this peaceful rural area surrounded by
neighbours Harvester was a man of caution and distrust. Why would he
invite the entire area into his home if he feared theft or vandalism?

It
came to him then, the sudden realisation of the inherent differences
between country and city. Out here they were a close-knit community
where everyone knew everyone else. There was safety in numbers simply
because amidst all the revelry there would be watchful eyes looking,
who in turn would expect the same from others.

So
lost was he in his thoughts that he nearly missed the gate, though
upon further inspection of it he didn't know how. It was a large and
imposing structure wrought of what appeared to be solid iron. Had
Garth smelted this himself at Harvester's behest? It appeared to be
corrugated like the shed roofs he had seen dotted about Daelovia and
was surrounded by a high and impenetrable hedge for walls. He rapped
at the structure with a closed fist, hoping that he was going to get
a response of some kind. The silence stretched out as the rattling of
the gate died away. Had he walked all this way only to be barred by a
single gate?

He
gave it a second knock and this time heard a distant barking, he had
got a response from the dogs at least. Oh how he hated dogs.

Their
barking gradually grew nearer and Jakob felt his pulse rising, Thom's
mocking voice coming back to him about how the dogs would chase men
down. He found himself wishing that nobody was home, that he could
turn tail and run back to... run back to where exactly? There was
nowhere to go, he had a powerful urge to keep moving forward. The
resolve met his fear and conquered it, was he going to let a few dogs
get in the way of his life?

The
barking was very near now, just at the other side of the hedge. He
could hear them sniffing at the gate, trying to get a scent of this
new visitor to their home. The barks were joined by a man muttering,
clearly someone was about to open the gate.

'State
your business, stranger,' a loud voice said, cutting through the
noise.

Jakob
cleared his throat, stifling his nervousness. 'I'm here to work for
Harvester.'

This
brought a snort from the voice. 'Is that so? Come on in then, the
dogs want a look at you.'

He
heard the sound of several bolts coming undone and the gate swung
open on well-oiled hinges.

He
was greeted by the source of the barking, several large wolfhounds
bounded out to him and started sniffing him. He went absolutely still
at the sight, letting them look him over. He remembered a long time
ago being told that dogs could smell fear, was the man at the gate
expecting them to sniff out deception as well?

As
if answering his thoughts, the rugged man at the gate responded.
'Those dogs take a liking to you, I'll let you pass. If they aren't
fond of you then you go no further, are we clear?'

Jakob
nodded wordlessly, not daring to make a sound as the large animals
kept pawing over him, as if waiting for him to startle.

For
what felt like an eternity he stood there as they inspected him,
barely daring to breathe and hoping against hope that they could tell
that his intentions were honest in spite of his fear. Eventually the
gatekeeper nodded and gave a low whistle, the dogs trotted off and
the man approached him. 'It seems they don't dislike you anyway,
follow me to see Mr. Harvester now.'

The
dogs bounded excitedly around them, as if waiting to play fetch, it
was such a strange behaviour to see from such fearsome looking
animals. The gatekeeper was having none of it and strode off down a
winding gravelly path that led toward a large barn.

It
wasn't quite as vast as the Chipped Flagon but as he stepped in
through the main door he was completely taken aback by the interior.

The
entire barn had been converted into a homestead. He hadn't expected
Harvester to sleep in a hayloft but the furnishings wouldn't have
been out of place in the city. A huge table and adjoining kitchen
dominated the ground floor and a large pine staircase ascended to
what looked to be a self-built second story. Jimmy had done the place
a disservice by calling it a homestead, that had left Jakob expecting
a small house surrounded by barns. Had the exterior been any other
shape he would have called it a mansion.

A
large woman in an apron bustled her way out of the kitchen. The
unfriendly gatekeeper pushed Jakob toward her and made his way out
the door again, apparently he was leaving him in her hands.

'Why
hello there dearie, how may I help you?'

Jakob
couldn't help but smile, it was nice to hear such an openly friendly
voice. 'I'm looking for Mr. Harvester, have you seen him?'

The
woman ignored his question. 'Have you had anything to eat, dear?'

Jakob
did a double take. 'I'm sorry?'

'Food.
Have you had anything to eat today?'

The
sudden mention of food elicited a groan from Jakob's stomach, he
couldn't remember the last time he had eaten. A faint pain in his
head suggested that it had been before he had got here. 'No, are you
offering?'

The
old woman tsked at him. 'We can't have you working on an empty
stomach now, can we? I'll fry something up.'

Her
friendly nature made sense, she had to know that he had already got
past the dogs and was here to work. He certainly wasn't going to pass
up a free meal given his circumstances. He felt a heavy pushing at
his legs and realised that one of the hounds had brushed right past
him, even if he had deceived them somehow, this area of the farm
remained well-protected.

She
had wandered back into the kitchen, giving him chance to take in his
surroundings a little more. Large lamps had been placed strategically
about the room, bathing the area in a yellow hue. To his right a
roaring fire led up to a chimney he must have missed on his approach.
A large shelf above it contained a number of plates and bowls,
clearly placed there for practicality rather than show.

The
smell of bacon wafted in through the archway leading to the kitchen,
he didn't know what he'd done to deserve such a wonderful breakfast
but he was more than happy to wait for it.

The
door opened once more and a man came in, wordlessly he picked two
plates off the shelf and set them down on either side of the table.

He
was an imposing figure with calloused hands and dark hair. Jakob paid
his appearance no more heed and they sat silently, not looking at
each other.

Eventually
the newcomer stopped listening to the sound of cooking and turned to
Jakob. 'Are you new here then?'

Jakob
froze. He recognised that voice. This was the man that Ella had
spoken to this morning at the Chipped Flagon, that had been pounding
on the door and suspected her of sleeping with someone. The man who
had been right to some degree but had acquiesced at Ella's
insistence. He tried not to feel guilty or exposed but couldn't stop
the rising tension that he hoped he was alone in sensing.

He
nodded silently at Solomon, hoping that he wouldn't try and make
conversation.

The
big man stuck out a hand. 'I'm Solomon, a pleasure to meet you.'

Gone
was the temperament that he had witnessed before with Ella, in its
place was a mild-mannered and friendly persona that Jakob couldn't
help but feel was totally disingenuous. He knew then, it was a gut
instinct, he wasn't going to like this man at all.

He
also knew how to keep up appearances, he shook his hand firmly and
responded in kind, two can play at lying.

'So
how did the old man get you roped into this then?' Solomon asked, as
the woman heaped a steaming fry on their plates.

'I
was trying to get work in the Flagon but he offered me this instead,
I thought I'd be more suited to it.'