Seal of the King (24 page)

“Good let’s check it out. Then we can get to the east side through the forest. The tree line is a lot closer over there
, and we’ll have a much better chance of being spotted if we stay on the horses.”

They made their way into the woods
, and found a small clearing that was well hidden. After securing the horses, they grabbed their packs and weapons and headed through the trees towards the city. Once they caught a glimpse of it they forged their way through the forest and kept hidden as much as possible.

They reached the eastern side
, and moved to the edge of the trees crouching down to get a better look. From their vantage point, they could see all the way to the southern gate.

“I’ve only seen two patrols of four men each so far. What about you?” David asked Aurora
.

“Me too
, and they don’t appear to be paying close attention either.”

“I thought the same thing. They look
as if they’re going through the motions. I didn’t see them glance this way once.”

“I guess
, after all these years, they don’t think they need to worry about an attack.”

“I suppose so.” David
said, “It looks like most of the troops are inside buildings, the garrison perhaps?”

“It could be
, or they may have a good-sized force inside the council building.”

“Look over there.” David said pointing to the northeastern corner of the city.

They saw a young woman, with a bundle in her arms, slip around the corner of a building. She looked around nervously. Seeing the coast was clear, she made a dash for the trees. She was maybe a hundred feet from their position.

“I wonder what she
’s doing,” Aurora said.

“It looks like she’s trying to run away
.”

The woman had gotten about half way across the open area when
four soldiers came running out from around the corner of the building. One of them shouted at her “hey you stop! Where are you going?”

The woman turned
, and froze for a second, then realizing she was caught, took off at a sprint. The men followed quickly and were easily gaining on her. 

"So much for avoiding any contact,"
Aurora said as the two of them got to their feet.

Staying inside the trees so the men wouldn’t see them coming
, they ran as fast as possible, weaving around the dense foliage. They didn’t worry about being quiet the shouts of the men covered the sounds of snapping twigs and scraping brush. They were all shouting vile curses at the woman, and promises of unspeakable things when they caught her. Suddenly they heard a scream of unbridled terror. The sound of it seemed to pull them even faster, igniting a fire within them. Moments later they caught a glimpse of the men, and their quarry through the trees. The woman was on the ground with one man holding her hair; pulling it so savagely she had dropped her bundle. She was clutching at her head for some small relief. Another was on the ground grabbing at her legs making clear his intentions while the remaining two laughed at her torment.

They were close now
. David could see out of the corner of his eye, Aurora. She was running at full speed dodging brush and trees, pulling out her bow, and drawing an arrow with the grace of a practiced dance move. Without missing a beat, she leapt over a branch, came to a complete stop, and fired as David kept running forward. He heard the arrow fly past him seconds later followed by another. He watched as the first arrow hit the man on the ground dead center in the neck. The force, at this close range, snapped his head to the side before he toppled over. Then the second arrow caught the man pulling the woman’s hair in the chest. The evil grin still on his face, as he fell back, pulling her with him.

The other two men were momentarily stunned looking at their fallen fellows
, as David leapt into their midst. They turned to see him, a look of shock on their faces. David drove the short sword into the chest of one of them up to the hilt. Then he turned and slashed the throat of the second soldier with his dagger, so deeply, it almost severed his head. They fell to the ground with a thud.

He turned to the woman who was curled up in a ball crying on the ground
, and said, “It’s alright you’re safe now.”

She looked up at him with terror in her eyes as Aurora burst into their midst.
As her fear turned to relief, the girl started to sob.

“I thought
… they… were going to kill me… or… worse.”

David
and Aurora knelt down in front of her. Aurora, put a comforting hand on her saying, “They aren’t going to hurt you now. I’m Aurora, and this is David, please tell us what happened?”

The woman
said, “I’m June, my parents and I live on a small farm to the north. The soldiers came, and took all of the food we had, and my parents are ill. They need something to eat, or they’ll surely die. So I came here to the city, and managed to get in unnoticed. I stole some food, and was trying to escape when they spotted me.”

David got up
, and went over to the bundle on the ground, and began gathering up its spilled contents.

Aurora said to her “I don’t blame you
. That was a very brave and dangerous thing to do.”

June
said, “I didn’t have any choice. My parents won’t last much longer, I just hope I can get back in time.”

David turned to her, the bundle in one hand
, and reached out with the other hand to help her to her feet. “How far is it?”

June
said, “It’s a 2 day journey on foot. They took all our horses ages ago I had to walk the whole way.”

David turned to Aurora
, and said, “I think we can help.”

June asked “how?”

Aurora looked at her, and said, “We have an extra horse. You can take it to get home to your parents.”

David
said, “First, let me cover these men. If anyone comes looking for them, then we’ll have more time to get away from here.”

They quickly pulled the men into a thicket
and covered them with brush and branches. Anyone looking hard enough would find them, but it should buy them enough time to get away unnoticed.

As they walked back to the horses
, June told them everything she saw in the city. Many of the men were eating and drinking, and while hiding in alleyways she noticed a number of them stumbling from too much ale. David asked her about the council building, and she told them that it only had a few men out front, and did not appear to have anyone coming and going. They moved quickly through the woods, and were pleased to see the horses were undisturbed where they left them.

“How long a ride do you have?”
He asked June.

“It’s less than a day on horseback. There’s a family I should be able to reach by nightfall who are friends where I can stay tonight.” June answered
, “I can’t thank you both enough for what you’ve done for me.”

“You can thank us by
getting home safely,” Aurora said.

“I will. There aren’t any patrols this way. They always take the open roads.”

David gave her one of the spare horses thinking it would be better rested. He said to her “Be careful, and do not lose faith. Perhaps we’ll see you again someday.” He handed her some of their dried meat, and a couple of biscuits. “Here is some food to eat while you ride. You need your strength too.”

She smiled at him “I hope I do meet you both again
, and surely our Lord sent you to protect me.”

David
and Aurora gave her a smile, and Aurora said, “Now go quickly.” June turned and headed up a small trail. They stood there watching until she was out of sight.

“I guess that’s our cue. We’d better get a move on too. We need to get back to your village
before it gets dark.”

Aurora
, looking apprehensive, said, “Yes, we should get going.”

David reached out taking hold of her arm
. He gently pulled her into a hug, and said, “I’ll be with you.” She squeezed him tight.

They only allowed themselves a few moments to shut out the world
, and get lost in each other’s arms. Then they mounted their horses and set off. They moved as quickly as possible while still trying to remain inconspicuous. Once inside the cover of the forest they pushed the horses into a gallop. Soon they were on the other side of the city, and heading towards Aurora’s home. Seeing there was no one in sight they sped on their way, only stopping once to give the horses some rest. As dusk was approaching, they could see the village ahead of them. It was small, made up of a number of brick and mud homes with low roofs. There were a few barns, and what appeared to be a small square in the center with a well. They could see a number of people, horses, and their carriage out by the largest barn. Surrounded by fields with only a few clusters of trees, this place wouldn’t have been David’s choice for a secret meeting. As they approached, a few people came out to meet them, and then suddenly they saw Jotham come running from the barn waving.

Jotham shouted
, “David and Aurora, I was starting to worry about you.” Turning to the other men, as David and Aurora pulled their horses to a stop, he said, “These are the two people who saved us this morning.”

The men’s faces changed from looks of concern to happiness at the new arrivals. David
and Aurora dismounted their horses, and one of the men walked over, and said, “I’m Eustus. Jotham has told us a little about you, and we have called a meeting of the council of elders to hear what you have to say.”

David
said, “Thank you. We’re looking forward to meeting everyone.”

Aurora asked
, “Do Miles and Solidad still live here?”

Eustus answered
, “Yes they do. They are inside with the others.”

Aurora instinctively grabbed David’s hand
, and he gave hers a gentle squeeze letting her know he understood.

David
said, “Perhaps we can water the horses before we go in. They’ve been ridden hard today.”

Jotham
interjected, “Please. I’ll take care of it, and come in to join you the moment they are settled.”

David
and Aurora followed Eustus towards the barn. As they crossed the square David stopped at the well.

“Eustus, do you mind if we take a drink
, and wash our faces?” David asked.

“No, of course not
, I have been preoccupied with your arrival, and forgot my basic manners.”

“No apologies necessary,” David said with a smile. “We’re all preoccupied these days
.”

He
and Aurora knelt at the well, and scooped up water to drink and rinse the traveling dust off of their faces. The water felt refreshing. David stood enjoying the cold breeze against his wet skin, surveying the village. Suddenly something stirred in him, and he spoke “have you changed this place since the siege?”

Eustus a
sked, “What do you mean?”

David turned to look at him
, and asked “have you added buildings and plantings since the siege?”

Eustus
looked at him curiously, and said, “Yes we have, how would you know that?”

David looked
Eustus in the eyes with a penetrating stare. Eustus met his gaze with a patient calm expression.

“Eustus you are a servant
and you turned this place into a seal.”

Now Eustus was examining David, looking past his eyes
, and after a moment of silence said, “My, my, that is interesting. Yes, young man you are correct. I think there is more to you than Jotham realized. He said you did miraculous things, but there is something more, I think.”

“My father is a servant
, and our home is part of a seal. It struck me that this village is out in the open, and seemed a strange place to have secret meetings. I guess the seal protects you now, but when it was raided years ago it did not have that protection.”

Aurora took hold of David’s arm to steady herself he moved closer
and put an arm around her. He saw Eustus give her the same penetrating gaze then smiled at them knowingly, and said, “It seems there may be more to both of you. Come inside. We have some food. It isn’t much, but you must be hungry after this long day.”

“
Thank you. We would appreciate that.”

They entered the barn
, and David and Aurora were taken aback by the amount of people. It was far more than the 50 they expected. It looked as though everyone’s entire family was there, men, women, and children of all ages. Jotham had clearly convinced them all that this was a significant event.

The barn was tall
and thankfully large enough to accommodate everyone, even if the quarters were a little close. The dark-hand hewn wood had a warm feel, and the massive timbers gave the place a look of simple grandeur.

Eustus led them to the opposite side of the room where there was a table with some food set out. It was simple fare, some bread, cheese
, and a random assortment of items from a few carrots to a couple of apples. It struck David that these people had brought what little extra they had, and it wasn’t much. He felt overwhelmed with compassion for them, touched by their generosity.