The Destiny of Amalah (53 page)

As time went by, the four began to create tension and troubles among the guard, they were big enough create strife and mistrust among the guard, but small enough to not be taken up by Garrick and Häkan.

Kalon on the other hand, did notice, for he worked closely with the guard and they trusted him and often they would tell him things and more often he would overhear conversations.

‘I hear they talk of a higher being that showed himself to them,’ said one officer.

‘The lies they peddle know no bounds,’ his fellow officer said in disgust. ‘Second Captain Lord gave me an order and when I told him I was supposed to be on guard duty at the palace gates, he shouted me down.’

‘What did you do?’

‘I followed his orders but then I was in trouble for not being on guard duty on time. Major Thornley gave me five extra duties. I explained about second Captain Lord, who then joined the conversation but the Second Captain denied it, right while I was there.’

‘Unbelievable.’

‘That’s what Major Thornley said. I couldn’t call the Guard Commander’s son a liar but he was smirking at me as Major Thornley gave me another five for lying and grounded me to barracks.’

Kalon had heard enough, the story was all too familiar and his heart sank when he’d heard his brother’s name.

‘What have you got yourself into brother?’ Kalon asked. ‘And why?’

Kalon had noticed the changes in the Guard, there had been fights, divisions and incidences of indiscipline and he despaired, for he knew his brother and his friends who he no longer knew were at the heart of the troubles.

At first, Kalon kept quiet, he spent more time with the guard and he spent more time with Rakan, Rufus, Waldon and Kenaz. He would innocently ask questions of them and then try to verify them with others, only to find that his brother and friends were wrong, or lying to him yet again and as time went by, Kalon became more and more alarmed.

The gravity of the situation played heavily on Kalon’s mind. He was torn between his loyalties to his brother and friends, and Ellora, and the allegiances he had sworn to: the Empress, the guard and the nations but then he overheard a conversation that stopped him dead in his tracks

‘I hear they grow tired of the Empresses rule,’ he heard a Captain say.

‘I have heard those whispers too,’ an officer replied, each word assaulting Kalon’s ears as the implications of what he heard struck him like a thunder bolt.

Everything changed in that instant. Kalon knew he could no longer afford to keep what he had heard to himself but he struggled to decide who to tell and when. Kalon was now completely mistrustful of Rakan and his friends; he knew he had to be. As the days passed, he pondered back to when his brother had started to tell such falsehoods, and then a disturbing thought crossed his mind as he thought of the conversation he had had with Lieutenant Taylor two years ago. Taylor had told him that he had been in the barrack room all night and that absolutely no one had entered until the guard finished their late night duties but Rakan had never been in there. He then thought of Lieutenant’s Taylor’s complete change of mind and story and wondered what had possessed him to make a complete turnaround.

‘Could it have been Rakan?’ he asked himself aloud, as his mind raced. ‘I cannot keep this to myself,’ he said shaking his head.

If Rakan had not seen Taylor, or had been to the barrack, then where had he been on the night of Gaerwen’s death? Kalon did not want to think it but the thought entered his head anyway, despite his head and heart being under much protest.

‘Could Rakan have had something to do with Gaerwen’s death?’ he asked himself, he surely and utterly hoped not.

Kalon was deeply troubled; he could not get the situation out of his mind.

“What has become of you brother? he said to himself. ‘And what really happened to Gaerwen?” he asked softly.

He knew he had to act but was not quite sure how, and for the first time in a long time, he returned home to sleep in his own bed so that he could think and sleep on whatever had gone wrong with his brother, his friends and the guard – and to keep on eye on Rakan.

In the morning Kalon rose and ate breakfast with his father and brother, they both tried to make conversation with him but he was lost in his world. When they had finished, the three of them rode to the palace, with Kalon barely saying a word. When they arrived, Rakan went his own way and Garrick and Kalon made their way to Garrick’s office. Once inside, Garrick turned to his son and looked at him for a long while; then he turned and walked back towards the door and closed it shut before he returned to his son.

‘Kalon, what troubles you?’

‘Father?’

‘What troubles you son?’

‘How do you know?’

‘I am your father,’ Garrick said as he smiled sardonically. ‘I’ve been taking care of you since your were a baby; I know when you are troubled. You become very, very quiet and you wear the expression on your face that you are wearing now. Now, it is very subtle but I know it when I see it, so tell me – what troubles you?’

‘Rakan troubles me father,’ Kalon admitted, his face anxious as he awaited his father’s reaction

‘Go on,’ Garrick said calmly, as he stared impassively at his youngest son.

‘At first I could not place why he troubled me or what was happening but then – then things changed, but it is not just Rakan though: Waldon, Kenaz and Rufus also trouble me.’

‘Why?’

‘For a while, the four of them were inseparable, meeting all the time to the exclusion of Ellora and me. I didn’t mind so much at first but then it began to feel as though they were deliberately snubbing us. I spoke with Rakan and soon after things changed.’

‘But there is more?’

‘Yes. Much time had passed but then I noticed a change in the guard.’

‘As did I, as did Häkan,’ Garrick admitted

‘Over time discord began, soon there were tensions that were mounting. Guard members and officers alike began to openly dislike each other and the mistrust between them has been growing more and more each day. Now the guard are splintered, now there is indiscipline and fighting and the close knit bond that they had for so many years, is quickly disappearing.’ Kalon said, the strain showing on his face. ‘It gets worse father.’ Kalon said and then he hesitated.

‘Tell me.’

‘There is talk that they tire of the Empresses’ rule.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘I am Positive, I know it is difficult to believe father; I didn’t want to believe it myself but after hearing what I have heard and having witnessed Rakan lying myself, I had no choice but to believe it.’

‘I believe it too – I believe you and I feel devastated, absolutely devastated; my son has turned into a liar and god knows what else. I have been so worried.’

‘You did the right thing by coming to me Kalon,’ Garrick said reassuring his son.

‘I’m afraid that there is more. Now I am thinking about the time when Gaerwen died and I am wondering if Rakan had anything to do with her death.’

‘Why do you say that?’ Garrick asked, not hiding his shock.

‘Because after Gaerwen died – long after – I had a conversation with Lieutenant Taylor. He swore that he had been in the barrack all night and that he had not seen anyone until the end of the guard late shift.’

‘Yes that’s right.’

‘Yes but Taylor had moved to Lieutenant Lancey’s barrack the day before.’

‘If that is the case he would have seen Rakan that night.’

‘Yes he would have. I asked him repeatedly and he was certain that he had not seen anyone. Then I asked Rakan the next day and he stuck to his story and the next day Taylor changed his. I don’t know why he did –but he did. It bothered me for a while but since nothing else happened, I put it to the back of my mind. Only since I discovered Rakan’s dishonesty did I think back to Taylor and Gaerwen.’

‘Do you think Rakan killed her?’ Garrick asked, clearly overwhelmed by the new revelation regarding his son.

‘I do not know father,’ Kalon said dejectedly; ‘and perhaps we will never know but I know that things are changing and for the worst and I also know that Rakan is in the middle of it.’

‘This changes everything,’ a solemn faced Garrick told his son. ‘Indiscipline is one thing but murder…and potentially treason, if this goes on – is quite another.’

‘What do we do now father?’

‘Say nothing of this for now Kalon. I will speak with: the Empress, Michael, Häkan, Thaddeus and Raynor and see what shall be done from here on in.’ Kalon looked stung that his father was not going to include him. ‘A meeting with the six of us will not attract attention,’ said Garrick. ‘If you attended, it would and Rakan and the others would suspect.’

Kalon sighed with relief. ‘I understand father…I just thought that…’

‘I trust you Kalon,’ Garrick said, allaying his sons fears; ‘there is absolutely no doubt about that. I will keep you informed, I just can’t break protocol.’

‘‘Yes father, I understand.’

‘We will get to the bottom of this,’ Garrick promised.

‘I sincerely hope so father,’ a grim faced Kalon said, and then another thought crossed his mind. ‘Father, I know I spend most of my time here at the palace with Ellora, but I think I should move back with you and Rakan. We do not know what he is up to and I do not like the idea of you being there alone with him and that way, we can both watch him.

‘Kalon I would love to have you back home, I truly would but I have to say no. We must keep things as normal as possible for I do not want to alarm Rakan and alert him in anyway until we know exactly what is going on.’

‘But father...’

‘Kalon I will be alright, I am sure that Rakan will not harm me and I am sure that whatever he is doing, he wants to keep it a secret for now; so he will know that the last place he will engage in any wrong doings, is at the house. Kalon trust me, please.’

‘I do trust you father – with my life.’

‘Do not worry Kalon we will get to the bottom of this.’

‘I hope so,’ Kalon said despondently.

The two men went about their work and Kalon remained in the office while Garrick went in search of the Empress and his four friends; when he found them he requested their company and to meet with them in the evening, of which they all agreed. When the day came to an end, the Empress and the five men met in her study. Michael could see Garrick’s face was strained and he looked unusually anxious.

‘Garrick my friend what perturbs you?’ Michael asked with concern.

Garrick looked at everyone; thoughts of his son came flooding into his mind and a part of him felt as though he were betraying his eldest.

‘Empress, everyone; I am deeply disturbed to learn that much of the recent tension and indiscipline appears to have been caused by: Rakan, Waldon and Kenaz. It pains me deeply to have to you this.’

‘How do you know it is them?’ Thaddeus asked.

‘I have had my concerns for a while now,’ Garrick admitted; but Kalon came to me this morning. He too has been troubled by his brother’s and his friends’ behaviour. Further, he has caught them lying on occasions and he has relayed some disturbing news to me,’ Garrick said.

Garrick looked at them all for a while before he relayed to them what Kalon had told him that morning.

‘Could it be Adriel?’ Michael asked.

‘No!’ Garrick said emphatically. ‘Rakan knows of Adriel, he would never align himself to him. He knows what Adriel did to your family Michael, what he did to all of us, no, I do not think this is Adriel’s doing. Besides, Adriel has never been seen since… well since you saw him Empress and with all due respect it may not have been him.’

‘I agree with Garrick,’ Raynor said. ‘Adriel has not been seen since the end of the war and that was before you were born Empress. Then he was a very old man, he surely must have died by now.’

‘In any event,’ Garrick began; ‘Adriel was a megalomaniac. I do not think that he would take a back seat to power. I think he would want to be at the centre of it.

‘Perhaps Raynor,’ Thaddeus said. ‘But we do not know that he is dead for sure, no one ever saw him again but that maybe because he did not wish to be seen.’

‘I think it could be Adriel,’ Amara said, to the surprise of the others. ‘I also think Gaerwen knew that whatever evil my father and yourselves destroyed all those years ago, has re-emerged.’

‘Why do you say that Empress?’ Michael asked.

‘Because she was afraid of something or someone, she indicated that it may be people close to us, but I did not believe her. Gaerwen also indicated that she was afraid that times would change for the worse. She did tell me to be careful of dark magic and that if anything were to happen to her, then I should know that she loved me and that I was to trust myself.’

‘This sheds new light on things,’ Michael said quite gravely.

‘Indeed it does,’ said Häkan.

Garrick was distraught as thoughts of Kalon’s concern over Rakan and Gaerwen came to mind.

Amara looked at Garrick sympathetically. ‘I understand this must have been extremely difficult for you Garrick and I am extremely grateful that you came to us with this.’