The Troven (Kingdom of Denall Book 1) (38 page)

“Thank you,” Angela repeated.

“You obviously don't know what life in the barracks is like, or you wouldn't be thanking me. It is hard work. Long days and aches and pains in places you didn't know could hurt.” Then Sir Theodore looked distantly into the sky and added, “But if you survive, it is the greatest training you could ever hope to receive.” He returned his gaze to the two young students. “We leave for Norwell at first light. If you are there, we will gladly have you come with us. If not, I wish you the best in your future.” Sir Theodore then placed his right hand on Blade's right shoulder and Blade returned the sign. Then without another word he turned and left, taking with him in his wake about two thirds of the crowd that had gathered around the wagons.

“You two have raised quite a bit of excitement with your matches today,” another man was saying, as he emerged to meet Farin and Angela. “My name is Ngoo,” he said as he extended his hand.

“How can we help you?” Farin asked, getting right to the point.

“I buy goods in Lexingar and trade them mainly in Kinstock. I also make some trips to Maplewood and other smaller villages.”

“That's great,” Farin said, clearly uninterested in hearing the details of his business.

“The problem is that I need some guards for my goods. I can't promise the prestige of being in the king's guard, but I can promise that the money is much better.” With a smile that reeked of dishonesty and greed, the man quickly continued, “I'll pay you five gold pieces per successful trip to Kinstock and back. What do you say?”

“We'll need some time to think about it,” Angela said flatly. “But for now I'm going to lean toward no.”

“How about you, young man?” he said, turning to Farin.

“I'm not interested in being a body guard. But thank you for the offer.”

Ngoo turned and left briskly. Kaz heard him mutter under his breath, “Spoiled brats! I need bigger guards anyway.”

“Wow, I think we just avoided a terrible fate with that one,” Farin said to the others.

The evening continued in this same way. Offer after offer was presented to Farin. Some also included an offer for Angela, but after his display in the sword ring, and the standing ovation from the King, he had become something of a celebrity. While the crowd thronged around Farin, Kaz was able to quietly sneak past unnoticed.

Kaz was anxious to get back to Boon's wagon. He did not like to be without the Sight Stone. Kaz crept into the wagon and reached under his bedroll to find the stone he had carefully hidden. Then he checked his bow. He liked competing at archery, but he was looking forward to using his iron ash bow again.

“Are you in there?” Boon's voice came from outside the wagon.

“Yeah, I'm here,” Kaz replied, replacing his bow and stepping out of the wagon.

“I didn't get to talk with you much after the tournament. How did you think it went?”

Kaz had thought again and again about the woman he had met in Lexingar, but he realized that he really hadn't given much thought to his performance in the tournament.

“I don't know. I could have done better.”

“I agree,” Boon said, much to Kaz's surprise. “If you had shot on the first three rounds like you did in the fourth and the tie-breaker, you would have won without contest.” Boon continued in a lighter tone,“But for your first tournament, in the expert category of archery, against the best in the kingdom, I'd say you did an amazing job.” Then Boon let a smile crease his face as he brought Kaz in for a one-armed hug.

Kaz responded, smiling, “Yeah, I was pretty amazing today,” then his brow furrowed and he asked his mentor a question, “Why are there no crowds seeking my attention?”

Boon looked thoughtful. “Archery is not a high demand talent. If you can hit a man from fifty paces, that's good enough for most traveling guards, and anybody can pick up a bow and within a couple of months be good enough to do that. Also,” Boon added, “most fathers teach their sons how to use a bow from the time they learn to walk.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Kaz said with a downward glance. “I just thought that making an incredible shot like that would get me some kind of chance to get out of here.” Realizing what he had said, he looked up to Boon. “Not that it's bad here, I've learned so much, I just…”

Boon interrupted him. “I understand. The traveling and trading life is not for everyone.” Then he said in a lower tone, “There's really not much more I can teach you.”

Kaz, seeing a strange look in Boon's eyes, asked him, “What is it?”

“I had a son once. He was gifted with the bow and staff, like you. I trained him until I couldn't teach him anything more. He joined the army and went to the islands in the west to help make peace and end the foreign disputes. He didn't come home,” he paused and turned his head up to look Kaz in the eyes. “These past months I've gotten used to having you around, and I had some hope that you might want to stay, but I knew in my heart that was a selfish wish. You are destined for greatness, and I need to share you with the rest of the world.”

“Not to worry,” Kaz said, trying to lighten the mood. “I don't think the world has any desire to take me.”

“That's not entirely true,” Boon said, pointing to a distant figure standing outside the circle of wagons. Kaz was delighted to see that P was there looking right at him. When he looked at her she smiled and nodded. The way she reacted, he thought that maybe she was a visor; she seemed to see clearly that he had turned to look at her. But he didn't remember seeing a mark near her eyes. Now, as he thought back to their meeting, he hadn't noticed what mark she had.

Boon lowered his voice so that it was almost inaudible, “Kaz, I want to give you a piece of advice. There is only one job that will pay top dollar for sharp-shooting distance archers -- assassinations.” The truth of this sank in to Kaz. “If you choose to go down that road it will be difficult to come back.”

Kaz looked up to Boon. “What should I do?”

“Just be sure of your target. One shot from your bow could end the reign of a tyrannical leader, but it could also destroy a nation. Remember what you have learned.” Then he added, “If you ever get into trouble, you can always come home.” He pointed to the wagon and Kaz nodded.

“Thank you,” was all Kaz could say as he hugged his mentor, th
en he turned to meet up with P.

Chapter 37

Normally, it would be harder to see while outside the ring of wagons as the fire from within cast long shadows of darkness, and Kaz marveled yet again at the power of the Sight Stone as he was able to see the uneven ground beneath his feet without giving much thought to the darkness. When he had closed the distance between himself and P, he heeded the advice of his mentor and proceeded with caution.

“Hi, it's good to see you again.”

“That was some good advice he gave you,” she said.

Shocked by her statement, he responded with a question. “You heard what he said from that far away?”

“Yes, and it wasn't much of a challenge.” The way she said it told him she was not giving him a false sense of her abilities, nor was she bragging; just stating a fact. “So, we want you to kill a man for us. Do you have the stomach for the job or not?”

Kaz was again surprised by her forward question. He was hoping for some pleasant conversation, or at least to see that infectious smile of hers again, but instead he was being dealt a rather harsh reception.

“I'm not committing to anything until I have some information.” P waited, clearly impatient. When she did not respond he continued. “Who is the target?”

“That I will not tell you yet. I can't have you running off to warn the target.”

“All right then, what has this person done that makes him or her worthy of this end?”

“That's a great question, and one I can answer.” P looked around, then stood silently, Kaz guessed she was scanning with her ears. “Let's go sit by my fire to talk.” They walked for several hundred yards and sat down at a fire ring near some tents. The tents were in poor condition and seemed as though they would hardly provide much shelter on this early fall night. Kaz also noticed that there were no horses tied near the tents.

“You said you lived in Lexingar. Why do you have a fire?” Kaz said somewhat suspiciously.

P smiled and nodded. “Now you're starting to use your head. What else did you notice?”

Kaz, thinking that this was a test, began to look around, but he was stopped by P's hand moving over his eyes. “Not what
can
you notice, but what else
did
you notice?”

Kaz thought back through what he had seen coming up to the camp. He wished he had spent more time looking around and less time focused on looking at P.

“The tents are not fit for this weather. There are no horses nearby.”

“Good,” P said, as she uncovered his eyes. “So what do you think is happening here?”

Kaz was never good at these mind puzzles -- he would trust Bendar for this type of game.

“I don't know,” he answered, and before he could stop her, P slapped him across the face. “What was that for?”

“That was you dying. The mission we're offering to you is of great importance. Paying attention and then drawing conclusions is vital to making it work. You can't say 'I don't know' and expect to survive.” She paused for a moment, then calmly repeated her question, “What is happening here?”

Kaz, still rubbing his cheek answered, “Well, my best guess is...” His head started feeling like it was spinning as he was struck again. He thought that he had a fast hand, but P had lightning reflexes.

“Try again, and this time with confidence.”

“Either you set up this camp to secure some space so that you could beat on me, or there are some very poor people who travelled a long way with no horses.” Kaz focused on making sure that he didn't make this statement seem too much like a question.

“Please make a decision, think of all you know about me and all you have learned since you have been here. What is going on here?”

“I really don't…” he started, but then he didn't finish his thought. He took a deep breath and thought through what he knew about P. She said she lived in Lexingar, so she wouldn't need such a space to talk or meet. This meant that the tents belonged to someone else, but who? Who would set up thin tents and a fire, and then not be around enjoying the warmth of the fire? What else did he know about her? He looked around, trying to remember their conversation in town. He concentrated, thinking about everything he knew about her. She had watched the archery tournament, which meant she was probably looking for an assassin, but she had already told him that. She had chosen to follow him specifically after the tournament, which meant she needed a long range archer. After several minutes of piecing together what he knew, he spoke.

“There are people not from this area watching from the darkness over there,” Kaz pointed across the fire. “From my position here they think they are safe from being seen because eyes can't normally focus on dark and light at the same time. They are probably listeners, eavesdropping on our conversation, testing me to see if I'm the right person to kill for you.”

Smiling, P waved toward the spot where Kaz had pointed, and two men came walking over. “Well done, Kaz. Digger has a proposal for you.”

Digger, the leader of the pair, walked up to the fire and shook his head. Digger was a thin man with tight, strong muscles. He wore woven wool pants and a shirt that had been worn thin by overuse. Even before he had drawn near the light, Kaz could see his questioning look.

“Him? I thought you were bringing me a warrior.” The man continued to shake his head. “I don't need a boy; I have a village of boys. What I need is a man.”

“You also seem to have a village of men,” Kaz said, standing up, “but they haven't done you much good.” P was just as surprised as Digger by this outburst. “Why don't you explain your troubles and I'll decide if I can help.” With that Kaz sat down and waited for the others to join him.

Digger slowly and reluctantly joined him in a tight circle around the fire.

“P, I like this one,” Digger said with a smile. Then he spoke to Kaz. “We come from the village of Hess.”

“I've never heard of that place,” Kaz interrupted.

“I suspect that nobody has,” the man said with a downcast look. “Hess is an entire village that is kept secret from the king because we are a village of slaves.”

“That's impossible,” Kaz declared. “Slavery was dissolved over a hundred years ago.”

The man did not respond with words, but instead held up his left arm. It was branded with the letter O. Kaz had heard of slaves being branded like cattle to mark them as property, but he never thought he would see a person treated that way. “We
are
slaves and we are kept from the knowledge of the king, so that our master can treat us how he wants, use us how he wants, and never answer for his actions.”

“How could a thing like that be kept from the king all this time?” Kaz asked, still not completely convinced. “Why don’t you go to the king now? He’s in Lexingar. I’m sure he’d help if he knew.”

P interjected, “It’s not just a petty crook keeping them there. He has kept the entire country oblivious to the village of Hess for years. He has an appointment from the king, and the king has visited his land several times and never seen Hess.”

“Who are you talking about?” Kaz asked in frustration.

P looked at Kaz, then around the small fire for approval. “If I tell you, you’ll need to come with us. There will be no choice after that.”

Kaz sat silently for several moments not knowing how to respond.

“I want to tell you a little more about the target,” P began. “He has groups of guards, and he also has agreements with a group of outlaws.”

Kaz scrunched his brow in confusion, “That makes no sense.”

“It makes perfect sense,” Digger cut in. “His land seems to be overrun with thieves and bandits, then his soldiers come riding in to save the day. The people feel they are indebted to him for their safety, and he takes their money, takes their magical items, and keeps them living in fear of ever going exploring on his estates.”

Kaz placed his head in his hands, “Oh my goodness!” As soon as Digger explained the plot, Kaz knew it was true. And he knew who the target was. Baron Omer was the man they were speaking of. The attacks that ended Garin’s life and led to Bendar’s disappearance were all a part of a scheme to steal from those who travelled through his land and keep a slave village secret. In a moment of clarity, Kaz finally found the direction in his life that he had been seeking. Although he didn’t have all the answers, he knew what he needed to do.

“What?” P asked, leaning in close.

“I’m going with you. We’re going to bring Omer to justice.”