A memory of the barn and the destroyed bodies again entered his mind. He turned to Ashhur, threw back his oversized shoulders, and stared up into the deity’s eyes.
“My Grace,” he said. “I apologize, but I must ride south. I’ll catch up with you at the Wooden Bridge, and if not there, in Mordeina.”
Ashhur stared at him, and Patrick knew the god already understood his intentions.
“It will do no good,” he told him.
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that, my Grace. If you don’t have to play by the rules any longer, why should Bardiya?” Patrick grinned. “And besides, if anyone can convince someone to break a few silly rules, it’s me. I am his oldest friend, after all.”
CHAPTER 14
Manse DuTaureau was an expansive structure. Its main hall stretched for nearly a quarter mile, and at its center, crossroads split off into four separate wings. There were fifty rooms-bedrooms, common rooms, dining halls, meeting rooms, vast closets, and two libraries-all built by Ashhur himself at the request of his second child, Isabel. The east and west wings were where the family DuTaureau kept their residence, their chambers small yet stylishly furnished. The main entrance and the atrium, where the family had once spent quiet evenings, were on the southern end. That space was now used to greet the many citizens who came to pay their respects to King Benjamin, the first ruler of Paradise. The northern wing ended in what had once been a dining hall and had now been transformed into the throne room-Paradise’s seat of human power.
Ahaesarus marched through the atrium, following fast on the heels of Erstwell Karn, the man Isabel had placed in charge of repairing the hangars lining the township’s eastern road in preparation for what was to come. Crops were being pushed hard, the people using the magics Ashhur had taught them to bring corn, grain, carrots, turnips, and other assorted vegetables to seed early and often. After only a few weeks, the barns were already a third full, and the last thing anyone needed was for the structures to topple, destroying food that would be necessary for survival once Karak fell upon the area.
Erstwell had caught up with Ahaesarus outside the manse while the Warden was heading inside for a conference with King Benjamin. The man had pled with Ahaesarus to see to a rule-breaker who was stowed away inside, accused of sneaking in to visit the still-imprisoned Geris Felhorn.
“She’s down here,” Erstwell said.
They progressed down the main hall, passing two privies and the southern kitchen. Daylight filtered in through the narrow gaps between rooms, making the brilliant reds stitched into the carpets pop. The man finally stopped when they reached the central junction. He pushed open a door to his left, the wooden hinges creaking as they swiveled inward.
The room had been used for meetings; he could tell as much by the large table of polished mahogany in the center surrounded by eight chairs, and the stand showcasing a loosely rendered map of Paradise. The walls were stone, sanded down and lacquered with a yellowish gloss. It was an ugly color, one that made Ahaesarus’s legs twitch. He noticed he was not alone in that sentiment, as the girl who sat at the table seemed to be vibrating her own legs fast enough to take flight. She stared up at him with frightened blue eyes. Her hair, a satiny shade of strawberry blonde, flowed over the roughspun, brown smock she wore. She was young and quite beautiful, even with her simple attire.
Erstwell spat on the floor. “There she is,” he said. “Penelope Travers. Little harlot has a lot of nerve.”
The girl, Penelope, cast her eyes downward, ogling her own hands as they fiddled on the table.
“Leave us,” Ahaesarus said.
“What? Me?” said Erstwell.
“Yes, you. I wish to speak with the girl alone.”
“Hold on here. When I found her I was told-”
Ahaesarus glared at him, stilling his tongue.
“Yes, Master Warden,” the man said, his cheeks turning red as he backed out of the room and eased the door shut.
Taking a deep breath, Ahaesarus moved around the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down beside Penelope. He placed his hands on his legs, sitting up straight as an arrow as he faced her. Her eyes flicked shyly in his direction.
“So, Penelope is it?” he asked.
The girl nodded.
“You have been accused by Erstwell Karn of disobeying the King’s decree and placing all of Mordeina in danger, not to mention yourself, by secretly holding court with young Felhorn. What say you to these charges?” It felt so strange for him to accuse the girl of something of which he himself was guilty, and to say things like King’s decree.
Penelope shrugged. “What is there to say?” she said. She spoke timidly, barely above a whisper. “I didn’t even know there were king’s laws. I always thought we were supposed to obey Ashhur.”
“King Benjamin is Ashhur’s voice when he is absent,” Ahaesarus replied. “His decrees, and those passed down by his council, are spoken in our god’s name.”
She looked at him, eyes brimming with tears. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was breaking any rules. I was walking by the old well when I heard him crying.”
“So you decided to enter the well and give Geris Felhorn food?”
“I…well…am I in trouble?”
Be gentle. You would wish for the same. “No, Penelope. The only punishment you will be given is the knowledge that you disobeyed the will of your god.”
Those words seemed to make her relax. “Yes, I gave him food. I had just finished husking the corn for hanging when I heard him.”
“You do realize he attempted to murder our king, do you not? His mind is broken, and he is dangerous.”
“He seemed fine to me,” she said with a shrug. “Dirty and hungry and sad, but he didn’t try to hurt me.”
“Looks can be deceiving,” he said, though in truth he had noticed a change in Geris over the three months since his first visit to the old well. Ahaesarus had taken to visiting the boy almost obsessively over that time, and he did appear to be much better. However, he was Master Warden. He could not allow common citizens to take unnecessary risks. He turned his head and pulled back his golden hair, revealing the thin scar that traced his ear from lobe to tip. “If you get too close, bad things can happen.”
“He didn’t do that to me,” she replied. “I’ve hugged him every time I’ve gone down there.”
“Wait…you have seen him more than once?”
She nodded and blushed. “Yes, Master Warden. I have been going down there for…it has to be three weeks now. I even told Little Jon that I’d take over his duties, and I have.” Her blush grew deeper. “I think Geris likes me.”
Ahaesarus sat back, shocked. Jon Appleton had been assigned by Isabel to be Geris’s keeper. He had not said anything about this young thing relieving him. Then again, Jon was a devotee of spiced wine, both the making and consuming of it. It was possible he might have seen this as an opportunity to devote more time to both practices.
He slipped one leg over the other, leaned back, and rubbed his chin.
“How old are you, child?” he asked.
“Fifteen,” Penelope replied.
“Do you have children?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head vehemently. “Father says it’s past time I found a mate, and he wants me to wed Lancel Pitts. But Lancel’s stupid and ugly, and he treats me mean.”
“You find the would-be kingslayer more to your liking?” Penelope didn’t confirm his query, but she didn’t deny it. “I see.”
“Master Warden, please hear me. Geris is better now. It took a few days for him to calm himself, but now he likes speaking with me, and his touch is gentle. He’s told me stories of what it was like growing up in Safeway, in the shadow of our god’s Sanctuary. About the lordship too, and the dreams that drove him mad. It was a madness that my…Master Warden, may I speak freely?”