“My betrothed, where have you been hiding?” Lord Irwin walked up with his two cronies on each side of him. Hope cringed inwardly to see him. “Join me for the meal.” He held out his arm and Hope had no choice but to take it. She really didn’t want to go with him but had to since he was her betrothed now, even if it was against her will.
As they sat for the meal up at the dais, Sir Rick was positioned between her and Grace, and Lord Irwin was at Hope’s other side. Lord Corbett and Lady Devon were next to Grace sitting at the center of the table.
Lord Irwin leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Have you found the Eternal Flame yet?”
“Of course not,” she snapped. “If I had, don’t you think I would have told you?”
“Lady Hope, is something upsetting you?” asked Sir Rick, glancing at her from the corners of his eyes. “You seem as if you feel shaken. Are you feeling ill?”
“It’s none of your business how she feels,” snapped Irwin. “You don’t need to concern yourself with my betrothed’s state of health or mind.”
“She is the ward of Lord Corbett and I take it as my responsibility to make certain she is happy,” explained Orrick.
“Well, she is happy, so there is no need for concern,” growled Irwin.
“Are you sure?” asked Sir Rick, taking a sip of wine. “After all, if she were my betrothed, she’d be smiling, not frowning.”
“That’s enough!” Sir Irwin stood up with his hands on the table. “I challenge you to another sword fight on the practice field, Sir Rick.”
“I gladly accept, just to shut you up and put you in your place.” Sir Rick was on his feet as well.
Lord Corbett looked over and scowled. The loud voices of both of the men had everyone looking up at the dais. The men were making spectacles of themselves. Hope had to stop this.
“Nay, please,” said Hope, trying to bring peace between them. “I am only shaken because of Orrick’s magic. It frightened me.”
“Orrick the old sorcerer?” growled Irwin, looking around. “Where is he?”
“The last I saw him, he was up in his tower chamber,” answered Hope.
“He’ll answer for this.”
“Nay, leave him out of this,” said Sir Rick. “He is old and you will not bother him. Besides, he is resting in his chamber.”
“If he upset my betrothed, then he deserves to be disturbed. I think I’ll just pay him a little visit and clear this all up right now before it goes any further.”
“Nay, he’s . . . sleeping,” said Sir Rick. “He cannot be disturbed.”
“Then I’ll wake him up.” Irwin stormed away.
“I am no longer hungry, Sir Rick,” said Hope, wanting to leave the room. “I’m going for a walk if you’d care to join me.” Hope stood up and started to leave as well.
Sir Rick’s eyes flashed from Irwin over to her and he seemed like he couldn’t make a decision.
“Aye, of course,” he said. “Just one moment.” He walked over and whispered something to Lord Corbett before coming back and holding out his arm to escort her. “Shall we, my lady?” he asked, seeming as if he were anxious to leave there.
“Slow down,” she said as Sir Rick hurried her out of the great hall so fast that she nearly tripped on her gown. “What is your rush, Sir Rick?”
“No rush.” His eyes swept back to the castle as they approached the garden. “Have a seat on this bench,” he told her, picking a flower, and handing it to her.
“Thank you,” she said with a smile, sniffing the daisy. “It is kind of you. Please, sit with me so we can talk.”
He sat down, and she decided to lean over and give him a peck on the cheek. He jerked back, seeming anxious about something.
“Is something wrong, Sir Rick?”
“Nay, not at all. I . . . I just remembered . . . I forgot something back in the keep. I have . . . a present for you.”
“You do?” she asked, excited to think he was going to give her a gift.
“I’ll be right back.” He sprang to his feet.
“I’ll come with you.” She got up, but he pushed her back down on the bench.
“Nay. Stay here. Smell the flower. I’ll be right back.”
Then he took off at a mere run for the keep, acting very odd, indeed.
* * *
Orrick ran to the keep, meeting Lord Corbett in the dark corridor behind the kitchen.
“Here is your cloak,” said Corbett, holding out the old sorcerer’s cape. “But what is this all about and why all the secrecy?”
“Lord Irwin is on his way up to the tower to confront Orrick. I need to get up there and then back out to the garden where Lady Hope awaits me before they figure out what is going on.”
“Just tell that troublesome Irwin that Orrick has gone somewhere,” suggested Corbett.
“I can’t,” said Orrick, pulling the cloak around him to hide Sir Rick’s tunic and hose. “I told him Orrick is up there sleeping. He might get suspicious if the room is empty. I don’t know what Irwin and Hope are up to or what they are capable of doing. I need to find out as much as I can.”
“So you’re going to shift back to Orrick while you’ve got Lady Hope waiting for you in the garden? You are crazy!”
“Right,” said Orrick, running up the back stairs to the second floor, hoping to get to the tower before Irwin.
“Hurry back,” called out Corbett from the bottom of the stairs. “I can’t wait to see how this plays out.”
Orrick rushed up to the second floor, seeing Lord Irwin already in front of him, heading down the corridor for the tower. There was no way he’d ever make it there before Irwin. He had to think of something fast. Looking up at a burning torch on the wall just in front of Irwin, Orrick lifted his hand and swiped it through the air. The fixture fell and almost hit Irwin on the head.
“God’s eyes!” Irwin jumped backward while several servants rushed over to help him. While he was distracted, Orrick slipped past him in the shadows and hurried ahead of him to his tower room.
He made it up the winding staircase and inside the room and had just closed the door when he heard footsteps on the stairs below him. Then Lord Irwin knocked and called out to him.
“Orrick, are you in there?” He pounded harder on the wooden door. “I need to talk with you anon.”
Orrick reached out for the door, almost forgetting he looked like Sir Rick. He caught his image in the standing mirror, letting out a deep breath as he shifted back into the form of the old sorcerer. He groaned as his bones bent and his body shrunk in size. Whiskers popped out from his face and he watched his reflection as his beard grew longer and longer. He looked down to see the skin on his hands becoming looser and wrinkling as well.
Orrick no longer liked the feeling of being old, nor did he appreciate trading his handsome appearance for this one. Still, it had to be done.
Before he could even reach for the door, it swung open. He was about to reprimand Lord Irwin for entering before being invited in, when he saw little Noah, leading him into the room.
“Noah, what are you doing?” he asked, remembering at the last minute to disguise his voice.
“Lord Irwin wanted to see you, so I let him in.”
“I can see that,” he grumbled. “Well, what do you want?” he asked the man. “I was . . . taking a nap.”
“A nap? You never take naps,” said Noah, running over to the bed and hopping atop it.
“Noah, I’m sure Lord Corbett is looking for you.”
“He’s not,” said the boy. “He’s standing in the back corridor behind the kitchen, looking up the stairs.”
“What?” asked Irwin. “Why would he be doing that when the meal is in progress?”
“He probably expected you to cause trouble when you bolted away from the dais to come up here.”
“How did you know that?” Irwin cocked his head.
“I – I’m a sorcerer. I can see things. Before they happen,” said Orrick.
“That’s wh
at I wanted to talk to you about,” said Irwin, stepping into the room. Orrick took a step in front of him to keep him from entering further.
“You don’t need to worry about me frightening Hope with my magic. I assure you I will never harm her.”
“That’s not why I came here,” said the man.
“It’s not?” Orrick wondered what the man was up to.
“Nay. I came to ask you where to find the Eternal Flame.”
“That’s what Lady Hope wanted to know as well,” said Noah, rolling around on the bed.
“I don’t know. Now, you’ll have to leave,” said Orrick, trying to push the man out the door.
“Why don’t you look into your gazing crystal and find out?” asked Noah, making Orrick want to strangle him for suggesting it. It was the last thing he’d ever do since he would never help Irwin. He just wanted the man to leave. Besides, Orrick didn’t need his crystal to find the Eternal Flame. He knew exactly where it was.
“Aye, look into your crystal,” Irwin urged him. “I’m willing to pay for the information.” He jingled a pouch at his side.
“Funny how one minute you are threatening me and the next you are asking me to do you a favor.”
“Threatening you? I never did that,” said Irwin, looking confused.
Orrick wanted to kick himself for his mistake. It was getting hard to remember which shape he was in. “You threatened Sir Rick and that is what I meant. We are close, so what you do to one of us, you do to the other.”
Noah started giggling from the bed, knowing Orrick’s secret. Orrick didn’t have time for any of this.
“Please leave, Sir Irwin, before I am forced to make you go.”
“Leave?” The man shook his head. “I am not going anywhere until you help me.”
“I’ll never help the likes of you.” With no more patience, Orrick held out his hands and lifted the man off his feet without touching him.
Irwin’s eyes popped open in surprise. He waved his arms around, trying to balance. Then Orrick dropped the man to the ground with a flick of his fingers.
“You’ll not get away with this,” snarled Irwin, turning and thankfully leaving the room. Orrick quickly shut the door behind him.
“Do that to me,” said Noah, jumping off the bed and holding out his arms. “I want to fly through the air, too.”
“Not now, Noah,” said Orrick, hurriedly shifting back into the form of Sir Rick. It took a toll on his body and made him quite tired. He might have never taken a nap before, but he could use one about right now.
“Turn back into your older self,” said the boy. “I like you better as the old Orrick.”
“Nay, not now. I have to get back to the garden where Lady Hope awaits me.” Orrick opened the door a crack and peeked out. When he was sure Irwin had left, he stepped out, making his way down the stairs. He headed out to the courtyard, feeling sick to his stomach. His body ached and he realized shifting back and forth was getting exhausting. As he approached the garden, Lady Hope jumped to her feet.
He smiled at her but she wasn’t smiling back at him for some reason. Perhaps he took too long and that made her angry.
“Hello, Lady Hope,” he said as he approached her.
“Hello, Orrick.”
He suddenly remembered he’d told her that he was bringing her back a present. He stuck his hand into his pocket, manifesting a necklace with a golden heart on it. He pulled it out of his pocket and opened his palm for her to see. “Here is your gift, as promised.”
“Oh,” she said, her eyes flashing up to his, and then back down to his hand. “It’s lovely.” Her words and actions were guarded. He wasn’t sure she liked the gift and she was doing nothing to take it from him.
“Go ahead. Take it,” he said. “Or did you want me to put it on for you? Here, let me put it around your neck.”
Instead of moving toward him, she slowly backed away. “I don’t think it would be appropriate.”
“It’s just a gift. It doesn’t mean I want to bed you.”
Her eyes opened wide and when she took a step forward, it wasn’t to hug or kiss him like he’d expected. Instead, he felt her hand hitting him across the face – but without the sting of skin on skin. He knew immediately something was wrong.
“You can tell Sir Rick that if he wants to give me a gift, not to send it with an old sorcerer.” With that, she stormed off, leaving him standing there alone.
“Sir Rick?” he said to himself, repeating her words. “Old sorcerer?” His hand flew to his face, feeling the long beard. “Bid the devil, not again!”
When he heard giggling, he spun around on his heel to see Noah hiding behind a bush, laughing at him.
“What’s so funny?” he growled, shoving the necklace back into his pocket and heading to the stable. It was time to make a visit to his secret place. At least there, he’d be able to think with a clear mind and not be distracted.
Once in the stable, Orrick quickly busied himself saddling a horse. Lord Corbett followed him in there.
“Orrick?” said Corbett, cocking his head as Orrick turned around. “What happened?” He glanced around quickly and when he was sure no one could hear them, he continued. “I thought you were going to the garden – as Sir Rick, to see Lady Hope.”
“So did I,” he spat, tightening the straps. “But it seems I am incapable of holding on to my shapeshifting form lately. I don’t know what’s happening to me. This has never happened before.”
“So, are you saying your powers are weakening?” asked Corbett.
“I don’t know. But I’m going to find out.” In his old sorcerer form, he hoisted himself up into the saddle. The leather creaked and so did his bones. Being old was starting to get on his nerves.
“Where are you going and how will you find out?”
“Don’t breathe a word of it to anyone, but I am going to check up on the Eternal Flame.”
“The Eternal Flame?” asked Corbett, a bit too loudly.
“Shhhh,” Orrick warned him, holding his finger to his lips. “No one can find out about it. It has to remain a secret.”
“I had no idea all these years you even had such a thing. Where is it?” he asked.
“It is better if even you don’t know the answer to this, Lord Corbett. You even said so yourself. The power of the flame is strong and dangerous. It’ll attract a man to it, and sometimes it plays with one’s mind.”
“What does that mean?” he asked with a chuckle.
“It means that I have held the flame for way too long. I’m afraid something is happening to me because of it, but I’m not sure what.”
“Orrick, now you’ve got me really confused. That doesn’t make any sense at all.”
“None of it makes sense,” Orrick told him, taking the reins and turning the horse around. “If it falls into the wrong hands, it could mean suffering and death for those involved, so you need to keep this a secret.”
“Suffering and death?” Corbett shook his head. “I thought you said the flame makes one immortal.”
“Aye, but only the Keeper of the Flame, and no one else.”
“Then what are you so secretive about? You are the Keeper.”
“I’m afraid the flame will be stolen, and that will mean trouble.”
“Nay.” Corbett swished his hand through the air. “Why would you even think that someone would steal it?”
“Because,” answered Orrick, becoming sullen just to think of his past. “Because I was once that person who stole the flame when it was meant to be passed on to the next Keeper.”
“So you weren’t supposed to be the Keeper of the Flame?”
“Nay.”
“Well, who was?”
“I don’t know,” Orrick answered, his heart aching to think of that day so long ago when he was pompous and thought he could conquer the world. “I never found out. As soon as I stole the flame, the previous Keeper died without relaying the names of the next Keepers to me. And because of it, I haven’t been
able to pass along the flame in over a hundred years.”
“Just choose someone and give it to them,” suggested Corbett as if the answer were just that easy.
“It doesn’t work that way,” he said sadly. “The Keeper has to possess magic and be at least ten years of age. Ten is when a sorcerer’s powers really start to emerge. Only then can they handle the energy and all that goes with being the guardian of the Eternal Flame.”
“So the Keeper needs to be a child?”
“Not necessarily. But the Keeper is supposed to hold the flame for fifty years and then pass it on to the next Keeper. Usually, a younger mind is not so selfish or pompous but, instead, clearer so it won’t misuse the power of the flame. I can prove that theory is right, since I was a grown man and turned selfish at one time and took something that did not belong to me. I have been paying for it ever since.”
“Well, good luck, my good friend,” said Corbett, slapping the horse on the hindquarters as it passed by. “I hope you figure out what to do.”
* * *
Hope hid in the shadows of the stable, having entered in secret a few minutes ago with Noah. The boy had convinced her to go riding with him to find bullfrogs. He was so sweet. She, however, was so upset with Sir Rick that she thought getting away from the castle would be a good idea.
When they got to the stable, she’d heard the old sorcerer’s voice. He was talking with Lord Corbett. She hadn’t heard their whole conversation, but it was enough to know that Orrick was the Keeper of the Flame and he was riding out now to check on it.
“Noah, we’ll go riding to look for bullfrogs at the creek at another time,” she whispered. “Go on back to the keep now.”
“But I want to go with you,” he whispered back. “And why are we whispering?”
“Because I don’t want Orrick to know that I’m about to follow him.”
“I want to go see the flame, too.”
“Nay, it’s not for children. Now, go back to the keep and don’t breathe a word of this to anyone, do you hear me?”
“Can we look for bullfrogs when you return?”
“Sure, we can. Now go.”
She sent the boy off and waited until Lord Corbett left the stable, following Orrick, before she darted out to saddle a horse. This was the information she was looking for. By a lucky break, she would now find the flame, be able to give it to Irwin, and be released from her betrothal with the awful man. And when she laid eyes on Sir Rick again, she was going to tell him exactly what she thought of him and it wasn’t going to be good.
Keeper of the Flame: Second in Command Series - Orrick Page 9