“Knowing Noah, he’s curled up in a corner somewhere already sleeping,” Corbett told him. “Possibly out in the mews or mayhap the stable. We should check there.”
After checking and not finding him, Corbett noticed one of the horses missing.
“The horse I often let Noah ride is missing,” he pointed out. “I’m afraid he’s taken it somewhere.”
Rain pelted down as they looked out into the courtyard. A stray dog ran across the cobbled stones chasing a rodent. Lightning lit up the sky and thunder rumbled from above.
“He must have left before they closed the castle gate for the evening,” said Orrick.
“Corbett,” called out his wife, Devon, running into the stable holding her hood over her head. “Have you found Noah?”
“Nay. Not yet,” said Corbett. “We’ve been searching for him and think he’s taken the horse outside the castle walls.”
“Then we need to go after him,” said Devon, sounding frantic. “He’s afraid of thunderstorms.”
“He’ll be fine, Devon. Now please, go back to bed,” said Corbett, rubbing her back, trying to get his wife to calm down.
“Nay,” she protested, looking up into her husband’s eyes. “He’s like a son to us, Corbett. He’s only a child. We have to find him.”
“I think I might know where he went,” said Orrick. “You two go back to the keep. I’ll find Noah and bring him home.”
“Are you sure I can’t come along with you?” asked Corbett.
“Nay. I’m the one who has been ignoring the boy lately, and probably to blame for his disappearance. Let me handle this. I promise you I’ll find him.”
“Thank you,” said Devon, as Corbett put his arm around her shoulders and led her out of the barn.
Orrick quickly saddled a horse, knowing the one place the boy could be hiding. But he didn’t like the idea of riding out to the cave at night and in the middle of the storm. He looked down to his burned and bleeding hand, tearing off part of his tunic to wrap it. Mayhap the real reason he felt a little uneasy was because now that he wasn’t the Keeper of the Flame anymore, he was no longer invincible or immortal. The idea should feel good since it was what he really wanted. But the thought of the boy being the new Keeper and Orrick not knowing what the power of the flame would do to him were the most frightening thoughts of all.
Chapter 15
Hope didn’t sleep at all that night. Instead, she stayed up reading all about the Eternal Flame. Sitting in bed, she closed the book, and looked over at the nighttime candle. She’d spent the last six hours reading the book and thinking about things and yet the candle hadn’t burned out or extinguished itself at all.
Her heart about stilled as she realized just what was happening here.
Grace yawned and stretched and sat up in bed. “Good morning,” she said, sounding cheery and well-rested. “How did you sleep last night?”
“I didn’t.”
“What?”
“I didn’t sleep and neither did I need to. I stayed up reading and re-reading this book on the Eternal Flame all night long. It’s fascinating.”
“You really should have slept, Sister. I feel so refreshed today.” Grace bounded out of bed and tore open the shutter. The faint rays of the early morning sun shone in. “It’s going to be a great day.” She walked around the bed. “Come on, Hope, get up. Mayhap we can sneak back into Orrick’s chamber today.”
“There’s no need for that,” said Hope, staring into the flame.
“Why not? Don’t you want to find the Eternal Flame?”
“Grace . . . blow out the candle.”
“Which candle? This one?” she asked, pointing to the one next to the bed. “Isn’t that the one you took from Orrick’s chamber?”
“Blow it out,” she said, barely able to breathe because she knew what was going to happen.
“All right.” Grace bent down and blew on the flame and it went out.
Hope was about to let out a relieved breath when all of a sudden the flame shot back up even higher than before. Grace jumped back and held her hands to her chest. “Oh my, what happened?”
“Try it again,” said Hope, feeling anxiety course through her.
“Nay, I’m not going to get burned. You do it.”
Hope leaned over and tried over and over again, but the candle could not be extinguished. “It’s as I thought. This is the Eternal Flame.”
“This is?” Grace frowned and looked down at the candle. “But the flame isn’t very big. I thought it would be more of a raging, powerful bonfire.”
“Believe me, this is it.” Hope put down the book and swung her feet over the side of the bed. “I’ve read all about it in this book. It says the Keeper of the Flame cannot be hurt and is immortal.”
“So what?” Grace yawned. “Does that mean something?”
“Grace, last night Lord Irwin came to the room while you were sleeping.”
“He did? What did he want?”
“He wanted me. To ravish me.”
“Oh, no! What happened?”
“He punched me in the mouth and then cut open the front of my night rail, making me bleed.”
“He did?”
“Look.” Hope showed her the torn cloth.
“So, he cut you? I don’t see a mark. And your mouth looks fine as well.”
“That’s what I mean.” Hope stood up and started dressing. “I saw the cut, I felt the pain. I even saw the blood. But then it was gone and it was as if I’d never been hurt at all.”
“You’re a fast healer.” Grace began to dress.
“Not that fast. Magic is involved here.”
“Do you mean it has something to do with that candle?”
“Look,” said Hope, walking over and sticking her hand into the flame and holding it there.
“Nay!” Grace’s eyes opened wide. “Hope, you’re going to get burned! Remove your hand at once.”
“It doesn’t hurt. I can’t even feel it at all.”
“Stop it!” Grace darted across the room and pulled Hope’s hand out of the fire.
“See?” said Hope, holding up her hand and turning it to show her sister. “There isn’t even a mark. I’m not burned.”
“How can that be?” asked Grace in amazement.
“I’m invincible and immortal, Sister. By stealing fire from Orrick’s room yesterday, I somehow took the Eternal Flame.”
“So . . . what does that mean?” Grace looked at her from the corners of her eyes.
“It means I no longer have to marry that despicable man, Lord Irwin.”
“You’re going to give him the flame then, like you promised to do if you found it?” Grace asked.
“Nay. Not at all.” Hope reached out and bathed her hand in the fire, liking the power that flowed through her. She felt like nothing could bother her now. She didn’t need to fear war, weapons, and especially not Lord Irwin, ever again.
“Then you mean to keep it for yourself.” A mischievous grin lit up Grace’s face.
“That’s exactly what I mean. I always wanted to be a witch, even though I knew I didn’t have magic. But now I have it and will be more powerful than even that old sorcerer, Orrick.”
“How exciting!” squealed Grace, jumping up and down. “What is the first thing you are going to do?”
“Let me think,” Hope said, tapping her finger against her chin.
“Are you going to tell Sir Rick?”
“Nay.” She frowned and shook her head. “I don’t think he should know about it.”
“Why not?”
“I’m not sure,” she said, feeling threatened in a way just by hearing his name. “I get the feeling it would be a mistake. As a matter of fact, we can’t tell anyone about it. It’ll be our little secret. After all, now that I am invincible and will live forever, I can’t take the chance that anyone will want to steal that away from me.”
“But how will you stop Orrick from taking the flame back?” asked her sister.
“I’m going
to have to fool him,” she said, devising a plan in her head. “I will have to put the flame somewhere he will never find it.”
“But is that possible? After all, he is a wizard and will be able to scry to find it, I would think.”
“Sorcerer. He’s a sorcerer,” she told her sister. “And I plan on letting him find it – or letting him think he found it.” A grin spread across her face. “We’ve got some work to do, Grace, so I hope you are ready.”
“Oh, I’m ready,” she said, always wanting to do things she shouldn’t.
“The first thing I need to do is to hide the flame. And the best place to put it is somewhere that Orrick will never suspect.”
“Where is that?” asked Grace curiously.
Hope smiled and looked back over at the flame. “We’ll hide the Eternal Flame in plain sight.”
* * *
It was morning by the time Orrick returned to Blake Castle. He’d spent all night in the storm looking for Noah, but hadn’t been able to find the boy anywhere. He wasn’t in the cave, in town, nor was he at the church in the village.
Defeated, tired, wet, and discouraged, Orrick rode his horse over the drawbridge and into the courtyard.
“Sir Rick,” called out Corbett, rushing over the cobbled stones to meet him. Orrick was still in the form of his young self so Corbett called him Sir Rick when others were listening. “Did you find him? Where is the boy?”
“Nay, I didn’t find him. Didn’t he show up here?” asked Orrick, knowing the answer but having to ask anyway.
“Not to my knowledge,” said Corbett, shaking his head. “I’ll head to the kitchen and see if he showed up for food. Noah is always sneaking food from the cooks as they prepare the meals.”
“I’ll go with you,” offered Orrick, handing the reins of his hose to a stable boy.
“Nay, you look terrible,” said Corbett. “And that hand doesn’t look good either. Go to your chamber and I’ll send the healer up to look at it.”
“I don’t need a healer. I haven’t needed one in the past hundred years, and I don’t need one now,” he complained.
“Orrick, this is different,” said Corbett. “You’ve been immortal for the past hundred years. You’re not anymore. Now you are mortal. You need that wound looked at.”
“I’m a sorcerer. I’ve got herbs and can heal myself.”
“Then get to it. I’ll let you know if I find the boy.”
“All right, but don’t hesitate to call for me. We need to find that flame before it falls into the wrong hands or possibly hurts Noah.”
Orrick turned and headed to the keep, looking at his hand in amazement. He hadn’t had a wound in so long that he didn’t know how to react. He almost ran into Lord Irwin as the man hurried out of the great hall with his head down.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t see you,” said Orrick.
Lord Irwin looked up quickly and then back down, trying to hide his face. However, Orrick noticed that he had a split lip and his cheek was swelled.
“What the hell happened to you?” he asked with a chuckle.
“Nothing,” snapped the man. He lifted his hand to cover his mouth. “Is that mark on your arm from a bite?” asked Orrick, turning his head to see the teeth marks embedded there.
“What happened to you?” Lord Irwin asked, instead of answering.
Orrick suddenly felt self-conscious and hid his hand behind his back. He didn’t want to look weak to anyone, and certainly not in front of this imbecile. It irked him to no end that Lord Irwin would be the one marrying Hope instead of him.
“Good day,” Orrick said quickly, bolting up the stairs and making a beeline for his tower chamber. He was passing by Lady Hope’s chamber when the door opened and she and her sister walked out.
“Hope,” he said, stopping in his tracks, his heart beating faster just by looking at her. She had a glow about her today that made her seem happy. Her stance was tall and confidence filled her eyes.
“Good morning, Sir Rick.” She smiled and nodded, matching his stare instead of diverting her gaze to look away like he thought she’d do. “What happened to your hand?”
“It’s nothing,” he told her. “I just got a scratch on the practice field, that’s all.”
“That looks like more than just a scratch.” She reached out and touched his hand, lifting it up to peek under the bandage. “You’re burned as well! You need an ointment on this.”
“I’m not worried about it.” He pulled his hand away. With it went the warmth that had filled him just from her simple touch.
“Let me get some ointments and I’ll meet you up in Orrick’s chamber.”
“Nay, that’s not necessary. I’m going to be sleeping. I’ve been up all night.”
“So it seems you’re not the only one who has been up all night, Sister,” Grace mumbled.
“What do you mean?” Orrick asked her. “Were you two looking for Noah as well?”
“Noah?” asked Hope. “Nay, why would we be?”
“It seems he’s gone missing.”
“We just saw him yesterday,” said Grace, getting a nasty glance from her sister.
“Do you two know where he is? If so, you need to tell me. He might be in a lot of trouble not to mention danger.”
“Trouble?” asked Grace. “What kind of trouble?”
“What kind of danger?” added Hope.
“The boy has stolen the Eternal Flame from m – from Orrick.”
“You think Noah stole it?” asked Grace. She and her sister exchanged guarded glances.
“I don’t think so, I know it’s true. I found his wand in my room yesterday and the Eternal Flame gone.”
“What do you know about the flame?” asked Hope curiously. “Did Orrick tell you it was in his chamber?”
“Aye. Nay. I mean . . . I’m not sure. If you’ll excuse me, ladies, I need some rest. So if you find the boy, alert me right away.”
He turned and headed up the spiral staircase, feeling as if his feet were bricks. He’d forgotten how challenging it felt to be mortal again.
“We’ll do that,” Grace called out, waving at him, no doubt infatuated with him by the way she was smiling and looking at him.
Orrick opened the door to his tower room, stepped inside and closed the door behind him. There were only glowing embers on the hearth since the Eternal Flame was gone. Orrick didn’t bother to light the fire. He was so tired that all he wanted to do was sleep. He crossed the room, pulling off his wet clothes and tossing them on the floor. Clad only in his braies, he plopped down on the bed and lay back, feeling something poking him in the back. He reached behind him and pulled out the wand he’d given Noah.
“Not again,” he mumbled, feeling as if he should have known the boy would end up in here eventually. He must have returned last night while Orrick was out looking for him, and then he headed back down to the kitchen for something to eat. Running a hand over the wooden stick, Orrick’s heart went out to Noah. Perhaps if he had paid the lad more attention, he wouldn’t have run off. He missed the boy and worried for his safety.
“Oh, Noah, where are you?”
“I’m right here,” came a muffled voice from somewhere inside the room.
Orrick sat up in bed and looked around. “Noah?” he called out, swiping his hand through the air to light the fire in the hearth. The room lit up with an orange glow. “Noah, where are you?”
Two little hands came out from under the pallet, in the empty spot under the bed that was concealed by the raised wooden dais. A blond head poked out and Noah slid out to the floor.
“Noah!” cried Orrick, reaching out and pulling the boy into his arms in a big hug. “Where the hell have you been? Lord Corbett and I have been searching everywhere for you.”
“I was scared yesterday and didn’t know where to go. So I returned here and hid, waiting for you.”
“Scared? What frightened you? Was it the storm?” asked Orrick.
The boy bit his lip and shook his head.
“Was it a person who scared you? Tell me who it was so I can punish them.”
Noah shook his head again. Orrick could see the boy was too frightened to tell him, so he figured he’d try another approach.
“Were you in here playing again when I was out?”
The boy shook his head. Orrick held up the wand. Noah nodded.
“Noah, I’m sorry I haven’t been paying much attention to you lately, but I’ve had a lot on my mind. I’ve also been spending a lot of time on the practice field.”
“I don’t like that,” said the boy. “You used to be my good friend.”
“And I still am.” Orrick held Noah out at arm’s length, looking into his big, blue eyes. “Noah, I am going to ask you something and I want you to tell me the truth, all right? It is very important.”
“All right.” Noah sniffled and wiped his nose with the back of his hand.
“When you were in here playing yesterday, did you take anything from the room?”
Noah shook his head, his curly hair bouncing.
“Don’t lie to me. It’s very important that you tell me the truth.”
“I didn’t take anything,” he cried.
Orrick let out a breath, releasing the boy and walking over to the table. “Do you remember that candle I had on the table? The one I let you blow out?” He turned and faced the boy.
Noah sat on the edge of the bed wringing his hands and kicking his feet, staring down at the ground.
“Noah? I asked you a question.”
“I remember,” he said.
“Well, did you take it?”
“Nay.” Noah grabbed his wand and bolted off the bed. “Will you show me how to do a spell? I want to turn someone into a frog,” said the little boy excitedly, waving his wand around in the air.
“Noah, this is important.” Orrick reached out to still the boy’s arm, holding on to him. “I asked you what you did with the candle, now tell me.”
“You’re hurting me,” cried the boy, wiggling out of his grasp.
“I’m sorry,” said Orrick, releasing him. “I tend to forget I’m stronger in my younger form.”
“Orrick would never have hurt me! I don’t like you like this. I want my old friend back.” He turned and ran to the door.
Keeper of the Flame: Second in Command Series - Orrick Page 14