by Laura Marie
Suddenly the forest began to thin and the three were on the mountainside. There was a plain moorland that spread out for a few acres and then there was a cliff.
The man looked back with is bloody face and rubbed his wrist over his nose. Then he continued running, panting and wheezing aiming straight from the cliff side.
“Surrender now and I promise we will make it quick.” Darcy called after him.
“Go to hell.” The man said running up the extensive grass plain of the mountainside.
“Hurry, he is going to jump!” Darcy said as they neared the side of the mountain. The two girls ran faster and would have caught up with him in another couple of minutes, but the man had reached the side of the mountain by then and without even a second’s thought he hurled himself over the cliff.
The two girls slowed down as they reached the mountainside and looked down, panting, resting their hands on their highs and bending over to take a breath.
“He is gone.” Andrea panted.
“I wish we had gotten to him first. The Dark Lord will ask for proof.” Darcy said looking down at the rubble of stones that had gone over with the man and that she still saw falling into the valley in slow motion.
“Well he can ask all he wants but he isn’t getting any the man just jumped thousands of feet down into the valley.” Andrea said turning her back to the cliff and walking away.
“What if he insists that we give him a proof?” Darcy asked doggedly following Andrea.
“Then he can go down the cliff and have it for himself.” Andrea said cleaning her knife off of the man’s blood. She had not killed but she had evidently fatally wounded him and that was enough for her.
As the voices of the two girls went farther and farther away, the man listened with a keen ear. He was stuck like a spider to the side of the cliff, just below the mountainside. A huge protruding rock had hidden him from the eyes of the enemy when they had looked down. Besides they had not seen him because they had looked down into the valley for him not on the straight wall-like side of the valley. As the voices disappeared the man crawled up like a lizard over the side of the valley and scampered up over the cliff side from where he had jumped.
The two girls walked for a couple of miles before Darcy caught Andrea by the upper arm and hurled her towards herself so they stood face to face. Andrea looked at the other girl with irritation.
“What?” She asked irritated.
“I say we go back and check if he is really dead.” Darcy said with resolve.
“He jumped down the cliff Darce. What do you want to check now?”
“He is a bailiff of the unraveled. They are the most powerful wizards in this world. And their bailiffs are pretty skilled ones too. Besides they learn a lot of very advanced magic in the company of their masters.”
“Darce, you saw the falling stones! Nobody, neither an Unrivaled nor his bailiff can ever survive that fall.”
“Exactly my point. We saw only the rubble not the man.”
“And where do you suppose the man is?”
“Well maybe he just created a hallucination for us where we saw him jump down the cliff while he hid behind some bush nearby.”
“You want to walk five miles back uphill to check if he is not hidden under some mossy stone?” Andrea asked disgustedly.
“No. Not walk back up there. His cover was solid over there. Besides by now he would be long gone. There is only one way we can confirm this…” Darcy said giving Andrea a knowing look. Slowly Andrea nodded.
“Ok. Let’s check that on our way back,” she said and the two started walking once again.
The man was walking down the hill on the other side from where Darcy and Andrea had chased him. He was injured, hungry, on the run for days and utterly exhausted. But he had a duty to the council and each and every of its members, and he would fulfill it even if he died.
As he came over a small dune on the moorland he thought he saw something. The sun was setting over the horizon and there was only an hour or so of light left. He shaded his eyes and peered into the distance. Then he smiled. It was definitely smoke!
It had nearly grown dark by the time the man reached the cottage. He hurried over to the trough of water they kept for the horses and dipped his head into it. He drank like a dog then splashed some over his face.
“Bailiff Tobias.” Suddenly a man came out from inside the house and hurried over to him. It was Arthur.
“Rebecca. Bring some hot tea. Quickly, it's Bailiff Tobias. He is hurt.” Arthur said supporting the man and helping him to a stone bench nearby as Tobias limped along.
“Master Arturo.” He said falling at Arthur’s feet before Arthur could make him sit next to him on the bench. He sat there, his legs bent at the knee and folded under his self as he sat there in a prayer-like position. But he couldn’t hold himself upright for long and he fell forward placing his hands, palm down, flat on the ground in front of him.
“Master Arturo. You must run. They are coming!” he said panting.
“Who is coming?” Rebecca asked concerned, coming out from the cottage at that moment. She held a bowl of hot gruel in her hand. She knelt in front of Arturo, next to their visitor and handed him the bowl.
“Here, drink this! It will help you get back some strength. I will draw you a hot bath, then we all can have supper together, you can sleep in the cottage tonight, it gets pretty cold in the night, then you may go your way in the morning.”
Tobias took the gruel into his shaky hands and drank deeply. He did not stop till he had finished the whole thing. He was shaking so badly with exhaustion that he even spilled some over his chin and the front of his shirt.
“Thank you Mistress Rebecca.” He said nearly in tears. Then he turned to Arthur again. He felt weak and his limbs were turning rigid.
“You must leave tonight My Master. They will be here soon.” He wailed as his vision blurred for a second.
“Who will be here Bailiff Tobias?” Arthur asked and his face swam in front of Tobias’ eyes.
“The Dark Lord Digor and his people. They are coming to capture you and the Mistress.” Suddenly a shudder went through his body and he felt a strange chasm in his chest.
“But why do they want us?”
“For the location of the Book of The Unrivaled.” Tobias said. He was shivering now and his hands and feet felt cold and stiff. Terrible shots of pain were emanating from his joints. Had the knife with which the girl cut her been poisonous?
“But they would never be able to capture me.” Arthur was saying. His voice seemed as if it was coming from a distance. “At least not Digor’s goons. I am an Unrivaled. No one but another Unrivaled can defeat me. And that too is just a possibility.”
“You don’t…don’t… understand my Master.” Tobias said haltingly. “Digor conducted a ritual a few days back. He has created soul ties with four of his strongest wizards.”
“Oh Lord!” Arthur exclaimed.
“Yes, my Master. He has been dealing with a lot of dark undertakings lately.”
“But why his weakest four…Please go away someplace safe.”
Tobias pled on all fours. He was sure by now that he was going to die. But he did not care. He had completed his duty and he was free to go from this world.
“You know much more than we had anticipated Tobias. It’s a good thing we came back for you.”
Tobias couldn’t believe his eyes. Suddenly Arthur had transformed into Darcy. Tobias turned shakily towards Rebecca standing just behind him in time to see her transforming into Andrea.
“Where are they?” Tobias asked scathingly. Darcy held a fistful of his hair and turned his head up towards her. His neck arched so dangerously that Tobias thought it was going to be torn from his body.
“They are out hunting. But they will be home soon. So, you see Tobias, as much as I would have liked to play with you some more, I have to end your miserable life.”
Tobias barred his teeth and tried to yank his head from Darcy’s
grip.
“Sorry about the hot bath Tobias.” Rebecca said stepping forward and putting a knife to his throat. “You are gonna have to content yourself with a bloodbath.” She said and drawing the knife over his throat. Tobias fell to the ground as blood gurgled out of his veins and seeped into the ground.
Darcy stepped forward and kicked hard at his head severing it entirely from his body, then picked it up and shoved it into a cloth bag she pulled out from her side.
“Now the Lord of Dark will have his proof, what say Andrea?” she said looking at her companion.
“Let’s hurry back and find a good tavern. All this killing has made me hungry.” She said drawling as she wiped her knife over her long sleeve with utmost concentration.
Suddenly the woods behind the pharmacy, the daylight, the stranger all came back into focus. The man let go of Darcy and Andrea’s hand but stood dangerously close to them.
Darcy was so shaken she could barely stand. She was shivering and trembling and looking at the man as if she had seen a ghost. The man held her by the elbow and roughly pulled her forward. Darcy looked up into his steel grey eyes and they felt them sear her soul.
“You killed me Witch. I have not forgotten and now neither will you.” He said giving her elbow a quick jerk. Darcy shuddered like a rag doll and faltered.
“Who… are... you? And why are you here?” The man looked at her with his.
That was when Andrea said shakily.
“Actually, he is here for me. Darcy meet Dr. Tobias Coroner, my brother’s best friend and one of New York city’s best psychiatrists.
Chapter 25
When Rebecca reached Arthur’s place for the barbeque she was dead tired. She had spent a busy day, starting early, doing most of Darcy’s work, then trying to finish as many deliveries as possible. Once that was done she had spent an hour with Mrs. Lockhart in her herb garden helping her and giving her tips.
When she reached Arthur’s place the party was already in full swing. Rebecca parked her car out front then took turn around the house and went directly to the back. The back porch and the lawn were lit up. It even threw some light on the open fields just outside Arthur’s back fence and the hillside and the woods beyond.
Rebecca stopped for a few seconds, observing, before she went any further. Arthur was manning the barbecue and looked pretty comfortable with the task. An aroma of grilled meat and corn and other veggies filled the air. Darcy and Andrea sat at a table talking to a man she did not know.
Andrea seemed comfortable in his company and Darcy as usual looked skeptical. Zack stood behind a small table he had transformed into a bar, mixing drinks and talking to the other three at the table.
Rebecca turned to Arthur. He was busy flipping a stake. Rebecca found it to be a rare pleasure watching him while he was not aware of it. She admired the view of him in profile, his strong features, broad forehead, his long straight nose, his slightly wild hair curling over the column of his neck and it made her wonder if he was even real. If what she felt for him was real. Because it certainly felt like magic.
Suddenly Arthur smiled into the grill he was working and Rebecca’s surroundings melted into a haze of light and images. The scene in front of her swirled slowly and she was transformed into another time another place.
It was dawn and the sun was about to rise over the moorlands. A solitary horseman was sitting atop his horse and watching. A little ahead, halfway up the mountainside there was a small cottage. Rebecca had the feeling she knew the place, that she had been inside it, even lived there.
The horse understood its master’s wish and started trotting along, up the mountainside, towards the cottage. The rider seemed to be not really riding but leaning atop his horse as if he was tired or may be injured. Yes, he was wounded and badly, Rebecca knew it for certain in her gut.
As horse and rider reached the cottage the door opened and a girl stepped out. Rebecca saw that the girl was a splitting image or herself, only a much younger version.
The girl looked at the rider and her eyes locked with his. He was a young boy of around fifteen, but he was tall and well built. His head hung between his shoulders and there was blood fresh and dried both all over his body. Suddenly he looked up and straight into the honey colored eyes of the girl at the door. Rebecca could feel the surge of warmth that was engulfing the girl, she could feel the way she was being drawn into the folds of the rider’s aura. Her breathing had become slightly labored and she was glued to her place.
The rider looked at her with eyes that held hundreds of secrets, sorrows, pains and promises. Then he smiled. It was such a contrast to the bloody dirty face, the long unkempt hair, the injuries and the total state he was in. But it matched his beautiful warm eyes perfectly. The girl smiled back and she felt that in that smile she had given him her soul, her very essence and her being. At that moment if he had so commanded she would have followed him to eternity.
The feeling made her shudder with a sudden chill. The trust in her eyes changed slightly as they roved over his body. Torn clothes and war wounds spoke of an apparently dangerous lifestyle. The boy smiled wider and Rebecca felt a strange warmth seeping into her. She could imagine in her head a brook, warm sunlight, the woods, sweet smell of an orchard, bees buzzing and butterflies flying all around her. Mesmerized she looked at the boy. And she was sure in that moment that he was here for her.
“Rebecca!” there was a call from somewhere inside the cottage and the girl straightened with a jolt. She looked behind her with a worried glance.
“Who is it Rebecca?” the man asked.
“It’s a rider Father.” She called out. Suddenly a tall old man appeared behind her. He wore simple cloths like that of a woodcutter, but he also wore rings in both his ears, several amulets around his neck, bracelets around both wrists and rings in the fingers of both his hands.
“Baillif Dorian Doethdyns?” The rider asked the man in a weak voice. Dorian pushed aside his daughter absently and rushed forward with a worried expression.
“You must be the grandson, of the great Master Arthur.”
“Aye sir, I am honored to be.”
“You have his eyes” Dorian said with approval as he took the reins of the horse in his hands and looked up at the young man with admiration.
“I have his blood flowing through my veins, too.” He said with as much pride and strength he could muster.
“And do you have his gift?” the man challenged. Arthur gestured at Rebecca.
“Your wife died in childbirth. You named your daughter after your own mother’s memory, who also died when you were just a boy.” Arthur said tiredly. He was getting irritated at being tested like this.
“Everyone around here knows how my wife died. And no, my mother’s name was not Rebecca.”
“Never said it was.” Arthur said smiling slyly even through his blood-streaked face. Dorian glared back at him in distrust.
“Her name was Alison. She had seven children. You were her eldest and her most preferred. She used to work hard all day long. When she would get tired she would sit under that Raun tree right over there.” Arthur pointed out a tree a few feet away. His shoulders were drooping and he had no strength left to sit upright but the man was relentless. He just stared back neither agreeing nor denying.
“The day she died, she looked especially tired and beat. You wanted to go to her and help her, but your father wouldn’t allow. He had given you an especially big log to cut and you were working on it right there by the edge of the woods.” Arthur pointed away towards the periphery of the woods.
“You saw her sitting down for a nap from where you worked. When she did not move for a long time you knew something was up. So you dropped your ax and ran to her even while your father cursed at your back. When you reached her she was long gone? You cried yourself to sleep that night. When your daughter was born, you named her after the memory of your mother, after the Raun tree she was so fond of.”
“Enough!” Dorian hissed looking u
p at the young man with real distaste now. “Let's go! The council has been awaiting your arrival for months. I don’t want to keep them waiting anymore.” Dorian said and pulled at the horse’s reins.
“Wait! We are going there now?”
“Yes immediately.”
“But I thought…” Arthur began with an exhausted whisper.
“What did you think? That I will offer you a hot bath and a soft bed? What next, my daughter’s hand in marriage?” Dorian laughed derisively as he pulled the horse away from the house and back onto the hillside holding on to its reins and walking beside it.
“A warm meal wouldn’t have hurt.” Arthur said sulkily.
“Well son. You are the council’s property and the soon I take you to them the better.” Dorian said.
A little further the boy turned back to look at the cottage and saw the girl still standing in the door watching.
Chapter 26
As she came back to the present, Rebecca saw Arthur still smiling and busy with his task. She walked over to him and hugged him tightly from behind.
“You are tired Love.” Arthur said kindly. Rebecca pressed her temple harder into his back and said “hmmm”. Arthur turned around then and pulled her to him. “I am going to make it all better, afterward.” He whispered into her ear before planting a light kiss on her lips then passing her his glass of wine.
“Earlier, I was looking at you from over there and I actually thought you weren’t aware.” Rebecca said taking a sip of the wine.
“I am always aware of you Darling, wherever you go whatever you do.”
“You don’t mean that literally, do you?” Rebecca asked pulling back in surprise. But Arthur smiled back at her quizzically.
“Course I do.” He said and before the shocked Rebecca could say anything further he called the party to the table.
As they sat down to eat, Arthur introduced her to his best friend the psychiatrist from New York. She was also told by an elated Zack that Andrea regained a piece of her memory back earlier in the day when she met Tobias and actually remembered who he was.