With Rayne in town alone for the first time, Rinan couldn’t help but be nervous. He had taught his son well, and knew he could handle himself, but Rinan would feel a lot better once Rayne returned.
Rinan lifted his quill, dipped it in the ink bottle next to the parchment, and started writing down his feelings. Sounds from outside the house caught his attention. Hearing the sound of hoofs on the road made him believe at first that Rayne had returned, but the sounds were not quite right. They were too fast for a horse pulling a cart, and then Rinan realized he was hearing more than one horse.
His pulse quickened as he stood up from the table and hopped over to the window. What he saw made a shiver run down his spine—three guardians were dismounting from their horses. Taking a few more hops over to the front door, Rinan grabbed his sword and removed it from its scabbard.
Opening the door, Rinan faced the three younger men, each with swords drawn. He thought he saw surprise on their faces when they saw that he was armed. The surprise didn’t last long before the guardian in the middle motioned to the other two and ordered, “Get him!”
***
Rayne awoke to see Snapdragon standing over him, eyeing him intently. This was disconcerting, since it took Rayne a moment to remember where he was and why there was a young man in his room.
“Ah, you are awake.” Snapdragon smiled. “Mom said breakfast was about ready and wanted you to have some before you left.”
Propping himself up on his elbows, Rayne said, “That’s very kind of her.”
He noticed shafts of light shining through the window across the room, and realized that for the first time in recent memory, the sun had risen before he had. He sat up from the pallet they had made for him and reached for his boots. “I slept longer than I intended.”
“Maybe if you hadn’t been up so late with Shiny, you wouldn’t have been so tired,” Snapdragon said, a smirk playing across his face.
Rayne laced up his boots. “It wasn’t that late, was it? I mean, we were just talking.”
“Uh-huh, sure,” said the younger boy. He wrapped his arms around himself and made kissing noises.
Rayne stood up to take a playful swipe at Snapdragon, but the boy dodged out of the way and ran from the room. “We did nothing of the sort!” Rayne called out, following him. “Your sister and I were only…”
Stopping in his tracks, Rayne saw that the rest of the family was around the table, looking at him.
Iolanthe stood and put her hands on her hips. “You and my daughter were only doing what?”
Rayne’s eyes opened wider, and he could feel his face start to turn red. He looked at Sunshine, who had a mischievous grin on her face. “We were only talking,” he said somewhat timidly.
“You should have at least tried to get a kiss out of her,” her father said. “She could use a good kissing.”
Oakleaf and Snapdragon broke out in laughter. Iolanthe picked up a muffin and threw it at her husband, while Sunshine looked embarrassed for the first time since Rayne had met her.
“What?” Garth said. “Her best friends are books. It’s nice to see her spend some time with something other than words on paper.”
***
After a wonderful breakfast with Sunshine’s family, Rayne thanked them again for all they had done. He followed Garth out to the back of the house, where his horse had been tied up for the night.
“My sons took care of your horse and cart this morning,” Garth said. “You should be set for the trip home.”
Rayne checked the horse’s harness and was satisfied that the cart had been securely attached. “It was wonderful to meet you and your family,” he said as he guided his horse around the house.
“It was, wasn’t it?” Garth smiled.
When they arrived at the front of the house, Rayne saw Sunshine at the door, holding a wicker basket in her hands. Garth took Rayne by the arm and said, “Watch out for the guardians on the way home. They can be dangerous.” He patted Rayne on the back, and then went inside the house.
Sunshine walked up, holding her basket out in front of her. “We’ve packed you a lunch for your trip.”
Taking it, Rayne said, “Thank you very much.”
They stood there awkwardly for a moment before he said, “If I decide to go to the Mortentaun, maybe I’ll see you. I guess you’ll watch your brother compete.”
Sunshine looked thoughtful for a moment. “Well, I wasn’t looking forward to it, but I am now.” She took a quick step forward and kissed Rayne on the cheek. He took a step back and noticed her smile. Over her shoulder, he saw her mother and two brothers standing just inside the house, each with his jaw dropped. Her father, however, was smiling as broadly as Sunshine.
***
Driving home, Rayne couldn’t stop thinking about Sunshine. Her smile and dark brown eyes were simply intoxicating. Maybe he would consider going to the Mortentaun if for no other reason than to see her again. Even better, perhaps they could squeeze out a few more crops to sell before the winter so he could go back and see her sooner than next spring.
He was still musing over excuses to go back to town when he arrived at Dulcie’s house. Even though he had left late from town and was anxious to get home to check on his father, he decided to stop by and say hello.
“Rayne! It is you!” Dulcie greeted him warmly. “How was your trip into town?”
After getting down from the cart, Rayne walked over and gave the elderly lady a big hug. “It was…eventful.”
“Oh? How so?”
Rayne thought for a moment about how much he should tell her. Maybe it would be best if she didn’t know that he’d had a run-in with the guardians, so he answered cryptically, “I met some interesting people.”
“Hold that thought a moment,” Dulcie said. “I have something for you.” She went back inside her house and returned holding a pie. “I baked this for you and your father. There’s probably enough for your visitors.”
A shiver went down Rayne’s spine. “What visitors, Dulcie?”
“Oh, three guardians came by here a couple of hours ago, asking about you,” the elderly lady said. “I thought you may have already been by, so I told them how to get to your farm. That is, of course, if you live at the farm George used to own before he died.”
Rayne felt a sense of dread wash over him. On one of his visits to see his grandmother and grandfather, they had mentioned something about a cousin George and how he had owned the farm before his father took it over. “I must be off, Dulcie. Thanks again for the pie. Be well.” With that, he urged on his horse to hurry home.
***
Pushing the horse to go as fast as he dared, Rayne wondered what action he would take after he arrived at the farm. What would the guardians do once they found he wasn’t there? Would they be waiting for him? What would they do to his father?
He knew his father could take care of himself, but a broken ankle would make things difficult. He tried not to panic. He needed to stay focused and keep paying attention to where he was going. The guardians could be waiting for him at any point along the road.
Rayne picked up the trail left by the guardians’ horses once he left the main road that was just beyond the lake. He slowed as he came closer to his home. When the log cabin finally came into view, Rayne noticed three horses roaming free and eating the grass around the farm. There was no other sign of the guardians.
Rayne brought the horse to a stop, then reached back into the cart and grabbed the wooden staff he had used the day before. Then he stepped down from the cart and took some tentative steps toward the house.
The front door was wide open. Gripping the staff tighter, Rayne sneaked forward, his heart pounding heavily and his eyes scanning the area. He stopped when he saw a body lying on the floor in a pool of blood just inside the house.
CHAPTER 13
At first, Rayne couldn’t make out whose body was lying on the floor inside the house. As he crept closer, his eyes started to adjust to the light, and he noti
ced the body was wearing a uniform.
He stepped up on the porch and cautiously looked inside. The scene before him made his blood turn ice cold. Aside from the body he had already noticed, there were two more guardians sprawled on the floor, each lifeless. At the table in the center of the room sat his father, hunched over with his back to the door.
Rayne rushed to his father’s side, stepping over the bodies of the fallen guardians in the process. He reached out tentatively, but stopped short when he realized his father wasn’t breathing. Feeling the strength leave his legs, Rayne grabbed a chair and sat down.
From his current angle, he could verify that these were the same guardians he had encountered in Lewyol. Each sported many wounds, several of which were definitely fatal. Looking back and forth between the twins, Rayne grimaced when he realized their wounds made it impossible to tell which of them had a scar before the battle.
Satisfied that none of the guardians posed a threat, Rayne turned his attention to his father. Rinan’s head lay on the table, one arm wrapped around his middle, the other hand still holding a quill and resting on a parchment.
Rayne slid the parchment from under his father’s hand and read what he had written. The top part of the page was in his father’s practiced handwriting.
My son has been gone from me today. I didn’t realize how much I would miss him when he left, but it is something I need to learn to accept. I have done my best to teach him to be a good person. I want nothing more than for him to become the guardian I could not be—to serve the people and make Bariwon a better place. It is my hope that he never backs down from what is right, even when that is the hard decision to make. Perhaps one day, I’ll be able to tell him more of my past. I wish I hadn’t …
The entry ended there. Further down on the page were more words, except there were splotches of blood next to the letters.
They found me. I don’t know how. Rayne, if you read this, burn the farm. Go to my parents. Become a guardian. Don’t tell anyone who your father was. I love you, my son.
The words on the page became blurry as Rayne blinked away the tears in his eyes.
***
The first thing Rayne did was to bury his father in an alcove of trees where they would go to spar, have picnics, or just to talk. It was one of Rayne’s favorite places, and it was far enough from the farm that he thought his father’s grave would go undisturbed.
After that, Rayne went back to the farm and packed up the few possessions he thought his father would want him to keep. There was his father’s copy of the Tome of Laws—it was the only book they owned, and his father had used it to teach him to read. There was also Rayne’s few belongings, like clothes and a bow and quiver with several arrows he and his father had made. Lastly, Rayne wondered what to do about his father’s sword. It had always been hung on the back of the front door, and aside from the Tome of Laws, it was the only item his father had kept from his days as a guardian.
Rayne had found the sword propped up against the table by his deceased father. After cleaning off the blood, Rayne returned the sword to its sheath, and in the process, noticed an engraved crest on the blade just above the hilt. He had seen this symbol before in Lewyol, and if he recalled correctly, it was the crest of the royalty. In addition, there were two engraved swords crossed just below the crest, with the letters “PGPE” followed by a date.
Rayne didn’t know the meaning of the symbol or of the letters, but he did understand that the sword meant a great deal to his father. He imagined his father would want him to keep it.
He visited his father’s grave one last time. Standing over the gravesite, Rayne couldn’t help but wonder why his father didn’t want anyone to know who he was. He loved his father very much, and although they didn’t always see eye to eye, Rayne respected him. He couldn’t possibly imagine what his father had done to cause himself such shame.
Perhaps his grandparents knew. Maybe they could explain why his father thought the guardians were after him. He knew his father had been a guardian many years ago, but his father didn’t speak much about it, aside from a few occasions while he was training Rayne to fight.
Rayne scattered dry hay all over the inside of the house, making sure he covered the bodies of the dead guardians. Using flint and steel, he lit the home on fire. He watched long enough to make sure the whole house would be consumed, then climbed aboard the cart and turned the horse toward his grandparents’ home.
***
Alana didn’t really care if she got lost—part of her was actually hoping she would. Wandering through the governor’s garden in Lewyol was one of her favorite activities. She took every opportunity to leave the castle and come here, so when her husband said he needed to visit Governor Eadward, Alana jumped at the chance to go with him. For her, spending time in the garden was much more than a physical experience—it was an emotional one. It allowed her to think and reflect without the constant distractions at the castle.
The leaves on the trees showed signs of autumn. Some trees seemed to be fighting the changing of the season by remaining green, while others appeared to have embraced it by turning various shades of orange and red.
Strolling around the corner of a hedge, Alana came upon an older man on his hands and knees. “Garth, what are you doing down there, old friend?”
The gray-haired gardener finished removing some weeds that were growing in a flower bed of yellow roses before he looked up. “Ah, Lady Alana. Looking to get lost again?”
She smiled. “Something like that. It gives me an excuse to stay here longer.”
Garth stood and wiped the dirt from his hands on his apron. “You’ve been getting lost here for years. Considering how many times you’ve visited, that is quite the achievement.”
Alana bent down to smell the roses. “Yes. I remember the first time I came here many years ago. I started wandering and found a beautiful spot where I sat and admired the garden. It was only after you brought my parents that I heard someone use the word ‘lost.’ I thought that was funny, because I didn’t feel lost. So, if coming here to relax and enjoy this wonderful garden means to get lost, then yes, that is my intention.”
“Who got lost?” asked a voice behind Alana.
She turned to see Garth’s daughter, Sunshine, standing in the path behind her, holding several books in her arms.
“No one yet, but Lady Alana hopes to soon,” Garth said.
Sunshine nodded her head. “A noble goal.”
“It’s good to see you again, Sunshine,” Alana said. “I see that at least someone is making good use of the governor’s library.”
Glancing down at the books, Sunshine said, “Yes, we tend to keep each other company.”
“With all the reading you do, you probably know more than most of the new savants we have at the castle,” Alana said. “If you ever need more books to read, let me know and I’m sure I could get you some from the castle library.”
Sunshine’s eyes lit up. “You could?”
“Oh, yes. I’m sure the books from the castle would enjoy the company too.”
“That’s very kind of you, Lady Alana,” Garth said.
Alana shrugged off the compliment. “Think nothing of it. As a noble, I have the right to take any book I want, and many of them are just collecting dust. I would love to see them be put to good use.”
“Alana! Alana!” shouted someone from the other end of the garden.
“It’s my husband,” Alana said, her shoulders slumping a little.
Garth started walking toward the sound. “Don’t worry. I’ll help your husband look for you. However, it may take us a while, since you are lost in the garden. The last place I’d think to look is the southwest corner.”
Alana reached out and squeezed Garth’s arm. “Thank you,” she said before she headed southwest.
***
In the storage room, Bertram sat on top of a rolled-up tapestry, holding a glass object in his hand and peering at it curiously.
“What
did you call it again?” Priest Sherwyn asked.
“A prism,” the savant answered.
Sherwyn rubbed his hand over his bald head. “A prison? What could you keep locked in something so tiny?”
The savant chuckled. “No, not ‘prison.’ It’s a ‘prism,’ with an ‘m’ at the end. But you are right in one regard—it does keep something inside it.”
“Oh?”
Bertram stood and walked over to a narrow beam of light shining down through a lattice that covered one of the upper windows. Extending a hand, he held the prism out so the light hit one side of the pyramid-shaped glass. The result made Sherwyn gasp.
On the opposite wall shone a light pattern of various hues. “A rainbow!” Sherwyn said, astonished. “This prism holds a rainbow? How is that possible?”
“I’m not sure. When I found it, there was a note that simply said, ‘Hold this prism up to a beam of light to display the rainbow.’ I’m guessing that is why they put the lattice on that window above, to produce the right light. It’s one of many mysteries I’ve run across here in this room.”
Sherwyn walked over to the light pattern and examined it closer. “If I recall, Magistrate Seanan told me you started coming here many years ago looking for something dealing with the Tome of Laws.”
“Yes. I never found an answer to that puzzle, but with all the things here to explore and with all my many duties, there are still a number of areas I’ve not searched.”
The Hidden Sun (Bariwon Chronicles Book 1) Page 14