“I suppose that makes sense. Perhaps if you want something you couldn’t have on earth you could hope to gain it in the heavens,” Brehan stated. “That’s a lot to hope for. I’ve been hoping my life will change since I was just a little girl. Yet here I lie, legs spread for any man who can get his filthy hands on some gold or silver. How’s that for hope?” she rhetorically asked. “What did you hope for?” Brehan wanted to know.
“I wanted to be a singer, how foolish was I?” said Dacoda, as she shyly smiled, looking away. “Let me hear something,” Brehan requested.
The whore stood up, gathered herself and began.
The rains—they came on darkest days,
Danger lurked—and clouds were grayed,
Then came a knight of such strong will,
He rescued Princess Ferah from the dragon’s sill,
He took her home—to castle and king,
Forever days—Sir Brehan’s song we sing.
She only sang a small portion of the song, but Brehan was shocked. She sounded magnificent and added a nice touch replacing Sir Perigord in the last line to please her audience. Brehan had heard many singers through the years but Dacoda was by far the best. “That was amazing. What are you doing on this island?” he asked. “Dunno, maybe I’ll just hope to get off the island,” Dacoda mocked, shrugging her shoulders.
A hard knock at the door startled Brehan. He heard Kopar, “Let’s go already. What are you, a stud horse?” The nude minx gave Brehan a hug and said, “I’ll tell everyone you were the best lover I’ve ever had.” She gave him a warm, wet kiss on the neck. Brehan grabbed his shirt and treasure sack. He threw ten gold rounds to Dacoda. She said, “This is too much.” “Keep it. It’s well worth the cost. I may need your services again and I don’t like to wait,” he smiled. “You can have my services any time, Sir Brehan.”
He opened the door and Kopar was outside, bouncing around with excitement. “Feels good, right?” his albino friend asked. “Now you can thank me for tricking you.” Kopar wore long pants and his buttoned shirt covered up to his face to avoid his ghostly skin from getting burnt. Brehan felt bad that the sun would cook his friend’s skin when exposed for only a short time. Brehan thought it was quite an unfortunate problem for a pirateer. Kopar and Brehan were on the extreme ends of the skin color spectrum from ivory to ebony. The sun never bothered Brehan.
“We gotta go talk to Sea Wolf now,” Kopar told Brehan. His friend took him to a place on the island far away from the horseshoe town. They trudged through hot, open sand, and sweat began to roll down Brehan’s face and neck. There were no clouds to shield the sun, causing Brehan to shade his eyes to see through the haze. He located Sea Wolf, Gator and Rando sitting under a coconut tree up ahead.
“Brothers,” Sea Wolf greeted. “It’s time to talk about this heist. Let me reiterate that if anyone should like to break this trust and leak information, then they shall leak as well. I won’t make it pretty either.” Sea Wolf had a strange intimidation about him. His brown eyes were so dark they almost matched his pupils and provided a piercing look as he stared at Brehan. Sweat glistened on his tanned bald head and dammed above his black eyebrows, ready to burst. His continued talking in his rough, scratchy voice, “This job will need twenty men to carry all the treasure involved. I don’t expect that everyone will survive. This involves great danger but the payout will be outrageous. These bankers have an outpost about a half-mile inland. They have been in service long enough to become complacent about certain security measures. The bankers lend to merchants out of a little cabin only guarded by thirty men at most. On the ides of each month they restock the inventory. We go in looking for a loan but we’re leaving with everything. Two men will go in and six others will take care of the guards. I am still waiting for the detailed map of the landscape to find the best spots to infiltrate.”
Brehan had always heard pirateers were vile imbeciles who muscled their way into money and goods. Sea Wolf sounded like Duke Colbert when he laid out battle plans. Brehan had always felt safe in Duke Colbert’s hands and liked the meticulous nature of Sea Wolf.
The Captain continued, “Rando and I will be inside, we first kill the bankers and scream the signal words. Then, we rush outside to finish off the guards and grab the bounty. Men will be stationed above the cabin on the highland to sweep down on the guards. Eighteen pirateers can defeat up to forty guards if need be. The chances of dying will be great. If that scares you, walk away now.” He paused for a moment but no man batted a single eyelash. “Two men will wait at the boat to make sure we still have our getaway. If the numbers are correct this will be the heist of a lifetime. We’ll talk tomorrow in more detail, and don’t forget, keep your flaps shut on this,” Sea Wolf warned.
“Alright, let’s get drunk,” Kopar exclaimed. The two friends walked back into town. Brehan still had a huge bag of gold compared to Kopar’s but he was tiring of carrying the coin everywhere. He carried it in his right hand because his other shoulder couldn’t handle the weight of the coin bag. He had regained a good bit of strength in the shoulder but direct prolonged pressure still showed some healing needed to take place. The pus from the sword wound had finally stopped with the help of leeches. Brehan anticipated his body would be fully ready by the time the ship landed for the mission. His mind wouldn’t let him forget about the Colberts and he often thought about his former family.
They got to the tavern and Kopar quickly got drunk. Unlike almost all the pirateers, Brehan tried to pace himself. The pirateers usually started by drinking heavily and kept going at that speed until they passed out. Some would pass out sitting up or fall over while standing with drink still in hand. Brehan had saved Kopar’s gold several times from unscrupulous pirateers who would have taken advantage of his fallen brother.
The pirateers in the tavern seemed rowdier than usual on this early eve. Brehan sat with Rando, Kopar, Jack Straw and Lighthouse.
Jack Straw was a thin, dark man and Lighthouse was a pale, tower-like person with bright red hair accented by freckles. They were better representatives of the bulk of the pirateers than Kopar, Sea Wolf and even Rando to some degree. After hours of drinking, Jack Straw and Lighthouse had ale and red wine soaking their sleeveless white shirts. Thirty pirateers were crowded into the tiny tavern along with a few off-duty whores and workers. Brehan drank the strong wine and began to feel the effects.
“I’m gonna buy me a hundred whores and a hundred barrels. First day,” Jack Straw bragged. All men at the table were going with Sea Wolf for the heist. “Have ye whores and wine. I’m gettin’ an army. I’ll take ye whores and wine. Ha, ha,” laughed Lighthouse.
“Let’s sing a fuckin’ song,” slurred Rando. He stood up and screamed over the raucous voices in the tavern to get everyone’s attention before starting. The crowd still wasn’t silent but he yelled over the men.
“I put me cock up on her toe—that ho…”
“That ho,” the rest of the pirateers finished the line.
Rando continued, “She said, get in get out, quit fucking about, that ho, that ho, that ho.
I put me cock up on her knee—that ho...”
“That ho,” the rest of the men were into the song now as they shouted.
Rando came back in, “Get in get out, quit fucking about, that ho, that ho, that ho.
I put me cock up on her thigh—that ho.”
“That ho.” the pirateers exploded in unison.
Rando bellowed, “She said get out, too much fucking about, too slow, too slow...”
“Too slow,” the pirateers screamed.
The men smiled and laughed, chugging their respective drinks after clanging cups with each other. Brehan enjoyed this aspect of the pirateer life. The definitive brotherhood matched that of inland knights but also suffered the same pitfalls like jealousy and dishonor.
“What’s a ho?” Brehan asked Kopar. “Short for whore,” his friend stated with his left eye almost completely shut and the other not far behind. Brehan knew he had
to watch Kopar for the rest of the night.
Most of the men in the tavern were belligerently screaming at each other and tempers started flaring from the gallons of drink. Unavoidably, enormous yet foolhardy pride took over. Lighthouse screamed at men sitting at the next table, “I’ve dropped shits bigger than the little monkey here. Tell ye mate to shut his yap or stand up.”
The smaller pirateer remained silent and seated but was immediately attacked by the diving Lighthouse. The giant man leapt from his chair and landed on the little man, taking him to the ground. Lighthouse landed a crushing closed fist to the pirateer’s left cheek. Ten pirateers jumped in to break it up but not before the smaller pirateer let out a painful yelp and grabbed the side of his head. Lighthouse turned back to the table and spit almost half of the pirateer’s ear on the wooden top next to Kopar’s ale. Blood surrounded the big man’s mouth as he screamed, “Where’s me fuckin’ drink? I gotta get the taste of craven blood outta me mouth. Ha, ha, ha.” Lighthouse laughed.
Brehan had seen Lighthouse attack five other pirateers in the last fortnight. The man was volatile, to say the least, but Brehan never felt in danger around the big man. Kopar had gotten so drunk Brehan carried him back to his room, threw him in bed and retreated to his own.
Elisa dominated his thoughts again. Brehan remembered sneaking back into Burkeville to see her. He thought about the times he had tried to teach Elisa how to use a sword and longbow. She had handled herself pretty well with the weapons. He wondered if she was sitting on the throne yet. Their plan seemed to be so close before the ambush. Elisa was supposed to become queen and take Brehan as her king until that fateful day on the Royal Road. His mind shifted to thoughts about the Colberts. He reminisced about the days when the family went swimming down at the river.
The next day, Brehan and Kopar went to the opposite side of the island from the day before. The meeting with Sea Wolf, Rando, Gator, Kopar and Brehan took place under a few palm trees.
Sea Wolf spoke, “We have our map,” he held up a rolled piece of vellum. “Now let’s figure this out.” He unrolled the map and laid it on the sand as the men crowded around. Brehan looked at the top of the map labelled Lightview Coast.
JON
Jon sat at the circular table in the family dining room. He bit into a piece of hollowed-out manchet, stuffed with pig liver, gravy and bacon. Ruxin and his wife sat on either side of the table and smiled at each other like young lovers tend to do. Their playfulness left a sweet and sour flavor in Jon’s mouth. He couldn’t be happier for his son, but they reminded Jon of the loss of his wife. He shooed away a fly to his left and there she stood again. Jon Colbert’s beautiful bride graced the corner of the room in her wedding dress. She stood below the golden bull statue on the wall and smiled at Jon. Tears formed as he got up and reached out to touch Camelle but the image dissolved. Jon rubbed his eyes and opened them to realize it had happened again. He tried to play it off as he sat back down but could see worried looks on the others’ faces.
The Colberts finished breaking their fast and went to the inner courtyard to talk with Ordrid and Count Sproul. The four men sat around a rectangular stone table. Count Sproul began, “Have you heard the news from the Capitol, my Duke?” “I am sure there are many words I haven’t heard, but what specifically do you have to tell?” Jon asked, knowing the news was important from the troubled look on the count’s wrinkled face.
“King Ali-Ster Wamhoff is dead. Quite a harrowing hunting expedition if we are to believe our new King. Ali-Tersen, as he will now be known,” the count reported, holding a rolled letter in his left hand. Jon spoke, “He’s the man who called for my head to weaken Mattingly so Fox Chapel could put the fear of the Gods in us. He is a snake from all I have heard. What would you expect from an albino? They are always evil in the stories and songs.” Count Sproul shook a different letter in his right hand and spoke, “Yes, it’s certain the new King’s reputation isn’t favorable; however, it is about to get worse. A second letter arrived from House Cuthbart in Fox Woods. The letter is from Kryen Wamhoff, son of Ryen, who writes that he narrowly escaped an elaborate ambush. King Ali-Tersen set up the entire hunt and used his guards to eliminate the two men who stood in his way to the throne. The claim of a wild animal attack is also rejected by the only survivor of another apparent Wamhoff ambush. Kryen said they were so focused on killing Ali-Ster and Ryen, he was only grazed over the shoulder by one arrow. He tracked down a horse that had bolted during the killings. The young Wamhoff made it all the way to Castle Cuthbart and young High Lord Harolg took sympathy on the boy.”
Jon shook his head, “The kingdom finally had a chance and real hope lasted only two breaths.” Ordrid clarified, “Thirty-six days to be exact. You are a lucky one, brother, to be released in his short time as ruler. They say five of the seven crowns hadn’t even been resized for Ali-Ster. I would ask if we can trust the new King, but we already know we can’t. What to do?”
“It’s high time we unleashed misery on the Wamhoffs. Give them the same heartache they have dealt to everyone else and now even their own. We need to wipe their name away from Donegal,” a fiery Ruxin stated. The count spoke with patience, “Our early ravens have also told us most of the Wamhoffs fled the Capitol after this letter from Kryen Wamhoff had been widely circulated. Even Ali-Tersen’s family in Cloverfoot is avoiding the move to the Capitol. The rest of the Wamhoffs have scattered in every direction except south. The man has no military background but seems well versed in the art of treachery. No one opposed his claim to the throne and he quickly snatched the bloody crown. We must be wary of this wily King.”
“We need to march on this weak King, now,” Ruxin insisted, slamming his fist on the table. Jon remembered being a spirited youth and his uncle Jasine had to calm him down on several occasions. Even though Ruxin didn’t carry his father’s physical looks, the fifteen-year-old had the desire and will of the man called the Golden Bull. “Relax for just a moment, my boy. You’ve never spent three months in a pitch-black cell, licking water off the stone walls to survive. I have, and I never want that to happen to any man loyal to our cause. There are many matters we must think about before simply rushing up to Falconhurst, beating our chests. Another trap is sure to be set. We may have to move on this false King, but I will send scouts to find the truth and report back. We can’t risk another ambush and we certainly can’t embarrass uncle Hambone,” Jon smiled at his son to break the tension. Ruxin didn’t smile and retorted, “The new King plots our death, and we send scouts?” “I appreciate your enthusiasm, it takes me back to my days as a teenager, but we are not prepared at the moment. You will need to round up all those loyal to our banners and bring them to Riverfront. Then we can discuss the matter in real terms. I have the thinkers focusing on siege weapons so you will need to go over to the Tower and gather all the new weapons. Ask Tormel about the river bridges, as well. And we can’t forget about the incendiaries too. We cannot move on the castle without them so you have to talk to the pyromancers. If you do all this, that will give us the viable option to move. Until then it’s only talk,” Jon told his son.
“Well, you see, my Duke, as per the letter, the King also ordered all the Dukes to the Capitol so they can pledge their undying fealty,” the count said. “He’s mad to even entertain the thought I will come up the Royal Road with less than fifty thousand men at arms this time. I blinked once with the last king and it cost me everything,” Jon replied.
The more thought Jon gave to the matter, the more he realized that war seemed imminent. How can I support a man who killed his brother and nephews to wear a tainted crown? I need to make this a safe kingdom for my son and his child. The realm has suffered enough and Ali-Ster was the last Wamhoff hope. My young, eager son may be correct on the matter. We better not wait for the King to get garrisoned.
The meeting ended and Jon went for a walk with Jasper. He took the bulldog down to the river. Jon went to a special spot the family used to frequent. Short, sweet smelling grass ne
ar the river reminded Jon of all the times he and Camelle had come here to escape the trials of ruling a region and family. He sat down next to a small patch of orange fire sunflowers and a few petals blew away in the breeze. Jasper tried to catch them in his mouth but they fluttered out of his reach, so he returned to lick Jon’s face. The dog nestled up to the Duke and Jon leaned back and closed his eyes.
He worried about Krys, Ryno, Riceros and Brehan. He truly wanted to believe they were still alive. Jon and the merchants of Mattingly had access to information from everywhere around the world. Not one man had heard anything about his sons and that led a parent to naturally think the worst. He had prayed to the Gods since he learned how to speak but Jon had cursed the Gods while incarcerated. He had asked them what he had done to deserve such a cruel fate. He never received an answer. He was left to dwell on why the Gods saw fit to punish a good man. He even tracked all the dishonorable moments of his life to try to understand the destruction of his entire family. Jon couldn’t imagine that his worst deeds added together would equal this unfair treatment.
The sun sailed behind a cloud and Jon looked out into the still water and noticed a perfectly round ripple. He closed his eyes again and remembered the good times the family had swimming in this slow flowing portion of the Royal River. Jasper seemed to read Jon’s thoughts and jumped into the cool river and paddled out. Jon saw visions of Riceros holding onto Jasper’s neck as the dog swam around. Jon believed Riceros had never learned to swim because he always had a moving raft. The now broken family used to enjoy lazy days at this swimming hole.
Jasper ran out of the water and over to Jon. The dog shook himself off, spraying his owner with a fine mist. The moisture cooled Jon off a bit, but the sun came back out and beat down on the riverside. He closed his eyes again and thought about moving on the Capitol. Jasper barked and Jon ignored it at first but the dog persisted. Jon opened his eyes to see a small canoe, approaching slowly. A person whose face was hidden by a black cloak sat in it while a large man rowed the boat. The canoe ran ashore right in front of Jon. A woman exposed her face and Jon saw her again. Camelle Colbert held a small creature in a white blanket and her face brought a smile to Jon for a moment until he realized it wasn’t real. I finally got rid of the headaches but my damn mind is still playing tricks on me from being locked in the dark. When will these visions finally cease?
Fractured Families (The Pearl of Wisdom Saga Book 2) Page 28