Chapter 12
Brianna was furious. The commander of the legion hadn’t let anyone see to Zollin’s needs. He had been carried back to the guardhouse and dropped onto one of the thin cots, while six guards stood watch over him.
Sir Hausey wouldn’t listen to their protests, not even Kelvich’s. He sent them all away, ordering his soldiers to escort them out of the fort and to secure the perimeter. Miriam had led them back to her home, but Brianna couldn’t sleep. She sat in the dark, wondering what was happening to Zollin. She didn’t understand why everything in their lives had to be so difficult. Hausey had a letter from King Felix, yet he treated Zollin like a common criminal. She wondered how they would ever defeat the dragon if Zollin were locked away. And she worried that without food he might be too weak to resist the soldiers.
As soon as the sky lightened with the dawn, Brianna woke Kelvich and the two of them hurried back to the fort. Kelvich was exhausted. He had been working nonstop since he’d arrived at Felson, helping with the wounded soldiers and teaching Miriam as much as he could about animal healing. He could feel the magic she possessed, it was strong and he had no doubt that she had come into contact with Zollin. She had been a good animal healer before, but now her skills bordered on the supernatural. She could sense what was ailing an animal, from the largest plow horses to the smallest dogs. She had new ideas that she was constantly testing. Ideas on how to treat sickness and injuries, or even simply how to maintain healthy animals. And she spoke often about Quinn, a subject that made Kelvich more than a little uncomfortable. He found it hard to believe that she was so taken with Quinn after only meeting him once. Kelvich thought Quinn was a good man, but he kept what he knew about the carpenter to himself. After decades of being alone, living as a hermit in the desert and then in the Northern Highlands, he didn’t like to talk about personal matters. Even if he had known that Quinn had feelings for Miriam, he wouldn’t have felt comfortable talking about his friend.
Brianna and Kelvich arrived at the fort just as the soldiers were opening the main gate. Brianna insisted on seeing Zollin, but of course she wasn’t allowed. Kelvich requested to meet with Hausey, but the commander kept them waiting almost two hours. Brianna was so angry that she couldn’t sit still. She paced in the little room where they were allowed to wait. When she spoke, her voice was raised and angry. Nothing Kelvich said could calm her down.
Finally, a soldier escorted them across the fort to another building and they found themselves in what amounted to a courtroom. There were several soldiers there, seated against one wall. Commander Hausey, Luca, and two other officers were seated at a table. Zollin was chained, hand and foot, and surrounded by guards with weapons drawn. Brianna knew that Zollin could have easily broken the chains and knocked the men guarding him down, but Zollin was in no condition to work magic. He could barely hold his head up. Two of the guards held him by the arms to keep him from toppling over.
“Zollin,” Brianna shouted. She ran toward him, but one of the guards held her back. “Let me go!” she shouted. “What are you doing to him?”
“We thought it best to keep him sedated,” Hausey said from his seat. “We’ll be holding court today and since Zollin can’t speak for himself, I thought one of you might represent him.”
“This is outrageous,” Brianna said.
“Ma’am,” said one of the other officers. “This is an official court martial. Please show the court the respect it is due, or we’ll have you removed from the courtroom.”
“Brianna,” Kelvich said quickly, trying to calm her down. “I’m sure we can get to the bottom of this, but we’ll have to play by their rules.”
“Zollin has a letter from the King ordering them to give him whatever assistance necessary to complete his task,” Brianna said in a quiet voice. “How can they try him if he’s on a mission for the King?”
“I’m not sure, but one way or another, we’re going to resolve all of this,” Kelvich said. “I’ll represent him and you stay calm in case I need your help. Okay?”
Brianna nodded, but there was fire in her eyes. She knew that the soldiers were only trying to show off their strength. They had Zollin now, but only because he chose not to destroy them last night. She would have thought that the way he handled things would have shown that he wasn’t a threat. It made her furious that they had drugged him, especially after all he had done for the wounded men at the garrison yesterday.
“Do you think the men at the garrison know what is going on?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” Kelvich said.
“The ones Zollin healed might testify for him.”
“That’s an excellent idea,” Kelvich said. “Let’s see how things go. I could probably send one of the soldiers to get them.” He turned his attention back to Sir Hausey and the other officers. “May I ask the charges?”
“He is charged with resisting arrest, destruction of military property, escape, and murder,” said Luca, reading off of a list in front of him.
“May we have time to prepare our defense?” Kelvich asked.
“You may have one hour,” Hausey replied
Kelvich turned back to Brianna. “We need Jax and Miriam. They may need to testify. They were with Zollin and Mansel that night.”
“Okay, I’ll go and get them.”
“Right, and I’ll go to the garrison. I’ll meet you back here in one hour.”
They both left the courtroom. Brianna let her anger motivate her to move as quickly as she could. She was still wearing her riding pants and a brown shirt that was more utilitarian than fashionable. Still, with her long black hair and willowy figure, she stood out in the crowds of refugees. She was winding her way through the streets of Felson, which were clogged with people, some going about their business, others merely looking for a place to stop and rest. Many had packs or small pull carts piled high with their worldly possessions. Normally the sight of so many hopeless people would have moved her to compassion, but Brianna was too focused on her task. In fact, she didn’t notice the three men who had begun following her through the crowded streets. She was halfway down a narrow alley when the men caught up with her.
“Hello there, missy,” said one of the men. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”
Brianna was surprised by the man and started not to answer, but then he grabbed her arm.
“Hey, I’m talking to you,” he said gruffly. “They must not teach manners where you come from, missy.”
“I’m on an errand for Sir Hausey, Commander of the King’s Legion,” Brianna said.
“Ah,” the man said. “That would explain the arrogance you’ve shown me and my friends.”
Brianna tried to pull her arm away, but the man held her fast. A flash of fear washed over her, like cold water that had been dumped down her back.
“Release me, sir!” she said loudly. “I’m sorry if I have given offense, but I am about a time sensitive matter.”
“Well, what we’ve got in mind won’t take long,” said the man with a chuckle.
Brianna noticed his rotting teeth and tattered clothing. She could smell the men, who were now crowding in very close, and she had an overwhelming urge to flee, but first she had to get free of the first man’s grip.
“I really must protest,” she said loudly once again in hopes of attracting attention, but the people passing the alley either took no notice or did not wish to get involved.
“Why’s a pretty thing like you hiding in boy’s clothes?” the man asked her as he leered at her body. “You should be in a fine dress.”
Brianna didn’t wait any longer, she stomped on the man’s foot as hard as she could. He howled and let go of her arm as he hopped backward in pain. Brianna started to run, but one of the other men caught her other arm. She let the man spin her around and used the momentum to bring her knee up into the man’s crotch. She felt the impact jar her leg, and the man dropped to the ground, moaning in agony. Once again she tried to flee; she ran as fast as she could, but
the third man was right behind her. She had almost made it to the end of the alley when the man behind her grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down. They both fell and rolled along the dusty alley. There was trash and filth on the ground, but nothing that would soften their landing. The man seemed unfazed, but Brianna felt her shoulder pop as she fell.
Tears filled her eyes and she struggled to breathe, the pain was agonizing and for several moments it was all she could think about. She lay writhing on the ground, trying to find a way to ease the pain.
“Stupid wench,” said the third man as he grabbed her by the hair and pulled her to her feet.
She screamed, but he only slapped her; the blow whipped her head around, making her see bright spots of light swimming around her. She was cradling her wounded arm to her body, and the man took hold of the other arm to drag her back down the alley toward his companions.
“No,” she screamed. “Let me go!”
“Not till we’ve had satisfaction for the grief you’ve caused us, missy,” said the first man. He was limping toward her. The second man was still on the ground, gasping in pain.
“Hey! You let her go,” came a voice from behind them. It was high pitched, but loud and strong.
The men turned to see who was speaking and then they both laughed. Brianna turned and saw Jax, the young boy who had led her and Zollin to Miriam’s home. She remembered that Zollin said Jax was an orphan, but one with friends throughout the city. At first she felt hope that someone would help her, but just as quickly her hope faded as she realized that Jax was no match for the ruffians who were intent on harming her.
“Jax,” she gasped between ragged sobs.
“I said let her go,” he shouted, reaching into a small pouch that hung from his belt.
“And what are you going to do about it?” asked the first man. “A little rat like you might just get his head broke.”
Jax didn’t reply; he had a few round stones in his pouch that he had found useful for throwing. He pulled them out of his pack and threw the first one. It sped through the air so fast the first man didn’t have time to dodge out of the way. The stone smashed into his face, cracking bone and crushing cartilage. Blood gushed from the man’s nose as he fell back into the dirt. The man holding Brianna let go of her and ran after Jax, who was speeding away, a look of mischievous fun on his face. They fled around the corner and out of sight.
Brianna wanted to fall down and cry for help, but she knew she needed to find Miriam and get back to the fort. She stumbled down the alley and back into the throng of people. She got strange looks from some, but most just looked away. Her shoulder hurt so much she had trouble breathing, the whole left side of her body ached terribly and each step sent shooting pains through her shoulder and up her neck. Still, she plodded on. It seemed to take forever to reach Miriam’s house and she found the older woman in the barn.
“Oh my God,” Miriam said when she saw Brianna. “What’s happened to you?”
“I...” Brianna had trouble speaking through her clenched teeth. “I was attacked.”
“Where’s Kelvich?”
“He’s at the fort,” Brianna said. “We need you and Jax.”
“Okay, but first let’s look at your shoulder.”
“No,” Brianna said fiercely. “Don’t touch it.”
“I only want to help, it looks dislocated.”
“Don’t touch it, please,” she said as tears ran down her dirty face.
“Okay, okay, I’m sure Zollin can fix it much better than I can. Let’s at least wrap your arm up so that it doesn’t move and make things worse.”
“Don’t touch it,” Brianna groaned.
“I won’t,” Miriam said as she retrieved a long strip of cloth from a bag nearby. “Just hold your arm close to your body.”
She gently draped the bandage over Brianna’s good shoulder and then around the injured arm and back up. Brianna gasped in pain whenever Miriam snugged the bandage, but once it was secured the pain eased slightly.
“That’s a little better,” she said, still struggling to breathe normally.
“Good, we can go now. Tell me what happened.”
“Three men attacked me. They wouldn’t let me go. I tried to get away, but I wasn’t fast enough. Then Jax showed up and they chased him away.”
“Let me guess, he threw rocks at them?”
Brianna nodded.
“He’s a dead aim with those stones.”
“We need to find him.”
“He’s working at the inns today. It’ll be better if we leave word for him to meet us. The boys that work for the inn keepers will find him quicker than we will.”
“Okay,” Brianna said, limping along beside Miriam.
They took their time getting back to the fort. Brianna was in so much pain that she couldn’t think of anything else. When they got to the courtroom, Kelvich was waiting.
“What happen?” he asked.
Miriam relayed the story and looked at Kelvich as if to say, what now?
“The best thing to do would be to let Zollin heal her. He could do it without hurting her any more. I can pop her shoulder into its socket, but the process is excruciating and the residual pain lasts for weeks.”
“Well then, what are we waiting for?” Miriam said. “Where is Zollin?”
“He’s about to go on trial, but Hausey’s keeping him drugged so that he can’t use his magic to escape.”
“On trial for what? Destroying the guardhouse?”
“No, for killing the centurion.”
“Oh, what a nightmare,” she said.
“Here, I’ve got some Lavintha Flower Berries,” he said, pulling out the little green berries from a satchel he was carrying with his medicinal supplies. “Let’s find some wine and maybe we can dull Brianna’s pain long enough to get this farce of a trial over with.”
“Kelvich, what’ll happen if they find Zollin guilty?” Miriam asked
“According to martial law, they’ll hang him. In this case, I simply don’t know.”
“What can I do to help?”
“Find us some wine and stay with Brianna during the trial. I may need you to testify about what happened.”
Miriam nodded, but she failed to look Kelvich in the eye and the older man felt another spasm of fear shoot through his guts. What was Miriam hiding that she didn’t want to talk about? He didn’t know. There was so much he didn’t know, like why Hausey was ignoring the letter from King Felix or why they were in such a hurry to try Zollin. None of it made sense, but it was up to him now to make sure nothing happened to Zollin.
A horn blew and then a soldier shouted that the court martial was back in session. Kelvich sighed, stood up straight, and walked back into the courtroom.
Chapter 13
“We’ll start with the reading of the charges,” said Sir Hausey.
Luca stood, smirking as he glanced at Zollin, who was completely unaware of what was happening, and began reading from a piece of parchment.
“Zollin Quinnson is charged with aiding in the escape of a lawfully detained prisoner, destruction of military property, assault on the King’s soldiers, murder, and resisting arrest.”
“Fine,” said Hausey. “Let’s begin with the prosecution.”
An officer who wasn’t judging the trial stood up and spoke.
“As you all know, the King’s Army was sent into the field to investigate the reports of a dragon raiding the northern villages. During that exercise, Centurion Yorik, an evocati in the King’s army, was the ranking officer here in the fort of Felson. He was charged with keeping the peace in the town during the absence of the King’s officers. Approximately two weeks ago, he was doing his duty and breaking up a fight in one of the local inns where he arrested a man named Mansel for starting the fight. That man was detained here, in the fort guardhouse.
“Sometime later that same night, this man, Zollin Quinnson, assaulted the King’s soldiers who were on duty in order to get into the guardhouse.
He was then confronted by Centurion Yorik and immediately began fighting with the evocati, which led to Yorik’s death. Zollin Quinnson and his accomplice, Mansel, then fled the guardhouse, assaulting many of the King’s soldiers in the process of fleeing the fort and the town of Felson.”
The soldier sat back down and Hausey turned to Kelvich.
“Would you like to bring your defense?” he asked.
“Yes,” Kelvich said. “Seeing that Zollin Quinnson is being kept in a state of semi-consciousness and is unable to defend himself, I will speak for him. I have the facts as related to me by Zollin’s companion and partner in the King’s quest on which Zollin has been sent: to find and either slay the aforementioned dragon or drive it from these lands. Zollin was passing through Felson when his friend, Mansel Tannerson, was assaulted while he was spending time in an inn. He was arrested, although none of the other men involved in the fight were detained. He was then taken into the fort and beaten by Centurion Yorik. Although Zollin was able to heal his friend, he was found to have suffered many grievous wounds at the hands of the centurion. His hand was broken, his face cut, there were bruises and scrapes on his face and several fractured ribs.”
Five Kingdoms: Books 01, 02 & 03 Page 87