The Forest at the Edge of the World (Book One, Forest at the Edge series)

by Trish Mercer

  Chapter 13 ~ "Love is just a cover-up. Always is."

  Two men sat in the dark office of an unlit building.

  The first older man smiled. "Enough information coming in for you yet?"

  His partner scoffed a chuckle as he sifted through the pages on his lap. "And this is just from the first day! So many people, so many different reactions. You were right about not killing off the girl. Watching how others deal with the uncertainty of her future will yield volumes of information."

  The first man nodded his fluffy white hair. "Well, enjoy yourself. By the time the situation in Grasses reaches a conclusion, we should have enough details to keep us occupied for half a year. And no one will be bothered by letters from that captain's father complaining how the new herd production mandates lost him his ranch. Moving to a village isn't so bad, now is it? Being near his son? Oh wait-I guess it is now."

  The first man laughed callously while the second man just nodded.

  "Ah, my friend-just show me another research project as fulfilling as this promises to be."

  The second man held up a finger. He put down the stack of papers and reached over to retrieve a document he had placed on a shelf behind him. He leaned over and handed it to the older man.

  He held it up in the dim light and squinted. "What is this? Looks like a map of some sort."

  "You just said, show you another project . . ."

  Out of his shirt pocket the older man pulled out a warped piece of glass he used to make the markings on the page appear larger. "A map of Edge?"

  "Yes. I have some more news for you to further improve your day. If you thought the raid was a triumphant success, wait till you hear this: Captain Perrin Shin intends to marry!"

  The first man was stunned silent for nearly a full minute. "Marry?"

  "You always say he surprises you . . ."

  "That can't be right! For as long as I've known Perrin I've known he's not been the marrying type. Before he even arrived at the university his reputation preceded him. Graduating men went to that eighteen-year-old for advice on women, but he'd never share his secrets. I have no doubt he left Vines because the women were chasing him out."

  His partner squinted. "And that's why he requested the transfer out of Vines?"

  The first man pointed. "He's got himself in trouble, he has! Perrin's become sloppy. Now he has to marry some senseless village girl to cover for his mistakes."

  "He hasn't been there long enough to have to force a marriage," the second man concluded. "According to the message that came with the map, he's marrying the woman he debated in the village amphitheater. The rather vocal one? Trying to win hearts and minds, all that."

  "Win hearts!" the first man disparaged. "That's not Perrin. Break hearts-that's Perrin. He's a bull in a pasture full of cows, ready to-Ah, I see it now. He's actually in trouble in Vines, and using some hapless girl in Edge to cover for it. If he's already married, no one else can lay claim to him as father of her child."

  The second man sighed. "Does it really matter why he's marrying?"

  "It does!" The first man pounded the padded armrest of his chair. "Every action people take is in response to something else."

  His partner shrugged. "Have you considered that maybe he fell in love?"

  "Love is not involved here. Love is just a cover-up. Always is. I realize you're married, but you must confess that at the basest of emotions, it's the physical drives that deluded you into thinking there was an emotional counterpart. Animals don't love."

  The second man held up a finger. "But many animals mate for life. Wolves and falcons, for example, create a bond that-"

  "Bond, yes," the older man interrupted. "But love? That's the word we attach to 'bond' to create romantic nonsense so that women feel better for giving in to men's basest desires."

  "And to think you never married," the second man said, almost sincerely. When the older man only glared at him, he continued. "So I'm assuming Captain Shin hasn't told Father and Mother about his intended. According to the message, he's been so obvious the rumors should have flown all the way to Idumea by now."

  The first man nodded. "I'll keep my ear tuned to the wind. And this map?"

  His partner smiled, anticipating the reaction. "Notations of where Captain Shin's intended, her mother, and Shin's great aunt and uncle live. So that patrols can watch their houses more closely."

  The first man threw back his head and laughed. "Wonderful! Fantastic man we have up there in Edge, to get such vital information so quickly."

  The second man cringed. "I still have my doubts about him, considering his age-"

  "But I told you, didn't I? Didn't I say he'd be the best fit?"

  The second nodded reluctantly. "True."

  "So many new questions we can test now," the first man mused. "Where to begin? He's losing his edge in Edge. And I thought he'd be so much more of a challenge. Well, perhaps it's time to see just how sloppy Shin is."

  The second man shook his head. "I don't think we should start anything new until we see if the girl in Grasses survives. The captain and the lieutenant are taking the news harder than I expected. I'd hate to miss any details by beginning something with Shin."

  The first man shrugged. "You may have a point about Grasses. That situation could provide an intriguing contrast once Shin is married: the reaction of an intended losing his woman, versus the reaction of a husband losing his wife. Since you mentioned wolves, it's been my observation that wolves become protective of their mates once they are acquired, and act more aggressive when they sense a threat to their pack. Perhaps our next question will be, Might Shin be a wolf?"

  ---

  Early in the morning Captain Shin stood with his hands on his waist at the edge of the forest. He stared hard into it, trying to discern if the rising sun might expose different sections. The view would be different, though, just a little ways-

  "Captain? You sent for me?"

  Shin pulled his gaze from the trees. "Lieutenant Karna, yes. I want you to stand right here and record what I call back to you."

  He picked up some paper and charcoal from the ground and handed them to the younger officer. "I have an idea," and the captain started walking toward the forest.

  "SIR!" Karna exclaimed as his commander continued into the woods. "Sir, STOP!"

  Shin stopped and turned, about ten paces in. "Karna, it's just trees. I've been watching the spot for past twenty minutes. The ground's stable, there's no quaking or sulfur-"

  Karna looked around him frantically, hoping someone from the fort would notice his panic. "Sir, you cannot do this! The first rule of the Army of Idumea explicitly states that-"

  "'-No officer, enlisted man, or citizen of the world is to enter the forests for any purpose.'" He sighed impatiently. "Yes, yes, yes, I know. My grandfather Pere wrote that rule. But Karna, consider this: the Guarders are adept at making themselves hidden at night, lurking in bushes, wearing all black. But that won't work in the forest. Brillen-"

  The young lieutenant's eyes darted back and forth, hoping someone older, braver-or just ornerier-would realize that the captain was violating the first rule.

  "Brillen?"

  Karna looked back at Shin.

  The captain was inexplicably calm. "Think about it-wearing all black in the forest? You know how easy they'd be to spot? And I doubt they move carefully in the trees. They know we can't go in here-it's been forbidden for over one hundred years. So why would they practice moving quietly in here? Bushes rustle, leaves and sticks snap-we could track them, in the forest, Lieutenant! We could find their hideouts."

  "Sir, please," Karna glanced over at the fort again. "You're making me very nervous."

  Shin marched out of the trees to his lieutenant, who began to breathe easier as soon as the captain's boots hit the grasses. "There's nothing inherently wrong with the trees. I know it, Brillen," he whispered earnestly. "I can prove that-"

  "Captain Shin!"

  The bellow made both officers
spin around.

  Sergeant Major Wiles was jogging toward them, shaking his gray head. "Captain, did I just see you-or maybe it was a remnant of last night's mead-but I could have sworn I saw you come out of the forest."

  Karna bobbed his head back and forth toward the disobedient captain. It was Karna's lucky day. Old, brave, and ornery had arrived just in time.

  Captain Shin sighed as if he was a child caught stealing a sweet from a confectionary shop. "I was just trying to prove that-"

  "-that the son of the High General can get killed by Guarders too?" Wiles shouted.

  Shin puffed up. "Look, Sergeant Major, I don't need you to-"

  Wiles waved an official parchment in his face. "Just arrived last night. You didn't read it yet, did you? Allow me: 'From General Aldwyn Cush, Advising General to High General Relf Shin. Restating the importance of soldiers and officers, now that the Guarders have attacked, to STAY OUT OF THE FORESTS-'"

  Shin rubbed his forehead. "All right, all right . . . yes I saw Cush's message. But if I had the chance to prove that-"

  "Prove nothing, Shin!" Wiles shouted at the commander. "Or I'll send a report to your father and have you shipped back to Idumea before your future bride can finish wiping her tears."

  Shin folded his arms. "You can't do that!"

  "No, but your father can! The same messenger that's leaving this afternoon to carry your good news to him can also bring news from me about his son's blatant disregard for the number one rule of the army."

  Shin growled under his breath.

  Wiles sighed and put a grandfatherly hand on his arm. "All of us are upset about the attack in Grasses," he said in a soothing tone. "Fourteen houses hit? Ten deaths? Twenty-two injured? Stolen goods? It's horrible. But this isn't the way to fight it, Perrin. Don't make me report you to your father, son. You wouldn't look very good in a private's uniform. Now more than ever it's more important to keep you, and everyone, safe."

  Karna nodded so vigorously his cap shifted on his head.

  Shin looked longingly into the forest. "All right, Wiles, Karna. Today you both win. I'll sit here and wait for the world to come get me."

  Wiles shook his head and tugged gently at the captain. "No, you'll come back to the command tower and fill out those reports General Cush wants."

  "Never knew a man who loves his reports more than Cush," Shin muttered as the three men started back for the fort.

  ---

  In the forest, about forty paces back, two men dressed in green mottled clothing with sticks strategically attached to their tunics glanced at each other.

  Then they continued to hold still, their shoulders sagging slightly in relief, and watched the fort and village beyond.

  ---

  That night Perrin and Mahrree sat together on her small sofa after dinner, each with a list of questions. Mahrree had a few unofficial questions as well, waiting to spring at the right moment. Perrin still wore his long knife, and brought an extra one to place in a secret drawer in Mahrree's eating table.

  When he showed it to her before dinner, she was dumbfounded. "I never noticed that drawer there before!"

  "Where did you get this table?"

  "It was here when I moved in. The widow's daughter didn't want it and said I could keep it."

  "And what did that widow's husband do professionally?"

  Mahrree thought for a moment. "I never met him, but I think he used to be a soldier."

  Perrin nodded. "Not just a soldier. An officer, I'll bet. I noticed it the first evening I came here. Every officer has a secret drawer. Did you notice how silently it opened? Now if there's any threat, you can pull it open and retrieve the knife."

  Mahrree shuddered. "And do what with it?" She stared at the shining blade that was longer than her hand. While it was shorter than Perrin's mini sword, the point was so sharp she couldn't even discern where it ended. "Give it to the Guarder and ask him to peel me some potatoes?"

  Perrin's eyebrows furrowed. "On second thought, just keep it in the drawer for me to use. Maybe I should place guards at the house instead, until the fort's smith can finish the iron reinforcements for your doors and windows-"

  "Oh, please don't! I'd be too embarrassed to have such attention. You said yourself there have been no more sightings of Guarders, and that they made off with plenty of gold. Except," she paused, her forehead wrinkled in thought, "what do they do with it? Not as if they can saunter into Quake and buy a loaf of bread with it. So do they trade among themselves? Use it for jewelry? Set it on their shelves and say, 'Wished I'd stolen that in a different color?'"

  Perrin shrugged and noiselessly slid the drawer shut.

  "Perhaps that will be the only incident for the year," she decided. "What more could they want?"

  He merely smiled at her and said, "Let's eat and get to negotiations."

  Mahrree was quickly learning not to keep a hungry soldier waiting for dinner.

  The first on her negotiation list was: Will we have to someday move to Idumea? Soon after she accepted his proposal she began to worry about having to leave Edge where she'd spent almost her entire life. The two years she was away at Mountseen for college, her mother sent so many messages in worry that Mahrree walked home nearly every week to prove she was fine and to ask her to stop writing.

  Perrin's face contorted as he answered her question. "Yes, someday I may need to return to Idumea. You should know," his face turned into a genuine grimace, "it's expected that I become the next High General." He added in a hurry, "But not for many years. Still want to marry me?"

  Mahrree chuckled at his pitifully desperate look, and also out of her own apprehension. "How many years?"

  "My father doesn't retire until seventy. He's only fifty-three now."

  "Whew," Mahrree breathed.

  "Unless," Perrin added slowly, "something happens to him. My grandfather Pere died suddenly of a heart attack at sixty-five. That pushed my father's promotion up rather faster than we anticipated. He was only thirty-nine at the time."

  Mahrree did the math and gave Perrin her best brave face: lips pressed together in a weak smile, chin held high, eyes strong and proud. "That's still a few years," she said optimistically.

  He grinned and pointed at her face. "Not bad. The smile is a little forced, though. Try to relax it more. You'll need to pull that face out frequently in the next few years if negotiations tonight go well." He sighed. "I really should have told you this before, but I just assumed you knew. I thought everybody knows about the Shins and High Generals. But Mahrree, High General is my parents' wish for me. They think it's a tradition now. My grandfather Pere was appointed in 280, then my father in 306 . . . It's not my wish, though. My great grandfather Ricolfus was the first Shin officer, and he earned only the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

  "Of course," Perrin's face darkened, "he didn't make it to general because he died from a fever. Not the most distinguished way for an officer to go." His voice trailed off and he stared at the fire in the hearth.

  Mahrree squinted, wondering what kind of death would be considered "distinguished." Probably something involving sharpened metal, shouting, and blood.

  Perrin shook away the thought. "It doesn't have to happen. I don't want to become the next High General. I love the army, I've enjoyed organizing the fort, training the men and preparing for what may come. I can't imagine doing anything else. But to be honest, I hate Idumea."

  Mahrree blinked in surprise. "Really? Why? I mean, not that I want to live there right now, but I've heard lots about it-"

  He was shaking his head as she spoke. "I used to like it when I was younger, but over the years I've changed my mind. That's why I didn't defend it at our last debate. I agree with you-Edge is far better. Anywhere is better than Idumea. Imagine: two hundred thousand people all living in the same confined area. The village of Pools where I was born will soon be engulfed by Idumea. Singles like you don't live in their own houses. They share buildings, up to four levels high, and each have their own
little compartment. Children can't run on the roads like they do here or they'll be hit by the hundreds of wagons, horses, and carts that pack every road. It's far too crowded. And the entertainments they have! Well, some are interesting, like the acrobats and the bear tamers, but some of the things they put on the stage . . . " He rolled his eyes.

  Mahrree pondered his critique. "I've heard the pools are quite beautiful-"

  "When they don't erupt!"

  "They erupt?"

  "Last year one of the larger pools boiled until a huge amount of water erupted out of it. Destroyed three of the most expensive homes in the area."

  "I had no idea-"

  "And don't get me started on the shops."

  Mahrree paused, trying to understand how they jumped from the erupting pools to shops in one breath. But as she looked at Perrin she saw irritation that she decided she better let him express.

  "You want a hat-" he started.

  "Actually, no. I don't really wear hats."

  He stared at her perplexed, but then smiled. "I meant, if you want a hat. If you want a hat, there isn't just one shop in the region; you have your choice of over a dozen shops."

  "And how many hats do you buy each year?" Mahrree squirmed. The question wasn't on her list, but then again, she didn't think something like that would be.

  His irritation slipped away, replaced by amusement. "I don't buy the hats," he chuckled. "My mother does."

  "Ah," Mahrree understood. "You've suffered having to be her porter one too many times?"

  He nodded. "Yes. On my father's command. And, Mahrree, I want to thank you now for not wanting to buy hats. That means I can cross off number eight on my list."

  He started to do so but stopped.

  "I mean, my mother would try on one, ask me what I think, then try on another that looks just the same . . . I tell her they all look fine, but does she believe me?"

  Mahrree giggled. "How long ago was that?"

  "After I finished upper school. My mother wanted to spend some time with me before I left the house. She really needed a daughter."

  "Wait, so it's been more than ten years?" Mahrree asked. "And you still haven't got over it?"

  He gave her a playful glare. "I was eighteen, Mahrree. How many eighteen-year-old young men do you see enjoying women's hat shops with their mothers? Some things just stay with you."

  She kept laughing. "So I need to worry about your mother wanting to go shopping?" she hedged, finally relieved to hear something about her, number three on her list.

  "Oh, no. Not here in Edge. Everything is several years out of date, so she says. But don't worry about her. She's great."

  "That's the fourth time," she pointed out, "that you've said that about your parents. I've been counting since you arrived. You can express your opinion on anything-even hat shops!-but you can't tell me anything more about your parents other than, 'They're great'?"

  He squinted. "I don't think we've reached that number on your list yet, have we? We were talking about Idumea, remember?"

  "You like to do things in order, don't you?" she probed. "Make your list, have your plan, stick with it. No deviations?"

  "Something wrong with that?" he asked stiffly.

  "Only if you're inflexible when you shouldn't be. As a teacher I often take the lesson plan and toss it for the day when a student comes up with a really good question. Plans need to be flexible."

  "I'm not inflexible." His shoulder twitched.

  Mahrree smirked. "Really."

  "Go ahead. Ask me anything. Deviate from your ordered list." He fought the twitch, almost successfully.

  "All right . . . but first, anything else about Idumea I should know about? Or any more opinions about Edge?"

  Perrin's face softened. "Only that I think Edge is the most perfect place in the world. I've already written to my father that I want to serve here as long as possible. I could probably be promoted up to colonel without having to transfer. We can be in this house for many years. And I've found everything I could wish for here."

  "Mmm, really?" Mahrree leaned against his arm.

  "Oh yes." He put his arm around her and kissed her head. "I've been to every village in the world, and I have to say that I've never been as happy as I am here." He sighed in satisfaction. "The fishing is absolutely amazing."

  She slowly pulled away to look at him.

  "Must be something about being the first village the river runs through," he continued with a faraway look in his eyes. "Or maybe it's the way the warm waters from the springs feed into it. Must help with the growing the fish to such enormous sizes."

  Mahrree put her hands on her waist.

  Something glinted in his eyes.

  She pursed her lips and pouted.

  He grinned and pointed at her face. "Oh I like that look. You don't have to practice that one at all." He gave her pout a quick kiss.

  She laughed. "And I assure you I will remember that look in your eyes! You won't fool me again."

  "What look?" he said, confused.

  "That one, right there. I'm on to you, Perrin Shin!"

  "Good. You're paying attention. My father always says more is expressed with the eyes than anything else. You could have been trained as the first female officer."

  She snuggled into him. "Would be a disaster for men. If I were an officer, no soldiers would ever listen to anyone else but me forevermore. My logic and intelligence are simply overwhelming."

  Perrin scoffed good-naturedly.

  "Yes," she sniffed in feigned arrogance, "every woman knows the reason we're not allowed any power is because we'd take over the world. I'd be High General in less than a year, Chairwoman Mahrree a season later."

  Perrin chuckled. "You may be right. You can certainly exaggerate like an officer."

  "Speaking of the High General, tell me more about your father," she said. "That's my number two question."

  Perrin's jaw moved a little and she thought she heard a small groan. "He's the general-"

  "Something I don't know."

  "Uh, he's fifty-three. Oh. You know that as well. Uh . . . he's a good man. I'm told I look a bit like him. He's very honest. Trustworthy. Um . . ."

  "This is really hard for you, isn't it?"

  Perrin shifted uncomfortably. "I respect him, Mahrree, more than any other man. But he's always been . . . Let me put it this way: my first words were 'ma' and 'sir.' He's always been 'sir.' Kind of hard to describe a man like that. 'General' pretty much sums it up."

  "So" Mahrree began, "if we have a child . . ." She skipped to number five on her list and braced for the response.

  "I will not be 'sir.' I want to be a different kind of father. I like children. I think that's what I first found attractive about you. If you're a teacher you have to like children, right?"

  Mahrree laughed. "Usually. Then there are days you're grateful you don't have to spend any more time with that boy or that girl! But yes, I do want to have our own child. Maybe even two?"

  He hugged her. "Sounds great to me."

  Mahrree grinned in delight, until another thought came to her. "Uh," she hesitated, "I see a pattern in the naming in your family. Your grandfather Pere's name became Perrin for you. I understand that-I was named for my paternal grandmother Morah. But I'm just wondering . . . I see potential for Relf, but . . . how important a family name is Ricolfus?"

  Perrin smiled, understanding her concern. "You can see why Pere shortened Ricolfus to Relf. Don't worry-there need not be a Ricolfusin in our future, or even a Relfette. I don't hold with traditions just for tradition's sake."

  "Thank you!"

  He chuckled. "We can come up with names that our grandchildren will cringe at. And actually, the question of children was my first one, so I can scratch that off. About being a father, though, I have to warn you-"

  "I know, I know," Mahrree said. "You won't change cloths, you won't give them baths, and if the baby spits up on you, I clean you up first. When the child finally has something in
teresting to say, that's when you'll become involved. I've heard plenty of men at the congregational midday meals state the rules of fatherhood."

  Perrin was silent for a moment. "Really?"

  "Really, what?" Mahrree asked.

  "Really they don't want to give the baby baths? I thought that sounded like fun."

  Mahrree sat up and looked in his dark eyes. There was no glint. "You're serious?"

  "Well, yes. What's the point of having children if you don't experience the whole thing? It'd be like preparing for a fishing trip, setting up camp, sitting by the river, but then never dropping your line. What's the point? And it's not a successful trip unless someone gets soaking wet. Besides," he continued, suddenly sheepish, "Hogal once argued with my father that children aren't here to be our legacy, or honor us, or even entertain us. They're here to educate us-"

  Mahrree just stared at him.

  "-in how to be more like the Creator." He shrugged. "Leadership is actually service-ship. I supposed I could use a bit more education, especially in that regard."

  "So," she said, now confused. "What were you going to warn me about?"

  "That I have no idea how to change the cloths, so I'll need some help the first few times. Now what's that look for?"

  "Someone will have to teach me first," she murmured.

  "What?"

  "Nothing. Perrin, have I told you yet that you are absolutely the most perfect man in the entire world, and that I love and adore you beyond words can express?"

  A grin slowly grew on his face. "I'm sure I would have remembered. That's a good line. Feel free to remind me anytime."

  Mahrree felt the opportunity was also perfect. "Can I ask you another question, not on either of our lists?"

  "After calling me the most perfect man in the world, how can I deny you?"