Hell's Chimney

by Derek Smith

  He chewed the bread and eased it down with a swallow of water from the jug he kept by him on the board. Then wiped his mouth with his sleeve. Toby might make him a lord. Though he wouldn’t put it past him to forget. And if he did, he would be a lord without estates. Penniless. What would be the good of that? It would be like a shepherd without a herd, a farmer thrown off his land. Worse. Could a landless lord be a healer? Earn any sort of living? Toby offered him the job as castle healer but it had to be that or a lord. Lords don’t work. Others work for them. So the alternative was turn down the title and become castle healer. But he knew he’d hate it. All that bowing, kissing hands, all the gradations of rank, with him down at the bottom. He’d be a servant for the nobility. Ordered around and blamed for any remedy that was less than perfect.

  Would Orly have him then? Of course not. Or as a landless lord? Would Countess Gomm give her estate in marriage to him? A jumped-up peasant. Words and promises on the High Ridge stayed on the High Ridge. Countess Gomm was Countess Gomm – and he knew she would not give it away. He’d seen the way she suddenly became a lady of court, as proud and as haughty as she ever was.

  Her feelings might have been true on the mountain with Erdy and on the Ridge. But position was position in this ranked world. King Toby was not about to change that. Far had seen that in the throng of ladies; Orly in her court dress, the ladies-in-waiting about her with hand mirrors, laughing with her. That was the place of Countess Gomm.

  No. He would not be the plaything of kings and countesses. He must make his way in the world. And he knew he could. The world would yet grant him respect for what he did himself. He would not wait around in the hope of marrying someone who would in the end reject him. He was going back to Erdy; he would study with him, work with him. There was a chance beyond chances and he must grab it. The Kingdom had almost been swept free of healers. The Queen’s last legacy. But he knew too that he was only half a healer. There was so much he didn’t know. Give him a few more years with Erdy… He had the aptitude, and knew he could be the best.

  But not in a castle on his knees. If she had her pride, then so did he. He would not wait to receive the crumbs from the King’s table. He would be respected for himself. They would all yet know him. That was his task; he had himself to make.

  It did not stop him feeling low and lonely on this cold morning. But Orly had died when they came down from the High Ridge, and he would only mourn so long. And then get on with his life.

  Chapter 72

  The first years of King Toby’s reign were difficult. The majority of the soldiers had seen the way the wind was blowing and had accepted Toby as King. Some though refused, and continued their banditry. There were places in the land virtually ruled by these robbers, who were as ruthless as they had been under the Queen. It took five years to run them all to ground.

  Two Lords had rebelled in his first year, thinking Toby weak and believing that he had killed his own father. Or perhaps telling others that, to make their motives more appealing. They gathered up some of the renegade soldiers. Toby defeated the first, after a siege of the Lord’s castle. Toby then gave him a choice: swear allegiance or be banished and lose his estates. Grateful for the mercy, he accepted the King. And the other Lord made his peace.

  Since that time, the army has grown smaller and there has been peace.

  Eight years ago, the King married Countess Gomm. She is now known as Queen Orly. They have two children. The eldest is a boy called Martin, after her beloved brother; the second a girl, named after Toby’s mother, Eleanor. Orly often leaves the court with her children to go to her estate. There they walk and ride through woodland and meadow, always with an escort, as befits a Queen and her family. She ensures they learn country skills, not simply reading, writing, astronomy and geometry – but how to saddle a horse and plant a garden. And she gets her hands dirty with them. She says, and the King agrees, princes and princesses never know when they will need such things. Often they go boating on her lake. It is a large one with several islands where they picnic, the food being brought in other boats by servants. Orly will sometimes row. It is her estate, she says, and why should she not? But when the King joins them on the estate he never comes on their boating trips. He says he spent too much time rowing backwards and forwards across a wretched river, and never wants to see another rowing boat.

  The King can be stern, and has a temper which he sometimes regrets losing. Orly is a pacifying force. He will listen to her. And sometimes take notice. On her estate she has set up a school for the peasant children. There they learn to read and write, and about the world they live in. She says it will make her farm richer if her people are knowledgeable. And peasants, she says, need not always stay peasants. The King is not convinced by such sentiments, especially as he grows older. It would be easier if peasants did stay peasants.

  Far studied with Erdy for three years, at the same time practising his healing as they travelled together around the villages and towns. But Erdy always had to stay near his mountain retreat and Far would go sometimes on his own with the wagon. Until he became a travelling healer on his own. He was already well-known because of his part in the downfall of the former Queen. The story is told in song and played out at fairs on feast days – but Far says his role has been exaggerated.

  Sometimes Far’s travels take him to the castle. He will not go in, but stays in one of the castle villages – and there receives his patients, quite a few of whom come from the castle. Far treats the rich and the poor. The poor for little or nothing, as he does not forget he was born a peasant – and his family could afford little to pay a healer. The rich he charges in full, and will not be treated as a servant. If they do, he will not come back. Not many could get away with this. But he is Far, one of the legendary three. And now one of the best healers in the Kingdom, perhaps only second to Erdy, but even that is arguable.

  Often he goes to Erdy’s cavern in the mountains. They are equals these days, with much to speak of on the healing arts. Erdy loves to hear news of the King, the Queen, the family, and what is going on in the land. And Far always has news and often new remedies for them to try. Another stop on his travels used to be with Maeg. She too was a healer, and taught him magic. He would stay there quite a few days, and came to love the old lady.

  Maeg died three years ago. She was very old. The King invited her to live in the castle in her last years, but she would not leave her forest. And so he detailed a local farmer to make sure she always had enough wood and food. The farmer would come to her cottage once a week with firewood, eggs, cheese, bacon, milk and anything else she might request. It was never much. Sometimes a few nails, or a piece of material. The farmer would never take payment. The King pays, he said. And Far too, in his irregular visits, would always bring supplies for the old woman.

  The farmer came one day, the door wide open, and found her in her chair by the embers of the fire. A fox was sitting by her. The farmer chased it out, but the animal stayed around the cottage even as he left, the farmer said. She was buried in the forest near the cottage. Her funeral was a small affair befitting its site. The King and Queen attended, as did Far and even Erdy who hates to travel such distances. The farmer came and a few locals, and that was all, with the exception of the old fox who lay by the graveside.

  Toby and Orly had not seen Far for seven years. The King and Queen, of course, knew of his growing reputation. Both felt slighted by him, the King for his refusal of a lordship, and Orly because of the way he had left her. At this small funeral they could not avoid each other. They all went back to Maeg’s cottage for refreshments. And bridges were built. Far had his respect; he was someone in his own right. And he was embraced by King and Queen. They have invited him to the castle, but he has never taken that up. He says castles are not for him, he does not like the ranks and ceremony. Orly gave him a cottage on her estate, which he has accepted. It is convenient for him on his journeys. At the cottage, he can rest himself and his horse, keep herbs and remedies, and so
need to carry less on the wagon. He will not go to the big house, which is known as the Queen’s residence. Orly has stopped inviting him, knowing his stubbornness. Instead, when he is around, she visits him at the cottage. She expects no bowing or ceremony from him, and they are friends again.

  Far is thinking of getting married. He met a young woman, daughter of a healer, at a village fair. And now sees her whenever he comes to her village. He was worried his travelling ways would not suit her, but she insists it would. Orly thinks marriage would be good for him. Perhaps in the spring, he says.

  He has also taken Maeg’s cottage, which Erdy gave to him. Erdy says it is too far for him and his mother would be pleased it was used. Sly sometimes visits him there, but her visits have become less frequent. She is old. There is grey on her muzzle and her legs have become arthritic. She is more ancient than any fox in the land, and lives mostly with Erdy these days. Sometimes she goes out with him on his forays on the mountainside, more often when Far comes. But on colder days, she leaves them to it and sleeps by the fire in the cavern.

  And lastly there is Martin, who played an important part in our story. Without him, there would be no King Toby and the dreadful Queen would still rule. He continues to row his boat across the dark river, as he has done for over ten years since taking over from Toby. He takes a penny from the dead, and in the middle of the river, drops it in the black water. He has almost forgotten why he is the ferryman, as he seldom speaks to any of the passengers, though he does remember it had something to do with his sister, Orly, whose life was saved by somebody whose name he has forgotten. His love for his sister is the only spark left in him. It will go, as all things go. And on he must row, back and forth across the dark river, as no one will take over the oars.

  That is, until Toby comes. But for that – he must wait fifty years.

  Thank you!

  I am grateful to every reader who finishes one of my novels. I have taken you on a journey which I hope you have enjoyed. There are plenty of things you could have been doing, other than reading this book. So, thank you for your time.

  If you liked Hell’s Chimney, here’s what you can do next:

  I’d appreciate a review on Amazon. In that way, you can help me tell other readers about my books. Without reviews authors get few sales on Amazon. So I’d be grateful for your review to help this book be better known.

  Books by DH Smith

  Hell’s Chimney is written under my name Derek Smith. Under that name I have also written children’s books and a few for adults.

  As DH Smith I am writing a crime series, whose main character is a builder sleuth, Jack Bell. The books are all standalone novels and can be read in any order. They are:

  Jack of All Trades

  Jack of Spades

  Jack o’Lantern

  Jack By The Hedge

  Jack In The Box

  Jack On The Tower

  Jack Recalled

  Jack At Death’s Door

  Jack At The Gate

  Some Amazon reviews

  Well written from the first page to the last page. I have definitely found a new author

  The story grabs you, sucks you in, and leaves you guessing, providing juicy dialogue and laugh-out-loud moments along the way

  A different type of mystery where the main personality is not a professional crime solver, but a builder/carpenter with his own personal issues

  Books by Derek Smith

  All my books, other than the Jack of All Trades series, are written under the name Derek Smith.

  Mystery/Crime

  Murder at Any Price

  Fantasy

  Hell’s Chimney

  The Prince’s Shadow

  Other

  Strikers of Hanbury Street (short stories)

  Catching Up (poetry)

  Young Adult Novels

  Hard Cash

  Half a Bike

  Fast Food

  Frances Fairweather Demon Striker!

  Children’s Novels

  The Good Wolf

  Feather Brains

  Baker’s Boy

  For Younger Children

  The Magical World of Lucy-Anne

  Lucy-Anne’s Changing Ways

  Jack’s Bus

  About the Author

  I live in Forest Gate in the East End of London. In my working life, I have been a plastics chemist, a gardener and a stage manager before becoming a professional writer. I began with plays, working with several theatre companies, and had a few plays on radio and TV, as well as on the stage.

  In the early 80s I became involved in running a co-operative bookshop and vegetarian café in Stratford, where I learned to cook, and had my first go at writing a novel. The first was a mess, and, after too many rewrites, binned. The transition from drama to novels took me a couple of years to get to grips with.

  My first success was a young adult novel, Hard Cash, published by Faber. Buoyed up by this, I stuck with children’s work, did school visits, and made a hand to mouth living as a full time author, topped up with some evening class work in creative writing at City University and the Mary Ward Centre in Holborn. A few adult fiction titles appeared from time to time, between the children’s list, and I have since been working more in that direction with my Jack of All Trades series.

  www.dereksmithwriter.com

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