by B. T. Narro
I finally felt both corners of my mouth lift with another smile. It was just a few hours ago, after Kataleya had denied me, that I couldn’t picture myself smiling ever again. But I could let go of her. I had let go of my father, and that was immeasurably harder.
“Jon,” Leon told me. “Let’s have a quick look around for any threats.”
“I thought you said these kinds of threats are done.”
“No, I said the king said they were. It’s better to be safe. Go that way, a wide sweep. Look for anything suspicious.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
I followed Leon’s instruction. This wasn’t a particularly busy street, so it was pretty easy to tell that there were no people spying on us. There was still plenty of light left in the afternoon, and I didn’t see any place that an archer or especially a dark mage could be hiding.
As I went down the street, I found myself wondering about the details of Eslenda witnessing Pearson’s travels. She was the most powerful sorcerer I knew, and yet it seemed that even she did not want to engage in combat with Pearson. Perhaps she had seen him accompanied by a great number of dark mages and that was the reason? Or perhaps she knew that even she wasn’t strong enough to face him alone.
Leon and I met back outside the small two-room building of the healer, Quincy, an older gentleman who’d hired Aliana’s mother as his assistant some time ago. Gwen looked much better than the last time I’d seen her, when she had been trapped for three days in a basement. She looked as if she had gotten over the distress from that event, smiling happily when we entered, mostly at Leon.
“Gwen Forrester, you look lovelier than ever,” he said.
Aliana made a sour face, but her mother flashed her teeth. “Thank you, Leon. You look well, of course.”
Now Aliana seemed confused.
“I heard about what happened during Luther’s arrest,” Gwen continued, not taking her gaze away from Leon.
I reintroduced myself to Quincy. He shook my hand with a concerned expression. I couldn’t pay attention to the other conversation going on as I told Quincy, “We’re not going to be taking any of your business. In fact, Leon has brought a gold coin from the king for you.”
His eyes lit up. “For what purpose exactly?”
“I will be healing, like last time, but probably for a longer period of time. We don’t want to charge any of the people who need assistance, so the gold coin is to pay you for the business you miss.”
“That is very generous of his majesty. Please thank him for me.”
I nodded as I returned my focus to Leon and Gwen. Aliana seemed even more perplexed by now as she stared at the two of them.
“So he’s hosting a celebration,” Leon was saying. “I’m not from around here, though. I was born in Tryn. I was wondering if you might show me around a bit? The king has asked me to pick up a few things, and I’m not exactly sure where I can get all of them.” Leon slapped my back. “Jon here can handle anyone who needs assistance. Healer, you are free to go as well. The king has given me a gold coin to give to you.”
“Yes, Jon explained it.”
“Did he? Good lad.” Leon pulled the gold coin out of his pocket and placed it in Quincy’s hand.
“I would be happy to show you around if I’ll still have time to speak with Aliana after,” Gwen told Leon.
“We won’t be long. You’ll have plenty of time to catch up afterward.”
“Are you sure?” Gwen asked.
“I guarantee it,” Leon said, then offered his arm.
“All right,” Gwen said as she happily slid her arm around the nook of Leon’s. “Do you mind if we speak a little later, Ali?”
Aliana was frozen with a gaping mouth. Eventually, she shook her head, and soon they were headed out.
I was a little surprised, not by Gwen’s obvious infatuation with my instructor but with her treatment toward her daughter.
“I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” Quincy said, fisting the gold coin as he left just as happily as Leon and Gwen had.
Aliana looked at me as if this was somehow my fault. I didn’t know what to say.
“What was that?” she asked.
“What do you mean, exactly?”
“I have never seen my mother act that way around anyone, and I have only told her terrible things about Leon. It doesn’t make any sense. Were they like that when you came here with Leon last time?”
“Uh.”
“Tell me the truth, Jon. Were they like that or not?” She sounded angrier.
“They were like that,” I told her deadpan.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“I thought about it, to be honest, but I wasn’t sure it would make a difference. I had a feeling you wouldn’t approve, so I tried to talk Leon out of…um…it.” I didn’t know how to phrase “it,” whatever “it” was. That required thinking more about it, which I didn’t want to do.
“Did they spend any time alone last—?” She stopped as someone entered.
It was just a small boy, seven or eight years old. He glanced around quickly as he coughed violently, covering his mouth a little too late. He shot a nervous look at Aliana, then at me for just a moment before he ran out.
“Wait!” Aliana said as she ran after him.
He turned, a scared expression on his face, but as he looked her over he seemed to relax somewhat.
She crouched in front of him. “Did you come because you need help?”
He nodded, then sucked in a large breath and turned away from her and coughed again. It sounded pretty bad, the boy doubling over as if he might retch. Aliana put her hand on his back and showed me a look of pain.
“It hurts a lot,” the child said with tears burgeoning.
I motioned for her to bring the boy back inside.
“I want you to meet Jon,” she told the boy in a sweet tone. “He’s going to make you feel better. I promise.”
“Is it going to hurt?” the boy asked in a small voice.
“No,” she answered quickly, but then she saw me shaking my head at her.
It was going to hurt. All healing hurt.
Aliana gritted her teeth as she realized her mistake. I wasn’t sure how to correct it, but she crouched in front of the boy again as she seemed to be searching for the right words.
“Where is your mother?” she asked.
“Working,” he said, then held up a few pennies. “This is all we have. Is it enough?”
She closed his hand over the coins. “It’s not going to cost anything.”
“Really?”
“Really,” Aliana confirmed.
He pocketed them with a show of relief.
I crouched in front of the boy. “My name is Jon, like Aliana said. I’m the one who’s going to heal you.”
“Can she do it?” he asked as he pointed.
“I know she’s a lot prettier than I am, but unfortunately only I can heal you. I promise I’m going to get rid of that cough, though. You won’t feel bad anymore.”
“All right,” he said shyly.
Aliana smiled at me as she stood up and put her hand on the boy’s shoulder. She offered her other hand in front of him. “Do you want to hold my hand? It might feel a little strange while he’s healing you, but it will be over very quickly.”
He squeezed her hand.
I placed one palm on the boy’s back and the other on his chest as I closed my eyes and let my mana flow through him.
I found his sickness, a severe infestation of something in his lungs.
I would have to warn the boy so he wouldn’t try to run while I was healing him. I knelt down in front of him again.
“It turns out that you are quite sick, but I will get rid of it completely. It’s not going to feel good as I’m getting rid of it, but I promise it will be fast and you will be all better after.”
“Do you have to?”
“It’s only going to get worse if I don’t, even with medicine.”
“Are you sur
e I will feel better after?”
“I’m completely sure you will feel completely better.”
He looked at Aliana.
“Jon is the best healer in the whole world,” she said. “Both of us are sorcerers of the king. We have come out of the castle to help adults and children like you. That is why we don’t charge any coin.”
“Wow. You work for the king?” He turned and coughed so hard it threw his light hair out of place.
“We do,” I confirmed when he was done. “You will be able to run to your mother and tell her this without coughing as soon as I’m done. Make sure you let her know that the king’s healer has cured you for free. All we ask in return is that she tell others.”
“The king wants people to know that he loves them,” Aliana explained. “Do you understand?”
“Completely,” he said, imitating me from earlier.
“Are you ready to be brave?” she asked.
He squeezed her hand. “I’m ready.”
I put my hands on his back and chest again, then I healed.
It was a fierce battle, my mana purging his lungs of the illness. The boy groaned and squirmed.
“Squeeze my hand harder if it helps,” Aliana said.
He whimpered as if he might start crying, but I didn’t need much longer. Although it was a severe illness, there wasn’t much of it throughout his small body.
“Done,” I said.
“You did so well!” Aliana cheered the boy.
He smiled proudly as he had a few breaths of relief. “I do feel better!”
“What are you going to tell your mother?” Aliana asked.
“I will say the king’s sorcerers healed me for free because the king loves his people.”
“Very good. Run off and tell her now.”
Aliana turned to me after we watched him rush out with a happy grin. She stepped toward me and wrapped her arms around my torso in a hug.
“What’s this for?” I asked, confused.
“I’m thanking you,” she said as she squeezed tighter.
I brought my hands up tentatively to return the embrace. Just when I was starting to find comfort in her gesture of gratitude, she stepped back.
“My mother and I tried to treat a boy who had a cough like that. It only got worse no matter what we gave him. Eventually, he stopped showing up, and I found out later that he had died.” Her eyes glistened. “I don’t know if Quincy would’ve been able to treat the boy’s sickness. Probably not, seeing as how he only had two bits for payment. You should be here healing every day, Jon.”
“That’s exactly what I thought the last time I was here, but then Leon and I were attacked on our way back. Now that we’re safe, though, I imagine I’m going to be spending a lot more time healing.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
Aliana sat on the stool in the small room. There wasn’t much in here, just the stool, two chairs, and a tall table with a quill and ink beside a ledger. It was the back room where most everything was stored, with no door, only a closed curtain.
I knew the chances were just about insignificant, but I had to check to make sure no one was hiding back there waiting to ambush us. I drew back the curtain.
The back room was a little larger, many jars containing a variety of herbs sitting on shelves. There were also a few cabinets and some loose parchment lying around on top of them. It looked a little messy to me, but Aliana seemed to be completely distraught as she gasped at the sight of it.
“My mother is so lazy sometimes!” She went into the room and started organizing the jars.
I watched her for a little while as I waited for another patient. I didn’t know enough about what was inside the jars to understand why she put certain ones near others, but I liked observed her slowly matching similar things together. It had a calming effect.
“She’s always been this way,” Aliana told me, suddenly stopping to look out over her shoulder and make sure her mother wasn’t there. “Never organizing anything, even when it’s her job.”
“Is this about Leon?” I asked.
“I don’t know why I’m surprised! I came here to speak with her about my father, but I think she’s avoiding the topic. I’d pleaded to know more about him over the years. It would’ve helped everyone if she’d listened to me.”
It was very strange to hear anyone speak about their mother in this way. Aliana’s relationship with Gwen was vastly different than mine had been with my father. I figured I couldn’t hope to understand it. I could only trust that Aliana was right and support my friend.
“Is there something I can do?”
“No.” She stopped shifting the jars around and picked up one of the loose parchments for a look. Then she opened one of the cabinets and browsed through it as if looking for a good spot for the parchment. “You should focus only on healing.”
I went back and sat on the stool. A woman entered right away. I stood and greeted her.
“Is something wrong?” I asked. She looked healthy to me.
“Are you the healer?” she asked incredulously. She looked to be in her forties.
“Yes, the two of us are sorcerers of the king.” I gestured at Aliana, who bowed her head from the other room, a jar in each hand.
“Oh, I can’t afford a sorcerer. I just wanted to speak to a healer about something.”
“The king has sent us here to help free of charge,” Aliana said.
Now the woman seemed in even more disbelief.
“It’s true,” I said. “He wants the people to know how much he cares about them and that he’s doing everything he can to protect them.”
“Are there attacks coming?” asked the woman.
“There might be,” I told her honestly. It would help people prepare for the crisis tax.
“So that’s it. He’s taxing the people who are healed, I’ll bet.”
“No, there are many sorcerers like us who will be performing services for the people of Lycast. Everyone will be taxed if it is required, and it will only be required if an army marches into our territory with intent to destroy.”
“I paid my fair share of taxes already for the year. I’m not going to pay anymore. I don’t even see what my money is needed for with the dark mages still running around doing whatever they want. I’ll bet my coin goes toward your nice clothing.”
I didn’t think my shirt and pants were that nice. They just weren’t tattered like much of my old clothing was.
I was starting to see why a public trial for Cason was necessary, even if it was risky.
“The leader of the dark mages has been captured. The rest of them have fled. Your coin has gone toward protecting this kingdom in more ways than one.”
“I don’t like your attitude. I’ll gladly take my business elsewhere, where they don’t threaten me with taxes.”
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding,” I started to say.
“Jon, let her go,” Aliana told me as she walked over. “She’s obviously not going to listen to you.”
The woman lifted her nose as she turned on her heels to leave.
“Wait,” I said, thinking I could fix this. “I think if I explained everything more clearly, you might see that there’s no reason to turn down free healing.”
“You were quite clear,” she said with a biting tone. “I’m not giving anything to this king unless he comes and asks for it himself.”
That wasn’t going to work out well for this woman.
“We—”
Aliana put her hand on my shoulder as I started to object. “Just let her go,” she said.
It was difficult, but I gave up trying to stop the woman.
“Some people are too stupid for their own good,” Aliana explained. “I’ve seen it all the time. They come in and argue about what they think is wrong with them even when shown evidence against their belief. Others refuse to keep taking any medicine we give them because it hasn’t worked yet. Some go so far as to demand a refund. My mother and I have h
ad to get the guards involved a number of times because these people think they know better.”
“I’m surprised they don’t want to listen to someone who clearly knows more than they do.”
“You shouldn’t be so surprised.” Aliana sat on one of the chairs. “Remember how I told you that someone set fire to our home and place of business during the night?”
“Of course. I’m not going to forget that ever. You told me that you strongly believe it was one of the men who tried and failed to court your mother.”
“Yeah, there was one man in particular who I didn’t mention before. I’m almost sure it was him. He made up symptoms of pain. He wanted my mother to rub ointment on him. It took a few argumentative visits before she banned him from our business and said she would fetch the guards if she saw him again. It was that night that our house caught fire. My point is that some people live in their own world, Jon. I’m guessing it’s different where you come from, but here, they can be dangerous. I’m not saying that woman is going to burn down our place of business, but it’s best not to try to change their mind or they’ll just bring you down to their level with their inane arguments.”
“It is different where I come from,” I realized. “Someone like that in Bhode would be outcast. We didn’t have city guards, so we relied on each other. People spoke to my father if they needed someone to step in during a quarrel. They knew he used to be a guard in Tryn.”
“I’m sorry he’s not still around,” Aliana said. “He sounds like a much better man than my father.”
“And I’m sorry about your father’s behavior.”
I hinted that I was curious about the conversation between her and Luther, but she didn’t speak of it as she looked away from me.
“Are you all right to handle whoever comes in? I’m going to set my mind on fixing up the back room before my mother comes back. I want to finish it before we might argue.”
