by Guy Antibes
“History books?” Sam said. “I’ll be in the history books?”
Bentwick shook his head. “No. Torrent will enshrine himself, and he is not the kind of man to share the glory.” Then he smiled. “But Harrison, you, and I know the truth.”
“Someone who is rich and powerful is behind the rebellion,” Sam said. “Someone who isn’t very afraid and someone without much sense, if you ask me.”
“Why do you say that?” Bentwick said.
“Everything seemed so slapdash. The drugs didn’t need to be used. We found out the source of the rebellion might be in Mountain View because someone else was harvesting the herbs in Bowerville. The beginning wasn’t very well planned. After a while, it seemed that the rebellion became more professional, better managed,” Sam said. “If the wall had started sooner… you know everything.”
“All but your conclusions.”
“Harrison told me not to make baseless assumptions, but I think that the rebellion started with Lord Lennard. He doesn’t seem to be the kind of man who plans well. He is the slapdash. Someone came into the picture after he started his scheme to get control of The Fealty Mining Company.”
“That’s an interesting supposition. Let’s suppose it is close to the target. What should we do?”
“Now that I think of it, a little snooping before we confront Lord Lennard.”
“To do what, lad?” Bentwick said.
“To see if Lord Lennard’s behavior changed. Harrison didn’t think his friend would arrest him. That’s why we went into Mountain View. He had come through for four years straight, and nothing happened. Then when we arrived, Harrison said that his enemies had finally gotten to his friend. What if it wasn’t those who were after him from long ago?”
“The brains behind the rebellion?”
Sam nodded. “Right. If we can find that person and capture him, then getting Harrison out might be made easier.”
“The healer is likely in peril,” Bentwick said, “so we only have a day or two to find out who sits behind Lord Lennard, if there is such a person.”
~
Sam walked into the constabulary behind Bentwick and the two constables.
“Didn’t get enough of us, Chief Constable?” The same constable was on duty.
“Not quite. I brought along my new apprentice. This is Sam Smith.”
“I remember you,” the man said, seeing Sam. “You are the one who asked after the chief constable, here.”
Sam nodded. “I found him in Cherryton, thanks to you.”
Bentwick rapped his knuckles on the counter to get the constable’s attention. “I need to see your boss immediately.” He turned to the two constables. “Get us rooms. You are free in the city until we leave.”
Their two companions walked out.
“Bentwick, I thought you were going back to Baskin.”
“Change in plans. Let’s talk.” He looked at Sam. “You and your dog will join us.”
After everyone took the seats, or the floor in the case of Emmy, Bentwick outlined his conversation with Sam. “Do you have any ideas?” Bentwick asked his Mountain View heir.
“Of course I do. It’s common knowledge that Lager’s rule changed when Bannon Plunk arrived.”
“He has a sister in Mount Vannon?” Sam asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Too much of a coincidence,” Chief Constable Bentwick said. “A woman named Ionie Plunk, a madam in Mount Vannon, was part of the conspiracy. She was out persuading miners to give up their shares on The Fealty Mining Company. Torrent executed her.”
Sam winced. If this Bannon Plunk knew that, Harrison might already be dead.
“We can’t delay,” Sam said.
“More information is needed before the constabulary can act,” Bentwick said. “My hands are tied.”
“I’m not an apprentice, yet,” Sam said. “I’ll go out on my own.”
“But you are just a boy,” Bentwick’s peer said.
“A boy who can act without getting more information. Where does Bannon Plunk live?”
~
Sam was on his own. He rode the streets of Mountain View, seeking the new residence of Bannon Plunk. The man’s estate was well-guarded, and that included wards visible to everyone and a few that only Sam could see because of Link’s golden glass. His last brush with wards was when he was thrown to the ground when he touched a blasting ward on Harrison’s wagon. He knew enough to be careful around them.
The estate took up a lot of space in the town. He found a park that bordered Plunk’s residence. He tied up his horse and threaded his way through the trees. A series of wards protected the estate instead of walls.
Sam removed his wand and began to deactivate the wards. As he did so, a pair of dogs barked in the distance, but their barking became louder. They were headed toward Emmy and him.
A pair of Great Sanchians approached. Emmy growled and ran after the two dogs. When she reached them, they growled at each other and then began to nuzzle and sniff one another. Emmy barked once at Sam.
He approached the huge dogs. All three were females. “Friends?”
So, Bannon Plunk was the merchant who lost Emmy to Lord Lager, if the man was to be believed. The town lord didn’t have a way with dogs, or at least Great Sanchians. Had Emmy returned home?
The two dogs poked their noses into Sam’s chest. He extended a hand and soon all three of them vied for his attention. After scratching their ears, Sam took a step towards the house in the distance, but none of the dogs growled.
He picked up sticks along the way and would throw them out for the dogs to play fetch. If Harrison’s plight hadn’t been so dire, Sam could enjoy playing with these huge animals, but he moved forward.
The dogs began to get frisky when they reached a wide expanse of lawn fronting the house. Ignoring the dogs, Sam crouched and ran to the building towards a small door at ground level. No one challenged him, but he doubted that his luck would continue, as he tried the door.
It was padlocked. Sam looked at the lock and then put on his spectacles. The big lock was actually made out of painted pollen. A little work with Sam’s wand and the lock fell away. He opened the door and found that he was stepping through a servant’s entrance. He took Emmy inside.
“What are you doing here, boy?” a liveried servant said.
“I was asked to bring the dog to the prisoner.” Sam hoped his answer sounded probable, but he couldn’t think of a reason for anyone to have one of the Great Sanchians see Harrison.
The servant made a disagreeable face. “Lord Plunk has his own methods. Who are we to question him?”
“I never have,” Sam said.
“You wouldn’t,” the servant said disdainfully. “The prisoner is on the second floor at the east end. Be careful, he is purported to be dangerous.”
“Why is the prisoner still alive?” Sam asked, hoping to get some information on the healer.
“You said you didn’t question our lord.”
“Sorry,” Sam said. He bowed his head as he expected a stable boy or dog boy or whoever the man thought Sam to be would act.
He left the man after he showed Sam the servant’s stairs. Emmy faintly growled. Sam put his hand on the dog’s back. “We are headed to Harrison,” he said.
He passed by the main floor and headed up to the second. He passed a maid, holding a tray covered with a napkin, who looked anxiously at Emmy.
“Who are you?” she asked as suspicion filled her eyes.
“I’m taking the dog to the prisoner. Lord Plunk’s orders.”
“That man!” she whispered. “He just left him.” She lifted the towel on the tray.
Sam looked at a pile of pollen.
“Is that for the prisoner?”
She nodded, looking a bit vicious. It will help Lord Plunk get what he wants.
“He is going to use the dog on him, I guess.”
“I suppose so,” the woman said, looking dubiously at Sam. “It is the door on yo
ur right at the end of the east corridor.” She scurried down the stairs.
Sam took a deep breath and led Emmy up the final half-flight of stairs and stepped into the corridor. He had to look out a window to get his bearings, and then turned around and headed down the corridor, heading east.
He opened the door to a darkened room. A hood was over Harrison’s head. He was bound to a chair. His head lolled, and Sam heard moaning. He quickly closed the door. Emmy emitted a bark and then growled.
Sam looked for a threat but didn’t see anyone. He approached Harrison to removed the hood and looked into the miserable eyes of Lord Lennard Lager.
“What are you doing here?” Sam blurted.
“Came to return my dog?” Lennard mumbled. Someone had beaten his face so he could hardly talk.
“I’m here to save Harrison.”
“He’s not with me, but I know where he is. Untie me and let’s get out while we both can. Plunk is probably boasting about how wonderful I am.” Lager giggled. It was creepy seeing the man act as if he enjoyed his incarceration.
Sam took the bonds off the town lord and helped him to his feet. Lord Lennard grimaced, but his legs seemed to work. Sam helped him out of the room. Emmy still growled as she walked behind them.
The servant’s stairway was empty, so Sam headed down. Lager followed grunting in pain along the way. They reached the bottom.
He shook his head and seemed to get some of his wits to return. “How will you get through Emmy’s sisters?” Lager said.
“The same way I arrived,” Sam said as they reached to door to the outside.
They ran across the field. Sam had to help the man as Lord Lennard’s grunts of pain continued until they reached the trees. The two Great Sanchians bounded to Sam, licking his face. They growled when they glanced at Lager, but didn’t attack.
“He is a friend, for now,” Sam said.
All three dogs barked, but he led Lager through the park, avoiding the wards by using his spectacles. Finding his horse still tied up, he helped Lord Lennard mount, and then when he was about to jump up. Lager laughed.
“Harrison is in the basement of the house you just left.” The lord took off on the horse, leaving Sam staring after the rogue with disbelief.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
~
“N OW I’M SURE I DON’T LIKE LORD LENNARD,” Sam said to Emmy.
He looked back at the house. Sam sighed and returned the way he came. He had to play with the three Great Sanchian sisters for a few minutes before he returned to the outside door. It was still unlocked.
Sam took the servant stairs down to the basement. A few of Plunk’s staff gave him an odd look but didn’t stop him. “Where is the Cherryton healer?” he asked a man working at a workbench in the light from a basement window.
“Dogs,” the man spat.
“I’m new here. You don’t like the dogs?”
“Who does? They bark, they bite, they are Plunk’s tools, like all of us, unfortunately. Your misery has just begun,” the man said. “Avoid the drugs. If they make you take a potion, spit most of it out. Most of us are addicted.” He pulled back his sleeve. Sam saw the familiar sores.
“When did he start all this?”
“Plunk arrived in Mountain View nearly a year ago. You don’t want to know anymore.”
Sam nodded. He had enough to return to the constabulary, but he couldn’t leave Harrison behind.
“The healer is?”
“Not far from the kitchens.”
Sam thought for a bit. “I’m turned around down here. Can you point me in the right direction?”
“Take the first left. It’s the door with the guards.”
Guards! thought Sam. How could he fight guards down here? He would have to use Emmy, but they wouldn’t be able to leave quietly. Why couldn’t Lager have been in the basement and Harrison on the second floor?
He paused at the corridor and peeked around to see two uniformed guards sitting by the door. He put on his spectacles to see that neither wore pollen armor, but he discovered one of the filmy wards that most people wouldn’t see hanging on the door. Why didn’t Lager have guards and Harrison did? He wanted to cry out in frustration, but he couldn’t do that when he was in his enemy’s lair.
Sam took a deep breath and pulled out his wand. Perhaps the guards would think it was used to make Emmy behave. He tapped it on Emmy’s back and ran it back and forth. She raised her head at his action before Sam passed her and strode to the guards.
“What are you doing with that dog down here?” one of the guards said.
“I’m supposed to let her chew on the prisoner.”
“Is that right? And how do you propose getting through that door?”
“With this,” Sam said. He poked the gold tip through the ward. It was so thin that it curled up as each layer touched the gold point. It fell to the ground, its threads turning to pollen dust.
Sam reached out.
“Don’t touch the ward!”
“It isn’t there anymore,” Sam said. He grabbed the door handle and threw the door open.
“Sam!” Harrison said.
He didn’t look dead, and he didn’t act dead, although his face was bruised and puffy, just like Lager’s.
The two guards jumped into the room, seeing Harrison as their threat. Sam shut the door as quickly as he could and removed the gold tip and plunged it into the side of one of the guards struggling with Harrison. Emmy grabbed the shoulder of the other with her teeth, knocking the man down. Sam slammed the steel rod on the man’s head.
“You have another to knock out,” Harrison said. He began removing his clothes. “Get on that guard’s uniform. We are going to walk out of here.”
Sam had to cinch up the pants around his stomach, but the jacket nearly fit. They both put on caps and buckled on the swords the two men had never been able to draw.
Before they left the room, Sam and Harrison pulled the men onto chairs, so it looked like they were sleeping.
“They had a ward that was probably invisible to most people covering the door. The guards knew about it.”
Harrison eyed Sam’s wand. “It helped us again? I recall hearing some woman installing the ward just before you arrived.”
“The wand took care of it,” Sam said. He wanted to tell Harrison about Lager, but he would do that once they escaped. They kept their heads down as they climbed the stairs and walked through the outside door. “Can you put a pollen lock on this?”
Harrison managed a smile. “Of course.” He quickly installed a lock that looked more substantial than the one Sam had broken through.
“Let’s go!” The healer looked at Sam. “Where do we head?”
“The trees,” Sam said.
They both ran. The other two dogs converged on them, growling as six guards poured around a corner of the house.
Sam tore off his guard cap and pointed to the guards. “Attack! Attack!”
The two dogs turned around and barked at the men who stopped in the middle of the grassy park as Sam bolted for the trees. Emmy ran at his side. Harrison had already headed into the trees but stopped when confronted with a ward.
“This way,” Sam said. They pulled off their uniform jackets as they fled and tossed them into the underbrush. “Put a ward here,” he said. “And another invisible one here.”
Sam hoped the wards would keep the guards out. He didn’t know if Harrison’s wards did anything, but they had little choice and little time to get out and to the constabulary. This time both of them were on foot, and they would look out of place running through the town.
Harrison put his hand on Sam’s arm. “I need some food,” he said. “They were trying to starve me.”
“You know this town better than I,” Sam said.
Harrison led them to a little general store.
“I spent some time around here. You have money?”
Sam nodded. He pulled out his purse and handed it to the healer.
Harrison
bought them each a meat pie and a bottle of ale.
Sam took the pie and ate half. Harrison quickly finished his and nodded when he took Sam’s proffered portion.
“You can have the ale, too,” Sam said.
Harrison finished them both off. “I feel better now. Let’s head to the constabulary.”
Sam told Harrison of his encounter with Lager.
Harrison shook his head. “They aren’t enemies; they are partners,” he said. “Lenny wanted a larger cut of the gold mine and Plunk insisted that the revolution died because of him.”
“How do you know that?” Sam said. “Supposition?”
Harrison barked out a laugh. “They fought right in front of me. That’s when I was taken to the basement. Now you know why Plunk started on Lenny rather than me. Maybe that is a little generous,” the healer said, as he gingerly touched his bruised nose. “I was taken directly to Plunk’s residence after you left. The guards played around with for awhile before sticking me in that room.”
“You haven’t had anything to eat since?”
“For three or four days, I think. My room didn’t have windows in case you didn’t notice.”
Sam shook his head. “I didn't.”
“The two guards beat me. They said they were softening me for Plunk. I guess I’m soft enough now.” Harrison said.
Sam told him of his trip to Cherryton and Bentwick’s announcement of his apprenticeship offer.
“When Bentwick asked me about what you were going to do after our tour, he didn’t hesitate to bring up a snoop apprenticeship. Those are very rare.”
“I accepted. I hope you don’t mind,” Sam said.
“Why would I mind? It is a great fit for you and your unique talents. The investigative units aren’t as regimented as the rest of the constabulary. You are well suited for the position.”
Sam nodded.
They walked in silence until Harrison stopped them.
“We will have to be careful. Plunk and Lenny both know I work with agencies in Baskin.”
“Are the constables part of the rebellion?”
Harrison shook his head. “No. Bacon was murdered, and that brought Bentwick to Mountain View. If something happened to him, General Torrent would have his army here within a week. He doesn’t have to play nice with the local lords.”
