The Hunt for the Three Roses

by Jason Hubbard

  “Um … a what-now?”

  She laughed and said, “It’s exactly what it sounds like: A story about a couple who rip their clothes off. I’ve heard a few in my time.”

  Sean couldn’t help but flush as she giggled, all the while thinking that the Church would likely burn such books if they were found to exist. Then again, what the Church didn’t know couldn’t hurt it. “So, it appears I have a master who would rather, um … rip bodices than teach me anything useful.”

  “Want me to talk to him? Pound some sense into him?”

  “No, I can handle him. I just need to find his good side, and if that doesn’t exist, I’ll just put my foot down.”

  “Good, because you’ll need to stand up for yourself after I’m gone.”

  “What? Are you going somewhere?” Jonas asked with a deep worry line on his brow.

  “She’s coming with us to Asturia, where she’ll make it on her own,” Sean said as Callie chewed on a mouthful of pork.

  “But she should stay with us! Sean, tell her to stay with us!”

  “Cease, Jonas,” Sean countered with a pointing finger. “It’s her decision, and we should respect it. We’ll make sure you can say goodbye before we leave for the palace.”

  “But, Callie … you shouldn’t go. I don’t want you to!”

  At Jonas’ pouty face, she made a soft groan. “I knew I shouldn’t have said anything, but … can you guys keep a secret?”

  Sean looked questioningly at Jonas, then said, “Well, I can.”

  Callie leaned towards the older man and said, “Jonas, we’re friends, aren’t we?”

  “Yeah, very good friends,” Jonas said, putting on the same dopey smile he had whenever she gave him her full attention.

  “Friends keep secrets for each other, don’t they? So, if I tell you mine, you won’t tell anyone else. Agreed?”

  “Um … yeah.”

  “Good enough for me. Well, I’ve been meaning to leave for Asturia today … and I don’t want anyone else to know about it.”

  It took Sean a moment for this to sink in, then he patted Jonas’ shoulder to prevent an outburst from him. “But what about Avery and your other friends? Don’t they deserve to know?”

  She shrugged. “I’ll leave a letter so they don’t worry.”

  “But why leave so soon?”

  Callie sighed and took another bite before continuing. “Avery and her husband tried to convince me to stay last night. They said I could help with the farm or get a job in St. Clive. I said I’d think about it, but they finished the discussion as if my staying here was a done deal.”

  “And you don’t want them to pressure you anymore.”

  “Exactly. They’ll be mad at me, but I can accept that.”

  “But you should stay!” Jonas cried. “I’m gonna tell!”

  “No, Jonas—you do that, and I’ll get so mad at you!” Callie said with a sneer.

  Sean tried to mollify Jonas in a gentle manner but with stern language. When he determined Jonas wasn’t going to leave in a huff, he turned back to Callie. “I hear Asturia is a three-day’s ride from here. Surely you’re not going on foot?”

  “I can hitch a ride if I have to.”

  “But that’s risky. What if … what if I get you a horse? And you’ll need some supplies and some money to get you started. I’ll ask the count for permission to get them.” What he didn’t add was that the expenses would probably have to come from his own pocket—even before he earned anything on his new job.

  “No, I don’t want anything; I’ll be fine on my own, Sean. You don’t have to do anything for me …”

  Sean crossed his arms and glared at her. “Callie … let me do this for you, please. If you don’t, I may have to put a curse on you.”

  “You wouldn’t,” she said with peering eyes.

  “And I’ll tell Jonas to tickle you.”

  She looked at Jonas, who leaned away from her. “I didn’t do anything,” he whined.

  She shook her head in disbelief. “Word of advice, Jonas: Never piss off a future sorcerer. They have long memories.”

  “I’ll find the count right now,” Sean said as he rose. “You won’t leave without me?”

  “I won’t. So, I guess this means I’ve been beaten twice in one day.”

  “Best not make a habit of it. I’ll meet you back here.”

  Count Guyver could have been out among the fights and festivities, but fortunately Sean quickly traced him to his upstairs office, where he was talking with his treasurer. “Sean, good thing you’re here,” the count said. “Tomorrow night we’ll have a feast after the trials. How would you like to be one of the guests of honor?”

  “I would be very grateful, my lord,” Sean replied with one knee on a crimson rug. He then said that while he didn’t want to take the count’s generosity for granted, he wanted to request a number of things for Callie to take with her.

  “Must she go so soon?” the count asked. “What’s the hurry?”

  “Her new friends want her to stay, so she wants to leave without their knowing.”

  “Hmm … a good horse would come at considerable expense. We’re looking at anywhere from two hundred silver to fifty gold, depending on the breed.”

  “Yes, my lord. I don’t want to see her go on foot, though.”

  “I can only be so generous, Mr. McAlister … but for you, I’ll make an exception. I’ll write a note for Stanford, the horse master, to give your friend one of his lesser breeds with a modest temperament. And you shall make a list of the supplies you take, and I’ll see if there’s anything on it worth deducting from your pay. Just don’t get greedy—you or her.”

  Sean could barely contain his relief and excitement. As soon as he got the note, he rushed it to the horse master, who picked out a white painted quarter horse named “Vicky’s Lament.” Callie fell in love with her right away, stroking her handsome muzzle and feeding her two apples. “I’ve never owned a horse before. Rode plenty of times, yes, but never owned. Please give the count my thanks.”

  “You’re welcome, lass,” Stanford said, though Sean wondered if she was really talking to him instead.

  The two former Consarians then made their list of things to take, such as a bedroll, a skillet, a hunting knife, a bow and quiver, and whatever number of bread loaves and other foods that could fit in a saddlebag. Together with Jonas, they went to the manor’s storage bins, the kitchen pantry, and the guard station, filling their arms with whatever they could hold at one time. Lastly, they went to the treasurer’s office where Sean begged for twenty silver coins and a gold piece, enough for Callie to buy whatever else she needed for the road and her beginning steps in Lonsaran’s capital.

  At one point as they were loading Vicky’s Lament (whom Callie considered renaming “Vicky’s Last Hope”), Callie said, “You know, you seem a little too eager to see me go.”

  Sean had just finished stuffing the wooden quiver into a saddlebag when he looked at her, confused. “What do you mean?”

  She scoffed and said, “I mean, you never know when you’ll see me again, if ever … but you don’t seem too chocked up about it.”

  She was just teasing him, but he knew he had to choose his words carefully. “I will miss you, of course … but I had a feeling you wouldn’t be very happy here. You’re more comfortable in a city, aren’t you?”

  “Well, yeah …”

  “And you said weeks ago you wanted to go to Asturia … or don’t you remember?”

  “Yes, but you could ask me to stay a little longer.”

  He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. “So, you want me to do the one thing you don’t want anyone else to do?”

  She appeared ready to make a sharp retort but then sighed and hung her arms loosely. “Dammit, Sean, stop making sense on me.” She walked past him, flashing him a smi
le to show she wasn’t too pissed at him.

  He shook his head in good humor, but he couldn’t help but be worried. He remembered something she had told him a long time ago, that there was sometimes a hidden meaning behind one’s words, especially if they seem unrelated to a current situation. He suspected he saw such a meaning behind her words just now, yet he didn’t want to think too deeply on it.

  As her load increased, Vicky’s Last Hope sensed she was going on a journey, and she grew antsy to leave. Callie tugged on her reins to still her. “Oh, I know you want to go, but I’m the master, and we’ll go when I say so!”

  Sean and Jonas stuffed as much food as they dared into a saddlebag, and when they were finished, they still didn’t think they had put in enough. They didn’t want their friend to starve on the road, and they didn’t want her to have to rely on hunting to keep up her strength. Callie assured them she would be fine, that she could hunt down hares and squirrels if she had to. She had gotten a lot of archery practice on the way to the manor, and she felt her skills were more than adequate.

  But the truth was that, with the food stuffed away, everything was packed and ready to go … and the men didn’t want their time with Callie to be over already.

  “I should have plenty of daylight when I reach town,” Callie said. “I think I’ll stay there overnight. You have my letter, don’t you?”

  Sean nodded and patted his tunic with said letter in an inside pocket. He promised to give it to Avery and her husband that night before they could worry too much over Callie not returning to their cottage.

  “Okay … I think it’s time. Yup, I should get going.”

  Sean encouraged Jonas to go to her first. The older man slowly approached as she gently petted the horse’s muzzle. “Are you really going?”

  “Yes, Jonas, I am.”

  “You’re really, really going?”

  She nodded with a fond smile.

  “Can I give you a hug?”

  “Of course you can,” she said beaming, and she wrapped her arms around his broad torso. They held and rocked each other for nearly a minute before Callie pulled away and faced him while clutching his shoulders. “I’m sorry for any time I lost my temper with you. You gave me a gift that is utterly priceless, and I don’t know how you did it, but I cannot thank you enough for it. If not for you, Sean wouldn’t be here with us, and who knows what would have happened to me and you. So … thank you.”

  Jonas took hitching breaths as tears rolled down his face. Sean was afraid he would go in for a kiss on the lips, but he simply nodded and walked away, glancing wistfully back at her as he did.

  Okay, my turn, Sean thought and took a steadying breath. He didn’t think he was going to cry, but it was possible he would later on. Instead of facing Callie right away, he went to the mare and patted her flank, offering a silent prayer that the animal would prove capable and good-natured enough to bring his friend safely to her destination. Callie looked at him in bemusement as she waited for him to speak, but that was okay since he liked keeping her in suspense.

  When he finally met her gaze, he found his nerves to be calm and sturdy enough to allow him to speak. “You know, in spite of everything, I’m glad to have met you. You taught me there’s more to life than the simplicity of a warm shelter. You taught me that while things don’t always go as planned, every day presents new opportunities to seize upon, and that I should never give up no matter how bad things look. And above all, you taught me that strength and kindness are not mutually exclusive as I once thought. I wish you nothing but good luck in everything you do, Callie, and whenever you find yourself in the area, just ask for me, and I’ll see if I can give you anything you need.”

  Callie’s beautiful, sparkling eyes looked as if they might cry, but she then made a small laugh and brushed a back a loose lock of hair over an ear. “You put a lot more thought into a farewell than I did …”

  Sean shrugged with a small, amused smile. “Just say the first thing that comes to mind.”

  Callie also smiled, but she looked troubled as she struggled to think of something fitting to say. “Well … it’s just that … if you like it here, that’s great, but … well …”

  “But what?”

  “As you said, there’s more to life than a warm shelter, but there’s also more to it than serving some lord. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you have a job where you do what you’re good at, and Count Guyver seems like a good man, but I don’t want you to solely dedicate yourself to following a lord’s orders. So, what I’m saying is, go and serve Count Guyver if you want … but don’t forget to do something for yourself, too.”

  It took a second for him to catch her meaning, and he warmly replied, “I will.” He then took a moment longer to gaze into her caring blue eyes before turning to head away. There would be no hug for him; he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.

  Callie sadly watched him go, then slowly mounted her steed and tapped her feet on the animal’s sides to get her to trot out of the stable. They didn’t get far before Sean called out Callie’s name, prompting her to tug the reins and look back at him.

  “Whatever you do, forget about the Three Roses,” Sean called out. “I don’t think that’s a path worth taking.”

  She didn’t know what to say to that, so she made a short nod and resumed on her way east to Asturia.

  The two men watched her ride out of sight, and they lingered in the stable afterward. The clashing of steel and cheering of crowds reached them from a quarter of a kilometer away, but those sounds couldn’t shake off the sadness and loneliness from the men’s hearts. Jonas took to brushing a horse’s mane, and Sean followed suit. The simple task helped them feel better, but Sean couldn’t help but shed a tear when he thought of his good friend, Patrick, who had turned into ashes in the wind the last time Sean saw him. It didn’t feel right, continuing on in this place after Patrick had perished over a month ago. While Sean was quiet and reserved, Patrick had been spirited and energetic, purely a delight to be around. Sean had promised himself to contact Patrick’s parents, but he only had a vague idea of where they lived, and he’ll have to wait till after the war to find them.

  And now one more person from his old life had left him, and he suspected he would never see her again. Little by little, piece by piece, his role as Kane Bailey of Ester Barony was molting away, and he wasn’t sure if being Sean McAlister was worth the loss.

  “I should probably report back to Master Harris, but I don’t feel like it,” he said. “Let’s go back to our room.”

  Jonas agreed, and the two retreated the festive grounds for the relative silence of their quarters. Jonas lied on his bed and shut his eyes, but Sean wasn’t tired enough for rest. He opened a studybook and sat with it on his mattress, hoping that the boring lessons and run-on sentences would lull him to sleep. It wasn’t long, though, before Jonas began crying again.

  “Why did you let her go?” the older man demanded. “You could have made her stay!”

  “It was her decision, and we should respect it,” Sean replied. “If we ‘made’ her stay, it would have been wrong.”

  “But … but she would have stayed if you had fallen in love with her!”

  Sean burst out laughing and held a hand over his eyes, his cheeks turning red from embarrassment. “It’s not that simple,” he said, and he sobered upon noticing Jonas’ angry glare. “With things the way they are now, I think I’m better off without her.”

  He put on a reassuring smile, but Jonas quickly turned himself over, refusing to look at his roommate anymore. Sean dropped the smile and cast his eyes down pensively.

  “Yeah … I think …”

  Eleven

  For what felt like the millionth time, Callie had to resist the urge to turn the horse around and run back to the manor.

  She had Vicky’s Last Hope go at a brisk canter, since there was no need to hurry a
nd she liked the midafternoon sun on her face. They passed by countless rows of barley where she heard children run around playing hide-and-seek. She was initially worried those kids would get hopelessly lost among the crops that all looked the same, but she then figured that they had grown up here and probably knew the fields like the back of their hands.

  About thirty minutes after she left the manor, she spotted chimney smoke rising above trees, and she sighed in relief. For a while, she was afraid she had gone down the wrong path, but St. Clive was just up ahead where she’ll get her bearings and relieve her aching muscles. Also, a mug of the province’s famous booze would do her soul a world of good. She could practically taste it on her tongue already.

  So why did she want to go back? She hadn’t left anything behind, as far as she knew. Avery would miss her, but she had left that letter with Sean, so the damage would be minimal. There was really nothing to worry about.

  Once she rode past a welcome sign and the birches and maples surrounding the town, Callie noted how St. Clive was bigger than she expected. Instead of modest hovels, most of the homes were brick structures with proper windows and decorative doors, and the road was made of cobblestones that had taken a beating by hundreds of harsh winters. Most of the inhabitants were away at the trials, so St. Clive seemed like a borderline ghost town, but there were still a few streetsweepers and playing children to be found. Around a corner, a town crier announced the latest rankings of the bronze sentinel trials, freshly delivered by carrier pigeon.

  As Sean had said, she was more comfortable in a city than a countryside, and St. Clive wasn’t too far from the makeup and atmosphere of some areas of St. Mannington. As if by instinct, she navigated through a small maze of streets and alleys to a town square with a well, where she dismounted to inspect a posting board. She hoped to see some interesting job offers, but besides two messages about the trials, nothing jumped out at her. Typical postings asked for babysitters, housecleaners, chimneysweepers, and private tutors—all jobs she would do only if other plans didn’t pan out.