Reluctant Hero (The Dunamis Covenant Book 1)

by Ron Francis

  "Checkout is at eleven," She called behind him. She looked disappointed that he didn't take the bait. He imagined that most guys usually would.

  Thomas stepped into the shower and it felt good. He almost felt human again. He scrubbed a week of camping away under the surprising pressure the shower head produced. It was pushing out the hot water very well. He thought he just might stay the night. Maybe a night in a real bed would be what he needed. He decided he would make a decision after shopping. At the very least, he could come back around ten thirty in the morning and take another shower. When he stepped out of the shower, he looked in the mirror and noticed a week and a half worth of scruff. He hadn't shaved in a while, but he decided to try a new look. Anyone looking for clean cut Thomas might miss scruffy TJ, especially with a hat and sunglasses on. That would be a helpful disguise in another week and a half when the park closed to campers for the rest of the season. He threw on a white tee shirt with a generic, navy blue, zip-up hoody perfect for an early November day in Oklahoma.

  Thomas bought enough groceries to last him another week and a half. He also bought a small cooler to keep a few items in. He paid the cashier and then left the store. He had decided against staying at the hotel and returned to collect his bike. As he was leaving, Ashley blocked the door with a smile and said, "Are you sure you didn't find anything worth staying for?"

  He gave her a slight frown and replied, "I'm engaged, Ashley, if I were single this story might have a different ending. I'm sure you'll find someone to take you out tonight. It was very nice to meet you." He tried to leave, but she again blocked the door.

  "I don't see your girlfriend, and I'll never tell. How will she ever know?" She batted her eyes and continued to flirt with him.

  "Even if I could get away with it, I'm too in love to ever do something like that to her. I hope you find someone that feels the same way someday." He tried to leave again, and this time brushed past her.

  "Me, too," she replied in a voice just above a whisper as she let him pass.

  "Bye Ashley." He rolled his bike down the three wooden steps. He was about to get on the bike to ride back to his campsite when two men approached him. He tensed wondering if the Ethereals had found him.

  "What was that?" The first man yelled in his direction while glaring at him. Thomas was stumped as to who he could be talking to. He looked around as the man approached him. "I said, what was that?" He repeated in his outdoor voice while putting his index finger right into Thomas chest.

  "What was what?" Thomas replied, slapping the man's hand away, which drew another angry glare. The man before him stood about six foot. He was fairly built and wore jeans and a red flannel shirt opened enough to see the black tee underneath. His tan cowboy hat covered most of his dark hair and he had angry, cloudy gray eyes. His friend was almost a clone except for the lighter hair and blue flannel.

  "You was hittin on my girl, wasn't he, Johnny?"

  Johnny nodded in what Thomas imagined was an intimidating manner and replied. "Yup."

  "No, I wasn't. I was leaving the inn and I said goodbye."

  "Uh huh, that's not what it looked like to me, how bout you, Johnny?"

  "Nope!"

  "Well, maybe you should get your eyes checked then, she held the door open for me and I passed through it, end of story." He was starting to lose patience with the situation when a yell came from the inn.

  "He wasn't doin nothin, Bobby, and even if he was, you gave up your right to be mad about it when you cheated on me. Now we're done! Finished! So don't come over here acting like you own me. Just leave me alone!"

  "You shut your mouth Ashley, before I come over there and make ya! And we ain't done 'til I say we're done, got that?" Thomas started to ride away and Johnny stepped in front of him.

  "Where you goin? I ain't said you could leave yet," Bobby said, still seething.

  "I couldn't care less about what you did or didn't say." He hated the fact that he couldn't teach this punk a lesson, but he couldn't draw attention to himself. He was trying as hard as he could, but Abby had awoken something that lie dormant in him for years. Thomas hadn't noticed them arrive, but by this time there were about a dozen people watching the situation. Now he really had to leave; small town folk always turn on the outsider, at least according to the movies. He was torn between his two natures. His cautious nature wanted to cut and run, but his Paladin nature wanted to beat the crap out of the big mouth bully and his mono-syllabic friend. The result was inaction caused by his internal battle. He refused to back down, but he wasn't going to attack either.

  "What did you say to me, city boy?" Bobby yelled as he paced in front of Thomas. "You think you can come into my town, hit on my woman and look down on me? You got another thing comin." He took a quick step back towards Thomas after Ashley came out of the inn again.

  "Leave him alone, Bobby, he ain't done nothin." She stepped in between Thomas and her angry ex, and Thomas couldn't stop what happened next. "I was hittin on him, Bobby, and he politely turned my down because he's engaged." she was pushing him away from Thomas while she yelled at him. "Because he's a gentleman, unlike you. He didn't do nothin." Bobby stepped forward and hit her hard in the face, knocking her to the ground. She cried out and the people that had gathered around yelled out in anger for him to stop, but no one stepped up to make him. He then looked at Thomas, murder in his eyes and stalked towards him. Johnny was on the other side and Thomas wanted to check on Ashley. He may not have been interested in dating her, but she was a sweet girl and didn't deserve that.

  "See what you made me do? Now you're gonna pay."

  "The only person you should be blaming is yourself. You'd better turn around and leave while you can still walk." That last comment sent Bobby into a frenzy. He charged Thomas and threw a big overhand right, trying to land a haymaker. Thomas dodged the attack to the right and countered with an uppercut that took him off his feet. Bobby's body kicked up a cloud of dirt as he landed unconscious on the ground. I didn't even use half my strength, he thought. What's happening to me? Bobby was out cold and Johnny thought better of coming any closer. Just then, the sheriff arrived. He surveyed the situation and asked the grocer what had happened.

  "Now I'm in for it, Thomas thought. Small town folk always stick together. He moved to check on Ashley while she continued to lay on the ground sobbing.

  The old grocer took his hat off and pointed at Thomas, "That young feller there was just mindin his own business. He was trying to leave the inn, but young Ashley had taken a shine to him. He politely turned her down, when Bobby and Johnny showed up all angry and fixin for a fight. The young feller tried to leave, but Bobby wouldn't have it. Then Ashley came out and Bobby punched her right in the face. His father, God rest his soul, would be so disappointed if he were still alive. Then, Bobby took a swing at the stranger, and the stranger knocked him out with one punch."

  The sheriff looked around and asked the crowd of fifteen or so onlookers, "Is that what happened?" They all agreed to the old grocer's story while Thomas was helping a sobbing Ashley up off the ground. "Are you sure, Darnell?" he asked again,

  "Yup, that's how it happened."

  "I'm so sorry this happened to you, Ashley." Thomas said while helping Ashley to her feet.

  "It's not your fault, it's mine. I picked him as a boyfriend even though I knew what kind of person he was." she said in reflection. "I just wish there was some guys as nice as you in this town. Promise me that if things don't work out with your fiancée, you'll come back and take me out to dinner." She looked up with pleading eyes and tear-stained cheeks as the sheriff made his way over to them.

  "You have my word," he replied and she smiled.

  "You're free to go, mister, I have a dozen witnesses that say you didn't do anything wrong. Ashley, dear, please tell me you're pressing charges this time," he added with a sigh that told Thomas this wasn't the first time a scene like this had played out between her and Bobby. He looked at her while she tried to make the decision s
he had failed to make so many times before.

  She looked at Thomas and he nodded. She nodded back and replied, "Yes I am, Sheriff Tompkins."

  "That's a good girl," He replied. Then he took out his notebook and prepared to take her statement.

  Thomas rode off and found some satisfaction in the fact that Bobby had not woken up yet. That was unexpected, he thought. I guess the movies were wrong about the small town, or maybe they all just hate that Bobby guy. He continued to ride toward his camp site and the thoughts kept coming. Maybe it's all true, maybe I am one of these Paladin guys. I just wish I knew who I really was, without the spells. Who is the real me? Am I the mailman or am I the action hero?

  He slept well that night, and for the first time since he had met her, Abby didn't dominate his dreams. He woke up the next morning and decided he had overstayed his time at Lake Texoma. He packed everything up and brought his extra food, and all his camping gear to the park office. When he walked in, he noticed one older woman was working. The office was spacious and was decorated in natural wood and wood themed statues. A mountain lion stood menacingly in a glass case, stuffed for posterity. There was a big round table in the middle of the room which had the feel of a family gathering table. A white haired woman wearing a sky blue sweater, sat hunched behind a wooden counter with a laminate top and she was knitting. Behind her on another counter was an old computer hooked up to an ancient printer and the phone was a rotary. Thomas marveled and thought; somehow, updated technology would ruin the feel of this place.

  Thomas cleared his throat hoping to get the woman's attention before he began to speak. "I decided to cut out early, don't worry about a refund. I was wondering if you could use any of this stuff, maybe some campers might need it or something. If not, do you have a bin I can throw it in? I can't carry it all on my bike." The old woman working the office smiled at him. He could carry all of it except the chair and the cooler, but he wanted to travel light since he had the wider tires.

  "Well, that certainly is sweet of you. You can leave it on the table over there." She pointed a boney finger to the large family table in the middle of the room. "And thank you for what you did for my great niece Ashley yesterday. It's about time someone taught that no good Bobby a lesson. I don't know if you knew, but you shattered his jaw. They had to rebuild it. That bully won't be able to open that big mouth of his for a long time, so thank you for that, too." Thomas decided that he liked this old woman. She continued her thought. "Ashley is a sweetheart, do anything for anyone. No one could understand how she ever got mixed up with that no good Bobby. Thank God, Judge Jenkins passed a restraining order, and he ain't even allowed within a hundred feet of her. He's also fixin to make Bobby spend three months in jail for assault. His lawyer's gonna try to plead down, but Bobby just fights too much so everyone thinks the judge is gonna deny him. Trial will happen within the next couple weeks, but no one thinks it'll go Bobby's way."

  "I'm glad it all worked out to your liking, ma'am. Tell Ashley I said goodbye." She waved and he turned and left. It was time to sneak back into the Metroplex.

  Chapter eleven

  Thomas made it back to the Metroplex without incident. He no longer needed the bike, but he hated to get rid of something that was less than two weeks old. He decided he would visit his old friend, Kendra. He had barely seen her since high school. They dated as freshmen and broke up as freshmen. She hated him sophomore year, but then they became good friends junior and senior year. He thought she was coming to UT with him. It was a complete surprise when she accepted a scholarship to A&M. They had kept in touch by email and text, and had gotten together a couple times since high school, always promising to stay in touch, but the reality was he hadn't seen her much. He didn't think anyone would look for him at her place.

  When Kendra answered the door, she was shocked. "Thomas Archer." She yelled and then she jumped out of the doorway and into his arms. "It's been so long, what brings you here?" She looked at him again and added, "And what's with the mountain man beard?"

  "What, you don't like the beard?"

  "I don't know yet, I'll let you know later." Her voice was filled with excitement and joy when she said, "Come in, come in. I have something amazing to show you."

  Thomas followed Kendra inside and she picked up a baby out of a crib. "Wow, Kendra, I had no idea—"

  "This is Sarah," Kendra said, and then she handed the child to him.

  Thomas was in awe as he stood in Kendra's living room holding Kendra's perfect little angel. "She's beautiful, Kendra. Really, she's great. She has such beautiful black hair, and look at those blue, expressive eyes. She looks just like you. How old is she?"

  "She's eight months old. I'm doing the single mom thing, and trying to start a work from home business, so I don't have to let strangers raise my baby." She was using the opportunity that Thomas provided while holding the baby to rush around the room placing stacks of papers in their appropriate piles.

  "Does the father pitch in at all?" He asked while rocking the little girl back and forth in his arms.

  "No," she replied and then looked away with sadness in her eyes. "He was killed in Afghanistan while I was two months pregnant; it's all up to me now. He was a civilian contractor so I don't even get any benefits because he had no insurance."

  "Oh, Kendra, I'm so sorry. This must be so hard for you."

  "Sometimes it is. Sometimes it's overwhelming, but there's also a lot of joy." She tickled her happy baby, making her giggle. "I'll make it through, if I could just get the bank to lend me a few thousand dollars, I know my marketing business can make it." As she was speaking, Thomas noticed a scar on Sarah's right ear. He then noticed an identical scar on her left ear and his breath caught. "Thomas, what's wrong?" She asked with a concerned look in her eye. "You look like you've just seen a ghost."

  "Kendra, are you a Mage?"

  "H... how do you...?"

  "The scars on Sarah's ears, I was told many Mage parents have their children's ears cut so they can fit in with normal human society." He felt like the world was closing in around him. This was too big a coincidence. "So do you work for Asa, too?" He had a look of disappointment so great on his face, it almost made Kendra cry.

  "No, but my parents did," she answered in a soft voice, almost as if she were ashamed.

  "Nothing in my life was ever real, was it?" He asked.

  "I don't know, Thomas," she replied. She placed her hand on his arm as she took Sarah from him to lay her in her crib. "Mommy needs to talk to Uncle Thomas now. You be a good girl, Sarah." She was rewarded by an adorable smile and coo after she placed her in the crib. Sarah immediately began playing with the shapes that were hanging above her head.

  "Uncle Thomas?" he asked, his voice skeptical.

  "Yes, Uncle Thomas!" she replied adamantly. "Now sit and I'll tell you everything I do know." He sat down, hoping his friend was still his friend as she began. "Remember when we met freshman year? When we started going to the same high school, Asa paid my parents a visit, and told them to make me get close to you. They never had to make me get close to you because we met the first day and started dating two weeks later. My parents were very happy because we became friends and they didn't think they would have to make me keep an eye on you, so they never told me." She paused and he could tell the next part of the story was not something she was happy about. "Seven months later, they found out that you and I had kissed a few times and they flipped out on me. I mean, my father almost killed me. I couldn't understand why and then they told me all about you and how they needed me to keep an eye on you. They told me that we had broken the sacred trust because you were betrothed. They said I could never touch you again, and at that point, I didn't want to."

  "You thought I was a cheater," he added.

  "I'm sorry, I did. I thought the worst of you for a long time. Then Asa explained to me that you didn't know. He didn't even know who you were betrothed to. He told me it wasn't my fault either, but we could never start dating again. H
e went on to tell me he had taken the memory from you while also making you very cautious so you would not stand out. It was all supposed to be for your protection of course—"

  "Wait, he cast those spells? He just can't stop lying to me for one minute can he?"

  "I'm sorry, Thomas, if this is too painful—"

  "No, Kendra, I need to know and it's obvious I'm never going to get the truth from Asa."

  "Maybe he doesn't believe you are ready,"

  "No, forget him! He had his chance to tell the truth." He was so upset he would have hit Asa if he were there. It must have shown because Kendra looked a little skeptical as she continued.

  "Anyway, he told me your parents were killed because you are the fulfillment of some ancient prophecy about the powerful champion destined to stop some destroyer. Everyone among the Ethereals believes Devlin to be the destroyer and most believe you to be the child of destiny. After your parents were killed, you were given to the Archers for safe keeping."

  "Right, because uncle Pete was my dad's brother."

  "No, there was no relation; they were your parents friends, nothing more. You are not blood related to them. Your real last name is not even Archer. I don't know what it is, but it's not Archer."

  "There's another lie Asa told me! Kendra, I just don't know who I can trust. I've never felt so alone."

  "You have every right to be angry, Thomas. After Asa told me everything, my parents forced me to be friends with you again, and I became part of the lie. For that I have always felt a deep sorrow. I really tried to be your friend, and I had gotten over the whole betrothal thing when I found out you didn't know. You thought you were a normal kid, and I couldn't blame you for that. I was never allowed to tell you the truth. I felt like I was lying to you the whole time we were friends. That's the real reason I didn't go to UT. I tanked the interview on purpose so I wouldn't have to keep lying to you."