Mitchell Graham - [Fifth Ring 03] - The Ancient Legacy(V1.0)

by Mitchell Graham

  The feeling of love and pride that swelled in Mathew's chest that day would remain with him always.

  The dinner in Father Thomas's cottage was one of the nicest Mathew could remember. It was wonderful seeing Collin again. The years and their separation seemed to melt away. When things quieted they moved apart from the crowd to talk.

  "When I got word that you were alive, I couldn't believe it," Collin said. "I just couldn't believe it. I rode for two days just to get back, only to find you're marrying my wife."

  Mathew squeezed Collin's shoulder. "It's so good to see you. I wanted to contact you and let you—"

  "I know, Mat. Akin explained the whole thing to me. So tell me, what have you been doing for the last four years?" Mathew smiled at the jest. "Not getting any closer to the ring, but there's an opportunity now in Nyngary." "Fine. When do we leave?" "I can't ask you to go with me." "It'll be safer with you than here. Remember, the Var-gothans have been taking fellows my age. They took Daniel two years ago." "I heard."

  "Anyway, since Lara and I won't be living together anymore, I don't have a lot of choice in the matter, if you see what I mean. One way or another, I have to leave now." "Collin, I'm sorry."

  Collin looked down at the floor for a moment. "You two were always meant for each other, Mat," he said qui­etly. "It was the right thing to do. But I will have to leave. I'm not going into the Vargothan army."

  "I'd love nothing better than to have you. Are you seri­ous about this?"

  "I am. I imagine Lara's also coming?"

  Mathew nodded. "Amanda and Martin will be taking care of Bran until we get back. She's going to travel as my wife."

  "She is your wife, Mat."

  Mathew rolled his eyes up and shook his head. "This is still pretty new to me. I called her 'Mistress Lewin' a while ago and she stared at me like I'd fallen out of a tree. I guess she's getting used to it, too."

  "Everything will work out fine. She's a wonderful girl and you couldn't ask for a better son than Bran. I wish all of you joy."

  Mathew stared at his friend for several seconds and his face turned serious. "Thanks for everything you've done."

  Collin gave him a wink. "Let's go back in the dining room."

  As soon as they returned to the table, Collin picked up a fork and tapped it against the side of a wineglass for silence.

  "I have a toast," he announced, raising his glass. "To my friends Mat and Lara. Their getting married today is something of a relief. Of course, everyone in Devondale has known this day would come for about a decade now, with... ah, the possible exception of Mat. Well, it's fi­nally happened and we can all take a deep breath.

  "There are certain rumors surrounding this union that I, as their trusted and loyal friend, feel honor bound to dis­pel. I've spoken to Margaret Grimley and I can assure you that there is no truth to the story that Lara actually picked out her wedding dress ten years ago."

  Margaret Grimley, who was standing next to Lara, put her arm around Lara's shoulders and gave her a good-natured squeeze.

  "Now everyone in town knows that Mat Lewin has had a sensitive stomach since he was quite young, and I'm here to tell you these unfortunate attacks never once occurred while we were discussing marriage . . . well, almost never. Actually, it only happened a few times. Oh, all right, but fifty percent isn't such a bad average, is it, Father?"

  Father Thomas shook his head no and laughed with the rest.

  "Perhaps I'm digressing. I've known Mat and Lara since we were young, and they are deeply moral people who have listened carefully to all of Father Thomas's sermons."

  Collin paused, looked around the room, made a delib­erate show of noticing Bran, who was sitting quietly on the couch. He bent down, picked the child up, and they rubbed noses together.

  "All right, all right," he said turning back to the others. "They listened to most of the sermons."

  The joke brought more laughter.

  "In all seriousness, nothing has given me greater pleasure than seeing my two friends where they belong ... where they have always belonged. I join with everyone here in wishing them happiness and the quiet peace of each other's companionship for years to come—to Lara and Mat."

  "Hear hear," Akin added.

  Collin had barely finished his toast when his glass paused halfway down. He looked out the window and saw a man was staring in at them. The second the man turned and ran, Collin bolted out the door after him, with Father Thomas and Akin close behind. Mafhew grabbed his sword and followed. By the time he got to the street he saw Collin holding someone by the back of his neck.

  "What's happening?" Mathew asked.

  "Dermot here was spying on us through the window," Collin said. "Weren't you, Dermot?"

  "I wasn't doing no such thing. I just saw lights on at the priest's house, that's all. You got no right to hold me against my will."

  "Your business is several streets away, Master Walsh," said Father Thomas. "What were you doing at my home?"

  "Your home?" Dermot repeated. "I knew it was you. Your name's not Nicholas Pastor. You're Siward Thomas."

  "You're a very perceptive fellow," the priest said, draw­ing his dagger. He took a step closer.

  The expression on Dermot's face suddenly became fearful. "You're a priest. You can't harm me."

  "Really?"

  Akin grabbed one of Dermot's arms and Collin grabbed the other. Dermot tried to pull away but they held him fast. His eyes seemed glued to the dagger in Father Thomas's hand.

  "You're a priest," he repeated.

  "I wonder if your masters told you what I did before I became a priest."

  Dermot didn't answer, though his eyes widened as Fa­ther Thomas brought the dagger closer.

  "No? Let me educate you, then. For eight years I com­manded Elgaria's western armies and the Tardof Legions. We had a special way of dealing with traitors. We cut out their tongues to prevent them from speaking, and their ears were removed to prevent them from hearing. Then their eyes were put out to prevent them from seeing."

  Dermot's knees sagged. "Oh, God," he gasped.

  Mathew was almost ready to intervene. The look on Father Thomas's face was one he had never seen before, and it frightened him.

  "Goodbye, Master Walsh," Father Thomas said quietly. He brought the point of the dagger up under Dermot's eye. "I don't think we'll be seeing each other again."

  "Mercy, Father," Dermot pleaded.

  "Mercy?" Father Thomas repeated, his voice no more than a whisper.

  "I'm begging you. I have a wife and two daughters."

  "How interesting. What did the Vargothans tell you?"

  "Please, Father."

  Tears were rolling down Dermot's face now. Akin and Collin looked at each other, not sure what the priest was going to do next.

  Father Thomas grabbed Dermot's head and yanked back. He brought his lips close to Dermot's ear. "I'll only ask you one more time."

  "They wanted me to keep watch for you and to let them know if you showed up. There's a reward of five hundred elgars on your life." The words came out in a rush.

  "And of course you told them I was here?"

  "No, I swear to God Almighty."

  "What else did they say?"

  "Only that you might be traveling with another man." Father Thomas's eyes darted to Mathew and away again. "Did they say who that man was?"

  "No, I swear on my daughters' lives." The priest's face finally relaxed and he released his grip on Dermot's hair. Akin, Collin, and Mathew all let out a collective sigh of relief when he returned the dagger to his belt.

  ''Who are you taking your orders from?" Mathew asked.

  "The commander of the garrison, a man named Kennard."

  "Anyone else?" Akin asked.

  "Sometimes the governor."

  "Andreas Holt?" Mathew said.

  Dermot nodded. "We'll have to keep him locked up until we get Ceta back,"

  Father Thomas told Akin. "We'll figure something out after that."

&nb
sp; "No problem."

  Father Thomas turned back to Dermot. "If I were you, Master Walsh, I would change occupations. There's no fu­ture in the one you've selected."

  29

  Outside Gravenhage

  At sunrise on the following day, Father Thomas, Collin, Mathew, and Lara found themselves on horseback on the road outside the town of Gravenhage. A half mile away, Akin Gibb and sixteen other men were concealed in the trees waiting for the priest's signal for them to move. Their objective was a farmhouse the Vargothan officers were using for their compound.

  They had appropriated it for themselves when they first occupied the region. Its original owner, Josiah Cassidy, was arrested on the charge of making seditious comments against the present government, and he and his family were all shipped off to Alor Satar. None of them had been heard from again.

  Mathew surveyed the scene, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of their position. He imagined Father Thomas was doing same thing. The mercenaries had erected a stone wall at least eight feet high that completely circled a three building complex. The largest, on the far right, was the old Cassidy barn, now converted to a dining hall and sleeping quarters for the junior officers. According to what Akin had told them, the second building, originally the family home, now housed the senior officers and their staffs. The last was a low one-story structure that served as both stable and armory.

  Mathew found the wall interesting. It had been con­structed wide enough to accommodate a catwalk, with two

  guards making rounds every thirty minutes. There were two more men at the gate. Through surveillance, they dis­covered that the mercenaries were keeping Ceta in the main house. Using an updated version of the farsighter their friend Daniel had developed, Collin had watched the home for the better part of an hour before he spotted her in the back bedroom.

  The previous night, Father Thomas had laid out his plan. He and Lara would present themselves at the main gate. The men would be split into three separate groups, with Mathew, Akin, and Collin each attacking from different sides when the time came. Their main concern was to get Ceta out and prevent the garrison from discovering what was happening until they were safely away. Everything now stood in readiness.

  Father Thomas and Lara climbed aboard a flatbed wagon borrowed from Dermont Walsh, now a guest in Akin Gibb's root cellar, and started off together. The priest would have been hard to recognize. He miraculously had transformed himself into a sixty-year-old, with white hair, thanks to veg­etable dye supplied by Amanda, and a crutch. Both Collin and Mathew did double takes when they saw him.

  From the shelter of the trees Mathew watched them for several seconds before turning to Collin. "Good luck," he said.

  "Take care of yourself, Mat," Collin replied, keeping his voice down. He tugged on the reins of his horse. "See you in a few minutes."

  It was a risky strategy, but Mathew had learned to trust Father Thomas's judgment. Given the circumstances, he knew they had little choice in the matter. They either went along with the priest's plan or he would turn himself in to the Vargothans. As soon as the wedding dinner was over, Father Thomas wanted to leave, and he had to be per­suaded to wait until Akin got his men together. He was nearly beside himself with worry over Ceta.

  Mathew couldn't sleep the night before and insisted on going with Collin to look at the officers' compound for himself. He knew that Siward Thomas was a brilliant tac­tician, but the priest had taught him that personal involve­ment could compromise even the most objective mind. As a result, Mathew spent his honeymoon night in the woods above Gravenhage, watching the comings and goings of the mercenaries and studying their weak points. In the end he agreed with Akin that fifteen to twenty men would be enough to take the complex, provided the element of sur­prise remained on their side. The trick would be keeping Ceta Woodall alive while they were doing it.

  Mathew waited until the wagon with Father Thomas and Lara reached the road and then went to join his men. They were waiting on the west side of the complex. Collin should have already been in position on the opposite side. Akin and his men were at the south side. There was enough tree cover to get everyone as close as fifty yards to the wall.

  Askel Miller took hold of Mathew's reins as he dis­mounted.

  "Ready?" Mathew asked.

  "It's not going to be easy in this wind," Askel replied as he strung his bow. He tested it a few times.

  "You're the best shot I've ever seen," Mathew said. "If you can't do it, no one can."

  "I'll try. After the first guard is down you'll have to move quickly."

  "Where are the others?"

  "There." Askel pointed. "They all know not to move until I take the guard out."

  "And Lara's off the wagon," Mathew reminded him. "That will be our signal to attack."

  "Understood. This is a hell of a way to celebrate your marriage, Mat," Askel whispered. "I'm sorry Adele and I didn't have time to get you a present."

  "That guard will do just fine."

  Askel glanced at the treetops, gauging the wind for several seconds, then took an arrow out of his quiver and notched it. "Done," he said.

  Seconds later he was moving through the trees. Mathew had known Collin's father all of his life, and it was no exaggeration that he was the best shot Mathew had ever seen. Collin was nearly his equal. If the wind cooper­ated, it would give them the chance they needed. Father Thomas and Lara were now less than a hundred yards from the gate.

  Near the end of the treeline, Mathew saw Askel drop down to one knee and take aim. It was hard enough mak­ing a shot in dim light, but at fifty yards in a strong breeze ... he didn't know. Even under the best of condi­tions it would have been horribly difficult and to compli­cate matters a light rain had begun falling. The other men in his group signaled they were ready.

  Askel used the back of his sleeve to wipe the rain from his face and let his breathing slow. To his right, Garon Lang and Martin Palmer were crouched down on either side of the ladder. On the catwalk above the gate, the guard stopped walking when he saw the wagon approach­ing and called down to his companions.

  Father Thomas and Lara were less then twenty-five yards from the gate when it opened and a soldier came out. He stood in the center of the road waiting and signaled for them to stop.

  "What business do you have here?"

  "My father is the priest in Devondale," Lara called out. "That's a small village about fifteen miles from here. One of our neighbors told us to come here and present our­selves to you. We didn't know what this is all about, but we came."

  "What's your name, Father?" the soldier asked.

  "Siward Thomas," Father Thomas replied through a se­ries of coughs.

  "My father's very ill," said Lara.

  The soldier looked at Father Thomas for a second then called out to one of his companions, "Jack, open the gate, then go get the major. You'd better leave the wagon out here, miss," he added to Lara.

  "All right," Lara said. "Let me get your crutch, Father. You'll have to go slowly. I could use some help getting him down."

  A frown appeared on the soldier's face and he turned to the other man at the door. "Isn't he supposed to be in his late forties?"

  His companion shrugged. "That's what I heard. Must be some sort of mistake."

  The first soldier shook his head and came around the wagon to help. "Here, give us your arm and take it slow like your daughter says. Why don't you come around here with his crutch, Miss?"

  The moment Lara hopped off the wagon, Mathew's hand came down. "Now," he hissed.

  A buzz split the air as Askel Miller let the shaft fly. A second later the nearest guard staggered backward, his hands reaching for his throat. He swayed in place, then silently toppled over the edge of the wall. Acting as a relay from his position in the woods, Akin Gibb signaled for Collin to fire.

  Collin leaned against the trunk of a tree, steadied him­self, and drew back on his bow. His arrow caught the other guard between the shoulder blades. The man arche
d back­ward, his arms going wide. A second arrow hit him just above the first one.

  Mathew heard the thuds as the arrows struck and he be­gan running for the wall.

  When the second guard's body hit the ground, the soldier who had been helping Father Thomas looked to see what the noise was. Confused, he turned back to the wagon. The moment he did, his head snapped sideways as Father Thomas's boot connected with his jaw. His companion at the gate never had the opportunity to react. He looked down in confusion to see the hilt of a dagger protruding from his chest. He took two steps in Lara's direction and collapsed to his knees, dying before he hit the ground. Lara calmly removed her dagger, wiped it off, put it back in her belt, she then hurried to get the swords concealed under the wagon's bed and tossed one to Father Thomas.

  The priest caught it and looked up at the walls. Both guards were gone. Satisfied, he nodded to her and went in. He reached the courtyard the same time Mathew was dropping over the wall. Akin and the rest of the men fol­lowed at the other side of the complex. Using hand sig­nals, Father Thomas motioned one group toward the barn and the other toward the main house. Mathew and his peo­ple were to remain where they were to stop any of the Var-gothan officers from leaving.

  "Askel," said the priest, "take Garon and two men and check that stable. It should be empty except for the horses, but we need to make certain. Arthur, George, Bill, and I, will be at the side of the house. We don't want anyone leaving by the back door and taking us by surprise. Re­member, Ceta is our first concern."

  There were nods all around as Askel and Garon split off with two of the men from Mechlen.

  In the next second a soldier coming out of the main house saw the men in the courtyard, realized what was happening, and raised the alarm.

  "We're under attack! All officers to the defense!"

  Twangs from three separate Elgarian bows answered him at once and sent him crashing backward through one of the windows.

  To Mathew's chagrin, the Vargothans reacted much quicker than he believed possible. There also were a lot more of them than he thought. They began pouring out of the main house and the bam. Most were cut down by the El