“Furthermore—what?”
He shrugged. “I said you’re right.”
“What sort of argument is that? You’ve never said that before.”
“It’s not an argument, it’s a simple statement of fact. I didn’t tell you about the expedition because I didn’t want an argument. Which was dumb, because you were bound to notice me packing, or at least wonder where I went.”
“So pain avoidance. That’s your strategy?”
“More like pain delay,” he said with a sheepish grin.
Emma shook her head and laughed. “You are easily the smartest son I have. But you can’t tell me this trip isn’t dangerous.”
“We’re bringing a Guard, Mother.”
“Which you wouldn’t need if it wasn’t dangerous.”
“We won’t be gone long. I’m not even sure there’s a real source of poison; I think it’s just coincidence.”
“William, people stop looking for something when they find it, not when they don’t. Besides, you know there are bandits out there.”
“Mom, that was nine years ago.”
“I’m talking about now. I’m talking about the paper you wrote for Duke Vincent.”
“What? How do you know about that?”
“William, anyone in Marshland who can read, and cares to, has read your paper. The Duke sent copies to all the nobles. One of my patrons showed me.”
William’s hair stood on end; Sir Hendrick might have a reason for wanting him dead after all. The report may have embarrassed Sir Hendrick, whose job was to protect the area from bandits and other threats. He shook off the feeling. “I have to do this. I don’t think there’s anything to it, but we have to find out.”
Emma sighed. “This is my fault. I got you into the Library, but I didn’t expect you to get into adventures. That’s what I wanted to avoid. So there’s nothing to this poison scare?”
“I can’t say for sure. Strange things have been happening, but who knows if they’re related?”
“Well, I hope you’re hungry. I’ve been cooking all day. I made rabbit stew.”
Exploration during early colonial times was strictly limited to fulfilling the needs of an expanding population. As such, while towns dotted the rivers and coastlines of Ibyca, very little was known about uninhabited lands except that which was learned before the Arrival. It was not until the reign of King Stephen that the Crown directly financed an exploratory expedition, but even then the parameters were strictly limited to finding new resources and living space.
Planet of Hope: A History of Esperanza
“Have you been far upriver, Charlie?”
Charlie shook his head at William. “We patrol the eastern farms every week. The older guys have gone farther, but Captain Mattice doesn’t send us into the woods anymore.”
“Well, we shouldn’t be gone long,” said William. “Either we find the source of the poison or we don’t.”
“Don’t listen to him, Charlie,” said Maya. “We’ll keep searching until we find it.”
“Maya…”
“Shut up, Will. Charlie, have you ever lost anything? Something important?”
“Well, I thought I lost my shield once, but it turned out some of the guys had hidden it.”
“And you kept looking until you found it, didn’t you?”
“Yeah. Well, actually, Sergeant Hawkins made them give it back.”
“But you would have kept looking, right?”
Charlie nodded. “If you lose your shield, you get in trouble.”
Maya beamed in satisfaction at William, who rolled his eyes. “Fine, Maya, you win. Charlie, pack for a long trip.”
“Okay, Will. But how will we know when we’ve found it?”
Maya jumped and grabbed her box of equipment. “Oh, you’re going to love this, Charlie!” Maya chattered on with her explanations without interruption while Charlie pretended to understand. His awe was genuine, though, when the flames changed color with each splint she burned. Afterwards, they both departed, Charlie to pack for the trip, and Maya to bring her friend back from the docks.
William could not help but stare when Rachel Malen strode into the Library. She was slightly taller than him, with long, panther-black hair that flowed down her back like a silky cape. She sized him up in a glance, her pale icy eyes and slight smile revealing nothing in return. She spoke with a low, quiet voice, and an accent he couldn’t identify. She came from Ibyca, that much was certain, but from which part he could not tell. “A small town you’ve never heard of” was the only answer he got.
She was so unlike Maya that William wondered how they ever became friends. But they were, and William knew he had to trust Maya’s judgment. If Rachel could hunt well enough to feed them without slowing their progress she would be welcome.
Still, William doubted they would be gone long. He approached Cairns with an idea. “I want to see if we can buy enough food to last us the trip so we don’t have to waste time hunting.”
Cairns’ eyes sparkled. “Have you brought this up with Maya?”
“And risk getting yelled at? Not a chance. If there’s no money for it, I don’t need to mention it to her. Or to Rachel.”
“No, perhaps not.”
“Lester…does Rachel seem…I don’t know…”
“Reticent?”
“That wasn’t the word I was looking for, but it works.”
“How about reserved? Secretive? Enigmatic?”
William grinned. “You keep a thesaurus in your office, don’t you?”
“William, don’t dig into people’s pasts. If you found someone digging in your garden, I can assure you that you’d feel violated. A person’s past is even more private.”
“Hmm. I hadn’t thought of it like that.”
“I have a small amount of money for food if you care to try to find a seller, but I expect it will be scarce this time of year. Planting hasn’t even begun yet.”
“True, but maybe someone has winter stores they can sell. Anything that can last the winter will keep in our packs.”
Cairns handed William a small bag of coins. “Where will you look?”
“Some farmers I’ve worked with. I’m sure I can find something.”
An hour later he reached the Earl’s personal barony. William had helped bring in the harvest here for many summers. He set out for the cottages, expecting the fields to be empty during winter, but he was surprised to see a farmer digging in a pasture beside the main road, a rickety old wheelbarrow beside him. He recognized the friendly, weather-beaten face of Morgan Delroy. William shouted hello and was puzzled when the farmer didn’t respond. Delroy had never been anything but cheerful before. A dusty burlap bag filled the wheelbarrow, its contents hidden. What crop could he planting this time of year? It was too late for winter wheat and too early for anything else.
“Hello, William,” Delroy said in a tired and shaky voice. “What brings you out this way?” His handshake was firm, but his face had more lines than William remembered. Delroy’s oldest son was William’s age, but the farmer appeared old enough to be his grandfather.
“Mr. Delroy, I hoped you might sell me some food, something that will keep on a long trip.”
Delroy dug into the soil. “What sort of trip?”
“We have a scientist visiting us from Faywater Port. She says there’s poison in the river.”
Delroy wiped his brow and squinted at William. “Poison, you say?”
“Yes, we hope to find the source, and we don’t know how long we’ll be gone. If we have to hunt and forage it will delay us, and well…that’s why I’m here.”
Delroy shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry William, I don’t got anything like that. It was a bad harvest, and the Earl’s share don’t leave us much for ourselves.”
“Oh, I didn’t know things were so bad.” He had known Delroy and many others on these farms for most of his life and they always treated him well. That they could barely feed themselves gave William a knot in his stoma
ch; he felt guilty for asking for a part of what little they had—even though he was willing to pay for it.
Delroy leaned on the shovel and dug deeper. “We make do. We always have.”
“I see you’re making an early start this year, though. What are you planting?”
Delroy remained silent as he continued to shovel. William shifted back and forth on his feet, unsure of what to do or say, listening to the scrape of Delroy’s shovel as it dug deeper. A gust of wind blew the burlap sack open. Delroy pulled the bag closed, but too late to prevent William from seeing. William let out a small gasp; Delroy’s shoulders slumped as tears flowed down the channels of his weathered face.
William froze. This was not the same Morgan Delroy he’d known from years past, the one who laughed and joked with fellow farmers and hired help. He recalled the nights when everyone sang and danced after a hearty meal, Delroy among them. He could never forget how Delroy’s eyes followed his wife Casey, who was mere days from bearing him yet another child. William remembered these things because of what the wind had revealed: a tiny, cold gray hand.
Guilt weighed on him; he had just invaded the most painful and private moment in the man’s life. He had to do something. “I…I can help…if you like.”
Delroy wiped the tears from his cheeks, leaving a smudge of dirt in their place. “I only have the one spade,” he said. “It’s all right, lad, you don’t need to stay. I’m not the first father to lose a child. Besides, you have work of your own, right?”
William wished the farmer well, and hustled toward the cottages to give the poor, grief stricken father some privacy. He soon reached the central square, where a thin trickle of water splashed from a fountain into a pool at its base. There was no well here; the frequent river floods made that impractical. Instead, the fountain was fed by an aqueduct that drew directly from the Faywater. When William realized where the water came from he began to shake. Was the water toxic enough to kill a child? He knew the water had to be tested, and soon, before it could harm anyone else.
The docks were a short way upstream. He sprinted to the tavern and begged an empty bottle from Dan Deacon. In his haste he collided with someone as he exited the tavern. “Hey, watch where you’re…Jack? What are you doing here? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” Jack got up and brushed himself off. “No thanks to you. Shouldn’t you be working instead of knocking people over? Or is that a new part of your job?”
“I am working,” said William. He told his friend about the river and the trip. “Anyway, I was out by the Earl’s farms looking to buy food from someone. When I figured out about the fountain, I ran here to get a bottle to collect a sample.”
“Aha! Sounds like you need a purchasing agent.” Jack displayed his most mischievous grin. “How much money do you have?”
William raised his hands. “Forget it Jack. Whenever you get that look on your face, it means I’m about to get into trouble. I can’t waste this money.”
“Don’t be such a chicken, Will. I know what to do. Here, give me the bag. In fact, it’s better if you go somewhere else for a while. Go get your water sample, and meet me back here.”
William relented; Jack wasn’t going to give up, and the water was more important anyway. He jogged back to the fountain and returned half an hour later out of breath. Jack whistled to him from a gap between the tavern and a storage building, clutching a large canvas bag. He tugged William’s sleeve. “Let’s go.”
“Give me a moment to catch my breath, will you? What’s the hurry? And what’s in the bag?”
“Keep your voice down. Let’s just get out of here.” Jack dragged him away from the docks and didn’t stop looking over his shoulder until they reached Administration Hill. When they finally stopped he handed the remaining coins to William and opened the bag. “Okay, let’s see what we’ve got. There’s some cheese…good stuff, too, from the smell of it. Dried beef and pork, that’ll take care of us for a while…”
“Hang on a moment,” said William. “Us?”
“I’m coming with you,” said Jack, his head still in the bag.
“Um…”
“Raisins! Excellent…lots of nuts, too. That quartermaster knew exactly what to get.”
“What quartermaster?”
“The one on the ship. You must have seen it. Big thing, made of wood, floats on water.”
“Real funny,” William said. “It’s probably the one Rachel was on.”
Jack pulled his head from the bag. “Rachel's the hunter, right? The one that’s coming with us?”
“Yes. Why?”
“I need more contacts from out of town. Think I can meet her?”
“If she’s still at the Library. And if you promise not to cause any problems. You never told me how you got all that food.”
“I don’t cause problems…I create opportunities. And yes, I did tell you. I got it from the quartermaster.”
“So why do I feel like we could get into trouble? This should have cost way more money than I gave you.”
“It must be your guilty conscience. Besides, I know how to get a deal. I’m a salesman, remember?”
“Which means you know how to sell, not buy.”
Jack dismissed it with a wave of his hand. “It’s the same thing, just from different sides. Anyway, I’m not telling you anything you don’t need to know.”
William shook his head. “Thanks, that makes me feel so much better.”
William found Maya in his seat and Rachel leaning back with her boots on his table, laughing at some shared joke. Jack followed after him, as William dumped the contents of the bag onto the table.
Maya’s eyes bugged out. “Will, where did you get all that? It must have cost—”
“What? What are YOU doing here!” Rachel stared at Jack, her eyes wide with surprise.
Jack grinned and bowed. “Didn’t I say I would follow you to any shore?”
“Ha! Why do you think I left the shore?”
“You can’t shake me that easily. The docks aren’t even three miles from here.”
William groaned to himself. “Jack, this is Maya. You seem to know Rachel already.”
Maya tilted her head at Jack. “Rachel, is this the guy you were talking about? I think I see what you mean.”
Rachel slapped her on the shoulder. “Maya! Shush!”
Jack made a spectacle of kissing Maya’s hand. “Will told me about your experiments. Very impressive.”
“Well, you seem to have made an impression on Rachel.”
Rachel glared at her. “Maya, I’m warning you…”
Jack gave William a quick wink before turning back to Maya. “Rachel and I shared a meal at the Inn last night, during which I pledged to her my undying devotion. So far, she is reluctant to accept this precious gift. But I am persistent, if nothing else.”
“You talked at me while I ate,” said Rachel. “That’s not sharing a meal; that’s harassment. Besides, we’ll see how long your persistence lasts. You can’t track me where I’m going.”
Jack nudged William. “Tell her, Will.”
“Tell her what, Jack?”
“You know…what we discussed.”
William clenched his teeth. “We didn’t discuss it, Jack; you just assumed I would go along with it. Why do you always…fine, forget it. I give up. Rachel, Jack is coming with us.”
Rachel howled with laughter. “You? What do we need a trader for? Is there someone in the wild you expect to sell to? Bears? Wolves?”
Jack wiped an imaginary tear and pouted. “That’s not fair. I can also climb trees.”
“Good, go climb one now.” Maya laughed at the exchange, but William grumbled under his breath. The mission wasn’t his anymore. Neither was his office. He rubbed his aching forehead and snuck out to find a quiet place. He assumed his absence would go unnoticed. Cairns’ office was closed, and he respected his boss too much to simply walk in. He wandered along the hall and found Melissa working in her office.
He hesitated at her door, unsure whether he should disturb her. Why had she been so frosty toward him lately? He had done nothing wrong; in fact, he had done his best not to bother her at all. He shrugged and sauntered across the room and flopped into a chair in the corner. ”Mind if I sit here and enjoy the quiet for a moment?”
Melissa barely looked at him. “It’s hard to work with all the noise, isn’t it?”
“Sorry about that…I guess my work is a little louder than normal these days.” She glanced up and said nothing. He added, “I need a quiet evening to relax. Wait…what’s so funny?”
“I’m not sure you’ll be happy, but—”
Cairns barged in. “William, why on Esper did you get so much food?”
William jumped to his feet. “D-don’t worry, boss, I didn’t use all the money. Here’s what’s left.” He handed Cairns the bag.
Cairns stared in disbelief at the coin sack for several seconds before he spoke. When he did, it was with cold, measured tones. “Where did you get it from?”
William swallowed hard. “Jack bought it for me, from the quartermaster on the ship that Rachel was on. I’m not sure why it was so cheap.”
Cairns slapped his forehead. “William, you fool. It didn’t belong to the quartermaster. You’ve bought stolen property! You’ve risked your reputation, and worse, you’ve risked mine as well.”
William’s stomach dropped, and a cold sweat broke out on his face. “Whose was it?”
“How should I know? You’d best hope it was some minor Baron who can’t count.”
“What should I do? Should I take it back?”
“And announce your crime? I shouldn’t think so. Pack it up, and get it as far away from here as you can, starting tomorrow morning. In the meantime, get dressed. Your mother brought your good clothes; you can change in the storage room.”
“Dressed? Good clothes? What for?”
“William, don’t tell me you didn’t notice everyone is in their finest clothes. Look at Melissa. Has she ever looked so lovely?”
The Defender of Rebel Falls: A Medieval Science Fiction Adventure (The William Whitehall Adventures Book 1) Page 7
