“I told you, Dayna is particularly suited to this.”
William leafed through the pages, admiring the crisp text and sharp illustrations. “Early reading lessons… excellent work, too. How many copies will we make?”
“Five hundred. Work has already begun on the second volume.”
William’s jaw dropped. “Five hundred? That’s amazing! But will the dra—will they need so many?” Even behind closed doors, William was reluctant to mention the dragons out loud.
“I’m not sure if they’ll need any, but I know they won’t need five hundred. Probably one or two of each book, if I understand Maya’s description of their social structure. But they’re cheaper to print in large batches, which means we can sell them to tutors and schools. Maybe even the Junior Academies. If we don’t sell books to other places, people will ask why we’re making them at all.”
“But five hundred…how?”
“I told you, Dayna is good at this. She devised a typesetting system after I traded gold for iron and other metals she needed.”
William shook his head in admiration. “Typesetting…that’s a luxury we never had at the Library.”
“I’m aware. Perhaps Dayna could help set something up once we have everything running smoothly here.”
“That could come in handy.”
Sir Hiram lowered the report he was reading and stared at him closely. “William, I’ve mentioned Dayna by name three times now, and you’ve said nothing about her.”
“Aren’t we talking about the books?”
“We are, but I brought her up because she seemed eager for you to see this book.”
William looked up from the book. “Me?”
“She named you specifically.”
“Well, maybe because I work for the Library.”
Sir Hiram’s eyes twinkled as he smiled at William. “I suppose that’s as good a reason as any.”
William did not like the direction the conversation was taking, but he couldn’t avoid it. “Well, if she asks, you can say I think it’s excellent.”
“Why not tell her yourself, William. Regardless of what else you might think of her, she is doing good work, and you shouldn’t ignore her. There are few of us here who understand and appreciate what she’s accomplished, especially this far from town. A kind word would go a long way.”
The Administrator’s words surprised him. It was true: he had been avoiding her, and it had nothing at all to do with the former baron’s daughter herself, but with his own memory of Melissa. Being friendly with another woman struck him as dishonest somehow—except for Rachel and Maya of course; they were both friends and colleagues. But what exactly was he being faithful to? Whatever it was, it couldn’t be reason enough to completely dismiss Dayna. In fact, by avoiding her he had announced his thoughts to everyone. He resolved to visit her operation during his daily rounds.
Rounds—that’s all he did now. In the six weeks since they returned from the hive he had done nothing but inspect work sites and record results, with the occasional report written for the Library’s records. The weekly mail to Marshland Crossing never left without a small volume of his own writing; when it returned, it brought nothing of interest for him.
At first it excited him to witness the progress around the camp. Rebel Falls thrived, growing quickly thanks to the influx of would-be gold miners, but Sir Hiram kept everything in order with the Guard company’s help. The town’s share of the gold paid for even more laborers, and small buildings sprouted on both sides of the palisade. Most impressive was the wooden tower built in the very spot where William faced Kaleb Antony in their first death match. William climbed it as the workers added the finishing touches, and the view astonished him. From his vantage point he enjoyed a panoramic view from the falls themselves to well past the banks where the gold-panners prospected. If not for the trees, he suspected he could even detect where Charlie had carried him up the steep rock face and straight into the arms of three rebels.
Rebel Falls was a village now, if not a town in its own right. Families moved here after news of the gold reached Marshland. People built little shacks for themselves outside the palisade, and William had a difficult time finding them all and noting their location and inhabitants. He was still not sure he had found them all.
Sir Hiram had given William the honor of naming the camp because of what he endured at the rebels’ hands, but every building that rose from the ground reminded him that being held captive was the only noteworthy thing he had accomplished here. Not one board or brick had been laid by his hands, not one tree felled or cabbage grown. Books were printed without him, and gold extracted from the ground without his help. Everything was passing him by.
And he felt selfish for feeling it, which drove him to work even harder at his assigned task. At first he knew nearly every face in the new community, but more and more people arrived whom he didn’t recognize. Some came from Marshland; most of these he knew by sight at least. But others came from Faywater Port and from smaller coastal towns. Some of the new faces troubled him, but Sir Hiram explained that frontier communities always attract a rough sort of person. “William, we need people like that here. Men and women who won’t miss the comfort of home and are willing to put in hard hours. It’s been more than a generation since the Kingdom witnessed any sort of growth, so we’ll welcome a few more such people, I expect. People starving for excitement.”
When Sir Hiram’s comments failed to quell his fears, the older man suggested William take an official census, and record the names and places of origin for every man, woman and child who now lived there. William applied himself with an energy he reserved for the tasks he cared most for. The results astonished him. More than three hundred people now called Rebel Falls home. Most were men, but over fifty women had joined them, as well as fifteen children of various ages. It wasn’t quite a family community yet, but it soon would be.
Not all the news was comforting, however. Several people refused to give their names, or say where they came from. Many laughed him off, dismissing him as a child. When he returned with armed guards, they treated him with no more respect than before, and William suspected that more than a few had given him false names.
Again, Sir Hiram brushed it aside. “William, sometimes people do desperate things when times are tough. Stealing food from a Baron or a neighbor might land a man in jail, but when he has no other way to feed his children, what else can he do? So if he comes here to escape his past and decides to work hard, why should I care if he won’t tell us his real name or where he’s from? Record what you can, and don’t worry about the rest.”
William soon had an opportunity to collect some of the missing names. Maya and Charlie announced they would be married as soon as her parents could make the trip from Faywater Port, which would be three weeks hence. Sir Hiram intended to invite everyone to the festivities he would give in honor of the community’s first wedding, but William convinced him to invite people by name only. Anybody who desired to partake in the beer and cider the Administrator served would have to give a name, real or not. Few resisted temptation, especially since drink was neither cheap nor plentiful this far from town.
But the wedding introduced a new problem for William. He fulfilled his promise to visit Dayna, and praised her efforts. She put him at ease by remaining professional, and he visited regularly, hoping to learn enough of her methods to use them when he returned to the Library.
On the day before the wedding she surprised him. “William, would you be kind enough to escort me to the wedding?” The way she asked it had been matter of fact, as though she were simply asking him to deliver a message or pass her a bottle of ink. The hard weeks of traveling, the days of torture at the hands of rebels, the keen insights into human nature that he won while risking his life had all prepared him for just a moment like this.
He stared with his mouth hanging open.
She laughed at his reaction. “King’s boots, William, you do know how to make a girl feel
special.”
“I…uh…”
“Look, I know about your girl back home.”
William came to his senses and groaned. “Jack talks too much.”
“Yes, and Maya. And Rachel. Even Charlie tried to tell me, but he was so shy.”
“They all talked to you? Why?”
“I lost my best prospects for marriage when my father lost his position. You’re recently single. Your friends were bound to jump to conclusions.”
“Uh…what kind of conclusions?” he asked.
“You know, you might be even more shy than Charlie. Look, I’m not ready to marry, and I know you aren’t over that girl back home. But I don’t want every half-drunk Guard accosting me. They respect you, so I was hoping if I went with you, they’d leave me alone.”
“Well…I guess there’s no harm in that…”
She smirked and bowed in mockery. “Your enthusiasm overwhelms me. I am positively swept off my feet.”
“I’m sorry…I’m not good at this sort of thing. Yes, I’d be glad to accompany you.”
“That’s better.”
“But I should warn you—Charlie has asked me to be best man, so I’ll be busy part of the time.”
“That means we’ll get good seats at the banquet, right?” she asked.
“I guess so.”
“Good. A woman of my station has certain expectations.” She flipped her long blond hair in mock snobbishness.
“I will do my best live up to them,” said William, bowing in answer. “I shall wear my finest rags.”
She laughed, unable to keep a straight face. “That’s the William I’m used to.”
“Do me a favor,” he said. “Call me Will.”
“Okay,” she said, brushing back her hair as she smiled at him.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
The wedding was a tremendous affair. They were celebrating not only the marriage, but all the hard work that had gone into building the new village, the cleaning of the river, and the defeat of the rebels all in one festival. Sir Hiram himself officiated, reveling in his duties. Maya’s parents beamed from the front row of seats. They adored Charlie, and invited his father to sit with them. Alexander Walker appeared self-conscious, especially when he saw their fine clothes and manners, but they became good friends in short time. Duke Vincent, their good friend and patron, could not attend the wedding, but sent a gift for the bride: a fine silver circlet that sat atop her black curls and transformed her from simple country bride to near regal consort. Charlie looked magnificent in his Guard uniform. He was no longer an active Guard, but having been released honorably, he still had the right to wear it, and his former fellows felt a stronger kinship with him for doing so. Besides, they were his only good clothes.
Sir Hendrick Mattice also made the trip, both to escort Charlie’s new parents-in-law and to deliver a relief contingent of Guards. He himself commanded the honor guard that lined the procession aisle, something Charlie seemed grateful for. William wondered whether it was Mattice’s own idea or Sir Hiram’s, but kept his musing to himself.
As for William, he was lucky his mother caught wind of the nuptials and sent him new clothes. They were finer than anything he had owned before, and he suspected Sir Kevin had a hand in purchasing the materials. The deep blue silk was not something his mother could have afforded on her own.
Dayna wore a blue gown to match, and to all eyes they appeared to be a couple. Still, she kept her word and made no romantic overtures. Aside from taking his arm while walking she barely touched him, and his anxiety soon faded. He still wasn’t sure what he was being faithful to, but until he figured it out he would remain resolute. He caught himself thinking about Melissa, especially during the banquet after the ceremony while everyone chatted. He imagined what life would life have been like if he and Melissa had stayed together. It had been such a short romance, but he knew without a doubt that they had been right for each other, no matter what caused her to break it off. Maybe this banquet could have been in their honor, or perhaps a year or five from now. Had he wanted that? He wasn’t sure, but would it even matter now if he did?
He drifted back to the present and noticed Dayna watching him. He was being unfair. He shouldn’t ignore her, not after he’d agreed to be her consort for the wedding. He rejoined the conversation, trading insults with Jack and teasing Charlie on his new role as husband, and simply talking the way people do when they aren’t distracted by a broken heart.
When the meal ended, William and Dayna joined the others in a walk to the river to escape the revelry for a while. He felt unnatural pretending to be part of a couple, but Maya and Charlie played the part of newlyweds perfectly. They had never hidden their affection, not even during the mission, but now they doted on each other. Still, somehow they managed not to make the people around them feel like an afterthought. Jack and Rachel also appeared to be cozy with each other, but William knew that could change from day to day. He had no illusions that he would be attending his best friend’s wedding any time soon.
The party had spread, and several people shouted their well wishes for the couple, some more drunkenly than others. William drank two glasses of cider at the banquet, his first drink in months, and he felt the effects more than he had expected. He wasn’t used to drinking, and he hoped he didn’t look or sound like the worst of them. At least he didn’t stumble or slur like some of them did.
The party had gone more smoothly than he had feared. Not the wedding itself; that could not have been better. But he had expected the rougher sorts of people to cause problems when they got drunk. Instead, their apparent restraint surprised him, and he wondered if he had done a disservice to the poor Guards who had to stand duty because of his worried comments to Sir Hiram.
“Those guys don’t look like they’re having that good a time,” said Jack, echoing William’s thoughts as he studied the group of men huddled around the gate.
“Hey guys!” said Rachel as they approached them. “Did they run out of beer?”
The men around the gate exchanged glances. One yelled back, “we’re working in the morning.”
“Don’t need a foggy head at work,” said another.
Maya giggled and chimed in as they reached the gate. “Whoever your boss is, tell them I said you could have one. And if you’re late for work, tell them it’s my fault.”
“Who is your boss, anyway?” asked William, not recognizing the men in the dark.
“Whoever needs us,” said the first man with a shrug. “We go from job to job, whatever needs doing.”
William looked him up and down. The man was hiding something, that was certain, but he couldn’t question him now. He refused to cut short his friends’ celebration by taking his duties too seriously. But as they walked past one of the men muttered, “The Boss never should have given him a chance.” William’s skin turned cold.
Dayna tugged at his hand. “Hey, Will. Slow down. You’re practically running.”
“What’s gotten into you, Will?” asked Jack.
He waited until they were out of sight and turned to his friends. “I’m sorry guys, but I think this is a work night.”
“What do you mean?” asked Maya.
“Those men are rebels,” he said.
Their silence told him they believed him. “Are you sure?” asked Jack.
William nodded. “One of those men mentioned ‘the Boss’. That’s what they used to call Antony.”
“I knew something was wrong with them,” said Rachel.
“King’s neck,” said Maya. “What do we do now?”
“Jack, tell your dad. Have him hide anything valuable. Charlie, go warn Sir Hendrick. Tell him I sent you. Rachel, Maya, you both know what to do. Dayna, can you handle a knife?”
“A knife?” she asked. “For what? What’s going on, Will?”
“I don’t have time to explain,” said William. “We’re about to be attacked.”
“Oh, come on. There’s no way—” She sto
pped as she saw the others doing as William told them. “This is serious, isn’t it?” she asked.
“It is. Come with me.” They returned to his quarters where he grabbed his sword and shield. He took Dayna back to Sir Hiram’s office where he found Jack arguing with his father.
“William!” said a red-faced Sir Hiram. “Did you put Jack up to this? If this is a joke, it’s not funny. I don’t have time for this.”
“No joke, Sir Hiram. Do you have weapons?”
“Of course I have. I’ve lived on the road for—”
“Can you spare one for Dayna?”
“Me?” said Dayna. “I have no idea how to fight.”
William took the knife that Jack handed him and forced the handle into Dayna’s hand. “Stay here,” he said. “If anyone you don’t know comes near, scream and slash at them with this. Don’t leave here until we come to get you.”
Sir Hiram grabbed William’s sleeve and stopped him. “William, you are taking this too seriously. I—”
“Sir Hiram, they will try to come here. We’ll do our best to stop them. Split everything it into small piles and hide it. If they break in you can give them something and still have most of it left.”
“William, this isn’t necessary, and I won’t—”
“Dad,” said Jack, grabbing his father by the shoulders. “Do what Will says.”
Sir Hiram looked at his son with surprise in his eyes. Finally he nodded.
“We’ll get through this,” said William. “I promise.”
The first alarms rang as William and Jack ran out the door and heard it bolted behind them.
Construction methods and building materials vary widely on Esper, depending on climate, available resources, and economic status. Due to the scarcity of metal tools, the use of stone is limited to the largest and most prestigious buildings, such the Palace Royal, the Dukes’ Hall, and the two Libraries. Clay and mud bricks are preferred for most homes, with wattle and daub sufficing for cheaper residences and outbuildings.
Except for temporary structures, or in rapidly-growing settlements, plain wood has rarely been used since the Great Fire of 237 leveled the eastern section of New Athens.
The Defender of Rebel Falls: A Medieval Science Fiction Adventure (The William Whitehall Adventures Book 1) Page 34
