The Rambling Spy

by Mackenzie Morgan

  “Test case?”

  “If I’m going to be in charge of setting up clinics all over Camden, I need firsthand experience at setting one up. Myerston is as good a guinea pig as any.”

  “I don’t know. I’m not sure how Kevin would feel about you getting in the middle of this, although it would be a perfect cover. I could go along as your assistant.”

  Joan shook her head. “Not if I go see Montuck first and ask him for a letter of introduction. He knows you.”

  “True, but I could still go with you. No one would expect you to be on your own, and since the ministers associate me with a key…”

  “Guess you could go as keeper of the key.”

  “But once we’re in Myerston I need to be your assistant.”

  “Why?”

  “Because of the questions I need to ask.”

  “You’ll fill me in before we go, right?”

  Chris nodded. “Let me know when you hear from Montuck.”

  ~~~~

  Shortly after lunch, Kevin asked Ariel if he could see him for a moment. After Ariel had a seat, Kevin said, “Chris told me about your conversation Saturday afternoon, and I may have a position for you if you’re interested. It’s not available yet, but will be by mid-summer.”

  Ariel’s eyes lit up. “In an office?”

  Kevin hesitated. “Not exactly.” Then he explained that Landis hadn’t grown up at her father’s castle and knew nothing about how things worked. “All the provinces are run differently, but some of it’s the same no matter where you are.”

  Ariel frowned. “I don’t understand. Is she an heir?”

  “How much do you know about her?”

  Ariel shook his head. “Just that she’s your apprentice. I heard that when Marcus got shot it was because he was with her, but I have no idea why.” Ariel’s cheeks warmed as a blush crept up. “It’s not that I don’t care, it’s that I fuss so much when the others gossip that no one tells me anything.”

  Kevin told Ariel about Rolan, the two stories about Tsareth’s death, and Rolan’s determination to see Landis, the rightful heir, dead.

  “How can you be sure her father meant for her to be his heir? He died before you came. Did Laryn tell you?”

  Kevin shook his head. “Her brother, Robyn, told me, along with about a dozen other people who worked at the castle while Tsareth was alive.” Kevin paused. “Ariel, whether you take this job or not, you can’t repeat anything I’m telling you. If Rolan knew Robyn and I even knew each other, he’d kill him.” Ariel looked skeptical, so Kevin said, “I know some of this is hard to believe. I doubt you’ve ever met anyone like Rolan, but do you remember Shana’s parents? How they looked when they got here?”

  “Like they’d aged twenty years since the last time I saw them.”

  “So you knew them? Before? When they were living here?” When Ariel nodded, Kevin asked, “Do you know what happened to them?”

  “No, but it must have been something pretty bad.”

  “It was. Rolan burst into their house one night, grabbed them, and told Shana if she didn’t spy for him, he’d kill them. Then he took them back to Trendon and threw them in a dungeon.”

  Ariel’s eyes widened. “And Shana did it?!”

  “She didn’t think she had a choice. Rolan’s evil. He would have killed her parents without batting an eye. He’s killed before, more than once, and he’ll do it again. You need to believe that. If you take this job, it’s going to put you in his sights.”

  At Ariel’s slight frown, Kevin said, “If you take this job, there’s a chance he’ll find out what you’re doing. And if he does, he’ll want you dead, too.”

  “Just what is this job you keep mentioning?”

  “Landis knows Rolan’s doing everything he can to find her and kill her, and she knows it’s not going to end as long as both of them are alive. And his obsession with killing her isn’t just putting her in danger. It’s putting anyone and everyone around her in danger, too. So, to put an end to it, she’s planning to challenge him for Brendolanth’s seat as soon as she can. I’ve tried to talk her out of it, Rhianna’s tried, Robyn’s tried, but she’s determined to challenge him. So I’m going to do everything I can to make sure she’s prepared for the duel so that she doesn’t lose.”

  Ariel exhaled a low whistle. “Losing means death.”

  “Right. And if one of them dies, I’d rather it be Rolan. But that doesn’t involve you. The part that does is if she wins she’ll be the Seated Sorcerer of Brendolanth, and right now she doesn’t know any more about what that entails than I did. But at least I had Laryn and you to help me. She won’t have anyone. So I’d like to hire you to teach her how to be a seated sorcerer, to explain how things work, what things need to be done, how they get done, and who takes care of what. She’ll know how to use her magic, I’ll see to that, but as to running a province? That’s where you come in. In short, while she’s training and for a while afterwards, I’d like for you to be a combination of Chris, Laryn, and you.”

  “Are you sure I’m the right one for this job? I’ve never done anything like this before.”

  Kevin nodded. “I know you’re the right one, but at the same time, I hate asking you to do it. You’d have to go where she is, and the only way I can protect her is to keep her in a remote and isolated area that can only be reached by key. There’s a small community there, maybe thirty people in all, but half of those are children. And that’s it. No tavern. No stores, no nothing. Anything you need comes from here. I go out there at least once a week to check on things and see what’s needed. If you accept this job, it’s for the duration, until she’s trained. And I have no way of knowing how long that may take. She’s doing well, so I don’t expect it to take more than four or five years, but I can’t guarantee it. And I can’t guarantee she’ll win if she challenges him. But if she does, she’ll be the Seated Sorcerer of Brendolanth. As to what you’ll do then, I have no idea, but I can promise you I‘ll see to it you have a good job.”

  “Can I have a day to think about it?”

  “Of course. Longer if you want, but I need to know before too long because if you don’t take it, I’ll need to find someone else. You’re my first choice, but rest assured if you don’t want to do it, I can find someone else. This is not something you have to do. It’s totally up to you. It’s a big commitment, and you’re under no obligation to do it. If you want to do something else, I’ll still help you find something. You’ve been invaluable to both me and Chris.”

  “I’ll let you know something one way or the other tomorrow morning, but I do have a question.” At Kevin’s nod, Ariel asked, “If I leave, who’ll take over as head page? I know it’s not any of my business, but Isak doesn’t want it and he’s worried you’ll expect him to do it since he’s worked here longer than anyone else.”

  Kevin nodded. “I know, although he hasn’t said anything to either me or Chris about it. Actually, I’m thinking about asking Petri if he’d like to do it. I’d need you to train him before you leave though.”

  Ariel smiled. “He’d be good. Do you want me to talk to Isak?”

  Kevin shook his head. “I’ll handle that, but not yet. I don’t want to do anything until after Christmas. I haven’t mentioned any of this to Joan, and she’s not going to be happy with me when I do. So keep that and everything else I said between the two of us, okay?”

  “Don’t worry. I know how to keep my mouth shut.”

  Kevin smiled as he stood up. “If I didn’t know that, if I didn’t trust you completely, I’d never have considered you for this job. Think about everything I said and let me know if you have any questions.”

  Ariel nodded as he stood up. “I will. Anything else?”

  Kevin shook his head. “Tell Chris he can bring the mail in now, and if there’s any coffee out there, tell him to bring me a cup.”

  ~~~~

  Tuesday morning as soon as Ariel sorted the general mail and handed out the morning assignments, he asked Kevin i
f he could speak with him. After they were seated in Kevin’s office, Ariel said, “I still think there are a lot of people who are more qualified than I am, but if you think I can do this, I’d like to try.”

  Kevin felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He took a deep breath and smiled. He could honestly say he couldn’t think of anyone more qualified to do what he had in mind than the young man seated in front of him. “Thank you. More than you know, thank you.” Then after a brief pause, he nodded. “All right. First things first. Let me talk to Joan. I’d like to get Petri in here around the beginning of the year. Any ideas on who I can put in her office to replace him?”

  Ariel hesitated a moment. “I think Elin would be perfect in there. It won’t take care of the fact that when I leave you’ll be down a page, but Elin already knows how to do most of the stuff Joan needs, so it wouldn’t be like starting with someone new. And since Isak and Cameryn would still be here…”

  “For a while at least. That’s not a bad idea, and it would make it a lot easier to tell Joan I was taking Petri. Let me think about it.”

  Ariel nodded. “Anything else?”

  Kevin shook his head. “We’ll talk more about your new job at a later date, a lot more. But for now, thanks for taking it. I really appreciate it.”

  Chapter 35

  Meanwhile in Bridgeport

  Shortly before noon on Wednesday, Holly showed up at Hayley’s chapel.

  Hayley had first met Holly the previous spring when she and her mother had dropped by the smithy to see if Thom had any old horseshoes. Holly was getting married and wanted a couple of horseshoes to hang over the doors to her house. Hayley was in town checking on Parsyn and met Holly when she and Marissa took Parsyn out to the shop. Since that day, Hayley had seen Holly several times, but never professionally.

  After getting Holly settled in an exam room, Hayley asked her what was wrong. As Holly went through the long list of symptoms she’d been experiencing, Hayley bit back a smile. When Holly finally ran out of complaints, Hayley asked her to sit back and placed her hand over Holly’s stomach. A moment later, Hayley nodded, stepped back, and said, “I hate to say it, but I’m afraid it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

  “Then you know what’s wrong with me? It’s not my imagination?”

  Hayley shook her head. “It’s all perfectly normal, but it’ll be a while before you feel like yourself again, about eight months.”

  “Eight months?!” Holly asked. “Why? What’s wrong with me?”

  Hayley smiled. “You’re pregnant. You’re going to have a baby, Holly.”

  Holly’s mouth dropped open. Then she swallowed hard and whispered, “A baby?”

  Hayley nodded. “Yes, a baby.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Hayley chuckled. “I’m sure.”

  Holly twisted her hands and shook her head. “That can’t be right. I don’t know how to have a baby!”

  Hayley sat down beside her and took her hand. “You don’t have to do much, just get plenty of rest, drink a lot of fluid, and eat well.”

  Holly kept shaking her head. “Sister Hayley, you have to do something! I can’t do this!”

  “Yes, you can Holly, and you will,” Hayley said gently. “I’ll help you. So will your mother.” After giving Holly a moment to settle down, Hayley asked, “Have you and Noah talked about having children?”

  Holly slowly nodded. “He wants a big family.”

  “Then he’ll be pleased when you tell him the first one’s on its way, won’t he?”

  For the first time since she’d walked into the chapel, a smile teased Holly’s lips. “He will. He’ll be so happy.” Then the smile faded. “But I’m too scared to be happy.”

  “Let’s go get some scog. Might make you feel a bit better.”

  “Don’t you have other patients to see?”

  “Things have been quiet around here lately, so I doubt it, but I’ll check before we leave. And Sherri will be here. If anyone needs me, she’ll come get me.” Then she stood up, still holding Holly’s hand. “Come on.” She gave Holly’s hand a little tug. “The walk will do you good.”

  Twenty minutes later, Hayley and Holly walked into the tavern. As soon as they sat down, Lisal walked up and said, “Hi, Holly, what can I get for you?”

  “Some scog, please.”

  Then Lisal turned to Hayley and said loud enough for everyone to hear, “You need to leave. You’re not welcome here.”

  For a moment, Hayley was too stunned to do anything but stare at Lisal. Then she stood up, said, “As you wish,” to Lisal and turned to Holly. “Enjoy your scog. I’ll be outside when you’re ready to leave.”

  Holly shook her head and stood up beside Hayley. “I’m going with you.”

  As Hayley and Holly were walking out, they passed a table where Brigitte and three other ladies were seated. Brigitte reached out and took Hayley’s arm. “Wait a minute.” Then she stood up and looked in Lisal’s direction. “Tell your mother to cancel my order. I’m leaving.”

  When she turned back towards Hayley, she said, “I’ve decided to have lunch at my house. It’s not far. Would you and Holly like to join me?” After Hayley thanked her, Brigitte turned to the other ladies with her. “You’re welcome to come with us if you like.”

  As the other women stood, Lisal said, “Wait. What about your orders? Mother’s fixing them now.”

  One of the women turned to Lisal and smiled. “Please give our regrets to your mother, but we’re having lunch with Sister Hayley today, and since she’s not welcome here…”

  Lisal’s jaw dropped and then slammed shut as Brigitte turned to Hayley. “I heard you’ve been to other provinces on errands for Sister Brena. I’d love to hear about some of the places you’ve been, things you’ve seen. And from what I understand, you’ve met the giants who attend Glendymere. What are they like?”

  ~~~~

  Kent was perplexed. He’d run the tavern in Bridgeport for twenty years, and never before had he gone two days with so few customers. He couldn’t figure out what the problem was. His wife had been cooking ever since they opened up, so it couldn’t be that people didn’t like the food, and where were the men who gathered there every evening to drink scog and play Octuro? Business might slack up a bit when the days were warm and long, but in the dead of winter? He was usually crowded by nightfall and had to run them out at closing.

  “Emma, I’m going for a walk,” Kent said as he walked into the kitchen. Then he looked at Lisal who was fiddling with her nails. “Lisal, go out front. If anyone comes in, I don’t want them waiting for service.” Then he set out to find out what was going on.

  He found several of his friends hunkered down around makeshift tables in the smithy playing Octuro and drinking what smelled like burned coffee. “Hi, guys. Why are you playing here instead of at the tavern?”

  Malin snorted. “I go in there and the wife finds out, I’ll be sleeping in the barn with the horse.”

  Kent leaned against Thom’s workbench. “Why?”

  “Because that girl of yours threw Sister Hayley out,” Thornton said.

  Kent frowned. “Why?”

  Thornton shrugged. “Said she wasn’t welcome there.”

  “Lisal told Sister Hayley she wasn’t welcome? Are you sure about that?”

  Thornton nodded. “My wife heard her say it. Sister Hayley had just sat down with Holly, you know, Noah’s wife. Lisal took Holly’s order and then told Sister Hayley she needed to leave. Made the women around here pretty mad, and you know what it’s like when the wife’s in an uproar about something. Best not to make it worse by going against her.” Thornton shook his head. “I figure they’ll settle down eventually, but until they do, anyone who doesn’t want the women mad at him will steer clear of that tavern.”

  “I didn’t know about this.”

  “Then you might be the only man around who hasn’t heard about it,” Malin said, “morning and night.”

  Kent nodded. “I’ll get it
straightened out.”

  “Wish you would,” Thornton said. “It’s nice of Thom to let us play in here, but I miss the tavern. These benches are hard.”

  “And I miss my scog,” Malin said.

  Kent stood up to go. “First mug’s on me after this mess blows over. Thanks.”

  By the time Kent got back to the tavern, his shock had turned to anger. “Lisal! Get out here!”

  A couple of moments later, Lisal walked out of the kitchen. “What?”

  Emma was right behind her, wiping her hands on a towel. “What’s happened?”

  “Did you know Lisal told Sister Hayley to get out of here?” Kent roared.

  Emma’s jaw dropped as she swung towards Lisal. “You did what? When?!”

  Lisal rolled her eyes. “I just told her she wasn’t welcome around here, and she isn’t.”

  “What are you talking about?” Kent snapped. “What do you mean she’s not welcome here? Of course she is!”

  “No, she’s not,” Lisal insisted. “The only reason she’s here is to steal my betrothed.”

  Kent closed his eyes and shook his head. Then he glared at his daughter. “You don’t have a betrothed!”

  “Yes, I do! Marcus is my betrothed, and Sister Hayley’s trying to steal him.”

  “She can’t steal what’s not yours to start with, Lisal,” Emma said.

  “He is so mine!”

  “No, he’s not, and never has been,” Kent said. “We’ve put up with your nonsense long enough. Marcus is not the least bit interested in marrying you. He’s told you, he’s told me, he’s told the whole town, and every time you insist he is you’re making a fool of yourself. It’s time for you to grow up and face facts. You are not going to marry him, not now, not ever. And for you to say something like that to a Sister of Healing is beyond belief. First thing tomorrow morning you will march yourself down to that chapel and apologize for your rudeness and you better not leave until you convince her she’s welcome here anytime day or night.”