“Well?” asked Toby’s mother.
“I was following up on something someone told me about father,” answered Toby, still watching Terence and his sponsors.
Chivato was saying something. Terence looked down at his paws, then glanced at Toby. Chivato looked over at the orange tom, too. When he looked back at the little gray and white tom, his features softened. He moved closer, placing a fatherly tail across the little cat’s shoulders and murmuring something in his ears. Terence nodded.
“Not that you care,” Toby added under his breath.
Pain exploded from his ear. He gasped. A drop of blood fell upon the carpet. The young tom gaped at his mother. Her fur was fluffed, her teeth bared in a silent snarl. Toby barely registered the others exit as he stood staring at his mother. She shook her fur flat, gave one last glare at her son, and left without another word.
Several weeks passed. Lorn and Toby did their best to abide by the restrictions handed down by the head masters, even working harder to be on time to their classes. Toby wanted to meet with Terence again. He hoped the young tom would be able to help them discover who in the gravin’s household would be trafficking in dragon willow. There never seemed to be enough time to locate the little trainee.
Sitting on Lorn’s shoulder, Toby watched the lunch line snake toward the front of the dining room. He let his gaze meander over those already shoveling their food in. Mages and cats alike sat in small groups, each to their own kind just as they had during orientation. As he continued to look around he saw a lone tom seated near the large windows. The little gray and white tom was engrossed in a large book, his untouched plate of food beside him.
“Fix me a plate,” Toby said, jumping down from the young mage’s shoulder.
Toby wove his way between tables toward the young patched tabby. The little cat’s ears were pricked toward the book, as if he could hear the words being spoken. He twitched his tail to turn the page. Toby leaped to the seat opposite the tom.
“Hey,” he said.
Terence jumped and squeaked, his eyes wide.
“That must be some scary book,” said Toby with a chuckle.
The young cat licked his ruff, then glared at the orange tom. Without a word he bent back to his book. Toby blinked in confusion. He waited, thinking maybe Terence was trying to find a good stopping spot, but the little tom continued reading. Toby glanced around to see where Lorn was. The young mage was just finishing their selections.
“We were wondering if you had any ideas who might be getting that shipment,” Toby whispered.
Terence said nothing. Another page flipped. Toby glanced around the room, looking for his companion. Lorn was walking toward them now. Toby turned his attention back to his feline friend. The little gray and white tom’s whiskers were clamped together, his ears at half-mast.
“Terence?”
The little tom sighed. He gave Toby a pained look.
“The shipment?”
“You know, the one that – person – told us about.”
“I know what you’re talkin’ about,” he snapped.
“Well, do you have any ideas? Has – he – said anything about it?”
“No. Now leave me alone.”
Toby drew back as if bitten. Terence went back to reading. The orange tom eased forward to look the young cat in the eye.
“Is something wrong?”
Terence growled, glaring at him. Toby felt his stomach clench. The hair on his spine rose.
“Wrong? What could be wrong?”
“You just seem so angry. I thought –”
“I don’ care what you thought,” snarled the young cat. “In fact seems to me you don’ think. You’re just like all the rest of ‘em. It’s just like Chivato says. You been given cream all your life so you don’t know what it’s like to have t’fight for what you need. You haven’t had to think about no one else but you, so when someone feeds you a lie you swallow it and take everyone down with you.”
“A lie? Terence, I don’t understand.”
“For all you know that man in the pub was a set up. There’s a hunt goin’ on, or didn’t you know that.”
“Yes. Gravin Arturo said as much.”
“An’ you didn’t think it was weird that a scum like that would be pointin’ fingers at a great man like the gravin?”
“But the evidence –”
“What evidence? Everythin’ points to Lorn’s uncle. It always has and you know it. Now the High Council’s just tryin’ to poke around t’see if Ribaldy had any help an’ if they can take down the gravin along the way that’d be just peachy. Everyone knows he’s always said the High Council pokes its nose into our business, tellin’ us how we gotta do things, never lettin’ us rise above where they think we oughtta be.”
“Terence, I didn’t know you felt like that.”
“You never asked.”
Plopping down in the seat next to the orange tom, Lorn set both plates on the table.
“Hey, guys.”
Terence swung his heated gaze toward the young mage. Lashing his tail, he slammed the large book closed. He looked back at Toby.
“Maybe you oughtta think about your situation a bit before you start slingin’ muck,” the little cat said, casting a sidelong glance at Lorn. Leaping from his seat, Terence floated the large book and his plate of untouched food behind him. Toby watched him leave.
“What was that about?” asked Lorn.
“I think we’ve stirred up a dragon’s nest.”
“He’s not going to help us anymore, is he?”
Toby watched the doors close behind his friend, wondering what Chivato had said after the hearing.
Toby and Lorn managed to be in their seats for Basic Health and Wellness moments before the class bell rang. Terence’s words still blazed in Toby’s ears. It wasn’t until Lorn poked him in the side that he realized two newcomers were addressing the class instead of the regular instructor.
“Thank you for allowing us to speak with your class,” said the short, round man, bowing his tonsured head toward the teacher. As he turned back toward the class, he clasped his hands and bowed his head. A few moments later he looked up to gaze around at the students. Toby began to wonder if the man had forgotten what he had planned to say.
“My fellow travelers, for that is what we are,” said the man. Toby had to perk his ears forward to hear him.
“I am Brother Jason and this is my companion in The One, Brother Yannis.”
Toby craned his neck to see a shaggy long-furred cat sitting on the floor beside the rotund human. The yellowing fur had been shaved in a rough circle on the old cat’s head.
“We come to you today in need.”
“I thought The One supplied all your needs,” jeered Reginald from the front row.
“Indeed The One does. Blessings to you, my friend, for correcting my direction,” said Brother Jason with a smile. “In truth we are here today to ask you to join us in The One’s harvest. In the First Book of The One it is said that our Divine Creator will bring up a bountiful crop, but there will be few to harvest it. Our fellow brethren in the Temple of The One are experiencing this verse first hand. Our hallowed halls are filled beyond capacity and we are sending out as many Brothers and Sisters as we can spare into the Lower Districts, but we are too few to give more than meager comfort. Many souls are being lost because we cannot reach them in time.”
“Reach them in time? What do you mean?” asked a young girl in the class.
Brother Jason’s smile faltered. He looked down at his companion, his eyes crinkling as if in pain.
“There is a great sickness sweeping through the Lower Districts,” said the old cat in a voice that reminded Toby of rusty hinges.
“Many are dying,” added Brother Jason.<
br />
“Wait a minute. You’re asking us to risk getting sick, maybe even dying, to help you save a few souls? That’s madness,” said Reginald
“Perhaps it is,” said Brother Yannis, “but The One gave us The Priceless Measure as our guide. Whatever we would want someone else to do for us we must do for others. We cannot turn our backs upon the sick and dying just because we fear death.”
“Is this required to pass the class?” asked another student.
“No, this is strictly voluntary,” answered the teacher, stepping up to pat Brother Jason on the back while looking at each student in turn.
“Anyone moved to help our friends at the Temple may petition the head masters for special permission to be a part of the relief group sent to the Lower Districts. You will need to give the head masters a written release signed by your parents or guardians and a brief explanation of why you believe you should be allowed to participate in the group no later than next week. The head masters will choose who will go from those petitions.”
The silence broke into murmurs. Brother Jason shook hands with the teacher, then left with Brother Yannis.
“Okay, class, I know you have a lot of questions, but they’ll have to wait until after our session together to ask them. For now, we need to tackle how the body works.”
Toby couldn’t concentrate on the subject. He was struck by what the old cat had said about risking his own life because of something he had read in an ancient book. Loathe as he was to admit it, he agreed with Reginald. It made no sense to put himself into a situation that would likely end up killing him just to make someone else happy for a few moments.
Trying to uncover the secret Victor was digging up was dangerous, yes, but it was something that needed to be done for the sake of the entire kingdom, not just a few souls who might die before hearing about The One. No, Toby decided, he felt badly for those in the Lower District, but his time would be better spent retracing his father’s mission.
“What do you think about all that?” whispered Lorn.
“I think it’s terrible.”
“Think we should volunteer?”
“Why?”
“Isn’t the Lower District where Terence is from? Maybe that’s why he’s been so edgy.”
“I never thought about that.”
Terence’s words rang in Toby’s mind. The orange tom spent the rest of class weighing the choice between volunteering for the relief group and continuing on the special mission they’d been given by the head masters.
Master Meredith sat at the desk, studying the papers she had in front of her. Toby wondered if it was her habit to always complete one task before moving on to the next — the next being him. He tried not to fidget.
“Okay, Toby, what have you learned?” asked the head master cat, looking up from her paperwork. “I assume it has something to do with your recent disobedience.”
The orange tom searched her face, wondering what she was thinking.
“Yes, it does. Lorn and Terence and I went to the White Dog to speak with the man my father had talked to.”
“And what did this man tell you?”
“There’s a shipment of dragon willow going out sometime soon to someone connected to the gravin in Hielberg County.”
“How large a shipment?”
“According to the man, it’s an entire boat load.”
“Are you sure?” asked Master Meredith, her eyes narrowing.
“Yes, ma’am.”
The tortoiseshell queen turned to stare out the window. The fur rippled down her back.
“You took a big risk going to that pub. Did you eat or drink anything while you were there?” she asked, turning back around. Toby blinked. He remembered Lorn being surprised that they weren’t served anything, but it didn’t seem like a big deal.
“No, ma’am.”
“Did anyone recognize you?” asked the head master cat, leaning forward.
“I don’t think so. We were in disguise.”
“What kind of disguise?”
“Lorn looked like a man from one of the outer reaches and Terence and I were two plain brown dogs.”
“You mean you used an illusion spell?”
“No, ma’am, we transformed ourselves.”
“You used a transformation spell?” she asked, eyes widening. “After what happened the last time you two tried changing your appearances I would have thought you would have been more careful. I’m surprised you weren’t changed into something unsavory.”
“Terence did it.”
“Ah, I see. It seems you were correct in your assessment of the young cat’s talents. Still, that was a dangerous thing to do.”
He ducked his head to hide his smile. Terence might not want anything to do with him anymore, but Toby couldn’t help feeling proud of the little cat. He glanced up at Master Meredith through his eye whiskers, noticing her whiskers twitch. Her gaze softened.
“I’m glad none of you were harmed. I assume you had the presence of mind to keep your mouths shut while you were dogs.”
Toby raised his head and nodded.
“Good. That alone may keep you from being targeted. It may have been why you weren’t offered anything to eat or drink, as well. A good disguise is worth a king’s ransom when the stakes are this high.”
“Excuse me, ma’am, but why would our disguise keep us from getting any food or ale?”
“Be glad it did, Toby. Many have tried to do as you three did and ended up poisoned for their trouble.”
He shivered.
“What would our mysterious person connected to Gravin Arturo want with an entire boat load of dragon willow?” murmured the tortoiseshell queen, looking back down at the desk.
“The gravin did say it would fetch a good price on the shadow arts market,” offered Toby.
“That is true, but there aren’t that many assassins out there who would need a large supply, especially one this large.”
“Assassins?”
“Yes, Toby, dragon willow is most often used in assassinations – poisonings to be precise. A talented shadow arts mage can create a poison from the bark that mimics many diseases and is difficult to detect.”
“Is there anything else it could be used for? Anything good?”
“Yes. Dragon willow is the best known aid for many diseases. That’s why it’s such a popular choice amongst assassins. Turn a cure into a poison, then, when the target is given a second dose of untainted dragon willow, the effect is doubled, leading to a very painful death. I just can’t see why anyone would need such a large amount.”
Toby considered what the gravin had said about trying to deal with shadow arts marketers and of Terence’s insistence that he was a great man.
“Ma’am, is it possible Gravin Arturo has his own relief plan for the Lower District? Maybe he’s going to give the dragon willow to them.”
“That would be a very noble thing to do, but if he were going to do that why use the shadow arts marketers to ship it?”
“Well, I suppose he could be planning to capture them first,” Toby said.
“That wouldn’t be out of character. It seems he has worked with the loners to shut down a number of trafficking rings.”
Toby couldn’t shake the feeling that they were missing something. Master Meredith sighed, closing her eyes. Her whiskers drooped and her shoulders sagged. The orange tom thought she looked tired.
“I will have to discuss this with Master Jalen. In the meantime, apprentice, please remember that you are under restrictions. Under no circumstances are you to continue digging into this matter without first consulting myself or Master Jalen. Is that understood?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good.”
The young cat jumped to t
he floor and left. As the door shut behind him, Toby continued to ponder the meaning behind the large shipment of dragon willow. He would have liked to ask Terence. His thoughts were going nowhere until he remembered. There were two other people he had yet to talk to about it – or more precisely a person and a cat.
After making a mirror call to the Office of the High Council, being transferred to several different secretaries and then back to the first person they’d talked to, Toby and Lorn had managed to find out the academy liaisons were out of the office for the rest of the week. They could, however, leave a message and someone would get back to them as soon as possible.
They left a message.
“That was helpful,” said Lorn sarcastically.
“I suppose we can’t expect them to be available just whenever. Still, it’s frustrating.” Toby paced the length of their work table.
“Well I’m all out of ideas.” He sat down to face Lorn.
“Yeah. Me, too.”
The silence lengthened as they tried to think of anyone else they could ask for information. The young cat stared at the pile of textbooks perched on the edge of the table, hardly touched since the semester began. Toby could almost hear his mother’s growl coming from those books.
“We could always study.”
Lorn groaned and reached for the top book, stretching his arm toward the pile as if it lay beyond a deep chasm. Toby grimaced at his companion’s melodramatic flair. The mirror chimed. Their gazes shot to the shimmering surface. Scrambling away from the work table, they leaped to answer the incoming call.
Apprentice Cat: Toby's Tale Book 1 (Master Cat Series) Page 14
