He wanted to go back to Coriae and Great Forks. He would dearly love to see his parents and Thera and the other siblings, too. But his goal was to get to Coriae. He remembered the times the two of them had battled with staves in her family’s armory, when she had been feisty and cunning and competitive, full of emotion and life. She was unlike any woman he had met in his limited life, and he was determined to get back to her, to find a way to make a match with her. He couldn’t imagine anything that would be more important in his life.
He found himself yawning as his memories continued to roll and his hand continued to cut and measure and mix and mash the elements of the complex ointment he was creating – a tripartite remedy for curing and healing the terrible scars and pain inflicted by the oven fire the kitchen staff had suffered. He would have to administer the three parts of the remedy on three separate days to cause it to begin to release its power upon the damaged flesh.
There was a sound at the door, and a bark, followed by others. It was Gance, the evening dog watcher, bringing his charges to the kitchen for their evening stay.
“Young fellow! Young fellow, I don’t even know your name,” Gance said excitedly as he followed the rushing parade of dogs who bounded to the back of the kitchen to greet Theus happily.
“Young fellow, you did it, didn’t you? You went to Bipping Bridge and you saw my Losa!” Gance reached Theus after the dogs, and he thrust his hand forward through the jumping pack of animals to grab Theus’s hand and shake it appreciatively.
“She was sitting up this evening, and the swelling has gone down. She remembered someone being in the house with her, but had no idea who,” Gance reported.
“It was Molly and me,” Theus confirmed. “I’m glad she’s better.
“Here’s another dose,” he reached over and pushed the jar of medicine across the countertop towards the man. “The more doses we give her, the faster she’ll be cured. Take this home and tell her to drink it all, and I’ll give you another tomorrow.”
“This is a blessing, a real blessing. It’s like the gods of old have come back to bless us,” Gance told him. “If there is anything I can do, anything at all to return this favor, any price, please let me know.”
One of the dogs jumped especially high at that moment and administered a wet lick to Theus’s face with uncanny accuracy, before dropping back to earth.
“Could you, as a favor, find a different place to take these dogs every night?” Theus asked, blurting out the question without even thinking, but instantly knowing it was the right favor to request. It would free him from the captivity of having to sleep on the kitchen floor with the animals, and free Letta from the chores and hassles of cleaning the kitchen after the dogs wrought havoc.
“Why, of course,” Gance answered. “We can go back to the kennels in the stables and leave them there.
“To be honest, I was never sure why we were told to bring them to the kitchen in the first place,” the man said in a lower, confidential voice.
“You bring them back here tomorrow and I’ll give you a couple of doses of medicine for your wife, and then you can take the dogs off to the kennels. Is that a deal?” Theus proposed.
“It’s a deal,” Gance said enthusiastically. “You can tell these dogs this is their last night to sleep here,” he said as he started to back away. He held the jar of medicine for his wife in his hand as he left Theus, turned towards the door, and walked out of the kitchen.
Theus looked down at the dogs, who had grown quiet. “Time to put out the bed?” he asked them, as they all watched him inquisitively.
He walked with them to the corner where the blankets and bedding were stored in a cupboard. He spread the cloth about for the dogs to lie down on, then left them while he finished the final steps in his preparation of the medicine for the burn victim. When he finished, he moved everything to a separate counter, the medicines separated and ready to be administered, and the extra ingredients back in the canvas bag he had carried them in.
And after that, he went to the dogs and pushed a pair aside to make room for himself, so that he could fall asleep and rest for another evening as a slave in Southsand.
Chapter 5
The dogs were on their way out the door with their daytime attendant as Theus opened his sleepy eyes in the morning. He lowered his head and rested in a dozing state of weary awareness. When the morning bakers came into the kitchen with their noise and their lanterns, he awoke again. He stretched, put the bedding away, thankful to know that it was the last time he’d have to sleep with the dogs, then went to join the bakers.
Minutes after the bakers were bustling around the kitchen, Letta entered as well. Her eyes spotted Theus, confirmed his presence, and then she proceeded to talk to the bakers to check on the status of the day’s baking. When that conversation ended, she strode rapidly over to see Theus.
“You were out quite a while yesterday shopping. Are you sure you didn’t drag the errands out so that you could be free from the palace?” she asked him.
“No, my lady,” he replied earnestly. “We had to go to different markets to find all the things we needed. The cure for the burns is very complicated.” He didn’t want to admit that it was far more complicated than any of remedy he had produced in his short career of helping to treat illnesses.
“And we treated Losa too, Gance’s wife,” he added.
“Who?” Letta asked sharply. “Who’s Losa? Who’s Gance?”
Gance is the doghandler who brings the dogs here every night,” Theus answered. “His wife was ill, and since we were near her home, Molly and I went and gave her a quick treatment. It didn’t take long.”
“You’re not here to be an angel of mercy to the whole city,” Letta lectured him, but her tone wasn’t as astringent as it might have been. “We need you and Molly here in the palace, helping us manage this undermanned kitchen.
“Your act of kindness didn’t help us with that, did it?” she asked rhetorically.
“Because I treated his wife, Gance agreed that he’s not going to bring the dogs to sleep in the kitchen anymore,” Theus sprung his pleasant surprise upon his chief.
“What? No more dogs in the kitchen?” Letta took a step back to scrutinize Theus. “You bargained to get those animals out?”
“And to stay out,” Theus agreed. “I need to give Gance another set of medicines tonight, and he and the dogs will go away. I’ll need to return to the markets briefly to get a few ingredients, if my lady allows,” he told her.
“Well of course! To keep those dogs away, you can go right now,” she told him.
“I don’t know the way,” Theus admitted. “I didn’t pay attention to the directions. I’ll need Molly again.”
“She’s got other duties today, but I’ll find someone for you after breakfast. This won’t take all day, will it?” Letta wanted to know.
“No, it’s an easy remedy. “One visit to one market will do it,” Theus promised.
‘Well, that’s good work on your part. Thank you,” Letta had finished digesting the advantage of no longer having to worry about the dogs wrecking the kitchen, and knew it was a boon. “When can you start treating the burn victims? Tomorrow?” she switched topics to something else that weighed on her mind.
“Later today – this afternoon – if someone can lead me to where they are,” Theus replied. “I’ve got the treatment all ready to go for the first patient,” he gestured at the jars that sat on the counter.
“I’ll have,” Letta eyed him speculatively, then grinned, “I’ll have Torella take you around the city today. Go have a seat and wait for your breakfast and stay out of the way,” she directed him. Without another glance she turned and left the medical counter space.
Theus watched her leave, then walked closer to the active center of the kitchen and sat down, pleased that he had persuaded Letta to trust him out in the city once again. He yawned and watched the working crew apply increasing energy to their tasks as the work of the kitchen came to life, a
nd before long, a few snacks were casually passed his way to munch on contentedly while the morning menu was rounded out for the nobles and royals and servants who occupied the palace.
Sometime later, a small, pretty girl with frizzy red hair handed him a plate silently, then stood nearby watching him as he started to eat the bacon that was always his first target to consume on a breakfast plate.
“Would you like a piece?” Theus asked after a minute, as he grew slightly unnerved by the girl’s studied observation of him.
She shook her head gently in the negative. Theus ate some of the fruit that also sat on his plate, while the girl watched him still, but before he started on the toast, he looked directly at her. “Do you want some of the toast?” he asked crossly. Her blatant study of him had crossed the line from odd to rude. He knew that he was still wearing the same clothes he’d worn for two days, but he was only a new slave, and she was presumably still only a slave herself.
“What do you want?” he asked crossly.
“I’m waiting to be your guide,” she answered.
“You’re Torella?” he asked in surprise.
“I am,” she bobbed her head in agreement.
“I’m finished,” he pushed the plate away and stood up. “Do I have to wear a collar again like I did yesterday?”
“Yes,” she nodded. She was wearing an apron over her skirt, Theus realized, as she reached into a pocket beneath the apron and pulled out a collar for him.
Theus approached her, and she motioned for him to bend down. She was petite, and Theus bent at both the knees and the waist to lower his head sufficiently for her. Their eyes were on the same level, and he stared at her green eyes as she watched her own fingers fasten the collar around his neck.
“What does this collar do, anyway?” Theus asked. “Why do I need to wear it? Molly didn’t wear anything when we went out yesterday. You not going to wear one today, are you?” he asked her.
“I don’t need to wear one. The magicians know I’m not going to run away,” she replied succinctly.
“Magicians?” Theus scoffed in disbelief.
“The king has magicians who can cast spells,” Torella answered. “They can cause great pain for those who wear these collars. The collars can only be put on and off inside the palace grounds, or so far away from the magicians that they can’t reach you. If you have one on outside the palace, and try to run away, the magician casts his spell, and you come running back to the palace to make it stop.
“That’s what they say, anyway,” she added.
Theus ran a finger around the collar, finding it more uncomfortable than it had seemed the day before.
“Let’s go to the market,” he said.
Torella nodded silently, then led him out of the kitchen and through the palace, into the courtyard in the early morning. They left through the same gate that Molly had used, and they walked through the city to a market that might have been one Theus had visited with Molly, though he wasn’t sure. Torella was silent throughout the journey, speaking only when spoken to, and answering with few words even then. Her silence intrigued Theus, who came to see it as a challenge, and resolved to make the girl talk.
“How long have you been a slave?” he asked.
“Since I was born,” she told him only that, and no more.
“Do you have any medical problems?” he asked.
“No,” she answered. Frustrating his hopes of being able to heal some problem.
Eventually, as they browsed through the stalls of the market, he gave up the game. When they had the things they needed to blend additional doses for Losa’s goiter cure, they left the market and returned to the palace. Torella removed the unpleasant collar from Theus, then sat down on a stool near the counter where he had placed his new supplies.
“You can go now,” he said absently, as he began to think about the process of mixing Losa’s medication.
“I’m supposed to guide you to the hospice where the burn victims are,” she said.
“It’ll be a while. I want to mix this first,” he answered.
“I’ll wait,” Torella told him calmly.
Theus felt a sense of irritation at the girl’s continued presence, but he turned his back to her and attempted to forget about her as he carried out the production of three extra doses of the medicine that Losa would need to finish the treatment of her goiter. He’d be able to give the three jars to Gance in the evening, and then be able – he hoped – to go to his own room and sleep on a bed of his own, to settle into a more normal life.
Except that he wasn’t going to settle in, he sharply rebuked himself. He wasn’t going to accept his role as a slave. He was going to study his environment, and learn how to put an end to his captivity. Learning about the collar that was supposedly controlled by magic was an example of the types of things he needed to learn.
Within an hour he had three doses of the medicine prepared. He pushed them to the back of the counter, then cleaned up his work space and finally lifted the first canister of medicine that was needed to treat the terrible burns he had seen.
“I’m ready to go start making life better for Weese,” he said to Torella. “Would you lead me to the hospice where he stays?”
“You mean Ruune, don’t you?” Torella answered. “You want to go heal Ruune first. He’s the one that was burnt the most. He’s the one who tried to help the others escape the fire. You should treat him first.
“He’s in the same hospice anyway, so that’s where we’re heading,” the girl spoke more words, with more passion, than Theus had expected. He looked at her in surprise.
“I guess I could treat Ruune,” he agreed cautiously. “I was only going to treat one of the victims to start, just to make sure everything works the way I expect.”
“You could treat more than one,” Torella suggested. “You really ought to, as a matter of fact.”
“I don’t have the items I need to make another set of the doses,” he explained.
“After you treat Ruune, we can go back to the market and get more of the things you need, so you can treat Weese. That would work, wouldn’t it?” the girl asked earnestly.
Theus drummed his fingers on the counter absentmindedly as he tried to estimate what the time requirements would be to carry out Torella’s suggested new routine.
“If we go treat Ruune, and then go to the market, I can mix the new treatment for Weese, but I may not be able to administer it to him until the evening. It’s a complicated remedy,” he said slowly.
“I’ll stay with you and guide you everywhere you need, right into the middle of the night if needed,” Torella had grown passionate and loquacious.
“Okay,” Theus decided to fulfill the girl’s request. He could take the actions, and perhaps have a chance to learn something from her, about her, especially regarding why the treatment for Ruune was so important.
“Take me to the hospice, and then we’ll go out to the markets again,” he said as he gathered up his jars and his bag for carrying the new supplies.
“And one more thing,” he added suddenly. “I’m not going to wear that collar.”
She stared at him. “That’s not my rule. I’m not in charge of that.”
“If you try to make me wear it, I’m not going to treat Ruune, and we’re not going shopping for more supplies,” he told her. There was a noise in the front of the kitchen, and Theus saw Letta talking to a dishwasher. “I’ll ask Letta to give me a different guide. She’s right there,” he threatened.
“Oh, you’re a terrible person!” Torella wailed. “This is unfair! Why are you doing this to me? Just wear the collar.”
“Letta,” Theus called loudly. He wasn’t sure why he was letting the whole situation escalate into a drama, but his dander was up and his ego was in charge suddenly. He wanted to prove to the girl that he could have an impact.
“No, no, it’s okay. You don’t have to wear the collar,” Torella surrendered to his demand.
Letta looked up from her
spot at the sound of her name. Theus waved at her, then looked away.
“Let’s go now,” he said.
“You won’t run away, will you? You promise?” Torella made one last plea.
“I won’t run away this time. Not today,” Theus agreed.
The pair walked through the kitchen.
“Did you want something, Theus?” Letta asked.
“I just wanted to say hello,” he assured her, and then the furtive pair were out the door and walking through the palace.
Torella led Theus through unfamiliar halls – they were all still unfamiliar to him – and then outside. Minutes later they were at the door to the small white clapboard building.
Theus opened the door and stepped in. “Come on,” he told Torella.
“I can’t. I’ll wait out here,” she told him in a strangled tone.
“You’re a strange person,” Theus blurted out.
“I know. I’m sorry. Thank you for helping Ruune. Please go do your work now; I’ll be waiting here,” she answered.
Theus shrugged and went in. He asked the attendant where Ruune was, and then turned right instead of left, and entered a different ward of the medical facility than he had entered before. In the third bed on the right he found Ruune.
Theus studied the scarred and ruined flesh that lay on the bed, filled with compassion and horror. Ruune had one arm missing, and the other badly withered and scarred. The man was a vast mass of scars, and had virtually no face left. He had taken a full blast of intense heat, and somehow survived, in a fashion.
“Can you hear me?” Theus asked quietly. The head of the disfigured man rolled slight towards him.
“My name is Theus. Letta sent me to try some medicines to help treat burn scars and injuries. “I’m here to visit you,” Theus told the man. “I have some medicine that can help you. We’ll see how much it can help.”
Theus had doubts. Though his implanted memories from the stone had shown him severe burn scars that had healed, none had been as horrific as the damage done to the lump of flesh that lay on the bed in front of him.
The Deadly Magician (The Memory Stones Series Book 2) Page 8
