Free the Darkness (King's Dark Tidings Book 1) (22 page)

By the time Rezkin finally returned to the inn, he was
satisfied with the progress he had made and his personnel’s supposed eagerness to
please him. He knew it was not a true loyalty – not yet. Everyone was
simply too afraid to question The Raven. No one could find any information
about him, some even whispering that he was a demon incarnate. The young
warrior silently scoffed at the idea. Of all the people Rezkin had met thus
far, he was the
only
one who followed the
Rules
; and demons,
being creatures of chaos, were not known for adherence to any kind of order.
Rezkin was not even certain such beings existed.

The young warrior requested his meal and a bath be brought
to the room. He did not feel like taking his meal in the common room where he
had to maintain constant vigilance. This city wound his nerves and muscles up
tightly, being constantly surrounded by people. When he reached the room, Tam
was laying on his mattress reading a book.

Rezkin nodded a greeting but was saved from any discussion
when Roxie and Pot showed up with the tub. Pot grinned and greeted him while
Roxie smiled demurely. The two scurried out of the room to fetch the water, and
Rezkin noticed his laundered tunic was folded neatly in the bottom of the tub
alongside the basket of bathing essentials.

Laying his book aside, Tam broke the silence first. “Look,
Rez, I’m sorry about yesterday. I…I didn’t know it was like that. I mean, I
don’t know anything about riverboats, and well, you were just so…
scary
.”

Rezkin furrowed his brow and cocked his head in thought. “I
made no threats of violence, and I drew no weapons. I allowed you to take the
lead, but when I could see the man was trying to take advantage of you, I had
to intercede. I tried to be more than fair, and when it did not work, I simply
told him how it was going to be. If you were to ask the old man, now, you would
probably find that he is more grateful than upset since I have not turned him
in to the authorities.”

“I know,” Tam huffed in impatience and threw his hands in
the air. “Nothing you did was
wrong
. In fact, you were impeccable…as
always. It’s just…you don’t even
know
, do you?”

“Know what?” asked Rezkin, completely at a loss.

“What you
do
to people. In here,” he said, pointing
to his head. “You’re so calm and self-assured, and your eyes…,” he shook his
head, struggling to get his point across. “You’re so intimidating, just your
very presence. It’s like you’re
more
than a man,” he said and then
stared at Rez as though seeing him for the first time. A small smile graced his
lips as he continued, “But, you’re not, are you? No, of course not. You haven’t
hurt anyone. It’s just in our heads – all that fear.” His look grew
curious. “How old are you, Rez?”

Rezkin’s brow furrowed. He did not know what his age had to
do with the conversation, but he answered anyway. “Nineteen.”

Tam barked a hearty laugh. “No way! I don’t believe you.”

Rezkin shrugged. “I am.”

Shaking his head in amazement, Tam replied, “I think we had
you all wrong, Rez. You’re really kind of a softy wrapped in a scary package.”

Now, Rez was really confused. He had never thought anyone
would ever call him
soft.
Nothing Tam was saying made any sense. How could
he seem like more than a man? Before Rez could reply, Roxie and Pot returned
with buckets of water and then hurried out to retrieve more.

Not wanting to return to the confusing conversation, Rezkin
changed the subject. “What are you reading?” he asked, nodding toward the book
on Tam’s bed.

“Oh, it’s the
Tales of the Shadow Knight
,” Tam said
with a wide grin, as though he was laughing at some unsaid joke.

“It sounds like a book of fiction. Is it good?” asked Rez
curiously.

Tam’s face fell, and he exclaimed, “Surely you’ve read it?”

Rezkin frowned and shook his head. “No, I have never heard
of it.”

“But…” Tam started to protest but was once again interrupted
by the water-bearers. A moment after they left, there was a soft tap at the
door. Tam answered to Frisha standing out in the hall.

“Are you coming to dinner?” she asked her companion.

“Yes, I’m coming, now,” he replied.

Frisha then noticed Rezkin standing by his bed unbuckling
his swords. She lowered her voice to a whisper and asked, “Is he mad?”

Tam looked uncertain as he shrugged and whispered back, “How
can you tell? He doesn’t show it, but he didn’t really say.”

Frisha pushed her way past Tam and asked in a tentative
voice, “Um, Rez, will you be joining us for dinner?”

Rezkin did not look up as he was removing his boots, “No, I
asked for my meal to be brought up.”

“Oh. Are you angry?” she asked as she worried at her bottom
lip.

“Do I have cause to be angry?” he asked finally looking at
her. He could not think of a reason to be angry. No one had attacked him or his
friends
, so far. He supposed he could be angry with the riverboat
manager, but it would be pointless anger. Perhaps something had happened to Tam
and Frisha in his absence. He waited for the young woman to inform him of what
should be upsetting him.

Frisha could tell, now, that Rezkin was more upset than she
realized. His cold demeanor was obviously a defensive mechanism to deal with
their poor treatment of him the previous day. She felt terrible. Between the
first night and yesterday, she and Tam had treated him very poorly when all he
had done was try to help, while asking for nothing in return. Rez had been
consistently polite and courteous, and she and Tam had treated him with
suspicion and accusations. If it had been her instead of Rez, she would have
been crying or screaming or both.

“I’m really sorry, Rez,” she said. “We shouldn’t have
accused you of…well…
anything
. You deserve our thanks, and we have
treated you with scorn. I am very ashamed of my actions.”

Rezkin cocked his head as he looked at her curiously. “You
had a limited understanding of the proceedings. Based on the knowledge you had
at the time and the conclusions you drew from said knowledge, which were not
completely unreasonable, your response is understandable.  Considering
your lack of comprehension, you reacted with regard to your morals and the law.
For that, I must commend you. Had you a full understanding of the circumstances
at the time, I am sure you would have reacted differently.”

Frisha blinked at him several times. “Is it really that easy
for you? You just…look at it from
our
perspective and accept it?” Rezkin
was looking at her with complete sincerity, she could tell. He really did not
hold a grudge against her. “You have to be the most compassionate and understanding
man I have ever met, Rezkin. I don’t think I could be so forgiving in your
position.”

Compassionate? Understanding, maybe, but compassionate?
It was Rezkin’s turn to blink in confusion. What was she talking about? He
mentally reviewed everything he just said and could not think of a single
statement that could fit the definition of compassion. He was not even sure he
was capable of compassion. It seemed like a feeling with little practical
application.

Roxie and Pot returned just then with the last buckets of
water. Roxie fixed Frisha with a dirty look behind her back, and Pot snickered.
Rezkin only wondered for a moment what all that might be about and then put it
from his mind. His bath was getting cold. He looked back at Frisha and said,
“If you intend to stay for my bath, would you please shut and bar the door? I
do not like the idea of people coming and going while I bathe.”

Frisha’s face flushed bright red as she turned and fled from
the room. Tam burst into laughter as he shut the door behind them. Rezkin
slipped the bar into place and then began removing the arsenal of weapons he
had hidden about his person. The young warrior stripped off his clothes and
settled into the bath. The heat of the water soaked deep into his muscles as he
allowed himself to relax bit by bit.

Down in the common room, Tam caught Frisha’s attention and
asked, “You’re falling for him, aren’t you?”

Frisha’s face flushed, “Don’t be silly. We just met two
nights ago, and we didn’t even see him all day.”

Tam nodded, “I know, but I’ve never seen you like this with
anyone else. Even Lord Byron’s son, Dornell, who
all
the girls swooned
over, couldn’t catch your attention. And, if I remember correctly, he
tried
.”

Frisha sighed, “It’s just that he’s so open and genuine.
It’s like there’s no deceit or cunning in him. He just met us, and he’s totally
dedicated to our protection and welfare. I think it really upsets him when we
seem disappointed or accuse him of pushing his weight around…which we’ve done
twice
.”

Nodding in agreement, Tam said, “I know. Just before you
arrived, I was talking to him and realized he’s like a bear on the outside and
a sweet puppy on the inside. I think we’ve been judging him all wrong just
based on his looks. You know they always say
don’t judge a book by its cover
.”
Tam’s eyes sparked with mirth at the recollection of his conversation with
Rezkin only moments before. “Speaking of which, do you know he’s never read
Tales
of the Shadow Knight
? He said he’s never even heard of it!”

Frisha burst out laughing, “No way! I don’t see how that’s
possible.”

Tam laughed and shook his head before sobering and saying,
“I do feel really bad for treating him the way we have. I know he looks and
sometimes acts scary, but I’m not sure he could hurt a fly…unless maybe it was
attacking one of us.” He grinned. “I do think he’s sincere about that, you
know. I think he really would do what he could to help us, although I still
don’t understand why.”

“He lives by a code,” Frisha said. “You know, everyone keeps
calling him ‘my lord’ even when he discourages it. I think it’s because deep
down we all recognize true nobility. That’s how he acts – being a
gentleman, protecting people, setting crooks to rights.”

Tam grunted, “I think it’s just because he scares the crap
out of people and orders them around like it’s his prerogative. Only a lord
acts like that and gets away with it, and he doesn’t look too scared about
getting called out for it. I think you should consider the possibility that he
might actually
be
a noble. I don’t know, maybe a landless minor lord or
a fifth son or something.”

“How would
you
know how the fifth son of a noble
acts?” Frisha asked in challenge.

“I don’t,” Tam replied, “but I know commoners, and he
doesn’t act or speak like any commoner I’ve ever met.”

Frisha nodded and said, “I have to agree with that.”

Rezkin finished bathing and dressed in his dark night
stealth gear. He decided he was fortunate that Maid Roxie was so dedicated to
her job or Rezkin would have nothing to wear as often as he had to change. These
outworlders were sensitive to the sight of blood, and Rezkin had to maintain
the appearance of an average outworlder. Every time he turned around, the young
woman was practically begging to perform some chore for him.

The warrior strapped on his lightweight dark leather armor
and secreted his weapons about his body. Rather than donning a full cloak, he
pulled a deep charcoal grey hood over his head, the ends of which attached to
his tunic with ties. The material was waxed and formed to stand away from his
face leaving his field of view relatively clear and his visage in shadow. It
also had the advantage of resisting rain.

He unbarred the door, but not wanting to attract attention,
the young warrior slipped out the window into the adjacent alley and dropped to
the ground with a soft, barely audible thud. He made his way through the
encroaching darkness to the Golden Trust Bank. All of the bank’s proprietors
would have left for the day, and whatever security forces they had would be
less likely to expect an infiltration at the beginning of their shift. Most
thieves tended to attempt high profile robberies in the darkest hours of the
night.

The Golden Trust Bank was the largest banking chain in the
kingdom, having branches in all of the capital cities and in many of the
smaller ones, as well. More importantly, though, while the bank was
independently owned and operated by the Banker’s Guild, it was sanctioned by
the Crown. It was not the kind of place the average commoner kept his money. In
fact, the average commoner, if he had any money to save, would most likely keep
it in a box under the floorboards. The banks were utilized by the very wealthy
for the safe keeping of important items and documents. Nobles and merchants who
traveled could hold accounts with the bank, as well, so they could access the
money from any of the cities rather than carry large amounts of coin with them.
The bank had its own system of mage relays to keep track of the funds being
deposited and drawn from the various branches.

If he had more time, Rezkin would simply have entered the
bank as a customer and asked to secure some item in a safe deposit box,
allowing him easier access to the room. Unfortunately, he had to leave in the
morning, so that was not an option. At least this way he could take his time in
the vault. If tonight’s excursion went well, he might even take the time to
root around in a few of the other boxes to see what other secrets he could
unearth.

The bank was located in a central square surrounded by
guildhouses. The Merchant Guild was located directly to the north, adjacent to
the Craftsmen’s Guild. To the bank’s east were the Scriveners’ and Accountants’
Guilds, and to the west was the Bankers’ Guild. Most of the various other
guildhouses were located within a few blocks of the bank, the greatest
exception being the Mage Guild, which was located at the furthest edge of the
town to the north. The mages preferred to keep to themselves, and reminded
others of their inequity often. Most people preferred the mages to keep their
distance, anyway, always concerned that some spell might go awry and wreak
havoc on those around them.