Haunted (7 page)

"Only what Aedyn has told me. I haven't seen Grunhall strike the
boy, but I did see him almost choke him before we managed to get
away."

Kestan looked away when Nera reached Aedyn's trousers and underwear,
not wanting to invade his privacy even if he was unconscious. She
made some tutting sounds and out of the corner of his eye Kestan saw
her tug the sheet back up to Aedyn's chest.

"There is no sign of sexual assault, but the physical abuse is
very severe. He is also very malnourished; he hasn't been eating
properly for quite some time. The whip marks on his back are also
infected. Someone put dirty cloths on the wounds, the very worst
thing that could have been done."

Kestan felt the guilt crushing his chest. "That was me. I'm
sorry; I thought I was doing the right thing."

"I imagine you were only trying to stop the bleeding, but the
cloth was dirty. Germs, Master Kestan. Germs like dirt. |Infections
are not caused because we have angered the gods in some way. We will
clean the wounds and then apply a poultice to help draw out the
infection. The dressings will need to be changed every day until the
wounds heal. Cleanliness isn't just next to godliness, Master Kestan,
it is vital to health."

"Will he be all right?" Kestan couldn't bear the thought
that in the attempt to rescue Aedyn he might have ended up killing
him, something Grunhall hadn't managed to do in the past ten years.

"He's not out of the woods yet, Master Kestan, but I will do my
best for him. That's all I can guarantee."

"Thank you, doctor." Kestan knew it was the best he could
hope for.

*

After the doctor had put the poultices in place and wrapped Aedyn's
wounds again Kestan remained in the room with him. He couldn't bear
to leave Aedyn alone – what if he woke and found himself in a
strange house? It didn't matter that he was unconscious, Kestan
wasn't going anywhere. Aedyn needed him.

Around sunset, Jessamyn popped her head around the door after
knocking softly. "Master Kestan, my father is home; he'd like to
speak with you."

"Oh. Of course." Kestan glanced longingly at Aedyn.

"I can stay with him for a while if you'd like."

"Thank you, I didn't want to leave him on his own."

"Father's study is the third door on the right down the hall.
The ground floor," she said, moving over to Aedyn's bedside and
smoothing his hair away from his forehead. It was a tender gesture
and it made Kestan feel inexplicably jealous that she had done it.
Hiding the emotion, he made his way to the earl's study and knocked
on the door. He was uncomfortably reminded of the day he had received
his marching orders from King Varathorn. Since he wasn't part of the
earl's retinue or staff, he knew that wasn't what Earl Chadron wanted
to see him about.

"Come in."

Kestan pushed open the door and stared around at the well-lit room.
There were large candle sconces on the walls as well as oil lamps
scattered among the numerous tables and shelves. The study was lined
with bookshelves and although there was a large desk in the room, the
earl was sitting instead on a dark green leather sofa with a buttoned
back. He waved Kestan into the wingback chair facing him and
dismissed the servant who had been pouring out two large measures of
brandy on a side table next to the sofa.

"I think we must have just missed each other," said the
earl once Kestan had seated himself. "I was in Sapphire Lake
with the City Guard."

"At Grunhall Abbey?"

"Indeed. I sent my man to do some investigating once I received
your letter, Master Kestan. In the woods behind Grunhall Abbey he
discovered a body. A young man who I can only assume must be Syldas.
The City Guard are handling it for now. Grunhall has been arrested
for murder and the Guard are looking into Aedyn's so-called death. I
know you suspect the young man to be the Duke of Sapphire Lake's son,
Aedyn, but is there any proof of that?"

"What sort of proof do you need? He's the right age and he looks
like his father in the portrait at the Abbey."

"I see. Is there anything else? Any distinguishing marks or
features?"

"Well, he does have a rather unusual scar on his back. It is
shaped like a star."

"Ah. Then he is indeed Aedyn," said the earl, taking a sip
of his brandy. "The family were friends of mine, Master Kestan,
and one day while I was visiting them at what was Sapphire Abbey,
young Aedyn had been climbing trees and fell. That was the day he
received that unusual scar. I saw it, so if this young man does
indeed bear it then we can safely assume that the Saphire Lake heir
is still alive, if not very well at the moment."

"Did Grunhall admit to anything?"

"What do you think? He's denied all knowledge of Syldas' death
or of Aedyn's imprisonment. His wife was distraught; I don't think
she knew the boy was still alive. Grunhall had convinced the rest of
his family that they were seeing a ghost, not someone of flesh and
blood. But I'm sure the truth will out in the end, especially since
Grunhall's man - Garom, is it?" Kestan nodded. "– is
claiming to have seen the murder. He says that Grunhall pushed Syldas
from the bell tower and the young man fell to his death. Would you be
able to identify the body, Master Kestan? I cannot ask Jessamyn to do
that, I know how much she cared for the young man."

"I knew him briefly. If it will help, I can certainly do it.
Thank you so much for your help, your grace."

"No need to thank me, old chap. I'm only doing what any
right-minded citizen would do. And since you are Jessamyn's friend, I
think it's about time you called me Chadron, eh? None of this
your
grace
nonsense. It makes me feel old!"

"Very well, Chadron. But you must call me Kestan in return."

"I think we can manage that, Kestan," said the earl, his
lips curling into a smile.

Chapter Eight

A few moments later the earl handed Kestan the other glass of brandy.
Kestan sat staring at the amber liquid, unsure what to say. That the
earl had felt comfortable enough to allow Kestan to use his given
name was a surprise. King Varathorn had never encouraged such
familiarity among the servants and neither had Grunhall. Kestan
didn't know what to think. The silence lingered, making Kestan
uncomfortable. He was normally the one in control, the teacher
talking to his students, but in front of Earl Chadron he was lost for
words. His collar felt tight and he ran a finger around it, while
with the other hand he sipped at the brandy.

"I would like to thank you, Kestan," said Chadron at last.
"Both for rescuing Aedyn and for being there when my daughter
needed someone to confide in."

"I only did what I had to do," replied Kestan softly.
"Anyone would have done the same." All Kestan knew was that
he'd had to get Aedyn away from that place as soon as possible.

"I'm not so sure about that," replied the earl. "You
could have walked away and left Aedyn to his fate."

"I could not!" Kestan protested vehemently. "To leave
him there with that man? No, I couldn't."

"No, you couldn't," agreed Jonathan. "But there are
some people who would have felt no qualms about leaving the boy
there. You, however, looked out for Aedyn's best interests, even at
the risk of your own. I was the executor of theDuke's will, Kestan; I
was the one who allowed the Grunhalls to claim Saphire Abbey as their
own. Everyone, including me, thought that Aedyn was dead, he had
disappeared around the same time as the accident and the police
agreed that he most likely perished with his parents. His parents'
wishes were clear, they left everything to their son, but if he died,
then their estate would go to Nydia Grunhall and her family."

"But why hide him away? Why not just kill him?" Kestan
asked.

"As to that, it's only a theory, but this is what I believe may
have happened. I think Aedyn was injured in the carriage accident
that killed his parents; perhaps he lost his memory and turned up one
day at Grunhall Abbey. Grunhall knew that if the boy's existence came
to light, their inheritance would be forfeit. There is a codicil to
the will, that if Aedyn was mentally impaired, then the Grunhalls
would get the estate, but would oversee a trust fund for Aedyn. I
think Grunhall wanted to drive him mad so that if Aedyn was ever
discovered, they still wouldn't lose out. As for why he didn't kill
the boy, I don't know, for there is no doubt in my mind that he
killed Syldas. But maybe that was an accident and he's not an
outright murderer."

"So Aedyn will get his inheritance back?"

"He will, but he won't get all of it until he is twenty-one. The
fortune is quite considerable, Kestan. There are a lot of
unscrupulous people like Grunhall who would be keen to get their
hands on it."

"I don't care about the money!" cried Kestan, his heart
lurching painfully at the thought of how ill Aedyn was. "It's
Aedyn I care about!"

"I know you do, Kestan, which is why as executor I want to
appoint you as Aedyn's guardian until he reaches his majority in two
years' time. You will oversee his trust fund and help him grow into
the fine young man we all want him to be."

"Wouldn't you be better at that?"

"As executor, I can't look after Aedyn or his money. It would be
a conflict of interests. You're the best man for the job, Kestan."

"You can't be serious! Aedyn hardly knows me! I'm nothing to
him!"

Chadrom arched his eyebrows. "Nothing to him? Come now, Kestan.
I know how much you care for him. That young man was like the son I
never had and if things had been different, he might have become my
son in truth. But Jessamyn has refused to marry anyone she doesn't
love. Her lover is dead, but not his child, and she is determined not
to marry just because she is pregnant. I will never forgive myself
for what I allowed to happen to Aedyn. I should have insisted they
search longer after the accident rather than just accept that
everyone thought he was dead. I know you'll look out for his best
interests."

"I won't!" Kestan ground out through gritted teeth. Oh, how
could the earl even think of letting Kestan look after Aedyn? It was
as if the earl could see Kestan's darkest desires and was quite
willing to allow him free rein with them! "You know what I am! I
will corrupt him!"

"Why? Because you love him?" the earl asked calmly.

"Love? Love is not for men like me! I'm an abomination!
Unnatural! A freak! I don't want that for Aedyn! He deserves better!"

"Better than someone who loves him? This stupid law is what is
an abomination, Kestan. Not you. It's men like Grunhall who need to
be locked up, not you or men like you."

Kestan could hardly believe what he was hearing. That a respectable
man, an earl even, was not castigating him for his unnatural
behaviour. "I don't understand what you're saying."

"Kestan, I don't know Aedyn well enough to say whether or not he
is attracted to men, attracted to you. However, if he is and the two
of you decide to pursue a relationship, then what I am saying is that
it will be nobody's business but between the two of you. This house
is a friendly house and both of you will be welcome here, shared
bedrooms and all."

"Not everyone would see it like that. They'd think I would
corrupt him to my own ends."

"Would you continue to make advances to Aedyn if he told you
they were unwelcome?"

Kestan shook his head. Never in his life had he pursued a man who
wasn't interested; he remembered Aedyn's own clumsy advances too. For
whatever reason, Aedyn had set his sights on Kestan. "Aedyn
asked me to kiss him," Kestan admitted. The earl was a man who
made sharing confidences seem like the most natural thing in the
world.

"So, on some level he must be attracted to you."

"Maybe, but it wouldn't be very fair of me to take advantage of
that. He is very innocent, Chadron. It's hardly surprising
considering how long he was locked away from the world. Then there is
also the fact of the law; I don't want to get him killed."
Kestan set down his brandy glass, noticing that his hands were
shaking.

"But what if he's willing to take the risk?"

"I don't know, I just don't know."

"Well, why don't you get some rest and think it over? Things
might be clearer after a good night's sleep."

"Thank you."

Kestan took his leave of the earl. Once he entered the hallway, the
maid, Hawise, curtseyed and showed him upstairs to a bedroom. This
room was as far from Kestan's dingy bedroom at Grunhall Abbey as one
could get. There were wide windows draped in dark blue velvet, held
back with silver tassels. It was dark outside with little flurries of
snow swirling against the panes. The fire had been lit to warm the
room and an oil lamp was already placed on the bedside table. The bed
itself was a large four poster with curtains to match the window
drapery and a thick blue bedspread with lots of pillows heaped up by
the headboard. It was a room for guests, not servants.

"There's hot water for you, sir," said Hawise, pointing out
the wash stand and Kestan saw the steam rising from the pitcher as
well as a selection of cloths and towels. "Do you need anything
else?"

"No, thank you."

"Well, there's a bell pull by the bed. Just ring if you need
anything."

"Thank you, but I think I'll be fine."

Once the girl left, Kestan sat down on the side of the bed and
removed his shoes. There was a dressing gown and a nightshirt draped
over a chair by the window. Unbuttoning his shirt as he went, he
poured out some hot water into the bowl and washed his face and neck,
trying not to think. For when he did think the only thing he could
think of was Aedyn.

He climbed into bed and removed the warming pan which had taken the
chill off the sheets, but even before he lay down he knew sleep was
going to elude him once more. It wasn't the thought of ghosts or
spirits which made him restless tonight, but thoughts of Aedyn and
how ill he was. What if Aedyn died? How could he bear it? And if
Aedyn didn't die, how could Kestan bear living without him? Would it
be selfish of him to pursue Aedyn when in doing so it might cause his
death anyway at the hands of the courts?