The Marus Manuscripts (10 page)

T
he three travelers had an uneventful journey and arrived at the village of Dorr shortly before morning. It had been a long walk, and Kyle and Anna were exhausted. The only thing either of them wanted was a bed.

The convent the Old Judge had mentioned sat on the village outskirts. It was a modest stone compound with high walls and a huge door on the front. Darien banged the simple iron knocker several times. Five minutes passed before a young, sleepy-eyed girl wearing a hood opened the door. When Darien introduced himself, the girl stumbled and stammered that they should wait right there while she went to get Sister Leona. She disappeared into a dark corridor.

Sister Leona, the head of the convent, came to the door in her dressing gown. Her white hair was tousled and stuck out at odd angles under her hood. Her eyes were puffy from sleep. “Come in, come in!” she said and led them in. They took a path through a beautiful courtyard with flowers and a fountain and eventually arrived at a small building on the other side of the enclosure. It housed a primitive kitchen and long, wooden table. Sister Leona and another girl quickly warmed up a meat stew, even though Darien assured her it wasn’t necessary.

After the food had been served and a blessing said, Sister Leona turned to Anna. Her eyes were piercing in their intensity. “So the Old Judge wants me to teach you?” she said. “You must be very special for him to send you to me.”

Anna blushed and said, “I don’t know what he thinks I’ll learn.”

“You’ll learn what you’re willing to learn,” Sister Leona answered. Anna then noticed that, like the Old Judge, Sister Leona’s eyes were two different colors—one blue, the other green. “Is there something wrong?” she asked.

Anna averted her gaze. “No, ma’am.”

“General Darien, why are you traveling so late at night—and without your attendants and soldiers?” asked Sister Leona. “Are you on your way to a battle?”

“No, Sister,” Darien replied and ate some bread. Kyle and Anna exchanged uneasy glances.

“Had we known you were going to visit our humble convent, we would have made proper arrangements for you,” Sister Leona said. “Normally an official at the king’s palace informs us when—”

Darien interrupted her: “The king’s officials aren’t involved in this enterprise. This is a secret mission.”

“Then the allegations that you are part of a plot against the king are false?”

“I can assure you that they are false. I am not part of a plot against the king.” Darien toyed with his bread. “As it happens, we were passing this way, so the Old Judge asked us to bring Anna to you. That’s all. It would be helpful if you didn’t ask any more questions.”

“I see,” Sister Leona said politely. “Is there anything I can give you for your mission? More food?”

“Beds for a couple of hours’ sleep would be most appreciated.”

“Anything else?”

“A pistol and a sword,” Darien said as a joke. “I’m traveling without my weapons.”

Sister Leona didn’t laugh. She merely tapped her chin with her index finger. “I may be able to help you with one of those items,” she said seriously.

A few minutes later, they were in Sister Leona’s private study. On the wall above the fireplace hung a large golden sword. Darien reached up, unclasped it, and carefully brought it down. “Amazing!” he said softly. “I had no idea it was here.”

“Is there something special about it?” Kyle asked.

“It’s the sword that belonged to Commander Soren of the Palatians,” Sister Leona explained.

Kyle looked at the sword with awe and said, “You mean the one the commander used to try to kill General Darien?”

“The very one.”

Darien held the sword up. The light from the gas lamps caught the edges of the sword, sending thin beams of yellow in all directions. “How did you come by it?” he asked.

“It was a gift to our order from the king,” Sister Leona said. She searched a nearby closet and pulled out the sword’s belt and sheath. “But it is yours by right, General. If you need it for your secret mission, then you must take it.”

“I’ll borrow it,” Darien said.

They slept only a couple of hours before Darien was ready to move on to his family’s farm. He woke Kyle up first, then together they went to Anna’s room to say good-bye. She sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes sleepily. When she realized they were leaving her, she was immediately distressed. “I’m afraid,” she whispered to her brother.

“So am I,” he admitted. “But it’s probably a good idea for you to stay here.”

“What if something happens to you?”

“I’m the protector,” he said as bravely as he could. “Nothing can happen to me.”

Neither of them believed it, but they didn’t say so.

“How will I know where you are?” she asked. “How will I find you?”

“
We’ll
find you,” Darien assured her. “Or we’ll send for you.”

Kyle smiled. “Yeah, we’ll send somebody with a secret code. He’ll say:
Uncle Bill wants to see you.”

“That’s silly,” Anna said.

Kyle nodded. “Yep,” he agreed.

Darien put a hand on Kyle’s shoulder. “The sun is up,” he said. “We have to go.” Then he left the room. Kyle lingered, looked at his sister with a worried expression, then spun on his heel and left.

Anna buried her face in her pillow and prayed to the Unseen One, “Please don’t let anything happen to them.”

Darien and Kyle walked around the village of Dorr, staying close to the outlying fields so they wouldn’t be spotted. The only living creatures they ran into were a flock of sheep and their shepherd. Darien said hello to the shepherd as if they were on a morning stroll rather than a couple of fugitives on the run. The shepherd smiled back and said “Good morning” pleasantly.

Kyle felt that sick feeling in the pit of his stomach again and immediately prepared himself for something bad to happen. Maybe the shepherd was going to attack Darien with his crook. The shepherd just looked curiously at him, however, then walked on.
That’s strange,
Kyle thought.
Is my “protector antenna” going wrong?

Anna, asleep in her bed, saw the encounter with the shepherd in a dream. But she also saw what Darien and Kyle didn’t: The shepherd waited until they were out of sight and then ran to the village. In her dream, she felt peaceful and unalarmed. When she awoke, however, her heart beat furiously in her chest. Panicked, she looked around her room. The thick curtains on the single window were drawn. The small wooden washstand, the bedside table, and the
rectangular brown carpet on the floor all seemed to be cast in a single shadow. Suddenly the door was thrown open and a man rushed in, his sword drawn. Before Anna could scream, he ran her through in a single thrust.

And then she was truly awake. It had been another dream. Her room was filled with the half light of a sunny day that pushed through the drawn curtains. The door was closed.

She tried to figure out what the two dreams meant but didn’t know how. Chilled and feverish, her eyes burning in their sockets, she tried to stand up. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the floor.

That’s where Sister Leona found her later in the morning.

“Father!” Darien cried as he and his father embraced.

The stooped and bearded old man held his son. “Darien!” he exclaimed.

His mother joined the embrace as the three clung to one another.

It was late afternoon, and the four of them met in a small cabin on the outer limits of Darien’s family property. Just in case King Lawrence had people watching, Kyle had run ahead to the back door of the house to secretly tell Darien’s parents where their son was. “Tell him to meet us at the old house after dark,” his father had instructed.

“Is it safe?” Kyle had asked.

“No one but our family has any idea it’s there,” Darien’s father had replied. “I am Torbin, by the way. This is my wife, Evelyn. You must be my son’s guardian angel.”

Kyle had nodded as a reply and said, “We’ll see you there after dark.”

He had run back to deliver the message to Darien. They had then made their way to the old house, so called because it was where Darien’s ancestors had lived when they first settled the land. It was a one-room cabin that reminded Kyle of an oversized playhouse. Inside were a few items of furniture—a cot, sofa, and kitchen table—and not much else. The cot had captured Kyle’s eye first. He was tired and felt as if he’d been in a relay race most of the day. All he wanted to do was stretch out and rest while Darien conversed with his parents around the small kitchen table. So he did.

“The king’s men were here yesterday,” Darien’s father said, his tanned face wrinkled and folded like a plowed field. “They’re probably watching now, too. But we were too smart for them. I had two servants dress like us and ride to town while we slipped out the back door.”

“Is everyone all right?” Darien asked. “Did the king’s men do anything to you?”

“Oh, they were abusive and pushed us around a little, but nothing serious,” Torbin said.

“They broke my mother’s china,” Evelyn complained. “The bullies!”

“They could’ve broken more than that,” Torbin said.

“How about the rest of the family?” Darien asked.

His father rubbed his beard absentmindedly. “They are well. They’re wondering what brought this on. Why would the king suddenly turn on you?”

“He thinks I want his job,” Darien said wryly.

“Ah,” Darien’s mother said. “Then he knows about our visit from the Old Judge.”

Darien shrugged. “Maybe he does.”

“Or maybe he’s worried because of your success as a general,” Torbin suggested.

“This is terrible! Just terrible!” said Evelyn. “You never should have left the farm. If you’d stayed here with your family, none of this would’ve happened!”

Darien reached over and stroked his mother’s face. “My place was not on this farm,” he told her. “I was called to other things.”

“Yes,” Evelyn said with a frown. “And one day I will have words with the Unseen One about that!”

Darien ignored her comment and said, “Meanwhile, we have to be sure you’re safe. I think the prince of Gotthard will give you sanctuary until we can sort out this mess.”

“Gotthard! You want us to leave our farm?” Torbin asked.

“I don’t see that we have a choice. The king may decide to punish you as a means to get to me. So you must pack your things while I try to make contact with the prince on your behalf.”

“On our behalf? You’re not coming with us?” Evelyn asked, her voice laced with worry.

Darien shook his head. “The prince can give you refuge without much trouble. To help me directly would threaten his relationship with King Lawrence. What with their various treaties and agreements, he dare not take the chance. I will find other places to hide.”

“Other places to hide . . .” Torbin groaned and hit the table angrily. Kyle opened an eye to look at them. “The greatest general in our land, and you have to hide. May the Unseen One see our plight and deliver us from this madness!”

Darien agreed, “And so He may. But until He does, we have to take every precaution.”

Kyle reluctantly gave up the cot to follow Darien and his parents outside. While Kyle waited on the porch, Darien hugged and kissed his mother and father good night. Then they began the long walk home across the field. It was a beautiful summer’s night. The chirping crickets and flashing fireflies went about their business as
if the world hadn’t been turned upside down for this family. Darien and Kyle watched Torbin and Evelyn until they disappeared over the dark horizon.