War of the Fathers (8 page)

She felt her cheeks blush and chanced a shy glance at
Jorad but he was still staring at the door. He hadn't heard the question.
“We’re not married! I’m too young for that.”

“Don’t mind her too much.” Leron flashed a mischievous
grin at Soret. “She's nosier then ten women combined!” He laughed. “Marriage is
all Xarda thinks about. I’m just here to keep Xarda and Karn from—ouch! As I
was saying, I’m just here to keep Xarda from seducing Karn. Poor man wouldn’t
know what hit him. Ha!” Leron move to avoid a punch from Xarda.

Soret couldn’t help but laugh; she cut it short when
she realized that Jorad hadn’t joined her.

Jorad gazed at Soret from across the table where they
sat in the common room of the boarding house. They’d been talking quietly for
nearly half an hour. The others had disappeared and he’d been trying to make
use of the time to convince Soret to leave Neberan but she’d been more intent
on asking him questions about Rarbon. She was fascinated with Xarda and had
focused on the female Radim for some time. They’d fallen silent and he’d been thinking
of new ways to approach the point he wanted to make to her.

He inhaled and caught an aroma of something cooking in
the nearby kitchen. He wasn't sure what Harri was cooking up, but it smelled
delicious and he was ravenous. He hadn't eaten much today and was feeling a
little bit lightheaded. If he didn’t eat something before they left tonight,
he’d regret it. They had a long road ahead of them and he didn’t want to start on
an empty stomach. He made a mental note to make sure to get some of Harri’s food;
it would be at least two weeks before he’d have another opportunity to eat a
decent meal.

The evening was still warm, but that wouldn’t last
long. He could see gray clouds through the window and wondered if it would
rain. As he watched, the sun broke through the clouded skyline and shone
between the mountains of the Pinta Peaks. It was already close to the horizon,
night was coming fast. Where had his last day in Neberan gone?

He sighed. There was too much on his mind at the
moment to think properly. There were things he didn't understand and he wished
for a moment alone with Adar to try to dig out more details about the death of
his mother, but so far hadn’t been able to make that happen. There was a lot he
didn't know and he wondered what other surprises lay in wait for him.

He had never known that his mother had been found with
another man. It bothered him that Adar had neglected to mention this particular
detail. He could understand why Adar hadn't brought it up, but it had happened
years ago and it would have been nice to hear it from Adar. For his part, Adar
had been adamant that Nelion was faithful to him. He'd even gone so far as to
imply that Tere had been the one to set him up. If Adar suspected that, why was
he willing to make a truce with Tere?

It grated on Jorad that Adar had been planning this
day for years, making arrangements and all the while counting on Jorad to be
ready and willing. When he went to Rarbon, could he avoid becoming his father’s
pawn?

He shook his head and pushed the questions away. These
thoughts were getting him nowhere. Their original plan to leave today was still
in place as far as he knew. Perhaps once they got out on the road, Jorad would
find some time to get Adar to talk.

Adar still hadn't returned and Jorad wondered if Tere
and he had found somewhere to continue their fight. Perhaps that wouldn’t be a
bad thing. Jorad didn’t like Tere and didn’t relish the thought of making the
trip back to Rarbon with those that had tried to kill his father.

He turned his attention back to Soret. She was more
relaxed than before, which meant that she didn’t believe him that the Hunwei
had returned. The Hunwei were scouting Neberan out for a reason and he didn't
know how long they had, but if he could get her away tonight, he'd feel better
about leaving.

“It’s not safe here,” Jorad said. “Whether you come
with me or not, you need to leave. Convince Barc and Hira to go to the
mountains. Take enough provisions to last for several months, maybe longer.”
Barc's store would have more than enough supplies for them and he had the
horses to carry everything. They could get away tonight if they hurried.

Soret shook her head. “The mountains? My father
wouldn’t last a week. Besides, how do you want me to convince them?”

“Tell them you want to see the countryside.”

The door to the inn opened and Jorad turned expecting
to see Adar and Karn. Instead, he saw Thon and several of the town guard. Erro
wasn’t with them, so he turned his attention back to Soret.

“What if we come with you?” Soret asked. Her question
surprised Jorad; did she really think she could convince her parents? Had she decided
to believe him about the Hunwei?

No, that wasn’t it. The look in her eyes told him that
she was thinking about Rarbon.

The guards approached their table and he looked up into
Thon’s face and could tell that there was going to be trouble. Thon’s eyes were
bloodshot and his lips drawn back, as if he intended to bite somebody. He still
wore his big sword on his back and there were six other guards with him. Jorad
recognized all of them but didn't know any of their names. He all of the sudden
got a bad feeling. Had Erro found the other wanted poster? That one that
resembled him a little bit more?

Jorad took several deep breaths to calm his anger. It
didn’t matter what Erro had done, Jorad was not going to take it out on these
guards. Thon was a good man and he was just doing his job.  

Thon placed his hands on the table and leaned down.
“You’re coming with us. We should have listened to Erro.”

“What did Erro say now?” Soret asked.

“Bram is dead,” Thon said. That took Jorad by
surprise. Who was Bram? Thon’s face contorted as he continued to speak. “Stabbed
a dozen times. Take him.” He motioned to the other guards who grabbed Jorad
from his chair, one of whom snatched away his sword. Jorad allowed it to happen
without a fight; it would only make matters worse if he hurt the guards. Erro
was probably hoping Jorad would do just that. It wouldn’t matter if it came out
that somebody else was this Bram fellow’s murder if Jorad cut up half the guard
when they tried to take him into custody.

“I haven’t killed anybody.” Jorad didn’t know who this
Bram fellow was but Erro’s jealousy was insane if he was trying to pin this man’s
murder on Jorad. Perhaps it was Erro who had been the one that killed Bram.

Jorad saw the swing coming and tightened the muscles
in his abdomen. Thon’s punch took Jorad in the stomach. Melyah! His arm was
like a battering ram. Soret yelped as Jorad doubled over, gasping for breath. The
guards continued to hold him though Jorad saw looks of disapproval on several
of their faces. Whether it was aimed at Thon or him, he didn’t know.

Thon hit him in the head and he saw stars. It was
quickly followed by another to his gut again. Jorad struggled to breathe and
felt like he was about to pass out. After several painful seconds, he was on
the cusp of panicking when he managed to get some air into his lungs. He
breathed again. It felt like everything else in the world was pushed away as he
struggled for another breath. Nothing matter more than being able to suck in another
lungful of air.

“That’s enough,” one of the other guards said.

“Bram was a friend and a good man,” Thon said. “You’re
not getting away with this.”

“I didn’t even know Bram, why would I kill him?” Jorad
continued gasping. It took some effort, but he managed to straighten out. The
hunger he'd been feeling earlier had been replaced with nausea and his head
hurt as if it had been hit with a hammer.

Several of the guards looked uncertain about Thon’s
behavior, but none of them looked ready to interfere. Jorad thought of his daggers
under his coat and in his boots. If Thon kept this up Jorad would be forced to
protect himself. He was certain he'd be able to take out Thon but the six other
men posed a problem he couldn’t handle alone and unfortunately there wasn’t
anybody else in the room with him other than Soret. She came into view and the
look of concern and anger she wore weakened his resolve to attack. She might
end up hurt if he retaliated.

“You pretended to find his body,” Thon said. “How
stupid do you think we are?”

Jorad had forgotten about the corpse they’d found
while on patrol. Adar must have reported it. It was a safe bet that this was
who Thon was referring to. “Think about this. If I killed him, why would we
report his murder?”

Soret tried to step towards Jorad but a guard pushed
her back and caused her to trip on a chair leg.

“Leave her alone!” Jorad said as she fell to the
ground. He tried to free himself from the guards but they held him tightly.
Thon had appeared to be looking for an excuse and this was it. He grabbed Jorad
away from the other guards and slammed him into a wall, cracking his head and
blurring his vision.

When Jorad could see again, he noticed that the common
room, which had been almost empty before, had begun to fill with people. He
struggled to free himself from Thon’s grasp but several of the other guards
latched onto him as well and the anger that Jorad had been trying to keep at
bay was finally released. As Jorad gasped, he managed to wrench his arm free
and grabbed for a dagger. He hoped Soret wouldn't get hurt, but he couldn't let
Thon kill him. Before he could grasp it, his arm was again secured by one of
the guards.

Jorad tried to knee Thon in the groin but missed and
hit his leg. It only served to make him angrier. Thon slammed a ham-sized fist
into Jorad’s chest.

“Baurn!” Thon said to the guard that had pushed Soret.
“Help her up.”

Through his blurred vision, Jorad saw the guard that
Thon had called Baurn hold a hand out to Soret but she sneered and stood
without help. There was a tense moment when Jorad could tell that Soret was
thinking of doing something to Baurn, but it passed and she turned away.

Jorad took a deep breath and tried to calm down.
Kneeing Thon had been foolish. The next time he attacked, it would have to be a
killing blow. That meant he had to get to a dagger and attack immediately if he
was to have any chance of success. Thon wasn't going to let him leave this room
alive. Jorad could see it in his eyes.

“Thon! Has Kore possessed you?” Anny screeched. She
must have just entered the room but Jorad hadn’t seen it happen. “Get out of my
house. Now!” She was breathing heavily, her apron straining under each breath.
She waved a large wooden spoon at Thon. “Get out!”

“Jorad murdered Bram and he's resisting arrest.”

“He was complying until you started beating him!”
Soret stepped towards Thon; she looked ready to slap him.

“Are you cotton brained?” Anny asked. “Jorad isn’t a
murderer! Bram was always fooling around with other men’s women. Why don’t you
look to them?”

“Multiple people saw Jorad arguing with Bram last
night near the place where his body was found.” Thon spoke through clenched
teeth.

“Is Erro your main witness?” Jorad asked, hoping to
distract Thon by continuing the conversation. Thon’s glare was answer enough.
The guard holding Jorad's left arm looked the weakest, if Jorad freed it, he
could grab the dagger he kept on his right side. “I was with Adar last night.
Did Erro mention anything about him?” Jorad eyed the guard who looked uneasy holding
his sword but the man was too far away. He put the sword out of his mind. His
best hope was one of his daggers.

Thon growled. “You’ll have to do better than that.”

Jorad noticed Xarda and Leron enter the room as the
insanity of the last couple of days came crashing down on to him. His insides
swirled in turmoil and he found himself opening and closing his hand. As his
anger spiked, he almost reached for his dagger prematurely. His head hurt and
he was still having trouble breathing. He took another breath, trying to calm
down. His timing would have to be right for this to work. He'd only have one
shot.

Jorad stared into the eyes of Thon. His normally
friendly face was pulled back into a scowl and his eyes were determined.

Would Leron and Xarda join the fight when Jorad
attacked? He closed his eyes, took a breath, and released it again. This had
all happened because of Erro, the bitter jealous fool.

“Erro is manipulating you,” Jorad said opening his
eyes. “Bram--”

“Don't you dare utter his name!” Thon put his hands
around Jorad’s neck. From the corner of his eye, Jorad saw Xarda pull a dagger
out and hold it to her side as she approached. Leron was right behind her. They
both wore the look of people headed into battle. Jorad was grateful for their
presence. The guards wouldn’t be expecting them so they may have a chance at
overcoming all of them.

“Leave him alone!” Soret screamed.

Thon continued to squeeze and Jorad gasped as he
struggled, all thought of his plan to attack pushed out of his mind by his
desire to breathe. His head was starting to spin. It wouldn’t be long now
before he blacked out.

Anny screamed at the other guards. “You can’t let Thon
kill him!”

“Thon, let go.” Jorad recognized Baurn through his
fading vision. “Once you’ve calmed down, you’ll see I’m right.”

“I won’t regret this!” Thon said.

Anny came up, stood right beside Thon, and touched his
shoulder. “This is wrong.” Xarda was only a foot away from Thon now, but she
waited. Jorad tried to speak, he wanted to urge her to attack, but all that
came out was a groan.

Thon let go, snarling as he did. Baurn and the others
dragged Jorad to the door as he gasped for breath. He’d never realized how much
breathing meant to him and it was something he wasn’t going to take for granted
again. He took breath after breath. The more air he got into his lungs, the
hotter his temper became.

Thon wasn't any calmer either. Several of the guards
were standing at his side and one placed a hand on Thon's arm. Thon didn't take
his eyes off Jorad as he swatted the man’s hand away. Thon would come at him
again, Jorad didn't have any doubt. The attack had been delayed but it hadn't
been stopped.

Jorad's eyes locked onto Soret. Her eyes were red and
her face was covered with worry. Xarda and Leron stood at her side. He had to
get her out of Neberan and he couldn't let his anger get in the way of that. He
focused on breathing. When Thon came at him again, Thon would come at a time
when he would be certain to win. Jorad would have to be ready. That meant
watching and waiting. That meant letting logic take control again.