Assassin's Curse (10 page)

A slight smile curved up the corners of Elizabeth’s mouth.

It’s about time something has gone right. Now, it’s just a matter of catching up with whoever took those girls.

***

Early the next morning, Clara and her mule Jed set off for the village of Rocher loaded with the supplies of bread and goods she planned to sell.
 
Jeda sat beside her with the twins bouncing on his legs and staring wide-eyed at the passing sights.
 
At first there was not much to see, but as the sun rose and the countryside became visible, they experienced an explosion of colors from the maples, oaks, and pine trees dotting the rolling hills.
 
The smells were intoxicating, from the wondrous bouquets of the wild flowers lining the country road to the pungent odors of horses and cattle grazing in the pasture.
 
The birds were chirping and the occasional squirrel would scold the passing travelers for rudely disturbing its morning forage.
 
All in all, the trip began in splendid fashion.

Clara continued in her normal fashion: talking non-stop, giving long lectures on the virtues of country living and how the influx of people from the city was starting to change the face of things hereabout.
 
It seemed more and more families were finding the simple life of growing their own food and tending animals in the country preferable to the hustle and bustle of city life.
 
Passing by the scenic farms and rolling pastures of the rural country, Jeda could understand the draw.
 
It was beautiful in its peaceful majesty but Jeda, holding true to his assassin nature, still scanned beneath the shadowed branches of passing trees searching for any signs of lurking danger.
 
His actions and suspicious nature did not help calm the unsettling fear Clara felt toward him.
 
Finally, after holding the conversation for the entire morning, she decided to face her fears and ask Jeda some simple, basic questions.

“So, where do you hail from?” Clara asked nonchalantly, thinking the question innocent and not likely to raise Jeda’s ire.
 
It was obvious that he and the girls had come from Constantine, so there should not be any harm in asking, or so she thought.

“Why would you ask that?” Jeda replied sharply, looking at her with renewed suspicion.

“I’m just trying to make some conversation here,” Clara said.
 
“There’s no harm in asking a question or two.”

“You have more than one question?”

Clara sighed as she looked at the young man, frustration written all over her face.
 
“Just what do you think I am going to do with any of your precious information you might accidentally slip my way, eh?
 
For the gods’ sakes, I’m just trying to get to know you and the girls.”

“Why do you want to know us?”

Clara looked skyward and spoke to herself.
 
“Heaven save me from this distrustful man and any of the fates that made him this way.”

“Why do you say a thing like that?’

“Cause you are the most suspicious and perplexing man I have ever met.
 
Most people do not mind a question or two and are happy to talk about themselves and their families.”

Jeda looked at the strange woman, trying to gauge and understand her intent.
 
From his perspective, Clara was the suspicious one asking questions and prying into his past.
 
He did not have much experience interacting with people outside of the guild, but he knew that anyone who pried into other’s past or business usually did so for nefarious reasons.
 
That was the way of the world and he had learnt early to keep his personal information to himself.
 
It had kept him alive so far and he saw no reason to change his ways.
 
Of course, he also knew that being secretive or suspicious would probably draw more attention to the twins, so it would be in their best interest if he learned how to blend in.

“I’m not trying to be difficult, but where I come from, trust is a rare commodity.”

Clara nodded her understanding.
 
“Out here in the country, everyone knows everyone else’s business.”

“Doesn’t that cause problems?” Jeda asked, perplexed at the sheer absurdity of letting anyone know his
business
.
  

“Sure, sometimes it does, but it also brings people closer together.
 
Just because you know something about someone doesn’t mean you are going to do them any harm.”

“Where I come from, personal information is valuable.
 
You can use it to discover a person’s habits, his weaknesses, his treasures, what he values most in life.
 
That type of information can be used to exploit and control him.
 
Get him to do things he might not otherwise be inclined to do.”

Clara glanced over at the young man sitting next to her.
 
“Well, remind me never to go where you come from.
 
It sounds like a terrible place.
 
It’s no wonder you left it for the country.”

Jeda thought about what Clara said and decided to take a leap of faith.
 
“Actually, we had no choice.
 
We had to leave because there are some bad people after the girls and me.”

“I guessed that much by the way you’ve been acting, looking at every little shadow we pass like there’s some thief or murderer hidden inside.
 
I’m surprised you don’t go scouting ahead just to make sure it’s safe for us to pass.”

That thought had actually crossed Jeda’s mind.
 
He had not acted on his compulsion because he would not leave the twins alone with Clara or anyone, but her comments caused him concern.
 
If he could not fool a simple baker about his intentions and purposes, then he would have little chance hiding from the guild.
 
He had to learn to blend in and not stick out like a man on the run or they would find him within days.

“The worst part is the people who are chasing us are family,” Jeda continued.
 
“The girls’ mother was tragically killed and she left me to raise the children.
 
Her last wish was for me to get the children away from the city and the clutches of their wicked grandmother.
 
She wanted me to get them to the safety of the country.
 
It may sound like a fairytale, but it’s true.
 
She mentioned the healer at Rocher as a place to start, so that’s where we’re going.”
 

“Family, huh?” Clara snorted.
 
“Doesn’t surprise me in the least; I got family problems of my own.
 
One of my own daughters won’t have anything to do with me.
 
Ashamed of me, she is.
 
She was a pretty, little thing and married a highfalutin’ fellow from the city, just like you.
 
He’s got some kind of trading business and they live in a fancy house right near the market where they do their tradin’.
 
Started making themselves a bit of money, they did and now they’re too good for a poor, small-town baker woman like me.
 
Yeah, you don’t need to tell me about family and the problems that come with ‘em.”

Jeda was struck by Clara’s confession and he felt a bond of trust with her.
 
They both shared a common problem and, though Jeda had left out much of what had transpired, what he did share with her rang true.
 
They travelled on for a while in quiet reflection, each lost in their own thoughts.
 
Clara was the first one to break the silence.

“See now, that wasn’t so bad, was it?
 
You shared a bit of yourself and I did the same.
 
It didn’t hurt anything and we both learned something.”

“I guess you’re right,” Jeda replied with a chuckle.
 
“Besides, if you did try to use any of what I told you against me or the girls, you would soon find out just how foolish that actually could be.”

Jeda had meant the comment as a joke, knowing Clara would quickly reach a dead end if she looked into his story, but she didn’t take it that way.
 
Her eyes became big as saucers while she thought about Jeda’s
joke
.
 
She actually jumped when the two girls began fussing and broke the tension of the moment.
 
Her laughter at being startled by the girls was a bit more high-pitched and strained than she intended.

“I guess it must be time to feed them little darlings,” she said, trying hard to hide her sudden discomfort.
 
“Why don’t we stop here for a spell and cook up some breakfast?”

“That sounds good to me,” Jeda replied, “and I’m sure the girls think the same.”

Jeda noticed that Clara was shaking a bit getting down off the wagon.
 
He was puzzled why she would be upset, thinking they had finally bridged an unfathomable gap between them.

“What’s wrong?” Jeda asked.
 
“Did I say something to upset you?”

Clara stared hard at the good-looking man.
 
He was of average height, had a lean build of hard muscles, a head full of slightly curly, brown hair and green eyes that changed color, occasionally shining with a golden fleck, depending on how the light hit them.

“Yes, you did.
 
That little comment about how foolish I would be made me a bit uneasy.”

“What?
 
That was a joke.
 
I was only kidding.”

“Didn’t seem like one to me, especially when I remember how quickly you flashed those knives the other night.”

“I’m sorry I upset you, but I come from a terrible place.
 
Everyone learns very young how to protect themselves and we all carry weapons.
 
Now that I have two babies to watch over, I might be a bit more reactive than usual, but I already told you that I mean you no harm.
 
So as long as you don’t try to hurt my girls, then my word is as good as gold.”

Clara nodded, but Jeda could see the tension that remained in her shoulders.
 
He figured it would take her some time to get comfortable around him.

“I don’t think I would ever want to see where you grew up or the people you grew up with,” Clara said with a shrug.

“I don’t think you would either.”

The rest of the day went by without further mishap.
 
Jeda listened carefully to Clara’s non-stop chatter and began to learn what was socially acceptable to talk about in this part of the country.
 
The weather and state of the local crops seemed to be safe topics.
 
The conditions of the roads and when the tax collectors were coming were also good topics.
 
By the end of the day, Jeda felt he could comfortably carry on a conversation with any of the locals and either blend in as one of them or as a nondescript nobody just passing through
.
  

They stopped again for a brief afternoon meal and, toward the end of the day, finally saw the smoke from the village of Rocher come into view.

“Well, there it is,”
Clara
announced.
 
“Won’t be long now before you get to meet that healer you’re looking for.”

Jeda looked ahead through the trees, trying to discern the lay of the village.
 
He wished he could have spied it out before they went rolling through, but that was not going to happen.
 
He would not leave the girls with Clara no matter how congenial she was, and he couldn’t scout carrying a set of papooses with two babies.
 
Though Miriam had told him to come here, he felt apprehensive about the safety of the girls.
 
He knew he would have to start trusting some of these new people he met, but it was hard for a man with his background.

Damn
that witch
.
 
This is not the life I want.

***

The sun had begun to set by the time Mave started his journey to catch Jeda.
 
He had to report his findings to the masters before he began his journey south.
 
There was no way he could tell when he would have the next opportunity to send another message.
 
Most messaging services went by horse and rider, but occasionally the larger towns and cities had homing birds’ services.
 
It would be an easy thing to encrypt a message to the masters, but there were long stretches of empty countryside between Constantine and the next large settlement.
 

Mave at first considered tracking Jeda by horseback, but he soon realized that would be the best way to lose his trail.
 
Jeda knew the guild would send others after him and he would do everything he could to cover his trail.
 
Besides, Mave could outlast any horse for endurance and he did not want to be burdened with the care of an animal if it was not absolutely necessary.
 
He prided himself on being able to travel at a fast pace for days on end without feeling the effects of fatigue as long as he stopped each night for a few hours’ rest.
 
Water would not be an issue; there were plenty of villages, streams, and ponds along his route to refill his waterskins.
 
He also had enough rations stored in his travelling pack to last for a number of weeks, although he hoped this journey would only be a few, short days.
 
Most important was the store of weapons he had secreted about his person.
 
He had no illusions that Jeda would simply come along quietly and had prepared himself accordingly.