Engraved - The Hunted Warrior

Chapter 24.3 - Lasthome

Alam laughed. "And she told me I couldn't trust her!"

Iwan's smile died. "She was speaking the truth. You can't trust her. Do you know she is a murderer?"

"How do you know that?" Alam demanded.

"The head priest of our order was killed by a woman perfectly matching that description over a year ago. Messages were sent to every temple to watch for her in case she tried to strike again. I can show you the message if you want. It is very clear."

"I can't read so I would have to take your word for it anyway."

"With her gone what are your plans now?" Hannah asked.

"I have no idea."

"Do you have someplace to stay?" she asked.

"I have no money but I can sleep under the stars if need be."

"If you have no money how will you eat? In Lasthome everything comes with a price."

Alam glanced down at his empty bowl and stopped chewing the bread mid-bite.

"I am sorry," he blushed, "I don't have money to pay for this." He lifted up the bowl and bread to hand it back to Hannah.

Hannah laughed and pushed the food gently back to him. "No Alam, it's me who is sorry for making you embarrassed. I did not mean that I wanted payment for the food. Everyone who comes to the temple can eat. I simply meant that you need money to live in this town. How long will you be here?"

"Not long. Once Tajar is well we'll leave. Until then I'll have to find some way to earn money."

"What skills can you offer?" Iwan asked.

"Just the normal ones - I am a warrior and hunter; I can ride and care for horses; I am quick at building and dismantling the tents that our clans use, not that it is much use here; I am good at lifting things, though that isn't really a skill; I am good with an axe; and I can play the flute, but not well."

"The flute?" Iwan smiled.

"Yes, but I don't have one with me and I speak the truth when I say I don't play it well."

"Even without the flute it is a fine list. I have a deal I would like to offer you Alam," said Iwan. Alam noticed the frown that momentarily passed across Hannah's face.

"Yes?" Alam prompted.

"If you will do some work for us around the temple we will provide you with food and a bed."

Again Alam noticed the brief frown on Hannah's face. "That sounds good," he said. "What kind of work did you have in mind?"

"There is always plenty to do around here. You could start with refilling the wood pile," he answered. "There is a forest to the north a short ride away. It will take two or three days going back and forth with your horse to finish the job. Hopefully by then Tajar is well enough."

Alam thought about it for a moment. Being around the healers would give him an opportunity to ask the couple about The Rose of Clarisai. The fact that they were from the same religious order as the holy man in the valley, and that the holy man was heading towards Lasthome when he was killed, was a good indication that Hannah and Iwan might have information about the box. Hopefully they would know enough to give him clues to fulfill his pledge and get rid of it. They might also know why it gave him visions.

"Your offer is very kind and I happily accept it." Alam framed a question that had been niggling at the back of his thoughts ever since seeing Tajar laying on the floor. It was a question of money. He had no experience with town healers. Would they use their skills without thought of reward? Would they want a favour in return? Would they expect payment in the form of money?

"You have already done a lot for my friend. What can I give you in return for your services?" he asked.

"Nothing," Iwan answered, "other than filling the wood shed as mentioned before."

Alam nodded his head. "Thank you again."

"Alam?" Hannah tentatively asked.

"Yes?"

"One of the things I have seen through life is that people are drawn to others that are like themselves, perhaps not in terms of their personality, but definitely in terms of their moral code and lifestyle. For example, people tend to associate mostly with people with the same amount of wealth. It is not common to see very wealthy people and very poor people in daily companionship other than a servant, master relationship. In a similar way it is not common for people who are honest, in both word and deed, to spend time with those who lie and steal. Thieves generally stick together in much the same way that those who like to discussing the nature of the universe find each other out."

She paused for a moment and looked Alam straight in the eye as if trying to see if he understood the point of her comments. He guessed that she was implying something about himself so it must be do to with his relationship with either Tajar or Frost. Most likely Frost.

"Go on," he said politely.

"Do you see my quandary?" she asked.

"Not yet," he admitted.

"My quandary is you."

"Me?"

"Yes. I am trying to decide if you can be trusted or if you will kill us in our sleep."

"Hannah!" Iwan objected. "That is no way to talk to a guest of the temple!"

"I think talking with complete honesty is the very best way to talk to this particular guest." She turned back to Alam whose jaw had dropped. "If my observation about people seeking out and associating with like minded people is correct - and I believe it is - then how can we trust a man who openly states a closeness to a known assassin? A relationship so close that he entrusts not only his horse to her, but the very life of his friend? You talk kindly, but how do we know it isn't just some trick? How do we know that you are not going to use that axe of yours on us in the middle of the night? For all we know you could be just as much a killer as she is."

Alam looked from Hannah to Iwan and back while he tried to decide how to respond. After a few seconds of silent internal debate he came to a decision.

Maybe if I trust them they will come to trust me.

"Can we go back inside?" he asked.

"Of course," Iwan answered.

Once Alam felt that he could not be overheard by passersby on the street he spoke. "I will tell you everything. Starting with how this came into my possession."

He reached into his tunic to retrieve the engraved box. As his hands closed around it his vision changed. He was once more in a hazy colourless world. The infant whose eyes he was seeing through was crying again. The woman who was everything to the child was standing over the baby. She was weeping bitterly as she leant against an old bald man in robes. The old man took a curved knife from his belt and without warning cut deeply into his own wrist. Alam was shocked by the unexpected violence but could tell that it meant nothing to the baby, it only wanted the woman. The bald man extended his dripping hand and let his blood flow onto the infant as his lips chanted unrecognisable words. The woman gently kissed the old man's forehead as if blessing him or thanking him, she looked one final time at the baby, turned, and fled.

"Are you well?" Iwan asked. Alam was back in the temple. His heart was racing.

"Yes, I am well. I just had a strange vision. It happens sometimes when I touch this"

He pulled the engraved black box out of his tunic and handed it to them to examine. The shaft of light that came through the window fell on it and exposed the beautiful intricate carvings in the dark wood.

"The Rose," Iwan muttered in awe. "How did you come by this?"

"It all started in a valley..."

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-Y. V. Qualls