Riyan saw a light shining in the direction the estate laid. “Looks like someone’s there,” he stated.
Bart nodded as he stared at the light. “It’s coming from the manor house,” he said. “Keep alert.”
They turned off the road and onto the lane that led toward the manor. When they drew close enough, they saw that the light was coming from not one window but four, two on the ground floor and two on the second. Bart indicated a nearby tree where they could leave their horses. Coming to it, he and Riyan dismounted and secured the reins of their mounts to one of the branches.
“Now,” Bart said. “Let’s go see who has taken up residence here.” Riyan nodded and they quietly made their way closer.
Out of the darkness to one side of the manor house, they began to make out wagons. Four wagons in all, they stood in a neat row. Bart moved toward the wagons all the while keeping an eye on the front door. Shadows could be seen moving to and fro as they were silhouetted by the light coming from within. It looked like there could be at least three separate individuals beyond one of the ground floor windows.
Once at the wagons, they found that each was covered by a tarp to keep the snow and rain off whatever lay within. Bart lifted up the end of one tarp and was surprised to find dozens of stone blocks one would use in constructing a wall. The second wagon was filled with stone as well, while the third and fourth held beams of timber.
“Doing some construction are we?” Bart asked himself quietly.
“A magic user lives here,” Riyan stated.
“What makes you think that?” Bart asked. Glancing to Riyan he saw him pointing to an area away from the house. In the moonlight he saw a partially constructed circular wall that was easily a hundred feet in diameter. “A magic user’s tower?” he asked.
Riyan nodded. “It does look similar to Kevik’s and others we’ve seen,” he stated.
Bart grew thoughtful as he turned his attention back to the house. A magic user? Moving forward, he was suddenly stopped by Riyan placing a hand on his arm.
“Remember the wards Kevik’s master had in place back at the estate?” he asked. “May have something similar here.”
That thought made Bart stop in his tracks. Most things he felt confident to handle, but the workings of a magic user gave him cause for concern. Turning back to Riyan he whispered, “I’m going to take a peek through a window.” Despite the dangers, he had to know who it was that was in there.
“Are you sure?” questioned Riyan worriedly.
Bart nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful,” replied Bart. When Riyan moved to join him, he stopped him and said “Stay here.” And with that, he moved toward the side of the estate.
Riyan watched his friend with growing anxiety. One of these days, he thought to himself, Bart’s going to press his luck a little too far.
Stepping carefully, he reached the side of the house then continued down toward the nearest window. It wasn’t one of those emitting light. When he came to it, he glanced inside. Not seeing anything, he continued down. The next window was the one through which they had seen the silhouettes of those living here. Moving cautiously, Bart edged his way closer.
A child’s laughter came from within before he reached the window which startled him. A child, especially a laughing one, was the last thing he expected to encounter here. Moving to the window’s edge, he very slowly peered around the edge to the inside.
A child who couldn’t be more than three or four was being chased by a man of middle years wearing a magic user’s robe. Giggling and laughing, the child eluded the man as he ducked around the couch sitting in the middle of the room. The man who was chasing him had the look of amusement on his face.
When Riyan had first pointed out the tower’s construction, he had thought it might have been the same magic user who had accompanied Durik on his raid of Kevik’s place. But this man was a bit shorter and thinner than the other had been.
Sitting on the couch about which the man was chasing the child, was another man dressed in regular, everyday attire. Next to him was a woman who was the spitting image of the child. Must be the mother, Bart figured.
The scene playing out inside the house looked for all the world like a father, or maybe an uncle, playing with his child. As the child rounded the corner, he dove for his mother’s lap where she wrapped her arms about him and laughed in merriment.
Bart ducked back away from the window. All the stories he’d ever heard of magic users were in stark contrast to what he had just witnessed. They’re supposed to be a bit standoffish, not the family man who chases a child just for the fun of it.
He peered once again through the corner of the window and was surprised to find the child lying on his back on the floor. What was even more startling was the sight of the magic user bent over the boy. He had his mouth pressed to the boy’s stomach and looked for all the world like he was making raspberry noises. Whatever he was doing, the child found it incredibly funny and laughed while waving his arms and legs frantically.
Bart again moved his head away from the window confused. This wasn’t what he was expecting to find. Glancing back to Riyan, he saw him there in the moonlight watching. He cast still one more look through the window and saw more of the same. Finally, he turned away and hurried back to Riyan.
“You’re not going to believe this, but…” He then quietly explained what he had seen in the house as they returned to their horses. They made sure to retrace their steps in case there were magical wards in place elsewhere. He finished his narrative just as they reached the horses.
Riyan mounted then gazed to the house. “Sounds like a family having fun on a winter’s night,” he said.
“I know,” agreed Bart. “Weird.”
“Why weird?” questioned Riyan. “I’m sure some magic users are just regular folks.” Then he chuckled.
“What?” asked Bart.
“I was imagining Kevik doing that in his robes,” he said with a grin. Then they both laughed as they turned their horses back toward the main road. In a short time they were back at the inn.
The next morning after they had gathered in the common room for their morning meal, Bart went to see if the King’s coins were still nailed to the wall behind the counter where guests arranged for rooms. Sure enough, they were still there. So, when their serving girl returned from the kitchen with their food, he asked her about them.
“Oh those? They’re the King’s coins,” she explained. “There used to be one of those Hunters of the Horde that lived around here, Durik was his name. But he died a while back during a trip to the east.”
“Do you know how he died?” asked Chyfe. He and the others knew exactly how he had died and who had killed him. What he wanted to know was what everyone else knew.
“Not really,” she explained. “A thief killed him I think. That’s what I heard.”
“Too bad,” Bart said. “I would have liked to have been able to talk to him.”
She shook her head slightly. “He wasn’t what one would have called sociable,” she said. “He mainly stayed at his estate except those nights when he would come to the tavern across the way.”
“This Hunter had an estate here?” Riyan asked, prompting her to continue.
“He did,” she replied. “It was auctioned off several weeks ago to a magic user and his family.” Her face lost some of its jovialness. “Don’t know if I like the idea of one of them living nearby.” Then her face registered shock and a little bit of fear as her eyes went quickly to Kevik in his magic user robes and the staff propped against the wall nearby.
“Oh!” she said. “I…I didn’t mean that magic users were a bad sort, or anything like that.”
Kevik gave her a reassuring smile. “I took no offense,” he assured her. Sighing, he added, “Some of my brethren fully deserve to be thought about in such a way. But most of us are like everyone else.” Glancing to Riyan and Bart, he said, “I’m sure most professions have their share of the bad sort.”
Riyan nodded in agreement. “You’ve got that right,” he said.
She relaxed a little after receiving Kevik’s assurance that he had taken no offense. But she still beat a hasty retreat to the kitchen when she was through.
After she disappeared through the kitchen door, Bart said, “I don’t think the magic user and his family are associated with Durik.”
“No,” agreed Riyan, “I don’t think so either.”
They finished their meal, and it wasn’t until they were beginning to leave that the door to the kitchen cracked
