Chapter 8: Traveling

There was no good news in the next couple of days.

Albert and Frankie had disappeared. Inspector Tyrone came out to tell them they had searched the taverns and dives and couldn’t find them. Apparently, Anne’s boys were looking too, and they hadn’t had any success either. A Constable reported that a carriage had been stolen from one of the Estates and they now believed the men had left the area.

Paul decided to head back to Terville with the news. There wasn’t anything left for him to do here, now that Albert was gone. The cast was working a treat, and his forearm wasn’t hurting him as much. He convinced Ulani that he would take it steady and rest if he needed to on the way. The new road would make the trip easier.

With Paul gone, Ulani and Vincent finished their packing. Ulani had agreed to shift her flock, but it was a sixteen day trip at the quickest to Arron Hills with the Unos walking. She and Druid Feather split the flock. Ulani was taking the three hundred fittest members that didn’t have babies. The rest would be staying. Druid Feather had agreed to manage her old Estate.

She was taking Red and the girls she was keeping for him. She also planned to take a flock of pure white Uno’s, as well as several smaller groups of her maroon, auburn, copper and honey Unos. They had hired four extra drovers to assist with the drive, and four of her permanent people would be staying with her.

She would also be taking eight of the adult Guardios, and four of the younger dogs she was training as a pack for goats. They essentially had two adult packs, and she was taking Hugo’s family. Feather had chuckled and told her he’d like to see her try and leave Hugo behind.

She had consignments for half her summer wool, but she decided to bring the rest. The animals she was taking were sheared first and their wool packed in bails for the shift. Feather would get the rest done, fill the consignment with their wool and sell whatever was left over.

They would end up with six carts including the cook’s cart and the carriage for Victor and Nanny Dee that would lead the way. The carts would travel behind the flock. By the end of the week, they set out for their first stop, Willow’s Estate. Willow had written, and she had a paddock they could use to put the flock in for the two nights they planned to stay.

It took them two full days to get to Willow’s estate mostly because these Uno’s were not used to travelling as this flock. Ulani was amused that Victor probably spent as much of that time on Vincent’s horse as he did in the carriage. Vincent had with Dee’s help, devised a sling, so his son hung off his chest but also sat in his lap.

Ulani wasn’t surprised that her cousin Dee had taken a shine to Vincent. While Dee was five years older than Ulani and she was a pretty woman in her own right, Ulani had noticed that Vincent hadn’t taken any real notice of Dee. He treated her politely, but he didn’t flirt.

The first time Vincent used the harness, he told Victor it was so he could ride with him safely. The boy had been perfectly happy to be strapped into it. Vincent walked the horse around the yard. He made some minor alterations of the straps and even let Victor hold the reins for him, while he did.

Vincent increased the speed of the horse to see how Victor reacted. In answer, his son yelled out, “Go, Daddy, go.” He even gee-upped the ends of the reins that he was holding.

Ulani looked at Dee and Druid Feather, “Oh dear, he will never get Victor off the horse, now.” They both had to laugh with her.

Vincent was amazed the boy had complete faith in him. They had become very close over the month he had been interacting with him.

Vincent was a very happy man.

On the day they left, it was Victor’s third birthday.

Ulani had told Vincent she had been thinking of taking Victor to the shrine in Haldol, as typically children in her family were officially named on their third birthday. Vincent remembered Tah, Ulani’s brother mentioning this and that they had taken the twins to Willow’s Grove to be named just as Willow and Ty had.

Victor asked Druid Feather if he would accompany them to the new grove to do the honours for Vincent. Druid Feather was delighted to do this and to learn that a new grove was nearby. He had several of his brethren go with him the day before to check out the grove.

When Vincent, his party and the Uno’s turned up the next afternoon. They found five very happy Druids. “Vincent, do you know who established this grove. We had no idea one as powerful as this one was so close to us?” Druid Feather asked him.

Vincent very sheepishly said that he did. He explained that Old Harriot, Prue’s Nanny told him what her grandfather had done, so he did the same. He was a little surprised when the druid told him to his knowledge that was the last time a Grove had been established. He learnt that all of the Arrondales and Dahls where Gifted.

The Druid looked at Victor and wondered how the lad would turn out. He was an exceptionally bright boy and was already learning his letters. He spoke very well for his age, and he was a real charmer. He had already lost a lot of the chubby toddler looks.

Victor took the procedure of being named very seriously. He liked his new names, as he was being called Victor Jonas Dahl Arrondale. When he placed his hand on the stump that his father had carved, he got a splinter in his finger.

He removed the offending piece of wood and watched fascinated as the blood welled on his finger. He then wiped it into the letter he knew was a ‘G’, his fingers tingled when he did. He squeezed out a new drop and wiped it into the ‘O’ and then again for the ‘D’ and then the ‘S’.

He felt very satisfied that he had. He turned to his father when he finished, “Good place Daddy. Now, good place.” He smiled at the druids and said, “Can I go play?”

The adults were looking at him strangely, and Druid Feather finally said, “Yes lad, you can go play.” Victor gave them all, his most angelic smile and sauntered off to investigate this lovely place for a boy to be. Hugo shadowed the boy.

Druid Feather looked at Ulani and Vincent, “That was chilling. I’ve never felt a Grove respond to a naming like that. It was if he put his stamp on the grove and claimed it for good.”

“Why did he wipe his blood into the letters, Druid Feather? It was if he knew what he was doing. He was very precise and intent about it,” Ulani asked her mentor.

“I agree. It was as if he just knew it would bind with his fathers and make the grove even stronger. Being blessed by two powerful druids, it will not tolerate bad people being in this grove.”

“Two powerful Druids?” questioned Vincent in surprise.

“Yes, you are a son of at least one Gifted parent and have been at least twice blessed. Ulani is also twice blessed. Victor is very strong in the gifts, and he has a strong glow like Ty and Tah’s children. It is an interesting time for Druids,” Druid Feather finished.

Druid Feather had gone to meet the other children when he had accompanied Ulani on one of her visits to Ty’s home. He wished that he was going with them. He would have to find a Druid to move to Vincent’s estate to tutor the boy and his sisters.

He decided a visit to Druid Williams who was watching over Ty and Tah’s flocks would be required he had a much larger flock these days. Druid Feather told them that he would accompany them as far as Ty’s home. The couple had no problem with this. Druid Feather organised with his other brethren to take over the farm while he was away.

The convoy and the flock were soon back on the road.

Willow and Ty were happy to have Vincent and Ulani in their home.

The addition of Victor was a plus. When Vincent rode in with Victor strapped to his chest, Ty had to go inspect the harness. Prue and Tah were with them, and of course, Tah had to see how it worked. Both men loved the idea to the horror of their wives.

Vincent indicated that he had made the harness so that as Victor got bigger, he could adjust it for him. Ulani had to sympathise with Willow and Prue. “He scared the heck out of me when he first got on the horse with Victor. But Victor loves it, and it is very safe.”

Victor was introduced to his cousins. He had never had other children to play with before. At first, he was a bit apprehensive and clung to Vincent’s leg, but Bethany took him under her wing, and he soon found it was lots of fun having cousins.

Ty and Tah had fun teasing Vincent about being a Daddy and he then informed then he would soon be catching up to them, as Ulani was pregnant with twins. Grace inspected Ulani and told her she would be having twin girls.

“So when is the wedding?” Tah asked.

Vincent grimaced, “I wrote to your father to get permission, and he sent a terse note back to Ulani. Apparently, it will be during the Winter Season as he his coming to make sure it happens.”

“So it looks like we will all have to troop off for the Season if the King is getting Royal visitors. Plus I will be more than happy to see you married Vincent. The next crop of debutants will be safe this year,” teased Ty.

Vincent didn’t comment they had been safe from him since he met Ulani unless they were already practising countesses. As he could contest, virgins just got a bloke into trouble.

The girls had been thinking of skipping the season this year and just have Ty go for the four weeks necessary for the council meetings. He could proxy vote for Willow. The couples were just as busy these days as they were when they married. But they knew they would have to go and started planning their visit around when Vincent wanted the wedding.

Because Vincent was going to Midlands early and then onto Bavindor, Ulani volunteered Prue and Willow to organise the Wedding planner and get things going. She wasn’t that fussed what they decided to do as long as it kept her father off her back. At least she would only be a couple of months along as far as dress fittings went.

No one missed the gleams in Prue and Willow’s eyes when they got carte-blanc to organise the wedding. Ulani was more than happy to put it all in their safe hands.

Vincent had effectively held the reins for his Dukedom for nearly four years now. He had been doing a good job as far as his cousins were concerned considering he’d had to spend so much time away with his studies.

Ty and Tah both decided him having a family would only be a good thing. It would help him settle down. Vincent had been a bit wild after Ulani left. Ty had feared he was more like his father than he would have liked to see. He was relieved when he heard the truth in Vincent’s statements that he truly loved Ulani.

That evening they had a little party to celebrate Victor’s birthday and his Name day. Victor had a lot of fun getting gifts from everyone. He made sure that he gave each of his girl cousin’s and aunts a kiss, to say thank you for his gifts.

It soon became apparent that Victor was a heart stealer, like his father. Bethany (10), Prue’s daughters Nianna (7) and Francine (4), all thought he was adorable. He soon won the hearts of the other nannies, as well as Grace and her daughter Janie (3).

Willow and Prue also agreed he was very cute until he taught Janie and the four-year-old twins, Robert and Reilly, and Tristin and Francine, to play mud castles the next day. They were supposed to be playing in the nursery after breakfast, but Victor took them all downstairs and out to the stables where he had spied a hose when he had arrived the afternoon before.

When the very worried parents found them an hour later, there were six very muddy, wet children, very busily building mud castles and playing with the hose. They found them by following the giggles. When Ty looked at his sons and asked whose idea it was? Victor said innocently, “Daddy’s.”

Ulani burst out laughing. Vincent sheepishly had to explain about teaching Victor how to build mud castles. He knew he was never going to live this down as long as he lived.

Druid Feather, Druid Andy and Druid William turned up while the children were getting scowled. The Druids were amused to see the children behaving just as they felt children their age should be behaving.

Feather asked Vincent and Ulani if Druid Andy could accompany them as Victor’s tutor. Victor had noticed that his cousins had greeted the man affably and Ty gave him the nod that he was a good man.

Andy was close to thirty and had never married. He was a 185cm tall and gangly looking blonde-haired man. He had bright blue eyes that seemed to twinkle and a ready smile that made you feel welcome. He extruded a confident and caring manner that made you feel that you could trust him.

Vincent said it was up to Victor. So Andy asked Victor if he would accept him as his teacher. He had squatted down to Victor’s level when he did. Vincent was amused when Victor looked at Ty and not himself. When Ty nodded, the boy looked back at Andy and gently touched his cheek.

Victor then gave Andy his angelic smile and stole a piece of his heart. He took the man’s larger hand in his small one and shook it in agreement. He then asked innocently if Andy knew about how much water was needed to make good mud for building with.

Victor was not sure why this question made all the adults laugh.

Ty had also organised two guards for Vincent.

The twenty-seven year old, 178cm tall and slimmer man was Kyle Truman, and the slightly shorter and stockier man was his two years younger cousin Hardy Truman. They both had pleasant if slightly rugged features with dark brown hair and eyes and well-tanned beige skin that attracted females. The men wore their hair cut close to their head. They were dressed neatly in worn but still good quality working/riding clothes.

Both men were excellent shots and competent riders. They gave the impression they were good at their job. More importantly, Vincent knew he could trust them as he had met them before. Vincent, however, would never wish to get into a fight with either of them. Both Vincent and Ulani were delighted to have them join the party.

Victor was a little sad at leaving his cousins, but he was sure they would have more fun next time he saw them. He was, however, happy to be on the horse with his Daddy. As far as he was concerned, he was going on a grand adventure.

The party were back on the road by mid-morning. They made good time. The Gardios and the herders kept the Unos moving along. They found plenty of paddocks to bed them down in at night, and the Gardios kept a close eye on them.

The party didn’t push the pace the first couple of days, as many of the ewes were pregnant and not used to walking long distances. They did, however, try to keep the pace fairly constant. As the flock settled into the routine, they were able to make a few more klicks each day.

They were soon on track to get to their destination in good time.