Chapter 20

As I opened the door to a house that I had not been in for nearly nine years, various emotions filled me. The most prominent was the sense of loss that it brought in me; the loss of both my parents and my best friend.

Violet should be here with me, helping me through this as she had always done in the past, but she was missing. Having Liza and Lillian was a small comfort and one that I greatly appreciated.

I took a deep breath and took a step through the doorway, into the entrance to my childhood home. Memories of that night flashed into memory, the carnage and destruction that Brenson had wrought on our home had been substantial. As I looked around, I was overcome with emotion at the detail and time Ruben had put in to restore everything. The kitchen and dining areas had been completely restored and looked brand new. He must have spent the past eight years before I returned coming here and working on the house. Every board had been replaced so that everything was the same, ensuring you could never tell where the damage and blood had been. There was a new table and chair set in the dining area, that looked every bit as intricate as the one in my current house. This one had images of blacksmithing carved into the surface, which was fitting, given the nature of the second half of the house. I looked through the various cupboards and shelves and found that nothing from when I had left was in any of them.

I made my way to the back section of the house, where the bedrooms and the door to the shop were. The hallway had also been redone, as had all the doors, though both the bedroom doors were open. I investigated what had been my parents’ bedroom and saw it empty, save for two nightstands and the bed. The bedframe was like the table, intricately carved to display smithing on the headboard and stained to accent the cedar he had used. I double checked the closet, drawers and even under the bed to ensure that nothing had been left in the room. My old room was the same, though the bed frame was free of any carvings. A quick check of the room showed that it, too, had nothing remaining from when I used to live here. Finally, the last door came, and I felt trepidation at reaching out to open it. I had no idea what to expect to see or what memories could flood back once I set foot inside. I took a few deep breaths and opened the door to my father’s smithy, where I had watched his final moments play out right before my eyes. There was no light at all, save for what was coming in from the front door and windows of the house.

“Could someone get a few lanterns in here?” I called out to the others, who were still standing outside. “We will not be able to see anything in the shop, otherwise.”

I heard the scramble of people behind me as I squinted to try and make out the inside of the large shop. A few minutes later, Liza arrived with a lantern in tow and so did Lillian, so I nodded to both girls and we started making our way into the forge. It was as I had remembered it, though somewhat dead in its own way. During my childhood, I could not remember a time where the fire in the forge was not illuminating the room with its orange glow, the sounds of metal being struck on an anvil, the smell of the various things my father used to make his various projects. Now it was simply dead of life, needing the touch of a smith to bring it back - and very soon it would.

I soon found myself in the exact spot where my father was killed by that damned wolf and marveled that there was no trace of blood. Ruben must have worked meticulously to remove any trace of what had happened here that night, I only wished that I could have thanked him for that.

I asked for Liza’s lantern and made my way through the shop, memories of my childhood flashing back. The happier times that I spent with my parents, the joy that they brought to my life and the pain of their absence. Ruben had made the shop as organized as father used to, no doubt in case I recruited a smith myself.

Lillian called out to me to come over to where she was, breaking me out of my memories and pointed out two boxes with a note on top. I took up the note and noticed that it was in my father’s handwriting, causing my legs to go weak.

Dear Davik,

I sat there, numb, as I finished reading his letter, shocked that he had been aware of Violet’s unreasonable temper and I wished that I had read this sooner. I placed the letter in my pocket and opened one of the boxes to find various family mementos. Things I had made with my father and mother, or in school, that I brought home to show them. The other box was more of the same and I felt new tears fall from my eyes from the intensity of the emotions filling me.

Liza and Lillian said nothing, only wrapped me in their arms, letting me release all the pent-up feelings. I do not know how long I sat there crying, but the girls just stayed with me until I was done. I took a deep breath and wiped away the remaining tears on my face, before standing up and calling Clive and his apprentices in. I instructed them to take the two boxes to the house and store them in the study until I was ready to go through them in detail. They concentrated on the boxes while I made my way through the shop to make sure that nothing had been forgotten. Other than the tools my father had used, there was nothing of our old life left and those tools would prove useful to Curt.

Confident that there was nothing left for me to take, I gave the shop one last look around, before I left for what felt like the last time. I found everyone waiting in the dining area, pensive looks on their faces.

“Well, that should be everything I need from here, Curt. If you find that I have missed something, be sure to bring it over to the house. Now, I am sure you and your lady friend will want to spend the rest of the day moving in, so I will leave you to that.

Trina, I will suggest patience for you. Take it slow, enjoy it evolving naturally, instead of going too fast. If you do go too fast, you might regret it and besides he will not be going anywhere. Also, I think you should stay here, Trina. The trip we are taking is dangerous and I do not want him to lose out being with you.”

They both nodded and smiled as the rest of us left, leaving them to the task at hand. Liza held one hand, while Lillian took the other and I welcomed the comfort it gave.

All that was left now was to start preparing everything for the long journey we were about to embark on tomorrow morning. Jerreth planned to be at the house by evening meal which was only a few hours away – as had Janet. I could check in with the boys on the status of the second wagon and send Liza and Lillian to start collecting any supplies we did not have. I mentioned my thoughts to the girls, and they agreed that it was a sound plan.

We reached home with very little distraction and we set about our various tasks. Liza checked through our food stores, making note of what we would be taking and what we would need to get before leaving. Lillian was ensuring that all the cookware, tents, bedrolls and other assorted goods were accounted for. I went out back and found the boys rolling a brand-new wagon out of their shop; I was happy and surprised at the speed with which they worked. It looked just like the other hand, though there were now lockable compartments along the sides to accommodate the extra goods and people coming along.

“I have to say, boys, you have outdone yourselves once again. This is beautiful and looks like it will be more than we will need.”

“Thank you, Davik,” replied Carl with a smile. “We always endeavor to make you proud with the work that we do. We have generated some more space - at the cost of weight - as well as the removal of the stove at the center. Your group will be large enough that there would be no worries about resting the night, along with the added room it provides for sleeping accommodations. I hope that they both serve you well while you are gone and that they prove to be both helpful and useful.”

I thanked them again and made my way into the stable to check on the horses. We now had twelve, including Crow and Trent’s horse, Heimdall. Eight would be coming with us for the trip, which would be more than enough, as we did not want there to be panic if there were foreign soldiers riding along with us. With the cooking area removed, we could now seat eight in the back of each wagon comfortably - ten if we needed the space. With the two at the front of each of the wagons, it meant that between twenty and twenty-four people could come along easily.

We had me, Liza, Lillian, Celka, Jerreth, Janet and her troopers (we would find out the total tonight). Even if there were a dozen men or women with her, we would still have enough room for all. As I pondered this, Brandon made his way over to me, a long box in his hand.

“Davik, I have worked with Clive and the others on this, as a thank you for all that you have done.”

He handed me the box and, when I opened it, I found an intricately carved bow sitting inside.

“Given your unique level of strength, it took a while to find a mixture that would allow you to have a bow that will bend, while still not breaking. I believe that you will like the design as well as the lightness of the bow.”

I moved it around and could agree that the bow was light, compared to my past bows. I walked over to the archery area and took an arrow, before stepping up to the line. I aimed at the farthest target and pulled on the string, but it did not move. Allowing my strength to come to the forefront, I marveled at the fluid way the bowstring drew back. When I let the arrow loose, it sped off towards the target, missing it by a hair and slammed into the wall of a house some meters away. The shaft exploded on impact and we were thankful the house in question used full logs to make its outer wall. Brandon laughed and walked around the house, before returning with a quiver of arrows, though these seemed to have metal shafts.

“These cost us a pretty penny, but they will be worth it. The shafts are a hollow metal that is more resistant to force, meaning they will not shatter like the wooden one just did. We had to order them directly from the capital, but we gave Curt a few, in the hopes that he may be able to replicate them for you.”

I thanked him for the lovely gifts and placed them in one of the lock boxes on the wagon. I secured the lock and placed the key in a pouch on my belt before heading inside to check with Liza and Lillian. I found them talking in the dining area, with Liza writing on a piece of parchment as they talked.

“Hello, ladies,” I said with a smile that they returned in kind. “How are we with the various items that are needed for the trip?”

“Well, we have enough food to last us the trip already, minus the meat that we may want to cook on occasion, but Lillian will have us covered for that. In case you were wondering; yes, I know how she plans to collect the meat and - while I am a bit put off, I am not scared or upset. She had her reasons to hide it, as you did in keeping her secret, as it was not yours to divulge. I plan to get to know her well during this trip and I hope that it will help us to become better friends.

“As for bedrolls, tents and cooking supplies, we will be fine if I take my things from home to add to yours. I am going to go get Clive and have him escort me so that you do not have to worry about me. You have to stay here in preparation for our meeting later tonight and that is far more important.”

I nodded and looked over the list that the girls had made, happy to see that Lillian was right that we were nearly all set. She went out back to wait for Clive to return from his hunt, while I started helping Liza to pack up the wagons. It was fun and helped me take my mind off things, which was very helpful at a time like this.

I had not realized how much time had passed, until Jerreth appeared with a load of goods to place in the wagon. I nodded and he simply smiled as he bought the goods over for Liza to load. I went inside and found that the others had arrived. Celka had a collection of herbs and salves for healing while we were on the road, as well as what she needed to make more from what she could collect. Lillian had not yet returned, but I was sure that she and Clive would be back soon enough. Ilane and Kafe had also bought things from the clinic that Celka would need while we were gone. Curt and Trina had arrived and were helping load the boxes for transporting the goods to the wagons. If this kept up, we would have the wagons loaded before retiring for the night.