Chapter 46

The sounds outside the tent were lowering as evening made its way closer to night. Praevus Emver leaned back in his chair, giving out a satisfied sigh. Everything was coming together. The new barracks was well underway, and tomorrow he'd likely have a proper room to sleep in. Over the next few days, the rest would be finished and they would have a permanent outpost in Sunridge. It was another small step towards bringing order to the eastern provinces, the area that people often referred to plainly as the ‘wastes.’ The territories were so vast that governing them was a challenge, a task often shirked by their governors in favor of other pursuits, despite the great potential for wealth that the lands held. And so it fell to those like himself to correct their mistakes, as it always did.

Across the wooden desk in front of him sat a growing list of names, yet another project that was progressing, if a little slowly. The townsfolk were tight-lipped, but that would change. Soon it would be time for the next step, but not quite yet. There were too many unknowns, and he wouldn’t allow for little rats to slip from his grasp. Particularly when a certain sorceress was so clearly up to something. The man could feel it deep in his gut. Something was stirring in Camilla’s mind. He allowed the excited grin to reach his lips, anticipation over whatever scheme she would employ rousing the predatory instincts inside him. It’d been much too long since the last contest he'd had with one of their kind. He hoped this one would provide a better challenge.

“Praevus, your guest,” Gavin spoke from outside the tent, his ever-reliable sentinel and retainer.

Emver schooled his face, bringing the grin back into a friendlier smile. “Good, do bring him in!” he called back.

Seconds later, the tent flap lifted, and a silhouette entered. As he walked forward, the light in the tent revealed the face of the boy he'd spoken with earlier in the day, Silas. In truth, he was more of a man than a boy at his age, but it was difficult to see him as more than a child with the fearful yet expectant expression in his eyes. His father had clearly coddled him, given the boy anything he ever desired. Not that it mattered. He would suit the Praevus’s purposes well with the proper incentives.

“Welcome in, son. Have a seat. Make yourself comfortable.” The Praevus gestured to the chair in front of him, a much more comfortable seat compared to the chair he’d used for a few of the interrogations earlier.

“Thank you, Praevus.” The man, Silas, gave him a nod before sitting with clear hesitance in his posture.

“I’m glad you could make the time to join me,” he said, making sure his tone was positive and light enough to not appear as a slight.

“Of course,” he gave several eager nods, causing Emver's smile to widen happily. “It’s an honor to speak with you, sir.”

“Nonsense,” he chorused. “The pleasure is mine. It’s always a joy to speak with young men, like yourself, ambitious to make their mark on the world. Would you like anything? Tea perhaps? Or ale? I’ve got an excellent ale I’ve been attached to recently, brewed in a little town not too dissimilar to this one. Though rather a bit closer to the capital. It's a strong brew with just a hint of honey.” He gave the boy another encouraging smile.

“I — certainly.” The boy's expression gave his clear eagerness away. Emver doubted he'd ever had much more than the occasional beer or wine.

With an unneeded gesture, he called out to Gavin for a bottle of the stuff and the man promptly left as ordered, the sounds of footsteps trailing quietly off. “I imagine he’ll be just a moment, if you don’t mind the brief wait?”

Silas shook his head.

Emver smiled back and tapped his fingers against the table, as though in thought. When his eyes fell to the desk before him, he began to straighten out a bit of the clutter along it, allowing the silence to drag. The boy fidgeted, quickly becoming uncomfortable in the sudden lull. Emver kept his expression in check, appearing oblivious, and waited to see what the boy might say to interrupt it. He didn’t disappoint, as only a few seconds later, his mouth opened.

“I… Praevus, I hope you don’t mind me asking why I’m here, or that is, why you’ve invited me, I mean.”

The boy was gripping his pants beneath the table firmly enough that Emver could see the muscles in his upper arm tighten. He gave the boy a surprised blink and then a questioning hum. Another invitation to speak that the boy quickly took.

“If this is about that maid from earlier, I’d like to apologize. Truly, I didn’t mean to keep you waiting. And I can assure you that I didn’t have any untoward intentions—“

“Ah, the maid.” Emver waved a hand, brushing his apology aside. “No, no, don’t worry Silas. I quite understand. It wasn’t that long ago that I was your age, myself. And you’re about to be married, even! You should enjoy what time you have before you’re wed. In fact,” He pressed an elbow casually onto the table and put on a thoughtful look as Silas visibly relaxed. Leaning forward, the Praevus continued, “I believe you’d be perfect for a little task I had in mind. You see, the maid you stumbled into was Camilla's, the sorceress that we’ve brought along. I’m having her keep an eye on the woman and report to me anything peculiar that might occur. But I’m a tad worried over the maid herself. Sorcerers have a tendency to enspell those around them, and it would be unfortunate were she to fall to the woman’s tricks. The maid needs someone to watch over her, and to help remind her where her loyalties lie.”

He paused, searching Silas’s eyes for a moment. He could tell the boy was unsure of exactly what he was asking.

“What are you wanting me to do?” he asked, his eagerness hidden beneath hesitation.

The Praevus smiled. “Just to remind her of her place, if you understand my meaning. The girl looks to me for safety. Just make sure not to mention anything about our discussion here. Or take things too far,” he added, almost as an afterthought. Emver could see the look of understanding begin to shine in the boy’s eyes. “She tends to stay around the little manor of Virgil’s that the sorceress is staying in. I imagine it would be quite trivial for you to find reasons to be there, given your upcoming wedding. With a bit of pressure, the maid should come running back to me for my help, and then we’ll have another talk.” After another short pause, he said, “Of course, I wouldn’t ask you to do this without something in return. We've much yet to discuss in terms of the town's future. But I've got one thing I can offer you now. After your wedding, I'll gift the girl to you. Pearl will be yours, to do with as you please.”

Silas’s lips curved up into a grin. The boy was so easy to manipulate. Predictable. It made Emver wish for a real challenge.

“What, err, what all can I do or not do to ‘pressure’ her, as you said?”

Emver held in his surprise, not having expected the question to be asked by the entitled brat. Perhaps the boy actually held a bit of common sense after all. “I’ll get to that. But first, there’s one other detail that I should mention. You see, the maid has another name, one I believe you know quite well. Felix.”

Silas blinked, his expression momentarily blank. The look of utter bewilderment that crossed his face seconds later was priceless. Emver allowed his veneer to slip just a hair, as his lips curled in genuine humor. He’d have to play this next part carefully or risk losing the carrot he’d promised. Though he doubted it would take much effort to get Silas to realize the inherent value in his ‘gift,’ despite the boy's likely prejudices. He was certain the two had some amount of history with each other, something he could certainly use.

Silas opened his mouth to speak, only to be interrupted as Gavin entered the tent, a bottle and two glasses in hand.

“Excellent, thank you, Gavin. Right on time.”

Turning to Silas, he asked, “A drink to discuss the future over?”