“So what I’m hearing is that you were complicit,” the silver haired justicar said with a dismissive hand.
About halfway through my story I could tell that she had already made a decision about me just by the way she kept glancing around the room making eye contact with certain individuals.
“What I’m really interested in,” The man said with steely eyes, “Is what this business was about the ‘heart’ that your friends had mentioned.” He leaned in on his arm, his eye brow arched in an inquisitive manner.
I messed up. Vi told me not to mention the heart.
“I mean,” I said nervously, “Friends is a strong word. They were clients.”
“Clients that you were willing to drag through the forest in the dead of night and willing to bribe a guard with a gold coin for.” He shot back.
“If I didn’t help them out, how was I going to get the 2 other gold they promised me. Besides they had given me so much already, I figured they would give me more if I helped them,” I lied back to him. “And I only know that the ‘heart’ was a giant purple crystal that Shan had been carrying.” That had been truthful, I really didn’t know anything else about the heart. We had been too busy trying to keep Charles alive. Even in the three days that I had known them, I had enjoyed being in their presence. Watching them interact and joke around with each other, there was a sense of longing that I felt when I was with them, I truly cared for them.
“You’re lying.” A man in the back responded. The two turned behind them to the back right corner of the room. A small non imposing man in a cool blue uniform, no different than many of the others in the room, walked to the corner of the table and stood calmly. “You’ve told the truth the entire time up until this point.”
He was probably only 5’ 5’’ with black combed over hair, a nice well groomed mustache. There was a nast scar that ran from the corner of his eye down his chin and neck to the collar of his shirt and beyond. The more I looked over his uniform the more that I realized that it was pristine. There were no wrinkles and nothing was out of place, not even a stray hair on his well kept head.
All eyes in the room landed back on me and I sat in silence.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“Tell us the truth, boy, or else..” The dark haired inquisitor left the threat hanging.
I gulped and tried to think of a good half truth, “I didn’t want anything to happen to them, they seemed like good people.”
“The heart boy, tell us about the heart,” the mustache responded.
I furrowed my brow.
“I don’t know anything else about the heart.”
“Impossible!” The male instructor shouted, slamming his fist into the table. “You know where it is! Those traitors are the worst type of scum imaginable. They threaten to bring destruction to our kingdom and you were an accomplice to those actions.”
I paused for a long time, “Traitors?”
The woman chimed in to respond, “Yes, traitors to the kingdom. They threatened to destroy everything that we stand for: stability, peace, and honor!”
These were the three tenants of our kingdom. Each represented by a head on the hydra insignia. Everybody knew this, because we were taught at a young age about the greatness of the land that we lived, and the lawlessness and chaos of the neighboring kingdoms.
The small man raised his hand to calm the other two Justicars. They obliged immediately. “I’ve heard enough and I’ve made my decision,” he said. “He will be executed tomorrow at sunrise with the other two traitors.”
Executed
Fear pricked the back of my neck and I sat stunned. My throat went dry as the world around me seemed to darken on the fringes of my vision.
How could that be? I didn’t do anything, I just showed some people around town. All I did was my damn job! I looked up and opened my mouth but couldn’t speak. Over thirty pairs of glaring eyes stared down on me. Angry bitter eyes.
The duke, a tall blonde man who had remained silent for the entire afternoon finally spoke. “Well if that is what you think is best, then it shall be done as you say.” He gave a slight bow, and everyone in the room did the same. I stared in disbelief. Who was this man that even the duke lowers his head and justicars give heed to his command.
Two of the guards that were behind me quickly approached and lifted me off the chair. In a matter of moments they had me cuffed and escorted out of the room. They took me to a prison cell, but not the same one that I had been in before. This one was in a lower part of the prison, a much much lower part. It was damp, dark, and worst of all smelled of rotting. I had to concentrate fiercely to keep from retching and adding to the pungent odor.
They threw me an inconspicuous cell and walked off quickly, ready to be out of that horrid environment. I lied down in a fetal position and sobbed. Hot bitter tears streamed down my face and I cried until there was nothing left. Against the protest of my nose, fatigue finally overcame me and I fell asleep.