A tale of magicians, magick and a lost boy. By saying this is a fantasy I don't really need to stress that it is a work of fiction. Set in a nameless land, maybe even a nameless world, our rules and conventions do not apply here.
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A curse on MS Word autocorrect, turning prisoners into footballers or hockey players with them being in goal, instead of gaol, in the previous chapters. And many thanks to bulwark69 with his eagle eye spotting it.
"When you bring my tea to the library this morning would you bring another cup for yourself Sarah. I would like to sit and share with you some of my intentions for the time ahead" Jacob said while breaking fast.
The waning of the winter would see activity on a higher level, all had spent a lot of time around the house, devoting more to tuition of Jamil and Donae. With Zachary taking time away to be a liason between the workmen in the children's home and both Jacob and the trading house there would be a need to bring in a new carriage driver. On Zachary's suggestion another man employed at the trading house, Joshua, would take his place. Also a gardener cum handy man for the outside of the house, another trained man with many years experience spying in the city. Neither would know the long term objective being worked towards. The carriage house at the mansion would be one of the first tasks to have work started on it. At Zachary's suggestion a full suite of rooms was to be made on the upper floor for him to live in. It was better for him not to be seen coming and going from this house, they still wished to keep the identity of the principals as discreet as could be. Jacob also expected that more visitors would be coming to see him, and constant visits to the trading house wasn't something he felt desirable. Secret businesss conducted at this house, away from the commercial part of the city, could also be protected with a little help from Jacob's magick. Some visitors may be stay as guests at the house, so he wished Sarah to find an assistant to help her, one that she had known to be a good worker with her lifelong experiences working in many houses of the city. With the extra work involved in running the house he also gave her an increase in her pay. He was very sure that when the time came she would be overjoyed if he offered her the job of being in charge of the all the domestic staff at the new children's home.
Zachary, after some time thinking over how he would approach his new role as the replacement head of the spy network informed Jacob he intended to include in the work of the children's home a school to teach some of the boys to become carriage drivers, carters, or even messengers in an adult life. He couldn't hide his joy at the thought of having so many horses to keep, for Zachary loved his horses more than anything else. Teaching children to ride and care for the magnificent beasts was more than he had ever hoped for. And the ones that were being quetly trained for the king's service would need to develop excellent riding skills. For him to have horses always available at little notice for secret work, and outside the main city, would also greatly improve the network. These ideas convinced Jacob even more that Zachary's promotion was well deserved. The training school would disappear inside the children's home, in much the same way the spy network had been hidden within the trading house. He had hired a two seater buggy and been away on a few trips to horse farms already, inspecting the newly born foals and making agreements to buy the best he found. Jamil had gone with him on those trips, and came back reasonably proficient in handling the small trap. Moving up to bigger carriages was only a matter of him gaining strength as he grew through his youth.
It had weighed heavily on Jacob's mind that with the re-opening of the docks following the winter the slave ships would soon return to plying their horrific trade. One possible consequence of his manufacturing the ledgers, showing Sir Samuel's large scale cheating, would be for others involved to now believe the trade was much more lucrative than they ever knew. He could expect them to step up their efforts, feeling they needed to recoup the loss Sir Samuel had cheated them out of. The pressure to seize more and more for the slave ships would become greater. During the reign of Tancred's grandfather he had made use of mercenary forces, to supplement his, at a time of particularly poor relations with the city. The leader of that mercenary force had been killed in another conflict some years later, his son now led the force. After extended and convoluted negotiations word came to him of their willingness to meet with a potential new client. The place agreed was a neutral land a few days riding from the borders of the city state. The weather was still cold, but with the snows now all but gone, it was a manageable journey. Rather than leave Tancred in the city he decided to take him with him, and for Zachary to also accompany them, staying with the prince during the time Jacob went alone to the meeting. Tancred having been taught horsemanship almost from the time he could sit astride a pony as a tiny boy, they would make the trip on horseback rather than by carriage. Zachary hired good quality horses for them and stabled them overnight at the carriage house of the mansion. He also took their travelling packs so they could appear to leave the house as if just on a normal visit in to the city. The next morning the two left the house early and went to the trading house. From there they left by the goods yard in a small closed carriage, and were carried to the mansion where they met Zachary and set off unobserved. It was the first time Tancred had left the city since his rescue, and also the first time he had been apart from Jamil. As much as Jacob would have wished to bring him on the trip, he was not yet ready for such a long trip by horse, time was against them and he would slow them down. Despite the three horses now carrying a large amount of gold from the vault of the trading house they made excellent time on the journey, magick from Jacob's touch giving as much extra stamina as they needed. They arrived in the small town the day before the meeting was to take place, amazing Zachary on the journey to see the frail Jacob disappear and a vigourous strong man riding alongside him. It was further showing of his trust in Zachary.
Anyone watching Jacob leave the inn to make his way to the other inn designated by Captain Jard, the mercenary commander, would have seen a well dressed lady of means coming from the passageway to the street. Clearly she was a lady who was well used to having her instructions carried out without question. Entering she made her way to the counter where the innkeeper was stood, passing him the token provided by Captain Jard's middle man she requested use of the private room as per the instructions. Beckoning the young pot boy he passed him the token, and with that the boy scampered out of the back door of the inn. Shortly afterwards the curtain was pulled aside as the Captain entered the room. If he was taken aback at seeing the lady, instead of a man as he expected, he gave no sign.
Taking a seat across the table he said to her "I don't believe we have met before"
He was shocked to his centre by the answer "You have your father's chin, and your mother's eyes"
In the shocked silence that followed she went on "And you, young man, have a scar on your shoulder from when you knocked a glass from the table. You were five years old at the time"
Jacob, having good memory of Captain Jard senior, plainly seeing the father reflected in the son sat before him. Though this younger version lacking his father's dark piercing eyes. The memory of that young child's injury he pulled from a distant part of the man sat before him, bringing back thoughts of the young boy crying as the tiny pieces of broken glass were picked out of the ugly gash, and of stinging ointment applied during the time of healing.
That memory from long ago came shooting back to the front of Jard's mind as he said to the lady "Madam, I had forgotten all about that, you must have known my parents well" A child, well used to the comings and goings of many doing business with adults around him, rarely took note of the people towering above as it sat at play. And a man used to trusting his own instincts will take his own memory as true most every time. So it was that the two sat at business together as the Lady outlined her wishes. Furnishing Jard with details of the routes the city slave ships would be bound on as they returned in convoy to the docks she made required Jard's fast warships to lie in a secluded cove watching as they passed in the distance, they were to trail the heavily laden vessels until at a point far out on the open seas. Then to engage those three ships and put them to the bottom, cargo and crews as well. The lady agreed the cost with Jard, and offered a sizeable bonus above that for his agreement not to enter the city during the seasons ahead, and that no contract be entered into with the Grand Duke of the city for defence, or for subversive acts on his behalf.
Coming to the payment of the fee agreed the Lady once again took charge and told Jard "Your gold will be delivered to the back door of this inn within the hour, payment in full. We will not meet again.
The man bringing the fee will have no knowledge of the load he carries, for he will be just a local carter, no good will come from questioning him. I have no doubt you will act according to our agreement. You will have a much longer future if you fulfil my demands, I am not a person who would be crossed" She then went on to mention a good deal of his closely guarded secrets.
Taking her leave of the Captain, she stepped from the room. Captain Jard's men going about the town after that meeting could find no sign of the mysterious lady, no innkeeper had let room to her, and just as nobody saw her come to the town, her leaving of it was also unseen. As promised, a cart pulled into the inn yard at the due time bearing a plain, heavy crate for the Captain.
As the dawn tide carried Jard's sleek sail ships away from the port to the open sea that following morning, three horsemen sat astride their mounts on the hilltop above, watching them go. Turning away they set a brisk pace for the lightly laden journey home.
Jard stood on the headland watching the three heavily laden moved slowly through the circle of his spyglass. His fast vessels would remain far back out of sight during the daytime as they followed the same course. Night fell early to these northern latitudes, and they would have many hours to catch the unaware ships. Casting a final long look back to the direction the ships had come from he shortened the tube, and let it hang from the strap that held it around his neck. With his other two Captains he made his way back to the rowboat on the shore that would take them back aboard ship. Having sent one of his ships to the port where the slave ships were berthed he knew no other ships were close to being ready to sail, his having made quick progress back here once it had been noted all three taking on final supplies, and the sailors return from shore leave. All that day they sailed behind the slave ships, taking care to stay below the horizon, and when light left the skies they made none that could be seen ahead. With no live cargo to watch over the men aboard the slave ships were in the habit of going about their duty in a more relaxed manner. With a smooth calm sea the men retired to their cots with the night's rum lulling them to a peaceful sleep. The men drawing watch had little to do but keep the course true. On the signal the rowboats, already lowered to within inches of the water were dropped that last little distance, mercenaries dropping down the holding ropes to man them. Jard trained his men well, and their powerful muscles driving the oars had them drawing steadily towards the rearmost of the three ships, sitting low in the water. The sound of grappling hooks hitting the deck, bound in sail cloth to muffle them, was lost among the myriad creakings and bangings of the masts. That ship was lost before it's men knew danger was upon it. The first the watch knew was when they felt the sharp blades that opened their throats. Moving silently to the holds the mercenaries found the cargo, barrel upon barrel of lamp oil. Knocking the bungs from some of these barrels they set a single lamp on the hold floor and left the glass open. The spilling oil already rising towards the naked flame, they quickly left the hold, and motioning the rest of the mercenary band, slid down the ropes and cast way from the slave ship. Jard's warships dropped sail and hove to, the flames were already visible on the ill fated ship. It took no time at all for the ship to be engulged from bow to stern, the two other lumbering ships too far apart to help, even with only a slight wind behind them, they could nothing to close the distance as they watched burning men jumping from the ship. And the hard hearted men aboard would not risk their own vessel catching aflame from the spreading pool of oil afire on the water. Staring into the light from that burning ship blinded the watchers on the other ships, Jard's three war vessels circled around and closed unseen on the slave ships. The fight was short and brutal between the ship's crews and the professional mercenary fighters. After the cargo was inspected the first slave ship had it's sea cocks knocked open, but on the second, Jard's men first carried as much of the fine wines they found in the holds aboard their own ships, before leaving that one to flounder the same way. If any had been there to observe as dawn broke on that patch of ocean, the only sight would be the blackened timbers of a single ship sitting on the water. Captain Jard many leagues away, counting the profits from the sale of his bounty of wine. Not a man lived to carry the tale back to the city. The misery they had bestowed on so many poor wretches was ended without remorse.
By Jacob's calculations the loss of bodies from this city would cause the slave traders to make up the loss from other lands. This city being a much longer voyage from the slave lands, those traders would see no gain in travelling here to do the same as they could do easier by a shorter voyage. Their would be no ships available to be bought by the city authorities that were ready configured to carry live bodies, and conversion would be a lengthy affair. Also their would be no revenue coming to fund purchase and work converting. What had been unknown to him however, for it was a secret known only to four men and none were the slave ship's captains, was that hidden in those barrels of lamp oil was the full profits from the previous year's trade in slaves. A number of barrels were carefully marked, and would be moved apart in the city's warehouses. Captain Jard had sent to the bottom of the ocean much of the city's income. The loss of all the fine wine was not be the only reason that a sobering time was ahead for the city.