Chapter Forty-One

Three days later, an obviously delighted Renard announced they’d be within sight of his home in minutes.

Aridai’s smile reflected his relief. “I have only been to Granville once, and that was many years ago, before you were born, Renard.”

“You have?” said Renard. “I didn’t know that. So, you’ve met Mother.”

“More than once, in Mariosha.”

Eliot didn’t join in their conversation. Constant thoughts of his father dominated his mind, causing a persistent pain in his heart. And that cast a shadow over what should have been the welcome sight of Granville bathed in the warm, amber-yellow hue of the late afternoon sun.

A carriage drew near, which Renard recognised as his father’s. The carriage slowed and Bertran leaned out. “Well, if this isn’t the most unexpected surprise.” A frown creased his forehead as his gaze lingered on Eliot then his attention was on the tall-folk. “Aridai, what brings you here?”

“Bertran, my friend, it would appear fate has conspired to bring us all together. The mission these two young men were on led them to my home.”

“What? You are the tall-folk who lives on Cloud Mountain?” Before Aridai could answer, Bertran said, “Come, come. Let us talk indoors. You must be weary from your travels.” And his carriage led the way to the house.

Eliot slumped in his saddle, staring at Fordel’s mane. The way Bertran had looked at his bruised, cut face convinced Eliot he’d disappointed the man.

In the days following his fight with Garlon, Eliot had gradually been consumed by self-loathing. He was constantly haunted by the thought that, if Aridai hadn’t stopped him, he might have killed Garlon, and that scared him.

“Eliot?”

He looked up at Renard.

“Is something wrong?”

About to shake his head, he instead said, “Thinking about Mother and Lina.” It was true, he did think of them. But he gave that as his answer because he didn’t want to dismiss Renard’s concern yet again.

Since the fight, Renard’s worry had been obvious, but he hadn’t badgered Eliot about it, for which he was thankful.

The butler opened the door and promptly stood to the side as Fay and Lise dashed past him.

“Renard–” Fay’s delighted shout was cut short by the sight of the tall-folk. Standing by her wide-eyed sister, she stared open-mouthed.

“Girls, how many times, oh.” Elisanna’s brows shot up as she, too, came to an abrupt stop. “Master Aridai. I was not, I didn’t know–”

“Lady Elisanna. What a pleasure it is to see you again,” said Aridai before dismounting. “I, too, did not know I would be here at your home.”

“Master Aridai is the one who lives on Cloud Mountain, Mother,” said Renard who’d already dismounted.

Bertran stepped out of the carriage. “We have much to talk about. Do your guards speak the common language?”

“They understand it well enough, but do not speak it that well.”

“I’ll tell my men to see to it they’re comfortable.”

Aridai said a few words to them, and they bowed in Bertran’s direction, thanking him.

“What happened to Eliot?” Lise sounded uncharacteristically subdued.

Eliot’s chest tightened as shame swept over him, and he wanted nothing more than to hide. Out the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Renard giving a quick shake of his head.

“Come, girls,” said Elisanna, “it’s not polite to keep such a distinguished guest waiting outside like this.”

“But–”

“Not now,” said Elisanna softly to her daughters. “Come, Master Aridai. You must be tired. I’ll see to it a room is readied for you.” Her voice faded into the house as she led the way.

Eliot remained where he was, by Fordel’s side.

Renard placed his hand against Eliot’s back. “Don’t worry about the girls, they’ll be fine. You know what they’re like, busybodies of the highest order,” he finished with a smile.

Swallowing hard, Eliot nodded and handed Fordel’s reins to the waiting stable boy.

The servants rushed around in a flurry of activity, getting the rooms ready with Elisanna personally supervising the guest chamber for Aridai.

Meanwhile, Bertran took Aridai and the young men to his study where they could converse freely without worrying about the girls.

Eliot sat silently, absently fingering the split skin on the discoloured knuckles of his right hand, listening as Renard quickly recounted their journey until the point they met Aridai and the company of tall-folk by Cloud Mountain.

Then Aridai took over, telling of his surprise on seeing them and their shock on realising he was the tall-folk Jack had stolen from. He spoke of taking them to his home where they met his family, including Arodi, whom Bertran knew.

“The most pleasing moment,” said Aridai, “was when Eliot told me he knows we are his family.”

Bertran’s brows shot up then, laughing, he clapped his hands. “Well done, son. How wonderful that we can now all speak freely of this secret that’s been weighing on us for so long.”

Eliot couldn’t help but join in the laughter as Renard lightly boxed him on the arm.

Then Aridai explained his original plan of travelling to Mariosha to question Garlon, then take Jack back to Aiqos to answer for the thefts and for harming Sela.

Still shaking his head but clearly pleased at how things had worked out, Bertran said, “You won’t have far to travel for Jack, he’s here.”

“What?” Eliot darted forward in his chair, the first time he’d spoken in Bertran’s study.

“I thought he’d be back at Garlon’s by now,” said Renard.

“Marcelin sent word, the day after you left, if I remember correctly, asking if I’d keep Jack here, away from Garlon.” He gestured at Eliot, hand up, palm facing him. “Let me explain.” And he told them the reason why.

Eliot got to his feet. “I have to go, I need to see Mother and Lina, make sure they’re alright.”

Bertran reached out and took hold of Eliot’s wrist. “They’re not at Deverell. The day after Jack was brought here, Marcelin and Lina left for Vernell. They’ve been there, let me see, nine, no. Ten days.”

Utterly bewildered, Eliot could only stare at Bertran.

“They are both well, Elisanna and the girls have gone to see them at least twice. I know you want to go to them, but the hour is getting late. Rest here tonight, and you and Aridai can go to Vernell tomorrow after breakfast.”

“I would very much like to see Marcelin, it has been too long,” said Aridai.

Reluctantly, Eliot slowly sat back down.

“Where is Jack?” said Renard.

“In a room above the stables. I was going to hand him over to the guard, then thought it best to wait until you returned after which I’d send a message to the tall-folk asking if he’d want to question Jack. And here you are.” Bertran grinned at Aridai.

“I do, indeed, want to question him.”

Bertran got to his feet. “Come. Best get it over with then we can enjoy the rest of the evening.”

“How’s he been?” said Renard, walking to the door.

“Troublesome. I’ve had to assign men to take turns guarding him as he’s tried to escape more than once. And they’ve all reached their limit with his constant complaining.”

Aridai frowned. “What does he complain about?”

“He shouldn’t be here, he doesn’t deserve to be a prisoner, Marcelin should have let him go,” said Bertran with a sigh. “He’s fed well, he has a place to sleep, but it would appear none of that is good enough. Every single day, he insists he should be allowed to leave.” About to walk out the now-open door, Bertran turned, his brows raised. “He says he’s done nothing wrong.”

“Let him say as much to me,” said Aridai.

Despite his concern for Marcelin and Lina, Eliot couldn’t help mirroring Renard’s grin.

As thunder rumbled and darkening clouds rolled closer, they waited in the area behind the stables for one of Bertran’s men to bring Jack. He swaggered into view, repeatedly pulling his arm away from the clearly annoyed man who kept trying to keep hold of him.

Bertran stepped to the side and motioned Eliot and Renard to follow him.

“We meet again. Thief.” Aridai stood with arms crossed.

Eyes bulging, Jack’s bravado instantly vanished; he stuttered to a stop and made as if to turn, but the man grabbed him by the arm and propelled him forward.

“This can’t be your plan.” Jack stared at Bertran. “You can’t mean to hand me over like this, you can’t. It’s not right–”

“Not right?” Aridai’s brows drew together. “I will tell you what is not right. First, stealing from me then causing injury to my wife.”

“I-I didn’t mean to, it was an accident.” Jack seemed unable to look at Aridai. “She stepped the wrong way, that wasn’t my fault.”

“You took advantage of her kind heart. But first, tell me. How did you evade the guards and find your way to my home?”

Hunching his shoulders, Jack remained staring at the ground.

“Do not make me repeat myself.”

“Bean-beanstalk,” said Jack, taking a step back.

“What?” said Bertran.

“Garlon, he gave me a bean. He said to plant it by the mountain. The next morning, a giant beanstalk had grown.”

“A giant beanstalk?” said Bertran, his disbelief evident.

Aridai’s incredulous expression smoothed out as he said one word, “Tulash.”

Shaking his head, Bertran said, “Where is this giant beanstalk?”

“The other side of the mountain.” Jack told them of the route he and Garlon’s men had taken.

“Now,” said Aridai, “it is time for you to take responsibility for your actions.”

Shaking his head, Jack gasped for air. It took him a few attempts before he could speak. “Please, please don’t take me. I don’t want to go. I don’t want to go to your city.” Trembling, pleading repeatedly, he sank to his knees as drops of rain began to fall.

Scowling, Aridai looked at Bertran who inclined his head, indicating the tall-folk to join him, and they walked a little way from Jack.

“I know you want him to face justice in Aiqos,” said Bertran quietly, “but would you agree to him serving his time here if, and only if, he speaks against Garlon, telling the authorities of the man’s ties with the Anti-G faction?”

Aridai didn’t reply as his dark gaze swivelled to Jack.

Eliot wanted to voice his thoughts about Jack speaking against Climence as well but didn’t want to interrupt Aridai’s silent deliberation.

“Think on it, my friend,” said Bertran, placing his hand on Aridai’s arm. “We can put it to Jack now and tell him you’ll let him know your decision in the morning.”

Aridai nodded. “Yes, I would appreciate the time.”

“Good. Return to the house, no sense all of us getting wet.” Hunching his shoulders against the steadily falling rain, Bertran strode to Jack as Renard led the way back to the house.

The rain had petered out, leaving behind the soothing scent of wet earth. The setting sun streaked the darkening clouds with red and orange, and the steady plop of water from the eaves complemented the call of twilight birds.

As Granville had been a second home to Eliot for so much of his life, Elisanna still saw to it a room was kept for him. In the privacy of that room, staring at his reflection in the mirror, he finally saw the result of his fight with Garlon.

The swelling around his purple-hued left eye hadn’t completely receded, and the bruise on the left side of his cut lip reminded him of a rotten spot on fruit.

Resting his hands either side of the basin of water on the table, he hung his head, feeling wretched for having upset Fay and Lise with his appearance. A cooling breeze from the open window teased the curtains then wafted around him.

“How do I face Mother looking like this?” he whispered. “How do I explain what I did?” He squeezed his eyes shut. “I could have.” With a sharp shake of his head, he forced the thought from his mind, the frightening thought that he could have killed Garlon.

Hurriedly washing and changing into Renard’s borrowed tunic and trousers, he made his way to the dining room in time to hear Elisanna apologising to Aridai for the inadequately-sized bed.

“Do not fret, dear lady,” he said. “Thanks to many years of travelling, such matters ceased to bother me long ago.”

As they ate, Eliot was thankful he hardly needed to speak for Fay and Lise’s lively chatter dominated the proceedings, and Aridai’s laughter was testament to how much he enjoyed their company.

The only moment the twins were lost for words was when Bertran told them Aridai was Eliot’s uncle. The revelation left them wide-eyed and open mouthed, eliciting much laughter from the adults.

“Do we have tall-folk uncles?” said Fay.

“No, my dears,” said Bertran solemnly as Elisanna flicked her gaze up. “Neither your mother nor I have tall-folk ancestry.”

Renard was the first one to burst out laughing as they fixed their parents with pouty, disapproving glares.

Overcoming his amusement, Aridai leaned towards Fay and Lise. “My dear girls, you would make this old tall-folk very happy if you called me ‘uncle’.” And he was rewarded with a pair of grins so wide to almost squeeze the girls’ eyes shut.

Eliot lay on his bed, arms out either side of him, staring at the ceiling as darkness encroached, and the house gradually grew quieter.

Once more on his own, it was harder to quieten the fears that had returned to whisper around him. He knew he’d always had a quick temper; Dacey had attempted to guide him into trying to control it. And through the years, Eliot believed he’d learned to do just that. His frown deepened as he remembered moments that proved otherwise.

More than once, he’d been on the verge of striking Jack whose attempt to kiss Lina had proved too much for Eliot to hold back. All that had mattered in that moment was to stop Jack and keep Lina safe.

It was the same with Garlon. When the man began visiting Deverell, it hadn’t taken Eliot long to fathom the reason for his increasingly frequent visits, after which the mere sight of Garlon was enough for Eliot to want to punch him.

Crossing paths with Garlon on their way to Mariosha, it had only taken his mention of Marcelin for Eliot to lose control. Again, all that mattered was to stop Garlon and to protect Marcelin.

Hauling himself up, he sat on the edge of the bed staring at the floor. He gritted his teeth and pressed his lips together to stop the scream he felt building up inside. He wanted to hide, to keep himself away from people.

Not knowing what else to do, Eliot decided to step outside in the hopes the night air might help calm him. Holding his boots in one hand, he crept down barefoot, glad a handful of lamps were still lit. And came to a halt.

A sliver of light shone under the door to Bertran’s study.

Eliot wondered if he was alone. Going softly to the door, he was about to place his ear against it when it opened.

“Eliot?”

“I’m sorry, Uncle Bertran. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

The older man smiled. “I was about to go up and thought I heard a noise.” He glanced back over his shoulder. “Not that the dogs noticed,” he said, chuckling. Looking down at the boots in Eliot’s hand, he raised his brows. “Going somewhere?”

“I-I couldn’t sleep.” Eliot lowered his gaze.

They stood in silence for a few moments.

“Is something bothering you?” said Bertran. “Something you wish to discuss?”

Unable to look Bertran in the eye, Eliot nodded.

“Come.”

Eliot followed him and quickly buttoned up his tunic as Bertran shut the door.

The bigger of the three dogs lifted its head, looked at Eliot then lay down again, leaving Eliot envious of its seemingly carefree sleep.

Sitting opposite the man he respected and loved, Eliot swallowed repeatedly, ashamed of admitting his fears.

“I expected you to be excited and full of news over meeting your new-found family,” said Bertran. “Instead, you’re uncharacteristically quiet, my boy. And I suspect it’s to do with your bruises.” After a pause, he said, “Renard told me about Garlon.”

Eliot’s gaze flicked up, but Bertran’s gentle, concerned expression was too much to bear. “I didn’t mean to,” he whispered. “He said Mother would be his. All I knew was I had to stop him. I had to protect her.” He hung his head.

Bertran leaned over and rested his hand on Eliot’s shoulder. “As a dutiful son would. And yet. What is tormenting you? Won’t you tell me? Eliot?”

Finally, he raised his gaze to look at Bertran. Blinking rapidly, he said, “I. I couldn’t, I couldn’t stop. I kept hitting Garlon. Even when he stopped fighting back. I kept hitting him. I only stopped because Uncle Aridai pulled me off him.” An involuntary shiver gripped Eliot. “I’m scared, Uncle Bertran.” His voice, barely above a whisper, shook. “My own anger scares me. It’s like a beast inside me, waiting to strike. What if. What if I get so angry and there’s no one near to stop me. What if I can’t stop the beast?” He had to force himself to say the words out loud. “What if I, kill?”

A heavy sigh fell from Bertran as he shook his head. “Eliot, Eliot. I don’t believe you will. I believe your own conscience will stop you. The only reason for your anger against Garlon was because of your need to protect your mother. And no man can blame another for wanting to protect those he loves. After all, that is a man’s duty.”

“I reacted the same way with Jack because of Lina. Even though Mother was doing a good job scolding him, I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted to hit him. And I did. I don’t feel as if I’m the one in control,” he finished softly.

Bertran rested his elbows on his legs, his steepled fingers supporting his chin. “I believe this beast as you call it resides in all of us, that we’re all capable of striking another in a blind rage. Up until your fight with Garlon, it may well have been the case that the beast was more in control. But that’s changed. You’ve faced the beast, and it’s left you fearful that you may take another’s life. That, my boy, is the beginning of you exercising control and caging the beast.”

Eliot silently weighed Bertran’s words. “I’d rather kill the beast than cage it.”

“It’s part of you, Eliot. Don’t see it as a bane, instead regard it as a reminder to hold yourself accountable for your actions.”

Although Eliot could see the sense in Bertran’s words, it wasn’t enough to completely dispel his fear. All he could do was hope and pray that he would, one day, be the one fully in control, able to live with it as Bertran suggested, and that day would come soon.