Chapter 5 - The Golden Hand

Darian watched in awe as Alfred fought. The old man was a master. He was not simply fighting; he was dancing with death. Each move was calculated, each blow delivered with a purpose. He disarmed one man with a deft wrist lock, sent another spinning with a well-placed knee strike, and knocked a third to the ground with a powerful fist parry.

Soon, all the assassins lay on the floor.

"Wow! You are awesome," Darian said.

Alfred nodded his head. He took a mask off one man and used it to wipe his sword. "It has been a while since I've defeated so many men. I have gone into seclusion for a while."

"You have to teach me some more skills!" Darian said, clasping his hands together.

"Of course, young master. But, I have to ask, were you not scared at all?" Alfred asked.

Darian shook his head. Maybe he was afraid of the dark, but never of battles. He had had dreams of battles, blood, and eagles. His mother had told him never to tell anyone about it.

"You are a brave young boy. Let's go," Alfred said.

"Are we still going to the mines?" Darian asked.

Alfred answered as he sheathed his sword. "For now, we need a much safer place. But, your father and I had anticipated this. So, we have a great secret spot planned out. Shall we?"

"Yes," Darian replied.

Lord Lucas Featherington stood facing the window. He watched quietly, with his hands behind him, thinking deeply.

He heard the gentle turn of the doorknob. Then, he heard footsteps. He did not turn.

"My Lord, it is dinner time. The table is set. I had the servants prepare your favorite meals." Lucas recognized the voice of his wife, Lady Ally Featherington.

"I am not hungry," he said flatly.

Ally walked closer to him and placed one hand on his shoulder. "My Lord, you need to take care of your health. You need to eat and gain strength. That way, you will surely feel better."

He took her hand off and turned to face her. "I can't feel better, Ally. How do you expect me to feel better?"

Ally's eyes flickered with concern. "What is wrong with you, my Lord? Tell me. I will do anything to make you feel better."

Lucas chuckled sarcastically. "You give the wound, but you still provide the treatment. How fortunate!"

Ally placed one hand on her hip. "I do not understand. Why are you acting up?"

Lucas shot back, "Why did you send assassins against my son, Darian?"

Ally rolled her eyes.

"Answer me! Why did you send assassins to harm him?" Lucas yelled.

"I did not do that!" Ally shot back.

"Yes, you did. The look in your eyes showed that you did. Besides, Darian is a little boy who is seen as a threat by no one—except you," Lucas argued.

"I am sorry your son was attacked by assassins. But, he is the son of a concubine. I do not know why you are this concerned about him. You should be concerned about my children," Ally fumed.

Lucas nodded his head. "As usual, you care for no one but yourself. Darian is my son. When he came to this mansion, I left him under your care. I let you treat him the way you wanted. I did that to show you that he was no threat. But I was wrong. You are evil and selfish."

Ally's eyes turned red. She raised one hand and positioned her five fingers to stop him from speaking. "Stop yelling at me already. You got that boy from a nameless low-life. My sons are ten times better than him. When Darian came to live with us, I treated him the way he deserves."

Lucas pointed a finger at Ally. "You know what... I will never forgive you for trying to kill that boy. I was at the scene of the assassination today. I checked the bodies. They all have the mark of your family on them. The boy is fine. That's the only reason why I am not divorcing you."

Ally balled one fist. "You can't divorce me. I am a member of the royal family. I am the daughter of a Duke. This marriage cannot end until I say so. And I will never do that. Do not forget what you owe my family. We made you what you are. And for the enjoyment of your status, you will have to cope with me for life,” Ally said.

Lucas cut in. “Don’t make up tales, Ally. You know how this marriage came to be. I do not want to go over it now. But, I want to warn you now. If one more evil befalls Darian, I promise, I will not spare you. I will break up the sham of a marriage and will not care if I go to jail because of that!”

Ally froze. She never expected these words to fly out of his mouth. Blood drained from her face. “You would really throw out your security because of that boy? Because of that son you got from that roadside low-life?”

“Try me and see,” Lucas responded. He walked toward the door hurriedly. The soles of his shoes clicked on the marble floor. When he got to the door, he stopped. He spoke without turning. “Darian will return in a few days. You have to treat him better for my sake. I have also asked the butler to move my things to the guest room. I will not be sharing a room with you until I am sure that you have changed your ways.” Lucas turned the doorknob and walked out. He left Ally in a rollercoaster of emotions.

Darian arrived back in his father’s mansion after two weeks. The training camp had been fun, and he had learned a lot. When old Alfred told him that he had to return, he had cold feet. He did not want to return to a place where he would have to work all day in rags, while his brothers played in nice clothes. Alfred had encouraged him. Alfred had told him, “Remember the story I told you about gold? Be the gold, dear boy.”

Darian stepped out of the chariot with Alfred by his side. There were servants waiting in front of the giant doors of the mansion. They bowed. Darian's eyes widened in surprise. Alfred raised an eyebrow. The butler spoke, “Welcome, young master Darian.”

Darian did not reply. He walked with Alfred to his room. The moment he opened his door, he saw a change in the furnishing. The rickety and rusty table had been changed to something more refined, and so had the chairs. The curtains had been replaced, too. Wall decorations hung where none was before. Even the wall painting had been changed. Darian took everything in with his eyes. “Is this my room?”

Alfred nodded his head. “It seems to be, young master. I think they will treat you better from now on.”

Darian sat on his bed. “Even the bed feels softer now. I think they changed it too.”

There was a knock on the door. “Come in,” Darian said.

The butler entered. “It is lunch time, young master Darian. Please change into new clothes and join us at the dinner table. Food will be ready in fifteen minutes. If you will excuse me,” he bowed and stepped out.

“Am I really going to eat on the same table with the rest of the family? This is my first time. I feel so excited!” Darian ran to his closet and opened it. “Wow!” he yelled. His closet now contained different types of beautiful clothes. “Alfred! Come and see this!” he exclaimed. “I do not even know what to pick.”

***

Ally walked into the kitchen. Her eyes scanned the large room. All the chefs worked briskly. Some were chopping, others were slicing, others were arranging food on plates. The scents of different aromas mixed in the air.

“Everyone leave now! I want to speak to the head chef in private,” Ally said. All the other chefs and their helpers bowed their heads and walked out.

The head chef bowed as Ally approached him. He was a short and fat man with a clean chin. He was in white, with an apron on top of his other clothes. “How may I help you, my lady?”

Ally fingered her red silky dress filled with gold and silver studs. “I have a headache. Only you can relieve it.”

The chef answered, his head still bowed. “I will cook food to help your head get calm, my lady. I will use the best herbs and spices only.”

“You fool!” Ally shot. “Raise up your head.”

The head chef stood straight.

“John, how long have you been working here?” Ally asked.

“I have worked here for eight years, my lady. And before that time, I was a worker for your parents, the great Duke and Duchess,” John the cook replied.

“Do you want to keep your job?” Ally asked.

John went on his knees immediately and bowed his head to the floor. His words were heavy with worry. “Please, madam. Do not fire me. I promise, I will work harder and better. I will do whatever you want.”

Ally almost chuckled. “You may rise,” she said. “The headache I have is something you can cure easily for me.”

John rose to his feet.

Ally opened her palm. In it was a small bottle with some yellowish content inside. “I need you to put this in Darian’s food. If you can, then you will keep your job. If you can't, then I will kick you out of here.”

“My lady, what is in that bottle?” John asked as he began to shake more.

“Do not ask stupid questions. Just do what you have to to keep your job.”