Henry grabbed Eric by the collar once again and dragged him over to the fireplace. As if he could possibly handle any more of this craziness! Henry started pushing on the bricks as his hand moved in a predetermined pattern before hearing a light clicking sound. He pushed on the side until the whole fireplace slid over with a grinding sound, revealing a stone pathway. A packed leather bag was shoved into Eric’s hand.
Eric tried to speak, tried to interrupt this madness, but he was in near-shock and could not make a sound. “Now listen carefully to what I’m going to tell you,” his dad said, holding Eric’s face with both hands to be sure he was looking right at him. “You have to go to Taron. You will show that necklace to one of the high-ranking guards. You will insist on speaking to Queen Ilirra. She will know what to do next. Tell me you understand!”
Eric shook his head up and down as tears streamed down his face, but his numb mind was not even sure what he was even saying yes to. It was all happening so fast!
Henry shoved a lantern into his son’s free hand as Aena rushed to Eric’s side, grabbing his arm tightly. In a voice that was far calmer than it should have been, he said, “Those things; they are after you. They know what you are and how important you are to humanity. They will leave when you are gone. You have your instructions, now go!” He then pushed both of them into the passageway.
“But Dad—” came Eric’s broken reply through his sobs, trying to make some kind of sense of all this. Then came the all too emotionless reply.
“Eric...I’m not your dad...I never was.” The panel slid shut.
*
Eric stared at the closed stone panel as he held the lantern, which was the only source of light in here. He felt a gentle tug on his shoulder. “Common, forget it, we have to go,” came his companion’s soft, comforting voice. “You heard what he said. Those things will leave if we just go. The sooner we leave this area, the more people you can save.”
Oh, he heard what his father had said all right. Not my dad?! The words bounced around his head but refused to sink in. How can a person find out that their whole life is a lie and just accept it? Just go on as if nothing ever happened? He placed one foot in front of the other as Aena led him along. Little flashes of reality sparked in his mind as they walked, like fireflies in the dark that only made their appearance known for a second before fading. It was easy to forget you ever saw them. A secret doorway in my own house...dark creatures killing my friends because of me...not really my father...did Jacob survive? He experienced fleeting thoughts that had no place in a sane person’s mind. They were too much like the darkest nightmares for him to accept as any form of reality.
The stone tunnel was small and narrow, not wide enough for two people to walk side by side. Aena was able to walk straight up while Eric crouched a bit due to the low ceiling. Light from the flickering lantern played tricks on their minds as it continued to cast eerie living shadows on the walls. Every little movement appeared threatening when on the border of one’s vision. Their heads were on swivels with every dark dancing image.
They continued on until the stone gradually changed to a combination of rock and mud. Tree roots lined the dirt floor, so they each had to watch their step. At the end of the path was a flat wall of dirt blocking the way. It appeared a dead end at first glance, although it was easy enough to figure out that the dirt wall pushed outward easily.
When they exited the tunnel, they were well outside the town in a small cave that was barely ten feet deep. Eric knew this hideout well, for he had sought refuge in here before when he wanted to be alone. He closed the dirt door from this side and examined it. From the other side the passage was obvious, but here you could never tell there was a secret door. Has this really been here my whole life and I never knew? Yet another shocking yet unimportant thought to rattle around in his head.
The wind was still blowing strong, as it had been for hours. The sky remained threatening but they had to push on, as it was best to get as much distance between the town and themselves as possible. Taron was so far away… they had no horses, no money, just whatever equipment had been packed into the leather sack, which Eric had not even checked yet.
Then a sudden clarity came over Eric. He had never strayed from the rules by which he lived, and he was not going to start now. Those things were after him? Then he needed to travel as far as he could tonight to lead them away from Bryer, to protect the ones he loved. Answers to the barrage of questions filling him to the point of exploding could be found in Taron? Then that’s where he needed to go! The two of them trudged on, fighting the swirling wind as leaves and dust bombarded them from all directions.
*