The son of the devil

A puppy

They were riding fast, trying to gain as much ground as possible. They had an incident that got them late on the road. Vlad and his new retainer were in front, followed by Tanase and Dan’s companion.

The sun was above their heads while they passed on the narrow path serving as a road. The earth was clinging to the horses hooves, muffling their steps. There were five horses for the four riders heading east. Four for riding and the fifth to carry their valuables. If they kept their current speed, they could have reached their target in about four days of riding, but they had to slow down from time to time or even stop to let their horses rest.

Vlad was a bit morose while riding. Not a big fan of small talk, he ignored everyone while riding, not that he could hear anything through the wind passing beside his ears while riding fast. He was trying to put as great a distance as possible between them and the capital. At the same time, he was trying to outrun the vanguard of his enemy that was on its way to enveloping the capital. They barely managed to escape.

Another cause for his lack of interest in talking was the dream he had the previous night. When he woke up suddenly, he was grasping the pendant and it was burning to the touch. He was still trying to make head or tail of what he saw in his dream. This dream kept repeating almost every night since he woke up here.

It was starting with him back in high school. Then, he saw himself lying on the ground bleeding from the knife wound he got during a fight. He was prepared to die and meet his parents again, but someone was sitting beside him, keeping him from slipping away. The midday sun was beating into his eyes and he couldn’t see who it was, but he knew it was a female, about his own age. What he could see was her hand, whose left wrist had an unusual birthmark in form of a red half moon. She kept him company until the ambulance came. Then she left without a single word about who she was or why she helped him. After all, it wasn’t like she had anything to win by that.

That’s when he started having scruples about life in general and later, whose life was worth ending.

He was still trying to figure out how or why he got here. He was frustrated by the increasing amount of question life kept throwing at him that were in need of an answer.

They stopped at a tavern that dubbed as an inn when they reached a small village. Vlad, Dan and his companion went inside, while Tanase remained outside until he was sure their horses were well taken care of by one of the tavern owner’s boys.

His scars attracted the attention one would expect.

When Tanase finally walked in, the conversations around the room stopped and everyone watched him slowly walk to the table the others occupied. Sitting down, he grabbed a mug off the table and poured wine from the jug sitting at the center. He took a small sip and tried to ignore the attention he was getting from the other tables. He learned to shut down everything that didn’t concern his duty.

Vlad was sipping from his cup, while on the lookout for signs of danger. He looked at his companions one by one and tried to start a conversation, but he failed miserably. None seemed interested in talking and after a few failed attempts he gave up.

After eating and finishing the rest of his wine, he stood and walked to the door, while in his head was a light buzz. When he was outside, he stopped and looked at the village around him. Being a Sunday, most men were at the tavern, while their wives were probably home, preparing dinner. He saw some kids running with their bare feet after a black puppy that scurried and hid behind his legs. The kids stopped short of bumping into him. Their group consisted of three boys and a girl. If he guessed correctly their age, they ranged between five and ten years old. The girl, probably eight years old, was holding the youngest by his right hand.

He saw their curiosity on their faces while they looked him up and down. Seeing one of the boys’ eyes glow while staring at the sword hanging by his belt, he smiled.

He bowed and took the puppy in his arms and started patting it while smiling seeing the small animal start shaking its tail and lick his hand.

He turned his attention back to the kids and saw them still enthralled by his clothes and equipment.

“So, kids. Why did you scare this little fellow over here? I don’t think it was nice of you to do that.”

One of them, the oldest probably, stood straight and, after wiping his nose with the sleeve of his shirt, looked him in the eyes with the seriousness of a grown-up. He was reaching Vlad’s stomach, but he behaved like a giant. Vlad smiled.

“We didn’t scare it. We were only chasing it because of boredom. Can’t we even chase it now? It’s our pet. My father brought it for me yesterday from the lords manor. He says it’s a good breed for protecting the house.”

“Oh, really? And how come the boyar gave your father this puppy?”

“He gave it in exchange for my big sister. She’s to marry his son tomorrow.”

Vlad was dumbfounded. How could someone buy a girl in exchange for a dog? His brows started to furrow while inside him his blood started to boil, causing him pain in the chest and shortness of breath.

“Boy, what is your name? How old is your sister and why does she have to marry tomorrow?”

“I’m Pavel. My sister is Maria and she’ll be eighteen next month. The boyar’s son died the day before yesterday and because he wasn’t married, my sister was picked as his bride. She’ll marry him tomorrow at the grave.”

Vlad shuddered at the thought of what awaited the poor girl. Forced to marry a corpse and be a widow for the rest of her life.

He looked at the kids while deep in thought. He didn’t even notice Dan approaching them. He turned his head only when he felt his hand on his shoulder.

“Why the long face? Did something happen? And you, what are you doing here? Don’t you have anything else to do during the day?”

Vlad shook his head.

“Leave them alone. They’re not at fault for what I feel. I’m trying to wrap my head around what I just heard is going to happen tomorrow. Kids, what do you say if I buy this dog from you? I’ll give each of you a gold coin in exchange for it.”

The kids and Dan gasped at the same time. A gold coin was enough for a family to live for a couple of months. Dan looked at him with mouth agape. Finally, when he recovered, he almost shouted.

“Four gold coins for a mutt? Are you insane?”

“Not insane. Just thoughtful. Besides, why do you care so much? They most likely need that money considering what happens in the country. Kids, do we have a deal?”

While the kids nodded enthusiastically, he trusted the puppy in Dan’s arms while he took out the punch hanging from the belt around his waist. He opened it and took out four golden coins and put in each of their palms one. They shone in the sunlight and the children started singing and laughing while gripping the coins tight in their fists.

Smiling, he turned back to Dan and saw the puppy licking his face while Dan was giggling. His smile grew wider as he patted it on the back.

“Having fun with my mutt, are you?”

Dan looked at him, his eyes sparkling and his smile made Vlad’s mind go numb. He shook his head to vanquish the weird thought that just passed through his head. For a moment he thought it wasn’t fair for a guy to be so beautiful.

When he took the puppy back, he saw his unwillingness to part with it.

“Alright, children, you should go now and give them to your parents.”

With that, he turned and walked back into the tavern, followed by Dan. He saw the eyes of the other two widen in surprise at him bringing a puppy. He sat and, without giving them time to put questions, said in a commanding tone.

“We’ll postpone our departure for a couple of days. Tanase, I want you to get us rooms here while we stay. Then I want you to find out everything about the boyar, his son and his burial by tonight.”

Tanase nodded and stood slowly to get it done. Vlad was petting the puppy while his eyes were glaring at the table under his furrowed brows. The other two watched him in silence while trying to guess what he had in mind.