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Jasper considered hunting for the short-sword that Dekon had used earlier, but decided he was probably more skilled with his fists than any weapon. The warf may have shorter legs than him but he was already well down the road and Jasper had to run hard to catch up to him.
By the time they reached the corner the shouting had stopped and only the whinnying of the horse told them that the wagon was still there. After several more steps Jasper saw the reason for all the shouting. The road ahead had been blocked with a crude structure of tree trunks and the wagon had stopped just short of it.
The contents of the wagon were strewn all over the road. Parcels and packages had been ripped open and tossed in all directions. There was a lot of mess for the very short time since they heard shouting. Clearly, this wasn’t just a robbery. They had been looking for something specific.
They hurried on, jumping over the spilled contents of the parcels. Some were clothes and others looked like children’s toys.
‘There they are!’ Dekon yelled and pointed to five men running into the trees on the far side of the road.
Jasper had to admire the warf’s unthinking charge. There were five of them and all of them were far taller than Dekon. Admittedly the warf had a huge hammer and although Jasper had never considered himself squeamish the worst he had ever seen, or been in, was a fist fight with very equally matched opponents. He hoped in some way that they didn’t catch up to the thieves.
‘Catch them! Get my parcels back!’ a voice yelled to them.
Jasper did a half-turn as he ran and saw a young woman sitting on the ground and leaning against one of the large wooden wagon wheels.
He returned his attention to where he was running as the ground became uneven in the forest. It wasn’t too hard to track the men at this stage as they were all barging through the undergrowth as one big pack and leaving a trail of destruction that a blind person would have no trouble following.
The fleeing thieves had the advantage though as they knew where they were going. Several times Jasper had to side step a fallen tree or jump over small ditches. Even with his much shorter stride the warf was keeping ahead of him. The growl that was erupting from Dekon as he ran would be more than enough to keep any prey running! It sounded like an angry bear.
The trees grew thicker and they lost sight of the thieves but kept following the path forged in the undergrowth for them. Up ahead there was a rushing sound that Jasper identified instantly. Water. There was some sort of river not far ahead.
‘They’re splitting up!’ Jasper shouted to Dekon as he caught sight of them again. ‘The last one has a package.’
Dekon slowed down and began to swing his hammer around and around. Jasper had to veer off to the side to avoid being hit by it. The warf let go and it whistled as it flew true through the gaps in the trees and thumped loudly into the shoulder of the closest thief.
‘Arrrrgh!’ The thief yelled and it sounded like a young boy’s cry. He ran straight into a tree, dropped the parcel and clung to his injured arm as he glanced back.
Jasper got a look at his face, partly covered by a home-made mask. The collision with the tree had cut his face and blood was streaming down his neck. The boy raced off and yelled loudly for the others to wait for him.
Jasper and Dekon jogged up to where the parcel had fallen. The tracks from here on went in four different directions with the lad following the one on the right.
‘Which one do we go after? Or should we split up?’ Jasper asked.
‘None of them. They’ve got too much lead on us now,’ Dekon replied. He retrieved his hammer then picked up the small square parcel and turned it over in his hands. ‘It doesn’t look like something worth so much trouble.’
They turned back to head for the road and walked at a reasonable pace but it still took quite some time before they reached the road. They had certainly managed to cover a lot of distance during the chase. They emerged out of the trees to see the young woman staggering about trying to pick up the mess on the road.
She was dressed like a man, in heavy leather clothes, and stopped every few steps to nurse her leg. She glared angrily at the forest as she sat down to rest but made no attempt to speak to them.
‘We managed to get one of your parcels back,’ Jasper said and pointed to Dekon who had paused to look at a package.
The woman looked at them a little closer and her eyes narrowed a little. ‘You’re not elves.’
‘No,’ Jasper agreed simply.
‘A dwarf!’ the woman seemed stunned out of her anger and she leaned forward as if not believing her eyes. Then she turned to Jasper but seemed less interested in him. ‘And a terran.’
‘Warf,’ Dekon corrected automatically. ‘The D is silent.’
‘I thought you were just in stories,’ the woman said as she returned her attention to Dekon.
Jasper saw Dekon shoulders slump a little with disappointment. Perhaps he had hoped to find other warves in the south.
‘Are you hurt?’ Dekon asked as he offered her a hand to get up.
‘Just my leg as I fell,’ the woman said as if it were nothing really. ‘I’m Molli.’
‘Dekon,’ the warf said and then pointed at Jasper. ‘He’s Jasper.’
‘They only took a couple of parcels,’ Molli said and looked to be getting cross again as she glanced in the direction of the forest to her right.
‘What was in them?’ Jasper asked as Dekon handed the small square one back to the woman.
‘How would I know?’ she replied. ‘I just deliver the mail but I bet I know who they were going to.’
She looked at the address on the parcel and nodded as it confirmed her suspicion.
‘They went to a lot of trouble to get them,’ Dekon pointed out as he helped Molli back onto the wagon.
‘Yes, I wish they were here now. I’d like to have another go at stopping them.’
Jasper cringed as Molli spoke. Would her wish come true? He wasn’t sure if having the thugs back there was worse than the drift that would send the guards their way.
Two-seconds ticked past then a few more. Dekon seemed disappointed that the thugs didn’t appear.
‘They’re not coming back,’ Molli said and looked a little confused as to why the two of them looked ready to fight.
‘Does this happen often?’ Jasper asked. He picked up the nearest parcel, shoved the items back inside and put it in the back of the wagon.
‘Only once before that I know of and that was a long time ago,’ Molli replied as she surveyed the mess and the barrier. ‘Where are you headed?’
‘Riverdale,’ Dekon told her. He patted the horse and muttered quietly to calm it down.
‘You’re going there on foot? It’s a day’s hard ride from the nearest town.’
‘We had a wagon but it was... stolen,’ Dekon lied.
It was such an obvious lie that even Molli noticed but she didn’t press it further.
‘If you give me a hand to clear the road and pick up the parcels I’ll give you a ride,’ she offered. ‘It’s against the rules to carry passengers but I think I can make an exception this time.’
Jasper looked at all the logs blocking the road and felt tired just looking at them. Dekon had already gone over to the barricade and thrown a log to the side of the road in one toss.
Molli waved the small parcel they had retrieved. ‘There’s going to be one very grateful person at Riverdale.’
It took half an hour to clear the road and pick up all the scattered goods, repack them and stack them on the wagon. True to her word, Molli offered them a ride into town.
‘We just need to collect our bags that we left in the trees,’ Dekon said with a grateful bow.
They hurried back and picked up their coats and bags and then returned to the wagon. Molli looked at the big snow jackets with a raised eyebrow. ‘We don’t get much snow around here.’
Dekon just shrugged and offered no explanation. They threw their gear in the back of the wagon and climbed up on the seat next to Molli.
As the wagon headed off down the road Jasper had to admit that even with all the work they had done to clear the road it was still worth it to see the miles vanish so easily behind them.
Riverdale, when they arrived, surprised Jasper by its size. Arlo, had mentioned that it was a small town of no importance but it was quite the opposite.
The town sat at the entrance of a large valley that cut through a mountain range to the south. It had an extensive main street of shops with living quarters above and more people than Bellfort as far as Jasper could see. The houses that spread out from the main centre went for some distance and without town walls to constrain them they all had ample room around them with big gardens.
Molli drove the cart into a fenced yard at the end of the row of shops. A man walked slowly out of the small building at the rear of the yard and looked at Molli with a quizzical stare. He was tall and thin and it looked like a good gust of wind would blow him over.
‘You’re late,’ he said in a tone that said he really didn’t care. ‘And what’s with taking on passengers? There’s a stagecoach for that.’
‘Sorry, Mik. The mail was hijacked.’
Molli stepped down carefully and limped around the back of the wagon to start unloading her damaged parcels.
‘Hijacked?’ Mik queried, suddenly more alert. He glared suspiciously at Jasper and Dekon. ‘By these two? I would’ve thought you could handle one and a half attackers.’
Dekon looked irritated at the half comment but Jasper put one hand on his shoulder. ‘Just let that one go. He might mean me being young.’
‘No, these two travellers rescued one of the stolen parcels,’ Molli told him and picked up the small package to show him.
‘What is he, a goblin or a short ugly elf?’ Mik stared at Dekon.
‘Dekon’s a dwarf,’ Molli said then threw the parcel to Mik. ‘The other one is Jasper and if it wasn’t for those two we’d be paying out on two lost packages instead of one. Are you helping with this lot or not?’
Jasper could hear Dekon muttering under his breath about silent D’s.
‘Who are we paying out?’ Mik seemed a lot more interested now as he took out a battered pair of glasses to squint at the address. ‘Did they pay extra for theft?’
‘Dunno. It was for the jeweller, Leo.’
‘He’s been in twice already this morning to see if you were back yet,’ Mik said and made no effort to help unload as he hurried back inside. Jasper and Dekon got down and started carrying parcels into the building behind Molli.
‘Thanks for the ride. Could you point us in the direction of the local coach maker?’ Dekon asked as he dumped the parcels on a large table. ‘We need to buy a new wagon and be on our way.’
‘It’s down the town a ways,’ Molli replied. ‘But I’m sure Leo will want to thank you before you leave.’
‘There’s really no need,’ Jasper told her. He had no desire to hang around a town full of people any longer than was necessary.
‘Hah! We’re okay,’ Mik said as he came out of a small room with a roll of parchment stretched open. ‘Leo only paid extra on the one your friends saved. The other one was too valuable and no option to cover it was given.’
Molli didn’t appear bothered one way or the other so Jasper assumed she just worked for Mik. ‘I doubt Leo will be as pleased. I’ll take that one over to him now. If you want I’ll show you the coach maker’s yard.’
The last part she directed at Dekon and Jasper and they nodded. Jasper gathered his things quickly and within a minute the three of them were heading out into the main street. There were children charging around the streets so Jasper assumed that either it was a non-school day or the elves did things differently. He was pleased that Molli stayed on the opposite side of the street to where most of the children were playing and he hoped his curse was still inactive.
‘This is the jeweller’s shop. He’d probably want to meet you at least but if you’re not keen then the coach maker is the third street on the left and down a ways. He’s too noisy for the townsfolk to be any closer.’
‘We’ll be off,’ Dekon said. ‘No need for a fuss.’
Jasper and Dekon nodded their thanks and were about to part ways with Molli when Jasper saw something down the street that made him go cold with fright.
‘Dekon,’ he said quietly, and kicked the warf’s shoe gently. Dekon looked confused and followed where Jasper flicked his gaze.
Up ahead, not a dozen paces away, were three queen’s guards. They were strolling along as if they owned the town and were joking amongst themselves. Jasper wasn’t worried that word of their escape had reached here yet, if the queen even knew who she was looking for. But the sudden arrival of a warf was obviously significant enough to be noted in whatever reports the guards were likely to be sending anywhere.
‘Actually, it would be nice to meet the jeweller,’ Dekon said. Molli had turned into a small alleyway next to the shop and the two travellers followed her closely. ‘Perhaps we can look at some of his work.’
Molli appeared to take their interest without suspicion and she went around the back of the tall, wooden building and knocked at a small white door.
‘Leo, mail delivery,’ she called out.
The door swung open so suddenly that Jasper figured that either the jeweller had been waiting by the door or had heard them coming.
A short old man, with dishevelled snow-white hair appeared at the door and his bright, eager gaze settled on the parcel Molli carried. He had small round glasses on that made his eyes appear huge. In a split second his eyes narrowed a little and the excitement in them turned to confusion.
‘Just one parcel?’ he asked, and almost snatched it from Molli then took a magnifying glass from his pocket and looked at the details on the package.
‘There was an incident on the road into town,’ Molli explained. ‘I’m afraid the sender didn’t take extra cover on the delivery.’
‘I need the other one!’ the little old man barked as he threw the parcel to the ground.
‘I’m sorry it was stolen by a gang of five thieves,’ Molli replied with a shrug.
‘Are these the guards I paid for to accompany the other parcel?’ Leo asked and his gaze hit Jasper like a punch before it moved on to Dekon. ‘They didn’t tell me one was a warf. Couldn’t he save one small parcel? I thought warves were good at fighting.’
What Jasper noticed most about the old man’s tirade was that he knew about the silent D.
‘Umm...’ Molli looked a little confused. There were doors opening along the back alleyway of the shops and more than a few curious onlookers were edging closer to listen. ‘Perhaps we should take this inside?’
Leo continued to glower at Jasper and Dekon as he opened the door wider so that they could all enter. The house was sparsely furnished and the room they were in appeared to be the main living area. A small table stood by the only window and an over-stuffed couch sat near a roaring fire.
‘I need to open the shop,’ Leo muttered as he slammed the door behind them and locked it. He saw their curious looks at that and scowled. ‘You never know when thieves will sneak in to steal my jewels.’
He picked up the parcel and strode through the living area and out a door at the far end. The others followed him into a narrow workroom that was the width of the building. At the far right a set of stairs led up to the second storey. Lamps hung on the wall and filled the room with more light than seemed necessary. Clearly the old elf had been working already today.
‘Wait here,’ Leo ordered as he dumped the parcel on a workbench then went through another door to the front of the shop. It was very dark in the front room and Jasper heard a lot of banging and sliding of bolts then light flooded in as heavy wooden shutters were folded back from the front of the shop. Leo unbolted the final, glass-panelled doors and strode back to them. He still looked furious.
‘There weren’t any guards sent with the package,’ Molli explained as Leo shut the door to the workroom. The top half was glass and he kept glancing out as if expecting more robbers to come charging in.
‘Then who are they?’ Leo asked and began flicking through piles of parchment. ‘Here it is. I paid for two guards.’
He shoved the paper at Molli, who took it and read it slowly. ‘Yes, but nobody told me. The parcel was dropped off at the despatch point in Woodhaven in the early hours of the morning before anyone was there.’
The old man swore softly to himself. ‘I knew he couldn’t be trusted. I wanted to go there and meet him myself but he wouldn’t let me. He probably sent his own men to steal it back. Terrans!’
Jasper let his hair fall a little more over his ears.
‘I’m really sorry about your parcel,’ Molli said and yawned. ‘I’ve had a long drive overnight and I need to get some sleep. Perhaps we can help track the thief later. I think Jasper got a look at one of them.’
‘Thanks, Molli,’ the jeweller said with a sigh.
‘I’ll walk you to the coach maker,’ Molli offered as she opened the door and headed for the front of the shop. ‘I wish I was in bed already.’
Jasper blinked as Molli vanished and his heart sank. The curse was back.