WeatherMaker Hearts Desire Prologue

‘Farrell?’

He felt someone shaking his shoulder.

‘Wake up silly.’

Farrell opened his eyes, seeing a woman leaning over him with long black hair falling about her face.

‘Ramana’ he breathed. ‘What are you doing?’

‘I’m waking you up’ she smiled. ‘I already told you that.’

She walked to his side around the sofa, reaching her hands out for Farrell to take.

He took them, and she pulled him up into a stand.

‘Daddy!’

‘How many times do I have to tell you not to run up and down the stairs?’ Farrell said sternly to the young girl.

‘Sorry daddy’ Amaia said, stopping before him.

Farrell frowned down at her in displeasure. ‘I only say this for your own benefit’ he told her, ‘not to nag or annoy you.’

‘That’s what I say to you’ Ramana protested. ‘But you never listen.’

Farrell groaned, placing his hand over his face. ‘I’m outnumbered by women’ he sighed. ‘You two will be the death of me. Will you be happy once I’m gone? Is that your plan? To nag me into an early grave?’

‘Oh husband’ Ramana chuckled lightly. ‘You overreact over such small things.’

‘Small to you but when you have to live with it…’

‘Shhh’ Ramana soothed, placing a finger over Farrell’s lips to silence him. ‘No more talk.’ She cocked her head playfully at him. ‘Dance with me.’

Amaia sat upon the sofa to watch them dance, with a little green bird sitting upon her lap.

Ramana led Farrell away, holding his hand ever so tenderly. She pulled him to the centre of the hall; then stopped.

She turned to face him.

Farrell placed one hand upon her waist as she placed one hand upon his shoulder. Their other hands they held in each others.

They began to dance. Moving slowly around in circles and never taking their eyes off each other.

‘You are so beautiful.’

‘I was going to say the same thing about you’ Ramana purred seductively back.

Farrell shared a smile with her as they turned.

‘I’m just so lucky to have you’ he told her. ‘I want us to be together forever.’

‘That is what I want also.’

But then Ramana stopped dancing, and let go of him.

She suddenly grabbed him by the shoulders, throwing him against the wall.

‘Farrell!’ she shouted at him.

She slapped him.

‘Farrell wake up!’

He felt his body being shaken, and then with a gasp everything around him changed.

The next thing he knew, he was lying on his back, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling.

Farrell blinked in confusion, the memory of dancing with his wife and seeing his young daughter quickly faded from his mind until it was completely forgotten.

Farrell drew a slow breath, eyes darting all around him in panic and alarm as he wondered where he was.

‘Farrell!’ came the loud voice again. A face came into view as a figure leant forwards over him.

Someone slapped his face roughly, shaking his body.

‘Are you awake Farrell?!’

Farrell’s eyes adjusted as his senses returned to him, a vivid memory of what had happened to him before he collapsed came flooding back.

‘What happened to me?’ Farrell breathed.

‘I killed you’ Arlen smiled above him. ‘How does it feel to come back to life?’

Farrell’s body tensed immediately as he remembered what had happened, and he stared back at Arlen with an emotion he had never felt towards his brother before.

It was fear.

‘You poisoned me’ Farrell said in utter disbelief. ‘You poisoned me.’

‘How does it feel’ Arlen asked him coldly, expression growing dark, ‘to be betrayed?’

‘The brother I knew would never act this way’ Farrell said trying to reason the situation and make sense of what had just happened to him. ‘What would the gods think if they saw you now?’

‘You don’t believe in gods’ Arlen replied flatly.

‘But you do’ Farrell told him. ‘You used to pray…all the time…to Faeroe…to Ludus…’

‘Ludus can go fuck herself!’

Farrell sat bolt upright, drawing away from his brother in fear and uncertainty, nearly falling off the table as he did so.

He stared at his brother in utter shock and disbelief. He couldn’t believe what he just heard him say.

‘You used to pray all the time…’ Farrell whispered staring at Arlen hard. ’Who are you?’

‘I am not the brother you once knew’ Arlen told him in a low voice. ‘I don’t pray anymore.’ Arlen snarled then, baring his teeth in savagery, like a feral beast. ‘I curse the gods’ he spat, ‘for all the misfortune and suffering they have brought unto me.’

‘How am I alive?’ Farrell asked. ‘I thought……I thought I died….I thought the poison….’

‘I would have let you die’ Arlen said carelessly, ‘but Shawn convinced me to do otherwise.’

It was only then that Farrell noticed Shawn standing by him amongst the crowd of strangers that stared. Shawn smiled in relief at Farrell, placing a comforting hand upon his shoulder.

‘Thank the gods you’re alive’ he sighed. ‘I was sure for a moment that….’

Farrell noticed his surroundings then. He was still at the inn, around him most of the people who had stood and cheered as he fought with Arlen, now returned their attention to what they had previously been doing. He had been dumped on one of the tables, where he had woken.

‘What did you do to me’ Farrell asked Arlen, touching his own chest. ‘I feel strange.’

‘I restarted your heart.’

Farrell lifted his head.

‘I have the poison’ Arlen said, ‘and I have the cure.’

‘Come on’ Farrell said to Shawn, swinging his legs over the edge of the table and coming gingerly to a stand. ‘Let’s go.’

‘We’re leaving?’ Shawn asked uncertainly.

Farrell staggered, straightening up again and wobbling as he headed to the door. His head was spinning but he kept moving.

‘But what about…?’

‘We will get no help here’ Farrell interrupted him. ‘It was a mistake coming here. Let’s go.’

‘But…’

‘Then stay’ Farrell shot back without stopping his slow journey to the door. ‘I will do this on my own if I have to.’

Shawn cast a pleading look towards Arlen as Farrell made his way gradually to the door. But Arlen did nothing. He did not look at Shawn. He didn’t even move.

Shawn turned from him, muttering his apologies to Arlen, before making his way after Farrell.

Farrell stumbled through the door, shielding his eyes from the blinding sheet of the sky, after the dark interior of the inn; it took a while for his sight to adjust.

‘Farrell?’ Shawn spoke with concern appearing beside him. ‘Are you alright?’

Farrell ignored him, walking away from him and around the back of the inn where they had tied their horses. As he moved, he moved slowly, holding the wall for support.

When he had reached the place, he froze in shock.

The horses both were gone.

Inside the inn, Arlen drew the curtain back. From within the shadows that hid him, he watched the two outside in their misfortune.

‘Please don’t tell me all your money was in your bags’ Shawn begged.

Farrell didn’t answer; he just put his face in his hands, groaning in despair at his loss.

‘My horse’ Shawn lamented, leaning against the wall and casting his head to the heavens. ‘Gone…’

‘That money’ Farrell moaned into his hands. ‘That was everything I had!’ He glanced down at himself, realising now that all he owned in the world was what he wore. ‘We haven’t even started looking for her yet…how can I…?’ His legs suddenly felt like water, and he fell to his knees. ‘Where do I go from here…no money….no horse…?’ He sobbed. ‘How can I even begin looking for her now?’

‘Where were you even planning to begin?’ Shawn asked him flatly.

Farrell lifted his head from his hands, staring off into nothing with eyes out of focus. ‘I don’t know’ he murmured. ‘I just…thought a solution would come to me….I’ve been having these dreams….so vivid, so persistent…night after night….’ His body sagged. ‘I thought an answer would come to me….I thought something might happen…that I might learn something that may point me in the right direction.’

‘And nothing more has come to you?’ Shawn asked. ‘Besides these dreams?’

‘No’ Farrell shook his head. ‘I thought…….I thought….’

‘Do you remember that day?’ Shawn asked him. ‘The day that Ramana died….and Amaia was taken?’

‘Yes’ Farrell said; his voice barely audible.

‘Do you remember the men you found?’ he asked him. ‘The men on the road that were dead?’

The memory of that tragic day, the day that had changed his life forever, suddenly flashed through Farrell’s mind.

Further down the road, Farrell and his men had ridden. They had passed a single dead man, who appeared to have no injury on him at all. It was a mystery how he died. But further along the road, was a mystery far deeper.

Farrell pulled his horse back, surveying the scene around him.

‘What in god’s name….’

The bodies of twelve soldiers lay scattered in their path, soldiers who were armed and armoured. They all bore the crest of the king, a wolf swallowing a half-moon.

It looked as if they had been ambushed.

Farrell ordered the soldiers that followed him, to check the men, to see if any were alive.

But they were all dead. And Amaia, could not be found.

‘Yes’ Farrell answered. ‘Those men…they looked like….’

‘Like what?’ Shawn asked.

‘Soldiers’ Farrell finished. ‘The king’s soldiers. They wore fine armour, the kind of armour I myself wore in days gone by…when I rode off to battle. The kings armour.’

‘Kings armour?’ Shawn repeated, sounding ever more confused. ‘You mean they were the king’s men you found dead?’

‘Yes’ Farrell said. ‘They bore the king’s crest.’

Shawn turned away, frowning furiously.

‘And so the mystery deepens.’

‘It makes no sense’ Farrell growled, hitting the ground with a fist. ‘Ramana’s death, Amaia’s disappearance and those dead men wearing armour that bore the crest of the king….the wolf swallowing a half-moon…’ He shook his head. ‘It just makes no sense...’

‘So’ Shawn sighed crossing his arms. ‘What do we do now?’

‘You can do whatever you want.’

’What are you going to do then?’

Farrell went quiet.

‘Farrell?’ Shawn asked.

‘I don’t know’ Farrell said in a distant voice.

‘Are you going home?’

‘No’ Farrell answered quickly. ‘I can’t. I have no home…not anymore…I have nothing.’

‘What’s this? You’ve lost both your horses? Well that’s not good.’

Farrell’s expression darkened at the mocking tone of his brother, who had followed them outside.

‘How could you let such a thing happen?’ Arlen asked them.

‘Accidents happen’ Farrell answered coldly rising to his feet. ‘People make mistakes.’

‘No’ Arlen shook his head. ‘The brother I once knew would never let his horse be stolen so easily. You’re not him. You’re an idiot.’

‘Did you only come out here to mock me?’

‘No’ Arlen shook his head again. ‘I came out here, because I wish to find Amaia also.’

‘I thought you would never help me’ Farrell said turning to him. ‘I thought you would only hate me.’

‘You’re mistaken’ Arlen laughed. ‘I do still hate you, but our dept, to a point, is paid. I did warn you that I will kill you if I saw you again. I kept my word.’

Farrell turned his back to him, feeling cold and lost and alone and full of resentment.

‘So you have a plan?’ Shawn spoke up. ‘You know where Amaia is or where she might be?’

‘I know a man’ Arlen corrected, ‘who knows many things, has many answers to many questions. He can help us.’

‘And you know where he is?’ Shawn persisted.

Farrell’s ears perked up in interest as he listened.

‘I do’ Arlen replied. ‘We will travel to him, but it is a long road.’

‘You mean you will let us come with you?’ Shawn asked hopefully.

‘Yes.’

‘When do we leave?’ Shawn asked.

‘Soon’ Arlen replied vaguely. ’There is something I must do first.

Arlen walked the streets alone, navigating his way through the narrow alleyways of the dirty town. He had visited this place often and over the years had spent a long time here. He had come to know Stonegate with all its cracks and crevasses, as he knew the back of his hand.

He kept his head down as he walked, avoiding everyone around him, trapped in a world of his own. Arlen reached his destination, a wide bridge that stretched over a river located near the edge of the town. This path was the main road through the town, one of the more straighter roads and the one most often used by carriage drivers and those on horseback.

Arlen came to a halt, standing away from the bridge. The bustling figures moving along the congested road paid no attention to him as he leapt swiftly over wall, landing lightly on the bank at the river’s edge. Here, he made his way to a spot below the bridge, where a woman waited for him.

‘Arlen’ the woman gasped.

She ran to him, embracing him tightly; Arlen’s beefy arms wrapped around her skinny frame. She was a fairly tall woman, but her bony figure made her appear weaker than she really was. She was almost tiny in comparison to Arlen.

‘Karla’ Arlen breathed.

He held her by the shoulders, pushing her hair back so he could get a good look at her.

Karla’s long hair was dyed a bright and artificial red, and the makeup around her eyes matched that which Arlen wore.

‘Are you well?’

‘I am’ Karla sniffed. ’Pulling a handkerchief from her sleeve and dabbing at the corners of her eyes. ‘I knew this day would come…but…oh Arlen……I will miss you terribly.’

‘I know. But I told you in the beginning, that the day will come when we will have to part ways. There are still chapters in my life left unfinished.’

‘I understand’ Karla replied, head hung low. ‘Though it doesn’t make our parting any easier.’

She looked up at him again.

‘Arlen…’ she said. ‘Do you truly love me?’

‘I do’ Arlen said, holding her face in his hands. ‘More than I ever thought I could, but…if I am ever to find my daughter again…’

‘I understand’ Karla said again. ‘You don’t need to explain. There is no place for me in your future.’

‘Karla’ Arlen winced. ‘Please don’t say such things.’

‘But it’s true’ Karla said drawing away from him. ‘Arlen. I want you to know, that you’ve given me some of the happiest years of my life. No man has ever treated me so well; it just feels so unfair that I have to lose you.’

‘I told you from the very beginning…’ Arlen said.

‘I know’ Karla sighed. ‘But it doesn’t make the loss any easier to bear.’

She stared at him hard, as if wishing to remember every detail of this moment.

Karla reached towards him, holding him again, and being held in turn. Arlen fought hard to hold back the tears.

They kissed, long and deep, before Karla stepped away from him, drifting backwards. She turned her back on him, pausing for a moment.

‘I will never forget you Arlen’ she said to him without turning. ‘I hope you find what you’re looking for.’

And she walked away, out of Arlen’s life forever.

Arlen met with Shawn and Farrell shortly after, having packed his bags and readied his horse.

‘Are you ready to go?’ Shawn asked him.

Farrell just glowered.

‘Yes’ Arlen answered shortly. ‘Here.’ He tossed Shawn a small pouch of money. ‘You can buy new horses with this. There is a clock tower near the centre of this town. If you ask directions, you can find a man who sells horses near there.’

‘Wait, where are you going?’ Shawn called after him.

‘I will wait for you on the north-side of this town’ Arlen told him abruptly, leading his horse away as he spoke. ‘Do not keep me waiting too long.’

It was less than half-an hour later that the three set off. Farrell was feeling very uncomfortable upon the unfamiliar grey mare he rode, after spending so many years with his faithful steed Alastor.

‘Alastor’ Farrell sighed forlorn. ‘I don’t suppose I will ever see you again. I truly have left the past behind.’

‘What’s that?’ Shawn asked riding his horse beside him. ‘Did you say something?’

‘No’ Farrell said hanging his head. ‘It’s nothing.’

Arlen who was riding ahead of them turned his head back slightly to glare at them both. He kicked his heels into the horse, sending the beast forwards in a canter.

Behind him Farrell and Shawn urged their horses on to match his stride. They rode swiftly for the rest of that day and long after the sun had set. They only rested briefly the next day, before setting off again at a quick pace.

‘I can’t believe it was that easy. What kind of a man leaves such a valuable horse unguarded?’ the man called Branden said as he admired the great black stallion.

‘A foolish man’ his friend Callum replied. He patted the neck of the brown stallion by his side. ‘Tis a fine creature. I shall have many wonderful adventures with him.’

‘My daughter will love this horse’ Branden said. ‘Even though he is rather old, I think he will be a wonderful gift for her. She is so hard to please, I am sure this will make her happy, and she can finally stop nagging me for at least a few minutes.’

His friend chuckled quietly to himself.

‘She knows what she likes doesn’t she?’ Callum said.

‘Just like her mother’ Branden agreed. ‘They are both very difficult.’

They reached the open field before the small cottage where Branden and his family lived. Callum waved to Branden’s wife who stood at the door. She waved back to him, turning inside the house to call her daughter, telling her that her father had come home.

‘What will you call him?’ Branden asked his friend.

‘Thunder Foot’ Callum smiled at the chestnut stallion.

Branden nodded happily.

‘What about you?’ Callum asked. ‘What will you call yours?’

‘That’s for my daughter to decide.’

‘Daddy! You’re home!’ a young girl, twelve years in age came running from the cottage, followed shortly by her mother. ‘What is that?’ she asked coming to a stop and gazing up at the tall horse in awe.

‘It’s a present’ Branden told his daughter. ‘For you.’

‘Are you sure that’s a good idea?’ Branden’s wife asked him unconvinced. ‘He’s a bit too big for her.’

‘Nonsense’ Branden said, helping his daughter climb upon the black stallions, who stood obediently still, patient with the young girl as she clambered awkwardly into the saddle. ‘And if that doesn’t convince you’ he said nodding with approval at the calm demeanour of the stallion, ‘maybe this will.’

He tossed a large pouch to his wife who opened it; her eyes grew large as she stared down at the contents.

‘There must be enough here to last two years!’

‘That’s only half of it’ the Branden smirked. ‘We split it’ he glanced to Callum. ‘Didn’t we?’

‘We sure did’ Callum winked back.

‘The ground is so far away’ the daughter gleamed, kicking her feet happily as she sat in the saddle.

Callum watched in amusement as the girl leant forward confidently, patting the horse’s neck.

‘So?’ Branden asked her. ‘What will you call him?’

‘Flower’ the daughter answered immediately.

Her mother began to laugh happily.