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A month had passed since Juna had been with her new family before Hymae felt it safe to go to the next plan. He told Bulgarth and Frad of his intent while riding out to inspect the fruit orchard. “I think it is time for me to pay the House of Law a visit. Everyday I tarry is an extra day of suffering for some.” Hymae looked at the yellowed leaves as he spoke, a strange feeling of guilt washed over him. Bulgarth nodded, “You are right cousin. Although I do not conceive how that would help you find them all.” Hymae on the other hand thought differently. “Delwin, Falmen’s boy had a mark on him and the slave administrators would only dare to do that if there were legal documents to prove their ownership.” Frad broke his line of thought and said, “But I don’t understand how the registrar of slaves could miss that. He should know about the missing children. At least one or two would have come to his attention even if he was deaf.” Hymae agreed, “You have a point there Frad. I never thought of that.” Bulgarth added, “A huge search party was sent out to look for Delwin. The clerk could not have missed that. If as you say, there should be some form of documentation, then the most obvious reason is that he was bribed.” “That makes sense,” Frad said and he sighed, “We should have expected that from the start.” Bulgarth now regretted agreeing to his cousin’s plan on visiting the House of Law. Yet it was still the best option they had. “Be careful and don’t even trust an empty room while you are there.” Hymae gave him a reassuring grin. “Viggo sent me a list of the missing children and the dates they were last seen. It should help reduce the time I spend searching in there.” With a farewell nod to his companions, Hymae turned his horse back to the manor to collect the list from his room before going to the House of Law that morning. The girls were not in the manor, and he wondered what they were up to. A mile later he heard them. Sarah and Merlana were urging Juna to climb a tree by the side of the road, and Sheorl was with them to make sure nobody gets hurt. They waved as he passed, but he did not stop to watch Juna reach her first branch. He arrived in Monqui at mid-morning. The House of Law, that stood in the centre of the township, was a large three storey grey building with its roof supported by thick grey columns carved with lilies and vines. Wide glass windows let light in but kept the draft out. Above the main double oak door was the royal crest and a sign that said that this House was under the authority of the king. A single blue and white checkered flag flew from a window above the door. Legend has it that the fifth king, Carlmonest, looked out of his tower one clear cloudless day and saw pirates attacking his shores. The clear sky carried his shout to Providence and when the smoke settled, countless bodies lay scattered on the ground but not all were his people. Since then, Carlmonest had made the sky Netherweld’s flag. Hymae tied his horse to a post then turned to look for Dresden’s animal, it was not there. Good, he had hoped that the law implementer of Monqui would not be in. He did not want trouble. He walked up the stone steps, through the open door, and crossed ten feet of hall to a long counter where a five clerks were seated. He went directly to the slave register clerk. The man looked up and smiled, for the red-head was a familiar face in their establishment. “Ah, Master Hymae, how may I help you this morning?” The thin haggard face said. His lank brown hair was tied neatly behind him as was the manner of state employees but Hymae noted that his black coat was newer and of better make than his other colleagues. “Bulgarth had asked me to see if there are any slaves registered for sale.” “Oh?” a raised eyebrow. “Do no ask why, even I am at a lost. It could be because we are having problems keeping people in the orchard. You know how it is with freeman workers. They can leave anytime they want to.” The clerk smiled knowingly. “Yes that is usually how it starts. But there are none for sale at the moment I am afraid.” Hymae thanked Providence that his prayer had been answered, as it gave him a chance to put out his next request. “Then would you mind if I look at the records of owned slaves. Maybe I can approach some of the owners to sell them to us.” The clerk was pleased with the proposition. “You would need a broker for that of course.” “Yes, I do understand. I hope you don’t mind acting on our behalf.” The clerk smiled from ear to ear, “Of course not. I would be delighted to be of service to you, Master Hymae. What kind would you be looking for?” “Young and healthy ones are best, since price is not an issue. A few children too for their nimble limbs.” The clerk got up from his seat and led Hymae through a door behind his counter. This led into the registry library which looked like a single huge three storey room. Steps led up to the other two floors and Hymae could see rows and rows of endless shelves in front and above him. They climbed a staircase to the right and went to the slave registry section. The clerk showed him to an empty table and gave him the registry logbook. The names in the logbook were entered by date and the coding, for which shelf the certificate of sales and purchase could be found, were noted in the column next to the name of the slave. Hymae thanked the clerk. Since he was familiar with the coding system, he would have no problem if left alone. The clerk returned back to his station. Hymae took out the list from his jacket and he used the dates the children were last seen as a means to find their names in the logbook. All nine were there and he jotted down the registry coding. Then he took out an empty parchment and took down other names, so as not to make the clerk suspicious. Winding his way around the shelves, he searched among the documents. All nine children were registered as purchased by Hastire, including Delwin. Curiosity overcame him and he went to the shelf for logbooks showing lists of buyers. After looking about to make sure he was alone, he took out one marked with a ‘H’, and searched for Hastire. The last few pages under that name showed that Hastire had bought a large number of slaves in the last year. Most of them were children who sold themselves to him. He recognized some of the orphans. Dresden’s angry voice drifted in from the corridor outside. Hymae immediately returned the logbook to the shelf and stepped back to his table. He turned the registry pages randomly and walked towards a shelf to his right, pretending to look for the slaves in his second list. Heavy footsteps stopped behind him, so he turned with an absent-minded look on his face. Hymae feigned surprise and smiled, “Good morning Dresden, I did not expect to meet you here." The man in front of him was tall with tan curled hair haloing his clean shaven face. He was not in his long powdered wig. His grey eyes stared suspiciously at Hymae. “The not expecting part should be mine. I work here. Are you not in the wrong section, Master Hymae?” “Oh no, I am not. Bulgarth is looking for slaves to buy.” “Oh really, is he now? His father caused a lot of trouble for some landowners in the pass. I do not care if his interest is real or not, but I don’t think any of those honest people would care to see him or even you in this section.” Hymae retorted, “But Dresden, I am here with honest intends.” “That still remains to be seen. I am no fool, unlike that clerk down there. I suggest that you get out of here.” Hymae turned back to the table but Dresden stopped him and said, “I will clear the things for you.” The red head shrugged and turned towards the stairs. After making sure that Hymae had left the building, Dresden went over to the table and noted the name of the slaves Hymae wrote in his second list. He checked through the logbook, only one was from Hastire’s estate, a man in his thirties. Hymae untied his horse and with the reins in his hand, he walked toward Clover’s Inn. He was hungry and looked forward to a good meal. There were many familiar faces in the tavern and at one table was the public notary, alone as usual. Hymae went over and patted the fellow on the shoulder, “Waiting for someone? You do not mind if I join you?” The fellow looked up and his sunken thin face broke into a smile, “No, I do not mind at all. Please sit down.” His full attention now moved from the half empty plate to his new companion. Hymae called out for his order from the table. Then he turned back to the notary, “Well Halloway, how have you been keeping?” Halloway was very pleased with the question, for no one showed him as much respect as Hymae. He thought very highly of the secretary from Dew Valley. “As well as should be, although things will get better for me soon.” “Why that is good to hear my friend. A learned man like yourself deserve the best things that life can give.” “Aye, there are few who appreciates my skill. But that no longer matters now.” “Ah well, Monqui is a small town. There is not much going on around here except for in the bigger estates. I am quite surprise to see someone like you plying his trade here actually.” Halloway puffed up his chest, “There will be much going on around here soon I assure you.” His pride got the better of him and he also wanted so badly to prove how important he was to Hymae so he whispered, “Lady Hamina is asking us to get grants for Hallskein to harvest the un- owned forests.” Hymae played along. “A very astute businesswoman. That will create a lot of much needed work here. Some of those stranglers out there will at least have something to do. Is she planning on building new residences?” “Not that I know of. It is for her mines. They are mining the copper ores and the coals like mad I tell you. Imagine how much lumber they need to keep the shafts intake. She will also be selling out some of the tougher timbers.” Hymae now understood why Hallskein suddenly bought so many slaves. But the next question was why. Before he could prod some more, he saw Dresden came in through the front entrance. He quickly warned his friend, “Dresden is here. I hope he is not looking for you.” Halloway visibly broke into a sweat. “Don’t say anything I told you.” “I won’t,” Hymae promised. Dresden saw them together, and he was not pleased. He strode towards them. At that moment Hymae’s order arrived. “Thank you Dulia, that smells wonderful.” The maid giggled and ran off. Dresden pulled a chair and sat down. “What are you doing here?” Dresden asked the question to Hymae. “To eat a meal.” “That is not what I meant. Why are you with Halloway?” “I was just asking him if he would like to do the service of assisting Bulgarth purchase slaves.” “He will not do anything that either yourself or Bulgarth should wish to pay him to do.” Dresden turned a warning glance to the cowed thin face in front of him. Then he turned back to Hymae, “I suggest you take your meal to another table. I wish to eat at this table and I do not want to eat with you.” Hymae shrugged, picked up his plate and moved to another table. Viggo and two other hunters were there. The greeting they gave him was loud and none too polite, just the kind of hello friends would give each other. Viggo knew that Hymae went to the House of Law and he was curious to know what his friend managed to dig up. They continued bantering throughout the whole meal although poor Halloway was as quiet as a mouse at his table, the remainder of his meal untouched. At the end of the meal Hymae got up and made to leave. Viggo called out, “Wait up red-head. I am supposed to bring some venison down to the manor today. Maybe you can keep me company.” “Aye, that is most welcomed. Terribly warm afternoon though. Make sure the meats are packed properly; I won’t want to be swatting flies throughout.” “Excuse me sir, I do not sell bad meat to my customers.” A snort was heard from the one of their lunch companions, “Those words are for your customer to say, not you.” Guffaws of laughter, then a voice shouted, “Ooi, Hotpan, it this man honest.” “He is as honest as you Graff. And that is not much to say I tell you.” More laughter but this time from the other customers. “You’re not serving us game he caught are you Hotpan?” another voice called out. The innkeeper answered with a laugh. Neither Viggo nor Hymae stayed to hear the continuation of the debate as they made for Viggo’s trading home. His mother Chilna was there. She used to hunt until she slipped down the staircase in their home and broke an ankle. The pain would return whenever she exerted herself so now she was resigned to taking care of the family business while her children bring home meat for her to sell. Having somebody around at all times had flourished their trade. But Chilna was bored and lost her temper more easily than usual. Today was such a day. Hymae kept his distance as she nagged her eldest son all the while he was cutting the meat and packing them. Then he led out a small wagon and pile in two large packages, which was the manor’s weekly supply. Hymae made some comments about the weather to Chilna as he tied his horse to the back and climbed up to the passenger seat. Viggo gave his mother a kiss on the cheek and was spank with a fly swatter for his efforts. Then the old woman laughed. Her mood had much improved by the time Hymae waved his good-bye to her. During the ride Hymae recalled his findings and the conversation with Dresden in the House of Law. He also recounted his conversation with Halloway. As they approached the cliff path, Viggo tighten the reins on the horse, for he was a careful man. “Did Sheorl tell you about Hamina’s visit to the inn last month?” “Yes, he did. I couldn’t believe my luck when Halloway brought up the subject himself. He was very excited about it. There must be a lot of money involved for him.” “Aye, but to what end. As far as I can tell, the price of copper had neither gone up nor down.” “Maybe they are stocking up.” Hymae suggested. “If they are, then their warehouses would be full of ores. I don’t see that happening. I move around to these places you know, sending meat to their mine guards. Usually the stores would be wide open and quite empty I assure you.” “Do you think they may be selling them to another country?” “A little difficult to believe. Our trade with Kalimy or Santurst would have affected the prices of copper. Like I said, I don’t see that happening.” Hymae said, “Come to think of it, there had been no changes to the prices of coals too. Why do you think anyone would want such a huge supply in so short a time?” “We will need to keep an eye on the prices of these commodities Hymae. I don’t like the idea of so much being mined and yet seeing no inkling of a flooding in the market. I don’t like that at all.” Viggo looked to the distance where the free Olin forest loomed ahead. If Halloway was right, the forest may not be there much longer. Both him and Hymae agreed that the platforms and overhanging ropes had to be dismantled. Their presence might create suspicion in the wrong people. When they reached the manor, Viggo drove the wagon all the way to the back, carrying its cargo directly to the kitchen where Nana invited him in for a little refreshment. A little later Bulgarth joined them and when they were left alone in the kitchen he asked his cousin. “How was your visit to the House of Law?” “It was fruitful, though not good enough. Dresden came in just as I was about to check on something else. Neither one of us or any representative from Dew Valley will ever be welcomed there again I’m afraid.” Bulgarth inquired, “What happened?” Hymae sipped his tea before answering. “Dresden did not believe my assertion that you wanted to buy slaves. He thinks that we are only up to trouble, which in a way is true.” Viggo spoke up, “How are we going to help these children then?” Hymae took out a list from his side pocket and passed it to Viggo as he said, “I’ve taken note of the Sales and Purchase library coding. All these registrations lacked one thing, the document of birth. When a free born is sold as a slave his birth document will also need to be given to the buyer. If no such document exists then the registrar will note this and have three witnesses sign another document called the Certificate of Proof. No such document was in there also. Ask the parents to go to the House of Law and demand for the documents with those codes. However, they will need to go to the central courts in Sillander because it is not safe for them to state their claim here.” Viggo nodded his understanding. It was customary for the law implementer of a district to take on the task, but Dresden’s stand was in question. They needed an unbiased judge. He got up to leave, happy to realize that this indeed was a better plan than storming the mines. Bulgarth however was sceptical. “How can we be sure that the High Law Implementer in Sillander will listen to their plea? It may take months.” Hymae was thoughtful for a while, “Maybe I can talk with Talkent. I remember your father habitually seek his advice in the pass. A money handler who had lived to such a great age must know more than us.” Bulgarth asked, “And if he can’t help us, what then?” Hymae smiled at his cousin’s pessimistic outlook, “We will decide when we get an answer from him.” There was no point in telling his cousin that if Talkent could not connect them to someone in Sillander, then nobody could. Viggo returned to the wagon accompanied by the two men. Hymae lifted up his right hand to shade his eyes against the sun and Viggo turned to follow his gaze. In the distance he made out the form of Sheorl and three young teenagers, one of whom had dark hair. He could hear their loud laughter from where he stood and the sound made him glad. He climbed up the wagon and smiled to himself as he drove back to Monqui. Children could be such a nuisance, but when they are happy it made all things seemed right with the world.
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