Finding Me (Chpater 4)

Chapter 41

“This is the town?”  Canace asked, shocked.  They were standing on a small hill that overlooked the town. 2

“The town of Jamestill.  You like it?” he asked, turning toward her.3

She managed to force a grin, “It’s very big…”  The word ‘town’ was a bit exaggerated for these few houses, store, a blacksmith, and stable. 4

Jay looked at the town, “It is…when you include the farming fields.  If they weren’t there, I’d call this deserted.”5

“It’s a wonder it isn’t deserted…”  Canace muttered under her breath.6

“Hmm?”  Jay asked, “What was that?”7

“Nothing,” she smiled, “Let’s get going!  I’m famished!”8

“Race you down the hill!”  Jay said, turning toward her.  But she had already started down the hill with Melody at her heels. 9

“Hey!  Come back!” he went running after her.  But to his surprise, he tripped, and went tumbling down the hill.  “Agggghhhh-Ouch!  Hey!  Help!”10

Canace, who was about halfway down the hill, looked back up and saw him rolling straight at her.  Melody ran away barking. 11

“Uh oh…that can’t be good,” she said as she stared at the rolling Jay.  It did not occur to her to move until it was a bit too late.  They collided and they both went tumbling down the hill. 12

“Hey!”13

“Ouch!” 14

“That was my arm!”15

“Don’t pull my hair!”16

“My spleen!”17

They rolled all the way down the hill until they went smack into a tree.18

Jay, a bit dazed, pulled himself off the ground, and leaned against the tree.  He defiantly did not want to try that again. 19

“My head hurts…”  Canace said.  She was sprawled on the dead grass next to him, rubbing her sore head. 20

He looked over at her, “Are you okay?”21

She sat up and rolled her head around a bit, “I’ll be fine.  But I think I might have a headache for awhile.”22

“Well,” Jay started, standing up, “Let’s get going.  The town is very strict about visitors after nightfall.”23

“We can’t go again?”  Canace grinned at him. 24

Returning the smile, he said, “I think we’ve had our share of fun for the past few days, don’t you?”  Jay reached out his hand to pull her up, and she gladly accepted. 25

What the town lacked in size, it made up for in the amount of people it had.  As Canace and Jay were walking through the town, they saw people scurrying like little mice to get their jobs done.  Everywhere people were working in the fields, milking cattle, sewing, and churning butter.  There were little kids running around having fun screaming with their friends . Melody was a bit jumpy with some new excitement and it Canace struggled to keep her calm.  They walked a minute and arrived at the blacksmiths. Jay knocked on the small wooden door.26

“Hello?  Anyone home?”  Jay called.  There came a rustle from inside the house, and a voice was heard saying, “Half a second!”27

Then the door opened to reveal a short, stout blonde woman holding a newborn baby.  “Well hello Jay!  Been awhile since I’ve seen you around.  What brings you here?”28

Jay smiled and replied, “Hello Mrs. Sill.  Might you know where I can find Sam at this hour?” 29

Mrs. Sill pointed to the back and said, “Sam’s around back working.  It is about time to stop work for the day.  Jay, would you mind asking him to bring in some bread from the barn please?”30

“Anything Mrs. Sill.  Thank you.”  Jay headed to back with Canace and Melody following closely. 31

The sound of pounding metal could be heard as they neared the back workshop.  The door the workshop was ajar, and Jay walked in uninvited. Canace poked her head in, and looked around.  The man worked in a rather large room.  On the west wall was a large supply of metal.  Hanging above that were swords of every size.  Covering the north wall, there was a large amount of coal.  In addition, on the east side, there was an enormous fire pit.  Next to the fire pit, a man was hammering a sword into position.  She watched Jay walk up to the man and slightly tap him on the back.  The man put down his work and turned around.  32

While he and Jay were talking, Canace walked in quietly with Melody beside her.  She was looking at the swords on the wall when a voice said, “Well Jay, who’s your little friend here?”  Canace jumped and turned around.  The man Jay had been talking with was right behind her.33

“She’s a bit jumpy Jay,” he said, inspecting her, “I guess she’s alright.” 34

Canace frowned and opened her mouth to speak her angered mind when Jay cut her off and said, “Canace, this is my friend Sam.  He’s agreed to let us stay a few nights.”35

Canace forced a smile and said, “Thank you sir.” 36

He grinned and said, “You two will be staying in the barn.  We do not have much food up at the house, so you will have to feed yourselves.  Stay as long as you want as long as you don’t disturb the pigs.”37

Jay stuck out his hand and said, “Will do sir.” 38

Sam shook his hand and showed them to the barn.  Sam opened up the heavy door, and pointed to the loft, “You guys can sleep up there.  Don’t mess up the hay too bad, it was a lot of trouble to get up there.  And Jay?” he looked toward Jay.39

“Yes?”  Jay asked.40

“Don’t let that girl near my chickens.” 41

Trying to stifle a laugh, Jay replied, “Won’t let her near them Sam.” 42

“Thanks.”  Sam handed Jay candle for light with a match, then shook his finger at Canace.  With that, Sam grabbed a loaf of bread, shut the barn door, and headed for the house.43

After he had left, Jay burst out laughing. 44

“What’s so funny?”  Canace demanded.  Jay looked at her, and burst out laughing again. 45

“If you’re going to be rude, I’m not going to talk to you.”  Canace told him, hurt.  She climbed up the loft and leaned against one of the many hay bundles.  Melody started barking while giving Jay a commanding look.46

Jay glared at the dog, “I know, I’m on my way to go do that right now.  You know it would be a bit easier if you weren’t bugging me.”  Melody barked once more, and then ran over to a small crack in the wall. 47

“Hey get away from there Melody!”  Jay ran over to stop Melody, but was too late and watched Melody squeeze through the hole.  Great, he thought, Not only have I made her mad, I lost her dog.  Jay smacked himself on the head, and then thought, I know what to do! 48

Jay stood on the ladder and climbed up to go apologize to her. “Hey Canace?”49

“What?”50

“I’m sorry for laughing at you.”51

“No you’re not.”52

“Yes I am.  Here, to show you, I’ll help you find a clue about your identity.”53

“You will?”  Canace stood up from where she was, and walked over to him. 54

He smiled at her, “Of course.  Have you tried looking through your pack?”55

“Yes.  I didn’t find anything.”  She looked at the floor. 56

“Maybe you missed something.  It’s worth a check right?” he asked.57

“Okay, might as well.” 58

Jay lit the candle as Canace pulled over a bundle of hay to use as a table.  She gently took off her bag and placed down.  She noticed how pretty the bag was.  It a velvet green bag with a golden lace around the top of it.  Upon the lace there were four red rhinestones.  With admiration, she emptied it of its items.  Many things came flowing out.59

Jay looked at the mess with resentment, “Um, can you take out the things that you bought after you lost your memory?”  Canace did, and the pile cut in half. 60

“Wow, you had a lot of stuff with you!” Jay remarked.61

Canace blushed, “Hey, what’s a girl to do without her things? Let’s start.” 62

Jay whistled, but kept his opinion to himself, “Well, let’s see, you had a sack of money. ” He opened the sack and a lot of gold poured out. He looked at her in surprise.63

Canace rubbed her head, “Remember that card game everyone was betting on?” 64

“What does that have to do with anything?” Jay asked.65

“Well I had one of the guys share his winnings with me. To make things simple, he was a big gambler.”  Canace smiled in memory of her friend.66

“But he didn’t win this much, did he?  If he had, that would’ve been all he had.”  Jay pointed out.67

Canace frowned, “No, I had some money on me before that.  Let me see,” She started sorting out the money into two piles.  When she was done, there was one large pile and one not so large pile.  “There we go, that’s around how much I had.”  She gave a triumphant smile.68

“Wow,” he said at the results, “That’s a lot for a mere traveler.  So, maybe you’re wealthy.” 69

Canace frowned, “I don’t recall that…Then again, I don’t recall much of anything.”  70

Jay saw she was about to become sad again and changed the topic, “So let’s see what else you have.  A brush, you’re cloak, food, card, and what’s this?”  Jay held up the little black box.  “What’s in the box?”  He opened it and found the empty piece of paper. 71

Canace shook her head, “I’ve already looked at it.  There’s nothing on it at all. No words, no drawings, nothing.” 72

“Maybe it has some kind of secret code on it that can only be seen in certain conditions.” 73

“Are you serious?”  Canace raised an eyebrow. 74

“Yeah, I have a friend who knows all about that sort of thing.  He lives in a town far away from here though.”  Jay looked at her, “Here’s a map.”  He took his beaten pack from his back, pulled out a map of the land, and showed it to her.  He pointed to a small town and said, “Here we are, and here is Hollow Hills.  And over here,” he stretched his arm across the map, “here’s the town my friend lives in.”75

Canace’s eyes got wide, “Wow…That’s a long ways away.”76

“Kind of.”  Jay smiled, “We’ll make our way there.”77

“That’s good,” And trying not to lose hope, she said, “We should keep looking for other clues78

Jay nodded then asked, “Did you look through the pockets of any of your clothes?  Maybe there was a clue.”79

Canace brightened, “You know, I didn’t!”  They grabbed the pant from her pile of clothes and started feeling around in the pockets. 80

“Nothing.”81

”Nope” 82

“There are a few crumbs.”83

“Nothing, nothing at all-Wait a second!” 84

Canace looked up at Jay, “What?” 85

Jay held up a strip of cloth.  It was red with a blue diamond pattern, not to mention ripping a bit.  “Know what it is?” he asked, “It doesn’t match any of your clothes.”  Jay handed it to Canace and she looked at it closely.  After flipping it around a few times, she said, “I’ve never seen it before.”  Jay frowned and watched her as she continued to rotate the cloth and stare at it while in deep thought.  Remember, Canace told herself in deep thought, please, remember!  But nothing came to her, and she sighed with disappointment. 86

Jay looked at what else had been in the bag and glanced over at what had not before.  He noticed a small leather-bound notebook underneath all Canace’s clothes. 87

“What’s this?”  Jay asked as he reached out and grabbed the small book. 88

Canace glanced at it and said, “Oh, it’s someone’s diary.  I found it at the inn in Hollow Hills.”89

Jay smiled at her, “It’s not nice to go through other people’s private things.”  Then he opened it up to look at the owner’s name.  Jay’s eyes got wide, “Hey, I know this person!” 90

Canace looked at him in confusion, “Who is it?”91

“I know this person!”  She rolled her eyes as Jay got excited, “It’s…” 92

Just then, the door burst open and a man walked in.  Jay and Canace ducked behind the shelter of the haystacks, and then peered over to see who was there.  The man had blond hair and was rather tall.  He wore a green shirt and overalls. 93

The man looked around, “Hello?”  He started climbing up the ladder, but was interrupted when a mad Melody came bounding through the door and started biting his leg.  The man was surprised and looked down, “Hey little guy, no reason to bite.  I’m just looking for someone.”  Melody yelped, but watched him as he continued climbing up the ladder.  Jay sighed with relief that Melody had come back, but then realized the man was heading right towards them.94

When he reached the top, he started snooping around for someone. When the man came near to Canace and Jay’s spot, Jay sprang up and drew a hidden sword from his side.  “Who are you?” he declared. 95

The man backed away and asked, “I’m looking for a Jay of Venod.  Are you him?”96

Jay glared at the man, “Who wants to know?”  The sword was at the man’s neck.97

“I have a message for him and have been searching for him for many days.” the man replied, staring at the sword. 98

Jay blushed and put his sword away, “Sorry about that.  Been having’ a bit of trouble these last few days.”99

The man stood up and gulped, “Understandable.  I’m Ned.” 100

“Nice to meet you,” Jay said, “Well, you found me.  What’s the message?” 101

Ned stood up and brushed his clothes off, “Danny from Daliyn’s Peak must see you immediately.  He plans to meet you at the Ackley Inn in Abaratis in three days.”102

“Why so soon?”  Jay asked.103

Ned looked Jay in the eye and said, “If a certain person hadn’t been so hard to find, maybe you would have more time.”104

Canace giggled while Jay rubbed his head in embarrassment. 105

“Well, I’ve got to be off.” and he headed down the ladder. 106

“See you around Ned,” Jay called.  Ned waved without looking back, and walked out the moonlit door. 107

Jay turned around and walked back over to Canace, who had been peering through the diary.  “Hey, you should get out of there.” 108

Canace looked up and said, “Whose is it?” 109

Jay smiled and replied, “You know my friend who I said lived in that faraway town?”  Canace nodded.  “He’s the one who owns the diary.”110

“And?”  Canace asked, “What else?”111

“You’re good.”  Jay complimented, “He also happens to be my friend the messenger spoke of.”112

Canace smiled brightly, excitement glowing in her eyes, “Yeah!  Wait a second, where’s the town he spoke of?” 113

Jay sat down next to the make-shift table and pulled the map over, “It’s right here.”114

Canace looked over and exclaimed, “It’s the next town to the east!” 115

Jay nodded, “Right.”116

Canace stood up, “It looks like we have to be up early.  We should go to bed.” 117

“Well, we don’t have to be there for three days.  But I guess it would be a good idea.”  Jay agreed.  Canace took a bundle of hay and opened it up.  Then she took they hay and spread it across the hard wooden floor to construct a makeshift bed.  Canace took off her cloak and necklace to put them in her bag.  Then she picked up one of her blankets that had been lying on the table and lay down on the bed.  She covered herself with the blanket, then rolled over and watched Jay do the same thing.  She watched Jay reach out and blow out the candle that swept the room into total darkness.118

As Canace turned over to go to sleep, she heard Melody barking, and sat up. 119

“Melody, I’m up here.  Everything’s okay.”  Canace tried to calm her.  “Silly puppy,” Canace muttered only loud enough for Jay to hear. 120

“If Melody is only a puppy, then she’s probably still scared of certain things. The dark must be one of them,” Jay pointed out as Melody droned on and on. 121

Although she was tired and annoyed at the dog, she knew as Melody’s owner, she had to take care of her accordingly.  Canace picked herself up and slowly made her way around the haystacks to the ladder.  Hoping she would not fall, she crouched down and felt for the ladder, the slowly and carefully climbed down it, step by step.  Down she went until her foot touched the ground.  Melody was waiting at the bottom for her to come, and ran around Canace’s feet.  Canace scooped the small puppy dog up, and felt for the ladder.  When Canace found it, she climbed back up more cautiously then before.  She reached the top and set the puppy down in the safety of the loft.  Then Canace picked herself up and stood upon the loft. She took a step forward and felt a pain on her foot, and then something hit her in the head.  “Owe!” she yelled.122

“Are you okay?”  Jay called from somewhere in the darkness.123

Canace rubbed her head as she felt for what she had stepped on.  “Yeah, I just stepped on a rake.” 124

Jay smiled, and then felt Melody jump on him.  In the dark, he managed to get a hold of the little scamperer and glared at it in the dark “You know, you’re starting to get annoying Melody.”  Melody just barked at this.  Canace’s eyes had by this time adjusted to the dark, and she made her way back to her bed.  She sat down and pulled the blanket over her.  She felt Melody snuggle up against her feet.125

“Goodnight Jay.”126

“’Night Canace.  Hey,”127

“Yeah?”128

“Keep your dog away from me in the morning. I value my time I have to sleep.”129

“Okay.  But she has a mind of her own.”130

“No, really.  Canace, your dog is out to kill me.” 131

“If you think that…”132

“Canace?”  133

All Jay heard was the steady breathing of a sleeping girl.134