your things,” Randall’s father spoke with the finality of a horse-trader closing a deal. He raked the rest of the coins from the table to join the talen in his hand.
Randall was shocked out of his near trance, and his eyes shot to his father. Tears started to well up, as the gravity of his situation hit home. His father shot him a sharp look, and spoke in his no-nonsense voice.
“Look Randall, I know it’s sudden. But you impressed Earl here with your ability to be a man. Now it’s time to be one and not embarrass me with any blubbering. Caravanning will be more exciting than baking, and I’m told you can earn a good fortune doing it.” His eyes returned to the coins in his hand, as he rubbed them between his fingers. Randall realized that his father had probably never seen a talen before in his life either.
Randall ran back to his room, tears streaming down his cheeks. He began hastily stuffing tunics into a travel sack, muttering to himself the entire time. I can’t believe Pa! He sold me like I was no different than a big sack of flour! Sold to a devil touched magicker. I never even had a say in the matter! Randall started really crying in earnest then, sobbing and snuffling as he stuffed a pair breeches on top of his tunics. It took a quite a while for him to finish his packing, but by the time he did, he’d pretty much cried himself out. His eyes were red-rimmed but dry as he left his room, resigned to his fate. He heard his mother talking in the kitchen, and went in to say his goodbyes.
His mother, Joshua and Eric were sitting at the table there, but it was obvious she hadn’t even started dinner yet. All of them looked like they had been crying recently, too. Randall ran to his mother and threw his arms around her. She hugged him back for a long moment.
“I don’t wanna go Momma,” Randall whined. At the sound of Randall’s voice, Joshua started crying again.
Randall’s mother pushed him back and held him at arm’s length. “Hush child. I’ve known this day was coming for a while. I just didn’t know it’d be so soon. You’re growing up to be a young man, and you’d be leaving us soon enough anyway. Waiting wouldn’t make it any easier when that day came. Now John tells me you’ve got good prospects, and the chance to make us proud.” She ruffled his hair and turned him around. “Now you go on, before I start bawling again.”
Randall spun back around to give his mother one more quick hug before turning and marching his way back to the front room. His father had relit his pipe, and Earl was standing near the front door, already wearing his journey cloak.
“Just one thing before we set off, boy.” Earl said. “Law says I gotta do this in front of witnesses, and your Pa seems like an upstanding and honest man.” Randall’s father smiled broadly around his pipe stem, his hand still clutching his money so tightly his knuckles were white. “I’ll give you the short version. I, Earl, promise to take you as my apprentice, to teach you my craft, treat you fairly, and to lead you into manhood as if my own flesh and blood.” He looked over at Randall’s father. “Fair enough?”
I notice he didn’t mention what his ‘craft’ was, Randall thought sarcastically.
After receiving a nod of acceptance from Randall’s father, Earl continued. “Do you, Randall Miller, swear your oath before this witness to apply yourself diligently to your lessons, to perform any tasks and related chores that I may see fit to assign, and to obey me as if I were your own father?”
Randall looked down, toeing the floor while he tried to find some loophole in the oath Earl had given him. His father’s patience came to an end before Randall could think of some way out of his dilemma. “Randall…” the elder Miller started.
Randall quickly looked up at Earl. “Yes sir,” he said quietly.
“Well then, boy. Let’s be off so that we can make it to the inn before they stop serving dinner!” Earl
James Rollins, Rebecca Cantrell