The Guardian Of Empires

5. Purification

Scorching July came and changed lush green June.

Life in the capital was in full swing. All rooms at the inn "At Jeanne's" were full. Tom was planning to build another floor.

Theodore had stopped his training sessions with Caesar and hadn't seen him for a couple of weeks. The prince had been to the pub only once when it was Tom's shift. A tangle of painful feelings for Caesar were boiling inside Theodore.

At the tavern, people talked about San Antonio, as scandals continuously swirled here and there: merchants sold opium to students and noblemen's children, harlots from the "courtyard of miracles" seduced foreign travelers to take their money. "It's a matter of time before the Synod brings down its army on them. They could eradicate those folks like cockroaches, smash them." Theodore half-listened while working, as talks about city life were distracting him from melancholy thoughts.

In the meantime, Jeanne's condition worsened. The disease spread, interfering with breathing, taking her life's energy, and poisoning her body. Maria kept making herbal teas. The doctor came every two days to check on Jeanne, control the treatment process, try various methods, and bring expensive essential oils which would be added to hot water so Jeanne could inhale the steam.

Tom was tossing around with his face twisted in panic, hysterically asking the doctor questions and striving to resort to non-standard treatments, afraid he might miss some remote possibilities. Following his request, Theodore brought Tamara to the inn with all her witching stuff. Both brother and sister became a double demon of a nervous hysteria next to the patient's bed.

Jeanne felt apathy toward her own ailment. Though she was putting all her efforts into recovering, she admitted that nothing helped, and looked at Tom and Tamara with a slight smile, as if they were just kids scared of the dark. She used to say: "I will get better, I will. We just need to wait a little more, and you shouldn't be that worried. And, if I don't make it, it still will be okay. No one can escape kingdom come. God is waiting for us, arms open."

Theodore clenched his fingers, biting his tongue behind pursed lips. He was angry. For Jeanne, her approaching death meant only a transition to a fascinating new world. But for Theo, it would be a great loss and more. He forebode chaos ahead of him. The chaos that is not going to happen with aunt Jeanne alive, soothing everyone, controlling the work being done, giving advice, doing accounting, and planning future procurements. She was the keystone of business, not Tom. She was the support, holding success and order.

Theodore took some of her duties. He was one of the few in the family who could handle accounting, all necessary records, and order planning.

The hotel's bustle still gave Theodore some involvement in life; however, it took too much energy and didn't leave time for anything else. He hasn't read a single book since March. In the beginning of July, Maxim showed up with a job proposal, teach English to the daughter of one of Marescall aristocrats. Maxim was teaching German, and the demand for teachers of these languages continued to increase due to the lack of specialists. Theodore agreed. He began visiting Marconi's house on the neighboring street twice a week to study with their daughter Catherine. Now he had to split his time between lessons, organizing curriculum, and work at the "At Jeanne's". Tom was reluctant to let Theodore go since there was a lot of work to do; besides, it should be done quickly and skillfully, and Theo was irreplaceable. But the young man didn't care what Tom thought; he was more than happy to escape hotel routine.

***

Caesar came to the tavern with Beth on one of those days when the weather in the city was stuffy. All doors and windows were thrown open to catch some fresh air. For Theodore, getting drunk on such an evening was comparable to suicide, so he refused any alcohol and left Tom to drawn his sorrows in a cold beer together with a funny company of guests. The young man was leisurely sharpening knives behind the bar. Maria and Tamara stayed upstairs with Jeanne.