The Rogue Guardian

Chapter 37: Cabrel

Wes's story took until the sky was nearly dark and sprinkled with stars that winked in and out of sight behind wispy clouds. We both watched the drifting, changing landscape of the sky as I let his memories sink in.

It was a weird feeling. I wished I could take back knowing, but at the same time I knew it was right that I finally did. Like Wes had reached in and scooped out a place within me, and as painful as the experience was there was no denying the story fit there.

I'd known Jaden had entered the Glory Duels, and I'd known the Glory Duels were fights to the death, so logically I'd known he'd killed people to survive and win but that was different from knowing there were people dead because of him. And people that had been left behind, missing their family.

Missing their father.

"I'm sorry," I finally said. "I shouldn't have asked."

He gave me a side-glance, looking worn out. "Sorry you had to hear."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... like you said before. We understand each other, because we both knew him. I know how you feel about him. He was good at that, being a... someone like a father. A good teacher, someone you look up to. If this takes that away from you, I'm sorry."

I put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about that." I would sort out what I felt about this and what it changed some other time. I didn't know what thinking too hard about it might change, and if I was going to break down it wouldn't be in front of Wes.

He sighed. "You probably think I was an idiot, assuming he was my dad like that."

"Of course not. Like you said, he treated you like a son, didn't he? He probably felt guilty, wanted you to feel like you had a father in some way. It's not your fault you picked up the wrong clues."

"Maybe not, but if I hadn't been so set on the wrong conclusion maybe I would have picked up the right clues. I was looking so hard for signs he was or had been in love with my mother I missed other things. Well, other people."

"Gordan?" I guessed immediately.

"You'd think, wouldn't you? But looking back, I don't think so. There was another man I saw just a few times in the first year or two that Jaden was teaching me. A castle guard, I think he was, named Cabrel."

It took me a moment to catch the name but when I did I turned toward him so quickly he jolted and grabbed the edge of the roof. "Cabrel?"

"Pretty sure," he said, startled. "Mean anything to you?"

"I knew him, he was--" I bit off my sentence as soon as I realized what I was saying. Wes couldn't know that I'd grown up surrounded by guards. "Er. I knew him."

"Uh... okay. How, exactly?"

Cabrel had been my favorite guard when I was younger. He slipped candy to my friends and I and didn't turn us in when he caught us playing pranks. Unfortunately, he'd left when I was twelve and I never saw him again. But in the four years I'd known him, I'd made the connection between him and Jaden. Never explicitly, but I'd just... sensed there was some connection between them, something in the way both of them treated me.

But I couldn't tell Wes that.

"I've lived in the capital my whole life. Before now, I mean. I sometimes ran into him when I was younger."

"Yeah, he left the capital when I was thirteen or fourteen or so. He came to Maenar, actually. Jaden wanted him to stay, but he said he was under suspicion and had to get out. He was a rebel, so I guess they got wind of that."