Reckless Protector: Isaacson Trilogy Book Three

27

"Who?" Magnus said, confused.

"Erasmus."

Magnus frowned, "How does this scrap of paper lead you back to Erasmus?"

Ulric rubbed his eyes and shook his head. "Because the damn fool would recite this every time he recounted Berserker legends when we were younger." His chest rose and fell with angry breaths. "I must have heard it over a hundred times in my first year of berserkering."

Magnus's eyes widened, "You're saying you think Erasmus is the one behind this?"

Ulric stared at the snow-covered horizon. Did the words on this slip of paper mean Erasmus was the leader? He recoiled from the thought.

There was a good chance the poem was popular among other Berserkers and shaman, especially those with the same ideals as 'The Angry Wolf.' The fact they found this on Anthony did not necessarily mean Erasmus was the mastermind he was looking for.

The only thing this proved was that Erasmus had penned the message. Anthony could have picked it up anywhere he might have crossed paths with the old man and kept it on his person for the simple reason he liked it. Perhaps it meant nothing at all.

"I'm not sure," Ulric muttered. "It's possible; it's written in his hand, that much I know for certain."

Magnus looked down at Anthony, "He said he wasn't going to use it; he was only meant to retrieve it..."

Ingrid's brow puckered in a delicate frown. "Your dagger?"

"Yes. He wouldn't even know it existed or of its power unless there are shamans in league with the radicals...so, it is possible Erasmus could be, if not the leader, then at the very least a member." He turned to Ulric, "It's even more plausible when you consider it was Erasmus who gave you the amulet."

"Unless," Ulric muttered, "he picked it off of one of the men when they attacked our town a couple of weeks ago."

"I doubt that to be the case...," Magnus said, rubbing his beard. His eyes took on a faraway look for a moment before he turned to Ulric, "Has he asked for it back since giving it to you?"

"Yes. He said I no longer needed it after claiming Ingrid."

"But you kept it," Magnus murmured. "Why did you keep it?"

"The more important question is why did he want it back? What purpose could it serve him?"

Magnus smiled, "Well, that's easy to answer."

"It is?" Ingrid said.

"Yes. According to a book on talismans I have, there's no stipulation that the amulet can only amplify the powers of a Berserker. It simply states it amplifies powers. Therefore, it's safe to assume it could also enhance a shaman's powers."

They stood lost in their thoughts until Ulric quietly asked, "Why do you think Anthony was after your dagger? If Erasmus is one of them, why would they need your dagger when he has one just like it?"

Several minutes passed in silence as the question hung unanswered. Suddenly, Magnus groaned and shook his head. "Of course," he turned his face to the sky and sighed, "Why did I not think of it before?"

"Think of what?" Ingrid glanced between Ulric and Magnus, "Did I miss something?"

"Hell if I know," Ulric shrugged. "What are you not telling us, Magnus?"

Magnus gave a mirthless laugh and began pacing between where Ulric stood and Anthony's corpse in the blood-drenched snow. "Sven Arisson, Erasmus, and I each have one of the three blades. If Erasmus is indeed a member of this group, and they sent Anthony to retrieve my dagger, then they only need to retrieve Sven's."