Ranger's Apprentice - Rescue

Chapter 8

"I'm not sure what you mean?"

Will tried not to be exasperated by the term. He'd heard it at least three times in the last twelve minutes, since he had informed Baron Phillip of his suspicions regarding the librarian Dursby.

"I'm simply asking if he is someone you would expect to have problems with," Will repeated carefully, fighting to keep any anger from his voice. "Any type of behavior problem, from the smallest disrespect all the way up to treason. Anything at all between those lines."

Baron Phillip leaned back in his chair, tapping his forefinger to his chin in thought. Will watched him expectantly, admittedly a little anxious as he waited for the man's reply. If he said those six words one more time...

"I've had very little direct contact with the man," the baron finally admitted slowly, "so I'm not sure that my opinion will be enough to go on."

Will could tell that he was on the brink of saying something, but was reluctant to do so. In Will's experience, reluctance was always due to some negative reason.

"First impressions are often the most reliable," Will told the man now, hoping to prompt him into telling the full truth. Phillip, in turn, regarded Will closely. The Ranger was young, the baron thought. But then, so had been Gilan when he had saved the fief from the terrors of Foldar, as well as betrayal from the baron at that time. Young or not, Phillip realized, no Ranger should be underestimated. And all, as signified by their acceptance into the elite Ranger Corps, could be trusted.

Making his decision, Phillip leaned forward and spoke in a low voice.

"I can't say that I would be totally shocked if I found that Dursby was guilty of some sort of crime," he admitted, a little shamefaced at talking so badly about any member of his staff. "In year's past, before I'd become baron, I had a bit more to do with him. He was always a cheery fellow. Loved his scrolls and loved to share them. But recently, he's become more stone-faced and secluded. Less friendly, too. At first I thought it was because of my promotion. I thought perhaps he'd become jealous of me, or angered that I no longer came to see him as much. But the more I think about it, the more it seems like there's something larger at play here."

Will had leaned forward as well by the end of Phillip's answer. The baron had been talking in a very low voice, and Will hadn't wanted to miss a single word. Now, the young Ranger sat back, nodding grimly. When he provided no explanation as to what he was thinking, Phillip decided to voice his question.

"What sort of crime do you suspect he has committed?"

Will hesitated, finishing this line of thought before he replied. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, nor did he want to fill the baron's head with ideas that may not be true. But sharing his suspicion with Phillip was what needed to be done, in case something were to go wrong in the next few days. Which was likely, he realized, if Dursby was guilty.

"I'm not sure yet," Will said carefully. He waited, watching Phillip as the man subconsciously moved to the edge of his seat. "But I rather think he might be involved with the men that are hiding out in the fortress in the woods."

At his accusation, Phillip sat back in his seat, startled.

"You really think Dursby is capable of all that?" he asked incredulously. "Have you seen the man?"

Then, realizing that Will had of course seen the librarian, the baron pressed forward before Will could point out the obvious.

"He's small and frail and not any sort of fighter or leader. What place would he have with a bunch of bandits?"

Will frowned. That was the tricky part.

"I'm not sure," he admitted, scratching his ear. He felt awkward now, having been put in a place to admit the fault in his thinking. Still, he remained confident on the outside. Halt had taught him many things over the years, but one of the most important was that he must always appear confident until he is sure that his was wrong. Otherwise, people would begin to doubt his skill and try to undermine him.

"He may not be involved with them in any physical sort of way," Will explained, growing on his own idea. "He might be more of an informant. I'm hear to rescue a missing scholar's apprentice. I have a feeling-"

"A feeling?" Baron Phillip cut in, the doubt evident in his tone.

Will turned steely eyes on him. He could admit a fault when needed. But he trusted his instincts, and he would not allow anyone to ridicule him for that. Too many times, relying on mere instincts had kept him alive.

"Yes," he replied evenly. "I have a feeling. It tells me that this Dursby character is more than he appears. All I needed from you was a second opinion on his personality. Now that I have it, I'll get to work."

Baron Phillip watched as the young man stood, with purpose, and moved to leave the room.

"What will you do?" the baron asked curiously. Admittedly, he was a bit worried for the well-being of this young man. He might be a well trained Ranger, but he was heading into a wolf's den of twenty-five men, alone.

Easily detecting the worried tone in the baron's voice, Will turned with a smile.

"Don't worry," he said. "I'll think of something."

"And you're sure we can't just send my garrison into the woods to round up these men?" Phillip tried again. The two of them had touched this subject briefly, when Will had returned three days ago. Now, Will shook his head, repeating what he had told the baron the first time.

"If we do that, then I'll never find out what they are up to," Will explained. "They could kill the scholar apprentice, assuming that is who Annalise saw in the prison. They could burn any plans they might have. There's too many things that I need to find out from these men before we bring them in."

After all, Will thought to himself, information was a Ranger's stock in trade.

Seeing the hesitation still in Phillip's eyes, Will smiled reassuringly at the baron.

"I'll be back in a few days," he assured the man. "Hopefully with a string of bandits tied up behind me."

"And if you're not?"

Will hesitated. He could follow in his mentor's footsteps, he thought. Whenever someone questioned Halt in such a way, the man would respond in one of two ways. He would either retort with a sarcastic reply such as "then I suppose I'll be dead," or he glared at them, making them wish they'd never doubted his ability.

Will, however, decided to take a different tactic. There was really no offense in the baron's concern, and Will wasn't particularly feeling sarcastic enough to mimic Halt's sort of response at the moment.

"If I'm not back in four days, send word for Redmont," he told the baron. "Tell Halt all that I've told you, and that I've not returned from my mission to report to you. Wait for the fourth day," he added before leaving the room. "No earlier, else I will be forced to listened to Halt's grumbling about a wasted trip."

Baron Phillip nodded, wishing Will good luck. Will nodded in return before leaving the baron's office. He took a moment to close his eyes and take a deep breath. Then, he opened them once more, determination filling his bones.

"Now comes the hard part," he muttered, descending the stairs.