The Awakened: Book One by Jason Tesar Page A

though the city couldn’t function without him.”
    “On the contrary,” stated the man seated at the center of the table.  “The city will function without him.  In fact, it is the judgment of this council that all possessions and responsibilities of your husband will be given over to an appointed steward for a period of one week.”
    The statement hit Maeryn like a wave, forcing the breath from her lungs.  Under Orudan law a man’s possessions included his wife and children.  The interrogator was trying to scare her into giving them information.  It was working.  She started to cry for real this time.
    The interrogator’s voice rose so as to be heard clearly above her sobbing.  He wasn’t about to repeat himself.  “If your husband does not return in a week, then the appointed steward will gain ownership of those possessions and responsibilities.”
    In the silence that followed, the words began to sink in.  Maeryn continued to cry outwardly to show the interrogator that he had made his point, while inwardly she wept at the thought of Adair being replaced so quickly.  How could they treat us like this, after all he sacrificed for them?
    “Please find him,” she pleaded.
    “That is all,” stated the interrogator and the whole panel of men rose to leave the room.
    As they filed out the door, Thaddius separated from the group and came over to Maeryn.  He waited until they were alone before speaking.  “Adair left a message with one of my servants that he would be gone for more than a day.  He wouldn’t have done that if he was deserting.  I tried to tell them, but they wouldn’t listen.  I’m sorry.”
    Maeryn simply nodded in response, wiping the tears from her face.
    Thaddius slowly backed up, then turned and followed after the other members of the council.
    Maeryn counted to ten before she stopped crying.  I think they were convinced, she assured herself with a smile of satisfaction.  Men like that have no idea what to do with an emotional woman.  They only know how to fight wars and give orders.
     
    The following day, Maeryn stood on the balcony outside of her bedroom.  The sun was well above the horizon and the city glittered with the yellow light reflecting off the surface of the water.  She watched a procession of wagons and marching soldiers wind through the streets of the city.  Red banners at the front and rear of the procession waved in the breeze, the gold eagle emblem of the Orudan Empire sparkling as it caught the sunlight.
    “You’re not in charge yet,” she said to the man inside the covered carriage half a mile away.  “You’re only a steward!”
    The citizens of Bastul lined the streets, waving their hands at his carriage as it passed them.  She was disgusted by him already.  You would think the Emperor himself had come to visit us.   Adair never flaunted his power; he didn’t need to.  People tended to respect him because of his character first, and his power second.  Unlike this man, who is obviously trying to make up for something he lacks!
    The procession continued along the cobblestone road leading up to the mansion that Maeryn had called home for many years.  The pace was slowed considerably when the road became a series of switchbacks as it climbed the hill.  When the procession finally reached the top and entered the courtyard, Maeryn decided to go downstairs and meet this prideful man who thought he could take over for Adair.
    Exiting the house, Maeryn walked through the garden situated between the guest wing and slaves’ quarters of the mansion.  Adair had the garden built as a gift to Maeryn, following the customs of her ancestors.  Trimmed trees and shrubs dotted the landscape, separated by rings of brightly colored flowers.  The north end of this secluded paradise was open to the hilltop courtyard, containing stables, soldiers’ housing, and various other structures, all surrounded by a pale stone wall.
    She stopped at the entrance to the