TELVIN

The sharp line of light trickling through my window woke me up. The sun was already bright in the sky. I could hear the high pitched clank of metal on metal just below me. Once there was a pause in the clanging, there was the familiar sizzle of water boiling around hot iron. The forge in our yard was positioned just below my room window. I peaked out of it and sighed. The embers were blazing, scarcely shaded by the trees around it. Pa was inspecting the iron he was forming into a blade. I forced myself up then. I wanted to sleep longer, but I knew he would be furious if I didn’t come down to help. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as I headed down the rickety stairs.

We had just received a particularly large order of blades. It was rare for us to get more than a repair job since the village was so small. On occasion there would be a few travelers who would pick up an extra knife or more arrows, but nothing like this. A traveling guild was passing through and decided to camp just north of the windmill for the next few days. Pa needed as much help as he could get. I understood the importance of the work to be done.

I hurried downstairs, hoping I wasn’t too late for Pa’s liking. I mentally prepared myself for his harshness. I reminded myself it wouldn’t be for much longer. Iara was the light at the end of my tunnel. As I entered our small, cramped kitchen I smelled the stew Ma had simmering over the open fire. What Ma didn’t dry and salt she must have made into the soup. Gorgon had dropped by and given us a rabbit for a dozen arrows a few days ago.

“Good morning Ma,” I greeted.

She turned to me. Her tired looking face was grim today. It worried me. “Morning,” she said. Her voice even sounded forlorn. Before I could ask what was wrong, she reached into her apron pocket. She glanced out the window to make sure Pa wasn’t headed towards us. Worry played in her eyes when she looked at her husband. When her hand came back out she offered me a piece of folded parchment. The paper was misshapen by something that was concealed inside, small bumps along the face. “It must be from that girl,” Ma added.

I took it from her and unfolded it. The silver bracelet almost fell onto the floor. I fumbled and caught it, my heartbeat quickening. What did this mean? Iara usually left me notes when she would leave on trips but she never left them in town. She left it on the cottage door where she lived. Leaving things in town invited too many risks. I opened the parchment the rest of the way and let my eyes fly across the page. My heart skipped a beat when I read the words. She left and she wasn’t coming back. I felt like I was being punched in the stomach. The walls of the small kitchen felt like they were closing in around me. I could hear the blood rushing in my ears.

Before I could react to anything else, I heard Pa come up to the window. I quickly shoved the paper and silver into my pocket before he could see either. He knocked hard on the wall outside and called me. “Come out here and help.” His voice was as harsh as a whip. His eyes glared into me, waiting for my response.

“Yes Pa,” I said after a moment. I tried not to let my voice shake as I spoke. If you showed any weakness around him, he would use it against you. I went to the door and followed the stocky man back to the hot forge.

“I need to go meet with the client. You work on this in the meantime,” he ordered. He picked the metal out of the coals and shoved it at me.

I grabbed the red-hot iron and stifled a sigh. The iron made a hissing noise against my cool skin but it never burned. Blessings of a true blacksmith. Being fireproof sure came in handy in this line of work. I sat down and grabbed the hammer as Pa left. I was glad he would be gone for a little while. I liked working alone much more than working with him. And right now I certainly needed some alone time.

As I shaped the hot metal with the hammer, my mind ran to Iara. My heart ached at the thought of never seeing her again. What hurt more is she truly didn’t want to marry me. Why would she say she loved me and then leave like that? Did she not realize she was my one sure way out of this place? I wanted more than anything to travel the world with her. I had believed everything would be fine if she was just by my side. Now I have nothing. She couldn’t even grant me a goodbye in person.

The sun was in the middle of the sky. It beat down hard on me, cutting into my skin. I decided I was far overdue for a break. I had finished almost two swords in the time Pa was gone. I only needed to sharpen them on the grindstone. He would come back and hopefully have nothing to complain about. I sat the swords on the anvil and headed back to the house. Ma was sweeping the dirt floor with a straw broom, kicking small clouds of dust up with every swipe. She stopped when she saw me and sighed in relief.

“I thought you were Linus,” she told me. Ma always made herself look busy when Pa was coming around. He yelled at her just as much as he did me, if not more.

“It’s alright Ma. I’m just hungry.” I stepped next to her and grabbed a wooden bowl from the crowded shelf. I turned to the soup that still hung over the low fire.

“What did the note say?” she asked as I spooned soup into my bowl.

I sat at the table. “Iara left,” I said flatly. I brought the bowl to my lips and sipped at the hot broth. It was bland with only carrots and left-over rabbit meat in it. It was nothing to complain about though. It filled your belly.

“She left?” Ma brought her hand to her mouth as she sat across from me. Her wrinkled face twisted into concern.

I turned my face down. I couldn’t bear to look at her. “She didn’t want to marry me.”

Ma opened her mouth to say something, but she quickly closed it once more. She stiffened when she heard footsteps. Before she even heard the door open, she had the broom in her hands once again. Pa slammed the door open, making both of us jump.

“Did you finish any pieces?” Pa yelled in. He poked his head in and his face soured when he saw me eating. “Taking breaks already?”

“I finished two blades,” I said back. I always had to fight myself to make my voice softer when speaking to him. Being too harsh sent him into a rage.

“Better finish two more by dinnertime then,” he snapped. The door slammed behind him, shaking the walls of the small house.

I sighed and Ma gave me a knowing glance. She kept sweeping and I finished my soup as quickly as possible. We were both prisoners here, doomed to live under him.