Night had fallen by the time I woke back up. Someone had thankfully left a lite lantern sitting on the desk by the window not far from the bed. I moved my arms thinking only about my immediate situation as it was still much to think about what had happened. My hands were gliding across the goose down filled blanket that I was under till I could reach an edge. I sat up and leaned against the headboard as I started to remove the blanket from my legs, then all of a sudden, the door to the room opened and one of the personal bodyguards poked his head into the room with a small smile on his face
"Hey son, are you hungry?" the man asked quietly as he came fully into the room upon seeing me sitting up and struggling with the blankets.
"yes," I responded absently as I tried to get the blasted blankets off my legs! Every time I thought I had finally gotten all the little sheets sorted out another had become tangled around my ankle or foot it seemed like!
The man approached me and started to speak "Whoooaa boy! Slow down son you are going to hurt yourself. Mrs. Flitcroft specifically told us you are not to move unless you have her permission! She said that the strain you put on your body could have killed a full-blown adult. Only by luck and the grace of the gods did you survive!"
"I need to go to the bathroom," I replied emotionlessly as I tried to remove the blankets that were still hampering my movement much to my irritation!
The guard quickly steps forward and helps free my legs. "alright lad I can understand that, I will get you to the privy at the least." the man said as I pulled myself out of the bed. "Can you stand on your own?"
"I think so" I replied as I put most of my weight onto my sore legs and with the guard's help shuffled to the privy where the guard closed the door behind me to give me some privacy.
Once I was done and the guard helped back to the bed a servant he had called even before entering the room to check on me came in with a tray of meats, cheeses, and hard bread not a day old. The servant had nodded at the guard as he grabbed the tray and brought it to me at the bed.
I started to pick at and eat the food until I asked "Did we kill them all?"
The guard looked at me to see if I was losing control once again as the question came out of nowhere. "I don't know son," the man said, "we chased them into the woods and we killed quite a few of the bastards, but I'm not sure if we got them all."
"Okay," I responded as I looked ahead and mechanically ate the food in front of me. Trying hard to not think about them I got the guard to remove the tray after I had my fill, after that, the man excused himself and went back outside the door but not before he told me to "Rest son you will feel better in the morning. Mr. and Mrs. Flitcroft will explain what's going on and what's going to happen."
Sleep alluded me for what seemed like hours but soon enough I closed my eyes and dreamed. Dreamed of happier days, of safe days, and the fun "adventures" of youth.
I was awoken by a crone of a maid that was old enough to be my grandparents coming in and opening the curtains and as she muttered to herself as she did to "Brighten up this dreary room" she said. And then just as quickly she started to leave but not before noticing me waking up and introducing
"Boy my name is Head Maid Rose or Mrs. rose if you will. I keep the other maids in line and I personally look after this household. Now that you know who I am if you have anything that you need just ask" she said as she left the room.
The sun burned my eyes something fierce so I shut them again. After the old crone left, I started to grumble to myself about the sleeping habits of trolls and how they shouldn't be allowed to serve in noble houses.
"I heard that young man!" Mrs. Rose yelled from the other room making me duck back under the blankets hoping she wouldn't reappear before me to inflict more inhumane maladies upon me.
Just as I peeked back over the edge of my blankets to the door of the room I was staying in Mrs. Flitcroft finally walked in and greeted me with a big warm smile. "Morning Bruni," she said as she came to sit in the chair placed beside the bed. "As you know we have much to talk about and not much time. I'm very sorry for your loss! Your mother was an amazing woman and she helped me more than you could ever know!" she said with profound sadness in her eyes as I looked straight ahead as I didn't want to look at her for fear I would break down again.
My heart was thudding hard in my chest but nothing showed on my face as I asked the same question I had asked the guard last night. "Did we kill them all?" I asked.
"No Bruni, we did not kill them all." she said, as my hand started to ball up into a fist. "but we do have the 3 best rangers following what remains back to the camp they came from! Once we know where they come from, we can let the military forces of Entaf sort them out. "Do not fear my boy." she wisped into my head as she got up sat on the bed and hugged me to her once again. "They will all die for what they did," she said as she mumbled almost inaudibly "Debts must be paid!" she said like it was almost as an oath or a mantra.
Debts must be paid! I thought about myself with conviction!