Chapter 79: Rest and Recovery

Raymond paid a hefty sum to bring the physician to the inn to treat Henk, then went downstairs with Mara for a simple meal. By the time they had finished and brought some food upstairs, the physician had already tended to Henk's wounds.

“I must say, I've never seen a man with such a strong constitution... a half-orc, I mean.” The physician glanced back at Henk. “Even without my help, he'd recover on his own in a few days.”

Raymond nodded and pressed a dozen or so copper coins into his hand. “Thank you. I'm sure he'll recover even faster with your treatment.”

The physician accepted the coins with a smile. “All he needs now is plenty of rest and meat. He'll be well again soon.”

After seeing the physician out, Raymond returned to the room. Henk was already eating the food they had brought him, while Mara stood nearby.

Raymond looked at her. “Henk and I finished counting what we took. Forty-seven silver coins, a large pile of copper, and three crates of things I can't identify. I suspect they're worth quite a bit.”

“What do you mean?” Mara asked, puzzled by the sudden remark.

Raymond took out a small coin purse and offered it to her. “There are sixty silver coins in here. It's payment for the job, and a thank-you for helping us get away. We haven't collected the reward for those three crates yet, so I'll have to owe you your share of that for now.”

Mara did not take the purse. She stared at him with wide eyes. “Are you sending me away? Do you want us to split up?”

Raymond glanced at Henk and smiled. “I'm not sending you away, and I'm not going to force you to stay with us either. Whether you come with us is your choice. This payment is yours regardless. And I want to thank you again for choosing to help us. You could have abandoned us, but you didn't. I'll always remember that.”

His words made Mara uncomfortable. She glanced awkwardly at Henk, then frowned. “If anyone should be thanking me, it's Henk. I didn't do it for you, human.”

Raymond ignored her prickly manner and simply held the purse a little closer.

This time, Mara took it without hesitation. She gave it a gentle shake, and the clear clink of the coins brought a pleased smile to her face.

Putting the purse in her pocket, she looked from Raymond to Henk. “It's not as though I have to stay with you. But Henk is badly hurt. He still needs someone to protect him, doesn't he?”

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Raymond and Henk exchanged a smile. Neither challenged her excuse.

They talked for a little while. Once Henk had finished his meal, Raymond cleared away the scraps, then he and Mara returned to their respective rooms.

Raymond dropped heavily onto the bed, without even considering a bath. The occasional stab of pain in his left ribs reminded him of Teddy's dagger that morning.

Teddy's attack and the betrayal by Derek and his men had shown him what mercenaries really were: desperate men who risked their lives for money. They might call one another brothers in ordinary times, but when real profit was at stake, those bonds proved fragile.

Recruiting a half-orc team he had known for less than an hour and sharing all his information with them had clearly been a foolish decision.

If Mara had joined Bram and Ned in attacking Henk, Henk might already be dead. Henk had expressed no resentment, but Raymond believed he bore most of the responsibility for what had happened.

Perhaps working with others did not require laying out the entire mission. Some people only needed to know their own assignments. He and the people he trusted should keep control of the overall plan.

Mara had not joined Bram and Ned in attacking Henk. Afterward, she had helped get him to safety and carry out the cargo. Those actions had earned her a little more of Raymond's trust, but it was still limited. Without enough proof that they could be trusted, he could no longer place his faith in anyone so readily.

With those heavy thoughts on his mind, Raymond soon fell asleep.

Early the next morning, while Henk and Mara were still sleeping soundly, Raymond got up and had some oat porridge with meat at the inn.

He then sorted through the weapons he had taken from Teddy and the others. Teddy's fine shortsword was considerably better than Raymond's old one. After trying a few swings, he decided to keep it.

The other weapons were decent enough, but none offered any particular advantage over his current arming sword. He was also more comfortable using the sword he already had, so he chose not to replace it.

Raymond bundled up the other weapons and took them to the smithy to sell. He also brought his coat of plates and arming sword for repairs and maintenance. Even his arming coat, which Teddy had slashed over his left ribs, went in to have the tear sewn up.

He did not sell his old shortsword. It had served him well, and it had belonged to Tom. It would fetch very little anyway. Better to keep it, so that if he ever met Tom's family, he could return it to them.

As for Henk's hand-and-a-half sword, Raymond made no decision on his behalf. What to do with it was best left to Henk himself.

After deducting the cost of repairing and maintaining his equipment, Raymond came away with five silver coins. It was not much. The smith had noticed his eagerness to sell and offered a low price, but Raymond had no desire to haggle. He took the money, said farewell, and left.

Elmbridge was not a large town. Compared with Blackstone, it seemed more like a market that had grown up around a bridge. Still, it lay on the route from Brightwater to the royal capital of Goldvale, so trade was reasonably brisk and plenty of caravans passed through.

Most were bound for Brightwater. Raymond asked around among several caravans, but none was going to Blackstone. He was in no hurry, though. Henk was still recovering, and there was no need to return immediately.

Finding a caravan heading their way would be ideal. Otherwise, the three of them faced a long, tiring walk with considerably greater risk. As for buying horses, Raymond considered himself fairly well-off now, but he could afford neither the purchase nor the upkeep of riding horses. He soon put that extravagant idea out of his mind.