TWO HEADS TWO SPIKES (The Pearl of Wisdom Saga) (2 page)

The stunned man reflected for a moment and replied, “In some time, I think everywhere may be your home.”

BANG! Edburgh booted open the door to his chambers harder than he wanted to due to his heavy wine consumption. The sudden, rattling report startled the naked being in his bed. The air of his chilly room was heavy with whorish smelling perfumes. He sauntered toward her slowly, sustaining constant eye contact. As Edburgh drew back the see-through bed shade, he noticed his wife’s nipples were extremely aroused. Absent spoken word Ed met her crimson shaded lips in passion. He softly kissed her neck and moved habitually to her breasts. The battle-roughened palm of Ed’s hand slid up her smooth thigh. Caroline radiated lust-filled heat from between her legs.

Something is not right. What is she up to
?

Edburgh Etburn was an angular man of twenty-six. He possessed shaggy brown hair and a dark complexion, but his bright blue eyes still retained a look of innocence. He tried to remember the story book romance he had shared with Caroline Leeson.

They grew up together in Waters Edge as members of separate affluent families. He loved her before he was old enough to know what love was. They fell deeper and deeper for each other as the years passed. However, Duke Tyus Etburn had other ideas. Duke Etburn had fixed a marriage pact for Edburgh with a very powerful family. Ed remembered how thrilled his father was about the match. But Edburgh turned down the marriage of convenience. Tyus Etburn didn’t speak to his son for months after the refusal. Ed was shocked when his father broke the silence by sending an assassin to his chambers. At least, he assumed it was his father who had sent the killer. Unfortunately, Ed dispatched the stout, pig-nosed killer before he could question him. But common sense had told him that he better flee Waters Edge until this blew over.

He needed to see Caroline before he left. During their rendezvous, he disclosed to her that he had to go to Mattingly to handle business with the Colberts.

Just before embarking on this trip, Edburgh whispered to his love, “You mean everything to me. I love you. When I return I will swear my allegiance to you by the Gods and take you as my bride.”

Caroline hugged Ed tightly. She squeezed Edburgh with a strong, gripping hug. He recalled her warm face pressed against his and the tears of joy he felt from her eyes that streamed down his cheeks that day. He had extracted a sign of love from his pocket and spun Caroline around. He took the long silver necklace that had a crescent moon dangling from it and secured it around her neck. Ed turned her back around and held her like he would never let go, but his vessel was boarding.

The journey down went according to plan, but the return excursion seemed to take ages. An awful sea tempest spun the boat every which way but home. He endured searing heat, starvation and his brain jesting him.

I must return to Waters Edge, for I shall love Caroline like no other man has loved a woman.

Ed’s loving thoughts were suddenly captured by a monstrous beast emerging from the murky waters.

It was dark purple and black, like an old festering wound, with a neck that appeared twenty men high. The body equaled four large ships and looked to be protected by its scale-like armor, shingled from top to bottom. The two arms were half the size of its neck, and there were three spikes protruding from the tip of each hand. The beast had a bright blue head with fiery glowing eyes and curved dagger-like teeth. The monstrosity looked up to the sky and spewed green sea water high toward the heavens. The creature then let out a roar that sounded like thousands of men screaming painfully in unison. It rocked the boat with such force that several passengers were tossed into the deep green waters, plummeting to certain death. The monster could have crushed the vessel like a person flicking a bug.

Abruptly, Edburgh looked up directly into the creature’s face that threatened impending doom. For a slight moment the humongous beast didn’t appear as intimidating and appeared to recede into the horizon.

One of Edburgh’s shipmates looked at him and mysteriously said, “Sin lies and dies in the eyes of the beholder, my Lord.”

Instantly the beast recoiled, seeming larger than before as it swam closer to the ship. Edburgh stared unblinkingly into the sea creature’s eyes and the beast suddenly pulled up short of the boat. Ed’s eyes remained locked with the dragon-like creature’s flaming eyes as its head came close to the ocean craft. It firmly bumped the front of the boat to set its course and stopped the back end when it swung around. The suddenly docile creature started pushing the boat amidst the bumpy waves. When they were about one day away from the coastline, the heaven-sent creature suddenly vanished. Even though the other men had seen the same thing, Edburgh still thought that he may have imagined the sea creature and that it was an illusion. One thing was certain--he had been displaced at sea for almost half a year.

He had put up with everything the Gods could throw at him, but now he arrived, ready to claim his rightful bride. Unfortunately, he was in for a nasty surprise. Due to the length of time that he had been missing at sea, the prospects of Edburgh’s return seemed bleak and it appeared he might be dead, so Caroline was betrothed to another. But soon after Ed’s return, the potential groom suffered a catastrophic hunting accident and finally the golden path to love had cleared for Edburgh. Caroline was the only person that he fully trusted since his older brother died. He had been euphoric on his wedding day with his blushing, newlywed bride.

Ed focused back into reality. He now firmly had two fingers deep inside Caroline and could feel the warm rush over his hand. Caroline squealed in pleasure. She was great in bed, but after almost five years she had yet to bear him a child. They once had sex every night for half a year without positive results. Ed even fathered two bastard children during that time to make sure that he wasn’t the problem. His father warned him about it and for that Ed hated him. Caroline had two barren aunts that made Tyus Etburn believe she would never give him a grandson.

Ed was about to shove Caroline onto her back when she stopped him. Ed cocked his head slightly in a questioning manner until Caroline put a finger over his lips and pushed him onto his back.

She leaned down close to his ear and sexily whispered, “I have a treat for you.”

He felt the heat over his entire body as Caroline lay on top of him, massaging herself up and down.

She is up to something. I can’t believe it
.

She grabbed his throbbing manhood and held it to her pleasure spot, allowing the hot, steamy passion to build. Then her moistened love box sank down on his familiar member, screaming as she reached the bottom.

Caroline Leeson, a real beauty, had lived a nice life in the Etburn castle. Ed had sacrificed a lot of family strain with his father because of her. She was short, even for a female, but had a lovely face. Her long blond hair, which was often braided, seemed like sunshine sprouting from her head. Caroline’s endearing smile could melt the heart of the most hardened man. Her only problem was that she trusted too many people. Ed’s wife seemed perfectly splendid until the short man from the harbor poisoned her head.

Caroline speeded up her lovemaking, leaning down and kissing her husband. In between deep moans she gasped, “I love you.”

With her husband distracted, she grabbed it from under the pillow. It was colder than she expected. Caroline quickly raised and plunged the knife down toward Edburgh’s heart.

“
It’s over
,” she thought. Then the voice rang in her head, “
You will rule Waters Edge…You know what you must do
,” it echoed. “
It’s all over
,” she thought again as she felt drunker than ever before without even drinking.

Edburgh caught her wrist effortlessly and the knife stopped less than an inch from his chest. Before she realized it, Caroline was flat on her back, nose bleeding, her own knife’s blade now pressed firmly to her throat.

“That is how it feels. That is what it feels like to have a knife coming at you,” Edburgh whispered. He raised his voice and said quickly, “I’ve had hundreds of swords pointed at me, thousands mayhaps; knives and daggers not quite as many. And you thought you would be the one?”

He released the pressure of the blade slightly from her neck.

“Was it my father?” Ed questioned.

“No,” Caroline squeaked.

Ed pressed the knife down again and his usually innocent visage took on the look of a madman, “Are you certain?” he growled.

“I swear it,” said Caroline delicately, fearing the slightest flinch may cause her throat to be slashed. Ed leaned back and removed the knife entirely from his wife’s throat.

“He wouldn’t tell me his name. He…he said he was going to usurp Waters Edge and if I didn’t comply he was going to rape and kill me.” Caroline cowered as Ed stared right through her eyes. Her bright-blues were open windows that let him look straight into her evil intentions.

Only one person’s name came into Edburgh Etburn’s head. He couldn’t believe it.

I can’t trust anyone in this world.

The feeling reminded him of when he had heard the news that his brother Rollo died. He still believed his brother was the only family member that had truly loved him. Edburgh had partially snapped that day and right now the same anger resurfaced like a flood rising up. Once again, rage ran cold through the body of Edburgh Etburn.

“How did you know I was plotting it?” Caroline questioned.

“A wise man once told me, ‘Sin lies and dies in the eyes of the beholder,’” he responded. “In your case, it was all over your naked body, not just in your eyes. We have been married for ten years, I know when my wife is up to something,” Ed told her.

Damn, they are beautiful eyes
.
How could somebody turn her against me?

But he couldn’t afford to get distracted by her looks.

“Now what am I to do with you?” he asked while rubbing his pointed chin.

“I promise, I will do anything,” Caroline chimed in.

Edburgh totally lost it now.

“Promise?” he screamed. “You DID promise, remember? You promised your life to me. Now you attempt to kill me. You promised me children. We have no children.”

Caroline countered by crying uncontrollably.

Ed, suddenly soothing her, slowly said, “I do feel for you, let’s just make certain this doesn’t happen again.”

Before Caroline could start to smile, her erstwhile knife entered her body. The cold, hard steel came in under her tongue, through the roof of her mouth, and into Caroline’s brain. She quivered as life slowly ebbed away, under her own murder weapon, for several moments before lying still.

“Sorry, but there is only one way to be sure you will not try to kill me again,” he whispered while removing the knife.

Edburgh wiped the blood off both sides of the blade and stood up over the body.

“Mattingly forged steel,” he said aloud as he stared at the knife.

It was the greenish blade referred to as Dragon-Steel. The knife had a golden cross-guard and black leather grip with red fibers alternating with the leather in a strange pattern. The pommel looked like a silver spiked mace as Ed threw it on the bed.

Caroline Leeson was slumped on the floor as bare as the day she was brought into the world, except for one thing. With a quick motion, Edburgh snatched the silver necklace from her neck and clutched it tightly in his palm. Vengeance now colored his every action.

I just had to murder the only person I loved. Did I really need to kill her? Mayhaps I have drunk too much? Wait, of course I had to, she was going to kill me. But I should have made her give me his name. No. I know the man who put her up to this, and he shall pay with blood
.

Ed slumped back in a chair and poured an overflowing glass of strong spirits. He drank it faster than most men should. Edburgh Etburn stared at his wife, dead on the floor, as the room began to spin.

“You boys ought know, we are only as well-off as the poorest man in Mattingly,” Jon Colbert clarified to his sons. Krys, Ryno and Ruxin walked behind their father as he continued, “Just because some people are born into the right family, they don’t deserve a lifelong advantage. We need to empower every man that can provide a skill.”

Ruxin shook his head, “Father, I have been told by friends that if you put power into the hands of the lowborn, they will behave like barbarians.”

Jon Colbert quickly retorted, “Our family used to be considered lowborn. If it was not for your grandfather taking a stand, we might not stand here today. Do WE behave like barbarians? I scarcely think so. It was those who betrayed your grandfather that acted like cold-blooded barbarians. Let us not forget what we come from, boys.” His deep voice bellowed over the chattering crowds.

Jon Colbert always seemed to remain serene even when he raised his voice. They continued to stroll away from the castle.

Jon Colbert led the way and stood closest to the ground. He was compact, stout and powerful. Jon had closely cut blond hair and a long golden goatee. His bright green eyes lit up in the Mattingly sunshine. An ill-placed lance during a tourney about fourteen years ago had left him with a mangled nose and random headaches.

It had the makings of an exquisite day in Riverfront, the Capitol of Mattingly. The frost had finally tiptoed away for another year and the early harvest danced in the wind. The aroma of lavender wafted through the air, occasionally stopping to tickle the nose. There was a bustle in the city with large crowds traveling in to buy necessities for their homes. The Colbert men continued down the crowded street away from the city.

Along the path there were different shops that sold everything from live, local animals to exotic silks from Gama Traka. Jon noticed a tiny piglet in a pen. The babe suckled on its mother’s milk, fresh as early-dawn dew. Across the road, buyers haggled with merchants to negotiate better prices for whatever their eyes fancied. Everyone bowed deeply to Duke Colbert and the boys with great respect as they passed.