Lord Velmore stood near the grand pillars of the royal court entrance with his arms folded behind his back. His gaze was sharp and calculating as he scanned the courtyard. The sun had already climbed to its peak, casting harsh light over the polished tiles and gilded carvings. Beside him stood the same nobles and traders who had once sneered at Baron Elias.
But now their disgust for Elias had vanished and turned into greed. Their mockery had turned into silent, anxious glances as they checked the road again and again.
Elias was late and it made them anxious. The oldest trader, a man known for his scarlet robes and three chins, wrung his bejeweled hands. "He should have been here by now. The court does not tolerate delays."
"Maybe he met trouble on the road," said another, trying to sound casual but failing to hide the nervous edge in his voice.
Velmore didn't reply immediately. He watched the wide path leading up to the royal court that was still empty. Not a single rider or cart was in sight so far. The corners of his lips tugged upward.
"He is facing trouble? Or he is finally exhausted from deceiving everyone and has no means to come here." he finally said with a soft scoff. "Do you really believe that he would come here today?"
The others turned to him with conflicted expressions on their faces.
"What do you mean?" asked the wiry noble with the ink-stained cuffs.
Velmore smirked, but looked at them as if they were fools, "think about it, he had presented us two chests full of gold but the estate was dying. He did not even have maids to take care of the manor or money to repair it. How could he have so much gold? Have you heard his name in any kind of trade or he had served his majesty to earn that reward?" they all exchanged confused glances. Crestford was known to be a fallen house. That was the only reason they had insulted Elias in the first place.
"But we saw the gold with our own eyes that night." The trader still did not want to let go of the dream that he was going to be paid double. He clung to the thought making Gilmore's eyes narrowed but he still hid his disgust with a smile.
"Yes, we have seen the chest. But none of you had checked the gold. You were so blinded by its shine that you forgot your sense. Tell me, what if there were only a few layers of real coin at the top of the chest? And the rest" He paused, savoring the moment, "was filled with bronze or wood or stone."
A stunned silence fell over them. Their expressions changed immediately.
"He would not do that to us!" Though the man said so, the seed of doubt had been sown in his mind.
"But it did seem like too much." said another while fidgeting with his rings. Their expressions changed from bad to worse.
"What if.."
Velmore gave a light shrug, like a man who had tried to warn children not to touch fire. "What other reason is there for such a dramatic absence? He had everything to gain by showing up on time. And yet, he doesn't."
The traders' expressions darkened with realization. Their pride stung, and their ambition burned. They could not believe that he had made a fool of them. One of them cursed loudly, slapping the pillar beside him. "That bastard! He fooled us!"
"We gave him respect because we thought he won," another spat. "We were kind to him yesterday!"
The air was thick with tension and indignation now. The old clock tower at the corner of the court struck twelve with a heavy, echoing clang. As if it was even trying to mock them for waiting here for two long hours.
"The appointed hour has already passed, how long are we going to wait for him here?" Velmore's voice was calm but one could hear triumphant in it, "even if you do want to wait for that gold, the court's patience has limits. I am not waiting for another moment." He turned, straightening the folds of his cloak.
"When he doesn't show, you all know what to do. Bring the issue forward and claim breach of contract. You can also add defamation, and fraud. The contract you had signed yesterday had compensation for that too. Right?" The smirk on his face was so cold and vicious that one would feel a chill looking at it.
The nobles exchanged looks finally understood what Velmore had desired all this time.
"My lord, you are farsighted like always. You must have known about his deception so you asked him to add his estate as compensation. Where would we be if not for you." They all bowed in front of Velmore. Now that Elias was out of picture, they could only fawn and flatter on him.
But then a sharp gasp cut through the courtyard.
One of the guards stationed by the gate had stepped forward, mouth slightly agape, pointing toward the road.
"There! Someone's coming!" They all turned. And the sight that met their eyes silenced them instantly. Elias was climbing the stairs with a poised smile on his face. But their eyes bulged out of their sockets looking at him.
His clothes were torn in several places and his body was covered with dark with dried blood and thick dust. He reeked of the metallic smell and his eyes were bloodshot. The cold look in his eyes chilled the whole courtyard. The amount of blood on his body made others wonder how he was even walking. Or was he still a human if he walked like this?
But what froze them completely was the two massive iron-bound chests he carried. He was holding one in each hand as if they weighed nothing.
What made even Velmore's smug expression shatter was the way he locked his eyes with him. As if he knew who had attacked him, who had tried to kill him. For the first time lord Velmore could not hold the gaze of a person beneath him out of fear and guilt. The thought made his hatred burn to a new level.