Chapter 10

Goodbye

In the Present on Earth

After his first attempt with leaving the basket for Gwen, Duke returned to the bench with another offering of food, but this time he ended up sitting on the bench until evening. Wildwing and Grin came looking for him, and Duke didn't show any signs of wanting to get up and leave.

"I started to drop it off, but it seems our less fortunate locals have found out about the food left in this basket. I gave them some money, but they'll probably be back."

"So you've been here for hours guarding it? What if she hasn't show up because she's seen you?" Wildwing asked.

Duke sighed and dropped his gaze.

"With friends, you don't have to go through this alone," Grin said gently.

Wildwing nodded.

"He's right. We can see how much this is troubling you. Could you tell us some more? I remember when the Fairfeather heiress went missing. But I don't know the details of her disappearance. What happened the day she disappeared?"

Duke glanced up at them.

"I can't see how it will help. But I guess it's time I told someone."

"There is still much you do not understand about it," Grin noted. "And that causes you as much pain as her absence."

Duke didn't answer, but his silence was confirmation enough of Grin's assessment. But after a moment, Duke spoke again.

"Well, sit down. I can tell ya that no one else has heard this story from me."

Wildwing sat on the bench beside Duke, but Grin took a seat on the grass at the base of a tree.

"The last time I saw Gwen was the day before I finished a big job for the Brotherhood. She said that her aunt had already made plans for them to visit some other ladies that day, so I only saw her for a few moments before they had to leave. I remember that she seemed a little distant. At the time, I thought she just didn't want to go with her aunt. But since then, I've thought it might have been more than that."

"And she didn't give you any other clues?" Wildwing asked.

"She asked about the thefts I was working on. I told her that I was close to finishing. Guess I was distracted with my plans. I had already cased the places I was going to steal from, so I knew how to get in and out easily enough. Now I just had to take the stuff. Anyway, I left, thinking I'd see her when it was all done. But that's where I was wrong."

9 Years Ago on Puckworld

Morning dawned as Duke returned to the Fairfeather manor. He felt tired and sore from his labors over the past night, but it was done. Every piece that he had sworn to steal, he had delivered it to the Brotherhood. The only piece that remained was a diamond that he wanted to take from Lady Augusta Fairfeather.

But first, he wanted to see Gwen. If she wanted to leave before the feathers started to fall, this was the time to go. The thought of finally helping her escape sent a thrill through his heart.

Once he climbed in through her window, Duke pushed aside the curtain and called her name softly.

"Gwen?"

But the room felt empty and strangely cold. He stepped inside and walked to her bed, but she wasn't there. As Duke started to inspect the rest of it, his boot kicked something that hit the wall. He crouched down and found a piece of glass as if something had shattered on the floor.

Footsteps echoed loudly as someone came up the stairs and approached the door. Duke darted out the window and closed it partly behind him. He was able to stand upon the ledge and wait.

The door was flung open, and he heard the protesting voice of Lady August Fairfeather shouting at a servant.

"How could you not see her leave?! This letter cannot be right, and who is this Mr. Noxe?... Well, find out!"

After a few moments, she left the room, and Duke didn't linger outside the manor.

When Alfred Noxe entered his office and shut the door, he quickly noticed that the window was open. Cold air streamed in through it, and the lawyer moved quickly to shut it. But afterwards, when he turned again, he saw Duke L'Orange standing beside his desk.

"Where is she, Fred?"

Alfred Noxe hadn't felt nervous around Duke for years. He had learned to trust the noble young thief, despite his misgivings about his profession. But today was different. Today he felt uneasy as he watched Duke.

"She was here, Duke," he said as he walked to his desk and pulled an envelope from the clutter.

He handed it to Duke, who took it and tore it open.

To D.,

Mr. Noxe can explain my decision regarding the legal matters we discussed. But he won't have any answers for you about where I've decided to go or what I've decided to do with my life.

You deserve a better explanation, but the only one I can give is that my future has to belong to me now. I thought we could share a future together, but it's not going to work.

I'm leaving Bladeston. Don't look for me. You'll only waste your time. I'm going to disappear in a crowd of ducks far from here.

I have my freedom now, and that's all I want. - Gwen

Duke read it more than once. The words didn't seem to make sense to him. How could she not leave him with anything more?

"What legal matters?" he asked Noxe.

The lawyer dropped his gaze.

"I didn't want her to do it. I asked her not to, but she insisted."

"Spit it out, Fred. What?!"

"She made me the successor. She just gave me all of it…the businesses, the money. She said I would know what her father wanted."

"When?" Duke asked.

"Last night. She called my office yesterday, made sure I'd be here waiting for her at a late hour. She came alone around midnight."

"And when she left?"

"Everything was very rushed. We must have finished the paperwork before half an hour had passed. And she gave me that letter for you. I didn't read it, but I feared it might be bad news."

"Why?"

"Because I asked her where she was going. And I asked why you weren't with her. She wouldn't tell me anything. And she was dressed in strange clothes like she was going a long trip. She only said to give that you, and to say…Goodbye."

"How did she leave?" Duke asked. "Was she carrying anything with her? Think, Fred!"

"She was rode off on a duckcycle. But she only had one satchel. And she wanted me to give her money."

"What?"

"She said she couldn't be traced. All the money in her inheritance would be mine. So she asked me to give her what I had on me."

"How much was it?"

"Not much. I would have given her more, but she wouldn't wait. I guess it was enough to pay for a few nights at a hotel."

Duke grabbed his arm.

"And you let her go? How will she eat? She doesn't know a thing about life on the streets!"

Alfred's expression seemed full of guilt.

"You think I wanted to?! You think I haven't questioned all of it every minute since she left? Maybe I should destroy the paperwork. I haven't tried to claim anything yet. The police can search for her."

Duke released him, and Alfred sunk into a chair.

"It's too late. How do ya think I knew to come here?"

Alfred looked up at him in confusion.

"Your name is all over her aunt's house. I overheard them when I was looking for Gwen. Lady Augusta will be here soon. Gwen must'a left a letter for her aunt stating that you own everything now."

"Then I have to move forward with the agreement," Alfred said.

"Yes, you do," Duke insisted. "She wasn't wrong to trust you, Fred. You know their world, but you also know how to do the right thing."

Alfred Noxe forced himself up from the chair.

"I'd better act before Lady Augusta tries to stop me."

Duke nodded.

"I'm sorry," he said, turning to Duke. "I wish I could have stopped her. But she wouldn't listen to anything I said. She was so determined. But I think she was sad too… if that means anything to you."

Duke held out his hand to the lawyer.

"You won't be seeing me again for a while, Fred. But you've been a good friend. And if you ever do hear where's she gone… well, I guess I'd want to know."

Alfred took his hand and shook it with a nod. Then he walked to his office door and slipped out. Duke was left alone with the strange letter in his hand. Opening the window, he climbed out and slipped away from the building. When he was alone in an alley, Duke opened the letter and read it again with impatience and frustration welling up inside him. But mostly, it was the unbearable sense of loneliness that he couldn't shake.

Back in the Present on Earth

Duke finished his tale, and Wildwing and Grin sat in silence near him.

"I think she knew I didn't need to keep up the charade of Drake Malone anymore, so she left. And I never saw her again."

"Nine years," Wildwing said with disbelief. "And nothing?"

Duke shook his head.

"Despite what she wrote in her letter, I did search for her. At first, I tried to do it without the Brotherhood knowing. But the leader then, Quinn Jarrow, figured out that I hadn't given her up. So he offered me a deal. If I could beat him in a duel, he said I could go and find her - never to return to the Brotherhood."

"What happened?" Grin asked.

Duke gestured to his chipped beak.

"But I gave him a worse mark," he said with a bit of smile. "A scar across his hand and arm. But at that point, it stopped being a fair fight. He let his lackeys beat me."

"And your eye?" Wildwing prompted hesitantly.

"Oh, that," Duke said with a laugh. "That happened later. It was more accident than malice really."

"Did you take over being the leader from Quinn Jarrow?" Wildwing asked.

"Yeah, after I wounded him in our duel, I knew I could take him. I just had to garner some support first, so he wouldn't be able to hide behind his lackeys. I'll admit that I enjoyed showin' him his place. But none of it brought Gwen back."

Grin watched him for a moment and then asked,

"Would you have traded the power you gained in the Brotherhood to have her back?"

Duke looked at his teammates.

"Yeah, without a second thought."

They sat in silence. And beside Duke was the basket, still containing untouched food.

"She's the reason I was so quick to join the Resistance when the Saurians showed up," Duke continued. "The Brotherhood didn't matter as much to me as finding her. And I thought she'd be pleased to know I had finally gotten away from my old life."

Wildwing glanced at the basket.

"I don't think we're going to find her this way. But we'll keep trying, Duke. Why don't we go back to the Pond and see what we can come up with?"

Duke sighed.

"Sure. But I think what kills me is that she doesn't want to see me."

"You don't know her reasons," Grin insisted. "And we don't know the motives of this other duck who has also remained out of sight."

Duke nodded as he rose.

"You should try to take some rest," Wildwing urged. "Then we'll go out and see what we can find."

Thank you for continuing to read! And thank you for the reviews! The long-awaited meeting between Gwendolyn and Duke is coming soon.