Chapter Three
Seeing the situation about to get out of control again, Aragorn quickly reached up and caught the man's hand before he could throw the rock. "Enough! I do not know what has occurred here, but I intend to find out. First, however, I need to see to these men. Is there a healer in this village?"
Another man stepped out from the crowd. He had a wary expression on his face, as if he did not quite trust the men who had just interposed themselves into whatever was going on, but was ready to allow an end to the madness that had overtaken the villagers. "Yes, the healing woman lives in the center of the village. Her home has been left alone, as she has no particular loyalty to either side of this dispute. She treats the injuries of any who come to her door, no matter who they are."
Nodding at the man, Aragorn gestured for his men to carry Rumen and lead the other injured man to the healer's home while he talked with the other men to determine what had caused the conflagration to start in this village.
The red-haired man glared with hatred as the other man was led away. "You cannot let him get away without telling me where my son is!"
Aragorn held up a hand in a gesture for peace. "He will be well guarded by my men as his injuries are treated. He will be going nowhere. Now, do you have a place where we may speak? I wish to help in any way I can. I would like to see your son returned to you and his son returned to him. Children should not be involved in their parent's conflicts."
"He took my son first," the man grumbled under his breath, sounding like a sullen child whose playmate had stolen a toy.
Aragorn did not respond to that statement, instead asking a question. "What is your name?"
"Bayard," the man said slowly, "but people just call me Red." He frowned, not happy with the way Aragorn seemed to be taking control of the situation.
"Red, then, is there a place we can all go to talk?" Aragorn repeated his question, trying to infuse a sense of calm in the men around him. While the Rangers were highly trained fighters, they were greatly outnumbered by the men in the village, and Aragorn had no desire for his men to have to fight their way out. Especially since he did not feel that any of these men were especially evil, just enraged.
The man who had told them of the healer nodded and gestured for Aragorn and the others to follow him. "I believe the village hall still stands," he commented. "We should be able to discuss this there; as long as Garman does not decide to lead his men in an attack on the building."
"Garman?" Aragorn asked as he and the men began walking back toward the village center.
"He is the head of the Wolfe family," the man replied. "Cedric is a member of his family, and Garman was the one to organize the men to attack our homes and livelihoods. We sent all of the women and children away to keep them safe, and they did the same."
"You are telling me that all of the destruction I have seen has happened at the hands of those who live here?" Aragorn asked, aghast. The thought that people would destroy their own village appalled him. How could anyone cause this kind of wanton destruction to their own homes? He was now more determined than ever to get to the bottom of these matters and do whatever he could to help restore peace. A gesture brought the last Ranger who had remained with Aragorn to his side. With a short whispered conference, Aragorn instructed Túven to find the other group of Rangers, then search out this Garman and talk with him, to find out why he would attack the men around Aragorn. Only by talking with both sides of this conflict could anything be resolved. Túven nodded and seemed to melt back into the shadows.
