The Legend of Hombarume (Legends Series, #1)

40.

Time had moved quite quickly since the day they arrived in the small village with Anesu. His disappearance had been quite a shock and still something that was yet to be figured out. Hamandishe could not stay another day in Ushe's household without being phased by how their situation had grown so quickly. All efforts of searching had so far proven quite unfruitful and soon enough, people would start to notice their absence but to Anesu's parent's, by this time his absence would be quite jarring.

Theirs wasn't an everyday, conventional family like the ones Hamandishe saw in Rujeko village who just cut their offspring loose after they come of age and let them find their own path undisturbed. Anesu's family treated him like an heir to royalty, as if his life, whereabouts and activities were paramount, above all else. He still lived with them, although a homestead for him had already been built. After he had leapt into adulthood, they never really let him go his way, even when he revealed to them that he wanted to pursue the life of a traveling trader. His father was furious but after a while, they came to the resolution that he would always come back home, no matter how far away from it he went. They also agreed that he would make all his appointments known to them, when he would leave and when he would come back and most importantly the period of days with which he might extend his trip.

Anesu's mother had inherited horses, cattle and goats from her father when he died and her husband had also inherited massive wealth from his own parents. They had both begged Anesu to come settle down and carry on the family name but he always said he would do so when he had made a name for himself. Last summer he had assured them that he found a maiden to marry but after a while, his mind had changed.

Hamandishe's was trying to hide his panic for the past few days but now it was getting tougher to do so. Days were passing and with each one, Anesu's absence became more and more significant and the idea of him being completely lost materialized. On that particular day, he was rummaging the market, looking for something that might interest him in the hopes of keep his mind free. He sifted through the hoards of market sellers trying to make a few cowries, trying to make their next sale. The men and women pawned off rare goods at ridiculous prices but still, nothing was quite as impressive to him. His eyes had seen a lot of fine art therefore impressing them wasn't an easy task, especially in such a small limited market.

After he was unsuccessful, he was just about to start heading back to the farmer's compound when he saw him, the man on horseback. He had worked fortthe family since before Hamandishe joined Anesu. For all he knew, he'd always been there. If he was here in Rujeko, it meant that the cat was finally out of the bag. The number of days for extending the trip to the plantations had been depleted.

***

Hombarume had spent the day reflecting on Revai's words. He'd been looking forward to the sparring contest all year and now that it had finally arrived, the Chief's guard had suggested that he stay away from the entire proceedings. He would drown in a pool of beer before he agreed with Revai on an issue but this time, all the points he had raised were very much valid. Everyone in the village already had their eyebrows raised at sudden decision by the Chief to emphasize that the sparring contest was still on despite all that was happening. What of adding Hombarume to the event, a person who had just been accused of killing the Chief's own son?

What troubled Hombarume the most was Revai's statement about the gods granting him another chance. That was something very out-of-character for the Revai that he knew to say. Revai had always been a godless man who believed in himself way too much and never cared about anything beyond the naked eye. In fact, he emphasized his non belief so much that it almost always influenced his decisions, the same reason why he was so quick to dismiss the story of the beast that was shot in the forest. So why then was he bringing it to attention that the gods had granted him a second chance?

Hombarume was also sure that if this was the Chief's wish, he would make it known to him in other ways. In this case, Revai was merely suggesting that he mustn't attend, almost as if he was the only one who wanted him to be absent. Hombarume felt like he was putting too much thought into it but his gut still told him that something was amiss. Things had been quite strange ever since he visited Gomoguru on that fateful day and this made him over think every decision he had to take.

The day was half spent and Hombarume was still fixated on Revai's suggestion. He kept circling back to it like it was an indicator of doom. He was trying by all means to think of all that could happen if he did attend the contest like every other year he had one so, but the problem was, this year was very different. Simba was missing, Pomerai was missing, the healer was dead, the seer was also dead – even the visiting trader, Anesu was missing. He decided finally that he would pay Revai a visit, so that he could tell him what he knew, so that he could explain himself now that the sparring contest was only a night away.

Before he could go anywere, Ushe's whistling was heard taking over the afternoon air while Dererai's hoarse laughter trailed behind. They would never let him skip the contest even if his life depended on it.