The Decoder - Chapter 5

Edith

“Edith, I would like to give you a present.”

“Present? I love presents!”

“Close your eyes.”

“A necklace?”

“Yes.”

“It’s so pretty! I love this star pendant. Thank you, father!”

“Now, you must remember one thing, sweetheart. You must never lose this necklace. Guard it like as if it’s your most precious item. Look for my personal journal when you need it.”

“I will, father. This necklace is already my most precious gift from you.”

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

Edith sat at the edge of her bed, reminiscing her childhood memories eight years ago as she clutched the necklace her father had gifted her the night before he was shot. She stared at the star pendant and after a minute, she clicked the bottom of the pendant and the lid flipped upwards like a spring. Sitting in its tiny casing was a tiny piece of parchment, which she had stared at countless of times. Edith had discovered the parchment two years after she received the gift. She recalled her curiosity at the parchment as she unfolded the tiny square-shaped parchment several times. On it, was her father’s familiar handwriting in codes, which comprises of complex binary numbers and symbols she couldn’t decipher immediately.

Edith had been surprised and confused at the unfamiliar symbols and several sets of binary numbers her father had never taught her. Sir Alcoft had only taught her the simple codes, which was commonly used in the military. These codes scribbled on the parchment were foreign to her. Well, not entirely foreign, but she would need to refer to her father’s journal, which she managed to salvage after the raid. “Look for my personal journal when you need it.”

The only thing that was keeping her back from looking into her father’s journal was her ‘trauma’ and dread. She couldn’t bring herself to look at it because it would only made her remember that dreadful night she had tried very hard to forget for the past eight years. She hadn’t come to peace with her trauma, yet. She had been glad Avery had found the necklace yesterday, and she couldn’t thank him enough for it. It had also been a night full of surprises as she hadn’t expected to reunite with her dear childhood best friend.

Her thoughts wavered to Lady Ada’s words from two days ago. “Don’t take too long to crack it.” When she’d told Lady Ada of the codes her father had left with her, there was an unreadable expression on Lady Ada’s flawless face. If there was even a hint of surprise, she was good at hiding it.

Why? Edith wondered. She knew Lady Ada’s connection to her father, but she couldn’t understand why Lady Ada had urged her to decipher the code. Was there something Lady Ada was not telling her? Lady Ada’s words intermingled with Sir Alcoft’s words “you must never lose this necklace. Guard it like as if it’s your most precious item.” Edith thought about the codes again. She wondered if her father’s stern words had any connection to the codes that he’d placed in the pendant. If so, she ought to pick up her journal again, for the sake of brushing her memory. I can’t dwell on the past forever, can’t I?

A knock on her room door broke her thoughts and she smiled immediately at the voice. Its owner was none other than her close friend, Caden Hess, whom she had treated as her brother. He was a year younger than her and she’d met him when she moved in to live with her uncle after her father’s death. Caden had been a fresh apprentice whom her uncle had found scavenging around Dastren Street. Out of pity for the boy he was eight years ago, Uncle Vern had decided to raise the orphaned boy, who was all alone.

Folding the parchment back to its original tiny shape, placing it back into her pendant, and she wore the necklace around her neck. She walked to the door and pulled it open. A beaming Caden stood before her, a satchel was slung over his shoulder.

“Long time no see, my dear Edith.” His arms opened wide.

“Caden. We just saw each other two weeks ago.” Edith stepped into his open arms and they embraced for a short moment before Caden pulled back. Her thoughts on the tiny parchment pushed to the back of her mind.

“Two weeks is a long time.” Caden grinned.

“How’s work as a medic at the Militia?” Edith grinned in return. Caden was only allowed to return to the clinic on weekends. However, there were some weekends he couldn’t make it home due to his work, which Edith believed was overwhelming at times.

“It was alright. We are actually short of staff.” Caden took her hand and they stepped out into the hallway that led to the main area of the clinic where Uncle Vern was seated behind his small desk close to the main entrance. Morning sunlight poured into the hallway from the windows, brightening the main area of the clinic where visiting patients often waited by the rows of chair to Edith’s left.

“Uncle Vern, won’t you try to convince Edith to apply as a Nurse at the Militia?” Caden said as they came to stand next to the desk. Uncle Vern looked up from his notebook and stood to his full height, which came to be the same height as Caden. But Avery was a few inches taller than the both of them.

At the thought of Avery, the entrance door suddenly opened, drawing all three pair of eyes to the man who just entered, and he was surprised by the sight of three pair of eyes staring at him in return.

“Uhm…Good day.” Avery stammered, obviously uncomfortable by the attention. His green eyes darting from Uncle Vern to Edith and to Caden before his eyes widened at the sight of Caden.

“Hello, Avery. Sorry about this.” Edith stepped forward, a blush crept up her cheeks, realising how they have been staring at him openly.

“Not a problem.” He removed his coat and draped it over his right arm. He wasn’t wearing his Elite uniform today, but he was in another uniform. A more casual one, Edith noticed. It was the colour of olive with a black leather belt around his lean waist. It was a surprise to see him visiting the clinic in the late morning. Does he have the same leave as Caden?

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting a discussion…?”

“No, Avery. Please join us for lunch. My vegetable stew is just about to be ready.” Uncle Vern smiled from where he stood next to the desk.

“Captain Kainz, what brings you here?” This time it was Caden’s turn to speak, his eyebrows rose in curiosity. Edith suspected Caden knew Avery as they both work in the Militia. She sidestepped and glanced between them, trying to hide her slight surprise at Avery’s title. So, he is a captain…And his family name is Kainz? Edith hadn’t known his family name all these times though she had attempted to find out from her father and Avery himself. They weren’t helpful in provided her an answer.

“Ahh…I’m here to visit Edie and Uncle Vern.” Avery glanced at Edith and gnawed the inside of his cheeks. A sign Edith knew he was at loss at words.

“Caden, I have yet to introduce you though you already know. Avery is my childhood best friend whom I told you about from time to time.” Edith bit her lips. She had never revealed her childhood best friend’s name to Caden before, hence for the confusion.

Understanding dawned upon Caden as he opened his mouth and let out a long “ahhh.”

“Come on in.” Caden smiled and walked with Uncle Vern to the dining room before turning around again. “Edith, just to keep you informed, a friend of mine will be visiting the clinic after lunch.”

“Who is this friend of yours?” Edith asked, her brows raised in question.

“It’s a surprise.” Caden chuckled and disappeared down the hall.

“Friend?” Edith murmured more to herself. It was unusual for Caden to invite a friend to the clinic. Edith knew Caden was a sociable person and making friends was not an obstacle for him. But he never invited any of them to the clinic. Why? Edith had yet to find out herself.

“Caden is a very sociable person at the Militia.” Avery said beside her, as if answering her question.

“Right.” Edith began to lead the way to the dining room. She enjoyed Caden’s company as well and always look forward to weekends when he would be home. He’d crack jokes and liven the mood.

“How did you come to know of Caden? I’m equally surprised as he is, to see him here.” Avery said as he walked alongside her, his long strides matching hers.

“My uncle found him eight years ago when he was all alone in this city, so my uncle decided to look after him and taught him medicine.” Edith explained in brief.

“You came at the right timing. Are you off duty today, too?” Edith asked before Avery could reply. She was happy to see Caden, but her joy escalated at the sight of Avery. She had a lot of catching up to do with him and she would definitely enjoy her weekend with him.

“Only during daytime.”

“What does your duty comprise of?” Edith asked. She knew the Elites were responsible on keeping the peace of the city. As much as she disliked them, she was curious on how their system works as well.

“We keep a look out on the city. Making sure all is in order.”

“The same as you do during daytime?”

“Pretty much. Why?” Avery was now looking at her as they stood at the doorway of the dining room.

“Just wondering.” Edith smiled and stepped into the dining room. The delicious smell of Uncle Vern’s vegetable stew greeted them.

Edith busied herself with helping Uncle Vern in setting up the dining table, laying her uncle’s famous vegetable stew, which was one of Edith’s favourites. Caden sat at the dining table, engaged in a conversation with Avery. She wondered if they were talking about their duties at the Militia or if it was just a casual conversation about the weather. Edith had yet to step out of the clinic today, but the chill that breezed into the clinic when Avery had entered indicated that it was colder than usual.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the entrance door, jerking everyone’s attention.

“I will get it,” Edith said, half guessing the visitor could be Caden’s friend. As she stepped out into the hallway, she could hear the scrap of the chair from the dining room. Her instincts told her it was Caden and true enough when he called out “It could be my friend.”

Edith grinned to herself and opened the door, bracing herself against the cold.

“Hello, my name is Merille and I’m Caden’s friend.” A young lady who seemed to be the same age as Edith smiled at her. She was beautiful with delicate features, with eyes the colour of a lake in spring and her caramel-coloured hair dressed neatly into a braided chignon, highlighting her heart-shaped face. Edith suppressed a gasp as this was the first time Caden had ever brought a lady to the clinic. Is she his lover?

“Hello Merille, nice to meet you. I was informed you’d be coming. Please come in.” Edith stepped aside to allow the lady into the threshold.

“Thank you.” Merille smiled.

“Ahhh! Merille, you have arrived.” Caden beamed as he stepped out of the dining room. They exchanged pleasantries and he led her to the dining room, seemingly forgotten about Edith. She shook her head and smiled. Maybe not officially his lover, but soon to be.

He proceeded to introduce her to her uncle and Avery immediately recognised her as well. From what little she gathered from their exchange during lunch, Merille worked as a decoder at the Militia. Her duty was to decode and occasionally encode incoming parchments from the Militia’s intelligence or Elites. A seemingly important job and Edith was once again reminded of her father. It occurred to her that the Militia had spies around Rayard and probably Hathage to be able to send information over to Merille, no less in coded messages. Was that her father’s duty when he worked alongside the former High Commander? Her curiosity got the better of her until Avery exclaimed,

“The coded messages are highly confidential and not to be discussed outside of the Militia.”

His sterns words squelched her curiosity to learn more. One thing however, everyone seated at the dining table hadn’t learned about her knowledge in cryptography. She hadn’t told her uncle nor Caden about it, and certainly not Avery. Some of the reasons being she did not see the need to tell and she had no intentions working as a decoder as her father once did.

The rest of the conversation veered to anything but the Militia. Caden shared his experiences as a field medic and how he’d met some interesting people as well as his friendship with Merille. Though Edith suspected their friendship was more than it seems. She had noticed the subtleties shared between Caden and Merille. She wondered if Uncle Vern had noticed it, too. When Caden was not looking, she spared a few glances at her uncle, which he returned it with a very slight shrug. Avery, on the hand, remained composed and does not speak much throughout lunch. Edith had noted his calm demeanour ever since she met him eleven years ago. He’d often chose to keep to himself rather than sharing his thoughts to others.

“Edith, there’s a vacant position in the Health Department at the Militia. I would recommend that you apply for it.” Caden suddenly directed his conversation to her. The words he’d spoken earlier before Avery had arrived, came swarming back to her memory. She had forgotten all about it, and the idea of working in the Militia made her cringed.

“Well…I don’t—”

“Think about it. The salary is twice from what you earn from your bread-making,” Caden interrupted. Though he never spoke out the meaning behind his words, Edith knew that he had meant that with the salary, they could sustain Uncle Vern’s clinic. She would love to help in sustaining the clinic. Still, the thought of working for the Militia didn’t entertain her.

“You bake, Edie?” Avery questioned her, surprise registering on his face.

“Yes.” The use of her pet name brought memories of their childhood days came rushing in full force, missing the way he had used that pet name on her, which made her feel special.

“Edie? Is that a pet name for Edith?” Caden raised an eyebrow, speculating. She blushed slightly at that innocent inquiry.

“Yes, it’s a pet name I’m used to calling Edith since our childhood days.” Avery replied.

“I see. Interesting.” Caden said awkwardly and there was a moment’s silence before Caden continued in the direction of the original topic.

“But the profit is not enough…” he supplied in a low voice.

“Uncle needs an assistant, too.” Edith argued, hoping that Caden would give up the idea of her working for the Militia.

“I’m fine, Edith. We don’t have many customers these days either.” Uncle Vern took off his glasses and placed them on the table. Edith almost gawked at the words her uncle was implying. He can’t possibly wish for her to work in the Militia as well, does he?

“Uncle, are you implying that I should apply for the position?” Edith asked, getting straight to the point.

“It’s entirely up to you, Edith. I will not stop you from doing so. Besides, you could make use of your skills and gain some experience.” Uncle Vern said simply.

Edith swallowed and looked around the table, from Caden to Merille to Joel. She couldn’t deny that Uncle Vern’s words had some truth to it and the salary gained from working in the Militia would certainly sustain the clinic. She wouldn’t need to worry about the profit she earned from selling her buns. She would have a steady stream of income every month, and she would be able to pay for the taxes as she’d promised. Is there are other means of looking another source of income? Surely, there are. She recalled going from shop to shop seeking for vacancy for the past three years, but she was turned away instead.

“Come on, Edith. There’s nothing for you to lose.” Caden said from across the table.

Working in the Militia, meant working closely with the Elites as well, and it meant working closely with the people who was the source of her father’s death. Memories from that night threatened to surface in her mind. The endless running and shouts until her father surrendered himself to the Elites to save her. The gunshot ran in her mind and she tried to shake them off. She would not allow those memories to ruin their happy weekend.

“I’m sorry, but I’m going to play the pianoforte.” She stood and walked to the small lounge where she often played the pianoforte for her uncle and Caden during weekends, after consultation hours. The pianoforte was her solace. The music would clear her mind. Edith approached the simple boxed piano located at the corner of the lounge and sat on the pianoforte’s bench. She fingered the black and white tiles, thinking of a tune she’d often played. Her uncle had bought the pianoforte for her for her 18th birthday and at that time, she had played a melancholic and energetic piece, which she composed five years ago. She named it “The Adventure”. The piece spoke of her feelings for adventure to explore outskirts of Rayard. She had decided to play that piece since it was the first that popped in her mind.

Edith began tapping the black and white tiles, striking the very first chord of the piece she’d composed. It was mild at the beginning before it hit the high notes, her fingers running vigorously across the tiles. She pictured herself travelling across the Land of Odella, discovering islands and kingdoms she had never heard of. She imagined her father beside her, excited like a child at the little adventure. When the four minutes tune came to an end with a soft closing, she sighed.

She immediately thought of the next piece she had composed not too long ago, which she had named it “Winter”. It was a piece dedicated to her favourite season. Her fingers running along the tiles once more as she imagined herself running along a land of pure white, building a snowman and having a snowball battle with Caden. The energetic tune came to an end after three minutes and she heard a chorus of claps to her right. She glanced up to see Caden, Merille and Avery standing near the doorway. Uncle Vern was sitting on his favourite armchair, his eyes closed.

“You play the pianoforte very well, Edith.” Merille said with excitement as she moved to stand next to a worn-out brown couch.

“Thank you.” Edith smiled.

To her surprise, Avery moved to sit next to her on the bench. She moved a little to her left to give him some space.

“I miss playing the pianoforte with you. You’re still a talented pianist after all these years.” Avery smiled. Edith returned his smile, remembering their childhood days. The times when they played the pianoforte together in the late afternoons. They had even composed a song together. She wouldn’t deny his talent playing the piano, though it was not as polished as hers, but his skills grew better overtime. They had even made a good duet.

“What shall we play?” Edith asked with a grin.

“Hmm, how about “Our Dreams”?” Avery replied with that cheeky smile of his.

“Alright.” Edith agreed and they started synchronising their fingers together in playing the piece they had composed together when they were younger. Edith had composed it halfway before Avery was introduced to the Alcoft family. The piece spoke of their dreams as a child. Her dream was to become a skilled pianist and perform in the Philemony Orchestra. Only the most notable Rayard’s group of musicians are given the honour to perform at the huge domed building located at Aven Street. That dream still remained, however, with the current circumstances, Edith doubted if the dream could ever be fulfilled. Edith wasn’t sure of Avery’s dream when he finished the composition from his end. She had asked, but he refused to disclose it.

The tune of the piece was melancholy and mostly low key, which made it easy to perform in duet. “Our Dreams” was one of the few compositions Edith had often played with Avery and she enjoyed the thrill of it. To be able to play the pianoforte side by side again gave her the needed solace.

“You’re equally good as well, after all these years.” Edith said after the tune came to an end, returning his earlier remark.

“Thank you.” Avery grinned in that boyish smile of his, which accentuated his good looks, and it made Edith’s heartbeat faster than normal. She suddenly felt warm around her cheeks and she quickly looked away to Caden and Merille who were standing closely side by side.

“I never knew you could play the pianoforte so well, Captain.” Caden exclaimed.

“I play the pianoforte at the Militia from time to time.” Avery turned around to face the couple.

“As I recall, you can sing and play the fiddle, Caden.” Edith turned around in her seat as well.

“You can sing and play the fiddle?” Merille asked, her brows raised. Caden blushed at the remark and shifted in his position.

“Not as well as you expected.” Caden said shyly. Edith smiled at his gesture. Remembering the times when Caden had joined her piano sessions when she had played the songs which were composed by Rayard’s famous musicians.

“It would be nice to have you working in the Militia.” Avery whispered close to her ear while Edith was reminiscing the days. Edith smiled in return at his words. Though she still did not entertain the idea of working in the Militia, the thought of working in the same place with Avery, Caden and Merille seemed fun. And discover the truth to my father’s death.

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