Novels by Endeavour

“She’s beautiful!” exclaimed Nadi as she held her doll in front of her. The yellow and orange flowers encircled her doll’s head and she was amazed at how it looked.Flora smiled as she remembered her old past time when she was a girl herself. She continued to make a bracelet and another crown for Nadi who was amazed at how her mother was able to transform the stems and flowers into something that she could wear. She giggled as her mother placed the crown over her head and attached the bracelet of flowers around her wrist.“Now you look like a princess!” exclaimed Flora.Nadi clapped her hands with glee before picking up her doll with an identical crown of flowers over its head.“How does Kay like her crown, Princess?” asked Flora.Nadi placed the doll’s mouth to her ear before replying, &l

Flora quickly walked towards her daughter and placed her arms around her. Nadi responded and clung to her mother’s arms, but she held on tightly to her doll and did not take her eyes off Emil. Nadi eyed Emil suspiciously, her eyebrows pushing towards each other.Emil saw the angry look on Nadi’s face and turned to Flora. “Your daughter’s doll,” said Emil. “My daughter used to have one just like it.”Flora looked at Nadi’s doll which she hugged tightly. “You mean Kay?” Flora asked Emil. “I bought that doll for Nadi last Christmas. I remember that it was quite a popular toy back then.”“Y

Emil led Flora and Nadi up the slope where he said the vegetable patch was located. They walked closer to the mouth of the cave, but Flora could not see far inside. The cave opening was larger than she expected, and she estimated that a few people could comfortably fit stand at the entrance, giving credence to the story of the fishermen. Flora wondered how far inside the cave went, but she knew that these caves could extend kilometers into the earth. How far this cave went, Flora did not know. Some caves get narrower a few meters into the entrance before widening into larger chambers. She remembered entering one of the many caves in the outskirts of Cardena. The cave had a pool of fresh water and was said to be clean after rainwater seeped through kilometers of limestone that acted as natural filters.Flora wondered if the cave had other entrances and she decided to ask Emil.“Emil…” Flora called Emil as she tried to keep up with the gardener. &ldquo

The three men felt terror rising within them, but they remained where they were within the safety of the cave, thinking that they would be in greater danger if they went out. The wind whistled and the branches of the trees continued to sway dangerously. If they went out of the cave, it would not be the dark figure that could kill them, but trees that get uprooted or heavy branches breaking and falling on their heads.None of the fishermen said a word but went closer towards the fire and tried to protect it from the wind by placing stones around its base. As the fishermen huddled together, they would glance furtively outside at the place where they saw the apparition to see whether it was still there. It was.The fishermen then reportedly saw strange visions that they were in serious danger if they stayed within the cave. One fisherman said that he saw the cave collapsing over their heads and saw them getting buried underneath the rubble. Another saw the waterfalls ragi

After Flora had sufficiently rested, she led Nadi down the steps and they soon heard the sound of falling water. The foliage was dense, and Flora could not see far through the trees, but she knew from the sound of water and the smell in the air that they were close to the waterfalls.Soon, Flora glimpsed the waterfalls as they descended the stone steps. It was a glorious cascade of water that gushed between two facing cliffs that were both covered with vines and trees. The water fell into a small pool of clear water that was drained by a river that wound through the tree-covered forest. Flora knew that the river would eventually drain to the sea."It's the waterfalls, Mommy!" cried Nadi excitedly and she pulled her mother's hand who was holding to her tightly."Wait, Nadi. Don't run." Flora warned her daughter whom she had to let go.It was midmorning, but it was still dim at the waterfalls because of its low elevation and its location under the cliffs. T

Flora turned to Rosa who seemed busy at the table preparing for the next meal. They were quite shorthanded at the kitchen, but Flora already prepared some of the ingredients for lunch and would just have to cook them after she got back from the vegetable patch. She waited for Rosa to acknowledge hearing Emil and that she was free to go, but the cook who had her back to the pick-up window did not seem to have noticed the gardener talking to Flora.Flora opened her mouth to speak. “Ahm… Ma’am, Emil’s here to guide me to the vegetable patch,” Flora said.Rosa turned her head to one side, not quite facing Flora and Emil, and seemed to watch Flora using her peripheral vision. Then, she resumed her work. “You may go,” she said.Flora shrugged her shoulders and untied her apron. She took two baskets in which she would place the herbs and vegetables that she would be picking. Rosa did not mind Flora moving about in the kitchen

Casser looked at Remuel innocently and said, “You know I couldn’t do that to you, my friend. You’ve known me for a long time. We’ve done business for so long that I could not remember the first one.”“It was the ring of Mendor, or rather a bad copy of the ring of Mendor, and I remember how that went,” replied Remuel.“I didn’t know it was just a copy,” Casser tried to explain.“I almost lost a finger because of that,” said Remuel. “Then, there was the ardap stone.”“I remember that. I sold y

Iridescent scales reflected the morning sun and a snakelike figure emerged from the darkness of the trees. She shielded her eyes briefly from the sun before slithering and coming to the courtyard where the outlaws were. She stared at the small group of people who stood in front of the tunnel entrance to protect the other outlaws who were trying to escape.Eldion gasped upon seeing Verna emerge from between the trees. Wen bit her lower lip as she tried to think what they should do. She knew that the ancient temple would be overrun by the imperial soldiers, but she did not know that it could happen so soon. Shaan was not with Verna and Wen feared for the worst. Verna’s face looked fierce, but Wen could tell from her sad eyes that there was something immensely wrong.Verna slithered out of the way as the trees behind her fell to the ground and a giant man with a troll-like face came out to the open. In his hand was a broadaxe which he had used to fell the trees in his path. He waved the b

Casser looked at Remuel innocently and said, “You know I couldn’t do that to you, my friend. You’ve known me for a long time. We’ve done business for so long that I could not remember the first one.”“It was the ring of Mendor, or rather a bad copy of the ring of Mendor, and I remember how that went,” replied Remuel.“I didn’t know it was just a copy,” Casser tried to explain.“I almost lost a finger because of that,” said Remuel. “Then, there was the ardap stone.”“I remember that. I sold you a real ardap stone at a good price,” said Casser.“Yes. It was real alright, but you forgot to mention o

Lankko looked around him uneasily and stopped briefly when he saw one of the outlaws just behind Wen and Eldion. Then, he continued to sweep his surroundings but without really focusing on anything or anyone before going back to Eldion and walking towards him. Then, with slow seemingly exaggerated movements, Lankko handed to Eldion a pile of clothes which the latter accepted. Lankko mumbled something and Eldion nodded his head. Afterwards, Lankko stepped back and turned to face the center of the ancient courtyard where the stone table and Kora was.Kora was oblivious to the numerous eyes that had focused on her and Lankko. She moved her head from side to side before sitting on the stone table where she found herself. Lankko picked up Kora who seemed to recognize the man holding her. Lankko stroked Kora’s feathers and the chicken closed its eyes as if enjoying the attention she was receiving. Then, Lankko held Kora under one arm while

Enzir followed Eldion and Wen from several steps away as the two searched the tunnels for Casser. Enzir had worn the guard’s clothes and hid his hair using the guard’s head covering. Earlier, Mira through Wen, also made a few adjustments on Enzir’s appearance and instructed him not to have a too straight posture or he would stand out like a sore thumb. “Stand as if you had worked at the fields the whole day,” said Mira and Wen relayed her instructions to Enzir.“I haven’t worked any of my fields. I wouldn’t know how that would feel,” admitted Enzir and Eldion had to suppress a laugh.“You’ve lived a life of privilege,” sighed Wen. “Imagine fighting Verna the whole day,” she said.“Verna?” asked Enzir, not knowing the real name of the snake creature of Alanca.“You knew her as Alanca, but she told us her name was Verna,” explained Eldion

Earlier, Casser left Eldion and Wen with the knowledge that they had already healed Enzir. Wen and Eldion were surprised that Casser was able to find out that Enzir had already recovered from his injuries while Enzir had to comment on the merchant’s shrewdness. As the three were left by Casser in the cavern alone, they decided to talk about what they should do next.“It will just be a matter of time before Remuel finds out that you’ve healed,” said Wen. “And who knows what he’s going to do afterwards. We need to get you out of here quickly.”“I can’t go without Lankko. He is my Keeper of Secrets and I need to protect him. Also, you need the magic elixir he’s made to try and get Eldion to recover his memories,” said Enzir, looking intently at Wen.“But there’s the outlaw standing guard at the entrance,” added Eldion, waving his hand towards the entrance without looking.&ld