“They didn’t say.” Grimbledung snapped his fingers. “S’Am said the entrance was covered with some sort of mechanical spinning trap of some sort. And some bushes. That narrows it down even more I think.”
“You’re kidding. The best you have for directions is that we’re looking for a hidden entrance to a mine of undetermined size that has a secret passage on a ledge.” Rat looked at Drimblerod. “The toll bridge isn’t that far away yet.”
“No, no!” Whined Grimbledung. “I’m telling you we can find this place and the treasures inside. We’ll be rich!”
Drimblerod sighed. “Well, we have the shop taken care of so we might as well give it a look.” He raised a finger. “But we’re not going to waste a lot of time looking.”
“A month?”
“No, Grim.”
“A week?”
“I’ll give it a couple of days after we talk to the innkeeper,” said Drimblerod. “That should be about when we get to the right area.”
“But we don’t even know the right area,” said Rat. He sat on his haunches.
Drimblerod frowned. “Well, I’ve never been farther east than South Jute.”
“I’ve been to Old Jute,” offered Grimbledung. “So I know that that’s there.”
“That’s where the road that heads south to Cool Springs is,” said Rat. “I remember that town.”
“Anything around it?”
Rat shook his head at Drimblerod. “No idea. We came up from Cool Springs to it then headed west toward Salt Flats. “I remember the falls were really loud and if you got close to them you got wet.”
“See? The pieces of the puzzle are falling together as we eat!”
Drimblerod shook his head. “What pieces? A loud waterfall isn’t a piece of the puzzle, Grim.”
“Well, maybe it’s one of those middle pieces that you think really doesn’t help with the overall puzzle but then as you get going, you realize that it shows you the actual picture you need to know to solve the puzzle and after that one piece, all the other pieces just fall right into place because now you know what the puzzle should look like when it’s together.”
“The corner pieces are the most important part when you’re putting together a puzzle,” said Drimblerod. “You do the corners and edges first and work your way in. Haven’t you ever put together a puzzle?”
Grimbledung put the rest of his jerky in his mouth. He shook his head. “Nope. I’ve seen them done though,” he said as he chewed. “Exciting stuff.”
“I never thought of puzzle solving as a spectator sport.”
“I went to the regional championships once. It was riveting,” assured Grimbledung. “Rivet- ing.”
The three moved to the back of the wagon to eat what would be a good portion of their meager supplies even though they weren’t sure if Old Jute even had a mercantile.[18]
Chapter 26
There’s No Jute Like Old Jute. No Jute at All
“Old Jute,” said Drimblerod. “Finally.”
“Yeah; finally a town that puts us closer to where we need to be!” Grimbledung clapped his hands. “We’re getting there!”
“Where we need to be... where we should be is selling wands back in Julesville.”
“Oh pushaw, Drim,” said Grimbledung, “we have progress right here before us. Right in front of this here mercantile even.”
The trio looked up at the massive two-story mercantile.[19]
“Very nice indeed,” said Rat. “They’re bound to have everything we need in there somewhere.”
“And this brings up another issue that I really didn’t want to deal with.”
“How we’re going to split up the treasure?”
Drimblerod shook his head at his partner. “The amount of coins we have left in our possession.”
“I must say that that that should be plenty, I should say,” said Grimbledung. “Plent-eee. I should say even.”
“Well, it was plent-eee for what I was expecting.”
“Everything but the unexpected, I’d imagine.”
“Grim, we have done a complete resupply at every single town we have passed, as well as that shady-looking Gnome that had that shack under the tree east of South Jute.”[20]
“Not sure I liked that fellow’s profit margin.”
“Me neither but since our supplies needed to be restocked, we had to pay his prices.”
Grimbledung scrunched up his face. “Well what are we down to?”
“A gold and four silver.”
“What, each? That’s not too bad, right?
“Total, Grim. That’s the grand total we have among ourselves for everything we’re going to need until we are back home.”
Grimbledung shook his head. “Now that’s not right...”
“You’re telling me!”
Grimbledung ignored his partner’s interruption. “… because when we find we’ll travel back in style. Why, we will have more riches than we can imagine.”
“I don’t know about that,” said Rat, “I can imagine an awful lot.”
“So that means we’re just going to pick up the basics...”
“But Drim...”
“The basics and then see how we are doing.” Drimblerod pointed his finger at his partner. “We’re going to have to spend the night in town and I would like to do it in a proper bed.” He pointed at Rat. “Rat, while I’m doing this, think you can go to the inn and try and arrange for a place for us to bed down.”
“One bed?”
“I’d really prefer two.”
“Should I take that as a personal affront?” Grimbledung waggled his ears.
“I’m pretty sure Drimblerod and I will be the ones affronted personally being in the same room as you.”
Grimbledung grinned wide. “Hey, aren’t we supposed to have a full moon tonight?”
“All of a sudden I’m sure we’re going to be affronted.”
“And depending on what I have for dinner, behinded.” Grimbledung winked.
“On that note, I’ll see about two small rooms.” Rat gave a wave to the pair and scampered off the wagon.
Drimblerod waved at Rat. “Meet you at the inn,” he called.
Rat did a little hop to show he had heard his friend.
“Alright Grim, let’s get the basics.” He pointed at the door. “This place should work out nicely, I think.”
“Why’s that?” Grimbledung looked up at the large shop. “Looks like any other shop to me.”
“That sign says ‘kids and pets welcome’. It’s got to be a friendly shop to have that on the door.”
“I suppose that is true. Anyone who likes kids and animals can’t be all bad.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Drimblerod gave a short bow. “After you, partner. Let’s go get those basics.”
Grimbledung waggled his ears again. “Basics and more.”
“Basics.”
Grimbledung nodded. “And more.”
Drimblerod pointed into the store. “In you go and be on your bestest behavior.”
“Bestest is what I do best.” Grimbledung skipped into the shop.
With a sigh, Drimblerod followed his partner in.
“Morning gents,” said the Dwarf behind the counter. “Haven’t seen the two of you around here before.”
“That’s because we weren’t here until just now. Before we were there.” Grimbledung waggled his ears. “Which is there now that we’re here.”
“Uhm...” Started the Dwarf. “Fine, fine, I suppose. So are you new to town?”
“This town? Yes.” Grimbledung smiled. “Towns in general? No.”
“We’re traveling by and are looking to resupply ourselves.” Drimblerod glanced at his partner. “We’re looking for….”
“A goodly amount of supplies,” finished Grimbledung.
Drimblerod closed the door. “A reasonable amount of supplies. An affordable amount of supplies.”
“Goodly?”
Drimblerod shook his head. “I think you
need to find a different word until we get back home and have an income again.”
“Heaps?”
“That’s worse than goodly.”
Grimbledung stuck out his lip.
“You look absurd.”
Grimbledung switched- sticking out his lower lip instead.
“Well, that’s an improvement at least.”
“A goodly one?”
“You two gonna buy anything?” The Dwarf behind the counter said. “Or stand there tossing idle banter back and forth.”
“It’s what we do,” offered Grimbledung.
“Well, do it while you’re picking out things. Or at least do something else.”
Grimbledung scratched his butt.
“That’s not an improvement,” the Dwarf said. “Goodly or otherwise.”
“See? Now you’re getting into the swing of the banter.” Grimbledung waggled his ears. “Say, how much for ten pounds of jerky?”
“All depends on the type.”
“Meat,” clarified Grimbledung.
The Dwarf stared at Grimbledung. “You doing that on purpose?”
Grimbledung shrugged. “A goodly amount.”
“Good Dwarf, we’re going to get some supplies.” Drimblerod glanced at his partner. “Just the basics.”
“And possibly more,” Grimbledung added a wink. He noticed the display of ropes in a corner and quickly moved to it. “Oooh, ropes!”
“We are traveling on a budget.”
“I am sure I can get you outfitted and keep you under budget.” The Dwarf rubbed his hands together. “Do you need just provisions or are you in need of outdoor gear and wagon parts?”
“Just provisions.” Drimblerod glanced at his partner again. “We seem to be running through those at an alarming rate. We’ve more outdoor gear than we know what to do with.”
“Fine, fine. Basic provisions’ll be back on the side.” The Dwarf gestured to the far corner of the shop where barrels, boxes, and sacks were stacked. “Let’s go take a look.”
“Excellent, Mister Dwarf, I appreciate your understanding and not trying to upsell us.”
“Well, don’t count that out just yet.” The Dwarf smiled. “There’s always room for an upsell or two.” The Dwarf pointed at the sacks. “Provisions are all here.”
Grimbledung slid to a stop beside the pair. “Lookit this length of rope!” He twirled it over his head. “I think we need some rope as well.”
“You have rope in the wagon.”
“But this one is nice. Nicer than those old ropes. I’d have to say it’s the nicerest rope I’ve seen in days.”
“Basics, Grim.”
“Well, let’s see what we can do about the provisions and maybe we can work out a deal for the rope,” the Dwarf said with a smile. He rubbed his hands together again.
Drimblerod exhaled. “Fine, fine. Just don’t pick out anything else.”
Grimbledung scampered back to the display, twirling the rope over his head as he went.
“So... provisions. You doing your own cooking or you want already prepared just add water and heat up meals?”
“Cooking is fine. It’s a nice wind-down to a day’s events.”
“Traveling is that exciting?”
Drimblerod looked over at his partner. He now had several ropes wrapped around himself and was twirling a bright red one over his head.
“It can be, yes.” He raised his voice. “Grim, don’t break anything!”
The Dwarf nodded. “Oh, that’s the quickest way to have to buy something you didn’t come in for. That’s why the sign outside says ‘kids and pets welcome’. He rubbed his hands together.
“I see.” Drimblerod narrowed his eyes. “You don’t have a brother named Pozzuoli by any chance, do you?”
“Nope. Not that I know of.”
Drimblerod shrugged. “It was just a thought. In any case, I think we’ll take a sack of rice.” He pointed at a fifty-pound bag, then turned to look at Grimbledung. He had a barrel on its side and was walking on it, making it roll back and forth. “And I hate to say it, but a fifty-pound bag of beans as well.”
“That’s a lot of rice and beans. Need some meat to go with it?”
“What’s the sacks cost?”
“For you, a... two silver each.”
Inside, Drimblerod cringed- he was almost up to half a gold coin. “Will you bring that down if we get some jerked chicken as well ?”
A crash made the two of them turn and look.
Grimbledung’s feet were sticking out of a pile of cans. “Who put these cans here?”
“Grim, restack those cans and stop messing with that barrel!” Drimblerod shook his head. “Sorry about that.”
The Dwarf shrugged. “Nothing breakable over there, so...”
“No upsell yet.”
The Dwarf rubbed his hands together. “Not yet. So some jerked chicken then?” He gestured to the counter. “Meats are behind the counter. Got several kinds so come sample which you want. There’s no returns on foodstuffs, of course.”
“Free samples?” Grimbledung sat up. “Of jerky you say?”
“Once you restack those cans and put that barrel back where you got it.”
Grimbledung scrambled to his feet, kicking cans in all directions. “I’ll be right there!”
“Fine, Grim; meet you at the counter.”
The Dwarf moved quickly behind the counter. “So we have fifty pounds of rice and beans so that would mean you probably need a good fifteen, twenty pounds of meat.” He rubbed his hands together. “Now are you sure the rest of your troop is going to be fine with just rice and beans?”
“Rest of my troop?”
The Dwarf nodded. “The others traveling with you, of course.”
“As far as...”
“Gnomes? Humans? Fellow Dwarves? You know; folk traveling with you. Some sort of fellowship perhaps?”
Drimblerod gestured at his partner. “This is it for our troop. Except of course for a rat.”
“Of course.”
“So what sort of meats are you offering today?”
The Dwarf rubbed his hands together. “Well, we have a wide variety of meats from a variety of beasts.” He gestured behind him to a large cabinet with dozens of drawers. “So are you interested in chicken then, or something more exotic?”
“Exotic?”
“How about roasted Shambler? Quite tasty and surprisingly tender.”
“No. Definitely not. That traveling companion I mentioned that is a rat spends a bit of his day pulling our wagon as a Shambler. That would cause issues, I think.”
“Understandable, understandable of course.” He gestured at a lower row of drawers. “Let’s stick in the chicken row then.”
Grimbledung skidded to a stop, hitting the counter with his chest. “Chicken sounds great!” He put out his hand. “Most everything tastes like it anyway. So what sort’a free chicken you gots?”
The shop door behind Grimbledung swung open. He did a little hop. “Hey! No sneaking up!” He waggled his butt. “Grrrr!”
“Excuse me?” The woman said.
Grimbledung nodded. “No harm done, right Drim?”
“Nope; no drooling or excessive howling, so everything’s fine.”
“If you say so.” The woman pulled the child closer to her side and gave him a worried look.
“What’s that look supposed to mean?” Grimbledung waggled his butt again. “Grrrr!”
The young boy reached out and scratched Grimbledung behind his ear.
Grimbledung’s foot thumped on the ground. After a moment, he did another little hop. “Hey now, stop that!” He considered it for a moment. “Once you move to the right and down a little.”
The youth obliged and began to scratch the back of Grimbledung’s neck.
Grimbledung’s foot began thumping again. “Yeah… right there.”
The Dwarf behind the counter cleared his throat.
The boy stopped scratching.
The woman
raised an eyebrow.
Grimbledung frowned.
“Morning Grimhilde,” said the Dwarf. “What are you in the market for today?” He absently rubbed his hands together. “Morning, Parton.”
“Morning, Mister Paul!” Said the seven-year-old boy. “Whatcha got today that’s really neat?”
“Well, I just got in some new glass floats for fishing nets. Really neat things, I’d say.” He gestured toward the far corner of the shop.
“Just stay by me,” ordered Grimhilde. She eyed the two Gnomes. “For more reasons than one.”
Grimbledung waggled his ears. “Glass floats you say?” He eyed Grimhilde. “Say, do you float?” He eyed her up and down. “Want to go floating along in some river, or maybe a tub even?” He grinned. “Been on the road a long time you know.”
“Wait- what?” Grimhilde took a step back. “I must say...”
“In water, of course.” Grimbledung waggled his ears. “Floating.”
“Well, I never!” Grimhilde shook with rage.
Grimbledung jerked a thumb at the woman “Witch,” he said. “They can’t stand water. Common knowledge, that.”
“Grimbledung Sixtoes esquire!” Scolded Drimblerod. “You can’t just call that female names like that; you were very forward with her!”
“Who called her names?”
“You just did!”
The Dwarf nodded. “I don’t think I want to serve folk that insult ladies that come in the store.”
“Who insulted who?” Grimbledung looked back and forth. “Or whom for that matter?”
“You called that nice woman a witch.”
“Who?” Grimbledung looked around. “You mean that witch and the kid?”
Drimblerod started to nod then caught himself.
“Probably her familiar. Or she’ll cook him later on.” Grimbledung gave a wink. “She’s a witch you know.”
“Stop calling her that!”
Grimbledung put his hands on his hips. “You heard it yourself; she doesn’t float and never has gotten near water.”
Drimblerod exhaled loudly. “Just because someone doesn’t float does NOT make them a witch!”
“That’s an old wives’ tale.”
Grimbledung pointed at the Dwarf. “Ah ha! Now who’s calling her names?”
“What?” Paul looked from Grimbledung to Grimhilde and back again. “Who me?”
Grimbledung and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Mine (Tales From a Second-Hand Wand Shop Book 5) Page 14