by LeRoy Clary
“The Lady Marion, of course,” Bear said.
“I have no way of knowing what is in those crates,” Shailer said. “But I suspect weapons.”
Bear sighed and looked off to the small window high on the wall. “The fact that you could even uncover that little information is incredible, so don’t belittle yourself. I doubt if Gray or myself would have ever discovered it.”
Shailer said, “When Gray reaches Shrewsbury how will he convey to us what he finds?”
“Send someone with him?” Bear suggested. “I have some good men.”
Gray was about to shake his head and tell them he didn’t want a partner. He couldn’t take anyone to Oasis with him. Besides, working with people, not of the Dragon Clan opened him to far too many risks.
However, Shailer spoke first. “Two people together are almost as easy to kill as one, and then there is no messenger to let us know what happened. I have a better idea. There’s a small chandler in Shrewsbury that sells supplies to ships. He has a limited supply of books, charts, and maps. We’re old friends. He would be grateful for the help of a temporary clerk.”
Bear set his mug down so hard it sloshed, and he looked for a towel to wipe it as he said, “Kelby could do it. She would naturally write home and place the letters in the hands of trusted sailors.”
“Exactly. Gray could enter the chandlery as any customer might do, pass on his information and she would relay it to us. She knows the masters of several ships and officers on others. She knows who to trust. Nobody would connect the two.” Shailer said as if that solved it all.
Gray was not as sure. “What if one of those sailors opens her letters? If he is not as trustworthy as she believes? Wouldn’t that place her in danger?”
“Gray, our lifetime work here is with rare books and maps. Paper and inks. Puzzles and ciphers. There are a hundred ways to write one thing and mean another in code, but most can get confusing, and they are obviously passing on secrets to anyone seeing them, even if they cannot read the code. It’s far simpler to use ink that fades as it dries. Place the real message between the lines of ink. She’ll tell of how homesick she is, and how much she misses her loving father. I will bring out the hidden words as I read the letters.”
“Tessa, a woman at my home, says the best place to hide is in plain sight.”
Bear said, “It’s settled, then. What else?”
Shailer told Gray the name of the shop in Shrewsbury and added that Kelby would sail there by the next ship, a more comfortable and longer trip. It would take her only four or five days. While traveling fast on foot, Gray could arrive in three because the distance across the land was shorter than sailing out into the Endless Sea and around the peninsula.
However, Gray would spend at least five days on the side trip to Oasis. He would leave in the morning. Kelby might need a few days to pack and prepare. He realized nobody had discussed it with her, but on reflection he decided that a trip to another city, with intrigue and mystery added in, was not something many women would pass up.
There was not any further news to share. Shailer would speak to Kelby later. Bear and Gray left the store and wandered down Front Street, pausing to watch the activity on the docks and piers. The arm in arm walk with Kelby would have to wait until another time. Perhaps in Shrewsbury.
Gray was about to mention eating at one of the many outdoor cafes overlooking the port activity when Bear took his upper arm in a claw and whispered. “Do not look behind us. We are followed. Nod your head as if we just shared a private moment.”
Gray did as requested. Not looking behind was harder than expected. “Is it Prater? Or Caldor?”
“Prater. I thought I had spotted him before we entered the book shop but wasn’t sure. Now I am.”
“What do we do about it?”
“Nothing. It will be done for us.”
“What does that mean?”
Bear placed an arm around Gray’s shoulders and laughed as if one of them said the funniest thing. “While I am not what the Crown would call a rich man, I do have means. As such, I have to take precautions, one of which is security. I’m pleased that in your time with us you have not spotted my people protecting you.”
“Your people?”
“Gray, there are those who would rob me because they recognize I’m the owner of the Red Bear, and I have a certain reputation for earning coin. I keep at least two good men with me all the time, even when I sleep.”
Gray was stunned. Again he had missed important information. In Fleming, there seemed to be secrets within secrets, and he saw few of them. “They have followed us everywhere?”
“And at the inn. Since you did not tell me of them, I have to assume they are doing their jobs as I wish. Prater will soon understand how worthy they are.”
“You’ll confront him?”
“On my terms,” Bear said, a smug smile on his face. “You and I will go back to my inn where I will go to a small building behind the inn and meet with Prater while you enjoy some of the excellent stew we have today. There is a jar of preserves I had set out just for you. Sweet and tart. You’ll enjoy it.”
“A small building?”
“My men will show him the way. All he has to do is follow the knifepoint one of them will hold against his ribs.”
Gray found he didn’t like the answer. Not because of any love for Prater, but because the incident would draw more attention to his mission. He shared these concerns with Bear.
“A wise interpretation of the coming events, my friend. But please give me more credit. I will question Prater’s actions not because of you, but me. Why was he following me? Did he intend to rob me?”
“I see. You’ll make it personal for you. He’s not the first to attempt taking your purse. In the process, you will have to ask him other questions. Who can vouch for him? Where does he live? How does he earn his keep?”
Bear said, “You catch on fast. Caldor’s name will surface and then I will have to meet with him, also. Satisfying myself that Prater is no danger to me will take a few days, all of which is the time he cannot follow you to wherever you may go when you leave here in the morning.”
“I had planned to set a trap for him.”
“You suspected he would follow you? Good. I see more and more evidence that Shailer and I were correct in approaching you.”
They turned down a narrow, deserted alleyway that ran up the hillside to the back of the Red Bear. The sounds of a light scuffle came from behind them, but when Gray looked, there was nothing to see.
Bear muttered, “Sloppy. I’ll speak to my men.” Then he said nothing more until they reached another alley behind the inn. “Continue walking to the main road and enter the inn as innocently as you can. I will not join you until much later. Keep an eye out for Caldor and avoid him, if possible. Go to your room with an illness if he enters.”
Gray did as told. Inside the inn, he found an empty table, after scanning the room for Caldor. The fat lady at the entrance winked at him in such a way nobody else would see. He decided Bear must have also given her instructions. He took a bowl from the stack and filled it. At the bread cabinet, he scooped butter onto a huge slice of white bread that was so puffy it was more air than bread.
A third mug of red wine and a small container of preserves sat on his table when he turned, along with a small pitcher of water. Watered wine helped the water taste better. After sitting, he filled the mug nearly to the top with water. He didn’t need a light head. Red wine stained the water, as he judged how much to prevent a bad taste in his mouth.
He ate slow, listening to the low rumble of the conversation of twenty others in the room. One mentioned a dragon, but as he turned his ears to listen to that conversation, he realized they were talking about how big they were. The few he spotted were generally far out over the Bay of Fleming, so seemed small. The conversation was innocent and harmless.
Others spoke of friends, families, business, or places they’d traveled. Gray listened for tales of ocean
voyages, or the word Breslau. His ears picked out individual conversations as easily as looking at one table or another. He excluded what he didn’t want to hear.
He was sitting near the table where Bear usually did, only one table away. The room seemed to channel conversations to his table, and probably even more so at the next. Bear often sat alone with a mug of ale in front of him. People probably assumed him dazed in his drink, but Gray suspected he heard all. Rumor, business opportunities, politics, or personal, Bear listened and earned a living from it.
Finished eating, he passed by the fat woman and said softly, “I’m going up to my room for a nap.”
She nodded but kept her eyes averted as if not listening. To anyone watching, it looked as if he only walked past. He climbed the stairs and opened his door. Someone had been in his room.
The candle holder had a loop for his finger. He used his right hand, but the holder was turned as a person who favored their left would place it. The blanket on the bed was different than he’d left it. He pulled the drawer out and felt underneath. The coins were still held in place by the melted wax.
That was bad. A thief would have discovered the coins. A thief in his room was acceptable, as odd as that sounded to his ears. Someone, not a thief, had been looking for information. He checked his pack, bedroll, and sniffed his water jugs to make sure nothing had been added. He decided to wash them out before using them. Poison comes in tasteless and odorless varieties.
Nothing was missing. He glanced at the crack that concealed a gold coin, and when the patch was as he left it, he didn’t bother with the other under the shingle. He went to the far corner and began an extensive search of every wall, crack, corner, and a piece of furniture. He spent the most time on the bed, finding nothing as he tossed the blanket aside to search for spiders, snakes, or other dangers.
That convinced him that all they wanted was information about him or confirmation that he was Dragon Clan. If they had taken the coins from under the drawer, he would not be sure. He’d tell Bear about the intrusion when he saw him but suspected the man was probably busy interrogating Prater.
He laid down, intending to use the quiet time to think. He woke much later. The sun was low in the sky, and the first lamps were glowing behind windows as he looked out on the street. People hustled past, most wearing coats or cloaks to fight the chill of the sea at night. He looked to where he’d seen the watcher the night before, but the alley was still lighted, and nobody lurked there.
Downstairs, Bear sat at his usual table, nursing a mug of ale and appearing to be napping. Gray suspected he was listening to a conversation that would help him. A stray comment here, a slip of the tongue there, and Bear combined the information into a useful fact. The Inn isn’t all he owns; I’ll bet.
“Come join me, Gray. Have a good nap?”
Gray settled into a chair and kept his voice soft. “My room was searched. I left a few coins for bait, but they were not taken,” Gray said as he adjusted his chair across from Bear.
A stricken expression quickly crossed his face and then disappeared. “I’ll pay you for anything stolen or damaged.”
“I think they were after information. Nothing was taken that I can tell.”
Bear cleared his throat and motioned for the woman who sat in the alcove to approach. He explained the search and she vigorously shook her head several times.
“I’ll look for myself.” She turned to Gray and continued, “Do you mind if I enter your room?”
Gray shook his head, but he could see the anger in her eyes. Not at him, but the crime had happened on her watch. He wouldn’t want her anger directed at him. She stormed up the stairs, drawing the attention of more than a few pair of eyes.
Bear shrugged and motioned for Gray to eat. A plate of sliced pork and turnips drenched in gravy had appeared in front of him. A mug of red wine and a pitcher of water were also there. Gray glanced around and didn’t see the serving girl. He wanted bread but decided not to ask for it when she flitted passed the table again, and a plate of three kinds of bread was left. The butter and preserves, too.
Bear said, “My men have Prater in the shed out back. He refused to talk. At first. Then he told us that the two of you are close friends, and he didn’t want to interrupt us, so he hung back and waited instead of interrupting our conversation.”
Gray didn’t bother to deny it. Bear didn’t believe it, so he asked, “What else?”
“He’s never heard of Caldor.”
“Stupid.”
“Oh? Why?”
“Two reasons. First, I saw them together yesterday. Second, you’ve seen them together, too. You knew exactly who he was when I described him. There’s a third reason, too. If you mention him to Caldor tonight while he’s eating here, what will Caldor say? I’ll bet he admits to knowing Prater.”
“You are quick. Or devious. That is just what I plan to tell Prater later tonight, whether Caldor eats here or not. Prater won’t know, but he will know I’ve caught him in a lie.”
Gray paused in eating long enough to say, “I’ll bet Caldor is wondering where Prater is right now. By morning, he will be searching.”
“Nobody saw us grab Prater in the alley, and if they did, they know enough to keep quiet. Nobody living in Fleming wants me for an enemy.”
The statement left no room for modification or doubt that Bear was powerful. Gray said, “I’ll leave early in the morning.”
The fat woman returned and settled into a chair next to Bear. She said heavily, “The roof. Someone climbed up there from the building beside us. Put a ladder on that roof to ours. They entered Gray’s room from the window.”
Bear sighed, “That is a lot of preparation for entering the room of a young man of modest means. Were any other rooms entered?”
She shook her head.
“Of course not,” Bear said as if that explained it all.
The woman said, “Now I suppose you’ll purchase that building, making sure this never happens again?”
“It houses a cobbler. Shoes are always a wise investment.”
Gray realized the interchange also provided more information. The woman hadn’t climbed from his window to find the ladder on the roof of the other building. Instead, she had another person help her while she was on the upper floor. That help had not followed her up there, but rather was already in place. Again, Bear proved he, and his operation, were far above Gray’s experience.
“Food for your trip will be outside your door. I promise it will be there, and no thieves will take it.”
The look he passed to Gray told it all. There would be at least one guard during the night, and perhaps more. Bear was embarrassed that someone had searched Gray’s room, and Bear intended to make the intruder pay. The logical person was Prater.
Bear said, “When you reach Shrewsbury, visit several shops. If you only go to one, people will wonder. Introduce yourself to Kelby. Act as if it’s the first meeting. Can you write?”
Gray nodded.
“I thought so. Take paper, a bottle of ink, and pen. Pass your messages to Kelby and she will get them safely to us.”
“Tell her I’ll probably arrive after her.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to head down to the bookstore and tell her yourself?” The teasing in Bear’s eye was clear. But, he’d suggested exactly what Gray wanted to. And exactly what he knew he shouldn’t.
CHAPTER TEN
Before the sun rose, Gray had gathered his belongings and was ready to travel. The morning air was sharp, and sea odors filled it. As he eased his door open, he almost tripped over a cloth sack in the dark. The food Bear had promised. The sack had a looped rope to close it and provide a strap for his shoulder. It weighed at least twice as much as he expected.
How much does he think I can eat? Gray walked quietly down the stairs, checking for Bear’s guards and finding none, yet knowing they watched his every move. He left the inn and turned back the way he’d entered the city. The same road that had carried him i
nto Fleming carried him out.
There were few people out, and the day had not yet dawned. A baker shook flour off an apron. The air was damp, an odd feeling for a man raised in a desert. He carried his staff in his left hand, his new quiver over one shoulder, and the bow over the other. His water bottles were filled, his body recovered from his last trek across the drylands, and his mind active and excited. His trip had produced more information in a short time that he believed possible.
Yet he kept his eyes busy searching the darkness as he left the large buildings behind and passed by the small farms and houses at the edge of the city. He did not spot one of Bear’s people yet had no doubt he never walked alone. As the sun peeked over the horizon, the last of the buildings of Fleming was behind.
A few people walked on the road. Most of them carried produce or wheeled carts of goods for sale in Fleming. Most either said good-morning or nodded a greeting. All were headed into town. Gray kept watch on tall hills or places where the road could be watched. More of Caldor’s people, or simply highwaymen, could be there.
Much later he found where he’d emerged from the drylands onto the road. The stream where he’d filled his bottles was out there somewhere. So was Stinson. At least, his body was. Gray couldn’t transport it back to Oasis, but he could locate it and give it a burial.
He glanced around to make sure no eyes were watching and then left the road. He walked on hard, bare rock for several steps, leaving no tracks. Then he headed for the stream where he’d left Stinson, expecting to find him around every turn and bend.
The stream was there, but Stinson was not. There was no sign of him. He might have tried to return to Oasis. Without water, he would never have made it, but with Stinson you never know. He may have rested a couple of days at the stream and then headed home. If so, he could still be alive and ready to attack Gray anywhere along the way.