by M. R. Forbes
She smiled, and he thought his heart would stop. It wasn't that he had never seen a girl before, but her clothes were simple, her hair was simple, she wore no makeups or powders, and she was still radiant.
"Very good then," she said. "Have a fine evening."
Her voice. It was musical. Where was she from, with an accent like that?
She started to walk away.
"Wait." He finally breathed out. "Are you staying here? In the inn?" He closed his eyes, sure he sounded as stupid as he felt.
She paused. "Yes, with my father. He went to bed early, but I was feeling restless, so I came down here."
"Are you hungry? We were just eating. I can buy you a meal."
She glanced over at Kelkin, and then her eyes fell back on his. There was so much life in those eyes. So light and free.
"I knocked you over, sir. I should be paying for your meal."
"Don't be silly." He pulled out his chair for her. "My name is Wilem. This is my... father, Kelkin."
"Eryn," she replied.
Wilem felt his heart stop again, and he glanced over at Kelkin for just a second. The Mediator didn't react.
"Not that Eryn." She sat in the chair, and Wilem pushed her closer to the table. She smiled. "It's a difficult name to have these days."
Kelkin laughed and extended his hand. When Eryn took it, he drew it in and lightly kissed the back of it. "Kelkin Asmar, at your service, my Lady."
"A true gentleman. Eryn Llewyn."
Wilem circled around to the seat directly across from her, leaning over and pulling his meal away before he sat. "I'll get you a fresh one." He raised his hand and signaled for Urla.
"So, Master Kelkin," Eryn said. "What brings you and your son to the Heart of Varrow City?"
"Trade, of course," Kelkin replied. He reached down and picked up the small box. "I have some new mixtures of herbs and saps that I think the apothecaries would have great interest in. These are just samples, but I'm hoping to sell them my formulas."
"Truly? That is fascinating." She looked at Wilem. "My brother is a woodsman. He's very familiar with poultices and tinctures, especially those for healing scrapes and cuts." She laughed, a sound that reminded Wilem of a flute. "My escapades have allowed him quite a bit of experience in that area."
"If you don't mind my saying, you don't appear to be the earthy type," Wilem said. "I would have guessed you for a noble, by the way you carry yourself."
"Thank you, Wilem. I do my best when I'm not at home. Visit me at the estate however, and you're more likely to find me in a tunic and breeches."
"Where is your estate?" Kelkin asked. He had put the box back down next to his chair.
"Portnis, close to the city. My father is a financier. He had some business with the owner of the Golden Thread, and he asked me to come along for the company. It has been difficult for him since mother died."
"I'm sorry," Wilem said.
Urla interrupted them, bringing out another plate with a hen on it and a mug of water. She kept her eyes on Wilem and Kelkin while she served Eryn, and then retreated again.
Eryn reached down and broke off a leg, bringing it to her mouth and taking a definitely unladylike bite that left a bit of grease on her chin.
"Excuse me," she said, picking up her table cloth and wiping her mouth. "Sometimes I forget my manners."
Kelkin laughed again, while Wilem watched every move she made. The way her hand held the cloth. The way she wiped it lightly along her lips. The shape and color of those lips.
"Where are you from, Wilem?" Eryn asked. "You have a look about you."
Wilem wasn't sure what she meant, but he took it that she thought he was interesting. "Ed..." He felt Kelkin's boot smack against his shin. "Eddington."
She tilted her head to the side, revealing a long, smooth neck framed by her auburn hair. "I've never heard of Eddington."
"It's a small town in Elgin," Kelkin said, covering for Wilem's blunder. As far as either of them knew, there was no town called Eddington. "Best known for being completely unknown."
Eryn laughed at that, and Wilem was captivated by her.
The three of them sat together and talked. In time, Wilem's appetite found it's way back and he was able to take his eyes away from Eryn long enough to see what he was eating. He had known girls before, but he had never known one like 'not that Eryn'. She was confident, well-spoken, humorous, and refined. She was strong without any special power, unlike himself. He felt naked without being able to reach for his magic as he wished.
While she was there, he felt light and happy. When she stood to go, he had to force away the disappointment.
"How long are you going to be in Varrow?" he asked.
"Not long," she replied. "A day or two."
"Maybe we can eat together again tomorrow."
"Maybe." She smiled at him. "Good night, Master Kelkin. Good night, Wilem. Thank you for the meal, and for the conversation."
Watching her leave was like snuffing a candle. It was more than just her absence. It was the truth that he had managed to deny for a short time, but that he knew Kelkin would remind him of straight away.
"You did well to get us integrated into the society of this place," Kelkin said. "Be wary, Wilem. That is the true curse of our Curse. He can't forbid us to feel, but you know we're forbidden to act on those feelings."
From the day he had first discovered his Curse, Wilem had never felt the weight of it.
Now he struggled to drag himself out from underneath.
CHAPTER TEN
Eryn
Eryn climbed the stairs to the third floor of Waverly's. Her room was at the end of the long hallway across from Silas. Her grandfather had insisted on the smallest rooms in the most desolate area, intent on drawing as little attention as possible, and she had no reason to disagree with his reasoning. The third floor was quiet. Only a few of the rooms were occupied, as most patrons didn't enjoy carrying their packs and saddlebags up and down three flights of steps.
She blinked her eyes and tried to will herself to be tired. After they had returned from their meeting with Davin, Silas had insisted they do their best to get some sleep. They would have five days to rest and regroup while the King of Hearts arranged for everything Silas had requested in order to attempt to free Varrow City's former Head Librarian from captivity.
Silas didn't want her to come along. She could see that much in his eyes. He knew there was no way around it, and he knew they might need her power, her magic to win the day. If they were going to free one person from the ore mines, Silas had insisted, they were going to free them all.
The thought didn't scare her. It excited her. They had spent months in search of a direction to move in, and a means to begin to bring about his downfall. The cure was important, because she was limited in her greatest strength until they could discover its origins and give her and all of the other Cursed the same advantage the Mediators had.
Elling would never have fallen.
She fought against the sadness that continued to threaten her. So many lives had been ended because of them, after they had worked so hard to save them instead. She missed her friends from the theater. She missed her family.
Finding him was even more important, which is why they were so eager to learn more about the Dark. He didn't want anyone there. What was he hiding? Davin had a journal from that place. He had some of the answers. They were risking their lives and the future of every Cursed in the Empire that Saretta could lead them to the rest.
Eryn put her ear to Silas' door, trying to hear if he was awake. He seemed to be able to sleep through anything, his age and experience keeping his nerves calm and his mind centered no matter what their future held. She had tried to use the meditation practices he had taught her - the breathing and the muscle exercises - but she had spent two hours in her room with her heart racing along with her mind, and had finally given up.
Then she had knocked over Wilem.
She laughed at the thought. The poo
r boy had been beside himself. Eryn had always been only half of a girl, mixing her time in the kitchen with her mother and the other half at the forge with her father. Having anyone so flustered by her appearance was a strange experience for her.
She liked it.
She pushed open the door to her room and slipped inside. It was a mirror image of Silas' quarters. A single lit torch burned next to the door, casting enough light into the room to navigate. A small pallet with a soft feather mattress sat in the corner, with a bar to hang a pack or saddlebags in front of it. A few empty shelves hung from wood slatted walls, and a tiny cutout behind a red curtain hid a small dais where she could relieve her bladder without having to slog outside. A small mirror hung from the back of the door, and she looked at herself when she closed it.
A year on the road with Silas had done wonders for her physical appearance. Her once almost bald head had regrown a shoulder-length wave of light brown hair. Her thin but childish face had shed some of its fat and become more angled and mature. Her chest had increased in size to something not too big, but hinting at female adulthood, and her arms and legs had become even more toned and muscled than she had ever seen on any of the girls in her village.
It's a good look. Dangerous, mysterious.
She jutted out her hip and took one of the defensive stances Silas had taught her. She looked at herself and laughed.
More than survive, mother. Grandfather and I will kill him, and avenge your senseless death.
Her mind wandered back to Wilem. He was cute enough, she supposed, but despite his fawning she was sure she couldn't see him as more than a passing friend; someone to talk to and share a meal with, and that was all. She'd been interested in boys when her life had been simple. She didn't have time for them now. Besides, the only things she'd told him that had been true were so blatantly true that he'd never suspect they were intended as lies.
When he's dead, I'll be able to marry. I'll find a man who makes my heart flutter, and whose heart flutters along with mine. I'll settle down, have children of my own, and help the entire Empire forget these years of tyranny.
She blinked her eyes again, trying to make herself tired. Not satisfied, she stripped off the blue dress, remaining in her undergarments. She picked up the corner of her mattress and pulled out her ircidium blade. She backed into another of Silas' defensive positions, and started working her way through her exercises.
Within an hour, she was asleep.
###
The days passed in a hurry, though it didn't take long for both Silas and Eryn to fall into a routine. They would rise early in the morning, before any of the other guests were awake. They would spend two hours practicing with wooden sticks in the stables, and then they would clean themselves, get dressed, and take turns going down to the common room for breakfast. Afterwards, they would meet with Andreaus in Silas' room, and Silas would lay out strategies for slowing his army's return from the other side of the Killorn mountains. At least once a day either Ames or Lance would drop in to report on Davin's preparations, and in the evening Silas would stay in his room, and Eryn would go downstairs to dine with Kelkin and Wilem.
She had told Silas of the man and his son. He had been curious but unconcerned about either of them, and having seen them in passing in the morning, remarked that they were quite unremarkable. He did ask after her overall interest in Wilem, and she had told him he was just someone to spend time with while they were in the city.
Which was unfortunate for Wilem, because it was the truth.
Eryn could tell that the boy was smitten with her. She could see how his face brightened whenever she came into the common room and sat with them. She could hear the excitement in his voice. He had loosened up since the first night they had eaten together, and he turned out to be both more intelligent and more confident than she had at first suspected. Even his relationship with his father seemed to have changed, and they spent an increasing amount of time laughing together and sharing stories with her and the other patrons of the inn.
She stood in front of her mirror, checking her hair, and making sure the dress Ames had brought her was sitting properly. It was made of red velvet and flowed down to her ankles, with a high neck and large cuffs. It was the finest cloth she had ever worn; much richer than a financier's daughter would typically be able to afford. She had already thought of a good lie should anyone mention that.
They would be rising before the sun tomorrow. They would travel to Davin's, and from Davin's to the Washfall mines. The preparations were complete. Now it was up to them to execute.
That was why she had worn the dress. Maybe that was even why Davin had sent it for her. One last chance to wear such finery, in case she didn't survive. It was a morose thought, but she saw the kindness of the gesture, and she loved the way she looked in it.
Wilem is going to spit out his ale.
Just because she wasn't interested in any romance with him, that didn't mean she didn't enjoy making him blush. Straightening her cuffs one more time, she knew these clothes were going to put his jaw on the table. She decided that she would go out through the back and come in the front of the inn so she could sneak up on him. She knew he watched the entrance from the stairs like a hawk, just waiting for her to appear.
She laughed at the thought and exited her room. She put her ear to Silas' door once more, not hearing any sound. He was either asleep or meditating. She kissed her fingers and pressed them against the door before hopping down the three flights of steps.
"My, my," Urla said when she walked into the kitchens. "Amman has blessed you in all the right ways, child."
Eryn felt herself blush. "It's the dress."
"The dress is fine, I agree, but it's only an enhancement to what you have naturally."
"You're too nice to me, Urla."
The big woman laughed. "Nonsense."
"Where are you going?" Patina asked. She was helping her mother roll dough.
"Just out the back and around to the front. I want to sneak up on Wilem."
Patina laughed at that.
"You've spent a lot of time with the boy," Urla said. "He and his father are both very nice. Always polite, always chatting with the other patrons. Be careful, Eryn."
She was surprised. "What do you mean by that?"
"Two things. One, it's clear he has his heart set on you. Even a blind man could see it. Two, they've been here for four days, and haven't mentioned the rebellion a single time. Even when I overhear others going on about it, they never say anything. It's like they don't know what it is, or maybe don't agree with it and don't want to cause a ruckus. Anyway, I'm probably being an overprotective ninny, but considering who you are..."
Eryn smiled. "Thank you, Urla. Maybe they don't agree with the rebellion, but I think they're harmless, and anyway Silas and I will be gone in the morning."
"We'll miss you," Patina said.
Eryn walked over to her and stroked her hair. She was fond of the child. "I'll miss you, too."
She slipped out the kitchen door and made her way around to the front entrance: two tall, heavy doors that needed a winch to open and close. A young man worked the system, and even he stared at her when she entered.
She ducked off to the side of the common room, which was only half full today. She scanned the guests, looking for Wilem and Kelkin.
She found the older man at their normal table near the back of the crowd, leaning back with his feet up on one of the other chairs. His box of tinctures was laying open on the ground next to him, and she could see it was filled with vials of dark liquid. He had one of the vials in his hand, filled with a golden colored syrup.
She watched while he glanced around the room, and then reached over to Wilem's mug and poured it in. The moment the last drop had cleared the vial he slipped it up into his sleeve and started coughing. She saw Wilem then, walking back to his father and sitting down. Kelkin said something to him, and then they both raised their mugs and drank.
What was going
on? She moved quietly from her place in the back of the inn, winding her way around the support columns so that Wilem wouldn't see her until she was right on top of them. She considered saying something about the vial, but decided that it was none of her business. Wilem and his father seemed to be close, and he was likely just giving him some medicine. Perhaps if the boy had known he might not have downed it so willingly.
"Good evening, Wilem," she said, stepping out from behind a column a few feet away. He looked up at her and his face turned beet red.
"Ah... uh..."
"He says hello," Kelkin said with a laugh. His eyes examined her with a measure of amusement. He knew what she was doing, and why she was doing it. He thought it was funny.
"Do you mind some company?"
"Ah... Of course not." He got to his feet and pulled out a chair for her.
"That's a fine dress, Eryn," Kelkin said. "It must have cost your father a small fortune."
"Indeed. He spoils me, Master Kelkin, if only to see me in a skirt instead of riding leathers."
"You are well worth it," Wilem said. "I have never seen a more dazzling sight."
"Thank you, Wilem. You are looking well yourself."
Wilem looked down at himself in disbelief. "In this? You must be joking."
"You are very handsome."
His red face turned a deeper shade of red. "Have you eaten?" he asked.
"I have, but I don't mind sitting with you while you eat."
"We've just finished," Kelkin said, lifting his mug. "We were just enjoying a drink or two before we retire for the evening."
Wilem picked up his mug and took another drink. He didn't seem to notice if anything was wrong with it.
"Master Kelkin, I couldn't help but notice that your sample box is open. I was curious about the makeup of its contents."
Wilem almost spit out his drink, and she could tell by his hesitation that Kelkin had been caught off-guard. He coughed again, and then leaned over and lifted one of the vials from the box.
"It looks like blood," Eryn said. The liquid was a thick, deep red.