by Jamie Davis
Chapter 18
Merrick had the barge pull up to a small landing on the river’s western bank two days later. Cari, fully healed and rested, gathered her few belongings and prepared for the journey.
“You have the map I made for you?” Merrick asked.
“It’s in my pack, along with the traveling cloak, blanket, and food. You’ve been very generous.”
“One last thing, then.”
Merrick held out a small, leather coin purse with a drawstring top.
“What is this?”
“It is some money for the journey. You mentioned the Duke’s men took what little you had.”
“I cannot accept a loan from you. I don’t want to be in debt to you like Timron is.”
“You misunderstand me, Cari. You are performing a task for me, and therefore, as my employee, you must be paid. The coins in here will cover the cost of your time. Take the purse.”
Merrick shook the purse a little. The clink of the coins bouncing against each other inside helped her decide. She could use the extra coin on the road south. Cari reached out, took the purse, and tied the drawstrings to her belt next to her leather pouch.
“Thank you again for your help. I will deliver your message to the Prince and encourage him to make good on his debt.”
“That is all I ask. Goodbye, Cari Dix. Godspeed.”
Merrick stepped back onto the barge, and the crewmen pushed the vessel away from the stone landing, leaving Cari behind. She watched them drift downstream for a few minutes, then started down the road leading westward.
According to the directions she’d received, she should head due west for half a day until she reached the north-south road. Turning south from there would lead her to Morton Creek along the coast perhaps one day later.
There was supposed to be an inn at the crossroads where she could stay the night. If not, and the weather held, Cari thought she might opt to stay the night under the stars and enjoy the outdoors for a change. It would save her money, though Merrick had been more than generous in his gift of the purse.
While Cari enjoyed backpacking at home with her family, by the time she arrived at the crossroads where she was to turn south, she remembered how much she liked staying in a warm bed, too. Luckily, Merrick’s information was correct and there was a small inn located at the crossroads.
It was dark when she pushed open the door at the Merchant’s Hostel and stepped inside. Heads turned to see who entered as a slight breeze caused the candle flames on the tables to shift and waver when the door opened. The faces registered mild interest at seeing a strange face but turned back to their conversations and food almost immediately.
The common room was small in the tiny, two-story inn. She approached the bar where the bartender met her with a smile.
“What can I do for you, young lady?” the portly man asked. “We don’t get many travelers through here, so it’s a pleasure to serve a new face.”
“I think I’d like a room for the night, and some dinner if I have enough coin for it. How much?”
“A silver piece for the room if you don’t mind sharing a bed with Grandma Gerald in the corner over there.” He referred to a striking silver-haired woman seated at a table by herself. “She’s on her monthly trip to visit her daughter in Morton Creek. Two silvers if you want a room to yourself. Dinner is another silver but includes all you want tonight, breakfast tomorrow before you leave, and a tankard of ale. What’ll you have?”
Cari thought about what she had from Merrick. She could afford a private room and dinner but hated to waste money when she didn’t know if she’d get more anytime soon. She decided to suck it up and share the room with the old lady to save a little bit.
“I’ll share the room if she’s alright with it. Dinner sounds good, too.”
“Excellent. I’ll get right on it. Hey, Granny, you’ve got a bunkmate for the night,” the bartender called while he drew a tankard of ale for Cari.
“Send her over to sit with me, then. I’d like to know who I’m sleeping with tonight.”
“Don’t we all,” a farmer said as he laughed at another table. “She’s welcome to come over here if she’d rather share a bed with me.”
“Oh, hush, Jym Price,” Grandma Gerald said. “Leave the girl be. She’s young enough to be your daughter’s age by the look of her. What would your wife say to you if she knew what you just said?”
The farmer blushed at being chastised, and his companions burst out laughing at his expense, reaching over to jostle him a bit. There were other bits of laughter around the common room as folks settled back into their conversations.
Cari crossed to where Grandma Gerald gestured to her to sit.
“Don’t pay Jym no mind. He’s harmless enough. What’s your name, sweetie?”
Cari sat down and introduced herself. “I’m Cari, Cari Dix.”
“Ooo, named after the Princess, are you? Did you choose that name, or is it the name your parents gave you?”
“My parents named me.”
“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I like the name. I almost named my youngest daughter after the legendary Princess, too. Did your parents tell you stories about her growing up?”
“Not as much as I’d have liked.”
“Well, you’re in for a treat. A traveling bard is passing through tonight. Maybe we can entice him to share one of the old tales with us.”
“That would be nice, Grandma Gerald.”
“Call me Granny. Everyone else does.”
Cari smiled, nodded, and took a sip of her ale while she studied some of the others in the room. The other patrons all seemed to be local farmers coming to the only tavern in the area to share tales and complain about their lives. The locals didn’t have much in the way of money, judging from their rough clothes and weathered and tanned faces.
“Where are you bound to, Cari? Are you traveling far?”
“I’m trying to catch up with friends heading to Morton Creek. Hopefully, they haven’t left without me.”
“Oh, what a nice surprise. I’m headed south to Morton Creek myself. My oldest daughter lives there with her husband and three of my grandchildren.”
“That’s nice. How many grandchildren do you have?”
“Twenty-two.”
Cari raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“I have six children and they’ve all had more than a few of their own. It’s one of the joys of my advanced age to spend as much time with them as possible.”
“Are the others in Morton Creek, too?”
“No, only my Becca moved away from the farmstead. The others remained close and took up farming like me and my husband. Becca always had stars in her eyes, though. I knew she’d opt to leave as soon as she got the chance. She met a nice young man traveling south to Morton Creek. He was on his way to take over for a retiring smith there. She told me she planned to marry him mere minutes after she’d met the boy.”
Granny shook her head and chuckled.
“I can’t say I was happy at the time, but he’s been a good husband and provider to her, and he’s raising those boys of his in a good trade, so I cannot complain after all is said and done.”
“It sounds like it all worked out,” Cari remarked.
“What about you? Why’s a girl your age out roaming the countryside with a sword at her waist like some young ruffian?”
Cari shrugged, unsure of what to say. “I just wanted to get away from home, I guess. I’ve always been good with a blade despite what my parents wanted me to do. I feel more at home with a sword in my hand than anything else.”
“Given who you’re named after, maybe you’ve soaked up some of your namesake’s prowess for adventure.”
“What do you mean? I thought Cari disappeared with her family when she was a young child.”
“That is true, but here in these western parts of the Empire, we hold a real close affinity to Prince Hal and his family. Did you know Prince Hal traveled right down this road almost a hu
ndred years ago on his way to Morton Creek?”
“No, I didn’t know that,” Cari replied. She was curious to hear that she might be retracing some of her father’s travels across Fantasma.
“Yes, he came through on his way to rescue the arch mage Theran from capture at the hands of a bandit king who’d taken over Morton Creek. At least that’s what the legend says.”
“Really? I suppose he was successful.”
“Of course, he was. That was how Prince Hal learned fire magic in the stories. He was taught the magic spells in exchange for rescuing the mage. In the end, it played a great part in his defeat of the usurping Emperor and his lackeys, if the tales are to be believed.”
Cari smiled at the thought of her father involved in some sort of epic adventure. It all seemed so strange to think of her dad, the business executive, running around with a sword in his hand and learning to cast magic spells. Even after her own adventures over the last week and a half in Fantasma, it was a little hard to believe.
Over the course of the long evening in the inn’s common room, Cari heard many more tales of her father, each more fanciful than the last. The traveling bard obliged Granny’s requests for stories about Prince Hal and told one after another.
At the end of the final tale, the story of the great slave escape from the city of Hyroth, Cari looked around and was surprised she and Granny were the only ones left in the common room. The farmers had all gone home long ago.
Granny pushed her chair back and stood, fishing in her coin purse until she pulled out a silver piece. “You should offer a token to the bard as well for his entertainments this evening.”
“I will,” Cari said, digging out a silver coin of her own. “I learned a great deal from his stories. I’d never heard so much about Prince Hal before.”
“Like I said, we here in the west country consider Prince Hal one of us. He’s even more revered in Tandon, farther west. That’s where he first showed up and vowed to take on the Emperor, you know.”
Cari nodded. She’d heard that in several of the night’s tales. She followed Granny over to the bard and handed him her coin, thanking him for the stories.
He took the coins with a bow and a flourish of his hands then set to packing up his lute and gathering his belongings.
Cari followed Granny up the narrow stairs to their room. The bed they were to share was smaller than she’d expected, but Granny was a thin woman. Hopefully, she didn’t kick in her sleep too much.
She needn’t have worried. The long day of traveling and the late night in the common room both conspired against her, and she soon fell into a deep sleep.
She didn’t remember a thing until Granny shook her gently by the shoulder the next morning.
“Cari, dear, I’m leaving. Would you like to travel with me south? I’d appreciate the company for the trip, and you wouldn’t have to walk. I have a buggy with room for us both.”
Cari rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She didn’t have to think long on it. Her evening with Granny had been her most pleasant so far in Fantasma. She’d enjoy sharing a ride with her south to Morton Creek. Plus, the buggy ride would offer her a faster option than walking.
“I’d like that, Granny. Do we have time for some breakfast first?”
“I had the innkeeper wrap up some ham, cheese, and fresh biscuits for us to take. I got enough for both of us, hoping you’d say yes.”
“Give me a few minutes to freshen up, and I’ll meet you outside in the courtyard.”
“Alright, but don’t dally. I want to get there before my grandchildren go to sleep for the night.”
Cari nodded. She rolled out of bed, gathered her things, and poured some water in the washbasin to scrub her face and hands.
By the time she arrived in the courtyard, Granny was already seated in the two-wheeled buggy, hitched behind a swaybacked piebald horse.
Cari tossed her backpack under the seat with Granny’s things and climbed up into the seat next to the old woman.
Granny clucked and shook the reins, and the horse started off at a trot for the road south. Cari looked up and let the sun warm her face in the early-morning chill. The trip south had taken a turn for the better when she met Granny Gerald. Cari hoped the luck continued to hold in her favor. She estimated she was nearly eight days behind her friends. She hoped they hadn’t left without her.
Chapter 19
After traveling all day with Granny Gerald, Cari was almost sorry to leave her behind when the old woman pulled up outside the Sailor’s Home Inn.
“Thank you for going out of your way to bring me here directly rather than going straight to your daughter’s, Granny.”
“Nonsense, my dear. It wouldn’t do for you to wander about, new in town, looking for this place. Besides, it’s not that far out of the way. My son-in-law’s smithy is just five minutes from here, near the Baron’s castle.”
Cari climbed down and retrieved her pack and sword.
“I hope you have a nice visit with your grandchildren, Granny. They’re lucky to have someone like you in their lives.”
“Yes.” She laughed as she lifted the reins. “Yes, they are. Hopefully, they know that, too. Best of luck to you, Cari Dix. I hope we get to meet again someday.”
“I’d like that, Granny. Farewell.”
The old woman shook the reins, and the horse trotted away, leaving Cari outside the ramshackle inn overlooking the harbor below. Cari shouldered her pack on one side and her sword belt over the other and went inside to find her friends.
As she stepped through the door, Cari wrinkled her nose. The interior of the inn was smoky and smelled of fish. The combination was a bit unpleasant.
From the small entry hall, doorways opened to the left and right. The right-hand side led to the tavern, and judging from the noisy carousing coming from that end of the building, she figured the joint was jumping. The left side led to a small counter and a staircase up to what Cari assumed were the inn’s rooms.
Cari decided her best option to find Rodrigo, Timron, and the others was to head to the left and speak to the clerk at the counter there. The greenish tint to his skin and the smile showing a mouthful of pointed teeth revealed him to be at least partly of goblin stock. He was polite enough, though.
“Can I help you, miss? We have the finest rooms in town.”
“I hope you can, sir. I’m looking for a few friends who are staying here. They are probably waiting for me.”
“Do you have a name, miss? We have several people staying here.”
“I’m supposed to ask for Liam or maybe Rodrigo?”
“Your name wouldn’t be Cari, would it?”
“Yes, it is. Oh, I’m so glad my friends are here.” She pointed back to the tavern side of the building. “Are they in the tavern? I’m sure they’ll be excited to see me.”
“Miss, uh, you misunderstand me. I have heard of your friends, but I’m afraid they are no longer here.”
“Not here?”
“No, but they did leave a note for you in hopes you would arrive, eventually. Wait here. I have it in the back office.”
The clerk held up his hands in front of him to keep her there and left through a small door behind the counter. He returned after a few seconds, handing her a folded piece of paper. It was sealed with wax, and the emblem of the Empress’s Dragoons was pressed into the seal, closing the message.
“I was just wondering how long I should hold on to the note. They had no idea how long it would take you to arrive. I didn’t think you’d come at all, honestly, but surprise, here you are.”
Cari stared at the note in her hand and struggled with what to say next. She’d counted on getting here in time to go with them. Everything she’d done was focused on that goal. She’d been imprisoned, escaped, fought tooth and nail to get away from her pursuers, and now the rug had been pulled out from under her.
“W-when did they leave?”
“Oh, it must be two days ago. I think it was because one of your friends ha
d gotten into a mix-up with a bad element in town. He apparently gambled away money he didn’t have, and a few burly gentlemen came looking for him. It was a nasty business, and the local constabulary was called to settle the peace. Your friends left early the next morning.”
Cari could guess which of her friends the clerk referred to, and she cursed under her breath at Timron and his personal habits. If not for him, Rodrigo, Liam, and the others would still be here.
After sliding her thumb under the folded paper note, breaking the wax seal, she unfolded the letter and read the words Liam had written there.
Cari,
It is my hope you arrive soon and are safe and sound after your delay in the capital. We were forced to leave Morton Creek on short notice and took the first available ship leaving the harbor. It is bound for Tandon, which is good. The Empress has a friend in the Duke and Duchess there.
We will await you in Tandon. Seek us out at the Duke’s palace. They will know where we are if we are not in Tandon anymore.
Godspeed,
Liam
She folded the note and considered what it said. If they left by ship, she’d have to book passage as well. The few coins she had left from what Merrick had given her would not be enough to book passage on a ship, she was sure. She only had enough left for two or three nights at an inn and a few meals.
“Did you find out what you needed, miss?” the clerk asked.
“No, not what I needed at all,” Cari said, letting the bitterness and disappointment creep into her tone and demeanor.
“Will you be needing a room perhaps while you work out what your next plans are?”
“I’m not sure, I have to consider my options for a bit.” Cari trailed off and walked away from the counter, soon finding she’d retraced her steps and stood once more on the street outside the inn. The harbor lay below with a few larger ships bobbing in the waters there. Most of the boats were smaller fishing vessels.