"If it"s friends you"re after, you"ll make plenty tonight," said the bar matron. "Young Bartol Greenward turns eighteen today-half the town will be in and out of here. But don"t you worry-if it"s quiet you want, you won"t hear a peep from the back. Our walls are thick. But I hope you join us for while. It looks to be a grand party."
"What about strangers?" Gewey asked. "Have any come through in the past couple of days?"
The woman crinkled her nose in thought. "Can"t really tell," she said. "Been out sick until this morning. Dreadful sick. Feeling better now, though. Ready for the celebration." An old man pushed his way behind the counter and whispered into her ear.
"Yes I am, you old goat," she said crossly. "I was just about to show them to their room, wasn"t I?" she asked, turning toward Gewey and Dina.
"Yes you were," Gewey said, clearly amused by the banter.
The bar matron turned back to the old man. "You see? Now go back to your wine and leave me be."
The woman led Gewey and Dina through a door in the corner of the common room. Gewey scanned the crowd trying to catch sight of Lee, Millet, or Kaylia, but he didn"t see any of them.
"I forgot to ask," said the woman. "How many rooms will you be needing?" Gewey froze and felt himself blush.
"I...uh..." he stammered.
"Forgive my husband," Dina said. "He sometimes forgets we"re no longer bound by our parents. One room will be fine."
"That"s quite alright," said the woman. "My old goat of a husband forgets we"re even married at all." She unlocked the door and handed Dina the key. "You keep this, my love. Men can"t be trusted with anything. Now I must get back. The old goat will bring you some water for the basin. I"ll see your meal brought as well, if you want."
"Yes, thank you," said Dina.
"Grand," said the woman. "I"m Minnie, if you need anything. And my husband"s name...well, you can just call him old goat. He answers to that more than anything else." With that, Minnie scurried off down the hall.
The room was simple but comfortable. The washbasin in the corner was large enough to stand in, and the small table and chairs were well made. But the thing that Gewey noticed most was the single bed.
"Husband?" he asked.
Dina smiled. "I suppose I could have said brother. But I was taken off guard, and we can"t afford two rooms."
"You weren"t the only one taken off guard."
"Don"t worry," she said playfully. "Being my husband won"t be so bad."
Gewey couldn"t meet her eyes for fear his embarra.s.sment would show.
A little while later, Minnie"s husband brought their wash water.
"I"ll bring your meal in half an hour," he said sourly, before skulking out of the room.
"It"ll feel good to be clean," said Dina. "I have fresh clothes for you in my pack." She stood there staring at Gewey with eyebrows raised.
"What?" exclaimed Gewey.
"Turn around, if you don"t mind," Dina instructed. "Unless you intend to watch me bathe."
Gewey blushed for what felt like the hundredth time and turned around, facing the door. He felt his heart race as he heard Dina bathing behind him. By the time she was finished and dressed, he could hardly breathe.
"Your turn," she said, drying her hair with a towel that had been placed on the bed. Gewey didn"t move.
"Come now," she teased. "I"ll turn away." Gewey hands shook as he disrobed and began to wash.
"Very nice," Dina said suggestively.
Gewey spun around, nearly knocking over the basin, but Dina was still facing the door.
"That"s not funny," Gewey fumed.
"I"m sorry," Dina laughed. "I"ll be good. I promise."
Gewey washed and dressed as fast as he could.
There was a knock at the door, and Minnie"s husband brought them their meal. It was far more than the bar matron had said there might be; clearly she"d gotten to the leftover lamb before anyone else.
As they ate, Gewey tried not to think about his earlier embarra.s.sment, but he was still unable to look Dina in the eye.
"I think I"ll save the wine for the journey," Dina said, holding up the jug Minnie had given them.
"Good idea."
"I suppose we should see if your friends are anywhere about," she said, finishing her last bite of lamb. Gewey nodded in agreement.
The common room was still bustling with partygoers. Several tables had been pushed aside and a dance contest had broken out in the center of the floor. It reminded Gewey of birthdays back home.
He scanned the room, hoping to catch a glimpse of his companions, but he couldn"t see much through the crowd. He forced his way to the far wall and stood on a chair. Without warning, he was lifted off his feet and thrown over a broad shoulder. Before he could do anything, he was being spun around. He struggled to free himself, but his a.s.sailant lifted him up and sat him down hard in a chair. It was Lee. Gewey saw Dina approaching from behind him with her knife drawn.
"Dina, stop!" Gewey cried. "I"ve found them."
Dina put her knife back in her belt and covered it with her shirt.
"I see your taste in travel companions has improved," said Lee, smiling widely.
"How did you find me?" Gewey asked.
"Luck, combined with a bit of skill," Lee answered, laughing and slapping Gewey on the back. He turned to Dina. "So you"re the one who helped my young friend. Celandine, right?"
"Please, call me Dina," she said. "And you"re Lee Starfinder.
Where are your companions?"
"I see you and your husband decided to join us," said Minnie as she pa.s.sed by with a tray of wine. "And found a friend I see!" She disappeared into the crowd.
"Husband?" Lee exclaimed, bursting into laughter. "You"ve been busy."
"It"s not funny," Gewey objected. "Anyway, where"s Kaylia and Millet?"
"Kaylia"s in her room," Lee replied. "And Millet should be here tomorrow. But I don"t think we should talk here."
Lee led them to the room where Kaylia was staying. She smiled brightly when Gewey entered, but that smile vanished when Dina followed behind. She regarded the other woman with open suspicion.
"I see we have yet another traveler," Kaylia noted. "I take it she"s the one we saw at Salmitaya"s camp?"
"You saw us escape?" Gewey asked, surprised.
"I think we need to slow down," said Lee. He proceeded to tell Gewey and Dina the events of the past few days.
"I would have given anything to hear Sister Maybell cast out that witch," Dina said once Lee had finished. "She was right not to return to Kaltinor, though. Salmitaya would have killed her."
"Since we arrived, we"ve just been waiting," Lee continued.
"Kaylia hasn"t enjoyed it too much. I don"t think she"s ever stayed at an inn-too many humans for her taste."
Kaylia looked at Dina. "You don"t seem surprised to discover I"m an elf," she said coolly. "I a.s.sume Gewey told you. It makes me wonder what else he"s told you."
"There have been many surprises in the last few days," Dina replied. "One more doesn"t shock me."
"I told her nothing," Gewey a.s.serted. "Give me a little credit."
"From the look of things, you have a story to tell as well," Lee said.
"Yes," Kaylia agreed, still eying Dina warily. "So it seems, and I would love hear it."
Dina told her story all the way up until the rescue of Gewey, at which point Gewey took over. Lee and Kaylia listened intently to every detail. When Gewey got to the part about Felsafell, Lee and Kaylia both sat up straight, paying close attention. Gewey left out the details of what the old man had said, preferring to save that for a more private conversation with Lee. When he was finished, Lee got up, laughing.
"My boy," he said. "You have had some adventure. Worthy of one of my tales."
Kaylia wasn"t amused. Her eyes turned back to Dina. "I take it you intend to accompany us?"
"I intend to do what I set out to do," Dina responded. "Nothing has changed. I will deliver Gewey to the temple as I was instructed."
Abruptly, Lee"s tone became serious. "You may go where you wish," he said. "But I have no intention to deliver Gewey into the hands of anyone unless I have good reason to do so. And so far, you"ve been rather vague as to who sent you."
Dina lowered her head and took a deep breath. "I was sent by the High Lady of Valshara. I am a novice in the Order of Amon Dahl."
Lee eyes widened. "That"s quite a claim. Do you intend to back it up?"
Dina reached in her shirt and pulled out a thin silver chain with a small white medallion hanging on its end. Engraved on the medallion was a man in a hooded robe holding a dagger in one hand and a ring of laurels in the other.
"That could be a fake," Lee said.
"The image could be faked," Dina acknowledged, "but not the metal."
Lee reached out and took the medallion in his hand. It was hot to the touch and burned his fingers, causing him to quickly withdraw in pain.
Dina smiled and held the medallion firmly in her hand. "Each of us is bonded to the Order by this symbol. No one can touch it who has not received the blessing of Amon Dahl."
Lee stared in wonder. "I thought your order was destroyed."
"We haven"t been around for two thousand years because we"re fools," Dina boasted. "The Beast of Angraal tried to destroy us and many died, but we were able to escape with the Order intact."
"How many are left?" Lee asked.
"Not many," she answered sadly. "But we have never been dependant on numbers. When we get to Althetas, I"ll contact the Order and they"ll take us to the temple. Once we get there, Gewey should be safe."
"Althetas is four weeks on horseback," said Kaylia. "Twice that as we travel now. We should leave now and send Millet and Maybell somewhere safe."
"I"m not abandoning them," Lee shouted, his temper flaring.
"They"re known to our enemies, and I"ll not leave their safety to chance."
Dina looked displeased. "You don"t understand," she said. "Gewey must go with me, and me alone. I cannot bring anyone else."
"My friends go with me or I don"t go at all," Gewey stated with resolve. "That means all of them, and I don"t care if it takes us a year to get there."
"Very well," Dina said after a long moment. "You don"t leave me with much choice."
"It"s settled, then," Gewey declared. "We leave as soon as Millet and Maybell arrive." He touched Lee on the shoulder and whispered, "I need to speak to you in private."
Lee nodded his head in agreement. "The boy and I must talk alone," he said to the others. "Dina, I think your "husband" may feel more comfortable staying in my room tonight."
Kaylia raised an eyebrow at Gewey with a slight smile on her face.
"You told people you are married?"
"It was Dina"s idea," Gewey muttered, feeling every bit as uncomfortable as he sounded.
Dina wore an amused grin. "It seemed like the thing to do at the time."
"Well then," Kaylia said. "We wouldn"t want people wondering why a husband and wife who came together didn"t stay together."
"Good point," Lee added, barely able to contain his amus.e.m.e.nt.
"I"m sorry, Gewey. The life of a married man can be tough."
"This is not funny," Gewey growled.
"It"s not meant to be," Lee replied. "Kaylia"s right, though. If you said you"re married, you have to keep up the ruse, at least until we"ve left here. Don"t worry, I have an extra blanket in my pack-a.s.suming you"ll be sleeping on the floor, that is."
Dina sauntered over to Gewey and slipped her arm around him.
"Yes, he will," she teased.
Gewey turned bright red and pulled away from Dina. "That"s enough," he protested, trying not to stutter. "Lee, I need to speak to you now." He grabbed Lee"s arm and pulled him from the room.
Lee took Gewey to his room and locked the door.
"That was not funny," Gewey hissed.