Page 110 of Keldori By Daybreak

“But he didn’t.”

The woman gave me a wry smile and pulled a clean fork from her apron to set down next to my plate of eggs.

“You must have traveled here from very far away if you don’t already know this story,” she said. Fana giggled in confirmation. “He tried to mine the Willow. He came to oversee the first day of drilling into the tree himself. Even built a steamtrail into the citadel to get here. Not even an hour into the mining process, a large chunk of rock broke off the Great Willow and fell. The only pity is that they say he died instantly. I would prefer it if the tree had made him at least suffer a little while.”

“And Tamora hasn’t tried to mine to the Willow since taking her father’s place?” I asked.

“No. She doesn’t think about us much. I imagine her father’s death plays a role in that. Instead she sends her worst guards here, usually as a punishment. Rotsbane attacks have left the steamtrail into Willow’s Grave unusable, so there’s no oversight from the capital at Vanderfall. The guards run the citadel. They pretend to be our protectors, but we all know they’re our captors.” The woman nodded at the pastries on our table. “And you left one of them unconscious in an alleyway, apparently.”

“That doesn’t solve your problem.”

“No, but I don’t see how it’s your problem to fix.” The woman laughed. “Besides, rumor says the Rift is open and the Frozen God is freed. If Tamora manages to get past him and into Keldori, we’ll be the least of her concerns with all that Skal. Perhaps she’ll withdraw all her guards from Willow’s Grave and take them to Keldori with her. All her greed and all that Skal, my coin is on her and her guards turning rotsbane the moment they cross the Rift.”

I nodded, and my stomach twisted at the thought of rotsbane flooding my home.

“All that to say, stay as long as you and your friends need. Food and drink is on us. You’re safe here.” The woman turned away to tend to the other tables.

I wasn’t sure “safe” was the best word to describe an enclosed city run by Tamora’s most corrupt guards. Tiernan’s alarmed scowl told me he didn’t feel so confident either.

“You attacked a guard?” he hissed.

“It was the guard that took our Skal at the gate. He deserved it!”

“We’re trying to not draw attention to ourselves!”

“And if you had heard what he’d been saying—”

“I don’t care,” Tiernan seethed, leaning over the table so we wouldn’t be overheard. “We have too much going on for you to be running around playing the hero where you don’t need to.”

“Oh?” I sat back in my chair and crossed my arms, grinning. “So I should’ve left you in your prison cell instead of playing the hero?”

His cheeks darkened, and he fell back in his seat.

“Be nice to Wren,” Fana whispered. “She almost died.”

“She’s fine.” Tiernan grabbed a small tower of pastries from our plate and stood. “Come on, Fana. We’ll be safer in the room.”

Fana’s shoulders fell, but then she grabbed a cheese danish and held it up to me. “Can cats eat cheese?”

“I’m sure Jonquil would love some cheese,” I assured her. Her face brightened, and she chased Tiernan back to the rooms.

At least Orla and Iseult seemed to be enjoying their stay so far. Orla slipped an arm around Iseult’s waist where they stood together at the tavern counter, and I quickly averted my eyes before she noticed me watching.

“They aren’t subtle.” Ciarán fell into Tiernan’s abandoned seat, and I jumped at his sudden presence.

“Look who came back.” I rolled my eyes. “Didn’t feel like telling anyone where you went this morning? Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Were you worried about me, my Lady?” He smirked.

“You wish. I was more annoyed than worried. Where were you?”

“I was returning the pendant we took off that guard last night,” Ciarán said, still not looking at me.

“You found the owner? How?”

He shrugged. “Asked around about travelers. Found a young couple with family in the city. They got in yesterday, just in time to deliver their baby.”

“He took the pendant from a pregnant woman?” I had half a mind to hunt the guard down again and set Ciarán loose on his toes next.