Page 65 of Shadows of Winter
“Not many,” he whispered back.
“Any?”
“Not that I recall. It wouldn’t have occurred to me that anyone here would have heard of the Gull or give us special treatment for our association with it, so I didn’t think to share.” Frayvar pointed at her. “You told the ranger captain everything when they drugged you.”
“Yeah, but would he have gossiped our life stories around town? He wants to use us, right? We’re his secret whatever.”
“Maybe he thought we would be more likely to get visitors if people knew we’d be using Grandma’s recipes. He wants us to succeed so customers will come hang out and blab for his spies, right?”
“I don’t know exactly what he wants, but I—”
Squeaks came from one of the tower windows, and a pair of bats flew out.
Since Kaylina had seen them coming and going before, she hadn’t thought much of their presence—it wasn’t as if she could find stairs up into those towers to clean out the rooms they’d claimed—but seeing them depart after being close enough to listen to the conversation…
“You know those stories about herbalists and alchemists having animal familiars and using them to spy on people?” she asked.
“Those are just fairy tales. We’ve already discussed that magic doesn’t work that way.”
“Are you sure? We’ve got a curse in our castle and killer beasts in the catacombs. There may be more magic in the world than your books know about.”
“My books know about a lot. I’ve read thousands of years of history.”
“Well, someone is keeping an eye on us.”
Frayvar shrugged. “There were other people in those jail cells, remember. Some of the Virts might have heard your responses during the questioning. You weren’t being quiet.”
“I suppose that’s possible. We’ll have to be extra careful though. A lot more people than I expected are interested in us, and we don’t have any allies here.”
“The rangers want us alive.”
“For now. If they come to believe we’re not on their side, that might change.”
“I don’t want to be on a side, Kay. I just want to make good food and not have to slink back home, feeling like a failure because we couldn’t start a business. Or because you died.”
“I don’t want you to have to slink back home after my death either. Trust me.”
17
The pleasure found in one’s cups is more a boon for the mind than the body.
~ Dainbridge III, the playwright
“This will be our outdoor dining area.” The lack of a breeze almost made the sun bathing Kaylina’s face feel warm. Almost.
She and Frayvar sat at a table in the courtyard behind the kitchen, with goblets holding samples from their first batches of mead and bowls of an apple-cider beef stew he’d made. It was one of the recipes he was trialing for their soft opening. He’d even baked bread, and they’d gotten fresh butter from the market, so Kaylina was chomping with pleasure, feeling optimistic for the first time in days. She was deliberately not thinking about the body that had been sprawled a few feet away the first time she’d seen this place.
“Out back? By the kitchen?” Frayvar sipped the apple mead, a classic cyser that complemented the stew. He’d always loved recipes that incorporated fruit.
“It’s protected from the prevailing wind, has a view of the river, and those trees will be pretty once they leaf out.” Kaylina sipped the semi-sweet mead that was one of her favorites, pleased it tasted like Grandma’s. She had assumed it would, since she’d followed the recipe precisely, but Grandma had never had to make mead in an environment like this. Who knew what weird flavors a curse could impart?
Earlier, Kaylina had been tempted to take a walk along the river, to see more of the town and mention their upcoming opening to anyone out, but her crutch still leaned nearby. She could move around without it, but the punctures ached if she used the leg too much. The morning before, the doctor had arrived in a taxi-service carriage, wearing clothing that didn’t hint of a ranger affiliation. He’d checked on her wounds and given her a fresh bandage.
“I suppose,” Frayvar said, “but if we put tables on the side near the street, passersby will see through the gate that we have customers, and they’ll be enticed to stop in.”
“They’ll be able to see if we don’t have customers too.”
Frayvar frowned at her. “This morning, you promised you would be optimistic today.”