Those haughty blue eyes shift over me, lingering on my surcoat with its high bodice and loose waist. My breasts easily fill out the bodice, but they’re nothing compared to Katya’s. The rest of my shape is loss by the voluminous fabric.
“I never thought ye would.”
She knows I’m not here to entice men.
When I had first entered the establishment, I told Luther I only wanted enough coin to continue my journey to the foothills beyond this town.
I steal a glance at the window, looking at the promise of the mountains in the distance. The Bloodstone live there. Soon, I’ll leave this alehouse. I’ll journey to those mountains, and I’ll carry out my destiny.
Tomorrow is my birthday, a time of celebration for most people. I only want it to be a day that will lead me closer to the Bloodstone people.
I tighten my grip on the stoneware, approach the stranger, and plop the tankard near his hands. “It’s one gold coin.”
Piercing green eyes look up, holding on me. My breath catches in my throat. He’s Bloodstone. He may wear a green, unmarked surcoat, but he hastheirserpent emblem on his bracers.
He glances over my blue surcoat with the Kyanite coat of arms. In the candlelight, the gold threads on the fabric nearly glow. It makes the mother tree seem more sacred.
When I started working here, Luther warned me to remove all traces of being Kyanite. I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
With his boot, the stranger pushes the chair across from him out. “Sit.”
“That would be two gold pieces.” Should I have said three? I still need more coin to continue my journey.
He reaches into his cloak, pulls free a leather bag, and lowers it to the table. The contents clink against the wooden surface. “You may have all of my coin.”
My brow rises. “What is your price for such a generous offering?”
Don’t say me.
Men have propositioned me enough working here to worry that’s what this stranger wants.
“Conversation,” he says, his voice rising over the hum of the people sitting at the nearby tables.
I slide into the seat and settle my elbows against the table. “Are you so lonely, you feel compelled to give away all your coin for a conversation?”
“I’m not lonely.” He lifts his tankard and takes a slow drink before lowering it back to the table. “I’m curious why a Kyanite is so far from home.”
“Oh.” Unconsciously, my fingers trace the gold tree sewn into my surcoat. “I am working.”
His brow lifts as he allows his gaze to take in the alehouse. “Here?”
It takes everything in me to not follow his stare around the tavern. I know how small it is. How dank. You need only to stand and take forty steps to walk from one end of the room to the other. The smallness didn’t deter Luther from cramming tables and chairs into every available space.
“Yes. Here,” I say after several moments.
The stranger’s focus shifts to the window, much like mine had done earlier. “Beyond this town lies the foothills of the Bloodstone mountains.” His haunted eyes shift back to me. “It doesn’t welcome Kyanites.”
My hand trembles as I lower it back to the table. He’s right. I knew it when I set out on this course. It didn’t sway me. Maybe it should have.
“I left Kyanite land four summers ago to explore all the Tarrobane territory. Those mountains, and the people who live in them, are just another tribe to me.” I allow a quick pass over his armor. “You are just another Tarrobane barbarian.”
Please forgive my lies, Olah.
Mirth skips behind the man’s gaze. “I see.” He lifts his tankard and takes another drink. “So, the fact I’m Bloodstone doesn’t bother you?”
“Shall I tell you a secret?” I lean closer, anticipating his answer. He nods. “I find you fascinating. Your people, that is. You live in obscurity. That’s difficult to do in Tarrobane.” Warmth scours my throat at the bold lie, the terrible lie, the lie that scalds my insides. There’s nothing fascinating about the Bloodstone.
Something in me is unwilling to admit the trembling I felt in my bones the moment I knew he was Bloodstone. If I act brave, he won’t see the nerves clattering in my throat.
