Page 38 of A Tale of Mirth & Magic

E LIKKI

I awoke groggy and confused, my body jostling uncomfortably against a hard surface. This was some fucking hangover. Way to go, dumbass.

My head pounded like my brain had doubled in size and was trying to burst out of my skull. The left side of my neck had a dull, throbbing pain, and my limbs felt a bit useless.

Water. Needed water, a nausea tonic, and a bacon egg bap before I braved the market. Barra would get it for me. Maybe he already has, bless that sweet hunk of a man. Just need to open my—

Oh. Wait. No.

Barra was gone. I’d left.

In a rush, it all came back to me. The mad frenzy of the tavern, dancing with Barra, his face as I left our room, running out into the night, crying in an empty street, and then—

Felsith .

My stomach dropped. Felsith slipping into the dim lamplight in front of me, a satisfied smile fixed on his shiny face, was the last thing I could remember.

That absolute turd . He’d attacked me. Or, at least, his henchperson did.

He wouldn’t have a chance against me on his own, and I bet he knew it.

Although—shit. As I took stock of my body, I realized my hands were tied together behind my back. Not just the wrists. They’d wrapped heavy rope or something all the way down my hands, so that I couldn’t move so much as a pinkie.

Well, that was… not great. I couldn’t wield my metal magic without my hands.

And arms too, usually, if I was being honest with myself.

Proper mages, the kind with years and years of training, could wield with any part of their body.

Some of the most powerful ones could even use just their mind, I’d heard.

But that wasn’t going to help me. Even with my newly deepened connection with my magic, I was still essentially a beginner.

There was a lot of metal nearby—including my own jewelry that called out to me, disgruntled and unhappy—though it wouldn’t do me any good.

And as I scanned my body, it seemed all the bits I normally stored on me had been removed.

My usual rings, the thick chain bracelet I’d been wearing yesterday, my various daggers—all gone.

Even my backup hairstick, sharp and reliable steel that I always kept stored in my braid or my corset, had been found and taken.

It appeared I was a bit fucked. Stay calm, girl. Breathe. You’ve been in worse scrapes than this.

Had I though?

Opening one eye just a crack, I blinked a few times to clear my bleary vision.

A carriage. I was in a carriage. Quite basic, but with brocade curtains and a few plump pillows.

I tried to keep as still as possible, letting my body stay slumped against the hard wall, the road bumping me about whenever our wheels hit a rough patch.

A metallic clang sounded near me, followed by a pleased murmur.

My pulse spiked. Someone was in here with me.

Switching eyes, I took in the other side of the carriage. Felsith . That conniving worm was seated diagonally across from me, rooting through my rucksack like a pig snuffling for food. I let my gaze fall and focused on not panicking.

Could I really go for a hot coffee and custard pastry right now? Yes.

Did I desperately want to kick my boot into Felsith’s chin? Yes.

But I had to keep it together. At least until I knew where exactly I was and how many assholes I was up against.

We continued driving for some time, bumping along the uneven country road, until finally I heard Felsith slide back a window and call out, “Let’s stop for a pee break!” before slamming it shut again.

The horses slowed. I heard someone clamber off the driving seat and open the carriage door.

Felsith bustled out and headed, I assume, into the woods on the side of the road to do his business.

There was a long, long pause. And then they closed the carriage door, sliding something through the handle, presumably to keep me in.

Footsteps padded away. I let out a careful sigh.

And then I moved.

Hopping across to the opposite seat, I ducked my face into my rucksack. Felsith had made a mess of everything. But I knew I had a couple of sharp knives tucked into the front side panel. If I could just—

Tense voices sounded from outside the carriage. I froze and strained my elven ears to catch their words.

“What do you care, you daft girl? We have her. Just stop your nagging.”

“You know that’s not the issue. I don’t think it’s right, that you steal her life’s possessions.”

“It doesn’t really matter what you think. You are nobody . And I deserve some payment for my pain.”

“Your payment will be justice. That’s why we’re bringing her back to town, to serve her sentence.”

A laugh, low and cold. “Oh, of course. Of course. But would she really feel true justice if she did not lose something she loved? Or, perhaps, everything she loved?”

I scrambled in the rucksack. C’mon, c’mon… it must be here somewhere.

Yes. I gripped one thin utility knife in my teeth and flung it across to my corner of the carriage. Sliding back over to that side as silently as I could, I tried to maneuver it with the very tips of my fingers that weren’t tied tightly with rope.

“This isn’t right,” the woman’s voice said quietly. “She’s already going to pay for her crimes, and dearly.”

“ Not enough .” Felsith’s oily voice turned harsh, hard.

“Do you even know what she did to me? Do you?

She made a fool of me. Crushed my wrist with her power without a second glance, then set her giant on me to finish the job.

The healers were barely able to salvage both of my wrists!

And they cost so much coin, I had to go to my brother for help.

“That nitwit,” he said almost under his breath.

“My dimwitted Lord Brother! He had to bail me out. Our parents, my wife, our neighbors… everyone knows. They all think of me—me!—as an idiot. A laughingstock. And this elf—this bitch —just got to saunter off into the sunset, la-di-da. Well, I don’t think so.

She is paying her dues—however I see fit. ”

There was silence after Felsith’s speech. Even I was motionless for a moment, chilled by the visceral hatred in his voice. This was much, much worse than I’d thought.

I kept maneuvering, trying to get the knife into a good position to cut the ropes on my hands and wrists. For a moment, I thought I had it—and then a sharp pain sliced into my arm. I bit down on my lip, willing myself not to cry out in pain.

A sudden jostling of the door, and a weight stepped back into the carriage. I was suddenly being shaken. Felsith had me by the shoulders, jolting me hard back and forth. My shoulder slammed into the wall, and I yelped.

“Wake, wake! Time’s up, girl!”

He pulled me from the carriage before I could react. I stumbled, missing the step, and fell hard onto my knees in the dirt road. My head spun viciously, and I blinked at the sudden bright daylight.

“Careful! What are you doing?” a woman shouted. I swung around to see who else I was up against.

Maerryl. Goddess damn her. Of course that wiseass dickhead had joined up with him.

The half-dwarf strode closer. Her tanned skin was flushed deep red, strong eyebrows slanted in a glare.

Well, that wasn’t anything new. She was always pissy—but at least this time it didn’t seem directed toward me.

Maerryl’s narrowed eyes flashed at Felsith, fists clenched at her sides.

She stopped halfway between Felsith and me.

We were almost in a perfect triangle, and I had a sudden absurd desire to laugh.

The three of us were facing off in the middle of nowhere.

I had no way to defend myself. And the kicker was—I’d put myself in this idiotic, goddess-forsaken predicament.

If I hadn’t run away like a coward from Barra, none of this would be happening.

Barra probably thought I’d ditched town this morning rather than face him after last night. I might never see him again. And he’d go about the rest of his life thinking I was a cold, cruel monster who’d strung him along for a week and then was too heartless to even say goodbye.

At that thought, I forced myself to my feet. My body screamed in protest, aches and fatigue weighing me down, but I ignored it. No matter what happened, I’d face it standing. Blood dripped slowly from the cut on my arm into the dirt behind me.

“She’s bleeding! Are you all right?” Maerryl’s eyes cut to me, assessing. I returned her look coolly. I didn’t like her, but I needed her on my side. Or at least not on Felsith’s side.

“I’ve been better,” I said, letting some of my pain show in my eyes.

She nodded, hard and decided. “Let’s get you back in the carriage.”

“I have a better idea,” said Felsith, who had been watching our exchange closely. “Why don’t we mete out justice right here?”

“What are you talking about?” Maerryl said, her voice flat.

He crept closer, and I took a step back. The carriage was behind me. I was boxed in by them.

“Well. I find that I don’t wish to wait to see her punished anymore. The whole rigamarole with the legal system, keeping her in our jail, the extra drama and gossip it will provoke in town, perhaps across the queendom—it’s all a bit much, isn’t it?”

Felsith stepped closer again, and my back was against the carriage’s side. I could see his every oily pore, the flash of madness in his eyes.

“We could take care of this right now. I’ll keep most—not all—of her belongings. Her precious jewelry ,” he spat to Maerryl, keeping his stare trained on me. “But I’ll leave her tools, a few coins. You’ll get triple the coin I promised you. And then we’ll cut her loose here to go on her merry way.”