Page 24 of Halloween Knight (A Knights Through Time Romance #17)
“The grain came on a ship from Italy.” He scratched his cheek.
Before he jumped into the story wholeheartedly, Lucy interrupted.
“I would like to hear the tale, but might we go inside where it’s warmer? I’ll buy you a cup of ale in exchange for your story. That way, the seamstress can get started on my dress.”
She waved a hand up and down her body. “As you can see, I’m quite in need of a new garment.”
He pretended not to notice. “A cup of ale would indeed quench my thirst, lady.”
She sniffed but didn’t smell the telltale scent, but decided to ask, anyway. “Have you come across coffee beans or tea leaves in your travels?”
“Alas, no.” The merchant frowned. “I have heard of coffee beans. What are they used for?”
“To make a most delicious drink.” She didn’t want to say too much. “If ever you do have the opportunity to purchase either coffee or tea, I will make it worth your while if you bring it to Blackford on the coast.”
Pleased, the man nodded.
Lucy ran a finger down the linen bag, a memory surfacing. “I would like to purchase the rice from you.”
“All of it?” Aaron nodded, then leaned close. “’Tis quite costly, lady.”
He quoted a figure that made Callan blink in surprise as he leaned over the cart to look at the bag.
“Are the bloody wee grains made of gold?”
Rolling her eyes, Lucy patted his arm. “Come, let’s hear the story.”
William would have heart failure when he found out how much she spent on the rice, but she hoped when he tasted what she had in mind, he’d get over it. What was the use of being rich if you couldn’t splurge once in a while?
It was funny, salt, rice, and spices were so costly, yet in her own time, people thought nothing of drying a wet phone in a bag of rice and then throwing the rice away or spilling salt without a care, or tossing old spices in the trash. They kept costly goods under lock and key at Blackford.
They went inside the inn, Callan and the merchant sitting down at a long wooden table with benches while Lucy went in search of the seamstress.
After she’d given the fabric to the woman and had been measured for a dress and chemise, the seamstress assured Lucy she could use the heathen Scot’s old shirt to make him a new one.
When the serving boy brought ale for all of them, Lucy put her elbows on the table, glad to sit on a non-moving bench, curious to hear the story.
“Mayhap a fortnight ago or so, I met a sailor from Italy in a pub on the coast. We shared a drink, and after many games of dice, I won a bag of the finest rice you’ll ever taste.”
Aaron’s eyes twinkled with amusement as he recounted the tale.
“This sailor, you see, had just returned from a long voyage across the seas. He spoke of distant lands, exotic spices, and the like. I had a feeling he’d stolen the rice, but as he needed coin and I wished to have the goods, we came to an accord.
The sailor claimed it was unlike any other, and I was willing to wager a few coins to try it for myself. ”
Their conversation flowed easily as he went on with the story, then continued, telling them the tales sailors told of sea monsters and other tales.
Aaron spoke of his adventures on the road, the good and the hair-raising. In turn, Lucy and Callan recounted tales of their adventures thus far.
As time passed, the inn’s common room gradually filled with other travelers seeking refuge from the road.
The sun, now higher in the sky, shone in each time the door was opened, a beacon in the dimly lit inn.
It was nearly dinner, or as Lucy thought of it, lunch, as her stomach rumbled in anticipation of a hot meal.
When the food arrived, it consisted of a steaming bowl of hearty stew accompanied by a loaf of freshly baked bread, butter, and cheese. The fragrant aroma filled the air, and this time Callan’s stomach growled.
Lucy couldn’t recall the last time she’d enjoyed a proper meal, and the simple pleasure of a hot meal brought her a bit of comfort from the ordeals of their travels.
While savoring the food, Aaron continued to tell them stories as other travelers moved closer, eager to hear the tales, though more than a few of them gave Callan a wide berth, making Lucy smile.
The light atmosphere provided a welcome respite from the worry that had weighed upon her heart for so long. The world and its troubles outside seemed to fade away, even if just for a little while.
Finished eating, Lucy asked Callan to pack the rice with their things. She paid for their meals and bade Aaron farewell.
“I thank you for such entertaining stories.” She pushed away from the table, head slightly fuzzy from the ale and then the spiced wine.
“Safe journey, and if you hear of my husband or his men, please tell him we are on our way to Blackford Castle.”
“I will, lady.” The merchant nodded to her. As Lucy left him, other patrons settled in, eager to hear the merchant’s news and tales.
Lucy followed Callan out to the stables to get the soap she’d purchased from Aaron from her bag. “I’m going to take a bath and go to bed early. I think I could sleep for three days,” she said, voice tinged with weariness. “Are you sure you don’t want to share the room? You can sleep on the floor.”
Callan shook his head. “I’ll sleep in the stables, watch over the horses and our goods. I willna let the rice out of my sight.” He scanned the room. “Lock your door and do not come out until morning.”
With a grateful smile, Lucy walked from the stables to the back of the inn, entering a small room off the kitchen where a wooden padded tub was waiting, the water already steaming, a fire crackling in the small hearth.
There was a cloth for washing and one for drying. When she lowered herself into the hot water, Lucy let out a contented sigh. The heat soothed her aches as she washed, the clear water turning gray as she scrubbed and scrubbed until every inch of her was clean.
As she closed her eyes, leaning her head back, she whispered a silent prayer that she would find William and all would be well.
Once the water cooled, and her skin wrinkled, Lucy sat by the fire, combing her hair with a comb she’d also purchased from Aaron.
The innkeeper’s sister had loaned her a clean chemise to sleep in while they made her a new dress and chemise, and cleaned the cloak she’d been wearing.
A set of stairs led from the bathing room directly up to her room, so Lucy ran up the stairs in the chemise and locked the door of the room behind her.
The room was neat and clean, with a simple bed and washbasin. Before she fell asleep, Lucy thought about the rice. She was going to make a stir-fry meal and then her favorite childhood treat for dessert, Rice Krispies.
She had mallow plants at home which were used for healing.
The Greeks, Chinese, and Romans, along with the ancient Egyptians, all used the plant.
It was good for sore throats. But the best use?
The roots could be used to make marshmallows.
While she hadn’t tried it yet, now that she had rice, Lucy couldn’t wait to try and replicate her childhood treat.
One of her friends had gotten on a homesteading kick a few years before Lucy …
left, growing her own food, and made homemade marshmallows from the mallow plants for Lucy along with homemade Rice Krispy treats.
While they weren’t as good as using delicious marshmallow fluff, they weren’t bad, and she thought everyone would enjoy trying them.
Thanks to her friend and watching videos back then, Lucy knew the rice had to be toasted with salt until it crisped.
She had honey to mix with the mallow root, which she’d then mix with the crisped rice.
As for the stir-fry, she’d make rice along with meat and veg, and thanks to Aaron, she had a few of the more exotic spices to add to the stir-fry.
Now she just had to find her husband and her men, tell William he had a half-brother, go home, and make sure Agnes didn’t show up to murder them all.