Page 8 of Sorcery, Swords & Scones (Tales from the Tavern #2)

Eight

“I didn’t take offense at your friend’s comment about my chai,” Lira said the next morning when she bustled into the tavern with the thick, leather-bound spell book tucked under her arm and a paper bag in one hand.

Sass paused in her task of straightening the chairs she’d left akimbo the night before and grinned, grateful that her friend wasn’t holding a grudge about the secrets Sass had kept from her. She was less concerned that Thrain was slow to warm to Lira’s chai.

“You can’t take anything Thrain thinks about food to heart. He was always a picky eater, even about dwarven fare.”

Lira glanced at the fire that was already crackling and the cushions in the armchairs that were freshly fluffed. “Someone’s been up early.”

“I couldn’t sleep well,” Sass admitted. “Cleaning has always calmed my mind, so I thought I might as well give the place a good spit-and-polish.”

It had been a bit more than that, but Lira didn’t need to know that she’d swept all the floors to within an inch of their life, rewashed all the tankards behind the bar, and polished the tables until there wasn’t a hint of the frothy ale and meat pie filling that had been dribbled on them the night before.

“Then you deserve one of these.” Lira unrolled the top of the paper sack, and an intoxicating aroma of yeast, citrus, and sugar wafted from it.

Sass’s stomach had been silent all morning, but now it let out an ornery grumble as she reached into the bag for one of the sticky treats. “Pip’s lemon sweet rolls make all the work worth it.”

“The best baked goods do.” Lira plucked out a gooey roll and put it to her nose, inhaling deeply and moaning before continuing to walk toward the kitchen. “That’s why I’m trying a new recipe today.”

Sass hadn’t even taken a bite of her roll, but she hurried after her friend. “You’re trying something new? Aside from the apple crumble recipe for the Harvest Festival?”

Lira backed through the swinging kitchen doors since she didn’t have any free hands, and Sass slipped in behind her.

The half-elf dropped the paper bag of sweet rolls on the wooden table that took up the center of the room before gingerly lowering the heavy book to the surface.

Then she held up a finger and took a bite of her iced roll.

Sass followed her lead, letting her teeth sink into the pillowy dough and closing her eyes as the lemony sweetness exploded on her tongue.

She nearly swooned as she chewed and swallowed, taking another bite and then another before she was licking the last drizzle of heavenly icing from her fingers.

When she opened her eyes, Lira had polished off her roll and was wiping her hands on a dishcloth.

“Now that we’ve gotten the most important thing out of the way,” Lira grabbed her apron from a wall hook and tied it around her waist, “I suppose I should put the chai on to heat.”

Crumpet was slowly uncoiling himself from the nest of blankets Lira had made for him on the corner of the counter, stretching his tiny arms and legs and shaking out his wings as a sleepy yawn twitched his whiskers.

He glided to the table where Lira handed him a bit of sweet roll, and he cooed his appreciation as he nibbled it delicately.

“Morning, Crumpet.” Sass hopped onto a stool and let her feet dangle, as Lira plunked a copper pot onto the stove. Her gaze lingered on the leather book with the glittering moonstone embedded in the cover. “What about the new recipe?”

Lira snapped her fingers. “Right. Sorry, I let Pip’s sweet rolls distract me.”

“Easily done.” Sass was grateful that the sweet breakfast had taken her mind off her bigger worries, and she had no desire to return to them.

Once Lira had poured milk into the pot and added the chai spices, she ran her hand over the worn leather of her gran’s recipe book. The recipe book was also a spell book since her gran had once been a mage.

“After I left you last night, I went home and started thinking about ways we could keep your ex-fiancée from finding you or making you return to the Ice Lands.” Lira flipped open the book.

“There are spells in here for obfuscation, but they aren’t permanent, and I’m not sure how long you’d want to walk around unseen. ”

Sass wrinkled her nose at this. Sure, she’d run from Florin once, but did she want to hide forever?

Lira looked up at her and nodded. “Exactly. That’s what I thought. I also found a spell that can bewitch someone into forgetting you, but it would have to be cast on a lot of dwarves if an entire search party is descending, so I’m not sure that will work either.”

“One question.” Sass cocked her head at Lira. “I know you have your gran’s book, but she was a mage and you’re not. Do you have any idea how to cast any of these spells?”

Lira took a moment to pull her long hair into a high bun, and she jabbed a wooden skewer through it to hold it in place. “Not exactly, which is why I stopped looking up spells and started reading recipes. That’s how I found my gran’s crumpet recipe.”

Sass cut her gaze to the white, winged stoat, who was fastidiously licking his paws clean. “Crumpets are food?”

Lira laughed. “Of course they are. Where do you think I got Crumpet’s name?”

“Crumpets aren’t part of dwarf cuisine. I assumed it was just a cute name you made up.”

Crumpet flew to Lira’s shoulder and let out what the dwarf would have sworn was his version of a laugh.

“I know.” Lira shared a look with the tiny creature. “I can’t believe it either.”

Sass held up her palms. “Laugh all you want, but are you going to tell me more about these crumpets or not?”

Lira turned a few pages of the book until she grinned. “Here it is, Gran’s crumpet recipe.” She let out a wistful sigh. “I don’t know how to describe them. They’re more savory than sweet, but once you slather a hot one with butter and jam, they’re nothing short of addictive.”

Even though Sass had just eaten a sweet roll, her stomach rumbled at the thought of anything slathered with sweet butter and sticky jam.

“The nice thing about crumpets,” Lira continued, “is that they can keep, unlike Pip’s spectacular rolls, which are best eaten when they’re hot and soft.”

“Not that we’ve ever had a problem finishing anything Pip bakes.”

Lira tapped a finger on her chin. “That is true, but just imagine being able to keep a tin of crumpets in the kitchen on the off chance you forget to eat one night.”

Sass snorted a laugh at this. It seemed like they were so busy that she forgot to eat most nights. “Sold. Let’s make crumpets.”

Lira reached for an earthenware mixing bowl and made quick work of scooping flour and several other dry ingredients into it. Just as she added the water and mixed it all with a wooden spoon, there was a yelp from outside the doors.

Sass stiffened. Had Florin found her already?

Lira snatched up one of her old rogue’s daggers that had been given a second life as kitchen knives and hurried to the swinging doors, mouthing for Sass to stay behind her. Sass didn’t argue, as the yelp had devolved into the shuffling and scuffling of boots.

When Lira pushed open the doors and rushed out, she almost instantly lowered her blade. “Hells and cinders! What are you doing?”