Page 11

Chapter 11

Avery

“ E lliot!” Avery shrieked, dashing toward the flower-covered field. Had the man lost his hearing and sight? How could he stumble backward through a flower field, of all places?

Her heart thundered as she sprinted forward, trying not to think how high the cliff might be. She clutched the strap of her satchel as it bounced awkwardly against her side. She had only followed him in the first place to keep him from going too far from the lamp. In his initial indignation, he had clearly forgotten about his need to stay close to it.

Now she could only be glad she had followed. She just hoped it wasn’t too late…

She dropped to her knees beside the crumbled section of cliff where Elliot had gone over. She held her breath as she peered cautiously over the side.

Please be alive. Please be alive, she chanted in her head.

Her breath whooshed out when she saw the slim gorge was only two body lengths deep. Elliot sat at the bottom looking dazed, his head in his hands.

“Of all the foolish things,” she called down to him, relief giving way to amusement. “Don’t you know better? Didn’t you see the flowers?”

Elliot looked up at her and winced. From his expression, his pride was hurt worse than his body.

“Flowers? I was too busy looking at the dragon!”

“Dragon?” Avery stared at him before glancing reflexively over her shoulder.

The two mice must have been off enjoying their ill-gotten meal, but the lizard had laid himself out on the rocks to sun. She looked back down at Elliot.

“Are you talking about the lizard? I thought you were planning to settle in Sovar. Don’t you know they have enormous lizards as well as enormous mice? You should have known that if there were two mice around, there was probably a lizard hidden somewhere nearby. They’re usually found together.”

“Lizard,” he said slowly. Groaning, he dropped his head back into his hands.

Avery knew she shouldn’t enjoy his discomfort, but she couldn’t help her lips twitching. “And what about the flowers? You can’t have thought they were natural!”

She glanced around at the incredible display around her. The bright colors of a multitude of different flowers shone in the sun, clustered together in this spot although there were none in the surrounding grasslands. It was a classic display by the Sovaran Legacy. But in Sovar, unnaturally beautiful spots were always accompanied by a cliff. Avoiding those areas was one of the first things she’d learned from her parents as a young child.

“I barely noticed them at all,” Elliot admitted.

“Can you climb out?” Avery asked.

Elliot pulled himself to his feet, and she surreptitiously watched as he checked himself over. He seemed to conclude that he was, indeed, unharmed, and she breathed a soft sigh of relief.

He reached up, trying to find purchase on the sides of the narrow gorge. But as soon as he caught hold of anything, it crumbled at his touch, as it had under his foot at the top. After several tries, he gave up with a grunt and looked up at Avery.

“I don’t think I’m getting myself out of here.” He sounded rueful. “Can you fetch a rope?”

Avery nodded. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

She crawled backward away from the edge before scrambling to her feet. The last thing they needed was for both of them to end up down there.

But she had only taken two running steps through the flowers when she stopped. Her hands tightened around the satchel as she glanced back at the almost invisible gap in the ground.

From their experiments, she knew the cart was too far away for her to take the lamp without causing him to suffer. She could leave it there among the flowers, but what if that was his plan? What if he had faked not being able to climb out, and?—

She shook her head at her paranoid thoughts. He hadn’t even mentioned her leaving the satchel. Surely if this was all some scheme of his, he wouldn’t have left it to chance and her good nature.

She slipped the satchel off and laid it on the ground. She would just have to return as quickly as she could.

She ran full speed back through the flowers, past the sunbathing lizard, and between the trees that shaded the road.

Nutmeg whinnied, prancing in place as Avery appeared beside her, panting.

“Don’t worry, girl,” Avery said between gasping breaths. “We’ll be back soon.”

She rummaged through the back of the cart to find a rope, her organized storage making it easy to locate. Almost no time had passed before she was racing back toward Elliot.

Her breathing was still ragged, but her heart began to slow as soon as she saw the satchel untouched where she had left it. Elliot might still prove untrustworthy, but his fall hadn’t been a ruse.

As she stopped a safe number of steps back from the small cliff, Elliot must have heard her because he called out cheerfully.

“That was quick!”

She didn’t respond, concentrating on securing the rope around her own waist and getting a firm grip on it before she tossed the end down to him. He called a thank you and then she felt several tugs on the rope as he presumably prepared to haul himself out.

After a moment, the rope went still, the pressure against it growing firm and steady. He called up again.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes,” she called back. “I’ll start moving backward, if I can, but you’ll have to pull yourself up mostly.”

“No problem,” he replied, and it occurred to her to be doubly glad he wasn’t injured. She would have had a difficult time pulling him up on her own with an injury to consider.

As it was, she staggered and almost fell when the pressure on the rope suddenly increased to the full weight of a person. She leaned backward to try to counterbalance it, managing one staggering step backward.

It probably did little to help, but thankfully Elliot’s hands appeared over the lip of the crevice, and within moments he was hauling himself all the way over. When he finally dropped the rope, he looked at her with concern.

“Are you all right? That didn’t hurt you?”

Avery immediately stopped rubbing at her waist where the rope sat.

“I’m fine,” she said quickly, untying it and winding the rope up, pulling the end from out of the crevice as she did.

“Thank you for coming to my rescue.” Elliot ran an embarrassed hand over the back of his neck. “I can’t believe I was such a chucklehead.”

He glanced toward the sunning lizard, and she caught his shudder.

“You do know dragons don’t actually exist, right?” she asked him with a grin as she looped the coils of rope over one arm, resettling her satchel into its place.

“Of course I do,” he said with dignity, but he still gave the lizard a wide berth on their way back. “I just don’t know which part of Sovar’s history made their Legacy decide to start producing cliffs everywhere. None of the histories I studied included anyone falling off a cliff.”

“A metaphorical one, perhaps?” Avery said lightly. “But there’s still debate on that one. At least the lizards don’t do any harm—unless you’re a fish or a small animal. I’ve never heard of them harming a human.”

“I’m sure they’re perfectly lovely,” he said stiffly. “But lizards have no business being that large.”

“Neither do mice,” she pointed out. “But that’s Sovar for you. Maybe you should pick somewhere else to settle.”

“They don’t have the giant mice—or lizards—in the capital,” he said. “Or at least not as many of them. The people have driven them away.”

She conceded the point, refraining from teasing him further as they neared Nutmeg. Although he seemed unharmed, his body must have been surging with nervous energy after the scare. Hers was, and she hadn’t been the one to go over the cliff backward.

“You’re lucky you didn’t get hurt,” she said softly.

He smiled. “I missed the lesson about flowers and cliffs, but I got into plenty of fights in my early years of travel when I was still foolish.” A shadow crossed over his face. “It took a while before I started winning any of the fights, but at least I learned how to fall well, so it wasn’t all wasted.”

“A useful skill,” Avery said, her mock solemnity covering the sudden pang in the region of her heart.

Elliot seemed so easygoing and levelheaded. What had provoked his younger self into so many fights? Who had he been protecting?

“I had to learn a lot of useful skills for traveling very quickly,” he said. “You would have thought me useless if you’d met me back then.”

“You’re certainly a seasoned traveler now,” she said. “Do you really want to leave the road? Won’t life in a normal house in the middle of a city seem boring after a life of adventure?”

“It sounds splendid to me. Idyllic boredom.”

Avery shook her head. She couldn’t understand it. Who wanted to be bored? She let the topic drop, though. There wasn’t anything to be gained by the two of them arguing over it.

Elliot had claimed to be fine, but she watched him through the afternoon and as they set up camp, and he was obviously more bruised and battered than he wanted to admit. He still did his part, though, making no attempt to claim special privileges from injury.

She heard him tossing and turning at several points in the night, and she couldn’t imagine the ground was kind to his sore muscles or bruises. From the look of him as they climbed onto the cart the next morning, he was feeling it even worse than he had the day before. At least he would have a soft bed that night.

The road grew busier as they neared the riverside city, and although she and Elliot didn’t talk, a buzz ran between them and the other travelers. Avery grinned. She loved this part of approaching larger cities. They had a bustle to them that she always missed after being in the countryside for a while.

Marleston was a sprawling, relaxed city without city walls or gates, and the traffic flowed smoothly inside. It did seem busier than usual, and from the way Elliot was looking around, he had noticed it as well.

“It must be market day,” he said brightly, peering up at the lowering sun. “If we hurry, we should be able to get there before it closes for the evening.” He glanced at her. “Were you planning to have a stall here before we leave?”

Avery shook her head. She enjoyed visiting larger cities, and she had valuable connections in many of them, but she didn’t make use of their markets. Stalls were for those who specialized in particular products.

“I’m more of an individual merchant,” she told him. “I match people to their perfect wares, whatever they may be. I’ll take specific requests from my contacts in cities, but I do most of my business in the countryside.” She smiled. “Countryfolk have more need of my services than those in cities. And on this trip, I won’t be lingering anywhere for sales. I need to get to Bolivere as quickly as possible.”

His face went dark at the mention of the northern town, and she looked at him curiously. He said nothing, though, so she continued.

“I enjoy markets as a customer, however, so I’d be happy to visit this one. I always go to the Fox and Crow in Marleston, and the staff there know me. We can drop the cart and Nutmeg at their stables and sort out our rooms in the inn later. If we do that, we should be able to get to the market square in sufficient time.”

Elliot’s face cleared, his good humor returning at the prospect of visiting the market.

“I haven’t stayed at the Fox and Crow,” he said. “I’ve always frequented one of the inns on the western side of the city, but I don’t mind where we stay.” He rubbed his side and winced. “As long as they have a proper bed.”

Even with the extra activity in the city, it didn’t take Avery long to navigate through the streets to the Fox and Crow. As she had claimed, the staff in the inn’s courtyard immediately recognized her and called a greeting. She handed Nutmeg’s reins over and after a short conversation with an older groom returned to Elliot.

“He’ll let the innkeeper know that we’re here and we need two rooms,” she told him. “Are you ready to go?”

He nodded eagerly, and they set off on foot for the central market square. They could hear the sound of the crowd before they arrived, the calls of stall keepers rising above the general buzz of voices.

Elliot’s smile grew wider and wider, and Avery felt her own anticipation rise in step with his. She had grown somewhat blasé about markets since traveling alone—they weren’t nearly as much fun to visit on your own—but being there with Elliot brought back the sense of excitement she’d always felt as a child. Who knew what treasure you were about to find or what delicious food you might try for the first time?

They stepped into the square and paused for a moment to take it in. Stalls lined the sides, and crowds strolled through the open spaces, or lined up in front of the more popular food vendors.

Avery’s eyes fell on a stall selling spiced buns, and her eyes lit up.

“Come on!” She grabbed Elliot’s arm and hauled him through the crowd to join the end of the line.

“These are my favorite,” she said at the exact same time he did.

They looked at each other and laughed.

“I shouldn’t be surprised,” she said. “I think they’re the favorite of every roving merchant child. My cousin certainly tried to steal as many of mine as he could.”

“My mother always bought them for me,” Elliot said, “because she knew that no matter how angry I was with her, I could never turn down a spiced bun.”

Avery’s curiosity spiked at his mention of his antagonistic relationship with his mother. What had happened between them? Had Avery and Elliot become comfortable enough with each other that she could ask him?

The person in front of them stepped away, revealing the stall holder. Elliot ordered a selection of buns, handing over the necessary coin and accepting the bag he was offered.

When Avery started to speak to the stall holder in turn, he grabbed her arm and pulled her to the side.

“Don’t be silly.” He held open the bag to show the generous contents. “I couldn’t possibly eat all these myself. They’re to share.”

Avery peered inside. “I’ve seen you eat. Are you sure you couldn’t eat them all yourself?”

Elliot chuckled. “Possible or not, I have no intention of eating them all. Choose whatever you like.”

Avery took him at his word, selecting the plumpest-looking bun and happily taking a bite. He followed her example, and they strolled along the stalls, eating bun after bun.

“I’m not going to need a meal this evening,” Avery eventually groaned after her fifth bun. “Why did you buy so many?”

“You’re the one who was talking about them being your favorite!” Elliot protested. “I had to buy enough to be sure there were some left over for me to eat.”

There was no heat in their light-hearted squabble, and Avery grinned. This was what was missing when she visited markets on her own. She could—and did—buy herself spiced buns, but it wasn’t as much fun to eat them alone.

She slowed as they walked past a stall with brightly colored wrapped sweets. They looked so cheerful all laid out in lines, and she ran her hand lightly down the closest row.

“Avery?” the woman behind the stall asked suddenly, making her freeze.

She looked up into the beaming face of an unfamiliar middle-aged woman. She smiled back easily, used to being recognized by people she didn’t remember.

“It’s years since I’ve seen you,” the woman continued, “but I’d recognize you anywhere. Don’t tell me you’ve settled down! Or are you just passing through Marleston?”

“Just passing through,” she confirmed. “I don’t think I have it in my blood to settle.”

The woman gave a comfortable chuckle. “The same as always, I see. Your father used to marvel at your adventurous spirit.”

Avery’s smile slipped a little, and the woman’s face fell as she realized what she’d said.

“A fine man,” she said. “And sorely missed by all who knew him.”

Avery nodded, mustering a grateful smile despite the wave of sadness.

“We’ve developed a new product in the last few years,” the woman said, quickly changing the subject. “And right proud of it we are.” She gestured along the rows of sweets.

“They must be popular with children,” Avery said, speaking almost at random as she fought back memories of what it had been like to travel with her parents, back when she didn’t pay too much attention to their many contacts across the kingdoms.

“Exactly!” the woman exclaimed, as if Avery had hit on the most relevant point. “Extremely popular they are.” She picked one up and pressed it into Avery’s hand. “Take a sample.”

She winked at Avery. “I’ll be betting you’ll be back for more once you experience their popularity for yourself.”

Avery thanked her, used to being offered samples by people who hoped she would help spread their products throughout the kingdoms. With a single small sweet, she wouldn’t even have to feel bad if it wasn’t something she wanted to stock.

She stepped away from the stall as Elliot came in behind her to peer at the sweets. As she moved away to give him space, she stared down at the bright wrapper in her hand. More memories flooded through her. How many times had her father snuck her an extra sweet at the markets?

Tears filled her eyes, and she blinked them away. Idly her hands began to move, unwrapping the sweet slowly and popping it into her mouth. She had just started to suck on it when Elliot’s sharp cry cut through the air.

“Avery! Don’t eat that!”

She stared at him in astonishment, her mouth flooding with sweetness and an odd aftertaste she couldn’t place.

“Spit it out!” he ordered, striding toward her, but the edges of the world were blurring, her vision going dark as everything faded away and her body collapsed.