Page 10 of Vicious Princess (The Trials of Death and Honor #1)
CHAPTER EIGHT
B y the time I make it back to the Kazh’s inn, it’s way past midnight and I’m exhausted. I want nothing more than to make my way to my room and fall into the bed.
But my stomach growls loudly.
Quietly, I make my way to the kitchen. I hope Kazh and her crew are already asleep, or busy with whatever is it they do all day long.
Unfortunately, I’m not so lucky. Kazh sits at the dining table with an oil lamp next to her. She’s…knitting.
“You didn’t strike me as the crafty kind,” I say.
She snorts. “I can’t knit a proper piece for shit. But keeping my old fingers busy helps calm the mind. There’s nothing left from dinner. Only hard cheese, what’s left of today’s bread, and herbed butter.”
“Sounds good.”
I take the plate and pile it with the food before going over to take a seat with Kazh at the table. For a while, we sit in silence. I chew my food, and she knits. It’s weirdly cozy.
“Did you get your bow?”
“Yes. Joaquin had the perfect one for me.”
She nods. “Good, good. He’s master at his craft. Should serve you a lifetime if you care for your bow properly.”
“Good to know,” I murmur. “So, about that offer you made me. About working for you.”
Her eyes flick up to meet mine. “Mm-hmm. Have you changed your mind?”
“Not exactly. But I need a way to pay you for food and shelter while I’m staying here. I have some savings, but they won’t last forever. So I thought maybe I could do some work around the inn in exchange for a room and food.”
“I don’t need help around the inn.”
My stomach drops. “Okay, I understand. Well, then, I’ll find a job somewhere else so I can pay you. Maybe you know someone who’s hiring for an odd job here and there? Something with a flexible schedule?”
She arches a silver eyebrow. “You’re an odd feral child. That’s why you came here all the way from Wetra? To work odd jobs?”
I glare at her in silence. She returns her attention to the bundle of threads in her lap.
“So, how’s the process of signing up for Ezkai Academy going?” I don’t miss the wicked amusement in her tone.
“Great. I’m officially starting the training on Monday.”
Kazh’s still as a statue. Slowly, she lifts her head. The bundle of threads is completely forgotten. I have her full attention. “You’re out of your damn mind,” she manages to say. “You actually signed up for the training?”
I shrug. “Well, yeah. I told you that’s why I’m here. I want to join the Order of Ezkai.”
She releases a string of curses in more than one language. I even catch one of the most common Wetran curse words in there.
Why is she so angry about this?
“You’re the most reckless, stupid child I’ve ever met in my life. More so than Vasquez, and I thought that fucker was the dumbest bitch alive.”
She shakes her head when I don’t say anything. “You’re going to get yourself killed. Do you even know what you just got yourself into?”
“Yes.” Actually, I have no idea.
It’s as if she can read my mind. She arches her eyebrow. I roll my eyes.
“Fine. I don’t know much. I know I’ll have to train hard to prove myself so I can even get a chance to join the Order. I’ll figure it out. I’ve went through the Decarios training back in Wetra.”
“You understand nothing,” she spits. “You arrived here like a spoiled princess and strode into the Ezkai Castle like you own the place to sign up for something you have no understanding about. You don’t know Ekiosh ways, nor what being an Ezkai stands for.
What it means to become one and who you fight against. You just throw yourself at it like you have shit for brains in that skull of yours. Pack your stuff and get out.”
“Wait—what? Why?”
“Ah, now you want to understand how things work, huh? This training is all-consuming. By living here, at my place, you bring Order business to me. And I want none of it. I want you out tonight.”
“But I don’t have anywhere to go! And you said that any friend of Vasquez is welcome at your place!”
“That was before you started messing with things you shouldn’t have,” she says darkly. “I gave you a chance to do something good and useful with your time and abilities. You chose another path. Well, good luck. You walk out by yourself, or I’ll get my folks to carry you out. The choice is yours.”
Still stunned, I stand up.
She glowers at me, her face hard. I open my mouth to say something, but then close it. I whirl on my heel and storm off, slamming every door behind me as I leave.