The Forgotten King (Korin's Journal) (27 page)

We eventually came to the end of a narrow alleyway, the back walled off like the one Grayson had chased me into earlier.  At its mouth, streetlamps burst back into light, and a window just down the alley lit up with soft, orange lamplight.  The man must have released his spell.

“Thanks,” I gasped, hunched over with my hands on my knees as I desperately pulled in lungfuls of moist air.  My whole body trembled from cold and exhaustion.  The rain had slowed to a drizzle, but as soaked as I was, it really didn’t matter anymore.

“Thanks nothing,” the man snarled, pulling the limp bodies of two large rats by their tails from a pocket in his dark gray robe.  He threw them to the ground, a look of disgust plastered across his gaunt face.  Mud splattered onto the hem of his robe, and rain now soaked his clothing.  Without the rats, he must’ve lost the ability to keep up the spell that had kept the rain from touching him.  He let out a frustrated growl and turned his angry face down at me.  He was actually shorter than me, but I was still hunched over and panting like a dog.  Even if I’d been standing, his lesser height would’ve done nothing to decrease his intimidating gaze. 

“You have been here only a day and already have the Guard after you?” he hissed angrily.  “You know far too many names that the Guard could tear from you as easily as flattering a prostitute.”  His glare grew even harder when I let out a breathless laugh at that.  Okay, so maybe I didn’t have the most refined sense of humor.

“I’m sorry, then?” I replied, not knowing what to say to the angry wizard. 

“What you are is someone who is damn lucky to not simply be silenced, if you know what I mean,” he said as he drew a finger across his throat.  “If you are caught by the Guard again, you
will
be.”  He scoffed as he started out of the alleyway muttering to himself.

“Can you tell me where Charms for Harm is?” I called after him.  The wizard thrust an arm towards the left, not bothering to look back at me.  I was glad I couldn’t hear the words he was grumbling to himself; I’m sure I wouldn’t have found them becoming. 

Thanking my lucky stars that even though my rescuer had been unpleasant, I
had
been rescued, I took a few more deep breaths before standing.  I took off my cloak and wrung out what seemed like gallons of water before throwing it back on and raising the hood.  I needed to do anything I could to hide my identity.  I didn’t know the exact reason that the Wizard Guard had been sent after me, but the only reasons that came to mind ended with me in prison.

Broken glass clinked in my backpack as I eased down the alley, sticking to the shadows.  My hands stung from scrapes, and my body trembled and ached from the cold.  My legs felt rubbery from exhaustion and hunger.  Without money, it wasn’t going to be an easy task to find food and a warm place to stay for the night. 

When I reached the street, I looked carefully in each direction but saw only a couple robed figures walking briskly, their heads close as they whispered conspiratorially.  Turning left, I started down the street in the direction the wizard had pointed, trying to appear nonchalant. 

Sure enough, two blocks down I came to Charms for Harm.  A wooden sign bearing the shop’s name above a painting of a skull with an X through it hung from a wooden pole just outside its entrance.  Til’ was casually leaning against the front door underneath the overhang of the roof, tapping his foot as if impatient.  His clothes were dry, and he appeared to be eating something.  I couldn’t help but be a little irritated as my stomach growled and my water-heavy clothes tugged down on me.

Til’s large eyes drifted to me as I approached, his silver irises glowing bright in the light of a street lamp.  Then, with an innocence that only Til’ could pull off, he asked, “What took you so long?”

Chapter 23

Look at Me; I’m Invisible!

All it took was Til’ saying that he had more food for Briscott and me for his transgressions of staying dry, being fed, and remaining unchased by the Wizard Guard to be forgiven. 

Til’ revealed a cloth-wrapped collection of sliced meat rolled with cheese and some kind of sweet spread and stuffed with bread crumbs.  There was some question as to what the meat actually was, but I decided that hunger took precedence over the knowledge of what I was eating.  And it was a good thing I did; those meat rolls were one of the most delicious things I’d ever eaten.  Til’ had about a dozen of them, so we decided to save one for Max.  It may seem silly, but it made me feel as if I had a connection with Max’s safe rescue.

Til’ kept every second of our time waiting for Briscott filled with talking as I stuffed my face with a couple more meat rolls.  “Ulys was really nice.  She said we looked hungry when she saw us and that we could have these as a part of the deal.  She must’ve really liked my woodwork.  She took me to her house.  I think it was her house.  She took me to
a
house.  Had a fire and everything.  She even gave me some drinking chocolate.  Have you ever had that before?  I never had, but now I love it.”

I let
Til’ ramble as I finished the delectable treats.  It amazed me how he seemed to be telling me every last detail about what had happened during his hour away without even touching on the reason he’d left with Ulys to begin with.  Then again, that’s one of the things that made Til’, Til’, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

I was just starting to worry about Briscott—having been distracted by Til’s tangential conversation and the delicious meat rolls—when he finally came sneaking down the street, looking just as if he were trying to avoid suspicion.  When he saw
Til’ and me standing outside Charms for Harm, he settled into a more natural walk as he approached.  Briscott was as soaked as I was, his clothes literally dripping.  He shoved back his hood as he stepped under the roof’s overhang.  His brow was drawn down in anger, an emotion I wasn’t used to seeing displayed on his face.

“Hey, Briscott,” Til’ greeted cheerfully.  “Here, have some food.”

“That blighted Wizard Guard,” Briscott spat as he took a meat roll from Til’.  “Had me looking over my blighting shoulder the whole way here.  Never blighting thought I’d get here.”  He cut off his curse-laced tirade to bite off the end of the meat roll.  His expression immediately softened.  “This is delicious!” he exclaimed, his voice dropping back to its usual friendliness.  “What
is
this?” 

“Ulys gave them to me,” Til’ answered happily.  “Don’t know what they’re called, but they sure are tasty!”

“Mm-hmm,” Briscott agreed around the remaining roll, which he had shoved completely into his mouth while reaching out for another.

“Okay, we need to get out of this cold,” I said, crossing my arms around my shivering torso.  “We need to get some money for a room somehow.”

“Got it covered,” Til’ said.  “Ulys said that if we give her name at the Lost Wizard, we’ll get a room and breakfast on the house.”  Til’ gave me a huge grin, obviously proud of himself for having our accommodations worked out for us.  “Ulys said it’s just down the street.”  Til’ pointed off to our right. 

“I guess not everyone’s bad in this place,” Briscott voiced as he licked his fingers after his second meat roll.

I looked down at Til’.  “That’s yet to be seen.  Let’s get to this inn and see what Ulys has provided us to get into the Wizard Academy.”

Til’ broke into another smile as he started wrapping up the remaining meat rolls.  Briscott snagged another before Til’ could cover them.  “Just wait until you hear about what she gave me!  It’s going to be so great.  We’ll have Max, Sal’, and Xalis in no time.”  Til’ continued talking as I started down the street, walking as briskly as possible to get my circulation going and hopefully work up a little warmth.

Only a couple of streets later, we arrived at the Lost Wizard.  The building looked as nondescript as the rest of the businesses and residences of the area.  Only the hanging wooden sign portraying a caricature of a purple-robed wizard with a question mark above his head and the words “Lost Wizard” under his feet let us know we were at the right place.  The shutters were pulled on the front windows, but orange light leaked out from the cracks between them and spilled from the edges of the windowless front door.  The faint sound of talking came from other side. 

When I pushed the door, it didn’t budge.  After several knocks, it
creaked open about a hand’s width, pulling the chain that locked it from the inside taut.  Warmth spilled out of the semi-opened door, making me yearn to get inside.  Within the opened portion of the door, a woman’s round, pale face appeared.  Long black hair with streaks of gray was slicked back over her head. 

“Sorry, no more
vacancies, and our barroom is full to legal capacity,” the woman stated gruffly, immediately starting to shut the door.

I quickly thrust my foot into the crack, keeping her from shutting us out.  I’d been in inns like this before.  The woman was putting up a front to keep the inn’s inner goings-on secret.  “Ulys Illiafel recommended we come by,” I informed her bluntly.  There was no point in beating around the bush.

“Ah, in that case,” the woman replied as she undid the chain lock and opened the door, “welcome to the Lost Wizard.”  She was taller than me and wore a simple, dark brown dress stretched tight around her girth.  Her cheeks jiggled as she spoke. 

The barroom was actually quite large, the fully occupied tables having a lot of space between them on the reflective stone floor.  Two fires, one on either side of the room, burned brightly.  I hadn’t seen any smoke outside—or even a chimney for that matter—and none rose from the fire or spilled into the room.  Some kind of magic had to be involved.  As long as it kept me warm, I didn’t care.  Even though I could see a few patrons with steaming plates of food and some smoking pipes, the only scent that hit me was of freshly cut cedar.

Literally every patron in the room was wearing a wizard robe with the hood pulled up.  Most sat at tables, but some stood gathered in small groups throughout the room, looking as if they were scheming.  Though no patrons turned their heads completely, they all kept us in their periphery.  The serving women, however, seemed to have no qualms about openly staring at us, suspicion clear in their expressions.  We were unknown and therefore untrusted.  The sudden silence sharply drove that point in.

As I stepped into the room, the woman who’d greeted us cleared her throat and pointed down at my feet.  I looked to see that my boots were caked in mud and that I was standing on a bristled mat.  I wiped my feet until she gave me an approving nod,
Til’ and Briscott following suit. 

The corpulent woman gestured to the bar behind her.  “Go speak to Isilla Vayne at the bar.  She’ll get your rooms taken care of.  If you want drinks tonight, you’ll have to pay.  Otherwise, come back to this room in the morning for breakfast and be out of here no later than an hour after sunrise.  No exceptions.”

“I understand.  Thank you,” I responded, stepping towards the bar with Briscott and Til’ in tow.  I heard the door lock click behind us. 

Til’ had gone quiet as he typically did when first entering inns and taverns, drawing in on himself.  Though I had a feeling that the stares we received had nothing to do with his being Kolarin, I knew they still made him uncomfortable.

The clear-lacquered mahogany bar at the back of the room lined about half the wall, the stools before it occupied with robed patrons keeping one eye on us as they nursed their drinks.  To the side of the bar was a doorway covered by a thick red curtain. 

Aside from the uncomfortable silence and stares, the place actually seemed pretty nice.  For a moment, I wondered why we’d ended up at the Magi’s Charm when there’d been a nicer inn such as this in the Black Magic District before realizing that the Lost Wizard was an invitation-only establishment. 

“Wait here, guys,” I told Briscott and Til’ as I walked the rest of the way across the stone floor to the bar.  At least splitting away from them would break up some of the stares. 

I stepped between two occupied stools, my shoulders brushing against robed men on either side of me.  “Excuse me,” I said, trying not to pay attention to the angry glares the two men were giving me.  Doing so would’ve just made me think about what all they could do to a non-wizard like me.  Instead, my attention went to the woman behind the bar, who was keeping those at the bar content with full glasses.

Isilla Vayne had short-cropped brown hair, just a finger’s width long.  Striking green eyes almost seemed to glow on her stern, dark face, her square jaw intimidating.  There was a puffy white scar running down her right cheek and across her chin.  She wore a green blouse with a swooping neckline that showed more than a little cleavage and tight leather pants that revealed shapely legs.  From the neck up she looked like a seasoned warrior.  From the neck down she was . . . distracting.

“You need a drink or just enjoying the view?” a deep yet feminine voice questioned with a hint of humor.  I nearly jumped, and my eyes snapped up to see that Isilla had turned her attention to me.  I could feel my face go red as I realized what she’d noticed me doing.

“Isilla Vayne, right?” I asked in as confident a tone as possible, trying to ignore the wry amusement in her eyes. 

Isilla stepped over and leaned her elbows on the bar, almost spilling out of her blouse.  Her amused eyes looked straight into mine.  “Who wants to know, handsome?”

With an involuntary swallow, I responded, “We were referred here by Ulys Illiafel.”  I gestured to Til’ and Briscott a few steps back.  “My friends and I were told you’d set us up with rooms.”  As I spoke, Isilla scooted her elbows inward to clasp her hands together and by doing so puffed out her chest even more.  I was lucky my voice didn’t crack and that my eyes didn’t wander.

“And I thought you were just here for me,” she said with a playful pout, leaning back from the bar, her green eyes twinkling. 

Isilla reached into her cleavage and pulled out a small ring of keys, smiling coyly at me the whole time.  I think my face turned another shade of red.  I’d done my share of flirting and had had my fun chasing women, but when they were the ones doing the chasing, I was made to feel ten different kinds of uncomfortable.  It didn’t help that Sal’ came to the forefront of my thoughts.  I could just see her eyes narrow at me as I talked to the buxom, scar-cheeked woman before me. 

After making a show of flipping slowly through the keys while holding them right in front of her bust, Isilla opened the ring and removed a small silver key.  “You and your friends will be sharing room four. 
Through the curtain, second door on the right.”  She held the key out in her palm.  As I reached for it, accidentally brushing against the man to my right, she quickly closed her fingers around it.  “But come to room one a little later if it gets too crowded,” she purred with a unsubtle wink.  She opened her hand, and I snatched the key before she could cover it again. 

“We’ll be fine, thanks,” I said, backing away from the bar. 

Isilla let out a throaty laugh, the others at the bar joining in, all having a bit of fun at my expense.  All except the two men I’d bumped, that is; they continued to glare.  I spun and retreated to where Til’ and Briscott stood.  When I saw their knowing smiles, I rolled my eyes.

“We may have the room to ourselves tonight, Til’,” Briscott joked with a wink.  Til’ was hunched over and slightly tense but still smiled mischievously. 

“Yeah, laugh it up,” I said, exasperated.  “As of right now, I’m pretty sure she’d be better company.” 

When I turned to towards the curtain, I saw more than a few smiles from others in the room.  That helped confirm my suspicions that Isilla did the same thing to every new man that walked through the door.  When I looked over to her, she blew me a kiss and winked before erupting in rich laughter.  I hurried through the curtain with Til’ and Briscott following behind, my ears burning.

It wasn’t until I was standing in front of a black door with a white 4 painted on it that I realized my clothes and hair were dry.  In shock, I turned to see that Briscott was dry as well.  “When did this happen?” I asked, pulling up a corner of my now dry cloak.

“Sometime after you started talking to Isilla,” Briscott replied, still smiling.  “I think your mind was on other things.  Actually, make that two other things.”  Til’ hid a snicker behind his hand.

“You two are just Vilucia-blooded jealous that you weren’t given the same offer,” I retorted playfully, turning to the door and sticking the key into the lock.  Their speechlessness brought a smile to my face as I pushed the door open.  Vilucia is the goddess of sensuality. 

Our room was as barebones as could be, about half the size of the smallest inn room I’d ever stayed in.  One side of the room had a narrow bed and a small cedar chest.  The other, about a step and a half away, had a plain wooden chair and matching table.  There was a ewer of water, a washbowl and washing cloth, two ceramic mugs, and some kind of glowing orb lighting the room on the table.  The walls were bare stone, but the floor had a thick red carpet from wall to wall.  The bed was only big enough for one, so the carpet would make sleeping on the floor a little more comfortable for the two of us that would have to.