Page 169 of The Last One
This room has a hearth and a paned window cracked open to let in fresh air. There’s a narrow bed with a clean quilt and pillow. An open armoire holds towels, a silver mug, and a vase of fresh blue flowers. There’s a wicker chair and a little table with a wash basin, a pitcher, and a cake of soap. A large mirror hangs on the wall over the wash basin, and I startle at my haggard reflection. Outside the window, tall firs lord over the river, and a flock of wild turkeys scurries through the grass.
“I don’t want you to return home and tell the gods that the keeper of the Broken Hammer treated you like shit.” Separi bows and sweeps her hand from her head to her feet.
My throat tightens, and tears spring in my eyes. “Thank you. Really. There’s something…” I unwrap the fox pendant from my wrist and hold it out to her. “Veril spoke so warmly of you, and he valued your friendship. You should have this.”
Separi watches the pendant sway on its chain.
“You may have more luck getting it to work than me,” I say.
Separi taps the fox. “Does it bring you warmth? Does it make you think of good things?”
Hypnotized by the swinging charm, I say, “It makes me think of Veril and his kindness. His concern. His humor. His cooking. His generosity. Those are good things.”
“Then…” Separi nods. “The pendant belongs with you.” She heads back down the corridor. “We’ll have dinner ready soon. Hope you’re ready for a feast that surpasses all feasts!”
52
Philia wants to go back out and ask the townspeople about Olivia, to see if the men who kidnapped her came through here on their way to Weeton. “I can’t just sit,” she explains, standing at my door.
“So don’t sit,” I say. “Go ask questions. You’ve battled far worse thanthesepeople.”
Separi offers to be the redhead’s guide. “Drunks abound in this town, and I don’t want Philia having to bash the heads of too many before supper. Ridget, my wife, would be angry, and you never want to anger the person in charge of the food.”
“I’ll be back in time for dinner,” Philia says, following Separi down the stairs.
I don’t want to join them. Neither does Jadon. He can barely keep his eyes open. “Go take a nap, Jadon,” I say. “You’re already asleep. You just don’t know it yet.”
He stretches and nods. “For the first night in a long time, you won’t have to hear me snore. You must be happy to finally have your own space away from me.”
“Thrilled,”I say, my face deadpan perfection.
He grins, steps away, thinks a moment, then steps back to me. His smile dims. “The other night, when you told me about your hair? I heard you, and I know I said it then, but I want you to know again that it matters to me. I want you to know thatyoumatter to me, too.” He bites his lips as he thinks, his expression brightening with a weary smile. “We’re closer to the amulet and Olivia than we were yesterday. I saw the moths, too, back on the trail.”
I perk up. “You did?”
He nods, then swipes his hand over his face. “I’m going to collapse.”
“Take a nap,” I say, pushing him away. “I’ll wake you for dinner.”
He staggers over to the door and winks at me before drifting down the corridor and finally disappearing into his room.
I’m asleep across the foot of an unfamiliar bed when I’m jolted awake by a knock on the door. Clutching Veril’s journal to my chest, I sit up. My stomach growls, ready for dinner.
Another knock.
Where am I?
As I move to answer the door, my eyes skip from the hearth to the window, the large mirror, and the vase of fresh blue flowers.That’s right. I’m at the Broken Hammer, a guest of Separi Eleweg.
Ridget stands in the corridor, holding a velvet satchel and a bucket filled with water. “I thought you might like to wash before dinner,” she says.
“Yes, that would be wonderful.” I invite her inside.
She sets the bucket of steaming hot water on the floor, then pulls from her pocket a bottle of oil and a bar of green soap.
Ridget rubs her hands together, then says, “We will bring more hot water to bathe, but would you allow me to care for your hair first?”
Tears spring to my eyes, and I touch my heart. “You’d do that for me?”
