Page 65 of Tusks, Tails & Teacakes
“No one. Only Iris.”
Had the woman returned to work on the wall without telling her? No, she would have seen her, or Sass would have mentioned it. There was nothing that went on at The Tusk & Tail without Sass knowing.
Her stomach dropped. Sass. Had her friend been the one to venture to the cellar and try to pry out the stone? She knew that Lira had been in the cellar the first night they got caught. She’d seen her emerging from the cellar with Iris. Maybe she’d gotten curious.
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she shook her head. Sass would have asked her. They’d become close enough that the dwarf wouldn’t start hacking at a wall without mentioning something to Lira. But didn’t that also mean that they’d become close enough for Lira to tell her the truth?
Her shoulders slumped. She was so used to keeping secrets and keeping to herself that it felt normal. Sharing and opening up didn’t come easily to her, even when she desperately wanted to bring others into her confidence.
She stood and backed away from the wall. The only way she would know if Sass had been the one scraping at the stones was to ask her. She had no reason to think the woman would lie. There was no way Sass knew what, if anything, was behind the stones. Besides, if anyone had made an attempt, chances were high it was Rygor, although she didn’t know when he could have snuck in.
Lira made her way briskly to the stairs, emerging from the cellarwith considerably less stealth than she’d entered. Clangs and thumps continued to burst from the kitchen, which told her that the oven was still not fully installed.
She set the lantern on the bar, locking her gaze on Sass, who chose that moment to look up from her conversation with Val. Lira beckoned her with one finger, and Sass bustled over.
Lira jerked her head toward the door, and Sass followed her out of the tavern.
“If this is about the oven…” the dwarf started.
“It’s not.” Lira cut her off with an impatient wave of one hand. “It’s about the cellar.”
Sass tilted her head and wrinkled her nose as if she’d just taken a whiff of the dank underground storage area. “The cellar? Please don’t tell me you want to clean it now.”
“Hardly.” Lira could think of nothing she’d enjoy less. “Have you been down there recently?”
Sass recoiled. “I’ve never been down there. One sniff is all I needed to keep me safe and sound upstairs.” She made a face. “Besides, I’ve spent enough of my life underground.”
Lira studied her face, detecting no evasion, no deceit. She released a breath, grateful her faith in Sass had been confirmed.
Sass tapped a foot on the dirt. “Why?”
Lira pushed aside her instinct to hide the truth. “I have a confession.”
Thirty-Eight
“So that’swhy you’re here?”
Sass had listened to Lira’s story before speaking, and even now, her tone wasn’t accusatory. She sounded more curious than anything.
“That’s why I’m here.” Lira gave her a weak grin. “I know I should have told you sooner, but I—”
“You don’t have to explain,” Sass said. “You didn’t know me. I didn’t know you. But I don’t understand why it was such a secret. So, you hid a book a bunch of years ago? Is there a demand for recipe books that I don’t know about?”
Sass’s perspective gave her pause. “Well, it’s a very fancy recipe book witha moonstone embedded in the cover. Now I know that the book contains more than just recipes and the stone must have some kind of powers. Why else would it be on the cover of a spell book?”
Sass’s eyes flared wide, and she threw up her hands. “Whoa there, what do you mean spell book?”
“I was getting to that part.”
Sass stepped closer and glanced over her shoulder, even though they weren’t within shouting distance of another building, and the windows of the tavern were closed. “Spell books don’t exist anymore. At least, they aren’t supposed to. They vanished with the magical guilds and academies.”
Lira nodded. She knew all of this. “Magic itself isn’t outlawed, and there’s no law that says you can’t possess a spell book.”
“There doesn’t have to be, because they’re all gone,” Sass whispered. “You can’t outlaw magic, or you’d have to outlaw all kinds of folks.” She let her gaze wander to Lira’s pointed ears. “Like elves.”
Lira’s face burned as the familiar heat of shame flooded her. “I don’t have to worry about that. I’m only half, and I’ve never exhibited even a hint of magical abilities.”
“Oh.” Sass sounded disappointed.
