Page 6 of The Rowan
“Just because this is a sanctuary doesn’t mean they drop all rivalry at the door. This provides the races with a way to express themselves and battle each other without physically fighting. Plus, if they’re noticed by one of the cadre, they gain serious bragging rights and tokens of appreciation.” Her sigh is wistful as she describes past performances. “Anyway, we’ve got our first customers. Come on.”
Following her over to the table in the corner, I notice it’s filled with a group of demons. Dismay fills me when I see Vargas’ lieutenant staring at me. I flick my eyes over each of the others, but thankfully, I don’t recognize any of them.
“Hello, welcome to The Abbey. How are you doing this evening?” Merindah asks, setting down cocktail napkins. “My name is Merindah, and this is Arden. She’s training with me this week. What can we get for you?” As each demon orders, she types in their drink and food orders on her tablet.
The lieutenant drags his eyes from mine. “I’ll have Hellfire Brew.”
“Great, we’ll have your drinks out in a few minutes and get your food ordered,” Merindah tells them.
My gaze still on the lieutenant, I plead with him silently not to say anything to anyone about my being here. Walking away, I pull out my phone and send a quick text message to Vargas, then hurry to catch up with Merindah.
She’s standing by the bar waiting for me. “It’s pretty fast-paced around here, so please try to keep up. We punch in their order directly into the tablet.” Showing me the tablet, she explains the ordering system, which is pretty straightforward and fast. “The food will take a few minutes, but since it’s not busy, the drinks should be ready by now.”
The bartender sets down several drinks, along with a smile for Merindah and another sneer towards me. What is his problem with me? It’s the second time I’ve noticed it. I turn my head and focus on Merindah.
After checking the ticket to make sure it’s our order, she picks up a tray. “You always use a tray to deliver the drinks. It takes practice to get used to it, but it saves time because you can carry more drinks.” Holding the tray in her left hand, she uses her right hand to load the drinks onto the tray. “Be sure to start by placing drinks in the middle of the tray and adjust the balance as you add more drinks. A tray will usually hold about eight drinks, give or take.” She turns and strides off towards the table, with me trailing behind her.
She hands each drink to me, and I set them down in front of the appropriate person. As I set down the last drink, a meaty purple hand reaches out and grabs my wrist. “I ordered Hellfire Brew.”
Running through the order in my head, I disagree. “You ordered Hell’s Breath.”
Enraged, he stands up and bellows, “I ordered Hellfire Brew. Are you calling me a liar?”
Merindah opens her tablet. “Sir, this tablet automatically records your order. I can play it back if you like?” Without waiting for his reply, she punches play. His voice rings out clearly. “Hell’s Breath.”
His friends bust out laughing when he’s called out. He glares at them, sits down, and gulps down his drink. Letting out a burp in my face, he demands, “Now, I’ll have a Hellfire Brew. Did you record my order in your tiny device?”
Waving my hand at the smell, I look over at Merindah. She gives him a tiny scowl of her own and hits play on the tablet. This time, his voice rings out with, “Hellfire Brew.”
Spinning on her heel, she walks over to another table of customers sitting down. After greeting them, we get their drink orders, then head towards the kitchen.
“Damn chaos demons,” I grit out. “Always trying to cause trouble.”
She laughs. “They hate the recorder. Some servers don’t like to use them, but it saves us a lot of aggravation.”
Grinning, I tell her, “I’m surprised we’re allowed to use one.”
“The Abbey sets its own rules. If they don’t agree, they’re not welcome here,” she explains bluntly as we enter the kitchen.
“I’m definitely going to use one,” I mutter, still irritated with the asshole demon.
The kitchen is controlled chaos as orders are shouted out and handed off to servers. We step up to get the food onto our trays, then head back to the table of demons. On the way, Merindah picks up the additional pint of Hellfire Brew.
Setting down the food and drink, the demon crew devours it while simultaneously shouting out orders for refills. The slight chaos sets the tone for the entire night. We run from table to table, serving all kinds of beings. I get my first introduction to trolls, big, hairy men who are as sweet as sugar, and gargoyles, loud and boisterous instead of stoic like I expected. And stacked with muscle. Who knew gargoyles were so sexy?
After receiving a text message from Vargas, the lieutenant stopped staring at me and the tension eased from my shoulders. I know my location will leak out soon, but until I can start my magical training, I don’t want others to know.
By the end of the night, I’m exhausted, but Merindah tells me it will get even busier as we get closer to the weekend. “You did well tonight and will be waiting tables on your own by next week,” she reassures me. She hesitates a second, then continues, “Here, this might help you. I’ll see you tomorrow night. Oh, and Arden…feel free to call me Meri.”
I glance down at the book she gave me. A book she pulled out of thin air, I might add.Witch Heritage: The Founding Families.I run my hands over the embossed cover and flip carefully through its pages.The heavy tome is musty, its pages brittle, speaking of its age. I’ve been looking for this book for a long time. I can’t help but wonder where she found it. Clutching it to me, I hurry out the door, ready to get home and start reading.
5
ARDEN
By Friday, I’m successfully waiting on tables with Merindah’s supervision. She’s a fantastic trainer and really nice, too. If it wasn’t for her, I don’t know if I’d have survived working at The Abbey. Many of the staff are not happy about working with a witch. Several hide behind a polite mask, while others, like the bartender, openly sneer at me. Sometimes, I have to wait longer for my drinks or my order is mysteriously messed up, but they’re minor things. Thankfully, Maya keeps a tight rein on her staff, so nobody has physically assaulted me or anything.
As a witch who’s been hiding for over three hundred years, I didn’t realize witches have a reputation for being greedy and supremely entitled, with a shocking habit of using magic to manipulate the world, and the supes, around them.
