“There’s no way,” I sigh, looking both left and right down the road, “no way to know which direction they went.”
Golem tilts his own head to look at the village.
“And I’m not prepared to follow them,” I scowl, looking down at my scattered self, “I’m not dressed warm enough and have no light to track them.”
The magical creature begins rummaging in his robe until I place a hand on his arm.
“It’s okay, Golem, not tonight. Let’s think on this more and be prepared for tomorrow night.”
Golem’s nod in agreement is one of the fiercest I’ve ever seen.
It’s the woods.
It’s the damn woods and the thick forest air around us. It’s always sending a calm breeze at different intervals during the day.
That’s all I can think about during my morning workout with Cal. It’s why Golem has been closing my window whenever he’s in the room, understanding the fact before I did. I asked him about it this morning and he confirmed with a nod, suspecting the same thing. And watching Cal right now, after all of the ale he had last night…
He looks so well rested and ready for the day. He should be licking his wounds with an aching head but instead he’s moving with gusto, coming at me relentlessly.
“Your mind is elsewhere, Alex,” he comments, tucking his foot around my ankle and pulling quickly.
I fall hard on my ass.
“It is,” I nod from the ground, not even bothering to get up.
“Could this have anything to do with the Prince looking at you all night like he wanted to eat you?”
“Eat me!” I sit up with a scowl.
Cal chuckles, “and you looking like you enjoyed the thought of him doing just that.”
“Fuck me,” I grumble.
Were we that obvious?
“It wasn’t obvious,” Cal reads my face, reaching out a hand to help me up, “but I’ve been around you and other lads long enough to know when the two of you are talking without saying words.”
I groan in embarrassment and take his offered hand to stand, then tuck my own foot around the back of his leg and pull. The maneuver catches him off-guard and sends my big friend tumbling to the ground.
“Okay, okay,” Cal laughs, “I won’t say anything next time.”
I smile down at him and offer my own hand, hoisting him up.
“Just be careful, Alex,” he looks at me with concern.
I reach for my canteen and try to act casual as possible.
“It’s fun.”
But I know it’s more than that. I know that my conversation with Keane under the Shadow Oak was the start of something more thanfun. I’m only lying to myself when I say it, and apparently, Cal knows it too.
We take breakfast at Margaret’s with Holis and Mana joining us for a second time, both of them looking well rested and ready for the day as well. The food and ambiance is just as good as yesterday, and I feel a trickle of sadness knowing that we won’t be here tomorrow. I make sure to ask Margaret to bottle me up a large canteen of her coffee before we leave, using the excuse that I wish to take it on the road with us to Pyre. She happily obliges, and when we say our goodbyes, I sneakily hand the canteen to Golem and let him stash the liquid caffeine in his robes for tonight.
Cal, Holis and Mana all talk of going back to the small training fields in the village after breakfast. I tell them to carry on without me and not wait up at lunch, letting them know that I plan on visiting the shops and library all day. The men don’t question it, just wave in goodbye, and once they’re out of view, Golem and I hastily head down the road towards some of the sellers in the village, determined to pry out the location of these fabled mills.
Our quest comes up short.
Most of the shop owners look at me in downright suspicion, asking why a map would be needed for such a small village. I have no answer to give them and quickly buy something from their shop, getting out as fast as I can so as not to appear too pushy.
