“Smart little mortal.” She smiles up at me, firelight dancing in her eyes.
I shouldn’t preen at being called a ‘smart little mortal’ but I do. It’s not as if praise was forthcoming in Raingreen. Mama loved me, protected me, would do anything for me, but praise wasn’t part of her language. In fact, the more I get used to being in the DragonKeep, the more I realize Raingreen was missing a lot of things. Warmth. Compassion. Curiosity. Love.
Love. As I think the word, I picture Vander’s green eyes, the scar along one of them, the way he looked up at me from between my—No. I shut those thoughts off. I can’tlovea DragonKin. I don’t even know what love is. Not really. What we did was physical. Just lust. Nothing more serious than that.
“I can see you blushing through the mud.” Lenka smirks. “Thinking about Vander, are you?”
“No!” I answer far too quickly.
Lenka laughs. Another sound meets my ears, and I peer ahead. The lane widens farther up, the trees giving way, and beside the road I find a well with a bucket hanging and swaying lightly in the cold breeze. I lean over and try to look down it as we pass.
Lenka grabs me and yanks me upright again. “Never look in that well.”
“Why?”
“There are a lot of ways for mortals to die in Oblivion, child. Drowning in your own reflection is a pitiful way to go.”
“Drowning in my reflection? What?”
“The well is cursed. See the toadstools growing all around it?” I look back and see the mushrooms she’s mentioned, some of them far larger than anything I saw in Raingreen. “If you ever see toadstools in a circle, beware. There’s mischief about, none of it good. Now quiet down. We’re passing Caruxi. The watchman. Keep silent.”
I cross my arms under my cloak like Lenka taught me before we left the keep, and I look down, the hat giving plenty of cover for my mud-smeared face.
“Back again, sizzling lady?” A deep voice that crackles and creaks. “Can’t get enough of me, can you?”
“Just need some supplies. Hungry dragons, you know.”
“If you need some company up at the keep, you know you can summon me with that coin I gave you.”
“I’m aware.” Lenka’s tone is polite but clipped.
“And who’s this?”
“A DrudgeGolem I found injured on the road. I’ll return her to her Drudgeridge once I’ve done my shopping.”
The creature groans, his heavy steps approaching. One of the horses whinnies.
“Aww, I’m not even hungry. Quit your crying.” His crackly laugh does nothing to ease either me or the horse.
“You hurt?” He pokes at my leg.
I grunt like Lenka showed me.
“Leave the poor thing alone.”
“Don’t get jealous now, Lenka. You know you’re my only love.” He leans over in front of me and forces me to meet his eyes. “There you are.”
Red skin, black eyes, dozens of white, twisted horns sprouting all over his bald pate. Lenka told me the watchman was a demon, but I admit I wasn’t sure what to expect. When I see him, completely bare from the waist up with blood red skin, fangs, and the horns, it takes every ounce of control I have not to scream. I grit my teeth together and clutch my hands beneath the cloak. He stares. My skin crawls. Are we about to be discovered? Gods, maybe this was a terrible idea.
“Small for a DrudgeGolem.” He looks at Lenka. “Lucky she didn’t get carried off by something.”
“Yes, lucky.” Lenka clears her throat. “We’d best be going. The storm will be here soon. I wouldn’t want to get caught in it.”
Storm? There’s a slight, intermittent breeze, but other than that the frigid air is calm.
“All right. I’ll see you on the way out. Maybe you’ll take me back to the keep, too. Eh, Lenka? You can tie me to your bed and use me. Abuse me, too. I can take the heat.” He stomps away, his hooves leaving deep marks in the muddy road.
“Onward.” Lenka rolls her eyes and urges the two roan mares to continue along the road.
