Our House Leaders came to us, telling us we’d have one more night in the city — to celebrate and say good-bye to friends — and where to meet them the next day to go to their House.
Maverick took Silence and I aside and gave us each a small, but heavy bag of coin. “There’s only the basics in Grovner’s Green, the town near Hedgewild, where you’ll be going. So, buy what you will today, there’s a lot more here of whatever you may need.”
Blackclaw had a similar chat with Grizzly, then the three of us were running out of the theater, arm in arm in arm, elated beyond reason.
We’d made it.
We’d actually made it!
Chapter 16
After a dayof shopping and spending nearly all of what our new Lords had given us, we turned to celebration.
I drank more than I should have that evening. Dove joined us for our little party, temperate as ever, not drinking much, which was good, since none of the rest of us could remember how to get back to where we were staying.
I woke up the next morning with a splitting headache and a mouth that tasted like fuzzy dirt. Luckily Dove had stayed in my room, sleeping on a couch, and got me up and ready.
“You’re a Noble now,” she said once I was mostly returned to my senses. “You need to start acting like one.” She grimaced. “There are some who take this charge lightly, spending their time gambling, drinking, or chasing men or women. I know you won’t be like that. We are the leaders of this nation and need to be an example to others. Are you ready for this?”
I nodded. “No more drinking, ever… ever again.”
She grinned. “I didn’t say you had to stop drinking forever, just… maybe not that much all at once, yes?”
“Yes, definitely yes.”
“Good.”
She saw me to the lobby, where we waited for Blackclaw and Silence, who joined us shortly thereafter. Blackclaw looked little the worse for wear after the night of celebration. Silence, looked like I felt.
“Good-bye, sister. I love you, stay well,” Dove said, embracing me.
“Love you too, sis,” I said holding her for an extended moment. “Try to get home. They miss us… I think.”
She nodded. “I’ll try.”
We stayed, holding each other for a bit longer, until it was just a bit awkward, then separated, nodded to each other, a few tears in our eyes. After that, the four of us went our separate ways. Well, Dove and Blackclaw went different ways, while Silence and I went another. The two of us paid a porter to carry our things. The man led a donkey with our bags and trunks — most of which had been purchased yesterday — on a cart behind it. Neither Silence nor I had had much before we’d come here, now we had… lots. Though I would eventually come to find out that what I thought of as lots at that point in time was still a paltry amount compared to most Nobles.
“I wish I had a sister, or any family, like yours,” Silence said softly.
I couldn’t argue that point. “We have each other,” I said with a wide smile. “And Maverick House will be our family now. Let’s go meet them.”
He beamed at that and we hurried to our meeting with Maverick.
The meeting place was to one side of the main carriage depot in Elista. We arrived to find Maverick leaning casually against the wall outside, thick arms crossed over his broad chest. He was a bull of a man — which I supposed shouldn’t have been surprising given his avatar — with strong heavy shoulders and chest, arms packed with rounded muscle, a fit and slender waist, and strong legs. He wore a shirt with the sleeves ripped off, stained in a few spots. His breeches were sturdy leather, his knee-high boots, well worn. He had a mop of unkempt, thick brown hair, some of which threatened to cover his eyes, while most of the rest seemed content to stand on end in cowlicks and strange curls. He didn’t seem to care. His brown eyes and easy smile were welcoming on that broad and ruddy-red, leathery face of his.
Next to him, in complete antithesis of his appearance was his second, a woman of my height, slender and poised, standing straight. She wore a simple, long dress, belted at the waist, with full sleeves and a high neckline, conservative and respectable. Her pale silvery-blue hair was pulled back in a tight braid, which was then wrapped up in a bun behind her head. She was immaculate and clean, her grey-blue eyes sharp, small mouth pursed. It was she who spoke as we drew near.
“I am Lady Crane,” she said with clipped, clearly enunciated words. “You know Lord Maverick.”
He nodded and grinned.
“He will be staying in the city, while I escort you to your new home in the south. I will explain everything you need to know along the way, but we have a carriage to catch so, if you are ready to depart, then let us do so.”
She turned, fully expecting us to follow and we did. She seemed a bit cold and harsh to me, very different from Maverick.
The large man spoke as we passed him. “I may not be home for a while, so I’ll say it now. Welcome to House Maverick.” He grinned. “Do what Crane says and you’ll do well. She’s in charge while I’m gone.”
Then we’d passed him, and he pushed off from the wall and ambled into the city.
