“After talking with Korl, I have a whole new outlook on the wedding.” She paused in her stirring. “If Pip wants to bake a five-tier cake, why should I mind? Especially if Sass and Thrain each want to claim an entire tier.”
Sass mumbled something about maybe not eating the whole tier herself.
“And Glen as a ring bearer will be something people will talk about for ages,” Lira continued. “What bride doesn’t want a memorable wedding?”
Vaskel bit back the urge to say that, considering his behavior during the Solstice Festival, Glen’s presence might not be memorable in the way she’d want.
Lira squared her shoulders and released a breath. “Besides, I’m lucky to have so many friends who care about me and Korl. I’m focusing on being grateful for that and not fretting about the details.”
Vaskel wondered if maybe she and Korl rushing out of the tavern to their flat above the tinker’s shop played a part in her sunny disposition, but he kept quiet about that.
Sass gave her friend a knowing look. “Can you put a pin in your gratitude long enough for us to talk about Vaskel’s problem?”
Lira shot the hellkin a questioning glance, and he shrugged. “I told her and Val. I felt I owed it to them now that Thrain’s been pulled into the mess.”
Lira's face tightened with concern, but Vaskel continued before she could speak. "The good news is Erindil remembered dealing with a soul bind centuries ago. He's concocted a potion that might break it."
"That's wonderful!" Her face brightened immediately.
"It takes a day to simmer properly," he cautioned. “Plus, I need to procure one of Marina’s hairs to add to it.”
Sass drew herself up to her full height. “Snatch a hair from that hellkin’s head? Leave that to me.”
Vaskel had no problem imagining Sass yanking a hair from Marina’s head as she worked her way through the great room.
“But here's the real problem,” he said, “both of us have to consume it. And, according to Erindil, it will taste foul.”
"How will we manage that?" Lira's brow furrowed as she considered the challenge. "Marina seems too clever to be tricked into chugging some mysterious potion.”
Vaskel shook his head. They were so close to a solution, but this last obstacle seemed significant.
“We could knock her out and force it down her throat,” Sass said, her voice menacing as she pounded a fist into her palm.
Sneaking up on the hellkin to knock her out would be as tricky as convincing her to drink a potion. “Let’s call that our backup plan.”
Sass shrugged. “What about slipping it into some ale?”
Vaskel considered this. “If it’s truly foul, she’d detect it in one sip. From what Erindil said, she needs to drinks more than that.”
Lira squeezed his arm, her touch grounding him. "Don't worry, Vask. We've come up with crazy plans before, remember? Remember the time we infiltrated a laird’s party dressed as minstrels? We'll figure this out too."
With that, she spun around and opened the over door, releasing a cloud of fragrant steam.
Sass sucked in a greedy breath. “What are those? They aren’t scones.”
Lira used one of the orange pot holders Val had knitted her to remove a metal tray dotted with dark brown, knobby mounds topped with gooey, white puffs. “I found the recipe for thesecookies in Gran's book, and I think it's perfect for the cold weather."
She placed the tray on the table and drizzled melted chocolate on top of each cookie from a small saucepan. The air smelled of something rich and sweet and, dare Vaskel say, seductive.
Lira used a flat metal utensil to slide two of the rounds onto a plate, then she extended it to Vaskel and Sass. “You’re my first taste-testers.”
Vaskel took one, holding it gingerly by the hot edges and blowing on it before taking a bite. The moment he bit into it, flavors exploded across his tongue—plenty of sweetness but also decadent chocolate. It was like drinking hot cocoa while sitting by a roaring fire, all condensed into cookie form.
He groaned with pleasure, the sound entirely undignified but completely genuine.
“Gran called it a hot cocoa cookie," Lira said. “The recipe was tucked between one for butter cake and instructions for enchanting doorways."
“It’s very rich,” Sass mumbled through her mouthful, “but that’s a good thing.”
