Too early for the dinner crowd, the place was practically empty. Worn square tables sat bare, but for two: a gray-haired bloke sitting by the fire and a tall man-at-arms at a table in back. No musician or band in the corner spot now. Kurtz hoped he could talk old Merrygog McLennan into taking them on for a spell.
“Good afternoon.” A dark-haired barmaid approached, wiping her hands on her apron. She wore a red skirt and sleeveless laced top that drew Kurtz’s attention to her curvy torso. “You look like you’ve traveled far,” she said. “What can I get you?”
Kurtz took in her familiar, plump cheeks, thick eyelashes, and the loose curls escaping her messy bun. “Rilla?”
The barmaid’s gaze met his, and a wide smile claimed her face. “As I live and breathe. Kurtz Chazir. Darri said you’d been through here last summer—that the true prince had sprung you off the island. I told her that couldn’t be. That if you got out of that horrible place, you’d have come and seen me and Loanna first thing.”
Kurtz winced. “Couldn’t. The prince was in danger, Edik Livna killed, and you know Gavin.”
“Oh, we all know Gavin…” Rilla extended her arms. “Don’t just stand there. Give us a kiss, you old rogue.”
Kurtz grabbed her around the waist and kissed her full on the mouth, inhaling her unique fragrance of starfrost blossoms that transported him back to younger days. “Why you working here? Your parents disown you?”
“Worse,” she said. “Loanna got herself hitched to a bloke with two kids. They’re all but running Fat Vandy’s now what with Papa’s gout flaring and Mama’s poor eyesight. I needed to get out of the way for a spell, so Merrygog took me on day shift.”
Kurtz chest tightened at the news of Hargis and Serra’s declining health. “I’ll get over to see them as soon as I can, eh?”
“Yeah, why are you here instead of there?” Rilla asked. “And who are your friends?”
“This is my…band.” How utterly ridiculous that sounded.
Rilla fell into a fit of giggles. “Kurtz Chazir, a musician? Just when I thought I’d heard it all.”
“Well, to be honest, it’s Cole’s band, it is. I’m just the drummer, and a poor one at that. Luckily, Cole and his cousin, Mistel, are so good, no one notices my deficiencies. Cole, Mistel, meet an old friend, Rilla Vandy. Her parents took me in for the best years of my youth.”
“Pleased to know you,” Mistel said.
Rilla beamed at them. “Likewise, I’m sure.”
“Might the Ivory Spit use some entertainment?” Cole asked. “We’re looking for some places to play while we’re in town.”
“Oh, I’m certain Merrygog will have you,” Rilla said, “if for no other reason than to see if Kurtz Chazir can really beat a drum. Want me to fetch him?”
“Aye, in a moment,” Kurtz said, “but first, we’re supposed to meet someone named Anna. Anyone by that name stop by?”
Rilla’s eyebrows jumped up her forehead. “One surprise after another with you, isn’t it?” She nodded to the man-at-arms in the corner. “Right over there.”
“Oh.” Kurtz straightened, a bit off-kilter at this realization. “I assumed Anna was female. Must be a foreign spelling, eh?”
“Anna is female, you dolt.” Rilla slapped his arm. “And I suggest you tread carefully unless you want a fat lip.”
Interesting. “Thanks for the warning, eh?” He took a deep breath and waved Cole and Mistel to follow. “Come on.”
As they crossed the tavern toward the table in the corner, Kurtz eyed this Anna a little more carefully. Couldn’t see a smidge of female in her from the back—the heavy pelt draped around her shoulders exaggerated her frame—but Berland women had always been rough around the edges. Perhaps she was from there.
Rilla’s warning fresh in his mind, Kurtz decided to employ a bit of Eagan’s manners. “Pardon me,” he said. “We are looking to speak with Anna.”
The Berlander pushed to her feet and turned, putting a pair of feminine brown eyes squarely in front of his.
Kurtz froze, his heart giving an involuntary jolt.
ZolZanna tan Quelle?
So, not a Berlander then. A half-Yâtsaq giant.
He blinked slowly. What in flames?
This striking woman had a glare that could wither a man. The memory of their challenge fifteen years ago resurfaced, her bitter, mocking words fresh in his mind. His gut clenched, and for a moment, he wished the ground would swallow him whole.
