After several minutes, the door creaked open, revealing a woman in a nightcap and shawl who did not appear at all pleased to see him. Though, the handkerchief covering her mouth made it difficult to fully ascertain her expression.
“What do you want?” she asked. The cloth over her mouth slipped with the movement, and she hastily pressed it back up to sit over her nose.
“A bed for the night?” Ian said, assuming that his purpose should be obvious.
“And the pox don’t scare you?” the woman asked, eyeing him up and down.
“The pox?” Ian asked. He had not heard of a pox. The last thing his people needed on top of low harvests, ravaging soldiers, and widespread fear was a pox.
“You ain’t no soldier, are you?” she asked.
“No, just a traveler,” Ian said. He pulled a gold coin out of his pocket, wishing he had thought to do so sooner. “I will be gone by morning.”
The woman opened the door wide, stepping aside to let him in. “Just for a night. The pox won’t reach you, then.” She held out her hand for the coin.
Ian rested in the small, windowless room she showed him to, never fully falling asleep. As soon as he heard sounds from outside the door, he rose and entered the central room of the inn. The same woman from the previous night stirred a pot of something akin to porridge over the open fireplace.
Ian sat at the single table in the center of the room and accepted the bowl of food she set in front of him. “Could you direct me to Lockwood Manor?” he asked, setting another coin on the table.
The woman picked up the coin and tapped it against her palm. “Take the north road out of town. That will bring you rightthere.” She walked away from the table and returned to stirring the porridge.
Ian ate a few bites, swallowing them with some difficulty but knowing that he needed the sustenance.
The woman turned back around and approached him again, the coin still in her hand. “Lady Robin is right solid, that she is,” the innkeeper said. “We owe her a great debt.”
“How do you mean?” Ian asked.
“She gave us some gold a few seasons back, when business was slow. Enough for us to keep the fire burning and the children fed until things picked up. I aim to pay her back every coin.” The woman smiled proudly. “And I’ve very nearly done it, too.” She slid the coin back across the rough tabletop toward Ian. “With the soldiers coming through and taking more than they are paying, things have been difficult. But take this back to her. Tell her it is from Katharine.”
“I will do that.” Ian accepted the coin back. So this was what Robin was doing with the gold she took from travelers? Ian took another, identical coin from the small pocket on his belt. “But keep this one. For excellent service.”
After heading to the stable, Ian saddled Robin’s horse and guided him to the north road. The ride went by quickly. Ian nearly missed the turnoff toward the manor, as its moss-covered stones and dark oak shutters looked like they had arranged themselves into the very landscape of Lockwood Forest.
For a moment Ian doubted that this simple place could be where Robin was hiding the secrets of River’s Talon. But he knew better than to underestimate her. Every fact he had learned about her over the last two days had baffled and impressed him.
The manor was small, a short and sprawling structure built from oak beams and rounded stone. A waist-height stone fence surrounded both the building and the small garden in front ofit. A path to the left of the fence led to a stable, and he instantly caught sight of Rowena’s familiar white coat in the yard beyond it.
To the right of the manor, a well-worn path led into the trees, revealing some additional structures. Perhaps cottages?
Lockwood appeared to be a village all its own, however small.
The only sign of life, however, was Rowena in the stable yard on his left along with two other horses.
Though he was still quite a ways down the road, Ian raised his fingers to his lips and whistled for Rowena.
She instantly lifted her head, ears twitching, and turned to run toward him.
Ian urged his current mount toward the stable yard so he could meet her at the fence.
He did not make it much further before two figures jumped from either side of the road and blocked his way.
Ian leaned back, keeping his balance as Robin’s horse reared back slightly in surprise. The larger of the two figures—whom Ian recognized as Ulli—had grabbed his horse’s reins to stop them.
“Prince Ian.” Ulli looked up at Ian, his words a statement and not a welcome.
The smaller woman on the other side of the horse—Nele?—kept her hand on the dagger in her belt. Ian had seen her during the recent raid and shared escape, but he had not truly noticed her. She looked fierce enough to best him despite her small size.
“I need to speak with Robin,” Ian said.
