On Death's Honor

Chapter 23, Part 1: Shady Dealings

The first thing I did was seek out a safehouse, which was located at a small bakery technically owned by me, but ran by an old widow and her son that I'd found about a decade ago. Her village had been burned down as a result of a raider skirmish, probably one of few times that I'd ever hunted down human beings. There's something enraging about stumbling upon a burned, half-naked corpse of a girl barely old enough to hit puberty. I had gladly taken the Circle's punishment for seeking to spill human blood on that account.

Tephna wasn't happy to see me. She hadn't had many customers this morning just yet, so she easily saw me the moment I stepped through the door. Her normally stern, wrinkled old face lit up briefly upon my arrival, only to quickly melt away to outrage.

"Young lady!" she exclaimed. "I told you the next time you showed up half-dead on my doorstep, I'd kill you, myself!"

"Peace, Teph," I raised my hands, welcoming the warm rush of hair that was quick to pick at the icy daggers in my feet. "I've come for supplies."

"When's the last time you slept?"

"Last night."

"Ate?"

" . . . Also last night."

"What happened to your shoes? Your cloak?"

"I left them somewhere safe." Despite the gesture proven unnecessary, I'm somewhat glad I left those things behind at the mines. I would have been pissed if I'd lost my cloak made of schetten to the wayfolds. I only had three of them, and the supplier that made them was such a pain in the ass to find and deal with.

The look the elderly lady gave me showed me what she really thought of my decisions.

"Those aren't your clothes."

"Mam, let her be," called a male voice from the back. That'd be her son, Posh. "She does enough as it is."

Posh briefly emerged from the kitchen to give me a wave, his apron and dark hair covered in flour. He appeared fresh and alert, despite having been up since before dawn. I returned the wave. The young man was growing into himself rather nicely; he was about twelve when I found him and his mother. Now, he looked like he was on his way to being able to crack a rolling pin over someone's head.

"I just need to gather a few things." I paused. "Would you mind if I borrowed some money? I can have someone repay you later today."

I was well aware that I didn't have to ask. I was also well aware that Tephna and Posh working here helped keep my safehouse secret - even from the Circle, unless Bogdan told them. The least I could do was stay in their good graces.

Tephna snorted. "You're like a child," she grumbled behind her counter. "Only coming to me when you need something."

I smiled. "Perhaps one day I'll help you run this place."

Instead of her laughing like I thought she would, she went silent, eying me with something akin to sorrow. It was gone in almost an instant, but it was enough for me to bow my head and move to the kitchen, where a secret door was hidden behind a stack of flour and spells I'd have to activate.

Before I could disappear behind the billowing heat, Tephna's small, firm hand latched around my arm.

"Don't you dare die before me, girl," she warned.

I doubted I'd live another ten more years, but I forced myself to nod, anyway. Whether or not she believed me was a different matter altogether, but she released me after a few brief moments.

Ten minutes later, I was walking back outside, a wrapped bundle of clothing in my arms with a turned over sling on top, so that no one would be able to properly see what was in there. I also wore a satchel across my chest, a pair of fur-tucked boots, and had a coin pouch tied to my belt.