mock disdain. ‘None of that until you’ve bathed. You reek.’
He laughed. ‘It was hot up on that roof.’ With a sigh, he added, ‘But I’m not quite done yet, and those shingles will not attach themselves.’
‘Off you go then,’ Hava said with a smile. ‘And do bathe before tonight.’ She looked him up and down slowly. ‘You still need more practice in bed.’
He raised his eyebrows in mock shock. ‘Practice?’
‘You’re almost competent as a lover but your technique needs work,’ she said, turning her back and disappearing into the kitchen before he could respond.
Chuckling to himself, Hatu climbed back up the ladder. This roof would be finished before the evening meal. Then all that was left was to hang the sign above the door. He returned to where he had been, knelt and picked up a shingle, hammer, and nails, and resumed his labour.
MOLLY FINISHED SHARING WHAT SHE and Hava had seen with Declan, who silently listened. For a long moment he considered what she had told him and then said, ‘That does sound like something to fret over.’
Molly nodded. ‘They weren’t ordinary soldiers. They were guardsmen or something like that.’
Declan nodded. He had seen enough men-at-arms pass through Oncon, the village where he had been raised, to appreciate what Molly meant. Household, honour guards, castellans, all tended to be the most accomplished of soldiers, and to see a company of such dispatched on an escort mission indicated that the person they escorted was of some consequence.
‘Where can I get a glimpse of these fellows?’
‘I think Jacob’s barn is where the one fellow who was here slept, or maybe one of the other inns? Though Hava’s inn is supposed to open again tomorrow. Maybe there?’
‘I’ll ask Gwen. She’s over there now inspecting the place for Hatu and Hava …’ He let the words trail off. Staring out of the large open door of his blacksmith shop, he finally said, ‘She’s still in mourning. She holds it in well, maybe too well. The tears were there at first, but …’ He looked concerned. ‘I think perhaps she’s trying too hard to be strong, you know?’
‘I know,’ said Molly. Though she was usually a woman of few words, she added, ‘Once you get her with child, things will change.’
Declan fought against smiling at the thought of children but couldn’t help it. His life had taken some unexpected turns since his own childhood and he wondered how he had been so fortunate.
‘If you find those men let me know,’ Molly said. ‘I’m curious.’ Without another word, she left the forge, leaving Declan alone with his thoughts.
Since returning from a visit with Baron Dumarch, Declan had informed everyone in town that he was authorized to organize a militia. Over the weeks since then, the able-bodied men of Beran’s Hill had organized a spot of training here and there. Some grudgingly, some enthusiastically, but all understanding that since the raid on the town by a mercenary named Tyree and his band, who had burned the Inn of the Three Stars, killed Gwen’s father, and abducted two women, it was necessary – and each man serving who didn’t miss training received a few coins, which tipped the balance.
As a result, Declan found himself more and more inclined to think of himself as the party responsible for town defence, even though the baron’s authorization of a militia was vague in terms of organization and mandate. The arrival of this mysterious man, escorted by elite troops, fully reinforced that sense of responsibility. It made him curious as to who the two men were and what they were about.
HATU FELT REFRESHED AFTER BATHING. His hair was still damp – and he had used the hair dye he had bought in Marquenet to keep the bright red toned down to a brownish red that was almost as dark as Hava’s. Given his upbringing, regular bathing never occurred to him, but as he had a proper bathhouse just outside the rear entrance to the inn, he planned on using it regularly – once a week, perhaps more often.
Gwen’s father had owned the Inn of the Three Stars, and she had literally been born here. Hatu and Hava stood quietly waiting for Gwen’s judgement.
Gwen surveyed the common room and nodded. Her eyes had a slight sheen to them, but no tears. Softly she said, ‘Better than new. Da had some fixin’ he never quite got around to, and the old bar was roughly used.’ She nodded towards the highly polished, massive oak bar. ‘Splinters, stains from spills, cracks here and there. This one’s … beautiful.’
Hatu smiled. The two women stood in stark contrast to one another, Gwen voluptuous, not quite stocky, and Hava with her slender, not quite boyish figure. He recognized that most men would find Gwen more attractive, yet to him Hava was the most perfect beauty he’d ever seen.
‘Before I began travelling with Hava and her father, I was apprenticed for a time to a boatbuilder. He showed me how to seal wood and put a finish on it …’ Hatu said to Gwen, who let out a long sigh.
After a short pause, Gwen asked, ‘You two ready?’
‘Not really,’ said Hatu jokingly.
Hava said, ‘We’d be helpless without you, Gwen. When we agreed to buy the inn and repair it … let’s say there’s a lot more to running an inn than either of us imagined. How to stock the supplies, and what keeps and what doesn’t, which ale to buy …’ She fell silent a moment, then added, ‘Just so much.’
Hatu nodded agreement. ‘Had I known, I might have changed my mind.’ He kept his tone light.
Gwen appeared to him to be on the verge of tears, but she took a deep breath, slowly let it out, and smiled. ‘No use pretending things aren’t as they are.’ She crossed her arms and looked at Hava. ‘Whatever you need to know, ask. Da was a good man in many ways, but in truth he could be lax when it came to keeping the cold cellar stocked, or ensuring fresh vegetables. We had our share of nights serving meats that hadn’t quite turned, hard cheese, boiled potatoes, and day-old bread.’ She took another long look around the room, slowly turning as she added, ‘Some things you can buy easily, but others …’ She again let out a sigh. ‘You’ll manage as long as you don’t run out of ale, wine, and whisky, but a well-stocked larder and clean beds will have the regular travellers always stopping here.’ She smiled. ‘Adding those two new rooms upstairs was … Da talked of more rooms for travellers, but never quite got around to it. Too much interest in finding the perfect whisky.’
Hatu nodded. ‘That whisky takes a bit of getting used to.’
Gwen laughed, for the first time since Hava and Hatu had met her. ‘Did Declan give you that first taste?’
Hatu nodded, and tears gathered in Gwen’s eyes. Then she laughed again, squeezing her eyes so the tears fell – but they were those of joy. ‘My father did that to him, leaving him to swallow that first taste without warning. The coughing and watery eyes, red face, and the rest seems an odd rite of passage, but there it is.’ She took another deep breath and said, ‘Now you have a legacy to carry on, Hatu.’ Then she turned and left. Hatu thought it was before he saw her weep in earnest.
‘I’ll do my best,’ Hatu said softly.
After she left, Hava said, ‘I find it strange.’
‘What?’
‘Having feelings … for a place.’ She shrugged. ‘I
