Free Pixilated by Jane Atchley Page A

the coins off the counter. "Follow me,
sir."
    The innkeeper showed Kree, Kayseri, and
Prince Eldren to a small suite. As the man took his leave, Kree
asked him to send up tea, biscuits, and a pitcher of ale. When the
innkeeper closed the door, Kayseri clapped her hands like a
delighted child.
    "What did you write in his book, My
Captain?"
    She is not frightened at all. Her
confidence in him overrode all thought of personal safety and it
was a heady tonic. Her belief in him was almost as exhilarating as
Goddess nectar. Kree grinned at her. "My name."
    Crossing to the window, Kree twitched the
curtain back a fraction so he could watch the street below.
Kayseri’s slender arms slipped around his waist. He felt her cheek
press against his back. Through the roar in his blood, he thought,
why not enjoys this moment. It’s innocent. But he knew why not, so
he gently disengaged himself from her embrace. He led her by the
hand to the window on his right. "Keep your eyes on that end of the
alley, little girl. Elf, you take the other window."
    The innkeeper returned with the tray, having
augmented the captain’s order with a wedge of white cheddar and
several slabs of delicious smelling honey-glazed ham. Kree layered
cheese and ham onto a biscuit, and poured himself a mug of brown
ale before returning to his window.
    "Do not tell me we are supposed to eat now,"
Eldren said.
    People had begun to mill around in front of
the tavern. Kree took a pull on his ale and watched them over the
rim of the mug. He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. "The
first law of campaigning, Eldren, is eat when you can. The second
is like it, rest when you can. I'd advise both."
    Kayseri slipped over to the table and
hurriedly helped herself to biscuits and cheese, before scurrying
back to her post.
    Minutes later, Sister Chana joined them
slipping silently into the room. "If you intended to make their
bungholes pucker, you’ve succeeded. If you were looking to make
friends, you need to work on your people skills. Ah, breakfast."
She made her way to the table pulled up a chair and sliced off a
piece of cheese with a small knife.
    Kree made a circular beckoning motion with
the hand holding his biscuit, knowing she had more to report.
    "You were right, My Captain. A mercenary
with a young girl was here." Chana took a sip of ale to wash down
the cheese. "They stayed right here in this inn and left at sundown
yesterday."
    Kree sat down across from her. "And?" He
piled ham onto another biscuit.
    "And the mercenary figured out prince
fancy-pants here," Chana tilted her head at Eldren, "was following
him, so he paid the squire to hire some locals to slow Eldren up.
It seems the fellow is meeting his contact somewhere nearby to
deliver the goods, so to speak, and collect his fee."
    "Will they give me this mercenary?"
    "In a heartbeat. These people don’t have any
loyalty to a here yesterday, gone today mercenary. You, on the
other hand, are very much here today, and you have the power to
visit misery upon them for the foreseeable future. The problem is
they won't give up their squire, and I don’t think they can do one
without the other. Pass me another slice of ham."
    Eldren left his task and stared at Kree
unable to believe his pointed ears." If these people know Sandahl’s
whereabouts, you should force them to talk."
    A muscle ticked in Kree’s jaw, betraying
anger. "These people are citizens of a territory I am sworn to
protect."
    "Fine words coming from a man prepared to
sever hands over a horse only a moment ago."
    Kree moved fast. In a blink of an eye, he
was in the elf’s face, jabbing his finger just inches from the
prince’s nose. "Listen to me, elf, because I’m only going to say
this once. I will do whatever it takes to get your princess back,
for her sake not yours. If I have to squeak every one of these
people, I will. I won't like it, but I’ll do it." Kree stalked to
the window. "The thing you don’t understand is I won’t have to.