Free Warden (Book 2: Lure of the Lamia) by Kevin Hardman Page B

sincere fondness for each other.) She handed a coin to the barker, who placed it in the cage. Berry’s gaze turned to her.
    “Who is my one true love?” Talia asked, casting a glance in Errol’s direction. Errol saw Gale’s face turn red in anger, and her fist curled up into a ball tight enough to crush diamonds.
    Berry’s eyes glowed red again. “You are quite a beauty, gentle girl. Lovely hair, flawless skin, soft hands. I can see that you take great care of yourself and have much pride in your appearance. You would be a dream come true for almost any man.”
    At this, Talia once again cut her eyes smilingly towards Errol, who found Gale also giving him a look of righteous fury.
    “As for your one true love, you have already found them. The person who loves you above all others. The person who cares for you more than anything else. The person who will do anything to make you happy. Your one true love is yourself, selfish child.”
    The tent again broke out in infectious laughter as Talia’s mouth dropped open. Now it was Gale’s turn to smile and Talia’s to be furious. She stomped off to the side like a petulant child, not far from where Errol stood.
    It was clear now that Berry’s specialty was comedy, as more patrons paid not so much for the accuracy of the little man’s answers but for their jocularity.
    “Evil little monster,” said a voice next to Errol. He turned and saw that Talia had moved closer to him. “Would it kill him to give a straight answer?”
    Errol shrugged. “Maybe that farmer was right. Homunculi are unnatural creatures, born of earth-magic, so maybe it’s best to leave them alone.”
    “Earth-magic?” Talia repeated. “I’ll have to ask my great-grandmother about that.”
    Errol nodded silently. Talia’s great-grandmother (who came from a distant land) was reputedly a powerful witch. Errol didn’t know if that term properly applied to her, but the old lady had definitely been trained in magic to some degree. He had seen her use it. But almost everyone was able to utilize magic to some extent, although few outside of sorcerers and the like were as well-versed in it as the Wardens.
    Wary of how Gale would interpret his proximity to Talia, Errol chose that moment to leave the tent. A few minutes later, he saw Cru show the first round of patrons out and invite the next group in. He gestured to get Gale’s attention, urging her to come over.
    “I’ll be leaving shortly,” he said. “I’ve got to get home and get some rest. I’ll be having long days the entire time these performers are here.”
    “That sounds like a good idea,” Gale said. “We’ll be leaving shortly ourselves. A couple of us will still have to ride back out to our farms in the morning, so we plan on heading out at first light.”
    Errol nodded, grateful that she didn’t seem interested in saying anything about Talia. Gale looked at him expectantly, but here – surrounded by people – he felt less sure of himself than he had in the Beverly barn.
    “Well, goodnight,” Gale said after the quiet had endured for a few seconds. She turned to walk away.
    Before he knew what he was doing, Errol reached for her, taking hold of her arm and turning her back towards him, before kissing her. A bevy of hoots and jeers erupted from her friends, making Errol blush and pull back.
    “Ignore them,” Gale said, giving him a quick kiss before stepping away.
    “Will I see you tomorrow?” he asked.
    She turned towards him, frowning in thought as she continued stepping backwards towards her friends – including an angry-looking Talia. “Unlikely. I still have chores to do at night – mending, cleaning, and such, you know. Two nights in a row might be pushing it.”
    “Then I’ll see you the night after tomorrow.”
    “We’ll see,” she said with a smile, and then stepped quickly back over to her friends, who were giggling and speaking in hushed whispers.
    Errol left shortly thereafter, going home and thinking