Free Remembered by E. D. Brady Page B

recalling his words from before, “you could
sit on this chair here and keep me company. That would be an enormous help.”
    He chuckled and sat down obediently.
    They talked casually while she fried eggs and bacon, and
made a pot of tea.
    When breakfast was finished, they shared another moment of
uncomfortable silence.
    Annie thought that Kellus was purposely stalling, but
couldn’t be sure. “I should head back,” he said thoughtfully.
    “Thank you for fixing my gate,” she replied, walking him to
the front door.
    “It was a pleasure. Thank you for a wonderful
breakfast,” he answered. “I’m sure I’ll see you around town. I’ll be ready with
my handy dagger the next time you need rescuing from loathsome villains.”
    Yes, he would see her around town. She was forming a
plan in her head as she watched him walk down the hill.
    The following day, she hurried into town despite the fact
that she had absolutely nothing constructive to do there, apart from
implementing her ill-conceived scheme.
    She brought the book that Mrs. Wellum had lent her. Her
intention was to sit on the steps of the Bank Building and read for a few
hours, hoping that she would get a glimpse of him and to find some reason to
engage him in conversation. No good could come from this silly infatuation, she
realized, but that didn’t stop her from seeing his face in her mind constantly.
    After an hour of unsuccessfully trying to concentrate on the
first paragraph, she saw blue from the side of her eye. Eight apprentices
descended the steps of the Citadom.
    Her stomach fluttered with anticipation. She stood up and
quickly walked through the market, pretending to be interested in buying fruit,
thinking of any excuse to approach Kellus.
    It took her only a moment to realize that he wasn’t among
them. Disappointed, she walked back to the steps of the bank and opened the
book to continue her pathetic attempt at concentrating.
    ‘This is utterly ridiculous,’ she silently scolded
herself. ‘Why should I feel disappointment over not seeing a man that I
barely know, one of the apprentices, no less?’ She suddenly felt very
foolish for sitting around waiting to get a glimpse of him, and decided to go
home.
    As she passed by a shop on the left side of the market, she
happened to glance in the window and noticed the most beautiful hair clip she’d
ever seen. It was round and silver and covered with tiny crystals. She loved
the way it caught the light, throwing rainbows through the window.
    Knowing that she couldn’t afford such a lovely object, she
walked into the shop and waited for the shopkeeper. Finally, after a minute or
two, he approached. “I’d like to see the hair clip in the window, the one with
the crystals,” she announced.
    The shopkeeper nodded. He came back seconds later and placed
the clip into her hand. She stared at it longingly. Although she was not one to
normally desire pretty trinkets, this hair clip was special. It was the
prettiest object she’d ever seen.
    “It would look lovely in your beautiful hair,” a voice
whispered into her left ear.
    She turned her head quickly and instantly felt her face
flush. It was him—Kellus.
    She handed the clip back to the shopkeeper with a thank
you , effectively addressing both men at once.
    “Hello, Annella Derlyn. How are you?” he asked formally.
    “I’m well, thank you, and you?” she replied happily.
    “Much better for seeing your smile,” he answered, causing
her heart to skip a beat.
    Something in his formal greeting caused her to remember a
burning question she had. “Kellus, I’m curious to know how you knew my name. I
meant to ask you the other day, but it slipped my mind.”
    “I knew your father,” he answered, smiling sadly.
    “How did you know my father?” she asked.
    “As a boy, I worked in my father’s shop during the summer,”
he explained. “Your father delivered goods to us from the port. I spoke with
him on many occasions, three or four times a