Dralin (3 page)

“You’re not a simple guard, Frath. You’re a
good man with the heart of a knight.” Albert put his lone hand on
Frath’s arm in a gesture of respect. Then he looked Sheela up and
down. “She’s small and terribly skinny, but I can see spirit in the
way she stands straight and looks me in the eye. We’ll have to get
her something decent to wear.” He motioned for a pretty, blonde
woman, who had just finished delivering food to a table, to come
over. “Tonya, this is Sheela. Try to find something for her to
wear, get her some food and put her in the room in corner of the
basement. She’s small enough to fit in it.”

Frath let out a barely perceptible sigh of
relief. “Thank you, Albert. May I come to visit her on occasion?”
His arm moved back over her shoulders as though he suddenly didn’t
want to let go.

Albert raised an eyebrow, but nodded without
saying anything. One of the customers called and he left to take
care of him, giving Frath one more clap on the arm. With an
encouraging smile, Tonya held out a hand and wiggled her fingers
for Sheela to go with her. Frath smiled encouragingly and gave
Sheela a giant hug, which she returned fiercely. As Tonya led her
to the basement stairs in the back of the common room, she looked
over her shoulder. Frath was watching her with a smile on his face.
She smiled back happily as she walked down the steps.

Chapter
2

The next two weeks passed quickly. Sheela
truly was a hard worker and did an excellent job. Albert didn’t
manage the staff directly, having managers in charge of different
aspects of the inn to do that for him. His wife, Purla, efficiently
ran the kitchen and oversaw the hotel staff, tolerating no
foolishness.

The food served to Sheela and the other
servants was basic, but well made. It was the best she had eaten in
her life and there was always enough for everyone. At first she
made a couple of mistakes in doing her job, but Purla and some of
the others taught her how to do things correctly, for which she was
grateful.

Frath came to visit three times in those two
weeks, but she was always too busy to spend more than a few minutes
with him. On the first visit, they spent time just holding hands
and gazing into each other’s eyes. The next two times they held
each other tightly as though the world might rip them away from
each other. Frath would always ask if she was alright and she would
happily tell him she was doing wonderfully, which pleased and
relieved him all at once.

Purla had finally given her time to spend
with Frath on his day off. Sheela waited for him on a small
ironbound wooden bench in an expansive garden behind the inn.
Brick-paved paths meandered around numerous fruit trees and
well-manicured flowerbeds. It was a nice place where she spent what
little free time she had. Albert allowed servants to use the garden
as long as they didn’t bother the guests and gave up seats when
asked. The weather had been nice the last few days and everything
was dry. The sun was warm enough to keep away the chill of a light
morning breeze that rustled through the remaining multicolored
leaves in an attempt to shake them off the trees. The aroma of
flowers drifted underneath her nose and she inhaled deeply while
brushing honey-brown hair out of her eyes each time a gust mussed
it.

Purla had given her two copper pieces for
her work. Normally, she would make seven copper pieces a week, a
decent wage that included room and board. However, most of that had
gone toward purchasing three dresses, a pair of shoes and basic
personal supplies. Sheela stared at the coppers in her hand, not
sure what to spend them on or even how to use money.

“Congratulations on your first payday,”
Frath said softly from behind, startling her. She dropped the coins
and scurried to pick them up. Frath bent over to grab one and
handed it to her as they both stood straight. “I’m sorry I startled
you,” he apologized sincerely. His deep voice wrapped around her,
making her feel safe and foolishly happy.

“It’s alright,” she assured him with a
cheerful smile. Looking back at the coins, she said, “I’m not sure
what to do with them. I’ve never had money before.”

“Keep them in your purse,” he told her,
pointing at the small leather pouch on her belt. “Then put it
between your breasts, otherwise a cutpurse will easily take it from
you.” Upon seeing Sheela blush at the mention of her breasts, Frath
apologized. “I’m not doing well today, am I? You’re so innocent and
this city makes me rough. I don’t deserve you.”

Sheela threw her arms around his waist in
desperation. “Don’t say that! I don’t want you to leave me.” For
all she had remained strong throughout everything in her life, he
was the only person who had ever shown her compassion. It had been
possible to hold her chin up when she didn’t have someone who
cared. Now that she had tasted that sensation, there was no way she
could survive its loss.

He gripped her tightly and kissed the top of
her head. Her hair was clean from the twice-weekly baths she was
required to take and she liked how soft it could be. The feel of
him wrapped around her and the warmth of his breath comforted her.
He breathed deeply and said, “You smell of raspberries. I could
breathe your scent all day and be content.”

Sheela laughed as she separated from him a
little, putting her hands on his chest. “Tonya put raspberry oil in
my bath this morning after I got in. She said it would make me
smell nice for our date today.” Blood drained from her face as she
realized that she had called their day a date. “That was what Tonya
called it . . .”

Frath tipped her head up by putting a finger
under her chin. He did it every time he wanted to make sure she
heard his words. Sheela was certain he liked looking into her eyes
as much as she liked looking into his. At the same time, she
wondered if he knew how much she willingly surrendered to him every
time he did. “It would please me greatly if you would do me the
honor of accompanying me on a date this fine day,” he requested
formally.

She curtseyed as she had seen some of the
ladies do for their knights. It wasn’t as elegant, but she thought
she did a decent job. “I would love to go on a date with you, my
brave champion.”

When Frath put a hand behind her head and
kissed her firmly, she froze. A thousand feelings burst into her
mind and through her body all at once. Many of them were extremely
unpleasant and brought terror to the forefront of her thoughts.
Frath pulled back and studied her for a moment. His face paled at
the sight of her shock. “I’m so sorry, Sheela. That was
inappropriate and I should have asked first.”

Sheela didn’t know what to say so she burst
into tears and seized his waist again, clinging to him for dear
life. He held her and they stood there for a few minutes until she
could think again. He had a handkerchief for her to wipe her eyes
and nose when she took a step back.

“I’m sorry. Please don’t leave me,” she
begged pitifully.

He gently took her arms and knelt so he
could look up at her. “I won’t leave you. You have nothing to be
sorry for. I was too bold.”

She shook her head fiercely. “No. You
weren’t. I liked the kiss and want to try again sometime. I like
you . . . I love you.” Her gut clenched as she said the last,
hoping he wouldn’t think her the fool.

“I love you too, Sheela,” he responded
immediately. “I have since that first day you arrived. It seems
foolish to fall in love so fast, but it’s how I feel.” They
embraced again, both desperate to cling to love and hope in a city
filled with despair.

“Are you two actually going anywhere today
or are you just going to stand there trying to see who can squeeze
hardest?” Purla asked from nearby. They jumped and looked guiltily
at the woman who was taking freshly washed and folded sheets back
to the inn. Purla was the sort of person who worked just as hard as
her staff.

Sheela quickly apologized. “I’m sorry,
Purla. We’ll go right away.”

The matronly woman laughed lightly. A life
of smiling was beginning to add pleasant wrinkles on her face. Life
and vigor filled her in spite of the grey taking over her brown
hair. The innkeeper’s wife truly cared for the women who worked for
her, a thing that had surprised Sheela, especially in such a dark
city. “I’m just teasing. You two can stand there like trees if you
wish, but it’s a beautiful day and you should enjoy yourselves.”
With that, she briskly went back to her task.

“Will you keep this for me?” Sheela asked,
holding out the pouch still in her hand.

“Of course,” he agreed, taking it and
putting it in an inside pocket of his tunic. Even on a day off, he
wore the uniform of the City Guard, sturdy black pants sewn with
brown thread and a brown tunic with black seams and buttons. His
wavy black hair matched the clothes, but the blue of his eyes stood
out, making for a striking effect.

As they walked toward the back gate she
asked, “Do you ever wear anything other than your uniform?”

He shook his head. “No. Regulations require
guards to wear the uniform at all times. Luckily, we’re supplied
four, plus the chain shirt. There’s a dress uniform for formal
events. Pants and tunics are washed for us, but we have to care for
our own armor and swords.”

The guard at the gate let them through and
they walked into a small alley between the inn grounds and the
stable area that took up another two blocks. Many of the knights
had fine horses and Albert only employed the best stable hands.

Frath continued explaining as they turned
onto a side street. “It’s a high crime to kill a member of the City
Guard. When it happens, every member of the Guard is charged with
finding the offender and bringing him to justice.” He tugged on his
tunic. “Wearing these colors keeps me safe. Only the most insane
fool would dare to attack me. It should help keep you safe, too,
when you’re with me. I reported the incident where someone tried to
grab you at the bazaar two weeks ago and it upset my sergeant so
much he said a few swear words even
I
didn’t understand.”
Frath chuckled and shook his head.

Sheela had been trying to forget that, but
had woken up with nightmares a couple of times, a fact she didn’t
mention to him. “Thank you for saving me that night . . . for
everything you’ve done.”

“You’re welcome,” he replied with a gigantic
smile. “I can’t stop thinking about you, honestly, and I’m so glad
you came to Dralin. I’d been feeling down about things and now I’m
walking on a cloud.” Frath did a little skip which shocked a
passerby and caused Sheela to laugh pleasantly.

Workers and servants filled the streets,
going about their business. A few merchants and nobles could be
found in the crowd, in addition to many young entrepreneurs and
business people eagerly looking to advance their position in life.
Frath led Sheela at a leisurely pace, matching his steps to hers.
He was nearly a foot taller; she liked his height because it made
her feel safe. She held onto his arm, alternately smiling at him
and then looking around at the people and buildings. “What are we
going to do?” Sheela asked eventually.

“I was going to take you to Carnival to see
some of the shows. They have jugglers, musicians, actors and all
sorts of disreputable characters,” he told her with a wink. “I
think you’ll like it and it’s not all that dangerous since the City
Guard patrols it heavily. It’s the only year-round carnival in the
world and people from everywhere are attracted to it, so it
wouldn’t do to have it overrun with crime like the rest of the
city.” Frath shook his head at the last part and sighed heavily as
though it was a great weight on his shoulders.

“The crime in the city bothers you; is that
why you joined the Guard?” Sheela asked intuitively.

“Yeah. I saw a lot of things while growing
up here and didn’t like any of it. It would have been easy for me
to fall into a life of crime, real easy. I even got into some
trouble as a kid, but I was taken into the Guard’s Program for
Criminal Youth, which gives children who get in trouble with the
law a taste of what the City Guard is like.”

“What trouble did you get into?”

Frath stopped suddenly, surprised by the
question. They were on the sidewalk near a park where birds sang
cheerfully and squirrels scampered after each other. When she stood
watching him, he dodged her eyes and glanced at his feet instead.
“I . . .”

“You don’t have to tell me,” Sheela
reassured him quickly. “It’s none of my business.”

“Yes, I do.” Frath looked her in the eyes.
“I told you, I’m in love with you. You said the same to me. It’s
important you know.”

“Alright,” Sheela encouraged, afraid of what
he had to say.

Hair blew across her face and Frath brushed
it aside. “I killed a man when I was twelve,” he confessed, the
words coming from his mouth as though weighted with lead. Sheela
squeezed his arm supportively in spite of the cold shock that
flowed through her body. He explained, “I lived in an orphanage
with a lot of other kids and the man was a city official. He . . .
hurt . . . a girl there, one of my friends . . .”

Sheela gave his arm an even tighter squeeze.
“Go on.”

“I stabbed him with a rusty sword some of
the other orphans and I had hidden away. He died quickly. I was
taken to court and the judge gave me the option of entering the
Guard’s program or going to jail, where I most likely would have
died.” The severe look on his face let her know the gravity of the
matter. “I entered the program and loved it. Not only that, I did
well and was invited to advance into further training. I stayed
when I realized I could make a difference, even a small one.”

“You’ve made a difference in my life,”
Sheela told him urgently, wanting to reassure him after he opened
his heart to her. “I didn’t know what it was like to have someone
protect me or tell me nice things.”