Return to Caer Lon (7 page)

Chapter 7

Lann
Stefan was barely more than a village. But compared to
Haven
’s castle and its dozen houses, it felt like a small city to
Sacha
.

With
s
pring, merchants had started to travel again, and the coming May Day festivities were bringing a colourful crowd out to venture happily around the shops and bargain the prices with the tenants.

Derek
had decided they were to stop at an inn to bath
e
and rest before they looked for the monastery. He doubted a day was going to be enough to find anything
,
even with the help of the monk-librarian
. F
or once,
Sacha
had agreed with him.

Her clothes were stiff and itched from an entire day on horseback and a night
i
n the hayloft. In addition,
Sacha
was in no hurry to repeat their performance of the morning. Her horse made a step aside and she had to pull on her reins to restrain it. The movement enhanced the sting in her sore arms. She was pretty sure she would sustain a bruise in the morning. She had not expected him to react so violently.
Derek
was certainly prompt to react and tempest, but with her he had always kept a strict rein on physical expressions of his temper, settling for arrogant retorts or mocking remarks.

It amazed her to know she could shatter his control like that. It made her feel… powerful
.
T
he idea of possessing that kind of influence over a man like
Derek
intrigued her
,
though s
he was
n’t
sure she liked it. Much.

Sacha
glanced at her companion.
Derek
was riding beside her, his posture almost casual. She noticed he had only one hand on his reins; the other rested on his thigh, inches away from his blade. His blue eyes were scanning the crowd while his face was blank. Nothing in his attitude indicated he too was fazed with the stony road or the numbers of two story buildings. He looked like the known sleepy cat, which waited for some heedless mouse to come a little too close. The young woman shivered involuntary. Those were the moments that truly reminded her
that
Derek
was
lethal
, more than his random outbursts of rage.

A bell rang to announce Terce. She pushed up on her stirrups looking both ways for the church.
Derek
’s stern voice reminded her about discretion and she sighed before settling back on her saddle.

Some minutes later,
Derek
stopped his mount in front of a building larger than the rest.

“We will stay here.”

A sign h
ung
above the door. A big animal with twisted tusks was painted on the wood panel to announce the establishment’s name: ‘The W
ild
Boar’.
Derek
jumped down.
Sacha
didn’t wait
to dismount, ignoring his offered hand
.
The prince
said nothing and gestured a servant to pick up their bags.

When he stepped forward to push the door and enter in front of her,
Sacha
had more than enough with his
patronizing
.

“You have more experience of taverns than I do. Please lead the way.”

Derek
frowned, visibly displeased
by her comment
. Shrugging his shoulders, he preceded her inside.

The room was brighter than she expected, almost welcoming. A few costumers were seated in front of a carafe in spite of the early hour. Others were eating. More than half of them snatched a glimpse at the newcomers and
Sacha
felt like a rabbit surrounded by foxes. Maybe having him entering first had not been such a bad idea...

Derek
pushed his hood back and she could only imitate him, but she kept her face down, glad her long braid was caught beneath her cloak. At least the thick cloth protected her from more probing. With her delicate face and slender frame, she could hardly be mistaken for a boy.

The prince chose a table near the wall and she nearly sighed in relief at the idea
of
hav
ing
the thick barrier in her back. Murmurs of thanks evanesced from her lips when she saw
Derek
take the bench near the wall while he invited her to take the open one.

“I prefer having my eyes on the room
instead of
it
watching
my back.”

So do I.
Sacha
thought bitterly
. She
preferred swallow
ing
her comment
. No need to let her discomfort show. He
would be too happy.
Instead she
s
at
down, trying her best to look poised and at ease with her neck expose
d
to curiosity.

A waitress with an outrageous neckline showed up within minutes with two cups and a jug.
Derek
did not let her enough time to take a proper look at them before he declared
,
“We need a room for the night and baths. Our horses are in the back.”

“Yes;
m
y
l
ord.”

Her low bow exposed more cleavage when
Derek
placed a silver coin in her hand to punctuate his list of requirements.
Sacha
quirked an eyebrow; the smirk on her companion was insufferable. As for the absurd behaviour of th
at
woman... The waitress left, and
Derek
looked back to her, apparently sure she was shocked by the amount of money he offered, and obviously amuse
d
by her silent blame
.

“There
ha
s to be some interest in winning tournaments.”

Escorting her
was the only valuable reward to the jousts. Knights told her so every single time, before
Derek
beat them methodically to win the day.

She fought not to slap his grin off his face. His smirk grew some more, as if he could see the wheels turning in her head.
Sacha
bit back a comment about greed, her cheeks burning. Couldn’t her mind shut up about the way he glimpsed at that woman?
He’d never looked at her that way. Not that she wanted him to. Did
she?
No. Of course not
.
She wasn’t interested in the slightest
in Derek or his frolics
…

“My
l
ady,
m
y
l
ord, your room is ready. If you please follow me…”

T
he young woman jumped
to
her feet to follow their guide upstairs.
Derek
imitated her
with
a
glance toward the bar. Sacha did her best to ignore his hesitation. Her hands trembled with
out
rage.

Fortunately,
Derek
stayed in the room just long enough to pe
e
k at the two small beds and make sure their bags were intact. Satisfied, he ordered the tub hidden behind an overused screen to be filled for bathing immediately and left
her blissfully
alone.

oOo

The tavern’s main room was filling up quickly as the morning bloomed. Locals and merchants alike poured through the door for a drink or
to
exchange the current gossip, which was fine with him. Rumours travelled faster than light. By experience, Derek knew one could learn far more
by
listening rather than asking questions. Unfortunately, that took time, and time was a luxury he had not.

A bunch of old men now occupied the table by the wall. Derek overlooked his previous observatory to walk to the back of the room. The barman nodded at him, never stopping mopping the wooden surface.

“What’s for you, lad?”

Derek fished a silver coin
from
his purse, and put it on the counter.

“Information.”

The barman shrugged. Derek pushed the coin forward. The man stayed still, looking straight at the young man. After a few seconds, he grunted, “I have ale or cider. Wh
ich one
do you want?”

Derek frowned.
The barman held his stare steadily. Derek tried to think fast. Why offer a choice of drink when he had made it clear he didn’t want to drink? He took a wild guess.

“Give me a pint of cider.”

Apparently satisfied, the barman put a chop in front of him. When he glanced down, Derek noticed the money had disappeared. One coin of silver was way too high a price for cider, but at least he…

“You’re lucky. Last bottle from a bunch I bought last winter. Was pretty surprised to have goods from the
other side
again at the time.”

Derek sipped the beverag
e tentatively. His mind worked in a frenzy
to process
the two words the barman had put emphasis on.
His mother often prized Camelot’s apple trees and the talent of the peasants to exploit them. Tiny bubbles fizzled on his tongue, sweet and dry at the same time, an invitation to
drain his cup. He resisted the temptation in extremis and bowed his head in appreciation. The barman bent forward.

“When the wolf is out of the woods, the forest breathes again.”

The man talked
in
enigma
s
, but this one rang a bell.

“What else crossed the border?”

The barman stepped back.
For a second, he feared he had been too direct.
His source groaned, “Told you. Goods.” The man lowered his tone, “and bad
thing
s.”

The young man opened his mouth to push on the matter.

“That’s a very nice squire you’ve got, Sire. Very nice…”

The sneer sent Derek’s heart up his throat. He forced himself to take a long gulp of cider before he turned. The ruffian elbowed a poor costumer nearby.

“If pretty boy here is fed up of his
page
, I’ll supply.”

The salacious laugh shrieked on Derek’s nerves, hard. His left hand looked for his sword. He gripped the hilt, and stepped forward.

“It won’t be necessary.”

Though hissed through clenched teeth, the new comer recognized the threat. He fisted hands large as ham. Derek prepared for the first swing.

Feminine curves appeared out of nowhere between them
,
and the blond who had first welcome
d
Sacha and h
im
locked arms with the brute.

“Let me show you to a nice table…”

The intruder glanced down
on
the generous corsage, growled at Derek and deserted the scene. Breathing more easily, the young man noticed his informer had disappeared in the back room. Whatever
bad things
had crossed Camelot’s borders would have to wait. His
squire
had soaked by herself long enough anyway.

oOo

Sacha
relaxed,
vaguely wondering how long she could indulge in the water before
Derek
claimed his turn. The man came haunting her thoughts
all
too often. He was probably flirting with that cheeky
waitress
and not at all in a hurry to use the cleaning facilities.

She closed her eyes, sinking deeper in the tub. The hot water started to wash annoyance and soreness away. Her unplaited hair sprang to life in the water, dressing her shoulders with a black web.
Sacha
pinched her nose to immerse fully in the water and rinse her mane. Underwater, she could not hear anything, but the low beating of her heart and she savoured the peaceful
rhythm
as long as she could. Finally she broke the surface for air, wiping water off her eyes.

“You have been in there for an eternity.”

Sacha
screamed and lost her balance, slipping to the bottom of the tub, spraying water everywhere. The shadow behind the screen jumped backward instantly. Her sore biceps h
it
the rim and she moaned in pain. The brutal invasion of water into her nose and down her throat brought up tears, as she choked and coughed.