DragonKnight - Donita K. Paul [48]
The minneken hunched her narrow shoulders, pulled a long shawl more tightly around her, and frowned fiercely at the granny emerlindian. “As for those two interlopers being Wulder’s doing, I’ll wait on pronouncing that to be fact. As for us not wasting money here, that might be true, unless the mistress gives you a sad tale about needing new linens.”
“I’m carrying our coins,” put in Bardon.
“Well, that at least is sensible.” Her whiskers quivered. “These two men are not a good idea. What should happen if I am discovered? What protection can I be to N’Rae if everyone and their nefarious uncles know about me?”
N’Rae turned away from the window. “Whose uncle is coming?”
“There, there,” said Granny Kye. “You can still scout. You can still gather information. You can still stand guard.”
The minneken did not look encouraged.
Granny Kye continued, “Master Bromptotterpindosset will be so busy translating the diary and drawing his maps, he won’t notice you.”
“Not notice a minneken!” Jue Seeno dropped to a sitting position, kicking her feet as they dangled off the side of the basket. She shook her head. A tiny felt hat between her ears slid back and forth. Bardon wondered what anchored it. And he noticed the pink and orange headgear matched the belt she wore. She looked forlorn in spite of her colorful attire.
“I can’t do much about the mapmaker,” said Bardon, “but I shall try to dissuade Holt from any further prying. Perhaps I can send him home to his loving family.”
“Prying?” N’Rae marched to his side and poked him on the arm with a sharp fingernail. “That’s unfair. He has been nothing but helpful.”
“I don’t trust him, either,” yelled Jue Seeno. “I’m your protector, and I say he’s a wild card. We don’t know what he’s up to.”
Bardon nodded his agreement. “I don’t trust his motives. His father may have sent him to discover what our quest is, just in case it should be a profitable endeavor. Or, Hoddack wants his son to bring back a bride who tames kindia.”
“That’s unfair as well!” N’Rae planted her fists on her hips. “Holt already told his father he didn’t want anything to do with such a plan.”
Jue Seeno and Granny Kye continued to argue over whether or not to trust the tumanhofer and the marione.
Bardon kept his attention on N’Rae and his voice calm, responding to Sir Dar’s training to be a diplomat as well as a knight. “Then why is he here?”
N’Rae’s pale complexion colored a bright red. Her lips thinned as she pressed them together. She frowned and looked down at Bardon’s chest. “He said he came to see me.”
“And you don’t quite believe him,” Bardon said softly.
She shook her head. “Not quite.”
“I’ll go ask him. Then we will both know.”
“He’s out in front of the inn, talking to a man. I saw him out the window.”
Bardon left the room, determined to get some answers from Holt. He took in a deep breath first thing after the door closed behind him. Even the stuffy air in the hallway felt refreshing after the heated atmosphere of the tiny bedchamber. He breathed in again, feeling the tension ease from his shoulders. He’d much rather talk to a man.
Women are a tangle of emotions. Pull the wrong string and look out!
A threadbare rug muffled his footsteps in the hall, but as he went down the wooden steps, his boots hammered a swift cadence. He crossed the empty entry hall and stepped out into the sunshine. He stood for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the bright light.
None of the neighboring businesses looked any more prosperous than the hostelry. Only a few people walked the narrow sidewalk on either side of a rutted street.
Where’s Holt?
Bardon stood on the stoop of the inn and searched both directions. The farmer’s son was nowhere in sight. Bardon spotted a tavern and headed in that direction. Even if