Page 12 of Winter's Echo
Baxley’s hand caught my arm when the captain shouted out his protest.
“Ever the popular one,” he murmured, his lips twitching as I glared at his hand.
“I hope your balls freeze off.” I turned to face her.
She was closer now. Her light-brown eyes sparked with her contempt for me, her mouth painted with a pink stain and twisted into a sneer as ugly as her soul.
“Out, thief.”
“Eilenora, how unpleasant to see you.”
She looked at where Baxley held me, and her mouth started to form a smile, until he dropped his hand, making it clear he wasn’t detaining me.
“Get out.”
“Is there a problem here?” Captain Marson had come over. He looked different without his armor on.
“She’s a thief.”
He looked at me and caught my eye roll. “A thief?”
“Thief implies Istolesomething,” I corrected dryly. “I paid for the meal.”
“You paid two coppers instead of four!”
“You’re the thief!” I barked back at her. “Four coppers for that pig swill you served me?Youshould beblushingat the audacity, you overdressed bitch.”
Baxley failed to hide his laughter beside me, and I saw the captain also suppress his grin.
Eilenora smoothed her stupidly pink skirts and turned to the captain, as innocent as a newly hatched snow sparrow. “Sir, she is disruptive and vulgar.” She cast her hand around to the dark wooden stained chairs and tables with linens and place settings. “The Gilded Swan is arefinedestablishment.” She gave me a hateful glare. “I do not want her in here.”
The captain looked at her and me.
“She still paid… something,” he said reasonably.
“I did.” I gave her a triumphant smirk.
“She took a blanket from the stables and left my kitchen door open, and the beggar boys helped themselves to two full buckets of potatoes.”
I didn’t deny it. But I also knew she couldn’t prove it.
“Potatoes areexpensive,” she hissed at me.
They were. Any town or village this far from the border had to import food from the warmer lands. The farther north you were, the higher the levy.
I turned my attention to Captain Marson.
“You can try to be reasonable, but she’ll just screech for hours. Do you want to listen to that nasal whine for hours?” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder, “I’ll go to the Hogs Head instead. Come over when you’re ready.”
She was going to go on a tirade, but Baxley saved us with his next sentence.
“Got a better pie there,” he said, not giving one single fuck at Eilenora’s gasp of indignation. “Pies also have potatoes in them.” He nudged me with his elbow. “I’ll go too, keep an eye on our friend.”
I saw the gleam in her eyes. “Are you being arrested? Good.”
“I’m beinghired,you miserable old bitch.”
Baxley snorted and took my arm lightly. “Come on, mouthy, before they hear you two yattering over the storm.”
