Page 27 of Death of a Mortal

The short trek there revealed a sign reading “Greymore.” The sign also said that Briarstead was behind us, and Dolvenar was further ahead. At least we were heading in the right direction. One thing was finally going right.

When we reached Greymore, the town was just waking up. Merchants were beginning to crowd the red-dirt street with their woodencarts carrying clothing, shoes, jewelry, fabrics, potions, and more. Further down the main road, tired-looking townsfolk carried baskets of fruit, vegetables and flowers, cages of live chickens and squirrels. Lining the bustling road were small shops with colorful window displays of cakes, art, and...gods, naked women. Tasteful, but nude. If we weren’t in a rush and trying to go unseen, I would have loved to explore. The town was run-down but alive with life and action.

There was so much to see for such an early hour. Briarstead didn’t have anything quite like this, and it was thrilling. This town was on the fae side of the border, but as I looked around, I found more rounded ears than pointed. I wasn’t sure what to make of that. Maybe mortals mostly ran the shops? The fae walking around seemed to be better dressed, and the mortals nearby lowered their eyes when they walked by. The mortals seemed scared. It made me apprehensive, so I wanted to get in and out quickly.

Surely the capital will be larger and more diverse—easier to blend in if there are more mortals.

The first thing we needed was some warmer and cleaner clothes, so we approached a wrinkled mortal merchant whose truck had all manner of clothing and accessories. After selecting a long hooded cloak, boots, and a satchel each—Nella taking way too long on her selections for my liking—the merchant eyed us with a raised brow when I handed over the gold coin. It hadn’t occurred to me until that moment that this coin could draw attention. Did they have the king’s raffle here, too, or would they think this was stolen from a royal?

I cleared my throat. “Um, problem, sir?” I tried to sound both confident and nonchalant.

“How do I know you didn’t steal this coin? You two look like you crawled out of the woods, and this is worth more than your lives put together.” Our dirty, torn clothes weren’t helping, and I imagined our faces and hair made us look like orphans.

Orphans wouldn’t have a gold coin…

Shit. Now I was panicking. I felt Nella sidle closer and grasp myhand. We should have just stolen what we needed, but it was too late now.

“We’re not from here. We—”

“There you girls are!” A short, round man, older than our father by at least a decade, walked up behind us. He had a kind face and rounded ears. Mortal. “If I had known you were so eager to go shopping, I would have come with you! Good morning, sir. These are my daughters. I gave them that coin to buy new clothes after they ruined what they’re wearing playing in the woods.”

I turned to look at the man, trying not to let my face give away my utter shock over this stranger lying for Nella and me.

“That’s right. Sorry we ran off,” I said to both the merchant and the man, trying not to stutter from the turn of events.

“The goods, sir, if you please,” the man said as he reached for the items still held by the merchant.

The latter stared at the former with uncertainty but still relinquished the things we’d selected.

“Thank you, sir, and the change, too, if you will. Surely, you’re not charging us the whole piece for just these?” He laughed as if he were trying to convince the merchant that his joke was innocent. “There’s a good chap, thank you, sir, and good day!”

The merchant had handed me several larger coins made of various metals. We had learned about coins in school, but I hoped I wasn’t expected to count them in front of these men.

“Thank you, sir,” I said as we turned to leave the truck.

The stranger followed suit, and after we put enough distance between the merchant and us, he leaned down toward me. “Young lady, I haven’t the slightest clue what you were thinking flashing that coin in a town like this. It will raise even more suspicion once that dim-witted merchant tells others he has that coin, or at minimum, he will be interrogated when he tries to spend it himself. By which time, you girls should be long gone from here. I suspect you came from a different town. I suggest you go back there at once or moveon to the next.” He looked around us, flustered, to see if anyone was watching.

“Thank you for helping us back there. For saving our necks. We just need some food and supplies, and we’ll be on our way.”

“There isn’t time for that,” he said, shifting on his feet and continuing to look around. “Stay close and follow me. Keep your head low and pull your hair over your ears. Not a word until I tell you. And put those cloaks on.”

I glanced at Nella. We donned our cloaks and moved our hair to cover our rounded mortal ears. We lowered our heads as we fell into step behind him, satchels and boots in hand. I warred with myself over whether we should follow this stranger. He had saved our asses with the merchant, but there was no telling where he might take us. I caught Nella’s eye and knew she was thinking the same.

“Just a little further,” he mumbled. “We’ll find what you need and get you on your way.” He seemed eager to get us out of town, so surely he didn’t intend to kidnap us and keep us here.

We passed a couple of fae guards in the gold-and-green colors of Ashenholt’s royal house. Royal guards. The unease I felt deepened when they glanced our way. I dropped my eyes to the ground and kept moving, clutching Nella’s hand.

After a few turns and a fast pace down a tight alleyway lined with doors and closed windows, we arrived in front of a small house that looked to be in no better state than our current clothing underneath the new cloaks. The homes here were a far cry from the vibrant and lively market streets we had just left. They rose two stories, a single continuous building on each side, with sagging roofs, broken wooden shutters, and clotheslines stretched between them.

The man looked around once more, and seeing that we were alone, leaned down once again and put a hand on my shoulder. The gesture seemed kind, even fatherly. Not that I knew what that was supposed to feel like, but I could imagine that this man was looking out for us in a way that a father would if he loved his children.

“This town isn’t safe for mortals, especially young girls. There are horrific places where mortals are sold, and I won’t elaborate. The coin you flashed put an even bigger target on your backs.”

It was then that I noticed him eyeing the wounds on my face. I guessed I would have to get used to that.

“Then how come you’re here if it’s not safe for mortals?” I butted in, growing irritated at the scolding we were receiving—it seemed I stayed irritated nowadays. “And why is that coin such a big deal?”

“First, I’m here because I have certain…skills the fae here desire. They know me and leave me alone if I find the goods they seek. And for the coin, those are rare in poor towns and, so close to the capital, it’ll be assumed you’ve likely stolen it.”