Page 8 of Death of a Mortal

“Nella, you stay here,” I said as my feet hit solid ground below our window. “I’m gonna go get that coin. I’ll be back soon.”

“Naci, wait—”

“No time, I’ve got to go now. I love you, little lamb, I’ll be quick.”

Before she could say another word, I was running beside Fadric, my hand in his, an excited smile lighting up his features in the dark.

Chapter 3

Steal or Starve

We rounded thecorner and slowed down when the noisy tavern came into view ahead. The place was packed full of desperate townsfolk, and I thought how stupid this plan was. After we pushed our way in, Fadric nodded his head toward a back corner, and I followed.

“Let’s find the coin, then you can get those wheels turning in that lovely head of yours and come up with a plan to get it,” he borderline yelled at me over the din.

I surveyed the dirty, one-room building with large wooden tables spaced haphazardly around it. There was a band of three men in the opposite corner playing upbeat music while busty barmaids walked around with tankards of frothy beverages and platters of cheap, greasy food. At one of the large tables, a card game was in progress, each of the men concentrating hard on his hand.

I didn’t know how to play any games, but a quick glance over the coins and trinkets piled in the middle told me the coin wasn’t there. Laying it out on a table for all to see would have been stupid anyway,so I continued looking around for hushed whispers, secretive shifty eyes, or the beginnings of altercations.

No one and nothing stood out to me immediately—someone had it, and they were either not in here, or they were hiding it really well. Beside me, Fadric looked around as well.

Two men got up from a small table nearby and headed for the exit. Fadric inclined his head toward the empty chairs, and I nodded as we pushed our way over and sat down.

A barmaid approached with a wet rag in hand, looking exhausted, her red curls looking bedraggled. “What’ll ya have, dears?”

“Nothing for me, thanks,” I mumbled.

“A mead for each of us, please,” Fadric said.

The barmaid looked between us for a moment before walking back toward the bar.

I had no coin for drinks, but Fadric’s family had a small fortune since his was the oldest lineage in Briarstead. When the fae king started shrinking the mortal lands in Ashenholt, the royal court paid Fadric’s grandfather a large sum—although far less than it was likely worth—to purchase a plot of land he owned the size of a small town, to expand the fae border. The way Fadric’s father told the story, they had never wanted to sell to the king, but Caedryn had made it clear they could either accept the court’s generous offer, or their land would be taken by force and the family would receive nothing.

Not really a choice at all.

So Fadric had money to buy us mead, and it made me uncomfortable and embarrassed at my situation.

“Thanks,” I said under my breath.

As we waited, a few more patrons left, and my spirits dwindled. There was a chance that the holder of the coin had departed before we even got here, and with each person who left, the chances of it still being here dropped even lower.

So far, we had been coming up empty. I needed to ask questions.

“Ma’am, who had the coin last?” I asked our barmaid when she dropped the mead off at our table.

She just looked me up and down, scoffed. “Now why would I be telling the likes of you?” She turned up her nose as she walked away.

I hadn’t expected her to tell me, but she’d unknowingly shown me—her quick glance toward the upstairs hallway when she’d replied was what I’d been hoping for. People could be so predictable with their tells.

“I think it’s upstairs,” I told Fadric as he sipped his mead, only showing his surprise for the briefest moment. “What’s up there?” I took my first sip, and it was disgusting.

Fadric laughed at the look on my face. “It’s an acquired taste. Upstairs are private rooms—don’t ask, don’t tell kind of stuff goes down.”

Great.

“Well,” he said, smacking his lips after draining his cup. “I suppose we should check it out then?”

I hadn’t seen anyone come or go from upstairs since we’d been here, so if the woman’s glance was to be believed, it seemed that no one else knew it was up there. The coin’s current owner was likely smart then, stealthy and secretive.