A Forest of Secrets

Chapter 4

As she was finishing getting dressed, someone knocked on the door.

"Gerard sent me to check on you, are you alive in there?" Alaric.

"I'm dead, actually," she said, as she put her wet hair in a bun. The mages needed to come up with some means to dry wet hair instantly: what use was magically heated water if your hair froze your head the second you got out? A cold drop went all the way down to her back, making her point.

"This is the first time I talk to a ghost, can you go through walls? Does it hurt?" she could hear a muffled laugh. She rolled her eyes and opened the door. "I thought ghosts were supposed to be translucent, such a disappointment," he said, grinning. She sighed.

"How long did you let me sleep?" she leaned on the doorframe.

"About five hours. Don't worry, Gerard was out looking for Ulfric as we slept. He can go on for days without sleep- special Knight training, you know?"

"Aren't you a knight too? You said you were. Why were you sleeping?"

"I haven't been anointed yet, I'm not technically a knight. But I will be, soon. I just have to take some oaths and do some rituals, but I'm practically a knight," he puffed his chest, but the wince on his face told her he was embarrassed.

"So, not a real knight then," she teased.

"Practically a knight. Technicalities," he cleared his throat and blushed a little. "So, are you hungry? I know I am. There's, uh, food downstairs. If you want. Or I could go by myself, never mind," she could never get over how awkward that man was.

"I'll go with you. You could choke on your soup and then, who will save you?" she took the key to her room and put it in the right pocket of her riding pants.

"Yes, very dangerous that soup," he quickly offered her an arm, but removed it after a split second. He started walking briskly in front of her, touching his hair nervously. Strange man, that almost knight, she thought as she followed him.

They were sitting down when Gerard came through the door of the inn, looking dead serious. He sat with them, then ordered lunch for the table. The day's special was lamb with mint sauce and some sort of fruit preserve with whipped cream. Jo's stomach grumbled out of control in anticipation.

"Did you find him?" She asked, ignoring her hunger pangs.

"I know where he lives," he said, then took out a piece of paper with a badly drawn map. "We'll eat, and then we'll go find this man," he ran a hand through his beard. "Something tells me this will be the last decent meal we'll have in days, so, make the best of it"

"What makes you think that?" Alaric asked quietly, a worried look on his eyes. Gerard paused for a while: he looked tired and had black circles under his eyes, he looked older than when she first met him.

"The baker gave me his address," he said, lowering his voice. She and Alaric leaned in closer to listen. "He said one of his boys delivers him a fresh loaf every morning, at eight sharp. He always answers the door, but he didn't do it this morning... or the morning before," he said. "He thinks maybe he's been oversleeping, but I have a bad feeling."

"But maybe he really has been oversleeping, right? Maybe he's been reading a really good book, and stays up late... reading?" said Alaric, but Jo could tell by the way he said it he probably didn't believe it. Neither did she. The food arrived, but suddenly she wasn't feeling as hungry. 

"Maybe. But if something happened to him... we must be prepared. If the Niveans got to him first they probably know we're here too, they might have been looking for us. Then we'll have to evade them, and stay away from civilized areas," goodbye running water and oils, thought Jo. But staying alive was better than being clean and well fed.