Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
CASSIAN
The inn felt dead without Sterling and Jasmine.
There was nothing to do without customers.
Olive read a book by the fire while Griffin organized the pub for the hundredth time.
I still needed to move the rune stone, so I slipped my cloak on while thinking about how close Sterling had come to finding it the night before.
The stone hung heavy in my cloak pocket as I headed for the front door, hoping Willorunia was right.
I trudged through the thick, snowed-over trail out front that went entirely unused this last week, kicking the snow out of my way while searching for a good place for the rune stone.
Using my gloved hands, I dug snow off the large boulder near the gate’s entryway.
If part of Faian magic was to hide from prying eyes, perhaps the stone would hide itself.
Testing my theory, I pressed the flat stone against the boulder and waited.
I felt stupid as the seconds stretched, but just before I gave up, the boulder began to absorb it. My jaw dropped as the stone disappeared into its side, leaving only a faint trace of the engraving. After a few seconds, even that was gone.
If Willorunia had lied to me, I was so screwed.
If she hadn’t, we’d be getting business soon.
When I came back inside, I tucked the donation box beneath the counter and waited.
Several hours passed, and the emptiness of the inn had me doubting Willo.
She had insisted I didn’t tell Sterling about our conversation.
I shouldn’t have listened to her. Sterling was the only person here I could trust aside from Jasmine, but I hadn’t told Jasmine either.
Now they were both gone, and I might have messed up the inn for good.
I was just starting to panic when a traveler stepped through the front door. Olive jumped to her feet, tucking her book in her apron pocket.
“Welcome to Fibbersnap Inn!” I said, heart pounding. This was it. If the traveler needed lodging, Willo had been right. If he just had a question, we were in trouble. “How can I help you?”
The man shuffled through the room, snow falling off him in clumps. It wasn’t until he reached the counter that I recognized him. “Hello, Mr. Fibbersnap. Good to see you again.”
“Mims!” I said with a grin. “It’s great to see you again! What are you doing out in this weather?”
“Oh, just making my monthly trip to see my daughter out in Rodull. You got any room for me today?” Mr. Mimster asked.
I could have cried. “For you, always!” I said, laughing. I opened the full key drawer and withdrew the key to the coziest room: number thirteen. “Rodull is quite a trek. Doesn’t she ever visit you?”
Mr. Mimster took the key from me. “I enjoy the journey. It keeps me spry. My granddaughter just had a baby anyhow, and I wouldn’t want to make them travel so far. How much?” He waved the key in the air.
“Two gold for the night, as always,” I said.
He dropped three gold in my hand and said, “A little extra for the key trouble from last time.”
I picked the third coin from the pile and handed it back to him. “Don’t be silly! It was no trouble.”
“Keep it, son. I appreciate your kindness. You remind me of Boris, and I’m just glad he had someone like himself to keep this place alive,” Mr. Mimster said. “I miss that old man. I know he’d be proud of you.”
Tears pricked my eyes. I wasn’t sure if Grandpa would be proud, but it broke me to hear. “Thank you. That means a lot. You give your granddaughter a big hug for me when you get to Rodull, okay, Mims?”
“Will do, Cassian,” he said, reaching across the counter to pat my hand.
“I’ll have Olive run your dinner up soon. Enjoy your stay,” I said.
“I always do,” he answered as he walked away.
I let Olive know we had a guest who required dinner, and she happily got to work while I returned to the counter, eager to greet more guests. It wasn’t a permanent fix, but it gave me hope.
STERLING
The next morning, we visited Gertrude first. Her house was easy to find using the Force’s resources. It looked just like every other brick house on the street, except flowers and herbs flooded its windowsill and garden.
She answered quickly when I knocked, eyeing me up and down from behind her door.
“Hello—”
“Who are you?” she interrupted me.
“I was getting to that. My name is Sterling Thorndrop. I’m an investigator for the Force—”
She slammed the door in my face.
I frowned at Jasmine, who seemed amused by Gertrude’s reaction. I knocked on the door again. “Cassian’s inn is in trouble. May I speak with you about it?” I called.
Gertrude pulled open the door to reveal herself.
She was younger than I expected, but older than me.
She had dark skin and long, curly brown hair.
Her clothes were all black, just like Cassian.
“You know Cassian?” Gertrude eyed me up and down skeptically.
Her eyes found Jasmine and then returned to me.
“I do.”
“Hm. Come in, but make it quick. Now that I don’t have an apprentice, I have to do everything myself,” she said, stepping aside to invite us in.
The home’s interior was lit entirely by candlelight.
Fragrant smoke filled the air, drifting up from long burning sticks on porcelain stands.
Red embers glowed beneath a large cauldron in the fireplace, and green liquid bubbled and steamed inside.
A dark canopy covered her bed, and old leather books buried the low table in front of her sofa.
A scarlet rug covered the uneven planks of the hardwood floor.
“You have a lovely home,” I said, admiring as much as I could. Aside from Cassian, Gertrude was the first witch I’d met to let me see inside her house. She had far more magical equipment than I could have imagined.
“Thank you. Who is this?” she nodded to Jasmine.
Jasmine stuck out her hand. “Jasmine Bloomday. Cassian’s cousin.”
“Ah, I’ve heard a lot about you, Jasmine. It’s nice to meet you,” Gertrude said with a smile. I was grateful for Jasmine’s presence easing the tension between us.
Her moment of hospitality didn’t last long. She crossed her arms and frowned at me when she finished welcoming Jasmine. “What did you want to ask?”
“When was the last time you communicated with Cassian?” I asked.
“I’ve written him a few times, but I haven’t heard back,” she said, sighing as she looked away. “He must be busy.”
I scratched my head as I thought about this. “You wrote to him at Fibbersnap Inn?”
“I did.”
“Hm…” I retrieved my journal to make a note and then turned to Jasmine. “Have you been receiving any postage to the inn?”
“Not much, but yes,” Jasmine said.
“I can’t imagine why Cassian wouldn’t write back unless he didn’t receive your letters. He would have told me if he’d heard from you,” I said.
“Why would he tell you?” Gertrude looked unimpressed.
I cleared my throat while Jasmine snickered at me.
Gertrude’s expression moved from perplexed to understanding, and she chuckled too.
I continued before either of them could say anything.
“If you don’t mind my asking, what did you say in these letters to him?
I’m concerned someone is intercepting messages to and from the inn. ”
“They were fairly straightforward. I wanted to know how he was doing and if he needed anything…” Gertrude trailed off and squinted at a row of dried, bundled flowers hanging on her wall.
“I also included advice about protective wards. His grandfather must’ve had some in place, but they probably expired when he passed away.
” She looked at me again. “What kind of trouble is he in?”
“The inn is cursed,” I answered.
Her eyebrows shot up. “Cursed? How?”
“Faian magic,” Jasmine answered for me, clearly knowing I wouldn’t be able to answer the question well. “Five rune stones placed around the property cursing the place not to make any money.”
“Probably five, but we don’t know for sure,” I added. Maybe I had learned more than I thought.
“That’s really bad,” Gertrude said. “Faian magic is serious.”
“Did you cover Faian magic with Cassian when he was your apprentice?” I asked.
“Oh, yes. We went over it thoroughly, but we didn’t get around to practicing it. It’s far too complicated for a beginner,” Gertrude said.
That was interesting. Cassian had acted like he didn’t know much about Faian magic, not that he had learned about it thoroughly.
“Should I come to the inn? I may be able to locate the stones, and it would be nice to see Cass again,” Gertrude said.
“Would you do that?” Jasmine asked. “We would be so grateful.”
“Certainly. How long can it wait? I have a few orders that I can’t leave just yet,” Gertrude said.
Jasmine scratched her head and grimaced at the floor. “Not much longer, to be honest. We’re running out of money.”
Gertrude nodded once. “I’d better get to work. I’ll probably be able to make it there within the next few days if I hurry.”
“Thank you, Gertrude,” Jasmine sighed. “Cassian will be so happy to see you.”
“Sure, sure,” Gertrude said, herding us to the door. “Goodbye.”
“Wait—” I said as she shut the door in our faces. I frowned at Jasmine. “I wasn’t done questioning her.”
“She seems innocent to me,” Jasmine said with a shrug. “Besides, we’ll see her again soon.”
I eyed the dark wood of her front door. Her willingness to help was a good sign, but I couldn’t be sure of her innocence yet. I wasn’t even sure about Willorunia yet.
Jasmine and I made our way to the legalers’ office. It was near the Force headquarters, since a lot of the bigger buildings were near the center of the city. I had been there a few times while working other cases, and I knew the legalers inside would recognize me.
“Good morning—oh. Officer Thorndrop,” the secretary, Penny, said as we walked in. She tapped a stack of papers against the desk. “What is it this time?”