Chapter Six The Apprentice
Aryn
A woman’s voice carried into the room before she did, bright and certain in a way that suggested she had already decided how the conversation would go.
I had met a few pushy middle aged women in my career, all thinking they knew best for the people around them.
It wasn’t that their hearts weren’t in the right place, but they really should learn to ask if their efforts were appreciated before they settled on saving their next lost cause.
In this case, it appeared that Meri was about to be the center of her attention.
“There you are," she said with a bright smile. She wore an apron over a colorful blouse and faded slacks. Her brown hair was a shade lighter than Meri’s and swept into a sort of bun that was a little lopsided with some flour coating a few hairs that were sticking out. “I wanted to introduce you to someone!”
I straightened slightly where I stood, shifting my attention from the woman to the young man at her side. He looked about my age, maybe a little younger, with a posture that suggested he was trying to appear more confident than he felt.
“This is Daniel," she continued, her tone warm and encouraging. “He’s going to be apprenticing with your father."
Daniel stepped forward and offered a hand to shake. “Nice to meet you."
“I’m not available," she said, her tone even and direct as she grabbed a long silver metal tube and started to jam it through the water line of the machine.
“This is just an introduction," the woman cheerily said, her smile holding even as her voice shifted slightly towards desperation.
“Mom, we both know what you’re up to. I’m perfectly happy being single. No offense Daniel," Meri replied, still focused on the machine.
“Non taken," Daniel slowly said as he lowered his arm.
Mrs. Bennet had an uncomfortable laugh, obviously trying to salvage the situation. “I’m so sorry Daniel, Meri’s just been a little over tired lately. Perhaps you can help her fix the coffee machine?”
“I would be happy to," Daniel offered.
“Mom," Meri said, gritting her teeth and closing her eyes.
“Hi. I’m Aryn Levich. I was assisting Meri," I interrupted, putting my hand out to Mrs. Bennet. “It’s nice to meet you."
Mrs. Bennet automatically took my hand in hers. “Helen Bennet. I’m so sorry Meri roped you in to help her. Guests are supposed to be enjoying themselves, not assisting us."
“I’m happy to help," I reTophered.
“Mom, he’s not helping. He’s just sort of… here," Meri supplied.
“Hey, I tried to read the manual," I defended myself. “It’s not my fault it’s written in gibberish."
“Manuals are perfectly straightforward," Daniel piped up.
“The pictures aren’t even the same as the machine," I pointed out, grabbing the manual and pointing at one of the offending diagrams.
“That’s because the instructions to unclogging the line is universal to all the machines the company has.
They just put the most popular version on the picture.
If you read the text, you could clearly see that," Daniel spouted, taking the manual from my hand. “Have you checked the valve to see that it’s fully open?”
“The valve isn’t the problem," Meri stated as she pulled the long metal tube out of the machine.
“You should let Daniel do the fixing. He’s very mechanically minded," Helen suggested. “And he reads!”
Obviously Helen had every intention of setting up her daughter with Daniel. However, she missed Meri’s wince. I cleared my throat. “What types of books do you like to read? Thrillers, westerns, maybe detective novels?”
“Oh, I don’t read fiction," Daniel said, his eyes flicking briefly toward me before returning to the manual in his hand. “Mostly history, biographies, and manuals. Manuals are central for doing my job but I also like to read them for pleasure."
“You read manuals for pleasure?” I asked in disbelief.
“It’s practical. You never know when you need to fix something. Have you tried cleaning the machine? Or unplugging it?” Daniel suggested.
“I’m plugging it back in right now," Meri said in a tight voice.
“Isn’t Daniel so smart?” Helen patted Daniel on the shoulder. “He’s very hardworking, and he’ll be around anyway, so it makes sense for you to—”
“I’m not interested," Meri replied abruptly.
“You haven’t even given him a chance," Helen cajoled.
“Mom." There was a warning note in Meri's voice.
Helen exhaled slowly, the smile still in place but thinner now. “We’ll talk about this later."
“That won’t change the answer."
“We’ll see." Helen turned a bright smile to me. “Lunch is being served if you would like me to help you find the dining room."
“I’m quite happy here," I told her, deciding to distract her. “What do you like to read, Mrs. Bennet?”
“Read? Mostly poetry and romance, I suppose. You can call me Helen," Helen told me. “We don’t stand on formality here."
“You shouldn’t read fiction. It’s not good for the mind," Daniel inserted unhelpfully into the conversation. “Fiction tends to exaggerate things."
“I find fiction to be entertaining. Sometimes I even learn something new," I said, keeping my tone even.
“It’s not accurate," he continued, as though that settled the point.
“It isn’t always meant to be," I said. “That’s why it’s called fiction."
Daniel snorted. “It’s irresponsible and a waste of paper. It’s misinformation leading people to delusions like thinking aliens and wormholes exist."
“The scientific theory behind wormholes is quite sound. And who is to say that aliens don’t exist? We haven’t explored the universe. We don’t know." I frowned, irritated by this shortsighted little man.
“I’m sure we don’t need to be arguing with our guests," Helen said lightly.
Behind us, the coffee machine let out a steady hum, and I glanced back to see a customer getting a cup of coffee that smelled and looked pretty good.
Meri was nowhere to be found.
“Mom, it’s getting on to lunch service and Jane needs you in the kitchen. Daniel, I believe Dad was looking for you. He’s in room two-twelve," Lucy mentioned as she approached the coffee machine, grabbing a tub of used cups and heading towards the doorway to bring them to the kitchen.
“Where did Meri? Oh, that girl. She’s stubborn," Helen sighed.
Daniel was already following Lucy out of the room, still holding onto the coffee machine manual as he went to find his employer Mr. Bennet.
“It was nice to meet you, Helen," I commented.
“Yes. Good to meet you. Do try the cinnamon rolls with your lunch. My daughter Jane is an excellent baker." She gave me a distracted smile and followed Daniel out of the room.
Grabbing a mug, I got a perfect cup of coffee for myself before heading to the lobby, in search of Meri.
She glanced up at me before going back to typing at the computer. I realized she was on the phone and leaned against the counter, waiting for her to finish the call.
“Can I help you?” Meri asked as she hung up the phone.
“I was hoping we could continue our conversation about books. What do you like best about A Compass of Kingdoms?” I questioned.
“I haven’t finished the book so I don’t know yet," Meri slowly said.
“No favorite character so far?” I persisted.
“Well, I don’t like Hanna. She’s impulsive and powerless. Maybe Ulless? He’s a dark horse," Meri decided.
I grinned. “Ulless is a contradiction. I think he was one of my favorites, besides Wolf."
“Wolf is simply there to carry the story forward. He’s a cardboard cutout of any of the heroes of medieval fantasy novels," Meri argued.
“True, the backstory of a spoiled prince turned rebel hero has been done a lot but I felt it was well carried out," I reTophered.
“I feel it’s more a Tolkien experience of a cast of characters headed towards the same goals rather than just one hero," Meri commented.
“I agree. But one doesn’t preclude the other," I pointed out.
Meri thought it over. “I suppose not."
“Hey, are you going to The Enchanted Quill convention this weekend? It’s supposed to have a lot of authors there. It might be fun," I casually mentioned.
Meri stiffened. “No."
“I’m going to be there. I have a few extra tickets if you want to go. Maybe bring a friend or two, or one of your sisters?” I studied her for a moment, trying to decide how far to push. “You might enjoy it."
“I can’t leave the inn," she said, her response immediate.
“For an afternoon?” I asked.
“It’s busy," she said, her attention suddenly captivated by the computer as she typed on the keyboard. “We don’t have the staff to spare."
I considered that, then glanced toward the hallway. “What do you normally do if someone is sick or wants a day off? Surely not all of you can work all the time. It’s unsustainable."
“Who works all the time?” Jane asked as she approached the lobby desk.
“Apparently Meri does," I replied.
“I don’t. I just can’t go to The Enchanted Quill convention this weekend," Meri tightly mentioned.
“ The Enchanted Quill convention? That sounds like something you would like, Meri," Jane stated, grabbing a pen from the cup on the desk. “Why don’t you ask your friends if they want to go? You're visiting them on the weekend."
“Is she now?” I murmured.
Meri went still for a fraction of a second, then set the computer mouse down on the counter with more care than necessary. “I’m needed elsewhere."
Jane blinked, clearly trying to follow the shift. “Right now?”
“Yes," Meri said, already stepping away from the machine. “There’s something I need to check."
She moved past me without hesitation, her path direct as she crossed the room and disappeared into the hallway.
I watched her go, then looked back at Jane. “That seemed abrupt."
“It probably felt that way," she said with a sigh as she looked down the hallway where Meri had disappeared.
“I didn’t mean to—” I started, then stopped, not entirely sure how to finish that sentence.
“You didn’t do anything wrong," she said. Jane shook her head slightly. “Meri just… processes things differently."
“In what way?” I frowned, a little confused.
Jane hesitated, as though choosing her words carefully. “Sometimes things can get a little overwhelming for Meri. She notices everything all at once. She’s also not used to being the center of attention. Meri isn’t always comfortable with new people and places."
I glanced toward the hallway again. “That doesn’t explain why she left."
“It does, a little," Jane said. “Too many things happening at once can be a lot."
I thought back over the last few minutes, the conversation, the interruption, the shift in tone. “I suppose I was pushing her a little. I was hoping she would consider going to the convention. She seemed fine before that."
“She was," Jane agreed. “And then she wasn’t."
I let that sit for a moment, then asked, “Does Meri always leave like that?”
“Sometimes," Jane said. “It’s easier for her to step away than to push through something she doesn’t want to deal with."
“Is that healthy?” I wondered, a little concerned by Meri’s abruptness.
“It’s her way of coping." Jane studied me for a moment, then added, “Just be kind to her."
I met her gaze. “I wasn’t unkind."
“I know," she said. “I’m just saying… Meri doesn’t always respond the way people expect."
I nodded once, accepting that. “I’ll keep that in mind."
Jane nodded before leaving, presumably heading back to the kitchen for lunch services which I could hear was underway from the amount of people’s voices coming from the dining room.
I remained where I was for a moment longer, my attention lingering on the hallway, wondering about the mysterious Meri Bennet.