Chapter 46 #2
The gates were busy, and people were coming and going because of the markets.
Chatter was all around us, but it was ordinary.
Bread prices had dropped thanks to a bumper wheat crop, taxes were on the rise, and the other princes were up to their regular theatrics.
Still, there was no word on either the missing princess or prince.
Elva brought her mule up beside me and flashed me a smile, her vibrant green and blue hair hidden beneath a scarf.
Leifur had used ashes from the fire this morning to darken his hair to an unassuming gray that was utterly convincing, so long as you didn't look at it for too long.
When it came our turn to enter the city gates, we didn’t need any of Sindri’s coins since none of them recognized me.
It stung a little that my people didn’t know their prince, but I pushed the feeling aside.
This was, after all, the gate used by peasants to come in and trade their goods at the market, or by travelers who preferred not to draw attention.
The grand gate to the east was reserved for armies, visiting dignitaries, the higher-ranked citizens of Tyndorf, and the royal family.
As we navigated the side roads, it was very clear we were in the less prosperous part of town.
The buildings were weathered and worn. Paint peeled off doors and windows while shutters hung from rusted hinges.
Nothing but dust adorned the window ledges.
Sindri grimaced and made a noise I could only assume was disgust.
“Stop it,” Elva hissed at him.
“It’s alright,” I said quietly. “This is why I stay in this part of town. To remind myself that not everyone lives in the same luxury as the area near the castle.”
“I thought it was so people would leave you alone,” Leifur said.
“That too.”
We continued, passing boarded-up shops and abandoned buildings. It had always been a mess down here, but in the time I’d been gone, things had gotten much worse. The people here were in desperate need, and I’d have to make sure my father and brother were aware, not that they’d care.
After a few turns down narrow streets, we arrived at Pirate’s Booty.
I paid the stable boy to tend to our horses.
Sindri left us to dash inside. He intended to sweet-talk the barmaid into free food, but I knew if Killian, the buxom redhead, was working, she'd have no time for his nonsense.
Inside, Sindri had already claimed a barstool, and Killian was polishing a glass behind the bar while the other server delivered drinks to the full tables.
“Hello, love,” I said, greeting my old friend.
“Glad to see the rumors are wrong.”
“What did they say?” I asked, leaning in as we joined Sindri at the bar. The scent of ale and roasting meat filled the air.
“That you’re dead.” She set down her glass and reached behind her for a key and tossed it to me. “I locked your room when you didn’t come back for a few days.”
“I’ll need the other suite too. For my friends.”
She looked at Leifur and Elva the way she’d look at a plate of food found under a table a week later. Sindri caught her attention longer, and she winked at him. His charm had been working on her.
“One, or two?” She asked, looking back at Elva.
“She’s bedding with me,” I replied, and Killian nodded, handing over the key to the second room.
“Room’s yours as long as you want it. And if you need anything else, let me know.”
“Dinner would be amazing,” Sindri said, flashing a charming smile at her.
“You got it, cutie,” she said, and turned to shout an order at the cook in the kitchen. “You want to squeeze in here or have it brought upstairs?”
“To the room, please,” I said. “And when things quiet down, could you have some hot water sent up?”
“You all look like you need it,” she chuckled.
I slipped her a coin and asked her to have someone hunt down Baldr. Then we gave our thanks and headed upstairs to the suites.
Sindri was thrilled with his accommodations.
He proclaimed the bed was one of the finest he’d had in years, and he went on about the luxuriously carved bedposts and silk curtains hanging on the large window.
Leifur sank into the enormous couch, his eyes wandering over the unusual decor, such as extra sturdy chairs, and many ruffled pillows.
Seeing how happy his husband was, I decided not to tell them they were in the newlywed suite.
Elva and I carried our bags to the end of the hall where my suite awaited.
I unlocked the door and motioned for her to go in first. Killian had told the truth.
Despite my being gone, everything was where I had left it months ago.
I reached out to touch the ivy leaves carved into my bedposts while Elva leaped into the bed, letting herself sink into the satin duvet stuffed with swan feathers.
I’d had the blanket custom-made for me, but it had never looked as good as it did now with Elva lying on it.
She sat up and smiled at me before unwrapping her hair and giving her head a long scratch.
“My head gets so itchy when I have to tie up my hair,” she said, her fingers tangling in the locks as she looked up at me with playful eyes.
I smirked and climbed into the bed, pausing above her. “Any other itches you have that I can help with?”
My siren fisted the shirt I was wearing and pulled me down to kiss her. “After dinner and a bath, I’ll take you up on that.”
The food arrived shortly, and the rabbit stew was among the best I’ve had in my life. Elva devoured three helpings, and Leifur, four, but Sindri just picked at his portion, complaining that he’d eaten too much stew on our travels. He insisted Leifur take him out to find something more appealing.
The hot water arrived before we finished eating, so we took turns cleaning ourselves off, and I took care of my bothersome facial hair. After I offered Sindri some nicer clothes from my closet to help him blend in, he set off with Leifur into the night, leaving Elva and me alone.
It would figure that just as Elva and I were taking care of that itch she had, someone knocked on my door. “Let me in, you lazy lout!” Baldr shouted as he banged on the door when I didn’t answer right away.
Elva kissed me and slipped her shirt back on. I groaned under my breath as I answered the door.
“Welcome home, brother,” Baldr said, slapping me on the shoulder before pulling me into a hug.
“And thank you to our beautiful little vixen for bringing him home,” he added, releasing me and moving toward Elva.
As smoothly as I’d ever seen, he cupped her cheek with one hand and slid the other around her waist to her ass, before moving in to kiss her.
My stomach clenched, but my little siren leaned into him and turned her face, letting him kiss her cheek before she winked at me.