Chapter 3
Uma refused to pity the males locked in a cell that, while spacious housing for several humans, was too small for the Ragoru triad who couldn’t even stand at their full height much less have much room to move about. Unfortunately, it was the best she could do for them. At least she saw to it that each had massive bowls filled with thick, meaty stew before locking up and heading out once the night watch arrived. That didn’t stop her feeling a prick to her conscience, however, when she returned to her tiny cupboard of an apartment.
She grimaced as she prepared for bed, acknowledging the fact that, as small as her apartment was, at least she wasn’t trapped inside of it. Truthfully, she only returned “home” to sleep at the end of the day after grabbing some meat skewers and breads from a street vendor. She would probably go mad if she was stuck in her apartment for longer than that.
Which was why she was stomping the snow off her feet so early in the morning as she made her way up to the mayor’s office to report to Guard Guild foreman for the citadel’s municipality. Renny Walsh supervised all the guardswoman stations within Old Wayfairer. There was little Uma could do to ease her conscience without Renny’s direct approval.
Cantankerous crone.
Uma’s lips twitched in amusement as she nodded in greeting the receptionist and headed down the narrow hall to Renny’s office, consciously aware of the fact that snow continued to melt from her boots and cloak.
“Good morning, Bia. Sorry about the mess!” she called over her shoulder in response to the receptionist’s curse following her. “Damn snow wouldn’t let up long enough to give us any kind of break for even a moment.”
“Don’t worry about it, Uma,” the other woman replied with a heavy sigh of exasperation. “This winter seems worse than others. The snow is a constant chore, and it’s not bound to get any better with Mother’s Night approaching. Try to enjoy your day out there!”
Although the other woman couldn’t see her face, Uma grimaced as she headed down the corridor. The snow predictably got heavier every year as Mother’s Night came around with the arrival of midwinter. Soon enough the entire citadel would be closed down for several days, with only a single person on hand and paid very well to live within the small bunk room in the guardswoman’s station. They would see to any prisoners being kept inside while the midwinter winds brought in thick blankets of snow and be available for warders assigned to the various neighborhoods in case of an emergency.
No one wanted the job as it was. The bunks were notoriously hard and uncomfortable, lacking even the most minimal comforts of home, and the station was drafty on the best of days. And that wasn’t even considering the fact that whoever was there would be responsible for taking care of the triad. Despite the allure of what the Ragoru represented, she wasn’t entirely sure if any of the guardswomen assigned to her station would willing to be trapped inside with three very irritable males for days on end.
She shook her head as she stepped into the foreman’s office. What a mess.
Renny glanced up from her work at her desk, her gray eyebrows arching. Wire thin but strong with lean muscle, Renny was still a force to be reckoned with since leaving her work as a guardswoman captain for the foreman’s desk. She even continued to keep her graying hair trimmed in the short, no-nonsense cut that she had always claimed was the most practical for her duties as a guardswoman. Uma wore her own hair in rows of tight braids gathered at the back of her head for similar reasons.
“Uma,” Renny greeted as she set her pen down. “To what do I owe the pleasure of you soaking my floor today?” She lifted a report and glanced down at it. “I would have assumed that you would already be at your station after your excitement last night.”
It seemed that the night guard had already submitted her report along with their own. They had certainly been surprisingly quick to do so at such an early hour of the morning. Her lips twisted with grim amusement.
“Nothing beyond my ability to handle,” she assured the foreman, but Renny shook her head.
“You know that is not what I mean. They need to be escorted out of the citadel’s territory, but with Mother’s Night coming up, I won’t have any of my guardswomen caught out in the worst storms of the season with them. Not to mention that it would be nearly impossible to find someone willing to put themselves in that situation when the males tend to have a strange biological reaction around that time. It’s going to be bad enough just finding anyone willing to be stuck in the same building with them. So my question is, what are we going to do about this triad?”
Biological reaction? Her confusion must have shown on her face because Renny barked a mocking laugh.
“You did not know, I take it?” Renny nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose you could say that they are biologically geared to go into rut during what would be seen as a denning time for their species during the worst of the winter weather. That is bound to make things...” she whirled her fingers through the air as she thought of the right words, “awkward. I would bet my bottom coin that half of their mates they acquire just by being in the right place at the right time during their rut.”
Hell. Awkward nothing. Awkard was putting it mildly. It wasn’t like the Ragoru wore clothing. If they went into rut, there would be hiding anything... and things were bound to get pretty tense in that tiny cell. Which reminded her...
Uma cleared her throat. “I didn’t realize that. That does tie into what I wanted to discuss, however. If we are going to have them as our... guests... for a few days still, perhaps we should discuss a humane way to deal with their presence.”
Renny gave her an arch look. “What do you mean?”
“Despite the complaints against them, much of what just comes off as outright jealousy on the part of some of the men around here—though we are investigating—the Ragoru have been cooperative.”
The foreman nodded. “The night shift would agree with you. Though none of the guardswomen on duty felt comfortable being within the station with them, they admitted that all three males, while dour, did not present any difficulties.”
Uma wasn’t surprised. It was pretty close to what she expected. The males were a surly bunch, but she hadn’t felt threatened at all in their company. “Which brings me to my point. We both know that the cells were not built for anyone bigger than the average human. To keep them locked in that small cell where they barely have room to turn around or lie down comfortably...”
Renny leaned back in her chair and nodded. “You raise a good point. What solution would you recommend?”
“Supervised and restricted freedom. They can leave their cells and even the guardswoman station without restriction as long as they are under direct supervision at all times with two guardswomen following at a distance to assist in case of an emergency when outside.”
A thoughtful look crossed the other woman’s face as she studied her. “You are not worried about push back from the locals?”
Uma shrugged. “Why would there be? We already have Ragoru populations within the citadel and nearby. And if any of the men from the tavern happen to come across the triad, a babysitter should be grounds enough to quell any anger.”
“That is fair,” Renny conceded. “The question is, who would volunteer to be that babysitter?” A tiny smile curled the corners of her mouth. “Are you volunteering, Uma?”
Uma could not quite hide her grimace, earning her a chuckle from the other woman. She really had not thought that far ahead; her focus had been entirely on getting Renny on board. “I didn’t really think about that particular detail,” she admitted. “I suppose I can’t think of any immediate objection, though it is bound to take me away from the station a lot. I would rather not have three restless males penned inside as much as possible.”
Renny nodded and set the reports aside. “I can reassign the night supervisor to assist you with overseeing the station whenever you are not there during the day.” She paused and gave Uma a meaningful look. “You do realize that you will be moving into the bunks immediately then, and staying until you escort the triad out of Old Wayfairer territory after Mother’s Night?”
Uma dipped her head in agreement. She wasn’t thrilled, but it made sense that she be the one to undertake it since it had been her idea. And if she were honest with herself, she would have to admit that she would feel better if she were the one overseeing everything personally.
“I will see to it,” she replied.
Renny gave her an approving nod before her eyes dropped back down to the paperwork in front of her, silently dismissing her. Taking the cue, Uma slipped out of the office and headed out with a pert nod to Bia in passing as she stepped outside onto the street. Drawing in a deep breath of frigid air, she blinked away the snow quickly gathering on her lashes and turned toward the guardswoman station in the lower district.
Time to check in on the Ragoru and see exactly what they had been up to.