Among the Cursed and Divine by Nicole Bailey

Author:Nicole Bailey [Bailey, Nicole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nicole Bailey Publishing LLC

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

WINE SO SWEET

Enkidu ducked his head to enter the house then paused. “Do you mind if Urmah joins us as well?”

The cub waited at the door, watching Enkidu but not moving forward without his permission. Gilgamesh was right. Urmah was growing into a proper young lion. He’d more than doubled in size, his head reaching Enkidu’s knee.

The goddess smiled down at the creature and knelt before him. “Urmah, is it?” She offered a hand and Urmah pressed his head into it, twisting so her fingers ran down his neck. He had no fear of humans or human-like beings. That would cause him trouble in the future if Enkidu didn’t survive to see after his welfare and Gilgamesh didn’t keep him.

A smile parted the goddess’ lips. Something about it made her seem older, a woman who’d faced hundreds of years rather than the two decades her appearance suggested.

She rose and gestured for them to enter.

Urmah loped alongside Enkidu then accepted a bone the woman offered him as Gilgamesh crouched to enter. The hut was small and rough-hewn. A shelf across the back wall held hundreds of crocks in different sizes. Half a dozen large pots sat stacked in a corner. Above them, twirling like temple dancers, dried herbs tangled together.

“Have a seat, Enkidu and Gilgamesh.” The woman watched them like a hawk. Whether it was with the bird’s curiosity or its predatory focus, he was unsure. His mouth went dry. The last thing Enkidu desired was to anger another god in their territory. He didn’t wish to interact with the divine again at all. Yet, he’d committed to this journey.

He accepted a chair that shoved his knees up towards his chest. Gilgamesh frowned before he sat as well. He spread his legs so they covered the furniture making it seem like he floated in the air rather than sitting on something.

The woman crossed her arms and appraised them both before speaking. “I’m Siduri.”

“I thought you said the person we sought wasn’t here?” Enkidu asked.

Gilgamesh huffed and crossed his arms to match. This wouldn’t help his faith in others, though Enkidu had begun to believe that might be a lost cause.

“That’s true.” She turned to lift her face to a high, thin window that allowed a trickle of sunlight to spill in alongside the briny wind. “You asked for the Alewife. She’s been gone for a century.” Shifting back to them, her almond-round eyes glistened. “I’m called the Wine Maker now.”

“A wine maker who makes beer?” Gilgamesh nodded to the dried grains she’d gathered.

Siduri stared at the kernels. Dark hair tangled in the breeze, but she didn’t move. Stillness filled the space. Urmah’s bone clattered over the wood wall as he gnawed at it. Gilgamesh readjusted, the chair groaning with his movement.

Grabbing a basket, Siduri then plopped it into Gilgamesh’s lap before he could raise his hands to block it. “Yes, that’s true. And if you want to ask me questions, you’ll make yourselves useful while I talk.”

Gilgamesh wrapped thick fingers around the basket’s straps and frowned down at the contents.

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