Bound to Fall (Villains and Virtues) by A. K. Caggiano

Author:A. K. Caggiano [Caggiano, A. K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-09-05T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

FIBS AND LONGING IN THE DEW DROP INN

G aspard Longfury was on his third ale and his fifth story, and each was progressively frothier. His latest tale was being told directly to their table, and Celeste watched Reeve attempt to hide behind the mug of milk he’d requested over ale, though it was impossible with shoulders so broad.

Rosiness bloomed across the holy knight’s cheeks and all the way down his neck when the bard’s account of a tense meeting between an elven smuggler and a high priest came to its inevitable conclusion: Gaspard made peace between all three and then made love to them both at once. Celeste, Ima’riel, and Kori broke into laughter, Reeve turned an adorable shade of scarlet, and Halfrida, who caught the tail end and had little Willow trailing behind her, threatened cutting the bard’s tongue out with her cleaver. It seemed her objection to coarseness did not extend to violence.

The innkeeper had worked wonders with the tough meat, and it seemed the whole village had piled into the Dew Drop Inn for a dinner of shredded boar in a blueberry sauce over roasted yams and carrots. When Celeste and Reeve arrived later in the evening, the tavern was buzzing, and Fitz, already tipsy along with the other hunters, immediately pointed them out and requested the assembled cheer for their assistance in taking down the main course. Celeste was quick to pat Reeve’s arm and whisper that it was all him, hoping the attention would be off of them quickly. Relief came when Ima’riel had waved the two over to join her and Kori at a somewhat secluded table pushed up against the stairwell.

When Gaspard recovered from Halfrida’s threat, he moved on to another table, strumming his lute and murmuring out questionably salacious lyrics about a group of ex-corsairs who had traveled to the Kvesari Wood in search of a phoenix. While finishing up their dinner, Celeste asked after the greenhouse, and Ima’riel detailed her plans, excited that she had already managed to sprout some chives and potdemiel fruits which apparently grew underground.

“She’s exhausting herself between that and worrying about the sweetbriars,” mumbled Kori over the edge of her stein.

Ima’riel’s light eyes would have rolled, Celeste thought, if the elf ever allowed herself to do such a thing. Instead, they just looked deeply into a speckled stone she brought out of an unseen pocket. “If my calculations are correct, only eight more sunrises until they bloom.”

“They bloom with the dawn?” asked Reeve. It had taken him some time to recover from the bawdy tales, but he was still pink along his collar. Celeste wondered how far down the blush went.

“Yes, it’s the elven cleansing magic of shaking off winter and welcoming spring, and it occurs on the day when the sun and moons share equal time in the sky, so the whole village will stay up the entire night to welcome the sunrise.”

Kori placed down her mug, hands falling beneath the table to her lap.

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