Eight Kings (The King's Watch Book 6) by Mark Hayden

Author:Mark Hayden [Hayden, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Tags: urban fantasy
Publisher: Paw Press
Published: 2019-12-04T22:00:00+00:00

Part Four — Agreement

Chapter 22 — Putting a seal on the Day

There were already two people waiting at the pier when I got down – Eseld and Cador. Eseld fished a tin out of her jodhpurs and offered me a hand-rolled cigarette. It seemed churlish to refuse. I thanked her and said nothing. After all, I was waiting for Mina. It would have been rude to intrude.

‘What’s she like?’ said Eseld.

‘I only saw her for a minute. Less.’

‘Dad showed us a picture. She’s the spit of her mother if the portrait is anything to go by, but you haven’t seen it, have you? I told Dad to take it down when he started dating Kerenza.’

Another contradiction from Eseld. I’d expected to resent her stepmother-to-be, not be solicitous of her feelings. ‘Don’t you remember Medbh or Aisling?’

‘I was still at Glastonbury when Aisling died. I remember her having a little ginger kid that I met once.’

‘Well, she’s still ginger. Does that help?’ Eseld thought that was much funnier than it deserved. ‘She’s got an Irish accent. A strong one.’

Cador had moved as far away from the smokers as he could while remaining in earshot. ‘That’ll be the Fae,’ he said.

‘What?’

Eseld looked across the river. ‘Here they come.’

The Ferrymistress had the tide with her and I’m sure she opened the throttle further than normal. The ferry hit the fenders with a big bump that nearly threw her daughter overboard. Ethan led the party off the boat and down the pier. Except Scout, who was already letting me know how glad he was to be back.

I stepped away from the pier to give them some room, and Mina dodged round the back.

‘Careful,’ she said when I hugged her. ‘You don’t want to detonate that egg.’ We hugged some more.

She looked at the Mowbrays, who were moving slowly across the dock towards the old cottage. ‘You first,’ she said. ‘I’m saving my story until Saffron is with us … What are you doing?’

I had my phone out. ‘Ordering coffee to be served in the summerhouse.’

‘You are not! You can order it to be served in the King’s Watch suite. Some of us need to get changed.’

Lena brought the coffee herself. She was now on to her fifth dirndl, a plum number, and she amazed us all by collapsing on to the sofa. She closed her eyes for a second, then realised that she was in Mina’s place. She held out her hand to Saffron and said, ‘Pull me up. I may not stand on my own again.’

Saffron jumped to it, and Lena reverted to hostess mode long enough to pour four coffees. She took one and sat on a spare chair. ‘How is Ethan?’ she said.

‘How long have you got?’ said Mina.

‘Alles ist gut. Nothing is happening for an hour. For now, they need to be alone.’

Mina looked at me. I shrugged and picked up a sausage roll. Coming up here was either the wisest or most stupid thing Lena had done since we arrived.

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