Bread and Burglary by Shanna Swendson

Author:Shanna Swendson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Shanna Swendson

Chapter 12

Lucina watched in horror as the villagers rushed toward the creatures. She felt like she’d betrayed the creatures, even though she hadn’t been the one to promise them anything. Still, she’d been the one to discover them, so she felt responsible for protecting them. She ran to stand in front of them as a shield, hoping the villagers retained enough sense not to trample their baker.

“Wait! Don’t!” she shouted.

It didn’t look like the villagers were going to listen to her, and she braced herself for the onslaught, but the bonfire suddenly blazed higher, flames shooting up to the sky with a roar. That distracted the villagers, and while they were turning to look at the fire, Wyn, Bryn, and Nico came to join her, forming a human barricade between the villagers and the creatures. Bryn’s triumphant grin told Lucina that he’d made the fire flare up—and that was even what he’d meant to do.

“Hear them out!” Wyn said, authority ringing in her voice. Lucina wasn’t sure if she was using magic or if it was purely the force of her personality, but she didn’t see how anyone could ignore the healer. “They only stole from us because we all forgot the old ways and the agreement that stood between us and them. Lucina was the only one who remembered we’re supposed to put out offerings for them. They’re returning what they stole now. They came to play music for us as a gesture of peace. If you harm them, you’ll bring great misfortune upon us all.”

That was enough to make the people pause and think. With the pause, the initial surge of emotion faded, and the villagers’ hostility ebbed, becoming curiosity mixed with skepticism. They stared at the creatures, squinting and frowning, like they were trying to bring them into sharper focus. “They’re real?” the miller’s wife asked, edging closer. “I know my mother always put out an offering, but I thought it was superstition.”

“My dad put out cream,” Mair said, nodding. “But I’ve never seen them before.”

“It’s midsummer, one of the few nights when nonmagical people can see them,” Bryn said. “They came to show themselves so you’d know who the thieves were.”

One of the creatures made its way between the people who guarded them and stood facing the villagers, who backed away. “We meant no harm and took mostly what we needed, aside from a few pretty things,” it said. It held out a hand from which fine chains dangled. “We want to return these things.”

Hana stepped forward, knelt, and took the necklaces from the creature, then stood and turned to face the villagers. “Who do these belong to?” she asked. She held them up so that the fire cast light on them. “This one is mine.” She slipped that one around her wrist, then said, “I believe this one belongs to you,” and carried it over to the miller’s wife. She went around the group, returning the jewelry, before clasping her own necklace around her neck.

“If

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