Elements of Deceit

Old Friends

Kamau

Though there had been no mention in the note that a witch had been selected, Kamau felt an urgency burning in the pit of his belly. He now had a theory on how to solve the issue and accomplish the mission, and he was waiting on the edge of the world to begin the journey. And with that urgency, the desire to see her intensified.

Kamau knew it was quite possible that he would not run into her on this trip down. He had no idea what her schedule was like, or where she even came from. She could pass through like he did, and it was only serendipity that had allowed them to meet up as often as they had.

Still, he found himself sitting in the bar, watching the nightly routine move around him, twirling his half full glass of liquor as he waited. Kamau glanced down at his glass for a moment, then looked up in time to see her walking across the wood floor, her hips swaying and boots nearly silent on the wooden floor.

Her long leather jacket was dusty from the road and her black hair was braided down her back tonight, though she took off her hat and twirled it in her hands as she leaned on the bar and ordered her drink. Kamau forced himself to remain sitting, stretching his body into a forced casualness as his eyes searched for a hint of where she stored her money. A shift of the fingers and she was sliding payment over the wooden bar, before picking up her drink.

Kamau had not realized before then, how much he had fallen for the woman, enraptured as he was with every subtle movement and expression she had. When she turned to glance at the bar as she raised her drink to her lips, their eyes met. His breath hitched, then his heart stuttered at the flicker of amusement on her lips.

There was surprise in her expression.

But she finished her mouthful and walked across the expanse between them, pausing at the empty chair across from him. Before she could ask, he pushed the chair away from the table and toward her with his foot, feigning casualness as he sat up a little straighter.

"And here I thought I had figured you out." Her voice was a velvet murmur, but she grinned as she sat, dark eyes searching his face for something. "At least your schedule, anyway."

"Change in plans." Kamau murmured, lifting his glass toward hers.

She tapped the rim of her glass against his, then mimicked his movement of lowering the cup to the table before taking a sip. "A pleasant surprise. Have you been here long? "

"A couple days." Kamau felt his own drink slide over his tongue, watching her place her hat on the table beside them. "And I don't know how long I'm going to be gone this time... "

She hid her expressions well, though he could swear he saw a downturn of those lips of hers and a smidgen of worry in her expression before she looked down to the glass sitting in front of her on the table. "How long are you here for?"

Her voice was a whisper, and there was a tremor of emotion in it, though he could not identify it.

Kamau sighed softly. "I don't know."

"Have things changed?" She glanced up to him, tilting her head to the side and offering him a flirtatious smile. "We still have tonight like we have in the past?"

Kamau wanted to say no. He wanted to tell her everything and profess that when it was over, if he survived, that. . .

He did not know what. She was not a woman who would give up her life and follow him back home. He could not imagine her adopting the luxurious life of a high court official, or either of them retiring to whatever estate he would be rewarded with upon his retirement.