The wheels in my head were turning before I'd even gotten to my feet. The group with the wagons was bandits, that much was clear. That would mean the riders were the villagers from whom the bandits had stolen whatever was in their carts. I was racing toward the town where the chase would ultimately lead in... two minutes? I let out a panicked squeak and ran faster.
If I could get the guards to close the gates with enough time for the wagons to turn, the bandits would be forced to scatter. The horses would either stop at the gate or follow the bandits, but since wagons can't ride through muddy fields, the bandits would be forced to stop long enough for the watchmen to take hold of the situation.
My stomach dropped. The bandits probably had weapons. If they stopped, would there be more danger for the villagers or the guards? Did they have hostages?
I had to think of another way.
My feet hit a patch of mud and I slipped, falling head over heels to the ground near the road, the cold muck getting everywhere. At the same time, the chase bounded past me and an object came careening in my direction. A shout tore at my throat as I threw myself backward deeper into the slush, but someone grabbed me beneath the arms and swept me off the ground just as the object—a wheel as tall as my hip—whirred past and crashed into the mud with a loud splash.
Then I was dragging behind a horse as the rider grappled for a sturdier grip under my arms. We slowed to a near stop and he let me go. I dropped to the ground with a huff, then whirled on him, but he quickly gave a curt nod and nudged his horse again. A breath of desperation rose and I stumbled forward and caught his arm.
"Close the gate!" I jerked my head toward the town. "Close the gate or they'll trample the townspeople, and then find cover as fast as you can! Please!"
I could see the look he was giving me even through the dusty scarf covering his face. Me, a random crazy girl covered in mud, giving him orders.
I pushed him away. "Just trust me!"
After a second, he rode off, but I didn't have time to watch where. I ran back toward the tree, harder and slower than I would have liked with a layered dress heavy with muck, but somehow I made it to my lunch bag and skidded to my knees. I snatched it up and pulled it open, shoving my muddy hand inside and rummaging around until I found purchase, then I snatched the object out and swiveled back, running again toward the chase. The town gates were closing. The bandits were approaching fast.
Once I knew I was close enough to the commotion, I threw the object with all my strength, then cupped my hands near my mouth and screamed, "Get away from the road, quick!"
A few might have heard me, but not in time for them to register what I said before I clamped my eyes shut and covered my face, my skirts slapping against my legs as I stopped. Surely enough, two seconds later a loud explosion sounded and I could see the blinding white light through my hands as the object I'd thrown hit the ground. Shouts and crashes followed as the bandits lost control of their horses, the villagers hitting the ground and running. It was chaos.
But the townspeople were safe.
I uncovered my eyes and jetted for the commotion. I didn't look at the eight-foot flames covering the road in front of the carts, but the light threatened to blind me anyway. The heat licked my arms as I passed it even though I was a good distance away from the fire, then I reached the gates, breathless and partially giddy, and noticed a guard cowering from the flames.
"Mister! Guard!" I waved my arms. "You cursed halfwit!" That got his attention. "We need sand, quick! It's the only thing that'll quell the flame!"
He scowled at my name-calling, hesitated, then ran inside the door to the gate. Meanwhile, the bright light from the flame cast shadows even in the midday sun and a loud fwoom accompanied them. Someone was cursing, and I realized a fight had broken out between the bandits and the villagers.
"Don't put water on the fire!" I was running again, now toward the stopped wagons and panicked yells. "Don't water the flames!"
I skidded to a stop before I reached the fight and saw the villagers holding whatever weapons they had with them—swords, pitchforks, whips—out at the bandits, who had formed a small circle after the villagers corralled them.
My breath caught. It had worked.
The fire made a loud snap and I remembered the urgency of the situation.
I swiveled around to search for sand, but before I could do anything, the guard returned with several others, each holding a sack full of sand. I motioned to the fire, my heart thudding heavily in my chest as I attempted to calm down.
The sand kept coming, though. I didn't know where or why they kept a dozen sacks of sand handy, but I was thankful for it.
Before the fire had even a chance to leave the road, it had been drowned and extinguished, leaving only a pile of pale sand in its place. The men who had carried the sacks celebrated as they attempted to regain their breath and the watchmen arrived from the post at the front of town to take the bandits. I didn't allow myself to breathe until I had convinced everyone to get away from the remnants of the fire, though, and back into town.
And by then, everything was a complicated mess. A crowd had formed near the gate to see the commotion, but the watchmen somehow managed to disperse them. They had a time with it, too, since the flames had been so bright and loud and had caught quite a bit of attention from people passing by.
At some point, Tremie had come by and was fussing over how terrible I looked. I had to agree with her as she brought me back to the shop and in front of a mirror. My curly black hair had taken on a haze of gray dust between the mats of mud and tangle, and dried soil and smudged makeup caked my skin and made it itchy. The multiple layers of my sopping wet clothing clung to my skin with cold desperation and Tremie wasted no time in declaring my dress irretrievable. She insisted on replacing everything I was wearing without charge on top of drawing me a bath to wash up in. She would simply have it no other way, so it's not exactly like I had much of a choice in the matter. I didn't argue and let her pick what type of perfume she wanted the bath to smell like.
Not quite three hours later, everything had been cleaned up. The road had been cleaned, the smoke from the fire dispersed, Tremie had recycled my dress for rags and aprons, and the town went back to its normal ways with the stories over the dinner table as the only reminder of the day's events. So without further disturbance, Tremie let me retrieve my knapsack from the field and promised me a "big surprise" for when I got back. I was simply brimming with excitement at the thought of it. Note the sarcasm.
When I approached the shop, Tremie was waiting at the front of it with a girl standing beside her. Both of them rocked on their heels eagerly. When they noticed me, Tremie was the first to react with a jump and a giggle.
"Veia! Surprise! Allow me to introduce you to Lefeli, my lovely assistant and wonderful friend."
The girl, maybe a few years younger than I was, leapt forward into a handshake and had the most excited smile on her face. "Veia! I've heard so much about you! I'm so glad we've finally had the chance to meet after all this time!"
"After all this time?" I looked at Tremie.
"I take care of keeping the shop tidy and deal with customer service when Tremie's away," the girl continued. "Tremie put me in charge of getting you comfy here and I've been just dying to meet you!"
They were exactly alike. Lefeli was Tremie but twenty years younger, and by some dark magic she wasn't Tremie's daughter. They had different face shapes, Tremie's round and Lefeli's petite, Lefeli with wide eyes and pale brown hair, Tremie's powdered features soft but joyfully crisp, a single beauty mark under her left eye.
Lefeli took my hand and dragged me inside the shop and through to the upstairs apartment, where a small table sat in the middle of the room. A decorative tablecloth covered the wood and supported a delicate but incredibly elegant tea set. Small problem, though. I did not like tea.
Just as Lefeli sat me down in one of the three chairs and took hold of the ceramic teapot, there was a loud knock on the door to the shop downstairs. Tremie jumped up with an "I'll get it!" and hiked her skirts as she rushed down the stairs. Lefeli and I paused to listen to the bell on the door as it opened, then a very quiet interaction ensued. I had no way of knowing what was going on. A second later, Tremie audibly squealed. "Veia, dear, someone's here to see you!"
My stomach dropped. Who would want to see me? Was it because of the book? It couldn't be. No one could have traced that back to me in that crowd. Judging by Tremie's squeal, though, it could be a boy, but there's no reason why anyone would know I'm here, male or female.
My chest tightened as I pushed through the curtains to the main shop and wound through the dresses to the doorway as Tremie brushed past me with an indiscreet giggle.
There in the entrance stood a figure clad in worn, dusty clothes with a light gray scarf covering his face and a hood over his head. He stood rigidly and nodded toward me.
I had seen that nod before from this man, if I remembered correctly, this morning when he was on his horse after pulling me from the mud. This man was the one who had closed the town gate. This man had saved me. But why was he here now? How did he even know who I was? I took a wary step backward and folded my hands in front of me.
"Hello, chickadee," he said, his voice low but surprisingly youthful, an underlying sound I didn't recognize under his breath. "I have a few questions I think you could answer."
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