Out From the Shadows

Chapter 8

At the restaurant, Almarie orders soupe de poisson with rouille while I order my usual, blanquette de veau. This is my favorite French restaurant, all because my mother loved it here. It's strange to think that Almarie has never tried French food since I grew up eating eat almost every week. I have to bite my tongue when I almost vocalize this to her.

I carefully watch her tentatively take her first bite. She playfully frowns for a second, but then nods her head. She likes it. I grin and begin to eat my own stew. We joyfully eat in silence, sometimes looking up to check on each other. When my bowl is almost empty, I put down my silverware and decide to shatter the silence.

"What do I need to do?" I ask.

She looks up confused for a second, then catches my meaning.

"Oh. Well... One thing you can do is finish answering my question from earlier. How do I have anything to do with your mother's death?"

It does not throw me off as much as I thought it would.

"Father has been pushing me to marry. He would force me to accompany him on outings where business associates brought along their daughters. I would chat with them, trying to get to know them so father would be pleased. But no girl peaked my interest. After a while, father considered me incompetent, almost disowning me. "

I pause to get my thoughts arranged.

" I was downtown with father a couple days ago. We were in a cake shop, ordering a cake for Josephine's up coming birthday. A girl strode in and walked right up to the counter, brushing past father rudely. To anyone else, it would have looked like an accident, but I caught the flash of a hand entering his pocket then retreating a second later. She asked for the price of a cake displayed on the counter then exited once hearing that it was overly priced. She was breathtakingly beautiful, and obviously smart because she got away with pickpocketing. Once the cake was ordered and paid for, I quickly asked the owner who the girl was and where she lived. You can guess what he told me."

Almarie looks intrigued, having already registered that I was talking about her.

"So how did you track me down so fast? When I got home, papa demanded I pack my things and wait for your arrival." She leans forward and rests her clasped hands on the table.

"I probably arrived home before you were even half way to yours. I scrawled a letter to your family and sent one of my personal messengers to deliver it. Your parents probably received it within thirty minutes of your coming home."

She seems tense when I mentioned her family. From what she told me last night, she has nice, loving parents, but the way she sneers her last sentence, one would think she holds a grudge against them. I understand since I have a grudge against my father too.

"I have another question for you. How much?"

It's my turn to be confused. How much? How much what?

"How much did you give them?" She isn't playing around anymore.

"Almarie, I don't think you really want the answer," I say. Angering her is not on my to-do list today.

"You're right, I don't want to know. I have to know. How much?" She says through gritted teeth. No matter what I tell her now, she will hate me.

"Fifteen gold and eight silver." I flatly respond. I wait for her to react, either exploding into a yelling fit or dash out of the restaurant. I'm wrong on both accounts because she sits as still as death itself.

"Alrighty then, if your done eating, can we go?" She asks this in a tone that makes me think she actually cares about what I want to do. Maybe she really does, but I doubt it. I know her well enough to notice that she is holding back her anger.

"Yeah, I'm done. Let me pay then we can do what ever you want to do." I get out of my seat silently and dig in my pocket for sixteen gold pieces. She watches me lay the coins on the table and her eyes move to each coin, counting them. I tap her on the shoulder to break her from her trance and she loops her arm in my waiting one. I have the uneasy feeling about the rest of the day. Will she stay this way or will her mood flip completely?

We walk out from the restaurant, leaving behind the silence of the restaurant and welcoming the noise of the town. The sun is at its apex and so is the population count. It's the best time of the day for families to take long strolls and stores get the best business.

The beauty of my surroundings is by far beat by Almarie. She gawks at everything, taking in all the movement of the crowds. Her face is lit up like a kid receiving a gift, but it seems like she is trying to hide her amusement.

I can't look away from her and want to keep the look on her face plastered there all day. By any means necessary.