Enchantingly Different

Prologue 2

“Hurry up you spineless unworthy…”

The small town comes into view and the man stops at the broken sign. “Tarangeville, eh?”

“This is where the farmer said he saw them last,” the rider next to him says, pushing the visor of his helmet up so he can look at his leader.

“Have the men ask around. Someone must have seen which way they went from here,” he grunts, biting into a dirty green apple. “I’m going to get a drink.”

The rider nods in response, slams his visor shut, and rides back to the line of men stumbling up the slick, muddy path to join them.

The man walks into the small, dark inn and sits at the bar before tapping it with the hilt of his sword, signaling for a drink. Within seconds there’s a pint of foaming ale in front of him, which he drinks back greedily, suds of it dripping down his goatee.

He eyes the other patrons with suspicion, eyes coming to rest on an elderly gentleman sitting at the fire. Probably couldn’t tell me what he ate for breakfast, he thinks to himself.

A bang at the door announces the presence of one of the men. Behind him another man is dragging a young girl in by her hair.

“Commander, I think she knows something, but she’s not being very forthcoming about it,” he says, throwing the girl forward. She trips on a tear in the hem of her gown and falls to the floor in a heap.

“Tell me what you know and I will give you a coin so you may eat heartily tonight,” he grunts as he takes another drag on his ale, not even looking at her.

“That depends on the state of the coinage, sir.”

He stops at that, putting down his mug and climbing from his stool. He reaches in his pocket and pulls out a bronze coin, which he flicks into the dust before her on the floor.

“Will that buy your tongue well enough?”

She spits at the coin and grins up at the man. “Not when my silence was bought for ten times that, SIR.”

What is Robert playing at, he thinks to himself. Who pays a maid a silver for silence? Preposterous! He reaches into his pocket and feels around for a silver coin. It matters not as the King will pay him back one hundred fold for bringing Robert and Juliette back alive.

He throws it down alongside the bronze. Dust rises around it and there is an audible clink as it hits the other coin.

“There, tell me what you know you wench. You better not disappoint me or I’ll be taking my money back!”

She laughs and slides the coins in between her breasts with a sly smile, before stumbling to her feet. Even though she struggles, none of the men move to help her.

“The pair you seek have sought north of our humble town just a few hours ago. My guess would be that they’re headed for Trouingaard,” she says with relish. “If they make it there.”

“What would two royals be wanting in Trouingaard?”

“One royal surely, but not two,” she replies, twisting her hair around her finger and smiling to reveal her half rotten teeth. “I know one to be Robert Stonebridge, but the other is an outcast. She’s thought to be a witch. Their reasoning for traveling that way is unknown to me.”

“You are sure of this? He wasn’t with Princess Juliette?”

“No, sir, she was most certainly not Juliette. Word travels fast in these parts. I believe my sources to be true, but if you don’t like the information…”

“Anything else?”

“No,” she says with a scowl.

He waves a hand and the men take the young maid away again, throwing her out of the door to the inn. He strokes at his goatee as he thinks, turning the mug around in circles in his other hand. Is it true? Is Robert fraternizing with magical folk? Surely not… but either way, he is heading into dangerous territory and must be stopped before-

“Sir, shall I ready the men to ride north?”

“Yes, Hector, we must leave immediately. We’re gaining on them.”