The Annex

Chapter 25

Fortunately, my journey into Windfall had been uneventful. As I was riding closer to the city, I had decided to hide all of my arrows. As I had passed a small waterfall, I hid the Rivellian fletched arrows behind the cascade of water. I had hidden any evidence of Rivell and as I entered the city now, I was grateful I had.

"What brings you into the city," a soldier barked at me as I dismounted the horse.

"I'm visiting family, sir," I answered.

"Where are you coming from," he barked again.

"The village of Loale," I said, grateful that I had brushed up on some Windfallian geography. I crossed my fingers hoping that the soldier himself wasn't from Loale. If he was, I was screwed.

"My wife, and I are actually from Gael, just outside of Loale," a low voice said from behind.

"Huh, I was going to say, I know everyone in Loale," the soldier said gruffly. I turned to look over my shoulder and saw the Commander standing next to me.

"I told you to wait for me, love," he said, flashing me a warning to keep my mouth shut.

"Entrance granted," the soldier nodded his head motioning for us to come inside. The Commander took my hand in his and he took the reins of both of the horses. I wasn't fooled by his actions. I knew the reason he was holding my hand was so I couldn't run as soon as we were away from the guards.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing here alone," the Commander growled as he pulled me into an alley.

"Atlas said I wasn't special enough to make a difference. But guess what, just because I don't have magical powers," I waved my fingers at him. "Doesn't mean I can't be of use."

"I agree. You are far more capable than anyone understands. But going rogue is the exact opposite of what we need right now," the Commander said.

"I don't care what you say, I'm not going back," I blurted out before I had a chance to process what the Commander had said. "Wait, you're not going to make me go back?"

"Unlike Atlas, I don't underestimate you," the Commander said.

"How'd you find me," I asked as the Commander started walking away.

"Val's horseshoes have patterns so I can track him if he is taken." My eyes widened and I was filled with awe.

"That is so brilliant," I murmured. "So you're really not going to make me go back? You're going to let me help?" The Commander ignored me and continued walking through the streets. "I'm going to take that as a yes." I had to scurry a few extra steps to match the Commander's stride. After depositing the horses at a stable, our journey finally brought us to a small shop, nestled between a bakery and a butcher.

Above the door, a small sign held the hours of operation, and the label of shoe store. How creative, I thought. When we entered, a little old man sitting behind the counter with a half finished shoe in hand nodded toward the back of the store.

"Hello, Commander," he said. "George has been waiting." The Commander nodded in acknowledgement before continuing to the back of the shop. I followed after him and we were met with a young woman.

"Finnegan," she grinned and threw her arms around him. When she pulled away, she pointed a finger at me. "Who is this?"

"George, Catarina. Catarina, George," the Commander made brief introductions before turning back to George, effectively cutting me out of the conversation. "Do you have what we need?"

"Yes, darling," she beamed up at him, batting her lashes. Her forwardness didn't sit well with me and it took all that I could to not sneer at her obvious flirtation. She took out two shoeboxes and handed it to the Commander. He lifted the lid of one box and inspected the goods. I stood on my tiptoes and tried to peer into the box, but he was too tall, and my vantage point wasn't great. I crossed my arms as I felt like a child, being dragged along on errands.