“Hey, you can’t tie up here,” a rude and officious voice shouted as a portly man stiffly walked in our direction. His face was red.
Captain tossed our few things after us on to the dock as he shouted back, “I’m on my way, sir. Sorry to use your dock without asking.”
While it sounded friendly, there was a sharpness to his tone. He also never slowed in his tasks or looked up while he answered. Once our things were on the dock, Captain slipped the single line holding his boat to it, and he pushed off. As he did, he swept the rudder and used the gentle breeze and tide to push him farther out into the bay and the slight wind partially turned the boat as it moved it away.
The man on the dock reached us and shouted at Captain, “Hey, get your ass back here and pay me dockage fees.”
Captain cupped his ear with his hand and shouted back, “You have a pain in your back? Why are you telling me that? I don’t even know you.”
“I didn’t say my back hurt, I said come back and pay me.” He turned to Damon. “Do you know him?”
“We just hitched a ride on a ferry from across the bay.”
“Then you owe me a day’s dockage fees.” The man moved closer to Damon, hands on hips, fists balled, face redder.
Elizabeth said in a calm fashion, “If you have a problem with that boat, take it up with the owner.”
“I’m saying I’m taking it up with you,” he shouted from less than a step away. “They say I’m the best fighter on the waterfront, so either pay up or get ready to face me.”
She smiled sweetly and innocently in the way she did before she gave someone a verbal sucker punch. “Wonderful. That is very nice of you to introduce yourself. I always say you should know your customers. Let me introduce Damon, the champion swordsman of the entire kingdoms of Dire, Kaon, and Kondor.”
The man hesitated.
She continued, leaning closer as if sharing confidential information with him, “Don’t you worry about his temper, sir. It isn’t nearly as bad as they say.” She turned to me with a wink he couldn’t see. “Damon, please, keep your sword sheathed for a change and do not kill this man. We’ve been kicked out of too many cities because you can’t control yourself and left bodies lying around.”
I wondered what the proper response would be but didn’t need it as the man turned and stalked down the dock, looking over his shoulder a few times to make sure we were not in pursuit. I belted my sword in place, tossed my pack over my shoulder, and watched Elizabeth do much the same.
At the end of the dock, we started walking up the long slope to where the larger, better-maintained buildings seemed to be located. As we reached a crossroad, a wagon pulled alongside. The driver called to us with an inviting smile that showed too many white teeth, “Ride?”
I started to throw my things in.
Elizabeth blocked me and spoke to the driver, “How much?”
“Oh, we can discuss that while you ride.” His smile was wide, his tone friendly. “Or if you insist on paying now the cost is a full Crown.”
Elizabeth smiled back. “A crown? Isn’t that a little expensive?”
“Not when I don’t know where you’re going. It could be anywhere, so I have to protect myself, know what I mean?”
“I do,” Elizabeth said while removing a silver Crown between her thumb and forefinger. She reached out her other hand to shake. “Deal?”
“Deal,” he said, his eyes locked on the coin he never expected to earn. His hand engulfed hers and they shook.
I remained quiet. I’d seen the predatory look in her eyes too many times to interfere or try to protect her. She didn’t need any help.
She started to throw her bag in the wagon and hesitated a moment before saying to the driver, “You’re sure about this?” At the nod of his head, she continued loading our things, “Okay, please drive us to Landor, to the south side of the castle and drive carefully, please. It’s a long way from here.”
“Landor? Are you crazy?”
“No, just a very good businesswoman who has accepted an offer and sealed it with a handshake that any constable will agree is a binding contract. A single Crown has been offered and accepted for the entire trip. Must I call the authorities and tell them you have accepted payment, shook hands on it, and now change your mind?”
“I am not taking you all the way to Landor. That is two or three days from here.”
I turned my head to hide my smile. Behind me, I heard her call loudly, “I offer a full silver Crown to the first person to bring a constable or town sheriff to me.” She held it up higher for all to see. “A Crown for a little help.”
“Wait,” he said, trying to quiet her. “You cheated me.”
“Not yet, I haven’t.” She lowered the coin and said in a conciliatory tone. “But you were going to cheat me. Perhaps we can start over?”
I watched the negotiations and realized both were masters at what they were doing. Myself? I’d have just paid him or refused the ride. Elizabeth intended to best the other, and the same went for the driver.
He said, “Tell you what. As long as you’re not going to South Malawi, or across the bay, you can name your destination and what you are willing to pay. I trust you.”
She threw her bag into the back of the wagon. “The silver Crown is still an option for you. We are new to the city and require information that we will gladly pay for—if it is honest and accurate, as well as the ride. If we get what we want, the Crown is only a beginning.”
I threw my bag beside her and allowed her to slip past me to climb onto the seat beside the driver. I’d been regulated to the rear seat. However, as I took it, I realized she had placed me directly behind him where my knife was as good as a squad of crack soldiers. She turned to me and her grin told me it hadn’t been an accident.
She introduced us, using only our first names and no titles.
He told us his name with a swagger, “Honest Bran. Ask anyone. The best carriage driver in the city.”
Elizabeth laughed out loud without trying to contain herself. “Next, I suppose you’re going to tell us your parents chose ‘Honest’ as your first name?”
“Well, no. They chose Bran.”
She faced him as he lightly touched the small whip to the rear of the horse, “And who gave you Honest as your first name?”
“I guess I earned it,” he said defensively.
Elizabeth’s laughter rang out again. Then she said, “Okay, Honest, let’s see how honest you are with me. I have dozens of questions.”
“For a Crown, you can ask twice that many.”
She said, “Great. How much should I have paid for a ride to anywhere this side of the bay?”
“No more than a Scar.”
“Scar? I’m not familiar with that denomination.”
He made a small hole with his thumb and forefinger. “Copper about this big.”
She didn’t hesitate at all when she said, “How many Scars to a Crown? Ten?”
“More than that,” he laughed gleefully.
My thoughts were that he not only intended to charge us a Crown and cheat us but now thought it funny. If it were my decision, we’d climb down from the carriage and walk. Instead, we rode in comfort not knowing one end of the city from another as I left our fate to my princess.
The buildings we passed were unlike those at home in Dire, but also unlike Kondor. The walls were made of soft sandstone, a poor choice in a wet kingdom to the north, but in the Brownlands, there was little rain and the blocks were large. Far larger than expected. They would last for centuries.
Of course, it also took fewer of them to build a structure because of their immense size, many the width of a man laying down, and half the height of his standing, but sandstone is much lighter so easier to lift into position. It was easily sculpted and had been. Scrolls, whirls, peaks, and other designs graced the buildings. The tiny windows were set high on walls under overhangs, or on the north side of buildings to avoid the direct sun. They were to let light inside, keep the heat out, the insides remain cool.