The dismissal carries the weight of finality, but before I can respond, the young man at the printing press looks up from his work.
"Calla, we absolutely could use help." He wipes his hands on a rag that's seen better decades. "The vendor reports are three days behind, and we still haven't organized half the festival notices for tomorrow's special edition."
"Jamie." Her voice holds a warning that could freeze summer rain.
"What? It's true." Jamie grins with the fearlessness of someone who's weathered this particular storm before. "Besides, festival coverage pays well, and you're always saying we need to expand our?—"
"I'm always saying we need to maintain our standards." Calla's gaze shifts between Jamie and me, calculation evident in her expression. "Standards that require careful consideration of who we allow into our operation."
The ink on the nearest stack of papers catches my attention—it seems to shimmer slightly, as if warming under the ambient light of the room. I reach toward it without thinking, and the moment my finger makes contact, the text brightens perceptibly.
"Touch-responsive ink." I glance up to find both Calla and Jamie watching me. "Prevents forgery?"
"Among other things." Calla's tone suggests I've stumbled onto information she'd prefer to keep private.
Jamie, however, lights up like festival lanterns. "Exactly! It also helps with reader engagement—the text literally warms to the reader's touch, making the experience more personal. Calla's innovation, actually."
She shoots him a look that could wilt flowers, but there's something else there too. Pride, maybe, or satisfaction at having her work recognized.
"Temporarily." The word escapes her lips like she's surprised to hear herself saying it. "One week. Festival coverage only. After that, we reassess."
"Fine." The word comes out sharper than I intend, but Calla's already retreating into her office like she's afraid I might change my mind. "One week."
Not because I need this job—the Portfield Press is still paying me, albeit reluctantly. But because this is the only path back to real journalism. One solid story from the provinces, something that proves I haven't lost my edge, and maybe the brass will remember why they hired me in the first place.
Jamie's grin could power the printing press. "Brilliant! Come on, let me show you around properly."
He leads me to a desk shoved against the far wall, its surface scarred with ink stains and what looks like decades of coffee rings. The chair wobbles when I test it, but the view gives me a clear line of sight to both the main floor and Calla's office.
"This was old Henrik's spot before he retired." Jamie pats the desk like it's a faithful hound. "Fair warning—the third drawer sticks, and sometimes the lamp flickers if you write too fast. Something about the magical resonance interfering with the enchanted ink wells."
"Naturally." I settle into the chair, which protests with a creak that suggests Henrik might have been significantly lighter than an orc.
"Right, introductions!" Jamie waves toward a corner where two figures work at desks that seem designed for their respective sizes. "Sarah handles lifestyle and community events—she's our festival expert. Sarah, meet Brakkor!"
A pixie no taller than my forearm looks up from what appears to be a detailed seating chart. Her wings shimmer with iridescent blue-green, and her hair cascades in silver-white waves that seem to move independently of any breeze. When she smiles, it's like watching starlight given form.
"Festival coverage? You poor soul." Her voice carries the tinkling quality common to her kind, but underneath runsgenuine sympathy. "I hope you enjoy writing about pumpkin-carving competitions and who wore what to the harvest dance."
"And that's Jonathan." Jamie gestures to an elf whose pointed ears peek through auburn hair that falls in precise waves to his shoulders. "He covers trade and guild relations, plus anything requiring diplomatic finesse."
Jonathan inclines his head with the fluid grace that marks his people. "Welcome to our humble operation. I trust you'll find our methods... educational."
There's something in his tone that suggests hidden depths, but before I can probe further, my attention drifts to Calla's office. Through the glass panel, I can see her bent over paperwork, her movements precise and controlled even when she thinks no one's watching.
"She looks young to be running a paper."
The observation hangs in the air longer than I intended. Sarah's wings flutter with what might be amusement, while Jonathan's expression grows thoughtful.
"Her father used to run it." Sarah's voice loses its playful edge. "Passed five years ago and left everything to her. Poor thing was barely twenty-seven, but she stepped right into his shoes without missing a beat."
Jonathan nods, his long fingers steepled before him. "Don't let her age fool you, though. Calla's the best writer in Harvest Hollow—possibly in the entire province. Her investigative pieces on the guild disputes last spring were masterful. Thorough, balanced, and sharp enough to cut glass."
"Investigative pieces." I lean back in the protesting chair. "In a town where the biggest news is spice delivery delays?"
"You'd be surprised what lurks beneath festival preparations and harvest reports." Jonathan's smile holds secrets. "Small towns have their own complexities. Calla has a gift for findingthe stories that matter without destroying the people who live them."
CHAPTER 3
