“You used the money?” I ask.
She nods. “We had enough left over to top up Jeremy’s guild license fee too. He’s not an apprentice anymore.” Pride glows on her face. Being guild licensed means so much—security, stability, freedom.
I look around the little house she lives in with her husband. It’s sparse but has a homey feel. There’s a crocheted blanket on one of the chairs and bundles of herbs hanging over the kitchen counter. I’m amazed by how much Evie’s achieved in such short space of time. Leaving home, getting married, setting up a whole new life. All of it without me. Was she right, all those weeks ago, when she told me that her problems were not mine to fix? The thought gnaws uncomfortably in my stomach.
“And Jeremy,” I ask. “He’s…?”
“Would you like to meet him?” she asks with a shy smile.
My eyebrows shoot up. “He’s here?”
“He’s cut his hours down a little to be here with me during the pregnancy,” she says with a shrug. “We can afford it now he’s been promoted. He’s just out back.”
I follow her out to a tiny patch of garden—just big enough for a pair of chairs, a few flowerpots, and a small patch of earth I think is intended to be a vegetable patch. A stocky man with dark hair is elbow-deep, digging in the dirt.
“Jer,” Evie calls, making the nickname sound like a term of endearment. “Leah’s here.”
He looks up in surprise, but his movements are relaxed and unhurried as he climbs to his feet and dusts his hands off.
“YoursisterLeah?” he asks mildly and steps over his gardening tools to reach us. “Sorry, I’m a bit muddy,” he says but still offers his large hand as if greeting me properly is more important than a little dirt.
I shake it. “Nice to meet you at last, Jeremy,” I say, trying to study his features for clues as to what kind of man he really is.
“You too, Leah. It’s been too long coming. Although Evie talks so much about you, I feel like I know you already.”
He glances at Evie then back to me, making his own assessment, I think.
“Does this mean you really were on your honeymoon and haven’t been kidnapped?” he continues, as if discussing the weather. “Because you had us worried there. Evie was so concerned about what might have happened to you that she had me on the verge of going to talk to the wardens.”
“No need to talk to the wardens,” I say a little too quickly. Now it’s my turn to look at Evie. “It’s…ah…a little complicated. But it’s good to be here now.”
He nods, slow and contemplative. “The kind of complicated that would be mademorecomplicated—maybe even dangerous for you—if we involved the wardens?”
He’s smart. That’s good. While Evie’s eyes widen, he just seems like he’s trying to get the lay of the land.
“Maybe,” I reply, only a little wary. Evie would’ve stepped in if she thought I’d say something I shouldn’t.
“All right,” he says simply, as if that closes the matter. “Are you staying in Pax for good now?”
“I…” I struggle to answer, but I have a lot to cover with Evie and not much time. “Things are still a bit up in the air right now. Sorry, would you mind giving us a moment, Jeremy? I just need a quick word with Eves. We’ll leave you to your…vegetables?”
He smiles. “We’re hoping for some marrows. Wonderful plants.”
I could stand and talk with Jeremy about the nature of marrows for quite a while, but unfortunately, I have to usher Evie back into the house.
“He’s such a good man, Leah,” she says when we’re both inside. “He works so hard to look after us. Sacrifices so much. But he never complains. He says that having me and the baby is all the reward he needs.”
I can’t help smiling at her gushing. “He really does seem great, Eves. I’m so glad. I was so worried that…” I shake my head, unwilling to put a voice to the fears that have been plaguing me the last few months.
“And Ada?” I ask.
Evie makes a face. “I wasn’t brave, Leah. I took the coward’s way out. I left her a note the day Jeremy and I got married and never went back. By then, he had his guild’s license, and there was nothing they could do, especially with the baby.”
I nod. Kicking up a fuss with the authorities would only make the dirty secret public. Ada would rather pretend she never had a daughter than have word spread about babies out of wedlock and rushed licenses and butcher’s apprentices.
“But that’s enough about me,” Evie says sternly. “What’s going on? Why are you avoiding the wardens? Are you in trouble?”
“No…” I say, wondering how I’m going to explain anything. “No, I’m not in trouble.”
