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Thea couldn’t believe her ears. She took the token with trembling hands. ‘Thank you, truly, Sire. You are too kind.’
King Artos waved her off. ‘I’ll let you get on with your exploring. And please, I shall be insulted if I receive no bills.’
The magic that she had almost grown used to humming around her retreated and, bowing low once more, Thea spluttered her thanks again and left the throne room.
Outside the palace gates and atop her mare again, Thea couldn’t believe her luck. Not only did she have an entire evening to herself in Hailford, but she also hadcoin to spend?
Asking a passerby for directions to the Laughing Fox, Thea started the descent through the residences and into the city. She couldn’t take in the sights fast enough - the beautiful townhouses, the stalls and shops. While there was no longer a formal celebration in full swing, Hailford was just as prosperous, just as lively as it had been during her first visit.
After several wrong turns and a set of new directions, Thea at last spotted the wooden sign swinging from the side of a building. It was indeed a laughing fox, its bushy tail curled around its body with a flourish. There was no sign of Cal and Kipp’s horses outside, but she dismounted anyway, and led her mare to the trough, roping her reins to the post there.
She had never been inside a tavern before, so she didn’t know what to expect when she entered. Raucous chatter and music greeted her, and she spotted a pair of fiddlers atop a small stage on the far end. The bar was in the centre of the vast room and there were booths and tables all over, not a single one vacant.
Suddenly unsure of herself, Thea did a lap, taking in the merry banter, the delicious smell of roast meat wafting in from the kitchens, and the handful of couples dancing to the festive notes of the fiddles. She was just about to start a second lap when the doors burst open with a bang and Kipp strode in, Cal in tow.
‘You!’ A burly man behind the bar shouted, pointing.
Cal flinched and Thea’s blood went cold as Kipp froze in the doorway.
The whole tavern fell silent, even the fiddlers.
The half-door creaked loudly as the huge bartender came through it, tossing a cloth over his shoulder. With a slow,lumbering gait, he approached the lanky shieldbearer, surveying him critically.
Suddenly, he threw his arms out and enveloped Kipp in a bear-like embrace. ‘The son of the fox returns!’ he shouted, laughing joyously and ruffling Kipp’s auburn hair. ‘Clear Kipp’s booth!’
Thea’s legs buckled in relief.
Across the crowd, Cal’s mouth fell open in disbelief.
‘Make way, make way!’ The barman called, shooing patrons from his and Kipp’s path.
Thea made her own way towards them, meeting Cal at the foot of Kipp’s freshly vacated booth. They stared at him, gobsmacked.
Kipp grinned. ‘Didn’t I tell you?’ he laughed. ‘I was born here.’
Thea nearly choked as she slid into the booth beside him. ‘What?’
‘Yep, right over there in the kitchen.’ Kipp pointed to the door near the bar.
Cal slammed his hand down on the table, with more force than he intended by the looks of things. ‘In all your ridiculous stories, you neveroncementioned that.’
‘Didn’t seem important.’
‘Didn’t seem important?!’ Cal echoed. ‘All this time, I thought you were making this place up.’
‘Why would I do that?’
‘For a laugh? To annoy me? To prove you knew Harenth better than the rest of us?’ Cal reeled off the list of possible reasons, Kipp looking more and more baffled with each one.
‘Sorry to disappoint you, nothing like that.’
‘Well, I know thatnow!’
Thea was sinking further into the cushioned booth, her shoulders shaking as she laughed silently.
‘Are your parents still here?’ Cal asked, scanning the busy tavern as though he might stumble upon Kipp’s mother or father.
‘No, long gone. Ma worked in the kitchens for a time, then I was born. I don’t know anything about my father. But the chef here, she knows me, looks after me when I visit and all that.’
