by Taki Drake
Alan had argued that he had overstepped his bounds, and Ruth countered with her reluctance to have to take another bullheaded, narrowminded military man through a spanking again. The least he could do was save her the trouble.
The former Marine commander was still thinking about their offer when he had jumped into this trip as if he had already accepted the position. Ruth let him go with it, deciding that he needed to feel competent and know that he could do the job. No amount of verbal reassurance would do that for him, but she thought that this trip had taught him that he still had valuable strengths.
Smiling, the Mage thought to herself, I think I have the Commander of the Scouts and Marines. Now, I just need to find someone to command the space forces.
The store sign had been changed to “Closed” but was even more crowded than it had been at any other point during the day. Victin and Anthon were beside themselves with excitement, and Ruth set off Margot to find out why. When the bodyguard came back, she was smiling broadly, “We have a collection of very influential merchants here and even representatives of the nobility here on New Vesta. Victin says the shop has never had a high enough profile that any of them would have even noticed the branch’s existence.”
Ruth did not involve herself in many of the conversations. Instead, she and her bodyguards would periodically make trips to the back room and send another load to Arkken for Luka to stow away at the Force X Bar. Roughly every third casting, the Mage would wander over next to her Anchor. Pawlik would place a comforting hand on her and recharge her energy. The woman didn’t think any of the conversationalists even noticed what was going on. The process worked well, and Ruth had cleared out almost all of their cargo. There were only the household goods that their new assistant would be bringing with her.
Looking over to where Pawlik was the center of attention for a group of men wearing a combination of uniforms and expensive dress, Ruth was very pleased that Victin was singled out by the Lord of Borachland’s hand on his shoulder. She could see the assessing gazes as the rest of the men realized that the man might be worth cultivating. She just hoped that it would be worth all of the efforts he had put into supporting their visit.
Over in the corner, Ruth saw Linie at a small table, talking with a man whose back was toward the Mage. Turning to Margot, she asked, “Who is talking to Linie? I don’t want her upset or bothered.”
The bodyguard replied, “She and that old man that we met on the shopping trip had been talking for over an hour. They both have been sketching till we had to scavenge for more paper. They are having a blast, so we left him alone. We did not want to interrupt their creation of what will probably be a breathtaking gown.”
Laughing, Ruth walked over to greet the old man again, calling out, “Master Perre, it is nice to see you again. Unexpected but very pleasant.”
Climbing slowly to his feet, the stooped and white-haired gentleman greeted her and turned with a smile, “When I heard that you were still on New Vesta I decided to see if Mistress Linie and I could continue our discussion. I believe that you will be pleased with the gown design we have come up with.”
“I am looking forward to it, more than I can tell you. I’m sure Linie is honored to work with you.”
The girl rushed into speech, burbling, “Master Rich thinks that my ideas are original and insightful. He is even showing me ways of making the garment construction better. He has offered to visit us the next time you need a fancy gown so that we can work together.”
“I will leave the two of you alone then to continue your collaboration. I see that someone is bringing you some warm tea. Master Perre, please consider this an open invitation to visit us at any time.”
Just then, the door opened, and Arani walked in with two children. The smaller one, a girl, was carried in the tall woman’s arms while the slender boy was tucked protectively next to her hip. One of the staff members from the shop hurried over to greet them. Coaxing a smile out of the little boy, the helpful clerk escorted them over to a quieter area for the two children could sit and have cookies and milk.
Arani left the woman watching her children and walked over to the Mage. “Reporting for duty, ma’am.”
Ruth broke out in peals of laughter, drawing attention from others in the shop. Pawlik was there in the next instant, with his arm around his mate. Ruth introduced their newest employee, smiling at Arani’s stunned look when Lord Pawlik welcomed her and shook her hand.
Smiling once more at Arani, Pawlik placed a gentle kiss on Ruth’s forehead just above her diadem. He then returned to the group that he had so quickly abandoned, and the men continued their discussion.
Ruth felt like a targeted ship as three men began to move toward her as soon as Pawlik moved away. All of a sudden, Ruth felt weary. She was not up to politics this evening. Jenna and Margot exchange glances and bracketed Ruth in the protection mode.
Before Arani could say anything, Jenna handed over a comm-unit and told her, “Your job is to filter people away from the Mage. The display in your comm-unit gives your address, and you can have people contact you. Nobody, nobody gets direct contact with the mage unless she OKs it.”
Margot took over, saying, “Your title is Assistant to the Archmage. Don’t take any crap from any of these people and if you’re uncomfortable with them just say either my name or Jenna’s.”
Arani swiveled her head between the two women, before looking at Ruth see if she had anything to add. The Mage could not think of anything else that needed to be said at the moment, so she kept silent.
Chapter 39 – More Shopping
Theia, New Vesta
Without any hesitation whatsoever, Arani intercepted the men heading for Ruth. With an assured and calm manner, she succeeded in diverting three of them. From what little Ruth overheard, they were all merchants who wanted to offer additional items for consideration. Ruth’s new assistant dealt with them smoothly and flawlessly, leaving each of them smiling.
The fourth man, however, was more of a problem. Refusing to speak with Arani, he pushed his way past the woman as if she was a bump in the road.
“Jenna!” Arani’s voice was clear but not very loud.
The bodyguard planted her body between the advancing man and Ruth. When the haughty-looking man attempted to go around her, Jenna spun to reposition herself and pulled her weapon. The sound of the safety coming off her gun was immediately echoed by five other weapons. The stranger stopped abruptly and turned to glare at Jenna.
“How dare you pull a weapon on me! Don’t you know who I am?”
Jenna watched him like a hawk, waiting for just one more muscle twitch. From his other side, Margot responded. The sound of her voice jerked the stranger’s head to stare in shock at her. The bodyguard said, “Not only don’t we know, but we certainly don’t care. Part of our job is to keep uninvited people away from the Mage. None of our responsibility is teaching you how to behave with courtesy or good manners.”
“The whole Mage thing is a farce. I want to know how she got on the planet. None of my sources knew that anyone worthy of consideration would be arriving today.”
Margot answered once more, her voice more precise and cold enough to freeze gas, “The Mage has no desire to speak with you. I would suggest that you move away from her before something unpleasant happens to you. This is your last warning.”
One of the more prosperous merchants called out, “Hendrick, you’re always forcing yourself on women that don’t want to pay attention to you. Haven’t you learned anything yet?”
“Women just like to play hard to get. You would not know anything about women anyway, you old goat.”
Before any more conversation could occur, Pawlik was standing next to Ruth. The tall man radiated fury, but his voice was controlled when he said, “You have been told that your presence is not welcome.”
Switching the object of his fury to the Lord of Borachland, the man snarled, “Who are you to correct me?”
With a smile in her voice, Mar
got announced, “You are addressing Pawlik Sarratt Avant Borach, High Duke of Borachland, Grand Knight of the Alliance, Anchor to the Archmage.”
The room was quiet, and Margot let the silence draw out to the tension was high. In a bright, cheerful voice, she asked, “And your name is, sir?”
The man was pale, grey-white like a ghost and shaking badly. He backed away slowly as if any rapid movement would draw an attack. His eyes huge in his head, Hendrick stumbled into speech saying, “I heard you were dead.”
In a hard voice, Pawlik said, “Obviously, you are mistaken about that also.”
A few more steps backward and the frightened man managed to reach for the shop door handle. Before he could pull it open, a coruscating bolt of deep red flame flashed across the room and barred the door. Hendrick lurched backward so quickly that he lost his footing and crashed onto the floor.
“Hendrick, or whoever you are, understand this. We will not tolerate any of our people being treated with disrespect. If you had harmed anyone in our employee, whether they were ditch digger or steward, you would not have survived very long.” Ruth’s voice was full of contained anger and menace.
The man’s eyes were drawn to her face as if pulled by an irresistible force. A sudden sour smell heralded the loss of bodily control as he realized that his contempt for others and disbelief about magic might have endangered his existence. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He remained frozen sprawled on the floor like a mouse under the gaze of the cat.
When Pawlik spoke, many in the room jumped. The tension was so high the silence was so profound that the unexpected noise jangled already rattled nerves. “Jenna, would you be so kind as to open the door for this gentleman. I believe that he is leaving.”
The room remained silent as the terrified man scrambled to his feet and fled through the door. Through the shadowed glass of the windows, the occupants of the store watched as he flung his body into the back of the large vehicle. The slowly closing door to the shop let those with good hearing discern his orders to quickly drive away.
A different type of attention was now levied on Pawlik and Ruth. They seemed oblivious to the scrutiny, with the Anchor running his hands soothingly down the arms of his Mage. She leaned back against him for just a moment and then straightened up with a devilish grin.
“Oh, oh! Ruth…”
Before Jenna could complete her sentence, Ruth made a rapid gesture, and a flash of magic-laden light cleaned the floor of the shop. The noisome puddle that had been there just an instant before was gone as if it had never existed. Instead of a nauseating, acrid smell, the faint scent of roses perfumed the air.
Pawlik worked inquiring eyebrow at her, and Ruth whispered, “I thought he should take his mess with them.”
Roaring with laughter, Pawlik walked back to complete his conversation, as Jenna and Margot moved closer to Ruth and herded her toward a chair. Margot said, “Please sit down. You have to be tired, and I don’t think anyone else is going to bother you.”
Before Ruth could reply, Arani approached the table with her niece and nephew. Some of the people in the room drew frightened breaths, worried about the vulnerability of the children. The Mage bent down a little bit further, so she didn’t tower over the littlest one. In a gentle voice, Ruth said, “Hello. I understand that you’re going to come live with us. I have a grandson and granddaughter that will be very happy to see you.”
The little boy wasn’t frightened at all. He grabbed the Mage’s hand in both of his and said, “Thank you for making the bad man go away. Aunt Ari was hurt by a man just like him, and I don’t want to be where those people are.”
Jenna said, her voice far softer than her usual tone, “We try to make sure that those bad men don’t hurt our friends.” The bodyguard was shocked to her core when the little boy flung his arms around her leg and gave her a hug. Staring at Arani in surprise, Jenna whispered, “What should I do?”
Ruth answered, “Try giving him a little hug back, silly.”
When Arani looked for her niece, she was surprised to see the three-year-old curled up in Ruth’s lap and half asleep. The Mage laughed and said, “I have always had this problem. Children crawl up on me and go to sleep.”
“From my experience, that’s not a bad problem to have.”
<< <> >>
The evening was well advanced, and Pawlik could tell that Ruth was tired. She had already completed the last of her transfer duties, saddened by the minimal amount that was all that Arani and the children had to move.
At Lord Pawlik’s suggestion, everyone headed into the room where shop staff had laid out items in which Ruth might be interested. The day was finally catching up to the Mage, and she was glad that her Anchor had taken over moving their agenda along. Ruth knew she was tired because she had started to think longingly of her bed. And for the warm man that will share with me.
Wandering through the displays idly, Ruth came upon a table that had been laid out with items that were sleeker in profile and less obviously military in nature. As she bent over to look at something that her mind insisted were bracers, Victin joined her.
“Considering how long the day has gone, I thought that would have items that we would have pulled from stock put out for you. You had asked for wearable devices, specifically things that would serve as comm-units. These are some of the higher-end ones that we have. All of them are designed to incorporate designer modules, although we have no way of knowing how your magic will interface with them.”
“This is wonderful that you did this. I was worried about keeping the staff at your main office up too late.”
“I decided that I should spend a few days here, working with Anthon. With the boost you have given our reputation, the presence of a senior partner can do a lot to consolidate an improved position working with the merchants on New Vesta.”
“If you’re sure that is what you wish to do, I have no objection. The change in plans actually makes it easier for us.”
“Great. Let’s talk about the other items we have here.”
<< <> >>
The rest of the evening had flown very quickly. Ruth had taken everything that had been laid out in the special display, and Pawlik added a substantial number of items in which he or Alan were interested. Everyone was happy, especially weapons dealers.
Although Ruth thought she could transport all of the people plus the last purchases, Pawlik was concerned about her energy levels. She did not argue with him, knowing that her fatigue was impairing her judgment. Quickly gripping the remainder of their purchases the middle of the circle, Ruth positioned herself by the side, and Pawlik stood at her back, one hand on her shoulder, the other on her waist.
Once more, the Mage’s magic reached out and encapsulated their cargo. With a soft expulsion of air, Ruth pushed the load to its destination. The room was now empty of all but the Borachland party and the two weapons dealers.
Pawlik looked over Ruth’s head, and said warmly, “Victin and Anthon, thank you for your hospitality and your assistance to my Lady. I look forward to seeing you in the near future.”
The two men murmured their own thanks, but the nobleman was focused on getting his mate back to their rooms so that she could rest. Herding all of the party members into the circle, Pawlik was amused to see that Alan had a sleeping child in his lap and Jenna was holding the little boy.
Bending his head down, so it was close to Ruth’s ear, the Mage’s Anchor murmured, “Just one more time tonight dear. Then we can crawl into bed.”
Chapter 40 – Stitch in Time
Force X Bar, Arkken Port
The following morning, Ruth and Pawlik slept in. Ruth was still recovering and the previous day had strained her, although not as severely as it could have. Her Anchor was concerned, but she promised to take it easy for the two days remaining until the dinner party.
After a light breakfast, Pawlik took off for his club once again. He was determined to dig more deeply into his cousin’s conspiracy, and to
see if he could find out the motivations for the attack against Ruth.
The Mage walked over to the room where Linie had set up her new equipment. Looking in wonder around the room, Ruth saw a well organized and thoughtfully laid out workspace with significant progress showing in the pattern development.
“Ruth! I should have a skimmer for you in a couple of hours. Once we fit that pattern, could we begin to pick fabrics?”
“Of course. Just let me know when you would like to have me come back. If you don’t see me around, check with Luka.”
Hmmm… I think I better add something to our renovation plans.
Ruth called the castle and spoke with the Steward, Harril. Sending him a couple of quick sketches, the Lady of Borachland added a dressmaking suite to their current construction plans. It would include fabric storage facilities, as well as cutting, assembly, and fitting areas.
Wandering down to the taproom of the bar, Ruth wondered if Alan would be there. She was a little bit at loose ends and knew that her body was telling her to take it easy. All thoughts of conversation disappeared as she saw the drawn but smiling face of Mary.
Charging across the floor, Ruth threw her arms around her friend. Hugging her tightly with tears pouring down her face, she said, “It is so good to see you. I have been desperately worried!”
“I have been worried about you too. Who’s going to rein you in without me watching over you?”
Wiping her eyes, the Mage responded, “I have way too many watchers. On the other hand, all of my friends are precious.”
Right behind Mary, Ruth saw the face of Jack, the attorney from Borachville. All of his focus was on Mary, his emotions naked for everyone to see. I thought that was the way the wind was blowing. I wonder how Mary is going to deal with this.
“I hope you know that you’re not allowed to do too much till you’re really recovered. You came too close to dying for any of us to be comfortable with you acting as if you’re immediately healthy again.”
