The Witch's City

by M. Gregg Roe

  Ahead of them were fields with crops nearly a yard high as well as fenced-in grassy areas where she could see cows, sheep, and goats grazing. Unlike Merryton, all of the houses were tightly clustered in the center. Cinda asked Audrey about it and she explained that it had been done for defensive purposes, and that at one time the central area had been surrounded by a deep and wide trench.

  “I believe that we have been discovered,” stated Cinda as she pointed ahead. A pigtailed girl of perhaps ten years was speeding rapidly toward them.

  Audrey broke into a huge smile. “That’s Romee. She’s the daughter of Mayor Johan and his wife Abigail. We need to talk to them first anyway.”

  “Audrey! Audrey!” yelled Romee as she approached. “Violet had her baby!”

  “I know, Romee,” said Audrey as she hugged the girl briefly. “That’s why I’m here.” Audrey gestured. “This is my friend Cinda. The blond-haired woman with Ariel and Isadora is Bianca.”

  “Woman?” asked Romee, frowning comically. Cinda laughed as the girl headed straight to Bianca.

  Audrey continued walking toward the center of the village with Cinda following. A thick-waisted woman with muscular arms was waiting for them just short of where the houses started. Her brown hair was tied up with a gray cloth that matched her eyes. The way she was dressed was little different from how Audrey and Cinda were, except that her clothing looked old and worn.

  “I had a feeling you’d turn up here soon,” she said as she stepped forward smiling. “Will you be staying the night?”

  “Yes, Abigail,” replied Audrey, matching her smile. “My friend Cinda and I will be staying until the next southbound caravan. The other three will be spending the night and continuing on to the temple.”

  Abigail nodded. “It’s nice to meet you, Cinda. Be welcome in our village.”

  Cinda displayed a friendly smile. “Thank you. I’ve been wanting to see where Audrey is from.”

  “I’ll tell Johan and sort things out for you to stay in the meeting hall. We’ll feed you dinner too.”

  Audrey addressed the others, who were now standing nearby with Romee still frowning at Bianca. “Why don’t you three go ahead to the meeting hall?”

  Romee nodded at her mother. “It’s this way,” she said before leading the others away.

  “Abigail,” said Audrey, once the others were out of earshot, “I’m not sure where we should stay here. I don’t want to live out of the meeting hall.”

  “I can’t blame you,” replied Abigail. “Filip and his whole family moved to Merryton about half a month ago. You could stay in their old house without too much fuss.”

  “Okay. We’ll stay there then.”

  “That sounds good,” agreed Cinda, careful to keep her speech informal.

  “There’s furniture and beds there, but I’ll have to get you some linens. There’s nothing to cook with in the kitchen either, but I can feed you.”

  Cinda listened as Audrey and Abigail continued to discuss the arrangements. Like Merryton, Farmerton had outside toilets—privies, as they were called. They weren’t pleasant to use, but they were far better than just going outside as she had done several times during their journey.

  “Come on,” said Audrey as Abigail walked off. “We’ll stop by the house and then go see Violet.”

  “I look forward to it,” she replied, resulting in a disapproving look from her friend. Cinda grinned and gestured. “I can’t wait. Let’s go!”

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  The house seemed familiar to Audrey because its layout was identical to the one she had grown up in. They took off their backpacks and quickly toured the inside. As Abigail had said, there was no cooking gear. But there were two beds with mattresses that were certainly better than sleeping on the ground.

  “You can have the larger bedroom,” she told Cinda. “I’m going to put on clean clothes before we go to Violet’s.”

  Cinda opened her mouth to reply, but hesitated as Audrey narrowed her eyes. “Me too,” she said with a silly grin.

  “Good.” Audrey pointed a finger at her. “Talk that way all the time.”

  After they both had changed, they went to Violet’s house and Audrey knocked on the door. Violet answered the door herself. She gave Audrey a big hug and said, “That was fast. Did you run all the way here?”

  “Of course,” answered Audrey with a silly smile. She looked Violet up and down. “You’re still fat. I thought you already had the baby.”

  Violet smirked and pointed. “Just wait until you have one, Audrey. It’s going to be a while before I get rid of all this weight. Who’s your friend?”

  Cinda had simply been watching the exchange with an amused look. “My name is Cinda,” she said. “I’m a friend of Audrey’s from the Witch’s City. She’s told me a lot about you.”

  “Nice to meet you. How long are you two staying?”

  “Until the next caravan comes through heading south,” Audrey told her.

  Violet smiled devilishly. “What a relief! We really need help with carrying everything.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Violet waved her arms emphatically. “We’re moving to Dymar! We’re taking the next caravan to Rohoville.”

  Audrey stared at Violet in disbelief while trying to suppress a pang of fear. “What’s wrong?” asked Violet, frowning suspiciously.

  “Nothing,” lied Audrey as she forced a smile. Her enthusiasm for visiting the two farming villages near the Witch’s City had vanished when she had found out that the area around the city—the Witchmarsh—was infested with alligators, creatures very similar to crocodiles. She had been planning to never visit either village for that reason.

  Violet crossed her arms and scowled. “You can’t lie to me. You’re afraid to visit Dymar, aren’t you? You probably think we don’t even know about the alligators, don’t you?”

  “Yes,” confessed Audrey. “You know about them and you’re still moving there?”

  Violet rolled her eyes and Audrey heard Cinda laugh. Violet waved both her arms wildly. “Yes! Orian is now friends with one of the caravan guards and he told us about them. He’s from Dymar, and his father has been looking for help with his farm now that his son has gone off to be a caravan guard. They even have a small guest house that we’re going to rent.”

  “I have been to Dymar,” said Cinda. “The alligators do not pose a significant threat.”

  Audrey was annoyed that Cinda had already lapsed into her formal speech. “I’m glad to hear it, but they terrify me. Why didn’t you mention that you were moving in the note you sent?”

  “Because we weren’t planning to move this soon. I felt awful after all that time lying in bed pregnant. Then Isadora fixed me up with healing magic when she was here. I felt so good afterward that we decided to move sooner. Surprise!”

  Audrey laughed and hugged Violet again. “That’s wonderful. We’ll be so close!”

  “Yes, and we will be close to the Witch’s City and all those temples.” Violet pointed a finger. “And you’re coming to come visit us even if we have to blindfold you. So, do you want to see Quentin?”

  “Of course,” replied Audrey.

  Violet made tea after the three of them had watched the peacefully sleeping baby. It looked to Audrey that Quentin was going to be a blond like his mother. It was comforting that Quentin would be growing up somewhere where an infected cut didn’t mean almost certain death, and where there were many more opportunities.

  Audrey sipped her tea and almost winced. It was fine for Farmerton, but she was used to much better now. Cinda didn’t appear bothered. The cakes that Violet served them were tasty and the house was very clean. Violet had changed a great deal since her marriage—nearly as much as her husband.

  Cinda suddenly leaned forward. “May I tell her, Audrey? She will find out ere long and her husband is not present.”

  Audrey knew exactly what Cinda wanted to tell Violet, who now looked confused. “Cinda is from a wealthy family in the Witch’
s City,” Audrey explained. “That’s actually the way she usually talks. We are going to tell everyone here that she is studying to be an entertainer, but she’s actually what is known as a courtesan. That’s basically a high-class companion and prostitute.”

  Violet’s eyes were huge as she looked intently at Cinda. “Really? You get paid to have sex with men?”

  Cinda nodded. “Yes.”

  “You must know all kinds of things. Dirty things.”

  “I most certainly do,” Cinda replied haughtily.

  “Will you teach me?” Violet begged. “Please!”

  Audrey began to laugh. Her two best friends had finally met, and it looked that they would get along just fine.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  After eating dinner in the meeting hall with the others, Audrey and Cinda returned to the house they were staying in and were startled to find someone there. It was Audrey’s mother Marilee, and she was using a broom to sweep the floor in the dining area.

  “Mother,” said Audrey, feeling guilty. “I was going to come and see you tomorrow.”

  Marilee stopped sweeping and smiled at the two of them. “It’s fine. It sounds like the two of you will be here for a while. You must be Cinda. I’m Marilee.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” said Cinda.

  “I’ve got your beds sorted and brought you some candles and a tinderbox. And a couple of towels and a bucket for washing up. You’ll have to fetch your own water.”

  “Thank you,” said Audrey. She was so used to glow-cubes that she had forgotten they would need candles there.

  “So you’re really a prostitute?” Marilee asked Cinda.

  “Yes,” replied Cinda simply, showing no sign of surprise.

  “How do you know that?” asked Audrey.

  “Violet told me, but I haven’t told anyone else. What are you going to do about those … whatever they’re called around where Violet’s moving to?”

  Audrey shook her head. “Alligators. I don’t know. I’ll deal with it when I get back.”

  “What if Saxloc and some of the others went with you? Would that make you feel better?”

  Audrey chewed her lower lip briefly. “Maybe. I’ll just have to figure something out. I have to be able to visit Violet.”

  “You’ll figure it out, Audrey. You’re a smart girl.”

  Her mother’s compliment did make her feel better. “Thank you, Mother. How are you and Father getting along?”

  Marilee frowned and shook the broom she was still holding. “Poorly. More and more it’s like we’re two people that happen to be living in the same house and sharing meals. He sleeps in his bedroom and I sleep in yours.”

  “I see,” said Audrey. Hearing that made her feel sad.

  “Don’t you worry about it, Audrey. It’s working just fine the way it is now. I’m going to finish cleaning up. Why don’t you tell me about that fancy cottage of yours while I’m doing it?”

  Cinda laughed as Audrey stared at her mother in consternation. “How do you know about that?” she demanded. She hadn’t mentioned it to Violet.

  Marilee shrugged. “Almera sends me letters about you.”

  Audrey sighed. “Of course she does. It’s good to see you, Mother.”

  “You too, Audrey. I’ve missed you. Now tell me about your cottage.”

  “Okay!”

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  Cinda felt much better the following morning. The mattress wasn’t anywhere near as comfortable as the ones that she was accustomed to, but it was vastly superior to sleeping on the ground. Her legs and feet were still sore, but today she would only be walking around Farmerton, not walking for miles through the wilderness.

  It was distinctly chilly, so Cinda settled for washing her face using water that Audrey had fetched from the well, and then hurriedly dressed. The two of them ate breakfast in the meeting hall with the others. As with dinner the previous evening, Cinda was hungry and thought the food to be surprisingly good.

  They accompanied the three women as they headed north, but only as far as a barn that adjoined a pigsty. Cinda found the animals fascinating, but really didn’t care for the smell. She was soon introduced to Audrey’s father Anton and given a brief tour of the barn. Cinda was well aware of what Audrey thought of her father, but she was polite and he was as well.

  The next stop was Audrey’s aunt’s house. Berna definitely resembled her sister and Cinda was impressed by her sewing skills. But it was the woman’s twin daughters that enchanted her. Ilona and Iris asked the two of them all kinds of questions about the Witch’s City, talking alternately in a most amusing fashion. Cinda and Audrey ended up having lunch with the three of them.

  After lunch, they went east to the lake shore. What Audrey referred to as the dock was a single wood pier measuring only three yards wide and perhaps ten long, and which had only two small boats tied up to it. She could see a third boat some ways out in the lake crewed by two men who were fishing.

  Audrey stopped short of the pier and gestured. “This is where they fought the crocodiles. The burnt area is where Saxloc used a magical gem to summon a Fire Elemental. You can go look at it if you want.”

  Cinda narrowed her eyes and stared at her friend, who was unsuccessfully trying to maintain an innocent expression. “But you are going to remain here?” she asked while raising one eyebrow.

  “Yes. I’ve already seen it.”

  “And how many times has the village been assaulted by crocodiles since that occurrence?” inquired Cinda with a stern expression.

  “Uh … none,” Audrey confessed sheepishly.

  “Then you should not be afraid.” Cinda grabbed Audrey’s left arm with her right and began pulling. “We are both going to look. You must face your fear.”

  “Fine.”

  Cinda led Audrey onto the pier and out over the water. It seemed sturdy enough, despite looking rather old. There was indeed a sizable burned area near the end. Cinda was pleased when Audrey squatted down to examine it closely. After that, they followed the lake shore to the south and Audrey indicated the spot where she had been attacked by the huge crocodile. They then went to the spot where Violet’s baby’s namesake had perished defending Audrey. Cinda held her friend and murmured reassurances when the memory caused her to begin weeping.

  When they reached the final spot, a small hill that had a nice view of the lake, Cinda inquired, “This is the location where you gave your maidenhead to Saxloc?”

  “Yes.” The admission clearly embarrassed her.

  “It is a lovely spot. You chose well.” She meant it. It was out of sight of Farmerton and had a lovely view of Fog Lake.

  Audrey laughed. “The spot was the only good choice I made.” Her face fell as she continued, “I wish I had been more patient and made better decisions.”

  Cinda smiled at her and said, “No one may make the proper decision at all times. You did well. I truly believe that you are a most fortunate peasant.”

  “Thank you, rich girl,” said Audrey, and then the two of them hugged.

  “I am no longer a rich girl, and you are no longer a peasant. We have each moved onward.”

  “That’s true, and I’m glad. For both of us.”

  “Audrey, will the caravan that passes through here heading north travel to the Temple of Kyran?”

  “I think so. They usually go there to pick up wine. Why?”

  “I am pleased to finally see your home village, but I would also like to see the temple since I am so near. I thought that I might ride with the caravan, visit there briefly, and then return with it.”

  Audrey nodded, looking thoughtful. “Okay. That’s a good idea. You’ll be able to meet Siljan too. I think the caravan will be here in a couple of days. Just be ready to go when they arrive.”

  “I shall. You have spoken so often of the wondrous bath there that I must avail myself of this opportunity to experience it.”

  “It is wondrous. Maybe I should go with you.”

  “No, Audrey. You should r
emain and spend time with your family. And assist Violet and Orian to prepare for their move.”

  “You’re right, Cinda. That’s what I’ll do.”

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  When the caravan stopped briefly in Farmerton, Orian went out to meet it and Audrey and Cinda accompanied him. They were introduced to Abhir, a Novox guard with a stocky build, bushy beard, and swarthy skin. He confirmed what Audrey had suspected: The house Violet and Orian would be moving to already had a fully-stocked kitchen and linens. She had been trying to persuade them not to pack those things, and was happy to be proven correct. The two of them simply didn’t understand just how long and complicated their move to Dymar was going to be. The less they took with them, the better.

  As Audrey stood next to him watching the caravan depart to the north, Orian said, “You were right. We don’t need all that stuff. That’s a relief.”

  “Yes,” she agreed. “He said there was no baby bed, but we can easily buy one. You can buy about anything in the Witch’s City.”

  “Including Cinda?” he asked, smiling.

  “Yes, but you couldn’t afford her. And Violet would kill you.”

  “She doesn’t have to worry about that,” he said seriously.

  Audrey nodded. She still found it hard to believe that this was the same Orian who she had found so annoying when growing up there. He had been one of the boys that had taunted her for being overweight. But that was before he fell for Violet and eventually married her. Now he was polite, and a good husband and father from what she could tell.

  “It’s going to be hard,” he said suddenly. “Being away from our families. I didn’t want to move until Quentin was older.”

  Audrey didn’t have to ask why he had given in; Violet was still the one in charge. “You’ll be able to exchange letters. And they’ll be able to visit the same way that we’ll be traveling.”

  “But that’s expensive,” he objected.

  “True.” Even now, there was very little actual currency in Farmerton. “We’ll figure something out.” She would give them the money if necessary.