CHAPTER 14
—--40 days
Sarah stocked up on everything in her two night stay and was ready to go to the big town of Ghrian.
The ride was slow and steady through the countryside in the snow. Sarah got into the town of Ghrian after nightfall and went looking for an inn. The town buildings and streets were mostly made from fieldstone and cobblestone. It gave off a rustic feeling.
She found an inn that looked rundown and then another that had rowdy customers. The third looked decent, with a stable next door, so Sarah took her bags into the inn and walked up to the fae innkeeper.
He was a tall, yellow blonde fae man of about thirty years old with blue eyes. He had on a blue shirt rolled up his forearms and a brown wool vest with black pants on. The innkeeper was handsome. He looked her over and asked, "Are you looking for a room?" Sarah nodded.
Sarah said, "For a week, please." The innkeeper cocked his head to the side with her politeness.
He said, "Eight silver a night, meals eight coppers and three for drinks." Sarah put down five gold and six silver. He gave her a key to room five. Sarah went up and dropped off the bags. Wished her security wish for the room and went to board Shadow.
When she was coming back an old human man stopped her saying, "Watch yer back in this here town, boy. They be pinchin' humans off the streets ta sell. Thar be thirty eight humans done disappeared with no trail, so far."
Sarah said, "Thank you for the information." She put a gold coin in his hand. He smiled at her when he saw it.
She went inside the inn and up to the room. She locked the door and started a fire to warm up the room. There were two extra blankets on the bed. Sarah spread them out and put the pouch on the bed, and hung up her cloak. The room was clean and the fireplace was cleaned. The wood was stacked up in logs on each side or the fireplace. All the inns Sarah stayed in had fireplace screens to prevent sparks and pops from the fire as it burned for heat. The kettle was on a hook for boiling water. Sarah took it off unless she needed it to take a bath. The rug on the floor was woven and the bed was simple construction with a small table next to it. The table had a candle on in the holder, inside a hurricane type glass. The pump had a drain under it with a bucket that hung up on a hook and a small table with a bowl and pitcher set to use as a basin. It was standard for most of the rooms she had been staying in.
She made up the litter box for the kittens and pulled out a corner of the blankets to drop to the floor, so they could climb that way. She sat the kittens in the litter box. Sarah got out a long sleeve tshirt and her bathing stuff. She fed the kittens their milk meat mix and put a bowl of water down, too. After a while, the kittens were fed, they went potty and settled down from playing. She put them in the pouch and put on her cloak to go get dinner.
Sarah sat down at the counter. The inn was busy. When the innkeeper finally took her order for a meal and wine, she put down a silver and copper coin. He gave her a chicken stew with root vegetables and a hunk of bread. Sarah ate all of it and drank two wines. She had a woman sit next to her during that time and offer to spend the night with her for a price, and a man asking her to buy him an ale. She blew them off and went upstairs to the room.
Sarah put a wooden chair under the door knob to block it and put a log on the fire to heat the kettle. She filled the tub with regular water and started taking off her layers of clothes. She sat on the bed in her leggings and tunic. The kittens were watching her and came running up to her when she sat down. Sarah laid down on her side and played with them until they just wanted cuddles. The room was warmed up and Sarah made her bath. She got in, scrubbed off the road, washed her hair and clothes up. When she went to bed, her little boys ran up to cuddle her chin and neck, purring under all those blankets.
—--41 days
Sarah woke up getting a tongue bath on her nose and chin from her kittens. Their tiny tongues were tickling her, and she giggled. She grabbed them and rolled over, kissing their little heads as they purred, and she put them on their backs. They will be six weeks old tomorrow.
Sarah got up and did her morning routine. She fed the kittens and had them go to the bathroom. She dressed. Sarah put on her cowl cloak and gloves. She went to get breakfast and sell her jewelry.
Sarah sat down at the counter and there were only two other people at tables eating, and she put a silver out on the counter. The innkeeper walked out of the kitchen and saw her. He said, "What do you want?"
Sarah said, "Breakfast and tea, please?" He took the silver and gave her two coppers. He got her the tea and a plate of eggs, mutton steak, potatoes, and toast. Sarah started eating.
Sarah asked the innkeeper after a while, "Where can I find a jeweler nearby?"
The innkeeper said, "Down two blocks, make a right. There is a jeweler on the left side. Where are you from? You talk funny?"
Sarah said in her low, practiced voice, "I'm from far away. My name is Ashar." Sarah put out her hand to him.
The innkeeper said, "My name's Farric." He shook her hand.
Right then, the two kittens popped up, sticking their heads out, and mewed. Sarah looked down. The innkeeper was surprised. Sarah said, "You two had your breakfast. This is mine." They mewed again.
Sarah said, "Alright, alright, here." She put a bit of yolk on her glove fingertip, and they licked it clean.
The innkeeper was smiling and said, "Bossy little things, aren't they?"
Sarah said, "They like to taste their food and then mine, it seems. They are both boys, cathwyllt kittens. Another animal killed their mother by my campsite in the middle of the night."
Farric said, "I know you are a woman hiding under there. No man would take on kittens." Sarah moved the cowl back and looked at him, scared. He inhaled and said, "You are a very beautiful fae too. I promise I will not tell."
Sarah was glad he promised not to tell. She smiled and said, "Thank you for that. I have to stay in disguise. An old man warned me that about thirty eight humans have disappeared here."
Farric nodded yes. He said sadly, "It's terrible they watch and way lay anyone." He reached out and pulled her cowl hood forward and said, "So you keep safe, Ashar. Nobody knows who is deceiving and tipping off the kidnappers. I'd hate to see you in that kind of trouble. You seem to be a nice person."
Sarah said, "Thank you, Farric. I'll be careful." She ate the rest of her breakfast and headed to the jeweler. She went to the jeweler and sold 560 gold worth in two bags. Sarah strapped the bags under her cloak.
Sarah headed straight to the inn and up into her room. She locked the door and put the kittens on the bed. They shot out of the bag and watched her move around the room. She started a fire and dumped the coins into her ring. The kittens came to her and they both mewed. Sarah smiled and picked them up and cuddled them both, kissing their heads. She played with them for a while until they got tired.
Sarah put them in the fur pouch and took more jewelry to sell in another bag tied to her belt. She went to another jeweler, after asking Farric where another one was. She sold 745 in jewelry, and the jeweler had a transportation bracelet. It took off a half day's travel with one use per day. It was fifty gold. Sarah bought it and put it under her glove on her left wrist. It had an oval quartz crystal stone in the center. The jeweler told her to put her finger on the stone and clearly say the compass direction. He said anything on your body or if you're touching, it comes with you.
Sarah went straight back to the inn. She locked the door and covered the keyhole. She sat on the bed and dumped the gold into the locket. Sarah fed the kittens their meat milk for lunch and filled the bowl with water. She waited for them to go to the bathroom. She put them in their pouch and went to get lunch.
Sarah sat at the counter and asked Farric for a meal and wine. She put down the money and the man next to her tried to steal it while tugging on her money bag. She elbowed the man in the face. Which caused a ruckus. Farric came out of the kitchen and saw Sarah then punch the thief in the face, knocking him to the floor.
Farric said, "What happened?"
Sarah said, "He was trying to steal your money on the counter I put down and lifting my purse." Farric sat her meal and wine down. He came around the counter and grabbed the human man by the seat of his pants and neck and threw him out the door into the street.
Farric yelled, "If I see you in my inn, I will kill you next time." He marched back into the inn.
He went behind the counter and told Sarah in a gruff voice and frowning, "Thank you, Ashar." He took the money and poured her another wine on the house.
Sarah smiled and said in her low voice, "You are welcome, Farric. Thank you." She held up her wine to him and took a drink.
—--43 days
A couple of days later, Sarah had sold all the jewelry to different jewelers. She added 1255 to her ring. Sarah had two jeweled daggers, and she didn't know what to do with them. She put the prettiest in with her jewelry and the other one in her boot which had a built-in sheath in both boots.
--47 days
On the last day in the city of Ghrian, Sarah went out to the market and the bakery to stock up on a few things. Sarah was walking back to the inn and four fae came up on her. They followed her and pushed her suddenly into the alley.
Sarah turned on them, and they had her trapped by blocking her way out when the one guy yanked down her hood. She looked at them and said, "Back off, you thugs!"
The four men chuckled at her, and one said, "You will fetch a nice price for us with the High King."
Sarah said, "I 'wish' you were all human women, stripped of your magic and being sold to centaurs naked." They screamed naked and disappeared. Sarah went through their clothes and filled her bag and pockets with everything of value. She could go through it later; one had a leather vest, and the rest didn't matter. Sarah left for the inn.
Sarah made a wish that all the four men's belongings show up in a pile in her room. There was a lot to go through. They were hoarders. She had in total 6544 gold, 1245 silver, 432 copper, twenty two pocket watches, a bunch of clothes in four bags. They had four tents, nine blankets, four waistcoats, two cloaks, and a bottle of whiskey. She found four bags of jewelry and four jewelry boxes full of more jewelry they must have been keeping.
Sarah kept the gold, the silver, the jewelry bags, jewelry boxes, pocket watches, the bags to put the jewelry in. She kept one cloak and one waistcoat in black, two linen shirts, and the rest she couldn't use. Sarah wished away the rest to people who could use them. She wished for the shirts and the waistcoat to all be thoroughly cleaned and in her size.
Sarah dumped the money into her ring. Sarah couldn't believe she accumulated this much money. She started going through the jewelry bags and boxes and sorting it out. Sarah kept some jewelry and separated it all into categories. The expensive looking pieces filled two large leather bags, the mid-range fit in one bag and the chains and bracelets were in the last bag.
One jewelry box was intricately carved in rosewood and bigger. It was better than her jewelry box. Sarah put her jewelry in the box, adding the new jewelry, and put it in her duffle bag buried inside the clothes. She wished the three empty jewelry boxes to people who deserve them. She picked out three watches that were the best and wished away nineteen pocket watches to people who needed one. Her favorite one had a chime to wake up like an alarm.
—--48 days
The next morning, Sarah woke up, and her kittens were hugging each other and curled up under her chin. She started petting them as they stretched and opened their eyes, that changed to an amber gold color that complimented their lovely colors. She petted them as they woke up purring.
Sarah got up and did her morning routine, packed up everything, including the four leather balls she had to search for on the floor the kittens were playing with. She fed the kittens and got dressed. She bagged up the 482 coppers and 2,895 silver. Sarah rounded off the coppers to 500. She was giving it to Farric and left seven bags on the bed. She had everything ready to go and after the kittens went to the bathroom and cleaned out the litter box with a piece of tree moss out the window. Sarah had both little bottles on her filled when she was ready to leave in a drawstring bag on her belt with the quart of cat milk. She kept refilling the big bottle with wishes until they were eight weeks old. They will be seven weeks old tomorrow.
