Chapter 9: I’m not Jealous, I’m just Venting
“WELCOME home, Arthur.”
“Hi, Olivia. I bought some extra meat. Figured you could serve it in the restaurant.”
“Thank you. Oh? There’s someone outside. Do you know him?”
“Nope. But he does look hungry,” said Arthur with a stiff smile.
Olivia walked briskly across the restaurant and opened the door to call to the man astride a horse looking at the restaurant. “Hello. Would you like a bowl of soup loaded with mushrooms? The omelets and roast pork are really nice too.”
“Uh, um. Yes. Yes, I’d like to eat!” he said. He was probably around thirty years old, heavily built, with bouncy curls of a warm brown.
He came into the restaurant, looked for a while at the menu on the wall, then ordered the soup of the day, an extra-large helping of the sides, an omelet on a separate plate, and three pieces of bread. He must’ve had quite the appetite.
The man fidgeted while he waited for his food and glanced repeatedly at Arthur, who was eating alone. Just in case, Arthur was pretending to be a customer and sitting at a table near the kitchen.
“Sorry for the wait,” said Olivia. “Here’s your soup of the day, a large helping of the side, an omelet, and bread.”
The man let out a gasp of delight when he saw the food brought to his table, and then he used his spoon to shovel up hearty mouthfuls. His gusto was obvious.
Arthur smirked to himself and thought, That’s my tail? Guess Freddy’s friend’s place lacks people with those skills.
It was already late enough for the restaurant to be closed on a normal day, so the man was the only customer.
Arthur waited for him to finish eating, then said, “You followed me to find the dame’s cures, didn’t you?”
“Uh, no, I just…” He faltered, his eyes darting back and forth.
“Must’ve been tiring following me when you’re not used to that kind of work. Sorry to say, though, I’m not the one who picked them. I just delivered them.”
“Oh. Uh, guess you realized I was tailing you. Oh, my name’s Bill, by the way.”
“I wouldn’t even call what you did tailing. You basically just walked behind me. I’m Arthur.”
“Oh. Right.”
At that, Arthur turned back to Olivia. Olivia was trying to sense Bill’s inner voice, but all she was getting were feelings of fear and bewilderment. There was no sense of hostility or aggression. Once she was certain of that, she nodded to Arthur with a smile.
“Since I’m not the one who picked them,” said Arthur, “I can’t tell you where they were. Sorry. And I can’t tell you who did pick them. So, what are you going to do? Are you going to leave? Or do you want to try going with me and my wife into the forest tomorrow to look for more? She knows a lot about the forest.”
“Your wife…? Are you sure? I had no idea what to do. I can’t go back empty-handed. I’m actually an apothecary. I didn’t want to take this job, I’ve never tried tailing someone, but I’m the lowest in seniority. They wouldn’t let me refuse.”
“I had a feeling that might be the case.”
Olivia joined the conversation then with a kind expression as she served some cherry tea. “There aren’t any inns in the area. Would you like to stay in our outbuilding? The goats use the first floor, but the second floor is nice enough, and the sheets are clean.”
“I hate to impose, but, if you don’t mind, that’d be a huge help,” said Bill. “Thank you. Honestly, I didn’t feel comfortable traveling the roads at night in a place I don’t know. Oh, how much is the rate to stay here? I don’t have too much on hand…”
“You don’t have to pay, since you’ll be sleeping above the goats. It’s all right,” Olivia said.
“Thank you so much! You’re a lifesaver! And, you know, this tea is really good!” Bill’s chair scraped across the floor as he pushed it back to stand and bow several times to Olivia.