Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Vargas was the first to speak up after the Tenky had vanished. “My word, but what a bold one he is!”

Ware shoveled some more of the food into his mouth before he nodded. “Quite.”

She frowned at him. “And as bad a table manner as someone I know.”

“Quite,” came the tart reply.

“What was that about a missing Tenky?” Allard spoke up, staving off the coming storm that brewed over Vargas’ head.

I shrugged. “Just one of the little guys came to the kitchen window asking about his friend. He seemed pretty worried.”

“There may be nothing to it,” Will chimed in as he looked at each of the occupants of the table with a smile. I noticed a tension in the corners of his mouth that didn’t match his words. “The Tenky are known to wander even beyond the boundaries of my domain.”

“How did you happen to come upon these strange little creatures?” Ware inquired as he draped one arm on the table and leaned toward Will. “I cannot recall ever seeing their like, though I have walked these lands for nearly seven thousand years.”

Vargas scoffed. “You are eight thousand years old.”

He scowled at her. “I know my age, My Lady, and I am seven.”

“You are not younger than me!” she protested.

Allard cleared his throat and offered a smile to Will. “You were about to tell us how you came upon these creatures that, I must admit, confound me, as well.”

Will smiled. “That is because we dragons fly too often while the Tenky remained on the ground, or should I say below the ground. They were originally followers of the dwarves and helped them with their more precise diggings.”

Vargas wrinkled her nose. “They have never spoken to me about such helpers whenever I have made inquiries into my precious gems.”

Will shook his head. “The dwarves value their work so much that they tell no one about their most useful assistants. I only discovered them by accident when a mine collapse occurred at the reaches of my domain. The dwarves, being far from their headquarters, requested my assistance in digging out the survivors and many of those trapped were Tenky. I noticed the dwarves were not keen on my finding them and so I pretended to not notice them as they were pulled out of the tiny crevices in which they’d been trapped.”

“But you managed to talk to one anyway,” Ware guessed.

Will’s eyes twinkled as he inclined his head to his guest. “Naturally. I was as curious to know about them as you are now. Many of the Tenky were eager to leave their mining lives and enjoy the forest floor, so I was able to sneak out a small horde on my person. The dwarves didn’t dare question me about their missing workers nor could they think of a good excuse for searching me, so I was able to make off with them. They have lived in my domain for the better part of five hundred years now and have multiplied, as you witnessed for yourself. Of course, others have come from elsewhere, carried by me on my travels.”

“Are they quite adept at finding precious stones?” Vargas inquired.

Will chuckled. “Nor more than the average gopher. Their skill lay in worming their way through nooks and crannies too small for even the most precise tools. That is why they are so fit to look for the wagon. There is no stone they will not overturn in the search for their quarry.”

Ware gave a nod and stood. “Then we may assume the search is in good hands. I would like to have a nice tour around the perimeter of the house, especially after such a heartening meal.”

“A wonderful idea,” Vargas agreed as she set her napkin on her plate and she too, rose from her chair. “If anything, we might see if an attack could come from the sky. After all, there is no telling of what evil that black creature may be capable.”

“Then I will join you for the fresh air,” Allard chimed in. He bowed his head to Will but gave me a wink. “We will start the tour and meet you soon.”

That guy had a sharp eye. He could see me squirming in my chair to question Will about the conversation during our meal. Our guests left the table, and the dishes, but Raines swooped in.

“Would you like me to take care of everything in this regard, My Lord?” he asked Will.

Will smiled and nodded. “I don’t think you have a choice. Vargas isn’t likely to get her hands soiled in a pan of dirty dishes.”

“Of course, My Lord. I shall begin the cleaning of the kitchen, as well.” Raines balanced a heaping stack of dishes in his arms and swept them away to be cleaned.

Will’s attention fell on me and he moved to stand. “Shall we-”

I set my hand over one of his and he paused, giving me time to look him over. “You’re worried about the Tenky I brought up, aren’t you?”

“It may be nothing,” he repeated.

I leaned toward him and pointed at his fork. “If you’re not worried then why are you torturing your food?”

He set his fork on his plate and smiled at me. “You are becoming rather perceptive.”

“Only when it comes to you,” I replied as I nudged his arm with my elbow. “But you’re avoiding the topic.”

He dropped his gaze to his plate and furrowed his brow. “The Tenky can be frivolous during the hours of play but it isn’t like one of them to wander off in the middle of a hunt.”

“Even for a pint of beer?” I wondered.

“Even for that which is why the lord made such a hasty retreat without taking any leftovers in his beard,” Will told me as his eyes fell on the empty plate left by the Tenky. The platter was so well-consumed that the plate nearly shone. “Any Tenky worth their beard would have gathered up a few bits of meat and such for another meal, but he took nothing, showing me he, too, is worried about your question.”

“But what could have happened to him?” I regretted asking the question. I regretted it even more when I noticed the dark shadow that passed over Will’s brow.

“I’m afraid only our memories of the two recent attacks and our imaginations can answer such a question,” he told me.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and squeezed his hand. “So keep the doors and windows locked tight in case enough Tenky go missing that there’s a huge gap in the security?”

He nodded before he stood. “I’ll make sure of that myself right now.”

I hopped to my feet. “I’ll help.”

Will turned us so we faced each other and he grasped my hands in both of his. “I would rather you went with the others. Though they may bicker and squabble, they are competent fighters and will protect you perhaps even better than I.”

My face fell. “But who’ll protect you?”

He smiled and pecked a light kiss on my forehead. “I won’t be long and I will feel infinitely safer knowing you are outside the walls inspecting the exterior while I secure the interior. Then when night falls there shall be no worry at all.”

I pursed my lips but sighed. “Damn it. Why do you have to make sense this time?”

Will chuckled. “Do I not make sense all the time?”

“Well, sometimes your excuses for keeping me safe are pretty lame,” I pointed out.

That got a laugh out of him and the sound lightened my heart. “I’ll be sure to create new and better ones for next time.”

My eyebrows crashed down and I rapped my knuckle against his forehead. “I don’t want there to be a next time!”

He grasped my hand and pressed a gentle kiss on the back. “Then let us get to our work and guarantee the safety of we three, shall we?”