Weeks of hunting were only halted by another rainstorm—this one battered Olston for a whole week before the clouds let sunshine slip through once again. When the rain finally let up, Raya had been helping her dad with some firewood behind the house. She did most of the work of course, but she was cheerful despite getting drenched. She hung those clothes to dry for a few hours, and then headed out after that. In the market, only a few stalls had opened; errant drops of water still fell, and only a handful of people had left their homes.
Raya encountered Viker wandering out of the market street, with a cloth pack over his shoulder. He smiled to her. They had spoken a few times over the last two moons, and they fell into step together with a practiced familiarity. “Good afternoon,” he said.
“Picking up some food?” Raya asked. “I’ll have more to offer tomorrow after a good, long hunt.”
Viker smiled. “I know. Must be a change of pace for you to get stuck inside for a while.” He was growing his beard out a little, but his expressions were not masked at all yet.
Raya shrugged, and nodded. “It is. I’m just glad to have the sky over my head again. Listen,” she said, lowering her voice, “I’m worried about Novar. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“Raya! We’ve talked about this,” Viker said. His voice was quieted forcibly and sounded hoarse. “Novar got to safety. He’s out of this town’s clutches, and if he’s smart, he won’t be back. You need to let him go. You did the best you could for him. If we’re being honest, you did more for him than he deserved from you.”
Raya nodded as he spoke, accepting his encouragement as much as she could. It was Cavthur’s rant that night which kept her coming back to concerns about Novar’s whereabouts and wellbeing. She couldn’t ignore the danger it posed to her home, which made her remember her genuine care for her brother’s health. “Thank you,” she said to Viker.
“You don’t need to. We both just need to forget about this. Promise me,” Viker said.
Raya pursed her lips. “I promise not to ask you about it,” she said. But she could not promise to forget about her brother.
They went their separate ways, their exchange complete. Raya wanted to check in with the butcher to buy some meat for their evening meal. She dealt with him lots, as he sold the remainder of her hunting kills that her family did not use. His shop was at the far end of the market from her house, in a wood-shingled two-storey building. The first floor was his shop, with its bloody counter and waiting table; the second housed his family. After Raya completed her business, she stepped out into the street again and waved up at the butcher’s young son, who leaned out a window.
“Raya!” someone called. “Raya!”
She looked down the street was surprised to see a pale young man walking toward her. His brown hair looked a little damp, and a ring of water soaked the bright tunic around his neck and shoulders. He was familiar to her, but it took her a moment to remember. “Benn?” she asked. “What are you doing in Olston?”
Benn grinned. He looked as energetic as he had when she first met him outside the Vagabond’s Rest in the city. “Master Urvin sent me to deliver some letters to Councillor Kama. Well, I asked him if I could deliver them. He said it was economic, so here I am!”
“You asked him?” Raya asked, smiling. The butcher’s meat was wrapped in an beige oryx pelt under one of her arms.
“Well, I—” Benn trailed off. “I wanted to see you again. Will you get a drink with me? I’m only here until tomorrow morning.”
Raya laughed, gently. This was a first, for her. She shrugged. “Uh, yeah, of course…. I should bring this home first.”
“Alright. Meet you at the Old Granite Inn?” Benn asked. He had a small pack slung hanging from his shoulder, between his arm and his body.
“Yeah. I’ll be about ten minutes?” Raya said.
He grinned, and bobbed his head, and then they brushed past each other. She barely stopped at home, just stepped inside and set the slabs of venison on the counter. Her parents were already in the living space, talking quietly. She told them she was going out, and they smiled, like they had been waiting for such an announcement.
When she got to the Old Gran, she was greeted by a glare from the innkeeper. Ogivar shrugged. “I don’t have any information for you, Ganner,” he said, as though he’d prepared the line a month ago.
“I’m here for fun, this time,” she said, with a wink.
Benn was already sitting at a small table on the right side of the tavern. She joined him, with a smile. They sat decently close to the fire; the rain stains in his clothes were already drying. “Benn,” she said, as she sat down. “What a surprise! It’s been what, three moons? Four?”
“Three,” Benn said.
“Feels like longer. Lots happened here,” she confessed. “My brother was arrested for killing… someone. Then he escaped. No sign of him.”
Benn’s jaw dropped. “What? Your brother? I’m so sorry, I don’t even know what to say!”
Raya raised her hand. “It’s fine. We were never that close.”
“He sounds like a real imbecile,” Benn said. Then he grimaced. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything negative. I don’t know what I’m talking about.” He took a drink from the pewter mug in front of him. “Oh, my manners. Want something?” he asked.
“Maybe just one or two,” Raya said.
He ordered her a cider, and they sat together for an awkward moment before he spoke up again. “I wanted to know how much I enjoyed your visit to Vagren. I know, it wasn’t all pleasant. We were chased by slavers. But, it’s been the highlight of my year.”
Raya laughed. “Thanks!” she exclaimed. “I’m glad I met you. How are things at the inn? Have you had any other problems with the Houses?”
“No,” Benn said. “Well, the city is never a very cheerful place, but we get by alright at the inn. I meet some interesting people, you know. I once stabled a man’s horse who said he road it the whole way from the Eye of Maga!”
“Really?” Raya asked. “That’s the whole length of the Crimson Highway. Must have cost a fortune, if you used the road. And his horse wouldn’t have survived if he hadn’t.”
“I know. And he wanted to stay at our grimy little inn!” Benn seemed so excited by this story it made Raya smile. He took a drink from his own mug, grinned, and put it down. “I hear all sorts of stories at my job. But how are things in Olston? Not counting that unfortunate business you’ve dealt with of late…”
“Well, I’ve met some interesting people to. There was one traveller who arrived and vanished the same night as one of our guards. Mystery was never solved,” Raya said. “But on the whole, we’ve just had lots of rain, lots of hunting, and some houses for the refugees. At last.”
“I’m glad to hear it,” Benn said. “Viker and Lotha have really helped out?”
Raya nodded. “They’re the best thing to happen here recently, and more than that, they’re my friends,” she said. “They… well, they helped me out when I really needed it.”
Benn smiled. “It’s good to know someone is. Though, from what I remember, you could watch out for yourself rather well.”
Raya grinned, and drank some of her cider. There weren’t enough people her age in Olston.