Chapter 19 - Would She Recognize Me?

My hand, for some reason slightly shaking, took the notice I’d pulled down, folded it, and then placed it into my pocket. Frederick had chased me out of the Dawn of Adventure and she’d followed too… right? Even if I wasn’t… I had to act like she had. So I kept moving, blending my way into a group walking toward Hill’s Oasis as I tried to decide what to do.
Were the others with her? If… if she was alone… should I…
I bit the thought back. If something… happened to Gwendoline here, even if Frederick wasn’t with her, it would only be a matter of time. Everything would be truly set in motion and one thing would lead to another.
Sawyer would get that wall he wanted after all… though he and the rest of Danwood would hate me for it. No… it wouldn’t have to come to that. All that had happened so far was Danwood becoming just a little bit of a better place for the people who lived there. I wasn’t even the only Activated anymore, so even if she did come out there, as long as Frederick wasn’t with her, she wouldn’t know it was me… right?
Would the crew realize she was one of the people I’d been running from? Would any of them tell her about me and the things they thought they knew?
I could do what I needed to do and run… Unless Frederick knew for a fact it was me that he was looking for, I could always still disappear again and find somewhere to truly prepare for the fight to come… couldn’t I? He wouldn’t punish Danwood if he showed up and didn’t find me after her death… would he?
“Corbin! I’ve got news you’re gonna wanna hear!” Willow popped out of nowhere the moment I entered the tavern and I nearly jumped.
I looked out the nearby window, searching the crowd for that ridiculous hat, then back to Willow.
“What’s the news?” I asked. Whatever she had to tell me couldn’t be that important, especially given the sudden turn.
She frowned and her eyes lost the glimmer in them just a bit. “Oh um… well I’ve hired a group. One of the caverns in Mount Auger is being closed for safety regulations. The seven people I hired for us have been out of work for a week now and said they’d be eager to start tomorrow, though they didn’t want to come back with us tonight.”
“That is good to hear,” I said, nodding and looking out the window again.
“Did something happen? You seem… distracted,” she said, her brow furrowing. “Were there no wagons? The others will be okay if they have to walk back again you know…”
“No, it’s not that. I have one and it should be ready back at the east gate in a few hours,” I said, cursing the thought. Another few hours where I could bump into Gwendoline.
There had to be a way I could handle this without drawing Frederick here. But if killing her was off the table, then what else could I do?
A memory potion might work, except even Gregory wasn’t slow enough to fool with that. Memory potions were a restricted product, and for good reason. It wouldn’t take a System scholar to put two and two together that someone out here didn’t want to be found if Gwendoline was discovered without her memories of the last week. It also was off the table simply because the reagents necessary to make it were of Extra Rare quality and I’d yet to get my hands on any of them this life.
Kidnapping her might work… if there was anyone feasibly strong enough to keep her down. The Priestess class had resistances to status effects and like with the memory potion, the idea was doomed to fail due to inadequate reagents.
“Corbin?” Willow said, reaching up and shaking my shoulder.
I’d been staring out the window again and this time she looked genuinely concerned… that was odd.
“It’s… it’s not something you need to worry yourself with,” I said, trying to brush the nerves away. I was panicking for no good reason. As long as she didn’t recognize me, she had no reason to suspect I was the person she was looking for.
“Corbin… what’s wrong?” Willow pushed.
“It’s—“
“You keep staring out the window like you’ve seen a ghost… so unless one of those is out in the middle of the day, then something happened,” she said, a bit more firmly than I might have anticipated.
Dusk take me… why did I have to keep putting myself around observant people?
“Nothing happened,” I said, perhaps a bit sharper than I should have. She might have tried to suppress it, but Willow still recoiled a bit and I tried to adjust. “It’s just… I saw someone I used to know.”
Her expression went from concern to intrigue then back to concern all in a matter of a few short seconds. She looked out the window and then back to me.
“One of those people you told me you disappointed? That you told Danny you ran away from?”
I paused for a moment, then nodded.
“Are… are they dangerous? Is that why you seem so shaken?” Willow pushed now that I’d given her something. I thought about it for a moment.
“They could be… But I don’t think it’s something that can affect Danwood if that’s what you’re asking,” I said and she shot me a look.
“I wasn’t… but good to know,” she said, her frown deepening. “Who… who is it? Can you point them out?”
I shook my head.
“I can’t see them,” I said. Technically it was the truth but the idea of actually pointing Gwendoline out didn’t sit well with me.
There was next to no good explanation for my reaction to her. Priestesses, even ones that hadn’t been Activated, were near universally respected in the crown’s land. The only thing pointing her out could do was tempt Willow into asking more questions.
“I didn’t ask if you could see them, Corbin,” she said, a little sharper this time. When I stayed silent, she decided to press further anyway. “You keep using ‘them’… is it one person or multiple?”
“Unsure… so far I think just one,” I admitted, scanning the crowd again and coming up empty. “Just… look if I point her out… it’s just going to raise questions. I’m going to just keep my distance, then wait at the east gate until the wagon is there and you all are ready to head back… okay?”
“Her?” Willow asked, grabbing the one extra detail I’d stupidly let slip.
“Yes, her,” I said. Any denial now would just make it worse. “Look… can you please just let this go… I’m glad you found some workers, we need to have the blueprint design ready to start. We’ll probably also need to hire Bram to cut stone and lay the foundation for us.”
She narrowed her eyes for a moment, then nodded.
“Fine. We can drop it,” she said, holding up a finger and pointing it at me before I could speak. “But if this is something bigger than you’re making it out to be… there really better be a good reason.”
“It’s good enough,” I qualified, then looked out the window again. “Now… meet in a few hours by the east gate with the others… okay?”
She paused for a few moments, almost as if she was considering pushing again, then after taking a look at the crowded inn around us, decided against it.
“Okay. I’ll be working on the blueprints,” she finally said. She was just about to turn and leave when she pointed a finger at me. “Don’t change them just because you get bored waiting for us. I’m just starting to get it all into the right spot and don’t need you messing them up.”
“Isn’t it my building?”
“Don’t change them,” she ordered again, giving me a stern look. A moment later, she was moving again, weaving through the other customers and tables before exiting the far side of the building.
I took a deep breath in and tried to calm myself, finding it just a bit easier than I expected. This was still bad… but it was controllably bad. I just had to be smart about it. I started walking toward the exit on the opposite side from where Willow had left.
Though I’d told Willow I was going to head for the east gate, I first headed back for the south gate instead. I was actually surprised to find Alban was already working on the wagon. For some reason, part of me had expected he’d wait until the last possible minute to get it done and the fact that he didn’t dawdle was nice. I might have even appreciated it more if I wasn’t having a minor panic attack. He shot me a bit of a confused look but after explaining to him that I was trying to get on the road earlier than initially planned, he assured me he’d have it done in no time at all.
Judging by the progress I could visibly make out, I had no doubt he was telling the truth. Assuming he was the one to haul it over to the east gate, I was going to have to give the man a tip. If this wagon was going to get as much use as I expected it to, having someone on hand for maintenance and repairs was going to be necessary.
I apologized for interrupting, then made my way to the east gate, keeping my eyes and ears open as I went. Maybe she’d already left… that would be good, right? Or… would she insist on visiting Danwood?
Maybe I should have thought of more things to get done, because loitering around outside of the gate left me alone with my thoughts for far… far too long. Or, it felt like far too long. Not much more than an hour-and-a-half after I’d taken a seat outside of the gate, Alban came around the outside of the wall on a small dirt path, my wagon looking… well not brand new, but far better than it had when I’d first bought it.
Having my wagon there finally gave me something to do while I waited, namely trying to convince Quiet to let me strap her to the wagon’s harness. Benjamin hadn’t been lying, she was in fact incredibly stubborn. It took no less than half a dozen cubes of sugar and a carrot before she settled enough that she didn’t try to fight me when I strapped her in. Though, she was definitely not happy with me if I was reading her right.
The sun was on its downward journey toward Mount Auger when a small crowd finally started to stream out of the gate, the village kids all spotting me and running over with wide eyes as they looked at the new wagon.
“We get to ride back?” a little girl asked and I nodded.
“Yeah, should have room for everybody. Though we’ll need to be a little crafty with how we stack your goods,” I said, looking back at the adults pulling their own goods behind them. “If you guys want to leave your stuff here to the side and start loading in, we can get on the road here in just a bit.”
There was a chatter of approval that came from them and they started streaming toward the back. It was only as the last few people started to step up that my gut turned. Willow was walking with Lana… and to my horror… Gwendoline.
“Do we have room for one more, Corbin?” Lana asked, a look of hope. “Sister Gwendoline has offered her services for Darla’s upcoming birth and I’m sure she’ll appreciate not having to travel out here for it.”
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Gwendoline said, bowing her head. She’d taken the stupid hat off, which was probably why I hadn’t realized she was with the group when they’d approached. When she lifted her head, her piercing blue eyes met mine. “I hope I’m not imposing.”