Chapter 39: Entanglements

Three days later, James called for another breakfast meeting. The staff gathered around the large table in the back of the tavern, mugs of tea and plates of bread and cheese scattered between them. The tourney was approaching fast, and James could feel the collective tension rising with each passing day. “I want an update from everyone on the status of our booth at the tourney.”

Jan stood and gave her update, “Gerrin finally admitted that he cannot finish the booth in time. When I brought Aldous to review the progress, there was a screaming match that would put angry whores to shame. Gerrin cycled through anger and denial before he would even listen to me. I learned a lot of local curse words, which I shared with everyone.”

“Hey, not me,” James said.

Ignoring him, she continued, “Apparently, bringing a competitor was a challenge to his manhood. Once he settled down, he was civil—especially since I threatened to pull the project from him. He told me I had to pay him either way. Aldous laughed and said, what good is the money if I ruin your reputation. ‘Taking advantage of a woman and then not meeting his own deadlines.’ Aldous did not threaten; he just announced that if the booth wasn’t ready, every carpenter in town would hear about it.”

“Will he be finished on time?” Christine asked.

“No way in hell. So as we discussed, I split the project into sections and hired Aldous to work on his part. Together, they will be finished a days before the tourney. That gives us enough time to make last-minute changes.” Jan finished.

“How much more will this cost us?” James asked.

“Not as much as you would think. Gerrin is cancelling the cost of the parts we took from him. So maybe ten percent more.”

“That is good news. Especially having the booth early,” James noted.

Suki stood and gave her update, “We are in great shape for the food. Christine gave Garrick coins so he could expand to buy from the neighboring farms. When we are ready, Raphtalia will deliver the produce to us every morning. We can use Bartholomew’s magic refrigerators to hold the prepared food. I have invited Spiro, Lord Mallow’s cook, over several times. With his help, we have developed a menu that is unique but acceptable to the local palates. So the food for the Royal Commission is resolved, and there are no problems. Captain Kenneth even offered one of his guards to escort the food when we deliver it to the knight’s pavilions.”

“Wonderful. And for the food for the booth itself?”

“Everyone I’ve talked to says keep it simple. Meat skewers, small loaves of bread, maybe a stew. Real comfort food. The key to the booth’s success is speed. People will want to grab and go. So we have meat on wooden skewers, sandwiches, and two options for drinks. It turns out that no one in this world has heard of sandwiches. We can make them here, wrap them, and take them to the booth with little fuss. The sandwiches will be a novelty and fast to serve. The drink will be beer in their container or in clay ones that the potters are making for us. We can charge more for the clay mug and give a discount for subsequent orders.”

“Clever. This is something I would never have thought of,” James said.

“It’s been a thrill to come up with things that can make us a lot of coins and be innovative. I’m glad you gave me the opportunity,” Suki gushed.

“Okay, does anyone know of any issues that will prevent us from being ready? Now is the time to bring them up,” James said.

Alice stood and asked, “What do you want to do about the crocheting everyone has been doing? We will have thirty or forty pieces that we can offer, but I don’t know how to price them.”

“The normal way is to calculate how much labor was required to make the item, and add the cost of the material. But the tricky bit is to guess what the hourly rate should be. I recommend we go talk to Maddoc. He is one of the better tailors in town and should be able to advise us,” Christine recommended.

“That’s a great idea. Can I go with you?” Alice asked.

“Of course.”

“Anything else? Otherwise, I am off to the field to practice,” James asked.

“There is one more thing, Captain Kenneth came yesterday. Iona will be here for dinner on Saturday.” Jacky smirked. “But don’t worry; we will lay out your clothes. And Alice, Friday is your night. Make sure you drain him so he won’t be distracted when Lord Mallow’s daughter is here.”

“I am not sure I can survive your help.”

“Sure, you can, James. We have your best interests at heart,” Christine quipped.

For the next three days, James spent each day at the training field—the broad clearing east of Castletown where Kael had first taught him the foundations of battle magic. The field sat in a natural depression between two low ridges, screened from the road by a dense line of oaks and bordered on the far side by a stream that fed into the river. Kael had chosen it for its isolation and for the ley lines that ran beneath the soil, close enough to the surface to tap without great effort. Over weeks of practice, the clearing had become James’s private workshop. Scorch marks darkened the trunks of several trees, a boulder near the stream bore a deep crack from a misdirected grab spell, and the grass had been worn to bare dirt in several spots where he paced during concentration exercises.

He practiced every spell Kael had taught him, working through each one methodically—first the defensive sequences, then the utility spells like lift and grab, and finally the single offensive spell Kael had entrusted to him. He wanted to be ready for the next set of spells once the battlemage returned. By the end of the third day, James felt good about his progress. His reaction time had sharpened, and the spells that had once required conscious effort now flowed with something approaching instinct. But he did notice that he was slacking on the final day. Tonight was Alice’s night, and then tomorrow, Iona. ‘What was he thinking? He was never a lady’s man, and to aim at the stars seemed foolish. Maybe mom was right. He was like a dog chasing a car—what was he going to do if he caught it?’