Hive Queen by Sinclair, Grayson (ereader iphone .TXT) 📗

tilted her in her chair to glance at the other members. "Any other volunteers?"

"You're not leaving me behind," Adam said.

"Of course not, little brother."

Adam scoffed, but he was hiding a smile. "We're twins, idiot."

Wilson chimed in next. "I would love to help, but with Duran gone, it falls to me to lead the guild, so I have to stay."

"Well, if Wilson is too afraid of the big, bad, man-eating woods, then I'll go," Gil said.

I beamed at him. "Thank you, Gil."

He just chuckled. "Can't let my best friend's main squeeze go alone. He would never forgive me. Besides, you've grown on me."

"I'll go too," Makenna said with a raise of her hand.

Everyone looked at the little woman with surprise, to which she flushed with embarrassment. Her face turned as scarlet as her hair, but her emerald eyes held determination and excitement in them. "Just think of all the unusual creatures that live in those woods. I can't miss an opportunity to study them."

Her answer received a round of laughter from the entire guild. "Of course, leave it to the bug freak to want to go," Harper said.

"Shut up," Makenna replied.

"Read the room, you moron," Gil said, pointing to the children and me.

"Oh, right. Sorry, I forgot."

I ignored his words, too thankful for the other members to let anything get me down. “Thank you, all of you.”

Wilson stood from his chair. “All right, everyone going, get packed. You know the drill.”

Immediately, there was a bustle of activity as everyone filed out of the dining hall, leaving me and the children by ourselves.

Well, best go pack myself.

 

***

It was painfully apparent that I owned very little. I packed my clothes in a spare bag in Sam’s room, but that was all my belongings in the world. I shouldn’t have spurned Sam’s attempt to give me money before. I’ll probably need it.

I sighed as I stared at the elegant nightstand by the bed and opened the bottom drawer. He won’t care in the slightest, but why do I still feel like a thief? I opened the chest of gold and grabbed a handful, tossing it in a small canvas bag with a leather drawstring, and pocketed the money with regret. I’ll pay this back, love. I promise.

I stood, all my possessions in order, and went with the children to find Gil.

As I reached the inner bailey, I opened the door to Gil’s forge. The air was hot, and while the temperature didn’t bother me, it stifled the air and hung in my lungs with every breath. Several sets of metal benches sat along the wall, and I told Tegen and Cheira to sit while I went around the corner to speak to Gil.

He was hunched over a grindstone in the corner of the space. The sleeves of his sapphire tunic bunched around his biceps, showing his dark, muscled forearms. Sweat dripped down his head and neck as he worked furiously to sharpen a large, black axe. Sparks arced from the stone, landing harmless on the dirt floor.

I called out to him, but it was drowned out by grating metal against stone. I tried again, louder, nearly shouting.

Gil turned, stopping his work. “Done packing already?” he asked, wiping his brow.

I nodded.

He leaned around me to glance at the meager bundle I had slung around my back, at which he rubbed the back of his bald head and grinned. "Looks like you don't have much. That won't do, won't do at all." He turned back to his work, grinding away at the axe. He spoke between grinds. "Once I'm done with this bastard, I'll see about getting you more gear."

He nearly jumped as if he was stung by a bee. "That reminds me! I have a present for you. I'll give it to you here in a minute!" He turned back to his weapon and started whistling to himself as he worked, a soft but upbeat tune to which he bobbed along, filled with energy.

Gil worked for half an hour while I went and stayed with the children. When he was done, he came around the corner with the massive black axe strapped to a makeshift harness behind his back. He had a box in his hand and set it at my feet with a cheeky grin.

I knelt and pried the lid off the box. It fell to the dirt with a thump, and I gazed at what Gil had been so excited to show me. A bundle of fabrics and leather stared back at me. I picked up the first piece in the box. A thick leather cloak rolled out. It was short and would stop just above my knees. As I picked up the dark brown garment, a slight jangle sounded, nearly inaudible to anyone but someone with my hearing. I turned over the cloak to see the inside was interwoven with chains. Chainmail.

"It’s nothing fancy. I wanted to make it out of shadowsteel, but I used the last of my supply working on my project. So it's not as good as I would like, but its Aldrustian steel, so it's durable and lighter than average. I also sewed a weight into the hood. It should keep from falling off your head if we have to hide your features."

“It’s perfect. Thank you, Gil.”

“Think nothing of it.” He smiled wide. “As I said, you've grown on me, and you may not realize it, but you being here has had a major effect on all of us."

"What do you mean?"

"I've known Duran for a long time. In fact, I met him at probably the worst period of his life. I've seen him at his worst and what I thought was his best…until he met you. It's obvious to those who've spent so much time with him. He's different when he's