Page 54 of Suffer No Fools
"We were hoping to talk about it with you." Tovey's voice was barely more than a whisper, but he sounded guilty.
"You two should do whatever you want on your dates." Hugo's blush spread, the more he spoke. "With me … I think we should be able to kiss. I like kissing."
"Agreed," Tovey said, and Stan nodded. That was what they'd decided in the ship's hold, but Stan was glad to hear Hugo also wanted to kiss them.
"Everywhere," Hugo clarified.
Tovey snorted a laugh, and Stan nearly choked on a mouthful of stew.
"But nothing more, not yet. I want you both with me for anything new."
"Sucking on your toes would be new," Stan said.
"Gods, that sounds absolutely disgusting." Hugo squinted at him. "Why would you do that?" He shook his head. "No. Don't answer that. If you're going to kiss me somewhere new, then we'll wait until we're all together."
"We'll each take a foot," Tovey said.
"Tonight," Stan agreed.
"Fine. If you don't want to have a serious conversation, this one is over, for now." Hugo picked his spoon up again and waved it at them like a weapon.
"I can't wait to kiss you tomorrow night," Stan said.
"I feel like I missed out." Tovey pouted. "We didn't kiss yesterday."
"Then I'll make up for it tonight." Hugo dug into his bowl of stew, effectively ending the conversation.
#
Tovey
Tovey left the house early the next morning to meet with Gulde before her shop opened.
"I didn't expect to see you so early," she said. "What did she say?"
"She claims you remembered something after Martiz's trial. I wanted to hear from you before we involve the elders."
Allora claimed Martiz had made her forget several memories and kept removing them until she had virtually no memory left. The accusation made Tovey even more grateful he and his family had left the island before his little brother was born.
"Allora made the dagger for Martiz." Gulde took Tovey's hand in both of hers. "She slapped him during the trial, and the memory came rushing back. She was there when he used it on me."
Allora had said a great many things that made Tovey toss and turn long after Hugo and Stan fell asleep. "Do you believe her, that she didn't remember?"
"She's no actress. I saw it in her eyes. She didn't remember, and then she went far away, like she wasn't in the room with me anymore. Tears streamed down her face, and then she came back to me, apologizing profusely. I've never known Allora to apologize for anything."
"Getting caught?"
"Please." Gulde rolled her eyes at him, and he almost laughed at her exaggeration. "You know as well as I do, she thinks her shit doesn't stink. No, this was different. I believe she does feel remorse for her actions. I only wished I understood how Martiz got her to do half of them, if she didn't want to."
"Healers can do many things we wish they couldn't," Tovey said. Hugo had told Tovey horror stories about Coryn forcing him to walk to the palace veranda balcony above the masses of Hearthstone. She couldn't force him to say what she wanted, so an air weaver spoke for him and projected his voice over Hugo's. Hugo's rescuers had even seen it in action at the palace, when Coryn had forced Klaus to walk away from Vadim.
"Do you have time to visit Allora with me?" he asked. "She wants to speak to Hugo alone. She's worried Beatrice and theothers won't believe her. If she knew you were on her side, she might reconsider."
Gulde laughed. "I never said I was on her side." She glanced at the door and then grinned at him. "Who would have imagined I would ever vouch for her? Spending the morning on the arm of a gorgeous air weaver, on the other hand ... I can't turn that down."
He offered his arm.
"I've already finished your present for Emperor Hugo," she said. "I'll put the finishing touches on the rest this evening, fate permitting."
