Page 50 of Myths and Manuscripts
Everyone got really quiet before Dain sat down with a chuckle. “That was actually the hero’s first guess before poison.”
Willow laughed. “Man, the two of them are so much alike, aren’t they?”
“Hey!” I shouted in unison with the hero. He immediately snapped his mouth closed while I scowled at my breakfast. “I mean, no, we are not. We’re eternal enemies.”
“Right, right, of course.” Willow nodded as she finished up with Cinder and joined us at the table. She leaned over to take a bite of the hero’s eggs and snag a piece of bacon. “Mmmmm.....tastes wonderful. Not a trace of poison, and I’d know, I am an apothecary after all.”
The hero waited a few more moments until she finished every bite of that bacon and then dug in, wolfing his food down like he’d been imprisoned for days instead of spending one night in an unlocked and unguarded room. I bet he hadn’t even tried to leave. How was he the man who’d led armies against us and destroyed all our towns?
“This is delicious!” he mumbled through a mouthful of food. “Seriously, it’s so good. Thank you for the meal.”
Dain nodded. “Agreed. Thank you, my lady.”
“You’re both very welcome.” She smiled and took a big bite of eggs, then stared at me. “Aren’t you going to eat too?”
The intense look she was giving me made me think this was about something more than food. I sighed and picked up my fork, taking a small bite of well-seasoned eggs. Her grin widened as she set to eating her food with gusto, bouncing happily as if we were a sweet little family eating breakfast together. It just felt so wrong seeing the hero across from me every time I looked up. Even worse seeing Willow refill his plate with seconds.
This was the man who wanted me dead, and she was practically fangirling over him like all those people had done with me at the library!
If I was being fair, the hero didn’t seem as bloodthirsty as I assumed he’d be. He hadn’t attacked Dain even after getting kidnapped and he’d done nothing but thank us since he started eating. Maybe Willow was right about the plot twist. Maybe the herowasbeing misled. I couldn’t wrap my mind around the story otherwise.
“What are you planning, hero?” I snapped off a piece ofbacon, chewing it slowly. “Are you really going to invade our peaceful village? Or are you waiting for me to do something?”
He gulped down half his glass of water before slamming it back down on the table. “Ah, that really hit the spot. What a good way to start the day!” Then he glanced at me with a shrug. “I’ve got no idea honestly. I’m waiting to hear from the holy priest and the King.”
My eyebrows shot up. “So you don’t even make your own battle plans?”
“Wait, that’s not what I meant.” He scratched his head, wincing. “Forget I said that. I am completely prepared to invade this city of monsters, yes.”
Wow. He really was oblivious, just like the books made him seem. There was no way he was the mastermind behind all of this.
Willow leaned forward, patting his hand. “It’s okay, I didn’t hear a thing. But I am curious what got you into this hero business. Did you always want to be one or did a priest just show up at your door one day and hand you the holy sword?”
“A bit of both, actually.” The hero ran a hand through his flowing golden locks that only heroes ever seemed to have and smiled. “It all started when I was a child playing hero with my friends. We’d race around the town helping anyone who needed it and doing heroic deeds. But then my mother thought it was a good idea for me to start training with the sword so I could become a knight at the royal castle and suddenly I was too busy training to play hero. I was going to be a hero for real!”
His story went on like that for what felt like hours, and during that time, I noticed a curious thing. Willow was nodding and smiling like she was fascinated, but her gaze kept flicking over to Inkheart who was writing so fast I thought the pages might catch fire as the pen whipped across them.
Was this her casual way of getting information out of himwithout arousing suspicion? Now that was clever. I leaned back in my chair, admiring her ingenuity. I never would have thought that breakfast and a few choice questions would have him spilling his entire life story when he’d been adamant about not being interrogated last night.
The demons could learn a thing or two from this woman. The way her mind worked was absolutely brilliant.
Willow gasped over something. “Oh no! What happened then?”
“Then I—” The hero froze, staring at me. “Wait a minute, did you put truth serum in my food? Or maybe something to loosen my lips?”
I shook my head, a grim smile on my face. “Oh no, hero, you did that all on your own. Seems like you like to talk.”
“Which is a good thing!” Willow kicked my shin under the table. “I love hearing about your adventures.”
My leg tingled from where she’d kicked me, but it didn’t really hurt. It amused me more than anything, like we were a married couple telling each other to shut up when one of us said too much. I’d seen lots of people like that at the library and had always found their bickering endearing.
The hero’s chair scraped against the floor as he backed away. “No, you’re his wife! You’re just trying to trick me.”
“I’ll tell you a secret since you’ve been so open with me.” Willow leaned closer to him, lowering her voice. “I’m not really his wife. It’s a long story, but I’m not trying to trick you. I really do enjoy hearing about your life. I can prove it. Just give me a minute.”
She ran out of the room, leaving me alone with Dain, the hero, a demon bunny, and a magical pen who couldn’t help but say the most uncomfortable things. The silence was only broken by the pen’s scratching and the pages flipping. What would all its notes say at the end of this?
Thankfully Willow came back before it got any more awkward, her arms full of the books I’d brought from the library. My books. She dropped them on the table in front of the hero, shoving his plate out of the way.
