Page 47 of The Tracker's Rage
“I didn’t do anything to him. It was all a big misunderstanding.”
Glimlock stopped and put down his sword again, looking exhausted. “That was no misunderstanding. My wife left me because of you.”
Huh?!I didn’t see that coming.
A small gasp went through the crowd. They had abandoned their food and turned their attention to us. It seemed that, without television, this was as close to a soap opera as they would ever get.
“I had nothing to do with that,” Damien protested.
“You gave her a black chrysanthemum,” Glimlock said as if that explained everything.
Damien rubbed his forehead. “I have tried to explain that I didn’t know the significance of what I was doing. I was just trying to be nice to her.”
“I was just trying to be nice to her,” Glimlock mimicked in a nasally voice. “Any idiot knows that black chrysanthemums give females the wandering eye.”
Did they? Was that a thing everywhere? Or only here in Elf-hame? Hmm, I was starting to see that it might have really been a misunderstanding, a clash of cultures most likely.
“The first strapping chap she saw,” Glimlock went on, “she was off, chasing him. Now she lives across the way with my neighbor, raising his chickens and his crops, while mine go unattended.”
Well, if that was the only reason why he wanted a wife, maybe she was better off without him.
“I miss her so much.” Glimlock started crying, large tears spilling onto his rosy cheeks and getting lost in his thick beard. A snot bubble popped out of one nostril as he blubbered.
Oh, dear!
Damien shot daggers at me, clearly blaming me for the mushy display.
“But, you’re sorry about it, aren’t you,White Damien?” I said in a helpful tone.
The mage shook his head ever so slightly. “Yes, I’m quite sorry.”
“Sorry will not bring my Ennora back,” Glimlock blubbered.
What a hopeless situation. For a moment, I didn’t know what else to do, then an idea occurred to me.
“Um, Glimlock, what if... you gave your wife another black chrysanthemum, and then you strut about to make sure she sees you first.”
“If it were that easy, I would have already won her back, but black chrysanthemums are near impossible to find. I honestly don’t know where this idiot got one and took it upon himself to ruin my life.”
I turned to Damien. “Where did you get it?”
He raised one white eyebrow, then addressed Glimlock. “If I promised to get one for you, will you leave me alone?”
Glimlock swatted tears from his eyes. “Can you do that?”
Damien opened his mouth to answer, but paused, casting a glance about the room. Several males were listening in rapt attention. The mage leaned down toward Glimlock and whispered in a barely audible tone.
“I can but with one condition.”
“You have no right to set conditions, you dishonorable human.”
“Shh,” Damien pressed a finger to his lips. “Do you want your wife back or not?”
Glimlock huffed and thought for a long moment. Finally, he said, “Right then, what condition?”
“Let’s get out of here and make a deal.”
