Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Two rocking chairs sat facing a little hearth, a small table beside each. We lived modestly in this village, with no electricity magically stolen from the parallel human realm, nor running water. We existed as in the old days, tucked away from the rest of the kingdom and safe in obscurity.
She sat in the other rocking chair, offering me a pleasant smile and grasping her hands in her lap. “So, tell me about this new drug that has you looking like a woman freshly and satisfyingly . . . seen to.”
My face heated and, given the paleness of my cheeks, a result of not seeing the sun as often as I’d like, I was sure my embarrassment showed clearly.
“Ahem . . .” I cleared my throat. “It is . . . uh, sexual in nature, this one. Very realistic. Well . . .” I toggled my hand. “It’s a dream-world style of realism, where wildest dreams come true, but realistic in the hallucination.” I paused for a moment, squinting at the fire in thought. “Actually . . . maybe not visually realistic, now that I think about it. That might be a problem. When my vision was more thoroughly engaged, it didn’t enhance the image all that much. Maybe it’ll be better in more light. But the feel of it is very realistic, and that’s the main thing, I think. That’s the thing that’ll have people coming back for more.”
Her eyes sparkled in that greedy way they did. She clearly sensed that the product I’d inadvertently devised had the potential to be heavily sought-after.
“There are a few products in the trade that enhance the feel of a lover,” she said. “I wondered if you would come up with one. I doubted, since you have so few lovers, but this—well, this is a revelation, my dear. The effects of the other products without even needing a lover in the first place? Oh my yes, the lonely hearts will love it. We’ll pluck clients right out of the boudoirs’ hands. Very well done, my dear. Very well done.”
I didn’t know what a boudoir was—though I certainly had a guess—but I preened at her praise.
Good girl.
That voice stole my focus for a moment. The sentiment dribbled heat through my core. So dirty. So delicious.
I cleared my throat again, looking at the fire. “Yes, well, don’t pat me on the back yet. I still need to figure out exactly what I took and how. Accidents are only fun if I can figure out how they originated.”
“Of course. Keep me updated. Now, where do we stand with the rest of your supply? We have an entire trading circle of people clamoring for more. We’ve extended into all but the demon kingdom at this point. I’m trying to work in there but their new lord— for some reason, he won’t accept the title of king—does not want any of our influence, whatever that is supposed to mean. His people are very loyal. Well, they have to be, right? He usurped the old king with the dragons’ help and killed all the former king’s loyal subjects. Anyway, I can’t find an in with him. So we’ll wait on that. But otherwise, a great many kingdoms are very receptive to us. The vampires are absolutely smitten with our stardust tonic. Can’t get enough of it. I’ve driven up the price.”
I frowned at her. “The stardust tonic? I thought that only worked on shifters and goblins as a calming agent.”
Granny’s gaze turned sharp, her expression hardening to stone. “Did Raz give you the list of products I need?”
I swung my gaze back to the fire. Granny clearly wasn’t in the mood for questions. She was probably tired from the day’s activities. She tended to lose her patience easily when that was the case. This conversation would have to wait for another day, it seemed. Not that it really mattered. As long as the customers were happy and buying, that was really all that mattered.
“He did, yes,” I answered dutifully. “I can do a few big batches to fulfill that order but I’ll be at my limit. If the orders get any larger, I’ll need help.”
“Is that right?” She steepled her fingers, looking over at me. I could sense her displeasure as I watched the dancing flames. My chest tightened with a thread of worry. I hated when her moods turned sour. It always felt like I was failing her in some way. “Is Raz not satisfactory?”
“He is, it’s just . . . the requests for product are getting a lot bigger now and I don’t have the—we don’t have the resources to handle it all.”
“I see,” she said primly. “And this wouldn’t have anything to do with his sudden illness?”
I’d become an expert liar with her, hiding all manner of things so that Raz or I didn’t get punished, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to work my way out of this one. One lie would lead to many. He was not sticking to the straight and narrow as much these days, and the story would grow too convoluted for me to keep together. In the end, she’d surely catch me up and the explanation would unravel.