what the palace was truly like, Brea looked up to find patrons walking through the front door looking for their lunch.
“Crap, I’ve been here all morning.” She jumped to her feet.
Mina stood. “Papa is going to be angry with me, but I do hope we see you tomorrow, Brea.”
Brea nodded. In truth, she couldn’t wait. The city and this tavern kept her heart beating when it wanted to freeze in her chest. With a wave goodbye, Brea stepped out onto the busy street. Sandstone buildings rose up before her, each more boring than the next. It wasn’t the mundane architecture of the lower city that breathed life into everything around her, it was the people.
A cart rumbled past, and she jumped out of the way before following the crowd to the market square where people sold their wares. Everything from fresh fruit to home-spun clothing and ceramic dishes.
A butcher slammed a slab of meat onto a table near her, making her jump and clutch her chest. She watched him hack away at it with a cleaver before moving on. One booth caught her eyes. A handmade sign read Eldur beans. She wondered if she could get someone at the palace to make some Eldur brew from them.
Fishing a few gold coins Tierney gave her from her pocket, she approached the vender.
A young man, probably only a few years older than her met her gaze, sliding it down to take in her clothing. “You’re the one who escaped Fargelsi.”
How did he know?
As if sensing her question, he smiled, revealing a wide gap between his two front teeth. “We recognize strangers here.”
“Oh.” She held out two coins, and his eyes widened.
“Do you even know how much money that is?”
She shook her head.
“Enough for this here whole cart of Eldur beans and then some. It’s only two coppers per bag, but I’mma give you one for free.” He smiled again, satisfied with himself. “Anyone who defies Regan of Gelsi is a friend of Ollie’s.” Ollie must be him.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Sure I do, miss—”
“Brea.”
He nodded as he reached for a canvas sack and scooped Eldur beans into it. “All right, Brea. Though, with you living at the palace, I dunno what you want with Eldur beans.” He handed her the bag.
“Thank you, Ollie.”
His grin widened. “Hey, Lew,” he called, looking toward one of the other carts. “A richie knows my name.”
She really had to get some new clothes so everyone would stop calling her that. Her parents in Ohio had never been well-off. Compared to Myles’ family, they were poor, and they dressed like it. Eyes followed her as she escaped from the market as fast as she could, uncomfortable with the attention.
If Lochlan were there, he’d bull his way through the crowd, leaving ample space for her in his wake. Finn would probably grab her elbow and make sure she was okay.
But they weren’t there, leaving her alone once more.
Keeping a tight grip of the Eldur beans that would keep her sane in this place, she left the market behind, ducking into a familiar building on her right. Once inside the quiet bookstore, she released a breath and leaned against the door.
“Brea, that you, dear?”
“Fiona.” Brea sighed in relief as she caught sight of the silver-haired woman walking toward her. She’d met the older woman at the palace when Fiona was tidying the library. The queen hired her to rotate the books and keep the selection fresh—with the exception of the human books. Those always stayed.
“Are you okay?” Concern etched into her every feature. “You look stressed.”
She pushed away from the door. “I wonder why.”
Fiona was one of the few people in the city who knew everything—well, almost everything. She didn’t know Brea was the real daughter of Faolan.
“Still no word?” She set the book she was carrying on the front counter.
Brea shook her head. “Not so much as a messenger.” She followed Fiona farther into the two-story store. At the back, a spiral staircase led to the upper stacks, a section Fiona called her human stories. Brea laughed the first time she found all the leather-bound tomes depicting stories about the human world.
She’d told Fiona the humans wrote about fae worlds as well, and they’d both had a good laugh at that. The first laughter Brea felt since learning the truth about her identity.
She was a changeling. Abandoned by her mother to be raised in the human realm where the things she saw and did because of her fae