ALL NOVEL Followed
Braxton POV
Suddenly, a table behind Silas and me thudded against the floor as someone stumbled to get up quickly. We had been in the tavern for a half hour now, laying our trap. Silas had come up with the idea of visiting all the popular taverns and cafes in town and gossiping about the book thief in the hopes of getting a reaction out of someone. There had been no new developments in the case since Master Renaldy had started his investigation, so our only hope was to smoke out the culprit according to Silas. It seemed silly to sit around gossiping like the townswomen in the cafes and taverns, but I got to drink! Who cares that I sounded like a silly woman with loose lips? I was slowly getting sloshed after so many pints of beer. This was the best day that I had in a while.
Silas’ eyes glanced behind me at the bumbling person as we talked about the fake lead that we had come up with to smoke out the culprit. His eyes quickly glanced at mine, hinting that we may have found our target. We didn’t move from the bar as the gray cloaked suspect hurried their way out of the tavern. Silas swiftly got up to chase after the suspect while I stumbled a bit to get up and pay our tab. I had become sloshed after that last beer, so I had to take my time moving through the tavern and the crowded street outside of the tavern. After a minute, I caught a glimpse of Silas hurrying down the road and started my pursuit. Elbows were pushing me from side to side as I crossed the crowd. I was barely able to keep my eyes on Silas as he raced through the street with ease. If only I wasn’t so burly, this would be so much easier. Or maybe it was all the yummy beer I drank… No, my huge form has always been a problem in crowded towns. What’s an orc general to do?
Silas leapt over barrels and dove under goods people were exchanging like a slick snake weaving his way through the brush of the forest. He is nimble and fast like any typical elf, but there was a certain grace in his movements that screamed elf royalty. Poor Silas, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t hide his royal upbring. I should get him some orc whiskey. If he were drunk, his graceful nature would finally be obscured. Yeah, I will get him some yummy whiskey to help him relax for a change. Silas was barely in my view anymore as I sweated out the beer I had consumed trying to keep up with him. My stomach was starting to twist from the alcohol and unwanted exercise. I stopped to vomit in an empty barrel outside of a merchant’s stall. After hurling my lunch and a chunk of beer, I placed the lid on the barrel and left a good sum of money for the merchant as an apology. Something told me to avoid this area on the way back to the guild later.
By the time I caught up to Silas, we had reached the edge of our town. He looked at me for a moment, annoyed. The beer was still heavily in my system. I had to lean against a tree for support. He shook his head, staring at the forest again. We stood in front of the Evergreen Forest looking for any sign of the cloaked suspect. All I could see was a sea of green trees in front of us. Where had the person disappeared to?
“Any ideas, Silas?” I questioned as he looked at the trees perplexed by the suspect’s disappearing act. There were no tracks or broken branches on any path into the forest. It would seem no one had been in the forest yet today.
He shook his head, “There should be tracks, broken limbs, a sense of a magic trail, something…”
“I don’t know, Silas. All I see are trees blowing in the window and heavy leaf piles on the ground. Nothing else. I hear branches swaying in the wind, but that’s it.” I said as clearly as I could manage. It would be a few hours until I sobered up from my sloshed state.
“Piles of leaves on the ground and branches blowing in the wind… Maybe…” Silas mumbled to himself.
I rested my hand on my best friend’s shoulder to steady myself. “Your brain… is going to combust, Si,” I mumbled.
“Braxton, you are wrecked,” Silas handed me a canteen of water. “Drink this and sober up. I have a theory, but we need to keep moving.”
I opened the canteen and downed the freshwater. The sting of beer in my throat eased at the canteen emptied into my body. Closing the canteen, I shook out my short hair and beard. My head felt lighter as I tried to focus on Silas. “What’s your theory?”
“Follow me,” Silas answered as he walked into the Evergreen Forest.
“Great,” I huffed under my breath. Silas was going to make me walk on the uneven ground of the forest. Just my luck. He wasn’t going to share his thoughts at all. Yet, I followed my fearless friend into the woods with the biggest hope of not falling all over myself.