Ghastly Glass by Joyce and Jim Lavene Page B

inclined my head toward him in deference to his station, but my mind was already playing with possibilities that might surprise him.
    The event was over, and the crowd began looking at their Village maps again, deciding where to go next. Daisy whacked me hard on the back and told me I’d done a good job as she took back her swords. “The king thinks we should schedule something like this every day,” she told me. “What a crowd!”
    Chase was waiting for me after all the well-wishers had moved aside. “Are you okay? ”
    “I’m fine. I beat the Devil. I think I deserve a tankard of ale.”
    “What happened? Did Daisy ask you and Tony to fight like that? ”
    Not wanting to admit how it all started, I shrugged. “You know how it is. Sometimes you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time here. I guess that’s what happened.” I hoped he’d never find out the truth.
    “Aren’t you supposed to be at the Glass Gryphon? ”
    “Give me a tankard of ale and five minutes and I’ll tell you the story.” I watched as two headless gentlemen strolled by. One of them had a hat in his hand that he tipped to me.
    “I think I’ve got five minutes.” Chase wrapped his arm around my shoulder as we walked. “I got a call from Detective Almond earlier. The red gooey stuff on Ross’s body was really blood. His blood. I guess it’s hard to tell the real stuff from the fake.”
    “What about the rebar? Did they ID the fingerprints? ”
    “I don’t think so. Almond has been kind of shifty about the whole thing. I can’t figure out if he doesn’t know much or doesn’t want to tell me.”
    “Why wouldn’t he want to tell you?” We entered the Peasant’s Pub for that tankard of ale. Several people who’d watched my match with the Devil shouted, “Huzzah,” and thumped their empty tankards on their tables to show their approval.
    The Peasant’s Pub was decked out in spooky spiderwebs, and the bar wenches were dressed like ghosts. A spider and various other unusual items along with the traditional pumpkin decorated each table. It was a nice effect, overall. It worked inside where the sunlight didn’t reveal the flaws. That’s why the Village was waiting for dark to bring out the really interesting stuff.
    “You’re a hero!” Chase ordered us both a tankard as we sat at the big wooden bar.
    “A heroine, please.” I smiled anyway.
    “Whichever you are this day, Craftsman, you are welcome at the Peasant’s Pub, and I would like to give you a free tankard. On the house!” Hephaestus, a big bearded man who probably resembled the Greek god he was named after, bellowed out his praise. That started another loud set of huzzahs with more tankard thumping.
    I was about ready to be done with all of that and start being an anonymous craftsman again. The huzzahs can get to you after a while, and tankard thumping gets to me right away.
    “Maybe we should’ve gone somewhere else where you weren’t so famous,” Chase said. “Although free ale is nice.”
    “I know. I’ve been thinking about visiting the Lady of the Lake Tavern. I haven’t been at that end of the Village for a while. You know how the pirates are sometimes.”
    “Tell me about it.” Chase nodded to Hephaestus, who personally served us. “I had a run-in with the Pirate King last week.”
    “What happened? ”
    He blew off the head on his ale. “It’s a long story. Let’s get back to why you aren’t working. Did Roger throw you out? ”
    “No. It’s hard to explain.” I wasn’t sure what to say about what had happened at the glass shop, especially with my recent revelation about Roger and Mary. I didn’t want Chase to disrupt my matchmaking plan. In my experience, men seem to have a thing about women interfering in love affairs, even those that are going badly.
    “Did it have anything to do with Henry grabbing your breasts? ” Chase didn’t look up from his cup.
    I swear I could’ve killed Portia at that moment. I could’ve looked at her