Swenn stood and his men jumped up in support.
“The tavern is closing,” Swenn bellowed. “Everyone get out.”
No one moved until he drew his sword. After the patrons hurried out, Kayren watched in fright as one of Swenn’s men closed and locked the door. Eizle came out of the kitchen in a huff, but Swenn merely smiled.
“There, now we can talk.”
“Stay in the kitchen,” Eizle told Kayren.
She refused. “This is no way to treat your brother,” she upbraided Swenn. “And you just cost my father a lot of money.”
“What’s your name?”
“Kayren.”
Swenn looked straight at Eizle. “How much is she worth to you?”
Eizle didn’t speak, so Swenn pounded the table. “Answer me.”
Eizle stayed silent.
“This one’s worth about five ruffs to me.” Swenn gestured at the diffident woman who’d come in with him. “You should know how much a woman is worth to you. I’m trying to teach you something.”
“I think you taught me enough when I was younger.”
“Like about pyforial energy?” Swenn asked slyly. Eizle eyed the two grinning strangers. “Don’t worry about them,” Swenn said, turning to the men. “Wait outside.”
One grabbed the lady by her ass as if it were a leash. “Come on. Let’s keep ourselves entertained as we wait.”
“I see Kayren already knew.” Swenn spoke with levity. “You told this woman before your own mother? She must be worth a lot to you.”
“Just tell me what you’re doing here.”
“You don’t seem happy to see me.”
Eizle folded his arms.
“Well I’m happy to see you!” Swenn said. “I want to help my brother. First let’s go over how much this woman is worth. Just tell me when to stop. Five ruffs…ten ruffs…twenty ruffs…surely not thirty ruffs? Come on, Eizle.” He snickered. “Be reasonable.”
“I’m not playing your ridiculous games.”
“Is she worth more than a dalion?” Swenn studied Eizle’s face. “She is.” He showed his censure through an exaggerated scoff. “This is a weakness. There are bad men out there who value money a lot more than you do. You never know what they’ll do.”
“You need to leave.”
Swenn looked genuinely shocked. “I’m just trying to protect you.”
“Leave. In fact, don’t come back. Fifty years would be too soon to see you again.”
“You’re making a mistake saying these things to your own brother.”
“The only mistake I’ve made is not figuring out what was wrong with you when I was younger. I know what it is now.”
“Oh do you!” Swenn yelled. “Go ahead and tell me what you think is wrong with me.”
Eizle became just as enraged, stepping up close to his brother’s face. Swenn had height and girth in his favor, but more importantly he had a sword.
“Eizle, stop,” Kayren said.
He didn’t seem to hear her as he spoke. “You don’t care about anyone. You can’t. You’re incapable of it. You’ve never done one good thing for anyone, and you never will.”
“And what have you done?” Swenn shoved Eizle.
Kayren relaxed some as Eizle showed self-control. “Not much, but at least I haven’t tricked anyone into giving me money.”
“Name one time.”
Eizle laughed. “Do you even remember Neeko?”
“He paid me to take him to Lanhine and I took him.”
“You tricked him for money.” Eizle shook his head. “It’s all you’ve ever cared about. That’s probably why you’re here. You want my money now.”
“You think I’m the only one in Sumar trying to make money? This is the way people are in the world. You should be old enough to know that by now.”
“Stop trying to teach me anything and get out.”
“I’m not leaving. Go into the kitchen and make enough dinner for four people.”
“I don’t suppose any of these four people are prepared to pay for their meal?”
“I’ve kept your secret so far, but I don’t have to if you’re going to disrespect me.”
Eizle reached into his pocket and slammed down two ruffs onto the table. “Get dinner somewhere else, and don’t ever come back here. Brother or not, I don’t want to see you again.”
To Kayren’s surprise, Swenn smirked, then took the money and left.
“I’m sorry,” Eizle told her, looking around the empty tavern.
“I don’t understand. Was this just about money?”
“It’s never only about money with him. He wants to show his power over people. I shouldn’t have talked back to him. He can’t handle it, and he’ll need to punish me before he lets it go.”
Swenn entered the next day with his two men behind him, no woman this time. Kayren nearly dropped a mug of ale at the sight of him glancing about with a grin as if her father’s tavern was his favorite place to be. His eyes found her.
“Kayren!” He sounded cheerful. “Come sit with us.”
Her decorous instincts spoke for her. “I’ll be right there, just a moment.” She hustled into the kitchen. “Your brother’s back.”
Eizle showed a look of annoyance and then marched straight to Swenn’s table. “I’m not serving you food. I’m not serving you drink. The only thing you can do in this building is sit quietly until you’re ready to leave.” Swenn stood, but Eizle continued. “If you harass my guests, I’ll call the guards. If you harass me, I’ll call the guards. And if you harass Kayren, you’ll wish I’d called the guards instead of what I’ll actually do.”
Swenn glanced about the tavern, checking who had heard. Kayren looked down as his glance moved by her.
“You’re going to give us each a dinner to make up for your impolite behavior, and you will apologize to your other guests as well as to us.”
“Get out,” Eizle ordered.
Swenn rubbed his chin, quickly at first. Then his hand slowed as he pinched at his flesh. “I’ll give you one more chance.”
“No.”
“You do anything to me with the unmentionable, you’ll regret it.”
“I will regret it. But not as much as you will.”
Swenn chuckled, looking to his men. “He isn’t worth our time. Come on.”
Kayren felt like she took her first breath the moment they left the tavern.
“It isn’t over,” Eizle warned her.
He was right. Swenn was back the next day, his men behind him as usual.
“Kayren! Ah, it’s good to be here,” Swenn called out.
Eizle ran out of the kitchen. “Get out!” he screamed. Every head in the tavern turned to him.
“You’re going to throw out your own brother?” Swenn asked, pretending to be wounded by Eizle’s words.
“I told you you’re not welcome here.” Eizle gave him a small shove toward the door.
“Please, I’m hungry,” Swenn pleaded. “I have money.”
Someone else in the tavern stood. “You can’t send your own brother away when he’s hungry!”
Others stood, voicing their agreement.
Eizle’s face twisted. “You don’t understand,” he tried to tell them.
“He is your brother isn’t he?” asked a woman.
“Yes, but he’s cruel and this is just a game to him.”
“Serve the man!” another patron yelled.
“Serve him,” others added.
Kayren expected Swenn to show a triumphant smile. Instead he kept the same pitiful look he’d worn since entering. “Thank you all, but please, I don’t want any pressure on my brother.”
They only yelled louder for Eizle to serve him.
Eizle sighed. “Fine, sit down.”
Applause followed Swenn’s production of taking a seat and thanking his supporters in the room. Kayren and Eizle ignored him until his food was ready. She brought out three plates.
Without even taking a bite, Swenn told her the meat wasn’t cooked enough. His two men agreed. She took the plates from them.
Eizle just kept the already cooked meat warm in a pan for a short while, knowing what game he was getting into. Nonetheless, they claimed the meat was now overcooked.
So Kayren brought a fresh meal to each of them. Swenn spilled his ale on her dress. He was so sincerely apologetic that she almost believed it truly was an accident.
She could feel frustration building, and it didn’t help that the other patrons complained about Eizle to her, saying she needed to hire a more compassionate cook or asking why he was so cruel to his own brother.
Kayren avoided Swenn’s table, but it wasn’t long before he was calling out her name. She ignored him, so he stood and stopped her.
“I’m going to walk back to my table,” he whispered, “and soon I’m going to raise my hand and snap my fingers. You will walk over, politely, or you will wish you had.”
Swenn did just as he said he would, and she didn’t test him. “Have you finished eating?” she asked.
“Bring Eizle here.”
When she went back to the kitchen to tell him what Swenn said, Eizle stuck a knife in his pocket.
Kayren jumped in front of him on his way out. “Don’t bring that.”
He took it out of his pocket and stabbed it into a chopping block, enraged. Kayren threw her arms around him, trying to quell his anger. His muscles stayed tight in her embrace.
“Eizle,” she whispered. “He can’t do anything too heinous with all these people around. Let’s just get through the day.”
Eizle let out his breath. His arms finally came up around her back.
As Eizle crossed by tables on his way to Swenn’s, people asked if he was going to apologize to his brother. He responded to none of them. Mutterings about his impertinence spread behind his back, surely loud enough for his ears to catch.
Swenn stood, his disguise of innocence dismantled. “This is what happens when you don’t respect me.” He spoke quietly yet with the fury of a storm. “I’m going to come back here every day until I’m sick of sitting here, and then I’m going to keep coming until I can’t stand eating any more of your unseasoned cooking. Then I’ll keep coming for a week more. After that, you’ll apologize for the way you’ve treated me, and you won’t see me in here again.”
Eizle looked as if he might spit in Swenn’s face, his chest heaving with each angry breath. “I’ll respect you if that’s what it takes.”
“We’ll each take another mug.”
Eizle turned. Kayren jumped and yelped as Swenn pinched her rear. Eizle spun around before she could compose herself. She grabbed his hand as rage came over him.
“It’s fine.” She dragged him to the kitchen. “It’s fine,” she repeated. “Don’t do anything.”
“It’s not fine!”
“Please.”
Swenn and his men stayed for another hour, drinking and laughing vociferously as the three of them often called for Kayren and told her jokes that no woman would appreciate, let alone most men. She smiled, even laughing politely when she found the strength to do so.
Eizle kept asking if she was all right. She kept assuring him she was, even though she could feel her stamina draining. She knew Eizle could see it, but neither of them knew what to do. She tried to be strong, if just for his sake.
She had two empty mugs in one hand and three plates in the other when her route to the kitchen took her past Swenn’s table again. She only expected a comment, so she didn’t see Swenn’s foot in her path until she’d tripped over it.
She screamed as she fell. Both mugs shattered. The plates cracked. Eizle was out of the kitchen and running before she had a chance to tell if she’d been cut.
She sprang up. “I’m fine. It was my fault.”
Eizle clearly knew she was lying. He stormed past her as if she wasn’t there. Swenn stood and feigned fear, asking, “What’s the matter?”
Eizle punched him in the chest. Swenn staggered, barely dodging the next swing, this one at his chin.
“Why are you attacking me!” he yelled, getting his arms around Eizle. Everyone in the tavern crowded around them, shouting, a few stepping between them. Eizle, at fifteen, wasn’t fully grown, so Swenn stood taller and easily overpowered him with the help of other men.
“You’ve gone mad,” Swenn said.
Eizle fought against those holding him back, clawing at his brother. “Don’t touch her!”
“She tripped over my foot. It was an accident.”
“Liar!” But he gave up after a moment and shook off those holding him.
It took the better part of an hour to clean up the mess on the floor and settle the querulous patrons. Eizle cooked and served, practically throwing plates of food onto the tables. He needed to be calmed, but Kayren didn’t know how. She came into the kitchen and put her hand on his back.
“I’m no match for him,” Eizle said. “He’s too skilled a liar. His whole life he’s come up with excuses for his behavior. Is every day going to be like this one? Is this our life now? You don’t deserve this. I’m so sorry.” His rambling came to an end as he made two fists.
“It’s not your fault.”
Swenn entered. He rested his elbow against the wall near a stand filled with cups and plates, watching his brother cook in silence. Kayren came in and out of the kitchen several times, expecting Swenn to knock over a plate or trip her, but he didn’t move.
When hot soup was ready, Kayren regarded Swenn warily.
“Let me take this one out,” Eizle said.
“It’s fine.”
Even with a plate beneath the bowl of soup, Kayren wrapped her carrying hand with a towel. She stepped by Swenn slowly, tensing every muscle in her body. He slammed his shoulder into her. She staggered back yet the soup still caught her on the leg. She shrieked and grabbed her dress, pulling it away from her flesh.
“Don’t, Eizle!” Even through the pain, she managed to grab him as he started toward Swenn. “I’m all right.”
Eizle looked like he wanted to rip Swenn’s head from his body. Swenn had his hand near a dagger on his belt. In a blink, Eizle turned and started another batch of soup.
Swenn laughed without humor. “I suppose Kayren isn’t worth as much as I thought if you let me do that to her. Makes me wonder. How much to take her to bed? Two silver? I guess we’ll never know because no one would pay more than that.” He chuckled. “Unless they were blind.”
With the fury of a wild animal, Eizle charged. Swenn grabbed a plate from the nearby stand and hurled it with a quick toss. It struck Eizle in the chest, making a deep thud as he grunted, but it didn’t slow him. Eizle came in low, tackling Swenn before he could draw his dagger.
Fists flew. Arms flailed. Kayren looked for something blunt and grabbed the first thing she saw, an empty mug. In just that short time, Swenn had overpowered Eizle and was about to get his first clean punch. As Kayren drew her arm back to hit Swenn in the head, he flew off Eizle with so much force that he nearly reached the ceiling.