previously: Martin and a party of hunters from a local village are tracking a bear-like beast through the Wilds.
and now: we flashback to Renkle, one of the villagers.
Renkle—The Night Before the Attack
Renkle raised his empty mug in the air to get the bartender's attention. He didn't need another drink. But he wasn't at the Bottomless Pint for the ale. It was because of a certain barmaid.
Sometime later, Lindsey set a full mug down on the table in front of him.
"Should I put that on your tab?" she asked.
Renkle looked up and replied, "Yeah, and add a copper for yourself."
He did his best not to sound nervous. To meet her eyes and smile confidently.
Renkle wasn't sure he succeeded until she smiled back. Their eyes locked. In that moment, he searched for something more to say. Something to hold her attention on him for a few moments longer.
Should I tell her a joke? he wondered.
He liked the sound of her laugh, loud and unabashed. But the only jokes he knew were vulgar and crass. He had to give his friend Tack credit for that.
Or, he mused, should I try to impress her.
His floundering for something to say stretched that moment into an eternity. Her smile began to fade as it turned awkward.
Suddenly, he felt a hand slap him on the back.
"Did Renkle tell you he's now part of the Watch?" a voice said.
A heavy weight plopped down next to him on the bench. Before he could turn and shoot Tack a dark glance, Renkle saw Lindsey's smile relight.
"And he's on duty at sunup," Tack said, adding another audible smack on Renkle’s back. "Ain't that right?"
"Yeah, I'm on watch tomorrow morn," he replied, as he began to think Tack's slaps weren't meant to be friendly but had another purpose.
"Well, I'll be here tomorrow night," Lindsey said, shooting one last glance in Renkle's direction.
Then she was off to serve other patrons of the Bottomless Pint.
"What's up with you?" Renkle said, shrugging off Tack's hand.
Tack slid his hand from Renkle's back to his friend’s mug of ale. He grabbed it and took a long swig.
"Hey, that's mine," Renkle shouted.
After setting the mug down, Tack smiled and replied, "I'm just trying to help you out is all."
"What do you mean by that?" Renkle asked, taking the half-empty mug from his friend.
"You see, I'm on duty with you tomorrow," Tack explained. "And I don't want to be dragging your arse out of bed because of some crush you have on a barmaid.”
The friends laughed, and after another pint, they headed home for the evening.
You, my subscribers, are also my beta readers, so please feel free to comment, whether you notice a grammatical error or have a question about the story.
Mmm jumping around in the timeline eh? That works good for serials, so long as the reader remembers the main plot lol I like this little look at Tack and Renkle. I like this so far and it’s very easily consumable/bite-sized, which is huge for most people.
Edit notes:
Before he could turn and shoot his(extra word maybe?) Tack a dark glance, Renkle saw Lindsey's smile relight.
Tack slide (slid) his hand from Renkle's