Keeper of the Flame Read Free Page A

into his arms. The rain had turned to sleet and snow. No one saw him lift the large winged cat into his arms and walk on as if she weighed nothing at all.
    Hugh had the strength of a dragon even when he was in human form. The little gryphlet was no burden at all for him as he held her shivering body close to his chest. She’d gotten cold again during their short walk no matter how much he’d tried to shield her from the rain.
    Hugh was thoroughly wet now. Wet, muddy and a total mess, but he was warm. The kitten seemed to soak up his warmth and her shivering stopped again in short order.
    They walked through the alleys, heading away from the cliffs, toward the safer working-class part of the city where he’d taken a room. Opting not to be murdered in his bed, Hugh had chosen one of the better inns to sleep in. He’d rented a room for the next week and paid half in advance to keep the innkeeper friendly.
    Arriving at the door with a giant kitten under his coat, her head peeking out from between the folds near his chest, Hugh realized there was no way to hide her. The noise level from within the inn was higher than normal, probably because so many had chosen to seek shelter from the storm in the taproom.
    There was a back entrance and Hugh made for it, but it was also the area where the innkeeper kept his spare barrels, and he was out there on the covered porch, wrestling with an empty when Hugh approached. He could have waited until the innkeeper went back inside, but Hugh needed to feed the kitten and for that, he’d need an ally in the kitchen. Who better than the owner of the establishment? If Hugh couldn’t talk the man around, they could always find another inn.
    But the man had seemed kind. Hugh had observed him taking less than the standard amount for lunch from a nearly blind old woman the day before and giving extra portions to her as well. The man seemed to have a big heart and Hugh was counting on that inner kindness to help him help the gryphlet as well.
    “Sir.” Hugh spoke in a quiet, unhurried voice, hoping to put the man at ease. “May I have a word with you?”
    The innkeeper looked out into the sleet and spotted Hugh standing by the steps to the covered porch. Hugh had dared not go closer until he’d warned the innkeeper of his presence. It wouldn’t do to startle the man.
    “Certainly. What is it you have there?” The man squinted, looking through the gray precipitation, staring hard at the gryphlet’s head poking out from the coat.
    “That is what I wanted to talk to you about.” Hugh stepped closer, moving under the end of the covered porch and shrugging his coat open wider so the innkeeper could see more of the baby gryphon in his arms. “I found her in the street. She is very young and in need of food and warmth. I will understand if you wish me to go elsewhere.” He kept his tone calm and quiet. To his relief, the man stepped closer.
    “Fell out of your nest, eh, little one?” The innkeeper addressed the gryphlet directly, his gaze rising from her eyes to Hugh’s with grim understanding. “Aye, you can both bide here. It was good of you to bring her. I have seen this before.”
    “Often?” Hugh couldn’t help but ask as he stepped forward, farther under the covered porch, heading toward the door. The innkeeper opened the door so he could pass through and their eyes met.
    “No.” The innkeeper shook his head, a grim cast to his features. “Not often. Thank the Lady.”
    Hugh wasn’t sure whether the man thanked a female deity or perhaps the Lady Doge who ruled this land. It didn’t much matter. What mattered now was getting this poor, bedraggled kitten warm and dry. And fed. The little cub had to be starving—Hugh could feel the bones of her ribs sticking out beneath her skin.
    The innkeeper led the way down the dim hall toward the bedchamber Hugh had been given. It was worth noting that the older man apparently didn’t want the gryphlet in the busy common room, even though