Chapter Text
When Avid finally stepped down from the carriage to take a look around, he was pleasantly surprised by the state of the inn he’d been brought to. Warm light emanated from street lamps on either side of the steps leading up to the porch, and muffled chatter could be heard even from outside. Just a quick glance was enough to reveal it was much nicer than the last inn he’d stayed at. It was nothing like the city, with its dark streets and wandering drunkards. And with what he’d heard about Oakhurst being a quiet town where people keep to themselves for the most part, he was worried the place might be run down… the warm, inviting atmosphere that surrounded the inn was certainly a relief.
Suitcase in one hand, he strode up to the door, briefly peering through the windows on either side to get a glimpse of the interior. As soon as he entered, the scent of fresh food and ale hit him at once. The first floor was set up like a tavern, with a bar off to the side and tables scattered around for the guests. On the wall opposite the bar, there was a lovely fireplace, and two guests chatting on a couch directly in front of it. There were three other guests sitting at different tables around the room. They were minding their own business, though, and the innkeeper behind the bar was idly cleaning a tankard with a wet, soapy rag. It only took a moment for him to notice Avid.
“Good evening, lad!” The man said, peering at him from behind golden spectacles. His accent might’ve been thick– and unrecognizable– but his expression was friendly, as was his tone. “Welcome to my tavern! My name is Renhardt Dogmorne, but you can call me Ren. How can I help ye on this fine evening?”
“Oh– Good evening!” Avid turned towards the innkeeper upon hearing his voice, “I just arrived in town, and I’m in need of a place to stay for the night. Though… I believe a friend of mine might’ve already made some arrangements for me.”
“Is that so?” Ren raised an eyebrow curiously, lowering the tankard he’d been cleaning. Avid quickly nodded, and the man paused for a moment. Setting the tankard aside, he retrieved a thick, leather book from beneath the bar, setting it on the counter. “Whose name should I be looking for?”
“It’d probably be under my name… I’m Avid,” Avid replied, watching the innkeeper adjust his glasses and break open the ledger.
“Avid… hmmm…” Ren hummed and ran a finger down the pages as he scanned the most recent entries. He shook his head as he got to the bottom, but once he turned the page, the two of them could see an envelope wedged between the pages like a bookmark. “Ah… someone musta forgotten to open this…”
Ren picked it up carefully, to find his name scrawled across the back in deep red ink. It took him a moment to recognize the letters amongst the elegant, decorative swirls, but once he did, it was unmistakable.
Renhardt Dogmorne
It was only when he turned it over, however, that he realized who the letter was from. Ren’s expression shifted to one of horror, and he threw the envelope down onto the counter as if it burned his hand when he touched it.
“What?!” Avid asked quickly, startled by the innkeeper’s reaction, “What is it?!”
“That seal!” Ren proclaimed, still in shock, "I'd recognize that cursed seal anywhere!” Avid looked at the wax seal on the envelope and quickly grew conflicted.
“It’s from him,” Avid added, “That’s Lord Goldsmith’s seal.” To confirm, he reached into his vest pocket and pulled out a similar envelope. A nearly identical one, actually. The only difference was the name scrawled on the back— and the fact that Avid’s letter had been opened.
“Don’t ye dare be utterin’ that cursed name aloud in the middle of me tavern, lad!” He shouted, so quickly that Avid flinched at the sudden change in volume. Seeing the younger man’s reaction, Ren’s expression hardened. “The man ye speak of is pure evil, dontcha know?!”
“Evil?!” Avid replied, in disbelief, “That’s absurd!” He looked down at the envelope in his hand, thinking about the letter that was inside.
“Ye know not what yer dealin’ with!” Ren stated firmly, before Avid could say anything else.
“No, I don’t know! I just got here!” Avid confessed quickly, “I don’t know what you’re talking about! What’s so bad about him?”
“Are you scaring away more of our clientele, Specs?” A new voice asked, as a man appeared in the doorway behind the bar. A man a bit younger than Ren— with messy blond hair and blue eyes— came out of what Avid figured must be the kitchen, since he was carrying a tray of food. Ren turned to face him, immediately defensive.
“Young Avide says he’s here to visit Lord Goldsmith!” Ren told him. The blond-haired boy looked at Avid, as Ren continued, “And ye know as well as I do, Martyn, that there be evil in that man’s soul!”
“Neither of us know that!” Martyn replied, shaking his head. With a free hand, he picked up the letter Ren discarded, taking a look at it. Then he stuffed it into his pocket and returned to holding his tray properly. “He doesn’t live in town. Nobody’s even met the guy. People go on telling rumors about anything they don’t understand.” Martyn weaved between the tables, distributing food to the other customers before returning to the bar and setting down the now-empty tray.
“Rumors don’t come from nowhere! And ye can’t deny, livin’ all on yer own in a creepy old castle in the mountains isn’t normal!” Ren argued.
“I don’t think it’s that weird. The reason it’s not normal is cause nobody can afford a castle in the mountains. If they could afford it, I’m sure plenty of people would do it,” Martyn replied with a shrug, taking the letter back out of his pocket, “I’d live in a castle in the mountains if I could.” Ren shook his head disapprovingly.
“Yer missin’ the point… there’s something that’s not right with that man,” Ren said firmly. Martyn was ignoring him by now, already opening the envelope Ren refused to touch. The innkeeper’s disdain for the thing remained clear, by the look on his face.
There was notably a bit of heft to the envelope itself, and upon opening it up, Martyn saw why. There were several gold coins, which he quickly collected and counted. In addition to the coins were two folded pieces of paper. Martyn silently read the first to himself:
Mr. Renhardt Dogmourne,
A companion of mine is on his way and will be needing a suitable place to stay the night in Oakhurst. Please prepare him your finest room and pass along the other message included in this envelope once he arrives.
Lord Scott Goldsmith
“This one’s for you,” Martyn said, handing the piece of paper to Ren, and then the coins, “There’s payment for a room inside.”
Ren looked at the letter with a clear discomfort, but he sighed and set the paper in the ledger, before counting the coins. “There’s more than enough for a room here. I’ll get you a key.” Reluctantly, he ducked under the bar to retrieve a key for Avid.
“And this one is for you,” Martyn added, handing the other folded piece of paper to Avid. His eyes widened slightly as he took it.
“Oh?” Avid asked quietly, unfolding the paper to get a look at its contents:
Dearest Avid,
I hope your journey so far has been a pleasant one. Arrangements have been made for you to stay the night here. Tomorrow evening, board the carriage leaving for Erithton at approximately 6:00 PM. The driver has been informed that I will be sending someone to collect you halfway, to bring you to the castle.
Eagerly awaiting your arrival,
Lord Scott Goldsmith
“Sending someone to collect me halfway?” Avid muttered confusedly, before looking up at Martyn. “Are there no carriage drivers here who know the way to the castle?” He felt slightly bad at the thought of troubling a carriage driver into making an extra stop.
“They know the way,” Ren replied, standing back up from below the bar and setting a key on the counter for Avid. As Avid nervously took it, he continued, “They’re just smart enough to know not to go there.”
“It’s partially to do with the fact that they’re superstitious… but mostly it’s because it’s plain old not safe,” Martyn added, “I’ve heard the wolves are migrating eastwards this time of year.”
“Wolves?!” Avid exclaimed, more frightened by the thought of wolves than by their comments about Lord Goldsmith, “Do carriage drivers often have troubles with wolves?!”
“Most drivers know how to deal with ‘em. As long as you stay near the carriage you’ll be fine. They usually don’t come too close,” Martyn replied. Usually wasn’t quite good enough to put Avid’s worries to rest, but it was better than nothing, he supposed.
“Just be careful, if ye do go to see him…” Ren added, “There are worse things than wolves wandering out in the dark. Keep yer wits about ye, and don’t trust everything that fancy lord has to tell ya.”
“Yeah…” Avid nodded hesitantly, “I will.” He tried to ignore the feeling of unease building in the pit of his stomach. ‘It’s like Martyn said,’ he quickly thought to himself, ‘People make up rumors about whatever they don’t understand.’
He really hoped, for his own sake, that Martyn was right.