Chapter 22

Bowden

We stop outside a small B ‘n B well on the outskirts of the tiny hovel of Bedford. The place was surprisingly busy, busier than Claremont at any rate, and the conductor at the Bedford station told me that it was common to see tourists stream into the town on weekends, especially in summer.

After a little prodding, he did admit to seeing Clara, but couldn’t remember Kaiya. “Oh yeah,” he said when I showed him Clara’s photo. “Fucking red-headed witch that one. Strange way of speaking. She kept saying someting about the king wanting to kill ‘er,” the elderly conductor leaned in closer. “Now I ain’t no expert on the matter, but I don’t see why the king would bother with the likes of ‘er. Bit too low class for ‘im, if you ask me.”

I look over my shoulder at Griffin and Jaeger who are laughing behind their hands. The old man is talking about the human king, not me. “Do you know where they might have gone?”

“No, but e’ery hotel is pretty solidly booked for the next several weekends