Mel Odom - The Lost Library of Cormanthyr

The ranger looked up abruptly. He sat cross-legged on the floor, his forefingers steepled together and supporting his chin. He hadn't shaved his facial hair in the last few days, and a dark shadow covered his jaw line. "Can you get something to eat brought here?"

Cordyan studied the man. It was the first time he'd asked for anything, almost the first words he'd spoken independently without being prompted with a question since entering the home. "Of course," she answered. "What would you like?"

"There's a tavern down along the wharf in the dock ward," Baylee said, "called the Emerald Lantern. If he still works there, a cook named Tau Grimsby will set a plate showcasing the best from the sea and from the fields, along with an assortment of steamed vegetables and sauteed mushrooms, for only a few silvers. Maybe you could send someone for it." He offered a purse that held the clink of coins.

"Of course."

"Thanks." Baylee tossed the coin purse over to her, then turned his attention back to the model he was reassembling. "Feel free to have them get you anything you'd like as well. But I recommend this plate."

Cordyan sent for a watch officer and bade him go to the Emerald Lantern. Hardly had he gone when Baylee called for her.

"I think I have it," the ranger said.

"Have what?" Cordyan crossed the room, stepping over loose debris and blackened boards.

"Where Golsway's interests lay," Baylee said, "if not exactly what he was searching for."

Cordyan studied the mound of grass-green papier mache piled on the floor in front of Baylee. "And what do you think it is?"

" Where it is," Baylee reiterated. "You've heard of the Greycloak Hills?"

"Of course." Cordyan was intrigued. The Greycloak Hills were a known destination for adventuring bands.

"In years past," Baylee said, making a final adjustment to some of the papier mache pieces he'd fit together, "the Greycloak Hills were called the Tomb Hills. Tombs from the Fallen Kingdom were spread throughout those hills. Many valuable artifacts were found there. Golsway and I went on three major expeditions to the area. Never did we return empty-handed."

Cordyan surveyed the model he'd assembled. "How do you know this wasn't an old representation of one of those excavation sites?"

"Because we never found anything in the Greycloak Hills that Golsway would have put on exhibition," Baylee answered.

"And this is new?" she asked.

"I've never seen it here."

"You believe that Golsway was interested in a new dig site in the Greycloak Hills?" Calebaan asked.

"No." The ranger pointed out identifying landmarks. "This is a very old one, one of the very first. More than a hundred years back, the exact year is open to some conjecture, an adventuring party under the leadership of Bulwgar Helmm journeyed there and discovered enough in treasure to help open the floodgates of tomb raiders that slipped into the area."

"You believe that Golsway discovered something that had been missed in the earlier excavation?" Cordyan asked.

"That fits this scenario." Baylee shifted, trying to find a place that fit him more comfortably.

Cordyan understood his motivation. She was tired of staying inside the house, wearied from standing so much in one spot. And she'd not been hunkered over the little pieces of models for hours.

"Those early excavations were purely cursory," Baylee said. "Groups charged into the area and took what they could find. A number of hidden areas were missed."

"You didn't find Golsway's journal, did you?"

Baylee shook his head. "You've been with me the whole time. Did you see me find it?"

"No." Cordyan stared at the model, willing it to make sense. Only it sat there. "I need to be better convinced of the authenticity of your claim."

"All right. In the north ward, you'll find a mapmaker," Baylee said. "His name is Yassit Daggle. For a price, you can persuade him to come here with his topographical maps and confirm what I'm showing you. This section of the Greycloak Hills is quite distinctive to someone who's been there."

Cordyan glanced at Calebaan, silently seeking his advice.

"I know of Daggle," the watch wizard said.

"If his fee is a consideration," Baylee put in, "I'll gladly pay it myself."

"No," Cordyan replied. "The coffers of Waterdeep and the Watch are not so shallow that they cannot cover a mapmaker's expense."

"Good. I'll need him here, and whatever latest maps of the area he might have to make a better guess about what Golsway was after."

"The elves from Evereska have taken over the lands of the Greycloak Hills of late," Calebaan said. "There is much speculation that they have discovered sources of magic, and perhaps even treasures, that have not yet been found."

"Everyone connected with this has displayed a vast resource of magic," Baylee said quietly.

Cordyan held her own counsel. The conclusions the ranger offered fit the circumstances. She looked into Baylee's jade green gaze. "It will take time to find the truth."

"Maybe more than you realize," Calebaan said. 'The elves dwelling in the Greycloak Hills these days are very territorial."

The watch officer who had been sent to the Emerald Lantern returned carrying a large basket and a wine flask. He placed the food and wine on a nearby table. "The cook wishes for you to enjoy your repast," the man said. "And wishes for you to drop in on him as time presents itself."

Baylee crossed the room to the table. When he lifted the lid on the basket, Cordyan smelled the aroma of the food. "Would the two of you care to join me?" the ranger asked. "Enough was sent."

Cordyan shook her head, trying to keep distance between herself and the ranger. Over the last days of travel, keeping that distance had been hard. Baylee was a friendly man, and despite the present situation, generally of good humor. And his travels around all of Faerun made him an interesting conversationalist.

"If you really don't mind," Calebaan said, "I might nibble on a few things."

"Please help yourself." Baylee pulled the wine flask up and turned it so he could read the label. He smiled in appreciation. Tau must have been in a generous mood today." He showed Calebaan the label.

"A very good year," the watch wizard agreed.

Baylee held out his hands, showing the dirt and the grime from reassembling the model pieces. "I'm going to wash up and come right back." He left the room, going up the stairs.

Calebaan rummaged in the basket, bringing out a large buttered shrimp. He bit into it, then made a growl of approval. "You should really try this."

Cordyan felt irritated at her friend, which let her know exactly how tired she was. "No, thank you." She stared hard at the model. "Do you believe him? About the Greycloak Hills?"

"I can find no reason not to." Calebaan searched in the basket still further and emerged triumphant with a cube of beef that still showed a little pink. "Why? What do you think?"

"What I think," Cordyan said, "is that Baylee Arnvold would make an excellent card player." She rubbed the back of her neck, wishing her eyelids did not feel so heavy. As she rotated her neck, she noticed the azmyth bat no longer clung to the ceiling. "Where is Xuxa?"

"Who?"

Cordyan gazed around the room, noting the open window leading out to the balcony. "The bat," she explained. Where she had spent time with Baylee, Calebaan had spent most of his time with Ciwa Cthulad.

Calebaan put the beef into his mouth as he glanced at the ceiling. "It was there."

"Not any more." With a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Cordyan ran up the stairs to the privy there. The door was locked from the inside when she arrived. She pounded on the door. "Baylee."

The other watch officers clearing debris looked at her as it she'd lost her mind.