Chapter 21: INTERLUDE I

INTERLUDE IA Baker in the MarketEstimated 30 minutes before the Ash EventThe smell of fresh bread drifts through the Market Square.A baker hums quietly to himself as he pulls a golden loaf from the oven and wipes the sweat from his brow. Festival bells ring somewhere beyond the stalls.Across the square, his daughter laughs as she greets another customer, smiling so easily it makes strangers smile back.His eyes wander again. There. His nephew.The little boy is quietly slipping away from his mother’s side, weaving between festival-goers with all the stealth a five-year-old believes he possesses.The baker smiles.He already knows where the child is headed.Chuckling to himself, he reaches beneath the counter and slips one of his freshest berry pastries into a small paper bag.He waits.