Chapter 3

                                    

                                          
The clouds roll lazily through the sky on the walk into town. Bryne's tavern is the larger of the two saloons, and Ada hitches Tula outside before heading in. 
                          
There's a good number of people eating, a few at the bar with drinks, a table for poker in the corner and a man playing the piano at the back of the room. It's got a relaxed atmosphere that you only get in small-town saloons, where the patrons all know each other but simultaneously seem to keep themselves to themselves. Ada leans by the bar and picks at the almonds while waiting for the barman to finish his conversation. 
                          
He's a relatively short man, with blonde hair that's receding at the front. While his patron tells him a joke, he listens intently and laughs along. With a warm smile, his eyes meet Ada's and he nods at the man he was conversing with before making his way over. 
                          
"Hello miss, what can I get for you?" he asks in an Irish accent. 
                          
Any bartender worth his salt knows everything there is to know about the town his saloon is located in. This is the perfect opportunity to learn a few things. "A beer will do me, thank you, sir. Have one for yourself," she puts a dollar down on the bar. 
                          
"That's very kind, thanks," he smiles and proceeds to open two beers. They clink them together before knocking the table with them and taking a swig. "I don't recognise you, you're new to these parts?" 
                          
"That I am. I live nearby, just in Goswal. I was just taking my horse out for a ride while I had the time and stumbled upon this lovely town," she ditches the lie about visiting a friend, he'd surely ask who the friend is and that'd be her cover blown before she's even started. 
                          
"Lovely?" he chuckles, "well I'm not sure about that. But I guess there are worse places." 
                          
She nods. "Exactly. Seems like a quiet place." 
                          
"Sure," he pours a whisky out for another customer. "A few of the residents are more... colourful than you'd expect." 
                          
Jackpot. "Is that so?" 
                          
His gaze shifts behind Ada as the front door opens, and he nods his head with a smile. "As if right on cue," he chuckles as a man in a nice black suit with a white shirt and navy-blue patterned waistcoat makes his way over and leans on the bar. He has a thick black moustache that curls at the ends. 
                          
"Are you talking about me, dear old Conan?" the man asks with an expressive English accent. 
                          
"Indeed," Conan says as he pulls a glass from underneath the bar, "this young lady is new in town and I was informing her that some of Ulston's residents," he pauses to raise his eyebrows at the man, "are less dull than some of the others." 
                          
"I'm sure they are all more interesting than they look," he nudges Ada, "I just chose to put her full personality on display." 
                          
He's eccentric and quite unlike anyone she's ever met. Even if he didn't have any good information, the idea of getting to know him and hearing his stories is very appealing. "I think that's a much better way of living," she laughs and sips her beer. 
                          
The man nods to Conan who fills his glass with whiskey, and he pushes sixty cents onto the bar. Ada had forgotten about the stable hand's suggestion to try the 'proper' whisky served here, "I'll have one too, please," she pulls some change from her satchel and Conan pours out a second. 
                          
"Pardon my manners miss, I didn't ask you your name?" he slides the drink over and takes the money from the bar. 
                          
"It's Ada, Ada Harris," she smiles at him. "And you?" she directs her attention to the interesting man. 
                          
"Josiah Trelawny," he places his hand to his chest and bows his head theatrically. "You're quite the dime, Miss Ada," he smiles. She'd have thought he was coming on to her if he didn't put his hand behind her ear and pull a dime from it seconds later.