Aaron and Daniel were standing at the gates of the Syrax estate. The head of the Syrax family, Ezekiel Syrax, had been on high alert when he heard a rumor about his family being targeted by an unknown group. Four guards stood in front of the gate, blocking the entrance. Aaron looked at the guards and then back and forth down the high walls the gate was connected to.

“I'm not dealing with this.” Aaron turned and walked down the wall.

“Where are you going? We have to wait here until they open the door.” Daniel walked quickly to catch up to him.

“You can wait all you want. I'm not. I don't have the patience to deal with Syrax’s paranoia. There's another way into the estate.”

Daniel paused for a moment.

“How would you know that?”

“I know everything I need to know about the Syraxes. It would do you some good to make sure to learn everything there is to know about a potential target. Who they are and where they live are crucial to the success of a contract.”

“I feel like breaking into the home of the man whose daughter we have to protect is a bad idea.”

Aaron turns around towards Daniel.

“Then, by all means, wait at the gate.”

As Aaron turns back around to walk away, the gates to the estate began to open. The two guards in the middle of the four stepped to the side as an older man stepped through the gates.

“Welcome, Aaron Fritter and Daniel McClure from the Council of Shadows. Come in. We have much to discuss.”

“Thank you, Sir Ezekiel Syrax, for letting us in.” Daniel bows his head slightly in respect while Aaron steps past him.

“Let's go inside. Quickly.” Ezekiel snapped his fingers and the gates began to close as they walked through the courtyard and into the main house.

--

Aaron, Daniel, and Ezekiel were all sitting in the den on the second floor of the main house on the Syrax estate. With the curtains drawn back, light from the window filled the entire room. The wall opposite the windows was a bookshelf. There were hundreds of books that lined from one side of the shelves to the other. Spots here and there among the books where vases and other decor were placed.

The three sat in the middle of the room where a desk was placed. Aaron and Daniel sat in two chairs on one side of the desk while Ezekiel sat in a bigger chair on the other. Daniel pulls a rolled-up paper out of a leather bag he had at his side. He placed it on the desk in front of Ezekiel.

“This is the contract to protect and escort your daughter, Thana Syrax.”

Ezekiel grabs the paper and begins reading it. When he finishes reading, he opens a drawer on the desk and pulls out a pen, signs at the bottom, and hands the paper back to Daniel.

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“Where is your-” Aaron began to ask before the doors to the den busted open.

“What is the meaning of this?!” A young woman rushed inside to the desk, yelling in Ezekiel’s face. She had brown hair that went to the middle of her back. She was slightly shorter than Aaron.

“I told you that it's happening. I'm not risking anything.”

“You would really be willing to put my life into the hands of the people who tried to kill you years ago?!”

“I would. They are good at the job that is given to them.”

“Obviously not if you're still here breathing!”

“Thana, sit down.” Ezekiel stood up abruptly, causing the woman to flinch and go quiet. She turns to sit down when she notices Aaron in the chair.

Thana immediately goes to punch Aaron in the face. He dodges and rolls out of the chair. Thana reaches to her side and pulls out a sword. She swings at Aaron, who blocks with a small dagger he had in his sleeve.

“Thana stop it this instant!” Ezekiel shouted at her. She froze with her eyes locked onto Aaron.

“I will not go with him. This is the man who attempted to kill you. He would've gotten away with it if it wasn't for me.”

“You mean if you didn't distract me long enough for the guards to show up?”

“Even if they didn't, you wouldn't have gotten past me.” She began to smirk.

Daniel, who had been standing off to the side, gasped.

“So that was you that failed that high-end contract?”

Thana turned her head towards him as she put her sword away.

“Who are you?”

“My name is Daniel McClure. I've also been assigned to escort you to.....” He looked at Ezekiel, “Where are we taking her?”

Ezekiel sits back down. “I'm sure you know about the war that's brewing between the Palos and Garza kingdoms. I know both kings personally and I am sending my daughter there to meet with both of them to hopefully negotiate a peace treaty with them.”

Aaron puts his dagger away. “But why send your daughter and not yourself? If you know them so well, then shouldn't you go?”

Ezekiel sighs, “Yes. I should. But I'm not as physical as I used to be. And my daughter is the only other person here that would be able to get them to talk.”

Aaron looked at Thana, “How is she the only one that can get them to talk?”

Ezekiel stared at him and then turned towards Daniel to hand him a paper, “This is where you will be taking her. When you get there, let my daughter talk to them. Your job is to just protect. Nothing more.”

Daniel takes the paper and begins to read it aloud when Ezekiel holds his hand up.

“Don’t say it. You never know who could be listening.”

Daniel folds the paper up and places it in his satchel. He turns towards Thana.

“Well, if you're ready Ms. Syrax, we can begin.”

She sighs heavily, “I need to grab some things from the market first, then I'll be ready.”

“We can grab them on the way. We have to go back to the tavern. We have a horse and carriage there we can use.”

Aaron looks at Daniel, “You go with her and I’ll go back to the tavern. The sooner we get going, the better.”

Ezekiel hurries over to Thana.

“Thana, you be safe.” She turns around and smiles at him as he begins to hug her. He whispers in her ear, “Don’t use it unless you have to.”

Thana leans back and looks at him and nods before turning towards the door and leaving the room.