“Try it and I’ll kill you,” Silver growled, eyes still closed. Her slum accent was nowhere to be found.

The sloshing of water told her that the invader’s movement had come to a sudden stop, but there was no retreat. The girl opened her eyes and glared. A grey light filtered into the room from outside, indicating that the sun had yet to rise.

Rath grinned in the face of her fury, hands still firmly grasping the half-filled bucket. His face annoyed her. Grabbing one of her fighting daggers, she threw it toward his chest, making him step diagonally away to avoid it. The weapon sailed out the door and thudded into the wood of the wall across the hall.

“I need ta talk ta ya, so get up,” he said, seemingly unbothered by the assault.

“Sun.”

“Isn’ up.”

“Exactly.”

“Silver, get up,” Rath finally commanded in a tone that brooked no argument. With that, he turned and left the room.

Silver grunted, pulling herself out of bed and slipping into a different dress. When everything was in its usual place, she headed out toward the wash basin, moving through the kitchen where, to her surprise, Rath wasn’t alone. The other man who she vaguely recognized as his second-in-command was playing with the dagger she’d thrown. She’d take issue with that later.

A quick scrub later and she was seated at the still-broken table with the other two. To her surprise, the other man handed her dagger back with a smile as she arrived.

“Mornin’, Silver,” he greeted.

She returned his smile with a glare, accepting the dagger and tucking it away.

Turning her attention to Rath, she asked, still in clipped, proper speech, “And what is so important that I needed to be here now rather than in a couple of hours?”

Rath gave her a warning look. “Silver, this is Hyder. Tha head of tha assassination corps. Ye met him once ‘r’ twice when ye were younger.”

At those words, Silver gave the man another lookover. So he wasn’t Rath’s second-in-command? Everyone knew that, while Rath did indeed control the crime run in the slums, the assassination corps was its own entity. They cooperated sometimes, but they were not what one would call friends. And the assassins didn’t pay into the same pot as the other criminals.

“Ye took care of some of my cocky fledglings the other day. I’m grateful to ya,” Hyder said with a slight bow of his head.

Silver truly felt nothing exceptional from this man. His skin was dark, even for a southerner, and his hair was cropped so close to his head he was veritably bald. Still, knowing who he was now, she imagined that he could go from his relaxed, seemingly unaware state to the sharpness of a sword in an instant, much like Rath. Unlike Rath, however, he seemed much more calm and measured in comparison to the crime head’s boisterous nature.

She also realized why they were meeting now instead of at a time when more people would be awake.

It was the perfect time between the night shifts ending and the morning shifts waking, the time when people wandering about would be fewest. For Rath and the head of the assassination corps to meet secretly, it was the safest time.

She nodded cautiously in response to his words as she allowed her accent to return. “I should be grateful fer their help.”

Rath snorted as the other man laughed. “I sent ‘em over ta show ‘em not ta underestimate an opponent when Rath asked fer some trainin’ help, but I’m not sure how much beatin’ ‘em helped convince anyone about ye.”

Silver opened her mouth to reply, but Rath interrupted. “All these niceties aside, we don’ got a lotta time, so let’s get down ta business.” Silver shut her mouth, a little curious now. “I know ye brough’ tha information about tha tracker coins. Turns out, tha’s not tha only trouble lately. Every group’s experiencin’ some resistance. Well, most of ‘em, in any case,” he added with a glance at Hyder who inclined his head. “Now, we’re not sure if it’s gonna continue ‘r’ not, so we’re not gonna make any decisions jus’ yet. But we’re gonna lay some groundwork. So Hyder here had tha suggestion ta train ye as an assassin fer a bit.”

Silver immediately felt her eyes narrow into a glare again, but Rath held up a hand.

“I can vouch fer ‘im. He was my right-hand man until jus’ recently and’ll do right by ya. And it won’ be ferever. Jus’ until we know fer sure how this is gonna go. Not a bad offer, really. Ye get some free skills outta it and a nice vacation from yer work.”

“No.” Silver didn’t even need to think before refusing.

For one, assassination training would be anything but a vacation. For another, she had a feeling that those “free skills” would be anything but free in the end. She trusted Rath to an extent, and believed that he had her best interests at heart, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t use the best tool for a job just because of a personal connection. It was interesting that someone from the normal criminal corps had managed to go from second-in-command (she felt somewhat self-satisfied that she hadn’t been wrong about this) to head of the assassination corps, but she had the feeling it hadn’t happened without ruffling some feathers. She was not about to set foot into that mess for anything. Not even if it angered Rath.

However, contrary to her expectations, both men shared a chuckle.

“I told ye she wouldn’ go fer it.”

“Well, it was worth tryin’. Who would suspect an eight year-old of assassination?” Hyder spoke wishfully.

“‘M fifteen,” the girl pointed out calmly.

“I know, I’m sorry. I was actually there when Rath picked ye up. I meant in appearance. It does have its advantages, ye must admit.”

She nodded. They were something she used in her work every day and part of the reason she was still actively pickpocketing at her age.

“Well if ye knew I’d say no, remind me why I’m here again?” It took a great effort to keep the annoyance from her tone.

“I wanted ta officially introduce ye, but I also have a request. Can ye check in with tha pickpockets every day? I’m gonna be in ‘n’ out for a while and wanna keep tabs on tha situation. Can’ have a meetin’ every day and draw attention, though. I trust ye ta do it without makin’ it obvious ta tha wrong people.”

Silver nodded again in acquiescence.

“Good.” Rath stood up, Hyder following his lead. “I also need ta borrow ye tonight, so don’ go ta bed too early.”

“Ye say that after wakin’ me up early?” She couldn’t help the exasperation from escaping this time.

He winked. “Ye got ta sleep early last night, didn’cha?”

The off-hand comment would have sent chills down anyone else’s spine. For Silver, however, whether he was making an educated guess based on his absence or if he really was keeping an eye on her even when she didn’t know, she wouldn’t be surprised. In fact, it would have been stranger to her if he didn’t somehow know.

“Well then, we’ll be off. See ya tonight.” Rath cheerily waved as he headed toward the door.

Hyder smiled. “It was good seein’ ya again, Silver.”

Again, she nodded as he, too, left. Before the door closed, she caught part of their conversation.

“Gods, she was scarier ‘n’ ye on a bad day. What’d ye do ta tha poor thing?”

“Ah, she’s always like that in tha mornin’. She’s still young ‘n’ can’ control her bloodlust yet. Just needs a stern hand ta guide her until she’s fully awake, tha’s all.”

Silver scowled and only caught part of Hyder’s reply, something about his rough methods on kids, but it didn’t matter. She made a mental note to return the favor to Rath someday.

Now on her own, she was at a loss. There was a large chunk of time before she could expect Mina to show up, but she had been up for too long to go back to sleep. Cursing Rath again, she decided to do some practice on her own upstairs.

-------------

“Hello? Silva?” Mina’s voice drifted nervously up the stairs.

Silver immediately froze mid-strike against the wooden dummy and brushed the sweat from her forehead. “Hold on, I’ll be right down.”

Reclaiming her throwing knives and tucking her daggers back away, Silver headed down the stairs where Mina waited just inside the door. The older girl smiled warmly.

“Ye can come further in, it’s alrigh’. I’ll go clean up, so go get back inta tha dress ye wore yesterday.”

“Ok,” Mina agreed, peering closely at Silver’s face. “Ye seem...happy...this mornin’.”

Silver’s smile froze, but she refused to let the comment get to her again. “I’m happy every mornin’. Now go get changed.”

The younger girl nodded several times before scampering off to Silver’s room. With a sigh, Silver went outside and scrubbed herself down the best she could without taking everything off. Mina emerged from the house and watched until she had finished.

Satisfied, Silver said, “Let’s go.”

The duo walked until they came to the roll cart which was currently a roll box. The stall keeper smiled, somewhat apprehensively like the day before, when she saw them. “Ah, Silver. Ye’ve brough’ a friend this time.”

“I did,” Silver smiled again. Was she really that bad in the morning? “I have a request.”

“Oh?” The woman’s apprehension began to grow.

“How d’ya feel about takin’ on an apprentice? That is, if that’s what Mina wants.” She looked toward the younger girl who squeaked.

“M-Me?” She immediately ducked behind Silver, peering nervously at the stall keeper.

The stall keeper looked moderately uncomfortable by this point. “I’d like ta help ye out, but--”

Here, Silver took a page out of Rath’s book and held up her hand. “I know yer rebuildin’ ‘n’ all, but don’cha think an apprentice could help out? ‘M not askin’ ya ta pay her right off tha bat, jus’ food ‘n’ shelter. She’s smart. She’ll pick up anythin’ ye teach her quickly, so ye can get back on yer feet faster.”

Now, the woman was thinking, pensively gazing at the younger girl, though her mind was clearly elsewhere. Deciding to give her one final push, Silver stepped up next to her.

“Yer plannin’ ta move inta tha general market, aren’cha? If ye take ‘er, I’ll help provide funds ta get ye closer each week,” she whispered into the woman’s ear.

To be honest, it was a guess, but one she felt was worth banking on. Silver knew that the stall’s rolls were fairly popular and that there was no way that the woman wouldn’t have been able to afford a raised tax unless it was a truly exorbitant amount. More than likely, she chose not to pay it. The tax collectors sometimes liked to make an example out of an unlucky owner, but Silver had an inkling that that wasn’t the case this time. Yesterday, the woman had looked troubled after Silver slipped her the money. Most in the slums had nothing against charity and only worried about debts, but Silver had no need to claim such a thing from a simple stall keeper. The woman may have instead worried about Silver’s retaliation should it be discovered that her stall’s destruction hadn’t been unavoidable.

The amount that Rath would pay out of the common pot wouldn’t be enough to recoup all the costs of a destroyed stall, of course. This was, in part, to discourage people from allowing their stall to be destroyed rather than pay the tax. They would still take a loss. But in this woman’s case, some things were more important than the money she would have to pay to restart. If she paid the raised tax now, the next time the tax collectors came, they might take more. Or they might get the idea she was hiding even more money. If she was indeed putting money away to be able to buy a spot on the main road, that would be her worst case scenario.

Confident in her conclusion, Silver stepped back and looked at the woman expectantly. The woman, for her part, threw the girl a startled look before falling back deep into thought. Mina looked between the two bemusedly.

“I don’ think it’s a bad idea. I could use tha help,” the woman said at last, now looking at the two girls seriously.

Silver offered a brilliant smile before turning to Mina. “What d’ye think? Ye don’ hafta do it if ya don’ wanna. I thought ya might enjoy workin’ in a shop.”

Mina hesitated, looking at the woman. “It’s ok? Ye don’ mind?”

“No’ a bit,” she smiled back, now fully warmed up to the idea.

“Then, I look forward ta workin’ with ye, Mistress,” the young girl said with an attempt at a curtsey. A second later, her arms were thrown around Silver. “Thank ye, thank ye, thank ye,” she sobbed excitedly, burying her face into the older girl’s dress.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Silver patted her head, chuckling. “Don’ thank me, thank tha stall mistress fer agreein’. It won’ be easy, but I’m sure ye can do it.” She pushed the raven-haired girl toward the stand.

“Alrigh’, well, I don’ have much right now, but I’ll show ye the basics of how I run things here.”

It seemed that the woman wanted to jump straight in, so Silver excused herself and headed off to the general market with a small smile on her face. Of course, there was no guarantee that the arrangement would continue to go well, but she held high hopes that it would. It was probably the best option for Mina as she was now.

With one problem settled, at least for the time being, she turned her attention to Rath’s request. Today, her area would be in a different part of town. Assignments rotated every couple of days to avoid having the same pickpockets in the same areas all the time. Of course, they didn’t work every day and were allowed to choose when they would so long as they paid their dues each week. Having everyone out like had happened during the tax collection day was rare, limited only to special occasions. Since most people entered the general markets via the official roads, they had to pay a bribe each time they entered so going every day would be a heavy burden to bear. If the guards caught Silver entering the way she did, she would have to pay twice the fine at the very least.

Making sure her ring was secured, she went to work. No problems presented themselves in any form. In a way, it made her feel a little baffled, but she shrugged it off for the time being. This was more typical than the strangeness during collection day had been. Regardless, she decided to go in search of the others to check in. What she found made her frown.

“Ye saw him taken?” she asked for confirmation.

Zeik, also working today, nodded. “An’ I heard about two yesterday. These damned coins ‘r’ bein’ passed around like candy. The higher tiers can still turn a profit but if tha lesser marks are holdin’ ‘em, too...”

Silver understood. The lower tiers of pickpockets didn’t have a detection ring. They didn’t have any defenses and, as such, were simply arrested, sent who knew where. Or worse.

“They can’ be plannin’ ta do this ferever,” she sighed. “It’s gotta be expensive fer them, too.”

Even if the enchantments were laid on cheaper copper coins, the enchantments themselves cost upwards of five silver depending on the effectiveness.

“But I don’ get why they’re botherin’. Were their losses too much? After all these years?” Zeik growled, angrily striking the wall of the nearby building with his fist. “I’m only a bit away from retirin’ from these streets, but this is settin’ me back.”

Silver pitied him, but if she showed it, it would only piss him off more. Not everyone wanted to stay in the relatively high-risk high-reward trade of a high-tier pickpocket longer than was strictly necessary. Plus, Zeik had hit puberty and was rapidly changing. It wouldn’t be long before he couldn’t blend in as effortlessly. Most kids not from the slums his age would bear the mark of an apprenticeship or shop.

She tried to find a solution, starting from the simple ‘stop pickpocketing until their guard drops.’ That wouldn’t work, though. The pickpockets would never go for it because they’d fall behind in their dues. Not the worst outcome, maybe, but it would set them down the ladder further. Maybe the younger, low- and mid-tier kids wouldn’t mind waiting for a bit, but those belonging to the high-tier would refuse.

Then again, maybe that wasn’t so bad. The high-tiers had ways to deal with the problem and would deal with it as needed. If they lost money, well, that was on them. But the younger kids were a problem.

Silver looked at Zeik who shook his head, guessing at what she had thought of. “I won’ stop jus’ yet.”

“I know,” she replied. “I’m gonna ask the low- and mid-tier groups ta back out fer now while we look inta this. All I need ye ta do is let me know how many ye get when ye go ta work.”

Zeik thought about it before nodding. “I can do that much, I guess. Yer not gonna stop either, are ye?”

“Nah. It’s botherin’ me. The nobles decidin’ ta get in our way even more.” She chose not to tell him she still had yet to run into a tracker coin.

“Good luck ta ye, then.”

“Same ta ya.”

Without any further discussion, they split up like the last time, Silver going in search of the other pickpockets. She spread word to the lower tiers, telling them to back off. Some of the older mid-tiers resisted and she shrugged. It wasn’t really her concern if they made their own decision. The were old enough to take responsibility for their own actions. If they didn’t wish to keep themselves safe, there was nothing she could do. On the other hand, she would do everything to protect the younger ones.

The other high-tier pickpockets confirmed what Zeik had said. They’d run into an unusually high number of coins, though less than on the collection day, and each confirmed the disappearance of some of the lower-tiered pickpockets. From what Silver gathered, a total of nine low- and mid-tiers had been taken. Coals of anger burned in the pit of her stomach. By time she’d finished spreading the word, she didn’t feel like working anymore. In a dark mood, she trudged home.

To her surprise, several younger children were milling outside the building when she arrived home. Exasperated, she approached them. “What are ye all doin’ here? D’ye wanna get in trouble?”

They jumped as one and turned to look at her. One of the older boys, maybe ten years old, ran up. “Silver! Is it true? We can’ go out ta tha city fer a while?”

Oh. That’s what this was about. Of course, the kids she’d sent back while locating the others in the city would have spread the word.

“It’s true. Sorry ta disappoint ya. I’ll try ta figure it out quickly so ye can get back out.”

There was a collective ‘aww’ from the group as they drooped in disappointment.

“I’m not scared o’ no guards,” the first boy said, puffing his chest out proudly.

She rapped him hard on the head. “If ye were smart, ye would be. Once they take ya, yer gone. Didja notice that some of ya’re missin’? It ain’ likely ye’ll see ‘em again.”

She pressed the point heartlessly, hoping to get it into at least some of their minds. If it could help them survive even one day more, it was worth it.

The boy didn’t look convinced, but neither did he argue.

“Now get outta here. Ye’ll hear when it’s figured out, so enjoy tha downtime. Don’ worry about yer dues fer now,” she continued, making shooing motions with her hands.

Reluctantly, the crowd of kids dispersed and she breathed a little easier. She had the thought to visit Mina and see how she was getting along, but neither she nor the stall keeper was there. Silver assumed they’d finished up for the day. With nothing better to do, she went to dispose of the wallets she’d grabbed. After that, she went home to train, this time using their enchanted moving targets She let herself get lost in the rhythm until well after the sun had set.

Suddenly, she stopped fighting and resheathed her daggers. She turned and looked at Rath, leaning against the doorframe to the stairs.

“Done?” he asked with his customary grin.

“Mhm. Let’s get whatever errand ye have in mind outta tha way.” She gave a pointed yawn.

“Yer no fun anymore.” With that complaint, he turned and headed back down the stairs, leading her outside.

They didn’t share any further words as they slipped through the darkness, a pair of shadows under the blue-shaded moonlight. Silver took note of the occasional person creeping in the darkness, but they didn’t dare attack the duo. Rath’s long black braid flicked behind him as he quickly made his way through the street.

The slums felt entirely different at night than they did during the day. More alive. But more than that, the atmosphere flipped entirely. It was exceedingly rare to find children out at this time. Stalls, too, were shut down for the night. In their stead, a number of small structures glowed with magelight or candlelight, offering low-quality alcohol and other such ‘pleasures.’

The biggest change, however, was the activity at the border of the sections. One building in particular drew an excessive amount of traffic. If Rath and Silver’s dwelling was the only two story building in the slums, this one was the largest overall. Even by general market standards, it was a behemoth. The din from inside matched its size. Laughter, the sound of dishes clinking, arguments, and other more questionable noises drifted outside, increasing in volume briefly each time the sound-dampening curtains swung open and closed.

This was Haven, the biggest brothel in Lesand. Silver had been here a few times before with Rath, though always on the business end. She hoped that held tonight because she was not in the mood to play around here. Taking the mask proffered by Rath, she put it on just as he had done with his own.

Rath pushed through the barrier inside, allowing the thick perfume permeating the air to assault Silver’s nose. She coughed a couple of times but kept up behind the man who led the way through the front room filled with everyone from slum residents enjoying a luxury to nobles out for fun. Of course, everyone wore a mask so it was impossible to tell who was who, except for the male and female workers who were each denoted by a purple armband they wore. The slight haze hanging over the room merely added to the mysterious effect.

Haven was, in a way, just that. Many different races were represented here, both as customers and workers. Security was as safe as could be; any belligerent customers were immediately escorted outside. To actually purchase sex, the customers had to submit to a disease check which would determine whether or not they had a transmittable ailment. The employees were cleared every day, so once the customer was okayed, they were allowed to head to one of the back rooms.

Thankfully, it did seem like today was yet another business trip. Rath stopped by the counter, murmured a few words Silver couldn’t hear over the cacophony of enjoyment to the worker, then opened a door into a long hallway. She stayed with him as the door shut, recognizing the path as the one to the brothel’s owner’s office. When they reached it, Silver tried to objectively ignore the sounds emerging from within which were anything but business-related. Apparently ignoring the sounds better than her, Rath began to knock and continued to do so until an annoyed woman’s voice snapped at them.

“I though’ I said I was busy tonight.”

“Funny. I thought we had a meetin’ planned,” Rath retorted, none of his usual good nature showing.

There was a curse followed by the door opening to reveal a fully naked woman in her fifties. From what Silver had heard, she’d been quite the sought-after beauty in her youth. Based on the annoyed looks the two men inside had, she hadn’t lost much of her desirability.

“Rath,” she purred, “I though’ ye said ye were comin’ by earlier. I was so disappointed when ye didn’.”

“Bullshit, Maggie. It won’ take long, so let’s get it over with.”

“Hold on, dears, I’ll be back afore too long,” she said over her shoulder.

Closing the door behind her with a click, Maggie beckoned the two of them to follow her to another room. Pulling out a key, she pushed it open and invited them inside, spreading herself out languidly on the bed.

“Isn’ tha’ Silver? Still cute as tha firs’ time I saw her,” Maggie began.

Silver stared back through the small eye holes in her mask without a word. She wouldn’t know where else to look otherwise.

“Alrigh’, Maggie. What d’ye have fer me?” The smallest portion of Rath’s bloodlust was leaking out, but Maggie didn’t seem overly affected.

“Here.” She passed over a piece of paper. “That’ll show tha location. It’s been well spoken for,” she added with a wink.

“Yer sure?”

“Of course. Two of tha guards confirmed it.”

“Yer sure they’re sure?”

“Yes,” Maggie rolled her eyes. “Are ye satisfied?”

“Almost. Is tha time confirmed?”

This time, she hesitated. “More ‘r’ less. He changes it every time, but probably in a couple’ve hours.”

“I guess that’ll hafta be good enough.”

“Well then,” she said, standing and stretching lithely, “I’ll be gettin’ back ta my other business, if ye don’ mind.”

“Don’ let us keep ya,” Rath replied dryly.

They moved back into the hall where Maggie locked the door. She turned and headed back to her office, waving as she walked, hips swaying from side-to-side sensually.

“Never sleep with someone ye’ve gotta work with,” Rath advised Silver, watching the retreating figure disappear into her office. “Makes things all kinds o’ complicated.”

“I wasn’ plannin’ to.”

“Good.” He unfolded the paper and looked at it. Silver recognized it as a small-scale map of the city. A pinpoint of light appeared on its surface. After studying the location, Rath refolded the paper and tucked it away in his own pouch. “Let’s go.”

“Ye aren’ gonna tell me what this is about, are ya?” Silver asked as she trailed behind him to the exit.

“And spoil tha surprise? Why don’cha tell me about yer day instead?”

Silver knew that she wouldn’t be able to argue an explanation out of him, but they had emerged back into the front room anyway so she said nothing. They traversed their way back through the revelers and out into the clean, night air. The girl inhaled appreciatively.

“Tracker coins’re still around,” she said as though the conversation hadn’t had an interruption. “I told tha younger kids ta hold back fer now.”

Rath nodded. “Probably fer tha best.”

They shared some mindless small talk as they made their way across the no-man’s land. As they closed in on the mysterious location, Rath would occasionally reopen the paper. The closer they got to the marked destination, the dimmer the light became. Finally, it was gone entirely, so Rath pointed upward indicating that they should scale the stone building nearby. Once they were in position, the man lounged back, relaxed.

“Now we wait.”

They sat in silence. Silver was intensely curious as to why they were here and who they were going to spy on, but asking was useless and she didn’t want to waste her breath. An hour passed, then two. She stifled yet another yawn. Finally, a stone below skittered against the ground. Silver snapped to full attention. Beside her, she felt Rath’s attention sharpen as well. They both moved toward the edge, peering down to where a man dressed as a slum resident stood. Not long after, another, much better dressed man appeared.

Rath got Silver’s attention and pointed at the second man. She got his message and stared, allowing her sight to focus. Even from here, she could see his features perfectly. He, too, shared the common brown skin and black hair of the southern people. His hair was short, but not cropped, falling around his head in an almost messy manner. The white of the cloak that marked him as a guard stood out starkly against his dark skin and the silver of his armor. If she didn’t know better, she would have sworn his eyes, so dark they appeared black, held a glimmer of the same innocence she so often saw in Mina’s. Something like that had no place on a guard’s face, even if that guard appeared to be not much older than she herself. She couldn’t shake off the feeling that he looked a little familiar.

“The thieves’re targetin’ tha Gellard family in three days’ time, sir. A group o’ five,” the man from the slums said after exchanging a greeting with the other man.

“That is in line with what else we have heard. Is there anything else you can tell me?”

A nod. “They’ve got darkness scrolls fer tha job. An’ a getaway plan through tha sewers.”

The guard raised an eyebrow. “It seems they’ve put no small expense into this job.”

“Yessir. They’ll have sleds in tha sewers, enchanted to run on top o’ tha water.”

“Very well. I think that will suffice.” The guard passed over a bag that clinked heartily.

“Thank ye fer yer kindness.”

“I’ll send a note along for the next meeting.”

“Understood.” The man from the slums bowed and disappeared.

The guard turned, casting his eyes up toward the building where Rath and Silver crouched. Neither one moved an inch. He waited several moments, then turned and left as well. Letting out a breath, Silver sat back.

“Gotcha, Jarl,” Rath smiled like a child on his birthday. “Well, tha thieves won’ be happy abou’ havin’ ta change their plans, but tha’s one down.”

“Not a plant o’ yers, then?”

“Unfortunately not. Knew we had a leak with everythin’ lately, but I don’ think he’s tha only one. Now tha’ we know this one, we can have some fun.”

“I see.” Silver didn’t care all that much what he did and was more interested in getting to bed right at the moment. “Well, ye didn’ bring me all tha way out here ta keep ye company. What’s special abou’ tha guard? He the captain?” She couldn’t think of any other reason he wanted her to pay attention to him.

Rath confirmed her guess with a nod. “Tha annoyin’ one.”

“Ye wan’ me ta kill him ‘r’ somethin’?” she asked, only half joking.

“No.” The answer was immediate and firm. “More trouble than it’s worth.”

“Noble kid?”

“Mm.”

Well, that made sense. He was too young to be a normal guard. Still, it didn’t seem like he lacked the skills to back him up in the position. What a pain.

“I wanted ye ta be able ta recognize ‘im. And ta warn ya not ta get in over yer head with ‘im. Don’ fight ‘im.” He looked at her seriously.

“I wasn’ plannin’ ta fight ‘im,” she replied defensively.

“Keep it tha’ way. Alrigh’, tha’s it. Like I toldja this mornin’, I won’ be around fer a while, so I’ll leave ye ta handle tha kids. Ye can go sleep now.” Rath grinned again, serious mood dispersed.

“Ye dragged me all tha way out here fer this. I’m goin’ back, then. Have fun playin’.” Silver couldn’t help grumbling as she turned and made her way down the building.

Rath watched her go before turning to look over the city. With a sigh, he, too, descended and went on to his next set of business.