When they got back to Max’s house, each went their way, neither having spoken about what transpired in the middle of the street a little bit ago.

Each had simply nodded and smiled at the other.

Grace found Levi laughing and playing with the other children inside his new favorite place. She only watched momentarily and then took off running toward the task she still had to complete. As she darted past the few houses and streets that would hide her from the view of the garden area, Lilly appeared, a little red stain around her muzzle.

“You kill something?” Grace asked after she stopped moving when Lilly got to her.

The dog gave a small yip and sat on the ground, wagging her tail as Grace scratched behind her ears.

“I’m glad you’re here, girl. I need you to stay close but out of sight in a few. Is that ok?”

Lilly stood up and moved next to Grace, facing the direction they would be moving in.

Grace chuckled, shaking her head as she tried to figure out how Lilly knew.

One day, I will figure out precisely what he did to you…

“Let’s go!” Grace shouted as she took off running, allowing herself to smile as her companion ran along.

“I need to see Knight Michael.”

The guard frowned as he motioned to the guard who had summoned him to go. “He mentioned someone might ask for him today. I can only imagine that must be you. Now, go stand over there, away from our area. If he comes, I am sure he will summon you.”

Grace nodded, ignoring the man’s gaze. She could feel displeasure or disgust coming from him. The red lion crest on his shoulder was enough to tell her how little value the guard probably thought she was worth.

Fifteen minutes later, Grace saw the knight coming, walking with two other guards.

He looked perplexed as he moved toward her, and she couldn’t figure out why his eyebrows were in the position he had them. It was as if he was studying her.

It must be the armor…

“Ahh, Grace, I am surprised that you came,” the man announced, the tone of his voice mimicking his words. “I had expected you to take the money I had given and not to return for a while. Yet here you are, wearing armor and on time.”

Grace nodded and bowed slightly, keeping her eyes on the man and the two guards behind him. “Yes, sir. After what I saw, I felt that perhaps armor might help keep me safe… even against those on my side of the town who might learn about the help I have given.”

An approving look flashed for a moment before Michael’s face became expressionless. “Tell me, did you spend all the silver on that armor? I had not originally intended to give that much, but in my haste, I did reward you well.”

“No sir,” Grace replied, grimacing as she spoke. “Part of living where I do is having to give a portion of any money earned to the house owner. Since I knew I would try and purchase some armor, I couldn’t lie about how much I had been given. The good news is I have earned a month without having to share again.”

Michael snorted slightly as he nodded slightly, seeing the smile Grace now had on her face. “You are much smarter than I had originally thought. Tell me, have you encountered any more atrocities since our last time together?”

Grace cocked her head, attempting to play stupid. “Atrocities?”

Sighing, Michael closed his eyes for a moment as he rubbed them. “It means a violent act… obviously, what you found was a very violent act.”

Nodding her head quickly, Grace acknowledged her understanding. “Oh. No, I have not, but I… I actually didn’t go out into the city much until I was able to get this. I didn’t want to risk stumbling upon the group doing this.”

“Trust me, child, if you stumble upon that group, your armor will not do a thing to help.”

Grace grimaced, running her hands along her leather britches.

“No worries. Now I have two more questions, and then I need to depart. Have you seen the person you gave their share of the money to lately?”

Grace tried to hide her confusion at that question. Her delay in answering seemed to be noticed by the man.

“Is that a yes or no? You haven’t seen them since you gave it?”

“I have, sir,” Grace answered slowly. “Sorry, it just seemed like a weird question.”

Michael cleared his throat. Grace wasn’t sure, but she swore the man’s eyes widened just a little when she told him that.

“And you're telling me and not lying to me that you gave a portion of your money away?”

She felt his gaze and saw him studying her with his eyes. She knew he was watching how her face moved or reacted. If she twitched or made other movements, that might show she was lying.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“I took seventeen silver for myself and gave them the pouch with the rest in it, sir.”

There… he barely bit his lip!

Michael's reaction was so slight that she almost hadn’t seen it. The bottom part of his lower left lip went in slightly and moved, something she had seen multiple times from her father.

“I see. Well, I will expect more information from you in the coming week to earn how much I have given you.”

Grace nodded, bowing her head slightly.

Michael turned and motioned toward a spot further away from him. Both guards nodded and walked away, standing ten yards from him. With them gone, Michael moved closer to Grace, standing only a few feet away, his right hand resting upon the pommel of his sword.

“My last question is, what has happened to the first coin I gave you? Rumor has reached my ears that someone is spending a large amount of money on items for the side of town you live on.”

Grimacing, Grace felt herself caught and unsure how to respond.

Shite! I wish I hadn’t lost those two mental points! I could use them now…

“I… I gave it to someone I trusted, and they promised to buy stuff for the people in our section of town. Toys and games for kids… some food and–”

His hand snapped off the pommel of his sword and Michael bent down, his eyes shaking as it looked like he was sneering.

“You gave a gold coin to someone! My gold coin! Do you have any idea what that will…” He stopped, forced himself to stand back up, and put both hands behind his back. His breathing was rapid, and Grace could see him trying to calm himself. “No… how could you understand the value of that coin?”

He scoffed, shaking his head, and exhaled loudly through his nose.

Grace tried not to react as the man’s hand came toward her, a finger pressed against her chest and forced her back a step. His eyes looked ready to burn her alive as he pressed his finger into her sternum, keeping steady pressure this time so that Grace would feel him in her space.

“You will earn that coin back one way or the other,” he growled. “Do not think that your life belongs to you for a moment until I say it does. Do you understand?”

Grace nodded her head frantically. “Ye… yes sir!”

The man pressed against her again, forcing her back as he nodded. His glare told her that he was serious about each word he had spoken.

“Now go!” he commanded. “I expect you to return with something of value in a day or two at the latest, or I will personally come and find you.”

Grace nodded and turned, running back from the knight, ignoring the chuckles she heard from the guards who had been with him.

After running for a few blocks, Grace began walking, grateful for Lilly’s presence as she tried to figure out what had just happened.

Why was he so interested in what happened to the money? Why ask about who I gave it to?

Not paying attention to her surroundings, Grace found herself in a section of the northeast town she rarely went into and groaned when she saw the pack of older boys walking toward her.

Lilly began to growl softly, and Grace hushed her.

An alley on her left was close, but she wasn’t sure where it led. The few people on the street had hurried inside, and Grace had been oblivious to it, lost in her thoughts.

What I wouldn’t do for those two points…

The pack of eight young men and boys was spreading out, taking up the entire street, and Grace felt a knot in her gut forming.

“Let’s go, girl,” Grace whispered, breaking into a jog and heading toward the alley.

As she ran, she saw the pack of men begin to move faster, some nodding as they pointed and motioned to the left.

Seventy… maybe sixty yards… I got like three seconds…

Grace took off at a full sprint when she entered the alley, dodging the trash and broken things that littered the six-foot-wide section between the buildings.

About two seconds into that sprint, Grace slowed down, seeing the wall blocking the alley as a house butted up against it.

The houses on both sides were only two stories high, and she could probably climb them if she had a moment, but the sound from the entrance told her that she might not have time for that.

“Going somewhere?” a voice called out.

Laughter and jeers came after, carrying through the alley toward her.

Lilly had already spun around, growling, and Grace grimaced, knowing she had gotten into this position because she hadn’t been paying attention.

Turning around, Grace noticed how much room she had behind her and what items in the alley were possible for her to use.

“Don’t look at us like that,” an older boy who was easily twenty and should be working a real job announced. “We just want to welcome you to our side of town and ensure you don’t miss out on all the fun.”

“You tell her, Peter,” someone in the back chimed in, and the boy held up a hand that cut off the laughter that had started.

The boy, obviously named Peter, had a lion emblem on his shirt. She could see it from here. It was pinned on, but it informed her she was in a worse spot than initially thought. His green eyes and blond hair left no doubt who he worshiped or the family he must belong to.

“What kind of fun are you expecting us to have?” Grace asked, putting a hand down to calm Lilly, who was snarling and growling.

Peter laughed and winked.

“Well, first, you’re going to call that dog off, or it might not make it out of here alive,” he replied, a knife appearing in his hand. “After that, we will show you what we do to Grumbderds for fun.”

Grace felt the rage inside her boiling as the man smiled, showing his white teeth, and the other boys began to chuckle.

Then, the red box that she longed for came.

Grace smiled as she let herself read it.

Balethem, I love you…

*****

One quest pending

—

Become The Wolf. Slaughter These Lambs: The followers of Grimdom need to be taught who the hunter is and who the prey is. Kill them all.

Reward: Stat gained

Failure: Stat lost

*****

“Oh, is that so?” Grace asked, letting her voice be as sweet as possible. “I never realized boys like you were capable of such things. Truthfully, I heard you were kind of tiny and puny where it mattered.”

She smiled to herself, watching their faces grow red.

Peter pointed his knife at her as he glared at her. “I’m going to cut your tongue out first! Then let’s see wha–”

Grace held up her hands and made mouth-moving motions. “Wah wah wah… go brag to your sister if you need to feel big,” she declared as she rolled her eyes, interrupting his apparent hope for sounding threatening. “Either do what you promised or send the real men in first so you don’t have to look like a baby who gets his arse kicked by a girl.”

A few chuckles came from behind Peter, and the boy growled.

Then he charged.

Just this once, I’m going to enjoy killing someone…