“Well, I had to try. You’re the one in need and I am providing a service.” Then he nodded his head and went out the door to go to their magical storage room. As the thieves of the city, they steal anything of value and even if magic was illegal, it still makes money, so I knew he would have something.
I checked over the paper, and I had to admit that it was good. He even changed his writing style to something that looked much older and phrasing words in a more pompous way. As soon as I finished and set it down on his desk, he pushed through the door and walked over to me. He lifted his hand with a smirk, a thin and dainty necklace dangling at his fingertips. “This one would be the best because it’s not crazy powerful.”
He looked over at the note and then up at me in question, silently asking if it was good enough. I nodded. It said everything while still being vague enough so that my father would tell me to pack up and scope out the situation beforehand.
He folded the necklace into the note and opened up a secret compartment behind him and took out a sack. Out tumbled several kinds of seals. His rueful smile pointed in my direction. “You’re lucky we’re top notch and stole these along the way. This is several years’ worth of work to collect these kinds of items from a few different countries.”
He searched the bunch before he found the right one, heated his wax, poured it and stamped it. I went to grab it, but it disappeared quickly from my eyes and I looked at Rykon, full of loathing.
On the contrary, he was holding up the letter, smiling at me with his teeth shining when he said, “That will be fifteen gold pieces.” My eyes narrowed and my blood pumped faster. This asshole wanted to cheat me on the price?
“It’s not my fault that you didn’t discuss payment ahead of time.” His voice almost sang it to me. His glee at the situation was practically beaming off him.
My body ached to start and finish him with my fist, or my knives, or my fucking teeth like a savage. To make him bleed from thinking I was just another sucker in his game of schemes. I spoke between clenched teeth, “I thought you, of all people, would pride yourself on integrity and fairness. I guess the Rykon of old with all his high and mighty morals is dead.” His smile fell and his back went up straight. Oh, he didn’t like that.
“Fine. Seven gold coins should cover everything.” He grumbled to himself about honor among thieves, but he forgot. I wasn’t a thief. He shoved his hand in front of me and I looked at it like it was a cockroach. He huffed and said with a slight whine, “Money for the goods.”
Well, shit! I didn’t carry that kind of coin on me, let alone to go train in a cave with. For regular shopping, I only had a few silver and copper coins. I eyed Rykon up and down, concluding I hated it, but I needed that letter.
“Here,” I pulled out the knife at my hip, my favorite with a ruby at the end of the hilt the size of a rock and a skull head where the blade and hilt meet. “I don’t have the gold on me now, but use this as collateral and when we meet up at her apartment, I’ll give you the coin.”
His greedy eyes looked at my knife as his grubby hands wrapped around it. I yanked him closer by the knife as I whispered in his ear like I was the goddess of death herself. “If anything happens to this knife, if there is a single scratch, dent or somehow its fucked with, I will kill you. Facing Emerald’s wrath be damned.”
He was trying to give me his signature cocky face, but I saw the hesitancy, even if it was for a second, and I let go of the knife and snatched the letter out of his grip. I turned and headed for the balcony doors, pissed off with my situation. I was avoiding one trouble for another, but such was life.
“How are you going to get it for him?” Rykon called at my back.
I didn’t pause as I threw over my shoulder, “Raven.”
I heard him take a hesitant breath, thinking about what he was going to say next and eventually sighing out, “I hope you’re not going to the raven station. They use a common raven, while the nobility in Castell use a thick billed raven.”
I paused and half turned to him with an eyebrow raised. Was he fucking with me? Rykon shook his head and continued, “We have one here for this specific reason. We are good at what we do, Jax. Just trust me on this.”
My body stiffened at the sound of my old nickname and he winced as he realized what he said. Memories of us long ago, just little kids learning what our goal was in the world and practicing it with each other. I used to let him try to pickpocket me while he would spar with me in the woods. Back then I was just Jax, and he was just Ry, with Zay following us wherever we went. When life was simple, it’s not simple anymore.
“Just let me handle it, man, okay? No extra fee.” He walked over and slowly grabbed the letter and I let him, still frozen by his words and the feeling that we're coming up because of them. The feelings of our deep friendship, as well as how it felt when it crashed and burned in front of my eyes, were warring inside of me.
Before I did or said something stupid, I turned around and mumbled, “See you tomorrow.” Unlatching the door, feeling the cool breeze hit my skin, woke me up a little. Taking off some of the edge.
“Take your time getting home, around ten to fifteen minutes, and when you walk in your father will have a job for you.” I nodded as I went out the door and hopped over the rail, wanting to get out of there as quickly as I could.
I heard him mumbling again about “needing a damn bell on his balcony” as he shut and locked the door. I almost chuckled to myself, but then remembered who he was also talking about, and frowned.
Well, I had fifteen minutes to kill to gather supplies and try with all my might to not think about the seductress that has invaded my mind. I guess it was the perfect time to play the shadow game.
Chapter 6
AssoonasIlet go of the raven’s body, I watched for a second as it soared towards the assassin’s guild and smiled. I realized I was glad that Ajax came to me for this. Even if it was a minor thing, and he was going to pay me for it, a small part of me seemed like I was still doing it for my friend.
When Zayden and I helped those kids together, I had the same twinge in my chest then. It appeared to be a step in the right direction for the three of us. Were we friends like we were before? No, but for once we aren’t looking at each other like we should get it over with and stab each other. And I couldn’t help but feel that mainly it was because of Emerald. She was fixing what Mika broke, and that made me melt for her a little.
When she came into my room, I was excited to see her but, at the same time, wary. Not because I thought she was going to make me do something. I always expected that now, but more because I had been scouring books for some answers to the past and was getting nowhere. I hoped I would’ve had something to tell her, something that would help Vance, and she would glance at me again like she was proud to have me around. It was addicting, that look she gives me when she’s surprised about my question or enjoys me thinking of all the angles. I wanted to impress her.
Zayden had the lockdown on being the devoted lover type. Ajax was a shoe-in for the love to hate type, which left me floundering to find my niche. After the meeting with everyone, seeing what I brought to the table, I thought I found it. I could be the guy that thinks of everything, the smart one that pops up with a one liner or a question that solves shit. Which was why I was spending all day and night searching for information from the books that we gained over the years to see if I could help Vance in his search.
I was also a smidge impressed with Vance too. He had some lofty goals, and I didn’t know if he could pull them off, but his steadfast and determined attitude won my vote.
He also slightly grated on my nerves. He was so obviously in love with Emerald. His puppy dog eyes constantly searched for her, his face lighting up whenever she was around, and he regularly defaulted to her for everything. I would’ve had an issue with it, like Zayden and Ajax were throwing out there all the time, except I noticed Emerald didn’t look at him in the same way.
