"Because ye're a lassie, and everyone knows women arenae good at cards," the man snapped.
"Their brains arenae big enough," another man chipped in, earning himself a general murmur of agreement.
"So, I'm not clever enough to play cards, but I am clever enough to figure out a way of cheating at a game which is famously difficult to cheat at?" Paisley said slowly. "I just want to be sure that I've got it right."
The man advanced again. He'd obviously had enough of arguing.
"Give us back the money, and we'll call it quits," he growled. "Daennae try me, lassie."
Paisley considered throwing a handful of coins at him as a distraction. But then she wouldn't have enough for rent, and if she didn't have the money soon, she'd be in hot water.
Her nerve broke. Paisley turned tail and fled up the stairs before the man could get any closer.
She didn't get far.
A brawny arm circled around her waist before she was halfway up, hauling her back and throwing her sideways. Paisley hurtled through the air, landing with athudwhich knocked her breath out of her and left her gasping.
The bald man loomed over her, face red with anger.
"Cheat! Cheat!" he thundered. "Ye bloody Englishcheat!"
3
"Cheat! Cheat! Ye bloody Englishcheat!"
If Dominic hadn't been standing so close to the entrance of the basement, selecting one of the bottles of wine from the cellar, he might never have heard the shout.
But he was, and he did, and anger immediately flared through him.
Nay cheating in me pub,he thought angrily. Cheaters caused trouble. They robbed innocent, naïve folk of their hard-earned money, and in his experience, the cheaters usually had enough money of his own.
Damn Brodie and his damn insistence on having card-tables in the basement,Dominic thought moodily, shoving a dusty bottle of wine back into its housing. Breaking up another bar brawl was the last thing he wanted to do, but it wasn't as if there wasanyone else to do it. Brodie was soft, everyone knew that. He was the sort of person who'd rather sit and read a book than do anything practical.
Not that Dominic minded, of course. In his opinion, people ought to learn to read before they could even think of touching a sword. It just meant that Brodie was no good at breaking up fights, no matter how many tips and tricks Dominic showed him.
Dominic wasn't hurrying towards the basement. He was entirely happy to let the cheater receive a few good punches before he intervened. Maybe next time he'd think twice before...
A distinctly feminine shriek echoed from below, and Dominic froze.
There was a woman down there? In his experience, the card players were always men, but there was a first time for everything. Hurrying now, Dominic rushed down the uneven stone steps, nearly losing his footing and tumbling all the way down to the bottom.
"What's goin' on here, then?" he thundered, and everything around him froze. He paused for a moment, crossing his arms across his chest, and taking in the scene.
There were six people in the basement, five men and one woman. Women were unusual down here, and this one sat in the shadows, hunched over, so that Dominic couldn't make out her face.
Regardless of who she was, five men and one woman was never good odds. There were usually three card-tables down in the basement, but only one seemed to have been in use, the other two shunted off to the side and left alone. The third card table stood in the center of the room, tipped over onto its side. Cards and coins were scattered everywhere.
The men were cornering the woman, who'd been backed into the corner furthest from the exit. She had a hatpin clutched in her hand, and was waving it threateningly at the tallest man, a bald man with gray eyebrows that Dominic recognized as a habitual troublemaker.
The man didn't seem very threatened by the hatpin, although Dominic guessed that it could deliver a nasty stab, if necessary.
Everyone glanced his way, but nobody moved an inch.
"I'll ask again," Dominic grated, the room completely silent. "What's happenin' here?"
The bald man found his voice. "She's a bloody cheat," he hissed, pointing at the woman.
The woman glowered at him. "I'm no cheat!"
