One would think that, given he was every bit the assassin. And she was right, he had saved her when most of his kind wouldn’t have even glanced her way. “I only killaþasweres.”
“And I only kill the ones who need it…regardless of what Meara commands.” Fury burned in her eyes as she stared at him sincerely.
She spoke the truth.
“Then we are alike, you and I.”
“Indeed.”
Except in this mission where she intended to protect what he was hellbent to kill.
This should be very interesting…
7
Now Gisela understood what Xaydin had been trying to tell her. Theaþaswereswere not at all what she thought. At first sight, they were twisted and horrible—hard-to-look-at ugly. They had wings and strange body parts that stretched out beyond belief. The majority of them had writing all over their bodies, including their bald heads and eyelids.
And they all had bald heads. Even the children and women.
“They also tattoo inside their mouths,” Masakage said as they slowly rode their horses into town.
She flinched as she imagined how much that had to hurt. “All this to keep a contract?”
He nodded. “They are the ultimate bureaucrats.”
Yes, they were. But the weirdest part was that other than their garish appearance, everything else looked normal. They sat with friends, went about errands, had families.
Just like any other species she’d ever seen.
And they stood out even more than she had among the trolls and ogres. Were taller, too. There was no way for them to blend in with any other group.
Something made even more obvious by the ones who turned to stare at them as they made their way toward a rundown stable. By the glares and anger, she could tell that they knew who Xaydin was and they weren’t happy about his presence in their town.
That level of hatred made the hair on her arms stand up. She didn’t like being the center of attention and especially not when it was hostile.
As they neared a stable in the center of town, anaþaswerecame out to greet them. Unlike the others, he didn’t have as many words on his flesh. His wrinkled face was blank, as was most of his bald head.
“You’re not dead yet?” he asked Xaydin.
Xaydin snorted at the question. “Not from lack of trying.”
“I’d imagine.” His gaze went to her and Masakage. He studied them for a second. “Are you planning to sign a contract instead of breaking one for once?”
Xaydin gave him an amused smirk. “Not hardly. They just came along for the ride.”
“Since when do you keep company with others?”
Xaydin smirked. “Since I haven’t found a way to shake them off. No matter how much I abuse them, they won’t leave.”
Theaþaswerelaughed before he took the reins of her horse. “I’m Athgar, my lady, and you are?”
“Gisela.”
“Nice meeting you.” He turned his attention to Masakage. “You seem familiar.”
“Masakage of Tenmaru. And I have a lot of siblings. You might have run across one. Most of us travel a great deal of the time.”
“Perhaps.” He walked their horses into the stable so that he could tie them up and remove their saddles. “How long will you be here?”
