by Dante King
If the man didn’t stop blathering on soon, Anna was going to hit him. And then I’d have to get involved in another fight today.
“Merchandise can be replaced,” I said, holding up my hands in a placating manner. “People cannot. We’re very lucky that no one died today, Jalen.”
Jalen refused to calm down. “That’s easy for you to say,” the man growled, spitting into a nearby aisle. “You get to walk away from all this with a fat coinpurse! Not to mention a reputation as the big hero! I’m the one who’s got to shovel the shit!”
“Jalen,” Lyra said, cutting off Anna before she said something she’d regret. Though the older woman looked tired—and distinctly like she’d just had a roll in the hay—her voice was quiet and sympathetic. “Both of us know half the merchandise that got destroyed today is illegal. I didn’t say anything when you brought us in here, but you’re going to be lucky if the authorities don’t arrest you when they see it. You need this big hero to explain things to them.”
A low, animal cunning filled Jalen’s eyes. “Aye,” he said, shaking his head. “I would appreciate your intervention in this, Lyra. You speak for the community—all of us in the town know that.”
She nodded. “Perhaps you should take this quarrel inside,” she suggested, gesturing at Regina.
Jalen grit his teeth. “Oh, I most certainly will! Come here, you wretched woman! You’ve bedeviled me for the last time!”
He reached out to strike her—but Anna stood in the way. “Don’t you lay a fucking finger on her,” my girlfriend hissed. She sounded almost the way she got when she turned into a scythe—angry and sharp, filled with bloodlust. I could tell she wanted to lay this guy out.
Jalen laughed—a harsh, flat sound. “I can do whatever the hell I want to her,” he said, snarling at Anna. “That woman is my wife!”
Anna pushed the man back. “That doesn’t mean you can treat her like cattle!” I could have sworn a shimmer gathered around her legs, as if she were about to transform into something with blades. “She’s not your property, you piece of—”
“Technically,” Lyra said, putting a hand on Anna’s shoulder, “she is.”
Anna jerked around so fast it was a miracle she didn’t get whiplash. “What!?”
Lyra’s lips formed a tight little line. “In our town—scratch that, in our Zone—a man may do whatever he wishes with his ordained wife. Up to and including beatings.” Lyra looked just as unhappy about it as Anna did—she just controlled herself better. Clearly this wasn’t the first time she’d come upon poor Regina in this situation.
“That’s bullshit,” Anna snapped, looking to me for confirmation. “We’re not going to let that happen. Isn’t that right, Eric?”
I looked from the woman on the ground to Jalen. The man was so pissed steam should have been coming from his nostrils.
“You heard Lyra,” I said, brushing past Regina. “This is the way of the world, Anna. We have no right to interfere between a man and his wife.”
The color drained out of Anna’s face. I thought I’d seen her as angry as she could possibly get before—I was wrong. “You’re kidding me,” she stammered, her hands beginning to shake. “No, Eric. No, that’s wrong—”
“Jalen,” I said sharply. “I believe you owe us our payment. As Cultivators.”
He stood there a moment, sizing me up, then nodded. “Aye. I keep it in the back.”
“Bring it to me, then,” I said, staring him down.
He nodded and withdrew, leaving the three of us alone with Regina for the moment.
As soon as he was gone, Anna turned her rage on me. “I can’t believe you,” she said, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “You may have just killed an Armored Boar, but that man is the real pig!” She spit in the dirt the same way she’d seen before. “And you’re going to let him abuse that woman!”
“I never said that,” I told her, listening for Jalen. When I was convinced he’d left, I turned away from Anna and her confused expression and knelt in the dirt, next to Regina.
The woman shuddered. Her eyes remained fixed on the ground, as if she were too scared to raise them.
“Are you alright?” I asked. It struck me that I was probably the first person to ask her that in a long, long time. “Did that beast harm you?”
Slowly, Regina lifted her head. The ghost of a smile spread across her pale face. “Which one?”
I couldn’t stop the chuckle from leaving my lips. “Listen. I know you’re not happy with this man. I doubt he’s left you with much property of your own, but if you truly wish to escape him, you should come to Lyra’s tavern as soon as you’re able. She’ll protect you from Jalen. Won’t you, Ly?”
Lyra looked down at the two of us, a fierce look on her face. “Oh, absolutely,” she said, nodding. “I’d like to see Jalen try making it out of the common room without a few broken bones…”
“I don’t know how we can help you,” I added, “but if there’s anything we can do for you, we’ll find a way. You understand?”
The woman gave me a look of sheer disbelief. “You three would… would help me?”
God, what had this poor woman been through? “Of course we will,” I told her.
She stood up, then reached into her robes and handed me something. A Beast Core.
“Don’t let Jalen see it,” she muttered, urging me to tuck it in my soaked robes. “I’ll come to the Hungry Herb Tavern tonight—as long as Lyra will shelter me.” A smile rose to her face. “Thank you, stranger.”
“I’m not a stranger,” I assured her. “I’m Eric.”
The woman scuttled off into the shadows as Jalen emerged from the back, a bulging sack in his hands.
“Here,” Jalen said, looking none too happy to be parting with his money. “For killing the Boar. I told you I’d pay for a job well done, and pay I shall…”
I nodded, projecting the picture of friendliness. Then I grabbed Jalen around the throat.
He let out a little whimper as I lifted him off the ground, his feet kicking against the dirt. If he hadn’t been so loathsome, it might almost have been cute.
“If I hear that you’ve done anything to your wife—even laid a finger on her—I’m going to come back here and extract your Core,” I said simply.
Jalen’s eyes bulged in his head. “You can’t!” the man protested. “I’m not even a Cultivator. I don’t even possess a Core.”
“If you say so,” I said with a shrug. “But as you’ve no doubt guessed, I’m not really from around here, so I might see what else you’ve got inside you. Might not find a Core, definitely won’t find a heart, but I’m certain I’ll find some satisfaction.” My fingers tightened. “It won’t be a quick death, Jalen. Nowhere near as swift as what I gave the Armored Boar.”
I let him down and stalked off, without giving him time to reply. Lyra and Anna followed me out of the warehouse and back into the sunshine. The hot weather started to dry out my robes, but it would be a long time before I felt fully dry again.
Anna planted a kiss on my cheek. “Thank you,” my girlfriend said, her eyes watery. “I knew you wouldn’t let a thing like that happen.”
“Of course not,” I said with a snort. “Had to get the money first, though.”
“Hell yeah,” Anna agreed. “We’ve got full coin purses now. We don’t even need Lyra’s IOU. Not that it’s not appreciated, Ly…”
Lyra shook her head. “You know you two are like family,” the older woman said, taking both of us by the shoulder. “I’m not going to charge you for anything. Now, if you don’t mind—the night is young. Why don’t we head back to the Hungry Herb and wait for this new friend of yours to show up? Being your spear has given me a powerful appetite. Not to mention a desire to do a little bit more Cultivating…”
Anna and I shared a look. More Dual Cultivating? We knew exactly what that meant.
The three of us were going to ring in the evening with some major-league naughty fun.
Chapter 20
>
As we made our way back toward the Hungry Herb Tavern, the sun dipped below the horizon and brought night to the town. Merchants lit torches in front of the stalls that remained open, bathing the entire town in a warm, homey glow. Anna, Lyra, and I were looking forward to a night of feasting, drinking and ‘Dual Cultivation’ threesomes—with a helping of recounting my story of fighting the Armored Boar on top of everything else. Killing the beast had made me a local hero, and now I was to be welcomed into the bosom of the town with open arms.
So of course, it was all ruined before we reached Lyra’s front door.
Just beyond the market square, a beautiful young woman ran back and forth across the street, trying to catch the attention of passersby. At first, I assumed she was some kind of vagrant and reached for a few coins in my pocket—as we drew closer, however, I realized she wasn’t trying to get money. She looked to be in considerable distress.
My mind filled with visions of the Armored Boar bearing down on the market. I’d stopped it just in time, but what if someone had gotten trapped beneath a fallen stall or something like that?
“Please, someone,” the woman whimpered, tears streaming down her face. From the way they flowed, I could tell she’d been crying for some time. “My sister… I need help…”
Anna reached her first. “It’s alright,” my girlfriend said, doing her best to calm the woman down. “What’s the matter? Is she hurt?” Anna looked up and down the square. “Was she injured in the fight?”
The woman shook her head, sniffing hugely. A long, dark ponytail hung down her back, and something about her face tickled the back of my brain. Had I met this woman before?
“No,” the woman stuttered, “but she’s about to be. She’s in trouble—real bad trouble, see, the kind you don’t walk away from…”
A moment later I was there, my hand on one of her shoulders. “Listen, we’re Cultivators,” I explained, feeling more than a little moved by the woman’s obvious anguish. “We just took out that big Armored Boar that threatened the town square. Tell me what’s the matter with your sister, and we’ll help her out as best as we can.”
I confirmed this with a glance at Anna and Lyra. Neither looked particularly happy to be missing out on the warm welcome we’d receive over at the Hungry Herb, but neither could they turn down a woman in such obvious need.
“Cultivators?” the woman said, sounding surprised. “I already tried them. The Hollow Frog Guild told me to sod off, and the town’s guardsman weren’t any help. ‘Can’t intrude on a dispute between a man and his wife’, they say. My mother tried to warn me not to get involved, but I couldn’t just stand by.”
The phrase ‘between a man and his wife’ sent a chill down my spine. I glanced at Lyra, and she wore a knowing frown. She obviously knew this woman and her family.
“What’s your sister’s name?” I asked the woman.
The woman looked up at me, smoothing dirt from her skirts. “Regina,” she said, new tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “That’s my sister’s name. My younger sister. I’m Martha, by the way. We’re the weaver’s daughters.”
My blood went cold. “We just got finished helping out your sister,” I explained, my lips feeling numb all of a sudden. “It seems she and her husband were having some kind of a spat.”
I’d warned Jalen not to lay a finger on his wife. Threatened him with bodily harm if he hurt her for ‘letting the beast free’. As if Regina had had anything to do with the Armored Boar in the first place. What had that damn fool done now?
“A man came to see my mother and me,” the woman explained, her voice on the edge of babbling. “Just a few minutes ago. He wore a shroud over his face—he says he’s from a group called the Vipers.”
“Smugglers,” Lyra growled, a scowl spreading across her face.
I started. “You know them?”
“If you’d asked me to guess who Jalen’s contact was to fence all that contraband,” Lyra whispered, “they would’ve been at the top of my list. They’re a criminal organization that does business all along this Zone and the ones bordering it.” She gave me a significant glance. “The Hollow Frog Guild’s been completely unsuccessful at stamping them out. Some people say they’re actually working with the Guild to move product.”
From the look in her eyes, I could tell she believed it. The implication was clear: to mess with the Vipers meant tangling with the Hollow Frog Guild. If the three of us did something to mess with their money, it could bring unholy hell down on our heads. Did I want that?
Hell, I thought with a smirk. That sounds good to me. I’d love to ruin that asshole Guildmaster Ji’s day.
“That doesn’t frighten me at all,” I said proudly. “What did the Vipers want, Martha?”
Martha had trailed off while she listened to Lyra and I discussing the Vipers. At my request, she continued. “They told me Jalen was selling her off,” Martha confessed, a sob erupting from her throat. “That she destroyed a bunch of Jalen’s merchandise, and he owed a lot of money to the Vipers because of it. That he agreed to let her be sold in order to pay back some of the costs.”
Anna’s face flushed beet-red. “Human trafficking,” she growled.
Lyra ground her heel into the dirt. “That bastard!” she said through grit teeth.
“We won’t let him get away with it,” I agreed. “They must have been waiting in the shadows the entire time—as soon as we led the Armored Boar away, they struck. I can’t believe anyone could be so cold-blooded!”
“My sister’s worth more than a few boxes of broken merchandise!” Martha cried. “She helps take care of Ma. She’s a good weaver, and she’s got a good head on her shoulders for managing Jalen’s finances. And she’s… she’s my sister!” Tears welled in Martha’s eyes, spilling over onto her cheeks.
“Your sister didn’t break any merchandise—the Boar did,” I said, shaking my head. “She’s innocent. Jalen is just being a prick.” My fingers dug into the palm of my hand. “I shouldn’t have left the woman with him. I was inviting trouble.”
Lyra shook her head. “You thought the warning was enough,” she said, clucking her tongue. “As did I.”
“You’ve got to do something to help her,” Martha begged. She clutched at my robes as if she stood in a swift current, and only hanging on tight would keep her from being washed away. “Please! There’ll be no one to take care of my mother! I’ll never see my sister again!”
I glanced down the lane at the Hungry Herb Tavern. Lights shone from every window, and the sounds of cheerful conversation could just be heard over the chirping of crickets from outside the town. All the three of us had to do was walk through the door and we’d be heroes. I wouldn’t have to buy a drink all night—and when we went upstairs, we could have our pick of any woman in the common room. They’d fight each other to join us in bed.
No, I told myself, resisting the temptation. Not yet. I haven’t finished what I’ve started.
“We’ll help,” I told the sobbing woman. “Lyra—can you lead us back to that warehouse?”
“Gladly,” the redhead growled, her hands balled into fists. “I’m going to give that bastard Jalen a piece of my mind…”
I was as well. “Go back to your mother,” I told Martha, doing my best to keep her calm. “Let her know you’ve found some Cultivators willing to take the case. We’ll bring Regina to you.”
“But those men—they’re going to take her out of the town!” Martha’s eyes widened with panic. “Jalen agreed to sell her! Sell his own wife—!”
I stared down at the woman with every bit of command I could muster. “I won’t let him,” I growled, reaching for my Mana. “And if the Vipers think they’ll walk away with easy meat, they’ve got another thing coming. Now go.”
Martha went—though not without a little more coaxing and calming down from Anna. Once she was well on her way back to the weaver’s, the three of us headed back to Jalen’s warehouse. By the time we reached the market, we were at a dead run
.
Normally, I would have been sweating and panting by the time we reached the warehouse where we’d fought the Armored Boar. But a liberal application of Mana along the way kept tiredness from sinking into my limbs—though it left me hungry as an ox. We’d need some food once we were done here, for certain.
The big wooden doors lay open. Inside, the place was just as trashed as it had been when we’d left—no one had bothered to clean up. Strange powders and potions littered the floor, mingling with overturned barrels of spirits and corn.
I walked through all of it, wishing I had a light spell to illuminate the darkness. “Regina?” I yelled, cupping my hands around my mouth. “It’s Eric! Where are you…?”
A figure stepped out of the darkness.
Jalen.
From the look on his face, he knew exactly why we were here. His smug smile told me we were already too late.
“Good evening,” he said. Jalen chewed an even larger wad of leaves than usual—as if the bandits had given it to him as a present for helping their deal go down smoothly. “What are you doing disturbing my place of business, Cultivator? I paid you already, now go—”
That was as far as he got. I shot forward, lifting Jalen from the ground with both hands. I grabbed him around the sides and slammed him into a nearby shelf, sending some of the few untouched boxes of goods crashing to the floor.
“Where is she?” I snarled, reaching for my Mana. “Where is your wife?”
The shit-eating grin on Jalen’s face grew even wider. “Damnedest thing,” he said, chuckling to himself. “She just up and run off! Told me she didn’t want to spend another minute working for me!”
I couldn’t hold back any longer.
Jalen’s head jerked back as my fist struck bone, crunching his nose out of joint. Blood poured down the man’s face as he gasped, struggling to understand he’d just been struck.
“Ahhh!” Jalen screamed. “Help…!”