“Pfft,” Balthazar replied dismissively as he moved to look around the next corner. Clearly he didn’t believe in this fabled waterfall treasure but as unbelievable as it sounded I didn’t peg Cassian for a liar.
Cassian raised an eyebrow at my lie about him being a blacksmith but if he thought it was a good idea to tell the rest of the thieves that he was a royal guard then he was a damn fool.
Finn will gut you here and now if you correct me.
“What was a royal blacksmith doing in the dungeons?” Balthazar asked, his assessing gaze sweeping over my latest mark.
“He screwed the Emperor’s horse,” I said dismissively.
“I did no such thing,” Cassian growled in disgust.
“A blacksmith who likes screwing horses?” Finn asked with a sneer that told me he believed it. What kind of messed up shit had he seen in his life to make him believe things like that of people?
“He keeps denying it but the guards said he was caught in the act so...” I left the insinuation hanging in the air between us and Pip laughed.
Cassian glowered at me, but I sensed he wasn’t stupid enough to risk his life over contradicting me again.
“I knew a shepherd who liked the sheep that way once,” Finn muttered as if that made it okay.
“Was it your father?” I mocked. “That might explain a few things if your mother was a sheep-”
Finn looked at me for several long seconds then barked a laugh. I never could be sure with him whether my jokes would go too far and earn me a knife between the ribs but I got the feeling he liked my smart mouth.
“Come on then, horse boy, Egos is waiting for us.” Balthazar clapped a hand on Cassian’s shoulder and steered him down the alleyway ahead of us.
The guard gave me a look which suggested he wasn’t keen on being known as horse boy and I smirked in response. Better to be thought of as that than for them to learn the truth about him. And a big lie always worked better than a little one. I mean, who would ever make up something as audacious as that and expect to get away with it?
Only the best damn liar and thief in the twelve kingdoms.
We started running down the alleyways again and came to the market square. It was fairly empty at this time of night but there were always a few vendors to be found lurking in the shadows. Selling things you wouldn’t be able to buy during the day. A whore gave me a wide smile as she looked at my face but I’d never had to pay for it and I shook my head with a smirk. I probably could have convinced her to give me a roll for free if I’d had the time but we needed to beat this sand storm.
We slipped out of the shadows and crossed the wide space. Finn started to head north towards the den but I whistled to get his attention and led them west instead.
“I need to reclaim that loot before the Count’s servants find it,” I explained.
“You want to go back there now?” Balthazar grumbled though he followed my lead all the same.
“I’m not returning to Egos empty handed,” I muttered.
He’s going to be pissed at me as it is and I need to appease him.
Finn shoved Cassian forward as he hesitated and my new pal fell into step with me.
“How long am I going to be stuck with you?” he murmured.
I looked him over with a trace of irritation. “That’s gratitude for you. I save your ass from death’s doorstep and you promise to pay me back with a king’s ransom. And before you’ve paid that debt or even so much as thanked me, you’re looking to leave?”
“I gave you my word I’d take you to that treasure,” he replied, though I still heard no acknowledgment of the fact that he owed me his life. “You can meet me once the dust has settled and-”
I gritted my teeth in anger and whirled on him, sweeping his legs out from beneath him and sending him crashing to the ground.
He swung a fist at me and caught me in the side of the knee, making me stumble back. Finn aimed a kick at his head and Cassian was forced to roll aside but I was fast to recover and I moved forwards again, slamming a foot into his wounded side. Balthazar kicked him too and tossed me a blade as I dropped down onto him in the shadows.
I pressed the blade to his throat and his eyes widened in surprise as I leered over him.
“You gave your word to The Forty Thieves and you might want to consider what that means before you suggest reneging on our bargain again,” I growled. “We are the shadow in every corner, the nightmare in the heart of the deepest night. No one crosses us and lives to tell the tale and until you pay your debt to me, I hold your life in my hands.”
He narrowed his eyes as he gazed at me, seemingly unaffected by the fact that I was one sharp thrust away from ending his life.
“Did you rehearse that speech?” Cassian growled. “Or are you just so full of shit that it spurts out naturally?”
Balthazar chuckled behind me and Pip tentatively joined in.
“Your pretty face isn’t so well suited for making threats,” Balthazar teased. “Want me to cut off his ear to make the point?”
I pursed my lips in irritation as Cassian’s gaze flickered to Balthazar and I got the feeling he was more concerned about him than me. And I was the one who had him pinned to the ground with a knife at his throat for Osaria’s sake.
“I think he gets it. Don’t you?” I demanded.
“Got it. You own me...pay my debt. Be scared of shadows and some shit.” Cassian held my eye and I wondered if I really should cut off an ear to drive the point home. But making people believe they were my friend had always worked the best for me in the past.
And so what if my pretty face made me nonthreatening? It only made it all the more surprising when I kicked someone’s ass. Plus I’d sooner look like me than any other sucker in my gang. Or out of it to be fair.
“Good boy,” I said, slapping Cassian’s cheek a few times in the same patronising way that Egos always did to me. “Just try not to fall in love with me while we’re stuck together. It’s made things super awkward with Balthazar as it is and I don’t need to add another broken heart to the list of men who follow me around.”
“You wish, pretty boy,” Balthazar grumbled as I clambered off of Cassian and tossed his blade back to him.
The wind picked up and a wave of sand was driven over us.
“We don’t have long to get back before that storm hits,” Finn muttered irritably.
I offered Cassian my hand and he grunted as he accepted it and let me pull him to his feet.
“No need to look at me like I just pissed on your grandma,” I said to him. “We can go right back to being friends. Just stick with us and keep your word. You’re a man of honour, right?”
“My honour is the thing that guides me and-”
“And we need to go.” I gave him a push and started running along the alleyway again.
“Keep up, horse boy,” Finn grunted from the back of the group and I couldn’t help but laugh as I glanced at Cassian’s face. Priceless.
We raced down the streets as the wind blew and sand was driven over us more and more frequently. We needed to hurry back to the den before the storm hit or we were gonna end up stuck out here.
As we closed in on the Count’s house, the others took shelter beneath the trees and I headed in alone.
I pulled my cape over my head, drawing the hood low to conceal my features as I drew closer to the wall which ringed their property.
The iron gates were firmly closed unlike the other night and I smirked at their attempt to keep out thieves.
I skirted the wall until I reached the far end of the estate where I scaled it quickly, making my way to the top of it.
I looked around for any signs of movement, spying the stacked sacks of grain on the far side of the house.
It didn’t look like anyone had disturbed it since I’d hidden the loot and I grinned as I slipped off of the wall, landing in a crouch on the other side.
I stole across the driveway and danced between the shadows on silent feet as I hea
ded for the stacked grain.
A door closed nearby and I pressed my back to the wall of the building, sinking into the shadows with my dark cloak concealing me.
I watched as Perdu crossed the courtyard at the back of the house and tossed some kitchen peelings into a waste pot close to the stables.
She turned back towards the house and stilled for a moment as if she could sense my eyes on her. I waited until she headed back inside then slipped along the side of the wall and found the sacks of grain.
It took me a few moments to shift them aside and I grinned triumphantly as I found the bag of loot waiting at the bottom of the pile.
Some of the food I’d added to the stash had spoiled after a day laying out in the heat and I tossed the cheese aside as the smell of it made my stomach turn.
I fished a cake out and stuffed it into my mouth though. It was a little stale but still perfectly edible and my empty stomach growled with appreciation as I swallowed.
I slipped back across the estate and scaled the wall again with ease. I paused at the top of it and looked out over the desert. A tide of sand was rising like a great beast under the light of the moon in the distance and I swallowed thickly at the sight of it. That storm would reach us soon and we needed to be inside before it did.
I dropped back down into the darkened streets with a wave of unease in my chest. But the weight of the bag on my back brought a smile to my face as I ran back through the streets to find the others.
“That storm is closing in,” I said darkly as I arrived. “We need to move.”
“This one cant see the route to the den,” Finn growled, pointing at Cassian.
I ground my teeth in irritation. He was right but blindfolding my latest mark was going to cause issues to our speed.
I removed my cloak and wrapped it around Cassian’s shoulders. He frowned at me as I drew the hood down over his face but he didn’t voice any protest to the situation as I tightened it so that he couldn’t see.
I gripped his left arm and Balthazar took his right and we started running for the den with Pip leading the way.
The wind howled and sand pelted us with more intensity as we raced through the abandoned streets. No one else was dumb enough to be outside with the storm this close to hitting and I cursed as the sharp grains battered my exposed arms.
“We aren’t going to make it!” Pip cried as another wind drew even more sand over us. I did not want to get caught out when the sand came slamming down on us. It would slice into our skin and blind us within moments of hitting and I had no intention of battling through the hell of that if I could avoid it.
“Not much further,” I growled, dragging Cassian along even faster as we ducked left and right. We didn’t have time to take an indirect route and I just had to hope the ex-guard wasn’t managing to keep count of our turns.
Probably best to make sure he can’t.
“Cassian?” I asked and a muffled response came from beneath the hood. “I want you to start counting back from two hundred. Out loud.”
“Why?”
“Do it or die,” Balthazar snapped and the sound of Cassian counting came in response as we continued to run.
We raced on and the sand drove down on us in droves. I hissed in discomfort, drawing my shirt up over my mouth and nose to keep it out as best I could.
“Open sesame!” Pip shouted ahead of us and I couldn’t help but smirk at the fact that he still believed he had to say that to gain entry to the den.
The hidden door was thrown open in the centre of the wall and we tumbled inside as the storm slammed into our backs with more ferocity.
We jogged to the foot of the darkened stairway and I kept a tight hold on Cassian so that he didn’t fall.
I couldn’t see who had let us in but I recognised her footsteps as she led the way through the dark passage.
“Can I stop counting now?” Cassian grumbled.
“Yes, by all means shut up,” Balthazar replied.
The tunnel went on and on and Amira’s hand skimmed against mine.
I almost smiled in response as I drew my hand away. I wasn’t foolish enough to accept her advance in front of the others. She belonged to Egos and I liked my head firmly on my shoulders far more than I liked the idea of taking pleasure from her flesh.
She sighed dramatically and the sound echoed in the tight space.
We walked on, maintaining the silence until we finally reached the ladder which led up to the den.
I took my cloak from Cassian as the others climbed up and I held him back, looking at him in the dim light which filtered down to us from the den above.
The sound of the rest of The Forty talking and laughing reached us and I was confident we wouldn’t be overheard.
“I need to talk to Egos alone,” I murmured. “Amira will look after you but no matter what she offers you, don’t touch her. She belongs to Egos and he’ll cut you to quarters if you so much as hold her hand.”
“What makes you think she’ll offer?” Cassian asked in surprise.
“Because it’s her favourite game. And you’re not terrible to look at. You’re no me but you’re no Finn either.”
“Thanks, I guess?”
“Don’t go blushing on me, horse boy. You’re not getting a kiss out of me. Just sit tight while I talk to the boss and in case you hadn’t realised it would be a terrible idea, don’t tell them your former profession.”
“Noted. And I don't kiss men. Apparently horses are more my thing...”
I barked a laugh. “Well it’s not every day you come across a face as alluring as mine so no matter your preferences, don’t try your luck with me.” I motioned for him to climb the ladder and he headed up with a hint of trepidation in his gaze.
I shook the sand from my black hair as I waited to follow him, pushing it out of my eyes before climbing up too.
I emerged in the wide space which was home to the main area of the den. It was the full first level of a huge building on the outskirts of the city and our sleeping quarters filled the floor above it. Egos kept the rooms of the top floor all to himself and that was where he kept the majority of our loot too. We were allowed to take a cut from any jobs we did ourselves but Egos always decided how much and no one dared question his calculations.
A fire was lit in the centre of the space and several faces turned my way as I looked about to see who was here. It looked like all of The Forty were present which wasn’t surprising considering the sand storm which raged outside.
Egos was sitting on his throne at the far side of the room and I nodded to him respectfully as his gaze landed on me.
Amira drew closer to me as I kicked the hatch shut over the trap door and I noticed Cassian eyeing the curves of her exposed flesh.
She wore matching loose red trousers with a top which barely concealed her breasts and left her stomach bare. Her long, brown hair was pulled over her left shoulder and she ran her fingers through it as she eyed my latest mark.
“Who’s your new friend, Aladdin?” she purred, extending a hand towards Cassian.
I raised an eyebrow at him and his gaze swivelled to take in our den leader as he stepped back from her.
“This is Cassian, I took him from the dungeons and he’s going to make us rich. Get him some clean clothes and a pail of water would you? I need to talk to Egos.”
“Cassian?” Amira repeated and the way she said it was enough to let me know that she had her sights firmly set on him for the night.
Her speciality was seducing marks and robbing them blind while they were too distracted to notice. I’d called her a whore with a thieving habit until Egos had threatened to cut my tongue out for it. But in all honesty if she didn’t warm his bed when it suited him, I didn’t believe her skill at theft was good enough to warrant a place in The Forty. Her skill in the bedroom however was certainly worth remembering, not that I was supposed to know anything about that.
Amira drew closer to Cassian, her eyes sparkling with the kind of ideas that
could get him killed - though he’d die with a smile on his face. Egos no doubt hated him already.
“Yeah. He’ll bunk in with me tonight so no need to show him to your quarters.” I turned away, wondering if I should have asked Pip to take care of him instead but the boy had already disappeared into the crowd and I couldn’t see him anywhere.
“I wouldn’t get too excited, Amira,” Balthazar’s voice came from behind me. “This one prefers horses to women.”
I laughed as Cassian’s curses followed me across the room but I schooled my expression as I approached Egos, pulling the bag from my shoulder.
He was a huge man, his hair twisted into dreadlocks which ran down his back and held gemstones woven within them. His dark skin was marred by countless scars, each of which held a story that had ended in another man’s death. One scar cut right through his left eye and the ruined pupil had turned near white with blindness. His other eye was fixed firmly on me as I moved to stand before him, lowering my head respectfully.
“I didn’t think you were stupid enough to get caught for the sake of a boy,” Egos growled and I took a deep breath as I forced myself not to respond with a quip. Egos didn’t appreciate my sense of humour at the best of times and I could tell he was mightily pissed with me now.
“Pip saved my life, I owed him the same,” I murmured, wondering which of the thieves had told him what had happened.
“Honour amongst thieves, is it?” Egos said dismissively, knowing I’d never offered any such loyalty to a man before.
“Something like that,” I muttered.
I still wasn’t entirely sure why I’d risked my life for the boy’s but there was something about him that I found myself drawn to. I enjoyed his company. He was lighthearted like me and I couldn’t deny I liked the worshiping look he got in his eye whenever I did something impressive. But that wasn’t it. I wasn’t quite vain enough to have saved him purely because I liked having a fan.
“Well whatever it was, you owe me compensation for the risk we took in getting you out of the dungeons,” Egos growled.
Forbidden Fairytales- The Complete Series Page 6