by Randi Darren
Walter’s paranoia had kicked into gear since Alex’s abduction. Having them along was only the most recent expression of that fear.
There was a sudden sharp thud, followed by the coach leaning heavily to one side.
Shouts and orders came from all directions. So much so that Alex couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
It all sounded like noise. Noise that had the distinct feel of violence to it.
The coach lurched in the other direction and then started to slow down abruptly.
Alex felt like it was slowing far too quickly. Especially if the horses had been let to run and the driver injured.
Something… happened, I guess?
Straining his ears, Alex could hear metal on metal, low grunts and shouts, and even some called insults.
Then everything went silent, except for some low moans and what sounded like snoring.
Alex truly didn’t want to poke his head out the window to find out what had happened. Waiting inside wasn’t going to do him any favors or fix the situation, though.
“I’ll look, my lord,” Walter said, immediately popping his head out the window.
Blasted loyal fool.
“Ah. Good work, good work,” Walter said. To whom, Alex had no idea.
Though he would guess by the fact that Walter hadn’t pulled his head back in or died, whatever had happened was already over.
“Walter?” Alex asked.
“Ah, sorry my lord. Is it all clear?” Walter asked someone else outside.
“Yes, sir. We have no wounded, no dead. We killed four, two will probably never talk again, and we captured three who can talk,” said a voice outside the carriage. “By the look of them, they’re not what we’d call seasonal bandits. I’d say this is their profession of choice.”
Seasonal bandits? Is that even a thing? Or is it more of a curiosity of this world, I wonder.
Seasonal banditry.
Men and women who take up weapons during a fallow, drought, or poor-yielding season.
Often, this creates more farmland available to be sold again when the previous tenants expire or leave their land.
“Ah,” Alex said. “Open the door then, Walter. Let’s see if this was accidental or planned.
“We were just summoned, after all.”
“What? The king…? No, never. He wouldn’t… he couldn’t… could he?” Walter asked. Opening the door to the carriage, he stepped out onto the king’s road.
“I truly don’t know. But I’d rather find out than never ask.”
Alex jumped down and found himself staring up into a rough face with a number of small scars and a nose that'd been broken more than thrice.
“Rudolph,” Alex said, nodding at the man. He was a lieutenant in the house guard and by reputation a stalwart man. “Bring over the survivors who can talk.”
Looking to the side, he found the source of the snoring sound. A woman with a split skull lay face up in the roadway, her chest still until she took a gasping, snoring breath.
Quickly pulling his gaze away from the dying body, Alex looked to Rudolph.
“Put… put any who can’t talk to the sword. Banditry on the king’s road is a death sentence,” Alex said.
“Yes, my lord,” Rudolph said, then gestured to his men, who were spread out around them.
A man walked out from the side of Alex’s view carrying a large, one-handed steel mace.
Ah… no bladed weapons on the king’s road or in the capital. That’s going to make my order a bit—
A disgusting crunch came from his left, and Alex made sure to keep his eyes forward.
A youth probably barely old enough to drink, a man, and a young woman were each pushed to their knees in front of Alex.
They all had wounds on their bodies but seemed to be coherent, though in various states of fear or panic.
Except the woman, who seemed angry more than anything.
“You,” Alex said, pointing at the man-child. “Why the hell are you out here?”
“I… my uncle brought me,” said the scared teenager.
“And where’s he?”
“Dead. Over there,” the youth said, nodding his head toward a direction Alex refused to look.
“But why?”
“Farm went barren. Uncle said he knew a group that were always looking for new blood… we were just waiting for anyone to come along. Haven’t seen anyone for days come down the road.”
So they weren’t here for me. Just a lucky coincidence for them. Poor kid, I’ll have Rudolph take care of him before we pack it up.
Sighing, Alex looked to the older man.
“You?”
“Fuck you,” said the man, spitting at Alex.
Thankfully he missed, but Alex was nonplussed all the same.
“Uh huh, Rudolph?” Alex asked, looking over to the man.
“Sir?”
“See if you can find out where their hideout is so we can… recover… their ill-gotten gains. If he cooperates, dispatch him efficiently and without pain.
“If he doesn’t… get creative. Then dump the body to the side of the road.”
“With pleasure, sir.”
A guard leaned over the older man, jammed the handle of his mace up against the man’s throat and dragged him off to one side.
“And what about me, huh?” the woman said, glaring at him. “Tell them to do the same to me? Instead of getting creative, tell them to rape me to death?
“I’ve never been a victim and I won’t be one now. I’ll piss on anyone who even gets between my legs, and shit on them to boot.”
Raising his eyebrows at the violence in her tone and words, Alex gave her a quick once-over.
Short-cropped black hair, no longer than an inch or two, and light brown eyes.
She wasn’t pretty like Riley, or beautiful like Sylvia, but she wasn’t unattractive either.
Her features weren’t delicate or fine, but she had a certain appeal to Alex nonetheless, and her figure was toned and lithe with a bit more than a handful in the chest.
A thin, white scar ran from her cheekbone down to her jaw. Otherwise, her face was smeared with dirt and a thin trickle of blood came down from her temple.
He’d call her cute if he had to put a name to it.
“You’re certainly feisty,” Alex said neutrally.
“Keep your distance, my lord,” one of the guards said. “She doesn’t look it, but she was actually difficult to put down.”
“Oh?” Alex asked, curious.
“Yes, sir. I’m not sure I could best her in a straight fight. I’m betting she has a price on her head with that kind of ability. We should take it with us.”
Making a snap decision, he decided it might be worth trying to subvert her to his whims.
That and her head seemed perfectly useful atop her shoulders rather than in a sack.
He imagined she would respond with rage up front to anything she perceived as an indignity, before she even knew if it was or wasn't.
A neutral tone would be the best route for now.
Giving her nothing to build on would put her off balance.
Squatting down in front of her, Alex put himself eye-level with her.
“Curious. You’re interesting… actually, I haven’t caught your name yet?” Alex asked.
The woman’s brows pressed together, her mouth a thin line. She glared at him for all she was worth.
“Walter, do me a favor? Step aside for a bit? Rudolph, come a bit closer so he doesn’t pitch a fit.”
“My lord, I—”
“Walter? Do it.”
He heard the shuffling of steps behind him, then the clunking of boot-shod feet coming to stand beside him.
“Rudolph, you’re under an oath of secrecy as well as loyalty, yes?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Wonderful.”
Alex tilted his head to one side, looking at the woman.
Threats wouldn’t work here. Nor would appealing to anything.
What about praise and a treat? In simple terms with nothing attached.
We can work on her as we go.
“How about we just start with a name? My name is Alex Brit. Count of Brit,” Alex said, watching her.
She blinked once, then shook her head.
“Carla,” she said finally, her tone and volume having come down considerably. Her head slowly went to the left, then back in the other direction.
“Alright. Carla, you’re rather impressive. I think having you at my side would probably help me survive a bit longer.
“What would you say to a job offer?”
“I’d say you’re fucking cracked.”
“Oh, most certainly. But I haven’t even told you the best part of the offer.”
“Mmm.” Carla watched him.
Oh? That looks like interest. She isn’t angry.
I doubt I need to remind her the alternative is having her head bashed in, but… have to follow the rules.
“The best part is your employment would start with an oath to me. Of secrecy, loyalty, and that all future pacts between us would build off that one.
“An oath that if broken would forfeit your life and soul.
“You can of course say no; I’ll not force you into this.”
“Hah, you’ll just kill me instead,” she said, some heat rising in her voice.
“That’s the unfortunate reality, yes. I can promise you that if you say no, you’ll not be used in a poor fashion. I’ll simply have your head cut from your shoulders, your dignity intact.
“And that’s your choice, which is yours to make, without coercion,” Alex said as neutrally as he could manage.
“You can say no, or you can agree. The oath would be given on the name of Leah,” Alex said, keeping his tone cool. Emotionless.
Carla wrinkled her nose, but didn’t seem put off.
“I agree, and swear your oath on Leah,” Carla said.
“I also do so swear. Now, the actual bargain I’d like to strike with you.
“You keep your life, but you turn it over to me. You will be in my service, but you’ll serve at my side at all times.”
“Want yourself a bandit whore, huh?” Carla growled.
“Not at all.
“You’ll never be able to quit, change positions, or leave. But you’d have your life, and you'd be my personal guard.”
Carla didn’t respond. Instead she turned her head one way, then the other.
I wonder if that helps her think? Second time she’s done that.
“In addition, you’d have to swear yourself to celibacy unless I provide you with permission. Can’t have someone trying to use you against me,” Alex said smoothly. As if it were nothing at all.
Hopefully, having never experienced a loyalty oath, she wouldn’t understand that this concern was already moot.
“And that’s it?” she asked, her tone cautious.
Wary.
“Yes. That’d be it. Moving from a life of banditry to a life of guard duty. You’ll make sure no harm comes to me at any time.
“You’ll do what I order you to do, providing it falls within the boundary of good guardsman-ship, and I’ll give you what I believe you should have.”
Carla licked her lips, her anger long cooled, replaced with what looked to Alex like a shred of hope.
“Then… I agree, and do swear it.”
“I accept, and swear in return. Collect some extra gear from the house guard, or the dead, and get into the carriage. We’re on our way to the capital.”
“Uh…” Carla said eloquently.
“Hm?”
Alex stood up, stretching his back as he did so.
Carla got to her feet as well, throwing a cautious glance at the guards around her.
Damn, she’s taller than me?
Alex looked up at the ex-bandit who had him beat by an inch or two.
“How much do I get paid?” Carla asked.
Alex grinned widely at her.
Good question. It’s a shame you didn’t ask that before you agreed. You’re already well in the trap… Two.
“Absolutely nothing. Why, do you need pocket money?” Alex asked, keeping his face blank.
“What?!” Carla asked, her face immediately going red.
“What need do you have for money? I’ll provide you with what I want you to have.”
“I… I didn’t… no!” Carla growled out, her hands settling on his shoulders.
“Yes, Carla?”
“I need… coin.”
“I see. And for what, exactly?”
“You don’t need to know!”
“Alright… and how much coin do you need?”
“Nnngh. Ten gold… a year,” Carla said, her fingers tightening in his clothes but causing him no harm.
She physically couldn’t.
“That’s it? I can easily pay you that amount. Would you like this year’s salary up front? Now?”
“Yes! Yes, before we reach the capital.”
“Great. We can do that. I do have a price in exchange. Since this wasn’t part of the deal, it’d be an added bit to it.”
“What?!”
“I’m sorry, Carla. You can’t expect me to give such a salary without getting something in return. It’s far and above what a new house guard makes, and certainly not in advance.
“No, my price is simple.
“Your name will become… Two. You will respond to that name, take it as your own, and expect to be called that,” Alex said with a neutral and blank look on his face. “That’s what I want from you. So, is it Two, or Carla?”
Carla’s eye twitched, her lips peeling back in a snarl.
“You can always say no. There’s no reason to say yes if you don’t want to. This is completely voluntary,” Alex said.
“Gods damn you!” she screamed in his face.
Something must be driving her. I wonder what it i—
“Fine, yes. I agree. Fine. Damn you. I’ll agree to that oath. Give me the damn coin. I’ll need to take a day to take care of my things when we reach the capital.”
Perfect. This is almost too easy.
“First, I accept the deal for your gold.
“As to your day off… sure, Two. Not a problem. I can definitely let you do that.
“Let’s discuss the price for a day off,” Alex said, and finally smiled at her. “I’m sure we can come to some type of agreement.
“First, ah, how flexible are you?”
Carla’s eyes widened and her face nearly went purple as rage overcame her.
Chapter 6
The carriage rolled slowly through the large gates of the capital.
It wasn’t so much that one passed them on entering them—more like they actually enveloped anything that went through.
Stonework that looked close to fifteen feet deep surrounded the carriage as they entered the capital proper.
Outside these inner walls remained the peasantry, the lowest classes of citizens and a major source for drudgery and manual labor.
All were encompassed within a wall that wouldn’t stand up to a traditional army but would certainly keep out bandits and raiders.
The inner-walled district was where all the affluent members of the city lived, traded, and did business.
Where the peerage lived.
Even Alex’s family had a home here. Apparently, it hailed from an age in which the Brit family had a ducal title instead of only a count’s.
I wonder how long ago that was. And why we lost it.
Alex took in a slow breath and then sighed explosively.
This trip wasting his time felt as if someone had tipped over a puzzle he’d been working on. Throwing everything he wanted to do into disarray.
Hate it when people mess with my plans.
Though we did get a good deal on the way, didn’t we?
Thinking about Carla, Alex turned his head to look at her.
Somewhere, somehow, she’d managed to cajole, bribe,
or threaten her way into a full set of house guard equipment that looked new. Rather than a replacement set or a second set.
She’d even managed to clean herself up.
The dirt, grit, and smudges were gone. The unkempt hair had been trimmed up a bit and seemed almost groomed in comparison to when he’d first met her.
“What?” she grumbled, catching him watching her.
“Nothing, really. Was just thinking about how well you clean up,” Alex said, slipping into the neutral-Carla tone he’d developed.
Carla's brows immediately drew together, her mouth curling into a frown.
He waited, letting her digest his words. When her first reaction was always anger, it paid to let her parse it out.
Only then would she come to another emotion.
Several seconds passed before her face cleared and she snorted.
“Whatever. No use trying to woo someone you’re also trying to talk into selling her body for a deal,” Carla said.
Alex glanced at the window, making sure no one was nearby.
Walter had gone ahead to get the manse ready, leaving him alone with Carla for the last day of the ride.
“We both know you can say no, Two. You have no obligation to say yes to sleeping with me. In fact, I’ll kindly remind you, we’ve agreed to the deal, but until you actually take the day off, my part of the deal won't become valid.
“You can back out of it if you like,” Alex said.
He wanted to give her every opportunity to say no. To back out. To change her mind.
The more he did so, the simpler it was for his conscience.
This wasn’t the same world he'd come from.
Sex had been, and always would be, an object of sale and trade. But it’d gotten further and further from public life.
And even if, as they said, prostitution was the oldest profession, he had a problem wrapping his mind around it.
In this case, he was just trying to get the best bang for his buck, so to speak, while getting his own mind to accept it.
“Mmmph,” Carla said, crossing her arms in front of herself. “I’ll think on it.”
She turned her head away, not willing to look at him.
“I… that is…” she said, staring out the window. “I appreciate you not forcing anything. When we were alone in the carriage, you probably could have, since we'd already made the deal.