TRICKSTERS, Episode 2

(New to the series? Start with Episode 1)

“Quick. Get her inside.”

Paul bent and grasped the young woman’s ankles while Jack reached under her arms. Lifting together, they maneuvered her over to one of the low benches. After laying her down, Jack shut and locked the front door while Paul checked her for a pulse.

“Nothing,” he said. “Nothing at all.”

The young woman was dressed simply: homespun beige dress, simple white cotton shirt, sandals for her feet. She couldn’t have been more than sixteen years old. Blond hair, brown eyes…faint blush to her cheeks fading away.

Paul examined the wound. The arrow was crafted from a black wood and had white fletching. He pulled at it tentatively and felt a small amount of give. He winced, shut his eyes and pulled. There was a sickening feeling of the arrowhead catching on something, then a tearing, then it was free. Paul opened his eyes and looked at the arrowhead. It was a dull metal, forged to a razor-sharp edge, broad and flat. The sharp lines of the arrowhead’s edge ended in two wicked barbs.

Jack turned from his watching. He whistled upon seeing the arrow. “That looks vicious.”

Paul nodded. He cleaned it on the dead girl’s dress, then set it aside. He straightened.

“We should search her.”

Jack was silent. Paul glanced at him.

“Feels wrong, Paul,” Jack said. “Feels like…I don’t know…dirty.”

Paul nodded. He ran a hand through his hair. “Well…yeah. It does. But someone killed her on our doorstep. We need to find out why.”

Jack stared at him. “Like hell we do. All we need to do is dispose of the body. No one saw her come here. She might not have been coming for us. Might have just been the closest place to find help.”

Paul said, “Exactly. And we need to help her. We need to at least find her family.”

Jack shook his head. “How the hell are we going to do that?”

Paul pursed his lips. It was a good question. He walked over to the girl and frisked her briskly, as if torn between being thorough and feeling like he was somehow taking advantage of her. It was an odd feeling, and Paul tried to ignore it.

He found a small pendant around the woman’s neck: a tiny rose carved from wood. He handed it to Jack, then rolled the girl on to her side. He pulled down the dirty white shirt and examined her back. He grimaced. There were scars…the woman had been beaten at least once not so long ago. There was a brand on the pale flesh of her left shoulder: three stylized fish in a vertical row.

“What does that mean?” asked Jack.

Paul shook his head. “I’m not sure. Maybe she was a slave.” There were duchies that allowed for slavery, but usually the slaves were not human. Unlike home, more than the human race lived on this planet. They had seen a group of slaves during one of their early jobs, and they were slight, hairy, deeply tanned, and had pointed ears. Jack dubbed them “Edies,” E-D for Elf-Dwarves, but they never found out what they really were. Regardless, this woman was not one of them.

Jack looked at the small pendant. “So, what do you want to do? No one is going to try to find a runaway slave.”

“You’d think not, but then why send someone to kill her?”

Jack sighed. Once Paul had a Noble Quest, there was no stopping him. Jack turned and started to walk back up stairs.

“Where are you going?”

Jack looked down at Paul. “I’m changing into my merchant clothes. We’re need to head into Brandywine to talk to Slick William. He’ll have some idea about that brand, and possibly this pendant.”

Paul nodded. “What should we do with her? Leave her?”

Jack nodded. “Cover her with a sheet. She’s not going anywhere.” He continued up the stairs to ready himself for a trip into town.

* * *

He watched the tower.

They took the girl in, which was too bad. His benefactor would accuse him of not being thorough. He sighed. Employers were so tiresome. So overbearing. They lacked his vision, his ability to see the bigger picture. This one was no different from those he had in the past. He hoped he wouldn’t have to kill this one as well. He was a professional, and as such certain insults could not be allowed to stand.

He waited for several minutes. His patience was rewarded when two men stepped out and walked along the narrow track that led to the Duke’s road. He scratched his beard, committing their description to memory. After they disappeared along the road, he slung the bow on his back and crept toward the tower.

(Continue to Episode 3)

Related posts:

1. Tricksters: Episode One
2. TRICKSTERS, Episode 3
3. TRICKSTERS, Episode 4
4. Flash Fiction: Touched by an Angel
5. Agent Hunt

1. 

   JJ says:

   February 12, 2010 at 1:20 pm

   I really like the way you reveal elements of this world. The characters and the world take shape as the story unfolds. Leaves me wanting more. Nice job!
2. 

   Chris Miller says:

   February 12, 2010 at 1:26 pm

   Thanks, JJ! Part if it is what I have in my head, but there is also a fair amount of discovery going on as I write. I’m finding that I enjoy the editing process because it does give me more ideas for the world, and that’s just starting to build up into something interesting. I should probably start a story bible, just to keep track.
3. 

   Nycteris says:

   February 12, 2010 at 2:37 pm

   Enjoying the story! And you always leave me wanting more.