Sellswords Page 5

  Chapter Three

  Once outside I noticed a small crowd had formed around Miri and Sariel. My love looked as if she was about to bolt in terror, but the Fey was drinking in the attention as if it were fine Elven Brandy.

  But the Fey had kept enough of her wits to spot me exiting the blockhouse. “Well good people it appears that our leader has returned. I shall take all of your kind proposals to her and we shall get back to you as to our decision,” she said to the surrounding group as she expertly flowed through their circle and moved towards me.

  Miri started behind her but she moved so fast that she arrived first, two steps ahead of Sariel.

  The Fey didn’t seem to be phased by Miri’s behaviour at all. “Four are ready to sign us up right now, and two others want proof of competency before we go further: and those are just the ones that are offering a hundred gold or more as a signing bonus,” she excitedly said to me as she handed me several handbills.

  Before I could take them, Miri grabbed both of us by the arm and started to quick march us back towards The Rat.

  “They just surrounded her like wolves do a deer. As soon as she confirmed she was Fey they started making offers. Most were for dinner, until they realized that she was looking for mercenary work then all Nine Hells broke lose,” reported Miri. “It’s a good thing I fed last night, I wouldn’t have been able to withstand the level of strong emotions that she generated otherwise.”

  “Miri, I do believe that you’re exaggerating; granted I was trying to be gracious but everyone was civil,” chided Sariel.

  “If that was you just being ‘gracious’ I’d hate to see what would happen if you really turned it on. Sasha, I swear if I hadn’t been their someone would have shanghaied her, and she be a ‘cabin boy’ on some galleon before you would have made it out of the Guildhall,” said Miri as she ‘escorted’ us.

  “But I’m not a boy…” started Sariel before she realized what Miri was talking about “Oh? Oh, that would be bad.”

  “Yeah think!” snorted Miri. Then taking a deep breath Miri turned back to me and said. “I hope you had some luck, because I’d not trust any of those offers until I check them out with a someone else.

  “As luck would have it, I ran into Keira. She’s still with Roland, and he’s forming a new company and is looking for people,” I said as I put the handbills into my great coat’s pocket: always best to keep your options open. “We’re invited to dinner tonight; a carriage is going to pick us up at evening bell,” I said quickly, hoping that the matter of fact way I’d delivered the news would make Miri just accept the fact that we were going.

  Unfortunately, I was wrong.

  “And you agreed to all this without even asking me?” she said tartly.

  Who are Keira and Roland?” asked Sariel curious.

  “Roland was the commander of the mercenary company in which Miri and I met,” I answered trying to put as positive a spin on the answer as possible.

  “He was also the commander who got all but nine of his people killed in a war that could have been won,” said Miri with a tone that clearly felt like an old scar opening.

  “That wasn’t his fault Miri, and you know it. The Prince who was paying us wouldn’t listen and by the time we realized just how dangerous the situation was, it was too late,” I replied, then added. “And he’s also directly responsible for you being one of those nine.”

  “Which is why I’m not refusing outright,” she said through gritted teeth. I could tell that Miri was having real problems with this. On the one hand, she had real difficulties with Roland for an issue that we had since learned through our own experience was a hard one for any sellsword to handle. With the other being the problem similar to that of your first love: you never forget it.

  “You didn’t agree to anything but dinner, right?” she asked finally.

  “Only dinner, a free dinner I might add,” I said reassuringly.

  “A free dinner which will most likely have a shocking lack of eyeballs,” complained Riley.