I grit my teeth, trying to see another way out of this without fighting. Looking at the gathered crowd, I start to realize this is a common occurrence around here. Thea walks over to me with a worried look on her face.

"Is the kid ok?" I spit out blood.

"He's fine. It's you I'm worried about " Her ears are twitching as she frowns at me.

"So what's it going to be, you taking off your weapons?" Chloe yells while stepping into the street.

"I'm taking them off." I tell the giantess. I pull off my plate carrier, putting it on Thea. "Hold these for me ok." I wink as I tell her. Stripping off the sword belt, I loop it over one of her shoulders. Crossing it with the pistol's belt and handing her the bag of coins, I give her a smile I don't feel.

"You do know that's our contact don't you?" Shiva comes to stand by Thea, holding the fallen rifle in her hands. I’m not sure when I lost it. It must have been when I went flying through the door.

"Oh, I figured." Stretching out quickly, I square my shoulders facing the giant of a woman.

"I don't suppose you would let me apologize to the boy first?" I hope it might stay her wrath. As I expected, she shakes her head violently.

"Not a chance. After your beating, you can if you still want to, but you’re going to take it like a man." She gives me an evil grin.

The time for talking has passed, so I drop into a low crouch. We circle each other warily as the crowd cheers her on. Amongst the yells, I hear several men calling for her to kill me. Apparently, she is well liked in this town or the men expect to pick up Thea and Shiva after I'm dead. I notice one of the men moving closer to Thea.

"Shiva, watch him!" I point to the man coming closer. As I yell to Shiva, Chloe moves in quickly as she almost blurs in my sight. She then hits me with a knee. The air is driven out of my lungs as I am driven backwards. Tucking my head down, I narrowly avoid a haymaker she throws. Trying to use the opening she left, I throw a vicious straight punch to her ribs. As my first connects, she latches onto my arm.

"Fucked up didn't you." She grins as she taunts me. She pulls me in close, wrapping me up in her arms. A vicious headbutt has me seeing stars while her second nearly causes me to blackout. I kick out, feeling my steel toed boot connect with her shin. She curses and drops me to the ground.

“Move!” Shiva yells, jerking me into action. I start to roll away from the woman as her foot stomps into the ground where I just was. Spinning my body around, I come up into a crouch. She is already closing the distance between us. I try to tackle her around her legs while taking a knee to the chin as I do. Now, we are both on the ground with the loose dirt covering us both as we go at each other.

I manage to get ahold of one of her wrists. I twist it and try to use it as leverage to pin her to the ground beneath me. She twists her arm and then a sickening pop echo in my ears. Her arm is limp in my hand and I never see her other elbow until it connects with my face. Falling back, I see her roll to her feet while yanking her arm to pull it back into the socket. The only indication she gives that it even hurt is a small grunt.

“Fuck me.” I groan, forcing myself back to my feet. From behind me, something slams into my head. Falling to the ground, I see her crossing the short distance between us. I’m done, there is no way I can avoid her now.

“Stay out of this!” She yells as she steps over me. A meaty thud, followed by a groan, causes me to look behind me. Chloe is standing over one of the townsfolk who had formed a ring around us. Offering me a hand, she points to the man laying on the ground.

“He shouldn't have gotten involved, so I’ll let you stand up.” I take her hand and she yanks me to my feet which causes me to stumble into her before she pushes me off.

“Thank you for that.” I step back to make some room between us. My head is spinning and my eyes don't seem to want to focus on her. I can see her moving towards me, so I drop into a crouch again. At least this way I’m a smaller target for her.

When her shoulder hits me, we both tumble to the ground. Inside the mass of our tangled limbs, I’m not sure what's happening. At one point, I’m aware of her arm starting to wrap around my neck. I drop my chin and bite down on her arm while driving my elbow back into her body. As she pulls her arm free of my mouth, I taste blood again and hear a ripping sound. Twisting in her grip, I find myself staring into her blue eyes. I drive my head into her face, feeling her nose crunch under my skull.

For a second, I’m free as she scrambles back cursing at me. Sucking in lungfuls of air, I try to sit up. Her foot catches me in the face, slamming my head into the ground. The world is starting to go black around the edges of my vision. I feel her grab my right leg, so I try to kick out with my left. My foot doesn't connect then the world explodes in with pain. Looking down, I see her grinning with my leg pointed in an unnatural direction. Blood is pouring out of my leg. I can feel myself blacking out. The last thing I see is the bone in my leg sticking out of my leg. Blood glistening in the sunlight along the exposed length of bone.

“Fuck!” I scream before the world goes black and the pain finally stops.

Thea’s point of view.

“You know he doesn't stand a chance, right?” Shiva says as she stands beside me. I give her an evil glare, but stay quiet. Jim’s armor is heavier than I remember it being. How does he wear this all the time? He winked at me when he put it on me, maybe he liked the way it looked. The two of them are circling each other, looking for an opening. As much as I hate that he is fighting again, I can't take my eyes off the scene.

“Shiva, watch him!” Jim points off to our right somewhere. Chloe takes advantage of his momentary distraction to close the distance. Now, my mind is torn, I don't want to watch him get hurt, but I don't want to look away. At the same time, he just warned us about someone in the crowd. Spinning to the right, I see a thin man creeping closer to us.

He’s dressed in cheap looking, worn leather armor. He looks at us with an evil grin on his face. His dirty black hair hangs down around his chin. As his smile widens, I see he is missing a lot of teeth. He only has three golden teeth in the front of his mouth. I start to back away as Shiva steps in between the man and me.

“Aww Shiva, don't be like that.” He says with his hand wrapping around a dagger on his hip. Shiva’s tail is stiff and the hair on the back of her neck sticks up.

“Don't try it, Jax. You know it won't end well.” She tells the man, drawing her own slim dagger and reversing the grip.

“It wouldn't have ended well last time we met.” His grin turns evil as he speaks. His eyes full of anger and lust. “You have a collar now, so if you try anything, your owner will pay the price. The way I see it, you are fair game.” He lunges forward, dagger swinging wide to slash at Shiva.

“Bad move.” A low voice says from behind me. In a flash, Shiva has been pushed behind me. A slim short man moves in to meet Jax’s charge. As soon as it starts, its over and Jax is laying in the dirt. His own dagger buried in his chest. His eyes are open in shock, then he stares sightlessly into the sky.

“Jacob, what are you doing here?” Shiva drops her dagger to hug the man who rescued us. The man, Jacob, laughs and pushes her away.

“I was stopping by on my way north. I was hoping to put together a party and run the new dungeon at Fenrer.” Looking around, it seems like everyone is absorbed in the fight between Jim and Chloe. No one has even noticed that the man Jax is dead.

“Won’t this cause problems?” Shiva points at the now cooling body at their feet.

“Nah, from what I heard, Jax isn't well liked. He has been accused of stealing from most of the people in Sacren.” Jacob turns to look at the fight going on. “You know that guy?”

“Yeah.” Shiva winces as she replies. “I belong to him now.”

“What!?” Looking back at Shiva, the man's face is shocked. “When did this happen? I’m going to kill Stephan.”

“No no no.” Shiva waves her hands at the smaller man. “I can't explain right now, but catch up with me later and I’ll explain.” She tries to calm him down. He takes a moment, seeming to collect himself.

“Ok. I don't like what I’m hearing, but I trust you.” Turning back to the fight, I see Chloe pulling Jim to his feet. One of the men in the ring around them is laying on the ground with an oak club laid on top of him.

“Is it over?” I feel my ears perk up in hope. As I say it, I see Chloe dart towards Jim.

“Doesn't look like it.” Jacob deadpans as the two fall into a heap on the ground. For a second, it looks like Jim might break free then Chloe kicks him in the face. Before he can recover, she grabs his leg.

“Oh no.” I gasp as she brings her knee into his leg. With a loud snap, Jim’s leg breaks as the bone sticks out from the skin. I cover my mouth with my hands, wanting to scream, but I bite down on it.

“Fuck!” Jim screams before falling back onto the ground and laying still. Chloe stands, dropping Jim’s leg. Looking around the ring, she gives everyone a hard glare.

“Shows over! So get!” She yells, making the crowd disappear at her words. “Somebody get the doctor, he’s going to need it!”

“I can handle it.” I nearly run to Jim’s side. He’s pale and going into shock. He is losing a lot of blood. Shiva kneels beside me as I try and figure out where to start.

“What do you need?” Looking around, I see Jacob standing behind us with Chloe behind him. Her son is grabbing onto her leg.

“We need to straighten the bone as close to normal. I can handle it from there.” I tuck my hair behind my ears. With a nod, Shiva starts to reach for his leg. Chloe moves her out of the way.

“I broke it, I’ll help.” She takes ahold of Jims foot. “Just tell me when.”

“On three.” I suck in a ragged breath. My hands are shaking and my mind is running over all my healing spells. “One, two, ….three!” Shiva holds his waist steady as Chloe pulls and twists. With a sickening pop and a gut wrenching squelch, his bone disappears back into his leg. Blood starts to flow from his leg. I try to push down to stop the blood and start to chant.

As my spell takes effect the blood stops, I can feel the bone mending under my care. Before a minute has passed, the bone is healed with no sign of it being broken. Well, except for the blood soaking through his pants and the ground below. Chloe stands back up stretching her back, causing her chest to jutt forward.

“I could have used a healer like you when I was adventuring.” She gives me a smile. “You all need anything else or can I go now?”

“We need a room, one with an attached room for me.” Shiva moves to lift Jim from the ground. As She struggles to lift his frame, I move to help.

“I got him.” Jacob says, moving me aside to take Jim’s other arm. The two of them struggle for a moment before they get him upright. “Damn, he’s a heavy one.” Jacob grunts as he gets to his feet.

“Yeah and I’m pretty sure it's all blocks in between his ears.” Shiva looks to Chloe. “So the room?”

“Follow me.” With a sigh, she turns and starts walking into the tavern. Picking up the rifle, I follow the rest of the group inside. I look back and see Jax’s body still lying in the dirt.

“What about him?” I ask Chloe, catching up to her quickly.

“Fuck him. Sam will collect him soon and plant him outside of town. No one is going to miss that piece of shit.” Walking behind the bar, Chloe pulls down a bottle of dark brown liquid. As she pours a glass, she nods to the stairs.

“End of the hall, last door on the left. You all can take that one, settle up later.” Knocking back the drink, she pours another. “Shiva, when you get him settled come back down. I think we need to talk.”

“I’ll be right back.” She says as her and Jacob start up the stairs with the unconscious Jim between them. When we get to the room, they lay him on the bed. Sarge circles the room, then lays down at the foot of the bed. He seems to regard Jacob as a friend or at least not an enemy. I eye the bed and realize it will be a snug fit for Jim and I. Dropping her backpack on the floor, Shiva turns to Jacob.

“Thank you for the help.”

“No problem.” Turning to me, he holds out his hand. “I don't think we have been introduced, I’m Jacob.”

“Thea.” I take his hand.

“I’m going to go get a drink. We should catch up soon Shiva.” He says before waving and leaving the room.

“Should we be worried about him?” I sit on the bed next to Jim and begin to chant. I work to heal his wounds from the fight.

“No, Jacob is a friend. A good friend. Even if I told him everything, he wouldn't say anything to anyone.” She shakes her head. “I need to go talk to Chloe.” Shiva walks out of the door, leaving me alone with Jim.

“We wanted a room to ourselves. This wasn't what I had in mind.” Jim’s injuries are more severe than I was expecting. I can feel the bones of his skull, it is fractured in four places. My magic fuses the bones back together and the tingling in my hands spreads across his body. I can feel his body the same as mine. I don't know if he has realized it yet.

When he tugged at my magic back in the truck, he pulled hard. It formed a bridge between us. It’s not a lasting one, I don't think. Nor is it particularly strong. When he was fighting, I didn't feel him. Here inside this room as I pour my magic into his body to heal him, it’s as if I am inside his skin.

“What am I going to do with you? You keep getting hurt.” Jim mumbles in his sleep as I run my hand over his brow. After his skull was healed, the rest of the injuries were fairly minor. He’s asleep now, but I’m pretty sure it's just exhaustion setting in. We have been up all night and I don't think nearly dying every other day helps.

I lock the door so no one can come in then slide out of Jim’s armor. I set his armor and his belts on a chair in the corner. Jim’s boots take me a minute to figure out, but I finally get them unlaced and pulled off. Pulling my robe over my head, I wonder about his pants. I decided he would probably sleep better with them off. I pull them off of him, running my fingers over the bloodsoaked hole.

“I will have to fix these for him.” I mumble to myself. Tossing the pants onto the chair in the corner, I slide into the bed. Biting back a yawn, I struggle to pull the blankets over us. I wish that I could have gotten his shirt off. The way I would have to move him would surely have woken him up.

As I lay my head on his chest, I reach out with my magic. I feel his power reaching back out to me. It feels like an old friend coming to greet me. While he is asleep, I can't make his mana do much more than cycle through his body for him. However, cycling it while he is asleep will help him control it better. If he keeps practicing, he should understand how to manipulate it freely soon. We will have to find him a magic teacher as I can't teach anything but healing spells.

“Goodnight Jim.” I run my hands over his stomach. I hope Shiva can get a key because the last thing I want is her waking Jim up.

“Mine.” I mutter as I stretch my neck to bite along his neck. It's a good thing he is asleep because it would be too embarrassing to do something like that while he was awake. I intertwine my legs with his. I know he doesn't mind and I like being close to him.

With these past few days, he has let me touch him all the time. Teasing him has been a lot of fun from the beginning. However, when he was teaching me to drive and I could wiggle on his lap, that was the best. Well, second best, I think. I start to remember the fun we had in the truck while Shiva was gone. When he wakes up, I'm going to have to do that again. As I start to nod off, I twirl my fingers into his hair. Inhaling deeply to try and absorb as much of his scent as I can.

“Will you keep an eye out, Sarge?” Sarge gives a low woof, which I take as a yes. “Good boy, Sarge.” I start closing my eyes. Before I realize I’m drifting off, Jim held close in my arms.

Shiva’s point of view

Stupid Jim picking a fight with Chloe. Who the hell does he think he is? I think to myself as I walk down the hallway. I don't make it to the stairs before a hand pulls me into a room. Reaching for my dagger, I freeze and realize that it is Jacob.

“What the hell is going on?” He whispers, anger obvious in his voice. “Why did that no good son of a bitch sell you!? He was supposed to set you free!”

“Thanks for worrying about me bluejay.” I throw in his childhood nickname to try and calm him down. “It's not what you are thinking.” Running my hand up his arm, I feel him forcing himself to relax.

“Then what is going on? If you are in trouble, I can help. You just have to tell me what you need.”

“Right now, I need to lay low for a few days. After that, we are leaving here and will be in Rathenk before the week ends.”

“Quit pulling my leg, Shiva.” Jacob snorts through his nose. “It’s at least a month to the border on foot and two weeks on horseback. Last I checked, you all didn't ride into town.” I debate for a minute on how much I should tell him. He is one of my oldest friends and more importantly I trust him.

“He has a vehicle that can travel faster than a horse and doesn't need to rest. Three days ago, we were in Rivertown.” I tell him, seeing the shocked look on his face. “You can't tell anyone about this Jacob. We have half the kingdom or better looking for us right now.” I stare in his eyes until he finally agrees.

“I won't say anything Shiva, you know that. I just want to make sure you are safe.”

“I’m as safe as I can be. I know he lost to Chloe, but he is a lot tougher than he looks.” Seeing his sarcastic smile start to cross his face, I cut him off before he can say something stupid.

“We cleared out a goblin horde yesterday and there was well over two hundred of them. I don't think he even knows how many he killed.” Seeing his shocked face, I can't help but smirk.

“You fought a horde. How many others were helping you?”

“There was the man there, Thea, his dog, and me. Trust me, he can handle himself.”

“Bullshit! A horde takes a minimum team of twenty.”

“Nope, it took only three of us and Thea didn't even fight. Well, not much anyway. Jim nearly died, but with Thea’s help, we walked away in one piece.” Jacob gets a thoughtful look on his face.

“Where did she come from?”

“Don't ask that. If you know, it puts you in danger, so don't ask.” I tell him as I grip his arm. “For now, just know I’m safe and I’m on my way out. Ok?” He starts to open his mouth and I can tell just like when we were kids he is about to argue.

“Ok!” I cut him off. He closes his mouth and I can tell he is angry. After a second, I see his face shift. He may not like it, but he trusts me.

“Ok, Shiva. I’ll trust you, but I don't like it.” I wrap him up in a hug, squeezing him tight.

“Thank you.” I whisper, breaking the hug off. “Now, I need to go talk to Chloe.” I grab the door handle and start to leave. “Who’s room is this anyway?” I step into the hall.

“Mine.” Jacob start to blush. His reaction caused me to laugh which makes me relax at his awkwardness.

“So you finally get me in your room, huh?” I wink at him.

“I just wanted to make sure you were ok.” He says as we start down the stairs. Chloe is at the bar still working her way through the bottle.

“I’m good. Now, I need to talk to Chloe so how about giving me some space.” Walking to the bar, I slip onto one of the tall stools.

“He awake yet?” Chloe pours me a glass of the dark liquor. Taking the glass, I swallow a mouthful. I’m pleasantly surprised that it is sweet with a mild burn of the alcohol.

“No, not yet. We have been traveling all night. I’m pretty sure it's exhaustion, not what you did to him.” Raising the glass, I tilt it in her direction. “This is good. When did you switch from your usual poison?”

“About a year ago. I got tired of Sean having to carry me to my bed at the end of the night.” She glances around the room. While we are talking, Jacob slides into the stool next to me.

“I thought I told you to give us some room.” I tell him with an angry glare.

“Yeah, fuck that. You are my oldest friend. Whatever you need, I'm there for you.” He takes the offered glass from Chloe. “So what's going on?”

“Yeah Shiva, what brings you to Sacren? The asshole of the adventurers world?” Chloe asked as she tilts her glass back again. Looking around the room again to make sure it is empty, I leaned in close to her.

“I can't go into detail, but we are on the run. You have heard of the mercenary the king is hunting?” Chloe nods quickly with Jacob nodding slowly after. He has a confused look on his face.

“Long story short, the king is lying as he never hired a mercenary. The man never stole from him and he never used necromancy. The only true part of the story was that he killed a bunch of the knights brethren.” I pause to take another sip of the drink.

“You are traveling with him!?” Jacob asks, eyes bugging from his head. Chloe takes a long drink, grabbing a bottle of clear alcohol from under the bar and filling her cup.

“Guess it's back to the hard stuff.” She knocks back the glass and pounds her free hand on the bar before continuing. “So what do you need, I’m assuming you need something big?”

“Room and board for a couple of days. Help keep an ear out for any problems. Other than that, we will stay out of the way and don't need much.” Chloe fills my glass from the clear bottle of liquor. The clear alcohol mixes with the remains of the dark liquid in my glass, making a light swirling pattern.

“How are you getting out of Dolus?” Chloe asks after a second of thinking.

“We have one stop over in Shevel and we will learn the route then. We have a way though, even if we have to fight our way out.” I tell her as I take a long sip from the glass.

“Right now, we need to hide for a while. It has been a long couple of days and we need to recover.”

“You are welcome to stay here. As long as you do not cause any problems and he doesn’t kick Sean again.” Chloe knocks back her drink again, capping the bottle and putting it back on the shelf. “That's enough of that or I won't be able to stand by the time we open.”

“Yeah, this is good for me too. I’m pretty sure he will want to apologize for hitting him when he wakes up. It really was an accident, he couldn't see when he first walked in.” I finish my drink. “Any chance you have the key to the room? I’m pretty sure the twig locked me out.” Chloe grunts and hands me a small brass key.

“Don't lose that one, I don't have any spares.”

“Thanks. I’ll be careful with it.” Slipping the key into my pocket, I slide off the stool. My head swims for a moment as the alcohol hits me. “Whoa.” I grab the bar.

“I got you.” Jacob slips his arm around my waist. I start to push him away when I begin to stumble again. How the hell does Chloe drink like this and still manage to stay upright?

“Thank you.” I decide to accept Jacobs help. We start up the stairs, weaving way more than we should be. I bounce off the wall at the top of the stairs and nearly knock us back down them.

“Easy.” He says with a laugh as he guides me to the door to Jim’s room. I struggle with the key until Jacob takes it from my hand and opens the door. As we walk in, I notice Sarge has moved behind the door.

“It’s ok, Sarge.” I mumble as Jacob leads me through the connecting door to my room. It’s smaller than Jim’s, but that's ok. I don't need a lot of room, just the bed inside it. Flopping down on the bed, Jacob pulls off my boots.

“He’s not going to bite me is he?” Jacob waves at Sarge who is standing in the doorway. Sarge tilts his head at the question, causing me to giggle. It looks like he is deciding on if he is or not.

“He shouldn't as long as you don't try and bother Thea or Jim… I mean Silas.” I curse at my slip up.

“Uh huh.” Jacob mumbles, eyes watching Sarge closely. “I promise I’m not here to bother anyone boy.” He holds out his hand to Sarge. Sarge walks over and sniffs his hand before licking it.

“That means he doesn't hate you.” I giggle. “He says if Sarge trust you, you can't be all bad.”

“Glad to know I’m not all bad then huh.” Looking through the doorway, I see Thea and Jim sleeping in the bigger bed. The two are sleeping quietly with only the occasional snore from Jim. Somehow, that is the cutest thing I have ever heard.

Pull yourself together Shiva. I think to myself. I roll over to face the wall. He has already chosen Thea, you’re just going to get yourself hurt.

“So that's it, huh?” Jacob starts to rub my shoulders.

“What's it?” I ask, faking not understanding what he means.

“Come on Shiva, we have known each other a long time. I know you are falling for him. You want to tell me about it?” Letting out a long sigh, I don't know what to do. I never could hide anything from Jacob.

“We met like two days ago.” I start rolling back onto my back while Jacob sits on the edge of the bed beside me. “I was supposed to scout out the barn they were staying in. We had gotten word that they needed help getting out of the country.” I pause there, not sure how to go on.

“I’m guessing it wasn't that simple.”

“No, I did my usual idotic shit.” I give a small laugh. “I tried to take him down quickly and then bring Grizz in.”

“How weird is it that Grizz is part of the underground?” Jacob laughs. For a moment, I had forgotten that he knew Grizz before everything went down.

“I know, right.” I giggle again before continuing. “So we end up getting in an actual fight. I thought I could take him, you know. Instead, I ended up pinned under him with my arms tied behind me.” Jacob laughs quietly when I tell him that.

“Oh, I bet you loved that.” He says, giving me a grin. Hitting him on the arm hard, I groan.

“Shut up!” I yell, clamping my hand over my mouth and glancing at the other room. Jim and Thea don’t seem to be waking up, so that's good. I don't think I want them hearing any of this.

“Yeah, I really did and it's just gotten worse since then. The two of them started fucking and I ended up having to smell it all night while we traveled.” I whisper feeling my face flush as I speak.

“Have you told them?” Jacob pushes my hair back behind my ears.

“No, but the twig knows. She has been teasing me every chance she gets.” I stretch out on the bed. “He, however, is dense as hell and I don't think he would realize unless she just tells him.”

“Or if you do.” Jacob whispers, pulling the blanket over me.

“Yeah, that's not happening.” I say with a snort. There is no way I could just tell him, Jacob is crazy. He is a real friend, one of my few real friends.

“I should have just ran away with you when we were teens.” I mumble, feeling myself slipping into sleep. “I wouldn't be in this position if I did.”

“I don't think that would have worked out for you.” Jacob says with a chuckle. “You aren't really my type you know.” He kisses my head, making sure the blanket is tucked in snug.

“I could have made you like it.” I mumble, half asleep.

“If a woman could bring me around to your side it would be you.” He starts to stand up. “You know that, right?”

“I know, but I think we could have made it work. Even if we had to let you find your men on the side.”

“That wouldn't be a fair relationship for you now would it?” He laughs as he starts out the door. “I’ll lock the door and kick the key under it. Ok.”

“I never said I wouldn't find men too, you know.” I struggle to stay awake. “Goodnight, Jacob.”

“Goodnight, Shiva.” He closes the door. A second later, I hear it lock and the key slide under.

“Goodnight Jim, goodnight Thea.” I turn towards the doorway. Sarge walks over and lays down beside my bed. Reaching out, I pet his head and feel his soft fur.

“Goodnight Sarge.” He gives a low woof that I take as his own goodnight. Before I can turn over, I am asleep.

Dawn's point of view

I shoulder the basket full of laundry and start back toward the house. It's not an overly nice house, but it's home such as it is. The front door creaks as I push it inward with my hip.

"Mom are you awake?" Only silence greets my yell and I curse quietly. Grumbling to myself, I set the basket down on the table in the middle of the room. I can't be mad that mom isn't up as she has been sick for a long time. It just sucks having to take care of all the housework while she is laid up. Before she got sick, the work had been manageable between the two of us.

I look around the cluttered room, sighing as I walk to the hearth. I give the pot a stir with a wooden spoon, inhaling the smell of the dark stew inside. It's mostly vegetables with a few rabbits we had caught in traps. I really wish we had something else to put in it, but money is tight right now. I head back to the table and start to sort through the wash.

I divide the clothes into two neat piles with mom and dad’s in one and my few clothes in the second. With a sigh, I collect my parents clothes and head to their mom room. Mom is still asleep in bed, a light snore echoing in the cramped room. I work quickly to put their clothes in the old chest, making sure dad’s are on top. I manage to slip out of the room without waking her.

As much as I love her, I don't need another lecture about being careful. My encounter with the goblins is reminder enough. I have to suppress a shudder at the memory. Most of the time, it's not too bad and I can ignore it, but then there are other times. When the house is quiet, any unusual sound can freak me out.

Sister Maggie says it will take time and eventually I won't be scared anymore. I trust her, but I don't know if she is right. When dad woke up this morning, he banged against the table and woke me up. I screamed before I could stop myself as I was convinced the goblins had returned for me again.

I collect my clothes from the table and carry them up the ladder to my room. It's more of a loft than a room to be honest. I have to duck my head to keep from bumping rafters as I walk. I stow my laundry in the wooden chest at the end of my bed and sit down. I look around the loft, it's weird to be happy to be home.

I always hated this room before I was captured. It always seemed too small and cramped for me. Now, it's one of the few places I feel safe when I’m alone. I can easily pull the ladder up then nothing can get to me. When dad brought me home, that's what I did. I hid from him.

I know he was happy when I came home and I don't doubt that. I could see the look in his eyes. It was the same look everyone in town had when they brought us back, pity and sadness. I remember Sam's face when we came back the most.

We had been kinda courting when the goblins took me. Now, he wouldn't even look at me. Not that I can blame him, the goblins had me for weeks. Everyone knows what that meant and they won't forget.

Sam won't even look at me because they touched me. I have to fight back the tears as the memories hit me. I knew even before we were saved that no one from town would want me now. I'd heard the stories around, everyone had.

Women saved from goblins never seemed to marry well afterwards. Most men see them as damaged goods. Other women avoid them like they have the plague. Like they could be corrupted by being around them. I feel tears stinging my eyes and force myself to stop. I wipe my eyes and slap my cheeks.

If no one around here wants me, I'll just have to leave. Start over somewhere new, where they don't know my past. It's not like it's never happened before. I've heard the stories the same as everyone else. A woman gets rescued from goblins, then leaves the area and starts anew.

The front door opens while I'm still putting myself together. I freeze and hold my breath. I glance at the ladder, cursing at myself for not pulling it up. Light footfalls move through the house below me. I creep over to the ladder and prepare to pull it up.

"Dawn, you up there?" I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding

"Yeah, dad. Give me a minute and I'll be right down." Taking a few deep breaths to compose myself, I start down the ladder. Dad is sitting at the table, smoking his pipe. I give him a hug, then start to ladle him out a bowl of stew.

"Thank you." He tamps out his pipe before digging in. I fill a bowl for myself and sit across from him. For a while, there is only the sounds of us eating. The silence sitting heavy, that's the part I hate the most. Before, we would be talking about everything. Now, it's like he is afraid to say anything around me.

"So, how was your day?" I break the silence as he mops up the last of the stew with a slice of bread off the loaf on the table. He gives me a grunt, tilting his face to look at me.

"The mayor said they are upping the patrols. I'm going to get a few more shifts on the wall." He goes back to his pipe, filling the bowl with the sweet smelling tobacco.

"That's good. Is the doctor coming by again for mom?" I can hear mom starting to stir in her room, so I get a bowl for her.

"Damn doctor is useless. Says we need a high level healer to do any good and gave me a few potions to hold us over." I can't help but wince at his words. Potions are expensive and we have used so many here lately that I know it's wearing on dad. We never were what you would call rich, but we were well off.

"So that's his advice? Seek a high level healer." I pause at the door to their room, not looking forward to going in.

"That or find a rejuvenation potion, but those are expensive and not available around here." I wince again. Rejuvenation potions are a high level potion, usually only carried by high level adventurers. They are able to heal almost any wound, but cost a lot of gold. Even if we found one for sale, odds are we wouldn't be able to afford it. Not on dads pay as a guard alone.

"Dawn, are you there?" Mom's weak voice pulls me from my inaction. Forcing a smile on my face, I step into her room again. She's trying to sit up so I set the bowl down and help her. Once she's sitting up, I start to feed her small bites of stew.

"Thank you, baby." She smiles at me between bites. This is the hardest, the woman once so full of life struggling to chew small bites of food. Dad walks to the doorway, leaning against the door jamb as he watches us.

"Dawn, I need to talk to you when you’re done there." I glance at him from where I'm sitting, he seems nervous about something.

"It's fine dear, I don't think I can handle any more." Mom smiles at me as I wipe her chin where a drop of the stew fell. "You go talk to your father, I'll still be here."

"You sure mom?" She smiles at me, nodding gently. "Ok, if you need anything just yell ok?" She waves us off as I walk back into the main room.

"What did you need to talk to me about dad?" I slide into the seat across from him, shifting slightly to find a more comfortable position. Dad doesn’t say anything for a minute, pulling a bottle from under the table. He opens it and takes a long drink before handing it to me.

For a moment, I'm struck by how gaunt he looks. His cheeks are sinking into his face and his hair is going limp and greasy. I accept the bottle and take a drink of the cheap liquor from inside. It burns going down, setting heavily in my stomach. He stares at me with his hollow looking brown eyes for a moment before finally speaking.

"You remember what you told me about what really happened in the cave. About the man and the women who saved you?" I stiffen at his words. Yes, at sister Maggie's instructions, I had told the same story as the rest of the girls. That first night home though, I told my father the truth. I nod once at him, then take another long drink.

"There is a man in town asking about him. Not by name, but the description matches what you told me. Him, the dog, and the elf all match up. He didn't mention the cat demi so I think she is a recent addition." He pauses, taking the bottle from me and taking a long pull.

"You didn't say anything to him did you?" I don't want to betray my savior. Sister Maggie said they were good people.

"No." He shakes his head softly before looking back up at me. "But I think you should." I'm floored at my father's words and unable to think of what to say. My father wants me to tell a stranger about my savior when sister Maggie said to keep it a secret.

"He has a rejuvenation potion. I saw it when he was at the bar." He lowers his head, taking another drink. "We won't be able to afford one, even if we could find one. Maybe, just maybe he would part with it for the right price."

"What price!?" I can hear my voice rising and I have to remind myself to keep my voice low so as not to disturb mom.

"Tell this stranger about the man who saved me. Just sell him out like he did nothing for us?"

"Dammit! I know. You think I don’t hate this too?" When he looks back up, I can see tears seeping around the corner of his eyes. "I don't want to ask you to do this, it’s killing me inside. It might be the only way to save your mother." Looking down at the table, I let my hands play over the rough boards.

"What do you want me to do?" My voice is small, almost a whisper. Dad lets out a sigh, I hear his chair creak as he leans back.

"He's in the Broken Flagon and I want you to go there tonight. Try and get close to him. Let it slip that you were saved by a stranger with an elf and a dog." I nod slowly, not wanting to look up at my father's face.

"I can do that."

"When he starts to ask questions, mention your mother is sick. That you need a rejuvenation potion to heal her. Let him connect the dots." I nod again, feeling guilt settle into my stomach.

"What about after?" I don't want to do this, but I need to focus on a plan if I'm going to pull this off.

"When you get the potion come straight back here. When your mother is back to her old self….." He trails off, causing me to glance up at him.

"When she's better what?" Dads seems to deflate at my question. He starts to fidget with the bottle in front of him.

"When your mother is better, I'm going to send you to Rathenk. My brother is there and you can get a fresh start." I'm floored at his words. Yes I had been thinking about leaving, but I didn't expect dad to suggest it.

"Are you sure?" He looks at me, tears streaming from his eyes.

"No, but it's your best chance at a good life. I hate it and I want nothing more than to keep you here, but his town is dead for you. The people here won't ever forget what you went through."

"I know. I want to stay too dad, but I know you are right."

"That's why I want you to get away. I want you to find someone who loves you, to raise a family with. You can't do that here, so you have to go." I stand up, starting to walk towards the ladder that leads to my loft.

"I'm going to change, then I'll head out." I climb the ladder quickly. I sort through my megar clothes until I find the dress I'm looking for. It's a light green and a little small for me now. I slip it on and run my hands down my sides. There is no mirror in the house to look at myself, but I know how it looks on me.

It pushes my chest up until I'm nearly spilling out the top. The snug fit making my curves more pronounced and my rear stands out almost as much as my chest. I run my fingers through my hair, fixing it to frame my face as best I can. When I climb back down the ladder, dad is doing his best to hold back his tears.

"I'm sorry, Dawn." He doesn't stand as I head to the door.

"It’s ok dad, I'll be back soon." With that, I slip through the door and into the evening. It's not a long trip into town and the Broken Flagon is near the edge. I remind myself again why I'm doing this. I'm going to help my mother, so she can get better.

When I reach the tavern, I can hear the roar of the crowd inside. I take a deep breath to steady myself before opening the door. I can do this. Just remember why I'm doing this.

Several hours later, I leave the bar with the rejuvenation potion clutched in my hands. I feel the guilt at what I had done weighing on me like a ton of stone. Not just the betraying of the man who saved me, but the things I did upstairs in the man's room too. Things I'll never tell my father about. He will probably learn, the Broken Flagon is a popular tavern for guards.

The smooth glass under my hand is comforting in its own way. A reminder that everything I did was for a reason. It doesn't make me feel any better about what I have done, though. When I get back to the house, dad is passed out with the now empty bottle on the floor beside his chair.

I let out a sigh as I set the bottle on the table. Lifting one of his arms, I somehow manage to get him to his feet. We stumble to his room where he flops down on the bed. I pull his boots off before leaving the room. There is another bottle under the table, full of the same alcohol as the first. I hold it tight to my chest as I climb the ladder to the loft.

As I sit on the bed, I take a long drink. I feel the urge to cry or maybe puke. I'm not sure which. Before I know it, half the bottle is gone and my head is spinning. I lay back on the bed and pull my knees up to my chest. The sobs start as I lay there listening to the silence in the house.

"I'm sorry." I moan as I cry, feeling more guilty now than I ever have before. It feels like someone has hit me in the stomach over and over. I hate this feeling and I hate my father in that moment for what he asked me to do. For a long time, I lay there and sob until I finally fall asleep with the guilt weighing on me in the darkness of the loft.