Page 43 of The Fifth Soul

“The Stone of Sight,” I say.

Jesse gives me a look, but I tell him to hush with a nod. His eyes narrow at the gesture, but he doesn’t say anything. The old woman points with her finger toward the rock. My eyes land on it instantly, and just beside it lays the rock of breath.

“That would be twenty gold coins.”

Stupidly, Jesse pulls out a coin bag from under his coat. He counts twenty cousins and hands them over to the old woman. Now, I’m fuming inside at his outer disconnect from how things are done around here. I would like to speak to whoever granted him the gift of wisdom and challenge that decision. I might have never been to this black market before, but I have been to many before. You do not accept the first price mentioned.

“Good day,” I grumble to the wide-eyed woman.

I push the bag back under Jesse’s coat. I take his hand with my other hand and rush out.

“It’s like you want us to get robbed.” I scowl at him as we walk outside the tent.

A group of men are already standing outside the tent with their arms crossed, ugly smirks accompany them. I can probably take on three of them and Jesse a couple more, but we’re still heavily outnumbered.

“Drop the bag, rich boy.” The voice comes from a man standing behind Jesse. From Jesse’s frozen posture, I can conclude the man has a blade on his back. “Actually, drop everything you have in your pockets.”

“You too, girl.” Another man pops up from the shadows.

Jesse throws his bag of gold coins to the floor before us. Like children in search of candy, several men dive for the coins clinking on the ground.

“The alley,” I whisper to Jesse as I unsheathe my knife.

In one swift moment, I cut the rope holding the front of the tent. I summon a gust of wind to blow in, and the front begins to shake and tear open.

“Ay.” A man makes a grab for me, but I don’t let him get close enough.

I slide my knife down his palm and rush to the side. Waiting for Jesse doesn’t even cross my mind. I’ve seen him on the training grounds, and I hope none of his skills are tentative to training sessions.

A man stands in my path with his fists clenched. He throws two punches as soon as I’m close enough, missing me miserably. It should be embarrassing for a big boy like him. I let his arms near me enough to take them and twist them up. Momentum is my best friend when fighting men three times my size. The movement trips him forward enough to land on another man who was running close behind me. Two down; I count as I turn to keep running.

Jesse must have cut the other side of the tent because, as I clear the street, I see it flop down amongst the other bodies. I let out a laugh as I watch the men tremble and push one another out of the way. I’m sure the old lady will not appreciate the destruction of her tent. Serves her well for arranging the setup. I don’t fool myself into thinking this had been a coincidence. I make it to the alley and find Jesse panting midway. He isn’t too far ahead of me. He looks over his shoulder and stops when he spots me.

I raise my hand to him as I close the distance. He mistakes my gesture with a high five. I don’t have it in me to tell him I did it so I could activate my glamor over both of us. His smile is full of victory and adrenaline.

It’s not long before we hear footsteps rounding the corner. His eyes dart toward the noise as his body turns away, ready to flee. I take his hand tightly and shake my head. His eyes narrow as they search mine; he’s choosing whether he can trust me. Sweat is already dripping down his face, but I am sure new sweat breaks out.

The footsteps slow as they turn the corner. The group of men walk slowly down the alleyway. Jesse’s eyes don’t leave mine as they approach.

“Someone has trust issues,” I say.

I try to let go of his hand, but he doesn’t let me. His eyes never leave mine. I can feel the hectic beating of his heart from his palm. It hitches even higher as the men finally reach us. Then, they pass us like we are invisible, because we are.

“We can see them, and they can’t see us?” His question is full of wonder.

“My gift.” I move behind one of the unaware men.

“This is too cool.”

The amazement in his eyes brings goosebumps to my skin. It is cool, and I’ve only scratched the surface of it. Before I forget, I remember the item in my pocket.

“Here.” I extend my fist in his direction.

The smirk that spreads on his face is contagious. I open my fist on his waiting palm.

His eyes instantly snap to mine. “Both?”

The old woman might notice both of them gone, but not right away. I took both rocks to create confusion. If anyone were to ask why we were there, it would leave them with more questions than answers. At least, that was my plan. The additional rock is the perfect diversion. From the approving nod coming from Jesse, he agrees.

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