Page 38 of The Iron Dagger
Hara let out a cry of alarm, but Gideon hissed, “Be still.”
“You’ll be wanted if you kill me,” wheezed the man. “Rogues like you are hanged every day.”
“Silence. I’ll take my coin back, and then I am going to relieve you of the rest,” said Gideon.
“Are you mad? I won’t—”
“You won’t?” asked Gideon, raising his brows and pressing his knife deeper into the man’s throat. A thin line of red bloomed along the white blade.
“Take it, take it all,” the man grunted.
“Darling, take that bag there and gather up the strongbox. I find myself light on coin and this vile man is flush with it,” said Gideon.
“Gideon, we don’t have to do this,” Hara hissed. If he was in need of coin, Hara could give it, but this was neither the time nor the place to explain that she could turn objects into gold.
“I rather think we do,” he said.
She sensed Gideon might seriously harm the man, and Hara decided that wringing her hands and dithering was not going to remove the knife from his neck. She seized a leather sack hanging nearby and quickly swept the coins by the scales into it, along with the box that the man had carelessly left unlocked when Gideon bought the knives.
“Apologies are in order,” said Gideon. “I’m very sorry for doing this, but I cannot in good conscience give my custom to one so narrow-minded.”
The man seethed at Gideon, frozen except for his heaving chest and the pulse that beat visibly against the blade at his throat.
“Your turn,” said Gideon.
“What?” spluttered the man.
“Apologize to my companion. You insulted her brethren.”
“What sort of magic-loving, thieving—”
“One with a knife on your neck and under your lung. Quickly now.”
“I’m—I apologize. I apologize!”
“For what?”
“For—insulting her. I’m sorry for the things I said—about them being tricksters, and evil—”
“Don’t forget the vermin.”
“I’m sorry for calling them vermin.” The man was sobbing now, tears spilling down his reddened cheeks. “Please, please don’t—”
Gideon turned to look at Hara over his shoulder. “Do you accept his apology?”
“Yes,” Hara whispered.
Gideon released him.
“By the grace of my lady, you live. Thank you for your coin.”
Gideon leapt back over the counter and swiftly sheathed the daggers at her waist. Then he took Hara by the hand, smoothly guiding her from the shop.
“Let us hurry. I don’t fancy lingering long enough for that fellow to summon some more soldiers for me to fight,” said Gideon, eyes darting as they left the shop and made their way back to the inn to collect Ruteger.
“Was that necessary?” said Hara, exasperated. She appreciated the seriousness with which he took his vow to help her on their journey, but his vicious displays were becoming too common. Defending her from soldiers who wanted to capture her was one thing, accosting a doddering old man was another. The man had been frightened out of his wits, and there had been no need for Gideon to press hard enough for the blade to break the skin at his throat.
“I apologized and thanked him, didn’t I?” said Gideon. Seeing that her stony expression remained unmoved, he continued, “I was running low on money and I’d rather steal from a bigoted old arse than another traveler. All these inns have been pricey, you know.”
