Share

Protecting

Author: K.K.S.
last update Last Updated: 2022-09-15 05:27:32

Blue Lark Guild, Dread Hideout

Redbayne, one of Savage's more honorable assassins, had asked Savage for a very particular item. Poison.

Savage had been waiting for his return to the Blue Lark to deliver the toxic bit when he'd spotted the large redheaded barbarian across the Undermarket courtyard.

"RedBayne!"

Redbayne's head shot up to assess the blonde man. Though he liked the place, there were times of year when it was so dense with killers it was hard to move within the courtyard. Redbayne wished for nothing more than to find the nearest tavern and find a friendly barmaid.

Savage lifted a vial of murky gray liquid above the heads of others milling the courtyard.

Redbayne straightened happily. Pushing through the meandering assassins with all the grace of a battering ram. Lumbering shoulders forcing them apart.

Other men cursed or spat threats but when they turned to confront him and glimpsed the sheer size of him, their voices faded to silence. They ducked their heads and returned to former conversations.

Redbayne arrived at Savage's side, outstretching a hand for the vial.

Savage grunted and jerked it from reach. Tossing his head toward the Winter Haven Alehouse. Recently built for Savage's little ward. The one he kept in the hut behind the Blue Lark Fortress, in the courtyard.

They entered the Alehouse and Redbayne was stunned to see her serving drinks in an oversized green cloak.

They told her which drinks they wanted.

She walked away, cloak dragging.

"Ye're letting 'er in 'ere already?" Redbayne was surprised.

Savage Jack shrugged. A half-smile hovering about his lips. "She does what she wishes."

"I take it ye tell her to wear that?"

"I suggested it. Keeps her a bit safer." Savage shrugged.

She set the drinks on the table and Redbayne lifted his to begin guzzling.

Savage reached for his and she slapped his hand.

Redbayne hissed on an indrawn breath. Expecting the man to grab her by the neck and toss her across the room.

"A thank you would be appreciated." She snapped. Blue eyes sparking under the hood.

Redbayne stared at her. Jaw dangling in shock.

Savage chuckled.

"Thank you, Murah." He emphasized mockingly.

"Dimurah!" She corrected sharply.

Savage Jack laughed harder.

She stalked from their booth.

"Is she yer lover?" Redbayne blurted, immensely curious how a whelp of a girl was swatting the hand of this ferocious killer.

"Gad, no!" Savage shook his head. "I'd safer lie with a Quiller."

A spined beast able to inject venom through the spears jutting from its back didn't sound altogether pleasant to take abed. Redbayne winced. Worried for what could be injured in such an endeavor.

Redbayne plunked the bag of coin on the table and Savage Jack glanced around before sweeping it into his fist.

Slapping down the clear vial in exchange. Pointing to it. "Dangerous stuff. Don't slosh it on you on the way to delivering it to whatever poor sop you intend it for."

"Not me." Redbayne shook his head vigorously. "Even I'm not that merciless. Friend of mine."

Savage Jack nodded his head. "Best be careful drinking with your friend..." He slid it across the table. "Don't let the Grier Guard catch you with it." He nodded toward the pocket, "And if they do..."

"I kill them before they can do anything about it." Redbayne nodded slowly.

"Actually, I was suggesting you lie about where you got it." He leaned back to point at Redbayne. "But I like that better."

He and Redbayne exchanged a long look.

"How is business?" Redbayne queried to lighten the mood.

"You mean raping the commerce from Grier?" Savage Jack took a heavy dram from his tankard.

"Yeah."

"Well. Very well indeed."

"Why do you do it?"

"Vengeance." He clicked in his cheek. Indicating his discomfort with the direction of the conversation.

Savage Jack's tension was clear. And though Redbayne liked the man, he respected what he was capable of when in this manner of mood. And Savage Jack exuded intensity tonight. Obviously in no mood to socialize.

"Good eve to ye." Redbayne took the hint and rose.

Savage Jack waved an absentminded hand over his shoulder. Not bothering to look up from staring in his tankard.

Related chapters

  • King of the Seditious   My Domain

    *****"Have a man come at me with a dagger and I shall have a dagger. Have him attack me with a sword and I shall pierce him with a sword. Have him shackle me and I'll crush his throat with those shackles.I'm an exceptional killer. I'll kill my enemy with whatever gifts he brings me..."-Savage Jack has told many an assassin.*****Blue Lark's Guild, Dread Hideout“He’s here.” Markus tossed open the door of Dimurah’s hut to announce. Rain still running rivulets down his forehead.“Goddamnit all to hell!” The beautiful redhead looked like an angel but spoke like a sailor.Possibly a trait gleaned from her associates in the guild.She swept up her dirtied green cloak. And smeared fresh mud from the basin near the door, across her face as she headed out the door.“Where are you going, Mum?” Markus, one of her bodyguards asked.“To try to keep him from killing anyone.”“How so, Mum?” He fondled the hilt of the sword on his hip.“To distract him.”“Though you do distract him mightily well,

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Challenging Me in My Lair

    His look was shrewd. Blue eyes cutting her, starting with her toes and dragging up her length to the pulled down hood. “Remember, I’m the one that knows what’s you keep so carefully guarded beneath that oversized green cloak.”Giving her his back he strode around to the otherside and leaned on a stool to resume his drink.“Don’t make me call my men to remove you.” She warned.From the corner of her eye, Dimurah caught the barmaid, Belline, filling his drink. Thinking Dimurah wasn’t looking.“You know better than to threaten me…You’re going to regret ever saying that.” His blue gaze slitted.“I will summon them!”“Why?” He twisted to give the four of them a bored glance. “Do you wish me to kill them? Remember,” He lifted a finger, tsking again. “exactly how much you missed the last ones.”“There’s too many. Even for you.” She said acidly.“I don’t know how many that is. So you most certainly don’t...” He took a heavy dram from his newly filled tankard. Dismissing her.Belline, the barm

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   One Man

    A few assassins in the crowd made awed sounds at the sight of her. Having never realized what she kept hidden under that hood.She expostulated in enraged profanity.He chuckled. Lazily jerking the dagger upward, to remove it from her throat. He released her and she hastily stepped from the warmth of his arms to turn a glowering gaze on him.“Barmaid! Bird leg!” He slapped the counter with a wolfish smile.Belline curtsied like he was some manner of king and backed from him to fetch the food.“This is my alehouse!”“You barter here. You own shares. But you don’t own the guild.” He corrected, taking another drink. Ignoring her ranting next to him. “Calm down, Murah.” He said from the corner of his mouth. “You still have all that mud hiding your face. They can’t see you.”She gave him a withering look. “Give me back my blade!”He still held it folded between his palm and mug. He set his drink down and expertly rotated it in his hand to stab it into the surface of the bar. The handle swu

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Because You're Mine

    “Why! Why’d he do it?” The girl’s gaze landed on the dead man in the middle of Winter Haven floor. She gasped in horror.Dimurah was staring at him, fists clench and jaw jutting.His unflinching gaze was levelled on her as he enunciated the words. “Because you’re mine. Everyone knows it. And no one interferes in my business or they die.”The crowd hushed. No one moved to intercede. And it’d be a long time until someone does again.“I’ll never be yours!” She screamed. But her eyes were fearful.***He laughed uproariously. Tossing back his head in a show of boldness as he nearly reached the door with her before him. “He brought me a blade. What did he expect?” He looked around the room. Nodding arrogantly. “What’s my policy, men?”They began to chant. “Have a man come at me with a dagger and I shall have a dagger. Have him attack me with a sword and I shall pierce him with a sword. Have him shackle me and I’ll crush his throat with those shackles.I’m an exceptional killer. I’ll kill m

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Poison

    He kissed her hard and deep.She shoved him back and slapped him hard.Making him toss his head back. Roaring with laughter like some dark demon.When his head fell forward. His eyes shined in slivers of moonlight. “Strike me viper. But it’s only yourself, you’re poisoning.”She twisted against his grip.But he backed her up through the mud. Walking through rain which now dumped wildly in the Courtyard. Making it hard to see beyond a few feet in the darkness of the night.In the dark of my Fortress. Savage was grateful for it now as his gaze was locked on his pretty prey.“Where do you think you’re going, Murah.”“Let me go!”“You had the chance years ago.” He whispered to her. “It’s too late for all that bluster now.”Finally, he saw the silhouette of a tree in the dark and guided her back against it.She grunted as she made contact. Giving him a venomous look.“Don’t touch me, Jax.”“Ah, now I’m Jax again, am I?” He crooned. Still holding her upper arms as his blue eyes roved her fa

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Hiring the DeathDealer

    Blue Lark Guild, Dread HideoutA woman entered the Blue Lark looking to hire an assassin.She’d passed the tower guards, passed the Courtyard Guards, and made it right in the front door of his fortress, and straight into the Winter Haven Alehouse for just that purpose.But Savage Jaxson saw her clearly for what she was. Royalty. His study zeroed in on her from across the room. Watching the way, she swept her cape and how carefully she stepped over a spilled drink.He glimpsed her hand as she gripped the hem of her cape. Not old. Not young. He caught a wisping curl of hair moving beyond the hood as she breathed.Dark brown. Female. Middle-aged royalty. In the Blue Lark to hire an assassin.He drew closer, watching her profile peer from under the red hood. Spotting a particularly weaselly man across the room.The Death Dealer. Though he didn’t look like much, he was a skilled killer. Not particular in whether he murdered women or children.“What are you looking at?” Dimurah whispered ov

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Inciting Her

    She gasped in outrage. Slowly turning to see his unabashed grin. She tossed the pitcher at him.He casually deflected it with a forearm. Laughing uproariously as it sloshed another of the barmaids.“You unbelievable wretch!” Dimurah quaked with rage.“Tent it is!”The crowd in Winter Haven roared in approval.“You’ll have to be quiet this time! No rousing the courtyard again.” He waved a finger in cautioning.“You heathen! That’s not true!” She nearly shook with rage. Making her blue eyes glimmer.“You take it back!” She rushed over to order.“Clearly. As you wish. I take it back!” He announced. “It’s not true. It wasn’t the whole courtyard!” He laughed raucously. Dodging the tankard, she tried to splash on him next. Moving smoothly from its trajectory so is slopped harmlessly over the boards onto the floor.“Contain your fire!” He shouted laughingly. Tone softening, he ensured it was still loud enough for everyone to hear. “Save it for later.” He let the innuendo fill the alehouse.“

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15
  • King of the Seditious   Watch What You Say

    The following morning, Dimurah was unsurprised when Nauvree sighed and took a seat at the counter. Eying her over it until she finally slammed down her rag and gave him a disparaging look.“What?”“When are you just going to give in to him?” Nauvree asked Murah.She looked up from wiping a tankard out with a bit of cloth. Setting it along the bar for later tonight. “What do you mean?”“You know very well, what I mean.” He eyed her over his tankard. “You two have been engaged in the longest running segment of foreplay I’ve ever witnessed. And I’ve had some time to witness many things…”She admired this man. With his short cropped blonde hair and alert blue-green eyes, he was good-looking. Though easily as dangerous as any other man in the Blue Lark Guild, he and his friend, had some sordid code of honor that made them truer than most. Such as Savage Jack, for instance.“Everyone knows full well, I don’t dally with clientele.”“We’re all your clientele.” He argued.She gave him a pointe

    Last Updated : 2022-09-15

Latest chapter

  • King of the Seditious   Let Her Go

    “Too far!” Rhyers intervened. Coming from the lower parlor to step before Savage. Clearly furious. But Savage’s eyes were locked on Bast who’d clearly deflated at the words. His hand gripping the railing next to him, shook slightly. Drawing Savage’s keen eye. He could see the fury written over the green-eyed tracker who looked ready to do battle in Sebastian’s defense. I needed to see. Savage stomped down the slight pang rising through him. How does this news really effect him? Savage was watching Sebastian carefully. Bast looked unsteady. Color drained from his tanned skin, and he looked prepared to vomit. “It was my fault.” The words were barely audible, but Savage heard them. “What did you do?” “My magic bound her when our daughter needed her.” “Sounded like there would’ve been too many for her to take on anyway.” “There were!” Rhyers spat. Angry at Savage as he turned to lead Bast t

  • King of the Seditious   Jaxson

    WaterRose, Meadow Mountain, Grier Country Savage was standing, still as a statue, in the shadowed foyer of WaterRose when Sebastian came down the steps. Gaze on the stairs, he wasn’t paying any attention until he glanced up and spotted Savage’s shadowed face and stopped midway down. “Jaxson?” Sebastian echoed that quiet stance. Like a buck posed in the morning light. Deciding if there was a threat at hand. The Kill Beads in Savage’s hair clinked as he looked up at him. “Nobody calls me that.” Most don’t even know it. How’d he find out? RedBayne or the Nauvree. He sussed out. Didn’t take much to guess that. “What would you have me call you?” Sebastian asked kindly. Savage was momentarily taken aback. It had been a long time since someone had asked him that. Since Chavias, to be specific. “It’s fine.” Savage would never have admitted it, but it w

  • King of the Seditious   Kindred Spirits

    “How was your night?” He queried. Couldn’t have been too bad. I smelled no blood or Cimmerii. Nor did I hear any unusual ruckus. And he’d been listening. “Not bad.” She slid her undergarments down her milky white legs. And crawled under his coverlet next to him. “How was the last fortnight?” “You know well it was fine. I had a minor argument.” “And?” He leaned up to look at her. How’d that go? “Your bodyguard handled it.” He explained. Phalanx. Of course, he did. Savage relaxed. “And the bartering?” “Shut up, Jax.” She slid atop him. Palms and breasts pressed to his chest. Her legs outside his. Her mouth brushing along one side of his jaw before moving on to the other as she trailed sensual little kisses along it. “Make love to me.” Absolutely! He lurched up and caught her in a vise grip. His mouth consuming hers as his tongue engaged in the wild dance with her

  • King of the Seditious   Your Father

    Why? “From whom?” “Your father.” The elf said before ducking back into the tower. Sebastian Bodane. “He’s not-” Savage objected reflexively. Maybe he is. I’ve no idea. He opted for silencing. Rotating he headed for the elaborately vined double doors, entering into the castle foyer. He entered the cold structure and immediately felt it was different. Eerily silent, darker and far less welcome than it had been before. He suspected it was all for the same reason. He paused looking around and saw not a single candle burned on the base or second floor. Candles in the sconces long cold. “He’s not here.” The feminine voice wafted down from the hall of the second floor. Savage looked up. Eyes glowing gold around the pupil. Luminescing in the dark so he could see. It’s her. The healer. “I’m not here for him.” Not this time anyway. Perhaps I’ll return another day to

  • King of the Seditious   Orders

    “But only Dreads float. Or demons. Or well, nothing good!” Phalanx added despite his vow not to discuss it further. “I wasn’t floating.” “But I saw you!” “I was flying. With her.” “Well,” Phalanx tossed his arms. Saying in a hushed voice. “suddenly that makes it okay then!” Savage gave him a sideways glance. Indicating he was getting annoyed. I should’ve heard him coming. “What exactly are you two doing?” Phalanx slowly turned to face the man confronting them. Savage rotated reflexively and snapped his head to meet the stranger’s blue-eyed glare. Who is he? Savage had never seen this one before. But he could instantly tell by the colored lights surrounding this man that he was one of them. He’s a Forever Knight. He’s with them. A quiet one. I thought only the Tracker could sneak up on me. “I came to see why he’s gathering you all here. What you’re prote

  • King of the Seditious   Washed Clean

    “Dimurah?” “Yes?” She blinked those pretty blue eyes at him. “If you’re going to ask me for something, there’s no need for flattery.” “I’m not, actually.” She sighed. “I just miss you when you’re gone.” “But you hate when I’m here.” “I do hate when you’re here.” She admitted. “I never know who you’re going to kill or when. Or what it’s going to do to my business.” He tilted his head in acknowledgement. She’s not wrong. I never know who or when I’m going to kill. “Should we go fly?” “We?” She gave him a chastising look. “I think you mean me.” “Do I?” Savage dressed. Putting back on his sleeveless padded tunic and black breeches and tugging on his boots before helping her do the laces on her green dress. Once she was clothed she caught his hand and began tugging him behind her. “This way.” “I know the way, Murah.” He laughed. But she was jogging. Pulling hi

  • King of the Seditious   Wings

    Giving Delacourt a swat that sent him to the stable where the stable boy would recognize him and properly tend him, Savage made his way straight to the pond. Circling around to the part where very few people went, he shucked his clothes and entered the water. The chilly bite of the water was a relief today instead of a startle. Pleasantly cool on my hot skin. “You’re back.” He popped his head up and saw Dimurah standing at the edge of the water. Her arms crossed. “What are you doing up so early?” She likes to sleep in since the alehouse runs late into the night. “How else do you suppose I bathe in this guild?” She gave him a half smile. “We’ve bathed together many times in the afternoon.” “Yes. When you’re here we can bathe anytime during the day and no one would bother us.” He frowned at the logic in it. “So, when you’re alone you come early?” She nodded. How many times has

  • King of the Seditious   Samuel Marshall

    “I’m so hungry. And I’m angry…” Samuel said as if considering the same thing himself. “But my friend…” The Tracker? “He likely won’t be your friend now, I’m afraid.” “I’m afraid of that too.” Samuel swayed backward and forward. But the Tracker can handle this mess for himself. Savage saw no danger to the girl as this man would have his most volatile reaction when he neared a Forever Knight. And if he was right and that was precisely where he was heading, both Samuel Marshall and Rhyers would soon be discover what Samuel was and if he was capable of fighting it. Unlikely. He’ll instinctively be driven to kill Rhyers. Well, he’s healed enough to defend himself. Savage shrugged and stepped from the man’s path. Not my problem. But Savage caught another smell. A more potent stink of rot intermingled with the sweaty smell of all the animals that had come to the river for drink. He

  • King of the Seditious   Losses

    Phalanx and the Seditious were partway across the glen but had begun to slow at the sight. There were shouts of objection and yelled threats. Savage’s gaze was fixated on Danbury who leisurely lifted the sword and hooked it under Savage’s throat. Notching his chin higher as he pressed the tip into Savage’s chorded throat. Savage felt the quick bite but was unblinking. “It’s a shame I can’t gut you here. After all you’ve done, it’d be the least warranted.” Danbury said in an enraged voice. Nearly shaking with the desire. You’re too afraid of Radix. Coward. Savage gave him a lopsided grin. Archers had climbed from the second carriage and more paid guard from the third. They all circled around him. Weapons at the ready. “Now whose outmanned?” Danbury taunted. “We shall see.” Savage said emotionlessly. It has yet to be determined. “Yea. We shall.” Danbury gloated as he sheathed his short sword and pulled h

DMCA.com Protection Status