#post 31

Without any obvious signal, guards came through the front door, one grabbing Brimir by the shoulders and another making straight for K’lai’a’la who was now twisting in the man’s tight grip. The guard wasn’t halfway across the hall when a flurry of red forced itself between the man and K’lai’a’la. Kireen had the elf tucked under one arm and a threatening finger pointed at who she recognized as Thori Bjornison. If only she had her sword.

“Bring them to the study,” Taerand commanded and gave an emphatic glare at Kireen so she knew the command included her. She knew better than to make a scene.

“Don’t worry, it was a big misunderstanding,” she comforted K’lai’a’la who was glaring daggers at Taerand then Thori and back again. A brief search of the crowd found Sadie hurrying along at the heels of the guard shoving a stumbling Brimir. She was begging the guard to let him go and that it wasn’t his fault.

With little ceremony the three heroes and Brimir found themselves standing at Taerand’s ornate desk once again. Kireen wasn’t pleased that she had landed here a second time.

They could hear Taerand address his crowd just outside the door, “my apologies for the interruption. Please excuse me while I deal with this situation.” He stepped inside with the door shutting quietly behind him. That was even worse than if he had slammed it.

“Look it wasn’t Brimir’s fault he was just dancing and-” a wave of his hand had Sadie silenced. There were new shadows on his features finally betraying the harshness he kept hidden so well. Taerand turned his icy-cold gaze toward Brimir.

“Who are you,” he asked in a low tone.

Sadie looked up at Brimir then Taerand, confused. She spoke before Brimir could answer “what are you talking about, you invited him?” Brimir shifted from foot to foot but Taerand just continued to stare, ignoring Sadie.

Brimir cleared his throat “I uh… I really apologize, Ser Calentavar. I simply wanted to meet your heroes.”

“Something you could not have done at the Laughing Stag where they spend most of their time?”

Brimir shrunk down even further, his face reddening and sweat beading upon his brow.

“Tell me how you managed to gain entrance to my home, uninvited.”

“The guard out front… had a basket of invitations. I just,” he swallowed hard and Taerand’s sharp green eyes looked like they were going to bore a hole in his face so he quickly continued “I pretended to re-lace my boot and I grabbed one from the basket. When I showed it to him he just nodded and let me in.”

A muscle in Taerand’s jaw feathered and Sadie knew that guard was going to be in a terrible place later. She stepped forward. “Ser Calentavar, if I may, he is coming from a place of innocence. Yes, he technically wasn’t invited but he just came here to meet with us. He wasn’t trying to steal anything or hurt anyone.”

When he turned his gaze to her, even she shrunk a little. There was something about his cold, calculated anger that turned her stomach more than if he yelled. “His intentions are irrelevant. Entering a residence uninvited is against the law even without destroying my property. Including the price of the vase he destroyed, I am within my right to have him executed.”

A chill ran down Sadie’s spine. He wouldn’t… Just for an accident?

“Simply because you have the right does not mean you need to follow through,” Kireen matched his coldness.

He gave her a disinterested look, “I will do as I see fit. He broke into my-”

“He walked in when you had the doors wide open. That’s not considered ‘breaking and entering’.”

Taerand’s nostrils flared just slightly at the interruption “then I am assuming you have three hundred and fifty gold to replace my property,” he said, knowing she did not. Kireen pressed her lips together but stayed silent.

Sadie didn’t think that much gold existed in all of the common homes of Stawold combined but Taerand wouldn’t have Brimir executed. He wouldn’t. Then his gaze turned upon K’lai’a’la.

“You threatened physical violence upon one of my guests, a notable one at that. With your lack of standing within this city, you also should be facing death.”

“No.” Sadie said before the last syllable fully cleared the air. “You can’t do that, she got scared and it was not her fault,” her hands started shaking but K’lai’a’la was standing tall and staring Taerand down.

“Cannot hurt me. I do not belong to the city,” K’lai’a’la snarled, barely louder than a whisper.

“In fact, I can. But I shall make an offer. As you helped with my favor, I will speak on your behalf for your sentence to merely be a day in the stocks or a flogging, perhaps. For the burglar, I shall have his life in exchange for the value of my property,” he said it as though he was simply stating what he thinks the weather would be tomorrow but it was clear to everyone in the room that his mind was made up. “Unless the price of my vase can be given to me by dawn,” he added almost mockingly.

“We can’t pay but I have a counter-offer,” Sadie found herself saying before she even realized what was coming out of her mouth. Taerand waited for her to continue but Kireen interrupted once again.

“Sadie whatever it is, it’s not worth-” “Let her finish,” and Kireen reluctantly fell silent. “If you promise to not execute Brimir and don’t send K’lai’a’la to the stocks, I’ll work for you; a life for a life.”

Kireen placed her entire hand over Sadie’s face “absolutely not!” she snarled and Sadie pulled her hand away, glaring up at Kireen. “Don’t put your hand over my face again. I will do whatever I want, you don’t tell me otherwise.” Seeing the ire in Sadie’s eyes made Kireen think carefully about her next words.

“I’m sorry Sadie, I shouldn’t have done that. But please think about what you’re doing. This man would execute someone over an accident. You don’t want to work for him,” there was even a plea in her tone.

“Do not belong to this man, Sadie,” K’lai’a’la’s soft voice startled both of them and when they looked, they saw the hardness in the elf’s eyes. That gave Sadie pause and when she looked to Taerand, she found him staring right back at her, almost evaluating.

“Is there anything else I can do?” She asked, managing to keep most of the desperation out of her voice.

“Your options are simple: repay me the full cost of my property or I have him executed at dawn. K’lai’a’la will serve an appropriate punishment rather than execution. But I am willing to entertain your previous offer.”

Sadie swallowed “then I’ll work for you while both Brimir and K’lai’a’la go free.”

“Done,” he said before either Kireen or K’lai’a’la could protest. Spared execution, Brimir’s entire body swayed with relief. The poor man had been still as stone, petrified into silence. “Thank you…” he breathed but the dragonborn bared her teeth in a snarl, angry with all three of them “then I guess we are done here?” she snapped.

“Yes. All four of you will calmly leave my home. Sadie, pack your things tonight. I will send for you in the morning.”

“Wait, why am I packing my things? The Stag is not that far, I can walk.”

“Servants live on their master’s estates,” he said simply but those words made her shudder. At least she would get to live in a manor like she always wanted. Maybe this would be a good thing.