He’s going to turn me over to the guards. He must know these girls.
Fear began to sweep over me, but to my surprise, he shot his eyes at the girl under my blade.
“See what happens when you take what isn’t yours?”he said matter-of-factly.
The girl gaped at him. “You’re going to defend the charlatan holding a knife to my neck?”
He slowly looked back at me and gazed into my eyes. I tried to calm my shaking and not look like a complete weakling.
“Lower your weapon,” he said softly.
I hesitated momentarily but ended up conceding, lowering my weapon while still keeping it where I could use it. He glanced back to the brunette. “That doesn’t belong to you.” He nodded to my bag. “Give it back, or I will get the guards.”
The girl’s friends just stood there, frozen.
She let out a dry laugh, then softly touched her chest. “Get the guards if you wish. She just tried to kill me. I did nothing wrong.”
He smirked. “We both know that isn’t true, darling.” He purred as he got close to her. She drew in a breath, and despite her resentment towards him, I could tell she was attracted to him. I couldn’t blame her. She glanced over his shoulder, made eye contact with me, and then looked back at him.
She paused and then let out yet another dry laugh, her brown eyes trailing back to me.
“Pfft. Here are your pastries back. They’re dry anyway.” She tossed the bag on the ground before I could catch it, and I heard the shattering of the remaining elixir inside as it hit the ground. The boy’s eyes widened.
“Oops,” she said dryly. She didn’t bother to look at him again as she and her friends strolled off, chucking the pastries they had in their hands on the ground. Thankfully, only the main bitch unwrapped hers.
The stranger kneeled to the ground and picked up my now dripping bag.
“Thank you for your help,” I muttered, wiping my eyes. I didn’t even realize the tears had actually fallen.
Pathetic.
He looked up and smiled softly.
“Of course.” He stood up and handed me my belongings. “It’s a shame about what was in your bag. What a repulsive girl that was,” he said with a curled lip, looking in the direction they had left. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“Really? You must be new up here then,” I said with a slight laugh, slinging the bag back around me. “Although to be fair, it’s never been that bad before.” I paused, examining my bag and what was inside. Thankfully, the elixir was kept in a separate compartment of the bag, so the baked goods wrapped inside were unharmed. “I don’t know what we are going to do,” I mumbled. “That was an elixir, and the man purchasing it really needs it.”
Not only that, but the business’s reputation was on the line too. One unpleasant experience could ruin everything.
“You don’t have anymore?” he questioned.
“No, my mother makes the elixirs as they’re ordered. She will have to remake it…and I still have all this to deliver, too…” I glanced up at the colossal clock tower in the distance.
Almost 8:00 a.m.
Under no circumstances were those from the Outer Ring allowed in the Inner Ring past 10:00 a.m. Any business would need to be conducted beforehand. The kingdom ruled it this way, so we lower peasants weren’t a bother to those of more importance.
How am I going to do this?
“Well, why don’t I help you?” he offered as if reading my mind.
I frowned at him. “What?”
“If you have directions, I can deliver the rest for you while you let your mother know what needs to be remade.” He slid his hands into his pockets and gave a charming smile.
I studied him as I considered the proposal. I didn’t want his help, but I was running out of time. He seemed trustworthy enough, I supposed.
“Why would you do that?” I asked skeptically.
