Armor of Deceit

Chapter 5

The next morning I leave as soon as the moon turns over to face the day. I'm antsy to leave these woods, they aren't safe. Max and I are in unstable conditions, tired and sore. The wound on my shoulder hasn't completely healed but I'm thankful it wasn't infected.

We drag on through the woods until the sun sets and we are at the top of a hill, overlooking a small glittering village. "Let's go find an inn to stay at," I whisper to Max.

We descend the hill, towards the humble village. A light drizzle of rain patters against my cloak and I pull the hood over my head to keep me dry. I'm glad that I arrived before the storm, I'm also glad I didn't encounter another beast today, but that fact only makes me worry even more.

Soon enough, Max's hooves are clattering on cobblestone and I see regular people go by minding their own business. The first inn I spot is a little torn down but it has a pub and a barn, just what we need. I go into the barn and call out to the lady in one of the horse stalls,"excuse me, is there an empty stall for my companion here?"

Max neighs on cue and the middle-aged woman in an apron looks up. "Yea, over thither," she points to an empty stall and I walk over to it.

After I clean up Max, I make my way to the front desk. The rain has gotten stronger when I finish renting a room and I find a spot for me in the rowdy pub.

Men are laughing their selves away, flirting with the waitresses. The pub is humid and hot so I remove my cloak, still careful to hide my sword. I take a sip of my cider and watch as another group of men bust into the nearly full pub. I do a double take of the group, noticing a boy around my age.

But despite his age, his posture is dignified, his shoulders broad, and his body is fit, yet slender and tall. Maybe he's a soldier?

The boy's ruffled dirty blond hair was dripping from the rain, he looks around the pub and his eyes land on me for a second. I let out a small gasp, his green eyes are beautiful. I look down at my drink, shaking my head at the foolish thought.

I start to wonder why the boy was with 3 other men, two of them looked like they were in their late 20's and the other one had graying hair.

I look up again and see that they have seated themselves at a table not far from mine. My eyes accidentally meet his again, but this time I don't tear them away. His eyes are holding my gaze and the sides of his lips curve into a faint smile.

I almost glare at his cockiness but drop his gaze and decide to get some rest. I stand up and make my way past the group towards up the stairs that lead to the inn rooms. Once I get to the top stair, I hear a light pair of feet behind me. I continue to walk down the hall, maybe it's just a drunk that finally tore away from the party to sleep.

As I reach my door I hear a soft spoken, silvery voice,"My lady." My heart skips a beat and I spin around to meet the green eyes I had battled with only a few moments ago.

He walks closer, close enough that my back is now pinned against my room door. I'm glad that the halls were dark, hiding the blush that had crept on my cheeks.

"You left this, miss..." He hands me my cloak I had forgotten while he struggles for my name. I give him a short reply and ignore his attempt to learn anything from me; that's why I'm a called secret assassin.

"Thank you," I'm not one to be rude but I absolutely do not need a distraction despite my desire to forget my problems, this is just not my kind of solution.

Or because I just don't know how to handle these kind of situations.

The young man notices my edginess but it only motivates him to try harder,"I'm Asher." Asher... I've never heard that name before, it's sounds nice. Then I surprise myself by answering,"It's not so bad,"

Apparently he was too by the look on his face but he was also satisfied by getting something out of me. "You aren't so bad yourself," his voice is barely above a whisper, sending a chill down my spine. This time I let myself glare at him, I don't understand what he's doing.

Thunder shakes the room, flickering off the only source of light in the hall. He takes this moment to lean into me. The instant his lips touch mine, my whole body is warmed in spite of the chill of the cold, dark hall. The kiss is light, like he's holding back, but it's enough to make my knees weak.

The kiss is gone as fast as it came. The absence of his lips makes me frown and he speaks tenderly near my ear,"Good night, My lady." Before I can stop him, he turns and quietly descends down the stairs. Surprisingly leaving me confused... yet wanting more.