Lady Killers Club

Chapter One

It's hard to say what exactly drove Jaid to visit the tavern that night. Fate? Destiny? Losing her contract as court mage? So many plausible explanations.

She walked quickly, her thick black hood pulled down low over her face, hiding her feline features. She was glad of the winter chill that allowed her cloaked figure to go unnoticed on the busy lamp lit streets.

Jaid planned on going to the tavern in search of new employment, to browse the community notice bulletin board seeking anything from paramores to bounty hunters. Once her quest proved fruitless she stayed for the ale. She didn't have anywhere to be after all.

She ordered her drink at the bar with her hood still covering her face.

"We don't take kindly to hooded strangers around here." Hilda the barkeep stated, her haggard face pulled into a toothless grimace.

"I'm no stranger, Hilda." Jaid growled, tipping her head up to flash her piercing, fluorescent green eyes. A warning.

"Was wonderin if we'd see you tonight. Heard the news." Hilda's expression softened into her usual resting bar face.

Jaid nodded. She was sure everyone in the north had heard the news by now.

"Empty booth in the corner," Hilda added, acknowledging the end of the conversation.

"Thanks," Jaid said, sliding the correct change across the sticky bar and heading towards the empty booth.

The rest of the tavern was packed, Jaid found it odd that there would be a perfectly acceptable booth sitting empty. Unless. Yep. Hilda had tricked her.

Sitting in the booth was a gnome, giving the impression that the booth was empty until the 3'7" gnome with anger issues pulled a knife. A move that didn't go over well when Jaid Shott was in a bad mood.

"Put that away," Jaid instructed, her tone thick with patrony.

She seated herself across from the gnome and sighed.

"Rough day?" The gnome asked, sheathing her knife and reaching for her own drink.

"Something like that," Jaid replied, pulling her hood down.

"Hey, ain't you that fancy mage from up at the court that got fired today?"

"Jaid Shott, pleasure to make your acquaintance," Jaid outstretched her hand politely.

"Ivridda Orefinder." Replied the gnome, who could barely reach across the table.

"Now that the formalities are out of the way, I'd like to just sit and drink alone."

"That's fine with me."

The two sat in silence like that for a while, just drinking and thinking.

Jaid stood up suddenly and announced that she needed to use the bathroom, Ivridda nodded curtly and continued to ignore the feline mage.

The women's bathroom was at the back of the tavern behind the bar. It had to be implemented when the Queen took over from her father, King Silas, she wanted to make women feel safe in public spaces. Plus, women were always much cleaner with their bathroom habits than men and it made for a much more pleasant experience.

Jaid didn't expect to see any other patrons in the bathroom, it was usually a place she could expect to be alone and undisturbed with her thoughts.

There standing at the sinks, well standing was an overstatement – more like hunched, was a mottled, sobbing member of the risen.