Guild of Thieves (Book 1) ✓

𝓒𝓱.32 ~ 𝓕𝓲𝓷𝓪𝓵𝓵𝔂, 𝓲𝓽 𝓲𝓼 𝓣𝓲𝓶𝓮

Caine sat in the Meeting Room with nothing but the Jewels of Arondale on his mind. He wanted the gemstones to be his, he wanted to be the King of Thieves and be treated like royalty amongst all the thieves. Nothing made him happier than this single vision of his. He had to make it a reality.

Everyone he has sent on the mission has failed, but he knew one thief who wouldn't fail him. Jezamine. After eighteen years, she has grown into an excellent thief and is a master at every skill - disguises, lies, pickpocketing, lockpicking, stealing - there was nothing Caine could fault her for.

She was the only one who was capable of the task at hand, but the only problem was would she take the job? Caine knew both prodigies have been avoiding him because they learnt the truth about his obsession with the Royal Jewels. Thankfully Jezamine didn't learn the truth about her mother otherwise she would have left the Guild already.

The Leader of Thieves needed his daughter if he was going to achieve his dream. There was no denying her value to the cause. Once Jezamine successfully returned, he would give her the largest payment of gold she has ever received. He would even tell the girl he was proud of her just for her own sake and so she would stay at the Guild.

Caine left the room to wake Finn, the mill factory was dead silent as the thieves slept soundly in their chambers. There was no sleep for the wicked, Caine was wide awake and there was no time to waste. The Royal Ball was tomorrow night and he needed to inform Jezamine of her task. But first he needed to have a good talk with Finn and make sure that the man wouldn't jeopardize Caine's master plan.

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Finn laid in his bed staring up at the ceiling unable to sleep since that night in the forest...how could anyone sleep with the horrifying memory of having their tongue removed by thugs as Caine watched?

All he wanted to do was leave the Guild of Thieves, run far away and never have to look at Caine's face again. Always seeing Caine around the Guild was a constant reminder of how Finn should have bitten his tongue like he was warned. Finn could have left, he was given the option to by Caine himself after his tongue was removed. But he couldn't just leave Jezamine with the crazy man without anyone on her side looking out for her.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear...

Caine stood in the doorway, staring at Finn with darkness in his eyes. It was then Finn remembered the Royal Ball was tomorrow evening and Caine wanted Finn to wake Jezamine so she could be informed about the mission. Finn hoped the girl was smart enough to say no to the job after hearing Rodger's story about Caine and how the other thieves never achieved the goal. It wasn't worth risking her life over some gemstones.

"You and I need to have a talk about being on the same page..." Caine said quietly entering the room and stopping when he reached the bed. "I can't have you spoiling the Grand Ball and my plans for Jezamine and the jewels. I need you to assist me and I will pay you for your help. You can't deny that she isn't the best thief we have. Better than Digger, Hudson, Arianna...I do remember them all Finn. Their faces haunt my dreams. I have no choice but to remember."

Finn understood about faces haunting dreams...wanting to add his own face to the Leader of Thieves dreams. Preferably a memory of Finn removing Caine's tongue in return for his own being lost.

"I hope there are no hard feelings between us for the past...you are my favourite thief you know!" Caine grinned at him like a mad man.

Of course there were hard feelings between both of them but instead of acting on his thoughts, Finn agreed to the man's terms, only so he could keep a watchful eye on Jezamine. Finn hoped again she was smart enough to say no to her father...

He didn't know if he could handle losing the girl like he had with so many of his good friends. There wasn't a day that went by where Finn didn't regret not letting Arianna leave with Jezamine. It was guilt he would have to live with for the rest of his life.

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Arianna snuck up to the turret after checking on Prince Alexander, she needed air to breathe and wanted some time to be by herself. The chambers felt crowded with all the other women in their bunks, and she felt like the odd one out amongst them. She was a thief who committed a crime after all.

She watched over the kingdom as the people of Arondale slept soundly in their beds surrounded by their loved ones, everyone except her. How she wished she could escape her sentence and run like a mad woman straight for the Guild, barging through the doors demanding to see her daughter at once.

Arianna even missed Caine, the man who stole her heart, broke it, and sacrificed it like their love meant nothing to him. The Jewels of Arondale were what was most important to him above all.

Tomorrow Ari and the other Royal Healers have the evening off as the King and Queen were holding a Grand Ball for all the Lords and Ladies of the kingdom to attend. There was whispers King Vincent had a surprise instore for his son, the Prince, who was recovered enough to attend with Arianna's confirmation.

Queen Margery was more than happy to hear her son was able to attend the ceremony. The woman was now the mother of two and she fussed about both Prince Alexander and Princess Avery. Both children have grown up to be their own individuals amongst the Royals. Arianna could only hope Jezamine has found her own way, not being influenced to do Caine's dirty work as they all were tricked into doing.

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Caine returned to the Meeting Room shortly after his chat with Finn. The man went to wake Jezamine so Caine could inform her of the mission tomorrow night. It wasn't much notice but it was something she could work with.

Jezamine was going to be the thief to outdo everyone and return not only alive, but would be named the greatest thief of all time. They would write stories about her and sing tales of her achievement. Just like everyone would know Caine's name when he became King of all the Thieves. The Jewels of Arondale would finally be his, and his dreams would be complete.

Caine was shaking with anticipation, knowing that his daughter would not refuse the job or miss an opportunity to make him proud. Depriving the girl from hearing "I am proud of you daughter" has been a part of his twisted plan. All Jezamine wanted was to hear those words and it drove her to please the man and never disappoint him being the Prodigy. Now this was her chance to really prove herself as the best thief in the Guild.

The Leader of Thieves could hear Finn and Jezamine approaching, Caine straightened in his chair. He knew it was the middle of the night but he couldn't wait any longer. The Royal Jewels would be his. The door opened and Jezamine walked in yawning, not looking happy to be woken at this early hour. There were no breaks when you were a thief. Finn warily looked between the pair before closing the door. Keeping his word to Caine, Finn did not intervene or try to stop him. Caine smiled, unable to wait any longer to announce the mission.

Finally, it is time...