Dead Suitors Tell No Tales

2: A Criminal in Distress

A man paused in the alleyway, glancing behind him to make sure he wasn't being followed. A black cloak was firmly draped over his shoulders, hugging his lean frame and concealing him from view. Brown eyes roamed the streets from beneath the cloak's hood; scanning, checking, deciphering the shadows.

Nothing stirred.

Dax moved on.

It was the dead of night, and the filthy streets that made up the bad part of Sagewick helped make Dax near invisible. He had chosen this route specifically for that purpose. He hoped it was worth it.

Dax walked swiftly, always on the very edges of the streets. Only a fool would walk in the middle of the road at night. One never knew what lurked in the darkness. It was best not to know.

The air was warm for a night such as this, which was common around this time of the year. Summer was always the prime season for the kingdom of Ester. The warmth from the sun stayed with Ester's lands long after the day's end, and rare were the times when clouds took over the sky. Dax didn't need the cloak for warmth tonight; not at all. He took it because he needed it.

He was near his destination. He had memorized the paths he would need to take, knew which side of the manor to hide on and what part of the building to climb. He could see in his mind's eye what window he would break into, and ultimately, what he would steal.

Dax touched a hand to the sheath at his waist in reassurance. If worse came to worst, he would be prepared to fight his way out.

Silently, he rounded a corner and turned down a dirt road, following it for some time before abruptly coming to a halt. There loomed in front of him a massive house, with sturdy stone walls and impressive architecture. Dax gazed at it for a moment or two, absently noting extra footholds and handholds and where most of the guards were stationed in the front. He nodded to himself, then cut into the labyrinth of trees that made up the manor's manicured front lawn. The tree line extended all the way around the manor, effectively offering him a place to camouflage as he prepared himself to break in the manor.

Dax slithered in and out of the trees, molding his frame to the trunks and taking care not to step on random branches and crunchy leaves that lay on the ground. He approached the estate before him with all the silent prowess of a jaguar, efficient and effortless like he was going in for the kill.

The grand manor he was stealing from belonged to none other than Lord Darby, a rich nobleman that had the privilege of living near the Royal family. Sagewick was a big city, but few nobles lived so close to the royal castle. The usual custom was to either gain admittance to live in the royal castle itself or build one's estate farther out, with enough land to farm and villages to lord over. Darby's manor might have been small compared to other nobles' residences, but that didn't make him any less wealthy.

Dax narrowed his eyes in concentration as he continued to navigate towards his targeted entrance point. It was well past midnight, and the guards fidgeted with boredom. Dax knew their eyes would be tired from squinting into the dark for the past few hours, and therefore their visibility would be limited. It would be relatively easy to swarm up the manor wall and slide into the window on the third floor unseen. The problem was never breaking in. It was the escape that was the tricky part.

He neared the end of the tree line and stood still in the shadows, watching. Waiting. The guard on this side of the wall paced slowly, swinging his hands back and forth to keep himself awake. In order for Dax to break in unseen, the guard's concentration had to be somewhere else for the few precious seconds when he would break cover and sprint to the wall.

Dax followed the man's silhouette with his eyes until it passed much farther down the wall. He reached into one of his boots and pulled out a small stone, weighing it in his palm. Giving a quick glance at the man once more, he drew  his arm back and sent the stone soaring through the air toward the tree line by the guard.