Their first job was to be the easiest.
It was set to be executed when the moon was high and the tavern full. The victim was a man named Emmet Welhm who had been stealing from the palace, at least five coins a night. When Irian had told the group the details of their first victim Ivy had been surprised. He was a guard who was rather well off, yet he was stealing. It didn't make sense to her, but people rarely did.
Despite her past, butterflies flitted nervously in her stomach and she felt slightly sick.
Tonight she would take a life.
It's for the best, she told herself. But was it? There was no real proof that she could trust these people, not even Alex whom she had known for a great chunk of her life. With a sigh she sat back in her chair, her dress twisting in an uncomfortable manner. She growled in frustration and jumped up to untwist her blue dress.
"We are leaving in two hours, you might want to get ready." Alex's voiced informed her from the door coldly. Coldly? She stiffened and turned to face him.
"Why are you acting so wierd?" She asked incredulously, throwing her hands up in emphasis. She couldn't take any more of his odd behaviour.
"What do you mean?" He asked, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but there.
"You know what I mean, Alex. Ever since we got here you've been acting strange. One minute you're normal with me and the next you're ignoring me or acting cold towards me. I'm your best friend, you know you can tell me anything." Her voice had turned softer at the last part, her eyes boreing into his own; pleading for answers.
"Ivy," he walked over to her then and took her head in his hands, gazing down at her intently. "I didn't mean to hurt you, I just... Everything caught up with me and the Kings offer. . ." He trailed off and turned away from her. His back was taught and stress lined his shoulders.
"I didn't realise." She whispered, feeling ashamed of her earlier outburst. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair and turned back to look down at her.
"How could you? I always keep things bottled up as you already know." She nodded at this statement. It had taken almost a year for him to open up to her and she being trusting of no one their friendship had been. . . dysfunctional, to say the least.
"Is there something else?" She asked, noticing his troubled expression.
"Oh, how you know me so well." He chuckled. "I'm nervous about tonight. At first the idea of taking on a new job excited me, gave me purpose. But now I just feel awful. I should be used to it really, shouldn't I."
"Don't worry, I feel the same way." Feeling suddenly weary, she slumped down in the seat behind her and sighed. "I should get ready for tonight, as should you." She said, gesturing towards his day outfit.
He nodded, bid her farewell and exited the room. Leaving her alone with her thoughts.
She walked over to her clothes that lay fresh and clean on the bed. She lay her hand on her cloak fondly, so many memories lay with it, good and bad. Rolling her eyes at her soppyness, she undid her dress and let it fall to the ground. After stepping out of it, she pulled on her trousers that were so familiar to her and the rest of her clothes. She left her cloak and told herself to remember it before she left.
After this, she brushed through her hair and let it flow freely as she did often on jobs. She glanced out of the window and saw that the moon was at its highest. Her gut twisted as she sheathed Valkyrie and fastened her cloak around her shoulders.
Would it go smoothly? Would it be messy? Would the man plead for his life? Would he fight back? Of course he would fight back, she scolded herself, he was a man after all. He would most likely assume that a girl like her could most definitely not defeat a man.
YOU ARE READING
When Embers Grow
Fantasía***READ THE FLOOD INSTEAD*** Ivy's never been normal. She always had something different about her, that's why she was hidden. Though she didn't know, there was a reason why her family was taken from her. It wasn't just assassin's working for the mo...
