The Dragonborn

Part 67

Jack cut a piece off his honey glazed beef chop and savored the smoky sweet taste of it. The meat was so tender that he had to force himself to eat it slow and not just wolf it down. Wilhelm approached their table again to set down two more wooden plates with warm loafs of bread that came free with their meal. Wilhelm set the plate down, then brushed his hand over Jack's arm as he sweetly purred out to him. "I hope everything is to your satisfaction"? Jack nodded without looking at him. He didn't want to give Wilhelm the wrong idea. Mark was another animal entirely. As Wilhelm started to walk away, Mark snatched Wilhelm's arm and twisted it sharply. Wilhelm groaned loudly, falling to a knee to save his arm from being broken. Jack dropped his fork to grab Mark's shoulder, but Mark's attention was on Wilhelm now. 

In a menacing deep voice, Mark growled out to Wilhelm through clenched teeth. "Touch him again and I'll be taking this arm. Am I clear, lad"? Wilhelm nodded franticly and Mark released his vice grip on him. Wilhelm climbed to his feet rubbing his wrist as he retreated back to the bar. Jack swatted Mark's shoulder, snapping out. "What the fuck, Mark?! He was just being nice". Mark turned to give him a sarcastic glare. Jack blushed and turned his attention back to his food. He knew that Wilhelm liked him... but he had hoped Mark hadn't noticed. He should have known though. Mark slid an arm across his shoulders, leaning in to whisper close to his ear. "Aren't you going to tell me that I went too far? That I'm just being overly protective and jealous"? Jack rolled his eyes, mumbling out as he tore a piece of bread off a loaf. "What is the point? You know what you did wrong. Telling you isn't going to change the fact that you did it".

Mark kissed his temple, whispering playful and lovingly. "He was making you uncomfortable. He was becoming a problem and I solved it". Jack smirked, finishing up the last of his meal with a large gulp of Honningbrew mead from his tankard. Afterward, Jack rose to his feet to stretch and say casually. "I'm heading to bed. Could you take care of feeding Eggroll for me"? Mark nodded, answering warmly. "Certainly. I'll join you in a minute". Jack kissed Mark briefly, accepting the room key from him. The day had been long and stressful. With the help of his meal, he hoped to drift off quickly and start anew tomorrow. Slipping into his room, he closed the door and removed his travel clothes. The bed looked so warm and soft. Staggering to the bed, he dropped down across the soft bear fur blanket and moaned loudly.

Snuggling his face into the pillow, he tried to push the future from his mind. He wanted to dream about something pleasant. Laying still in the dark room, he felt suddenly uneasy. There was a darker shadow in the corner, than he remembered there being the last time they stayed here. Removing his hand from under the pillow, he casted the spell for Mage light and tossed the ball of light to that far corner. The ball of light stuck to the wall, illuminating the dark shadow to be... nothing. Relaxing back into the pillows, he groaned loudly. Now he was becoming paranoid like Mark used to be after his arena fights. Was he going to start sleeping with a dagger under his pillow too? Rolling over to face the wall, Jack closed his eyes and forced himself to block out his weird anxiousness. Mark would be joining him soon anyway.

Jack let out a heavy sigh, when his muscles refused to relax. Opening his eyes, Jack's breath caught in his throat. The Mage light was now casting a shadow on the wall. The shadow raised a dagger high and behind him a quiet voice whispered out. "Long live Miraak". Jack flipped onto his back as the dagger came down at his chest. Grabbing the man's wrist by a pure stroke of luck! The man was dressed like the other cultists that had come to Mark's door. The man's wrist bracers were thick and smelled of bone. All Jack's strength went into keeping the steel blade from his skin. He took a breath to yell, but the man quickly covered his mouth with his other hand and put more weight onto his arm. Jack's arms were weakening as the man's masked face drew closer to his, stating in a soft chant. "Down with the false, Dragonborn. Long live Miraak". The sharp tip of the steel blade touched his skin and Jack muffled out a loud whine.