The Book

"I'm not a bloody assassin. I'm a bloody thief." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Kaie knew she had made a major mistake. The man with the knife pointed at her didn't seem inclined to care about the distinction she was trying to make. She began edging towards the window, still talking, "I must have gotten something wrong. I mean I didn't know someone was going to be here. I'll just be going now."

Thawk. Kaie stared at the knife embedded in the wall by her nose. "I suggest you shut your mouth and listen," the man suggested.

"Yeah. Okay. I'll just have a seat." Kaie dropped bonelessly into the chair closest to the window figuring she could still make an escape if need be. "What do you want?"

"I want you to steal something," he pronounced.

"Ya know I think I coulda figured that out for myself. I am a thief," Kaie said. Her tone was insolent, annoyed, put out. She swung one black clad leg over the chair arm and set her foot idly swinging. Her expression was one of carefully practiced disinterest. "If that's all ya got, I'll be going. I don't steal on commission." She got lazily to her feet.

A knife blossomed between the middle and ring fingers of her right hand where it rested on the chair arm. "Sit down," the man ordered.

Anger blazed in blue eyes and gave her face a reddish hue. "Do not throw a knife at me again," she instructed, each word carefully enunciated through her teeth. She wrenched the knife free and planted it between the feet of the man. "I don't like threats. Especially not to my hands."
The man smiled, apparently pleased by her burst of temper. "If you will stay seated and listen, I will be able to refrain from throwing knives at you." He grimaced at the one planted between his feet. "And you will discontinue returning them."

Kaie pulled on the knife that had barely missed her nose and was almost amused to find that she couldn't remove it easily. She continued tugging on it until it finally slid free of the wall and then dropped back into the chair she had vacated seconds earlier. Idly she studied the knife, turning it over in her hands. "Balanced nicely," she commented. "Little thick to be an assassin's weapon. But you have pretty good aim even if you did miss my hand, so you musta studied somewhere."

"I didn't miss," the man said coldly.

"Oh." Kaie decided it might be better if she stopped playing with the man and dropped the knife to the floor. It landed hilt up by her feet. "I assume you're going to kill me if I refuse your commission?"

The man inclined his head slightly and spread his hands. "Naturally."

Kaie sighed and swore softly, "Niurin." She shouldn't have listened to Bowen. She hadn't wanted to do this job and there didn't appear to really be anything worth fencing in this room anyway. The room was pretty bare. A wardrobe, the two chairs, a small bed, and a hook with a cloak hanging from it made up the only furnishings in the room. There were no small knick knacks, nothing easily pocketed and taken away. She sighed again, knowing she had been suckered by Bowen and she wondered how much he had gotten to sucker her. When she got her hands on him again, he would be lucky if he only lost a nimble finger or two. She definitely owed him one. "What do you want stolen?"

"There is a book."

"All this for a book?" Kaie was incredulous. "You've gotta be kidding me."

"You promised silence," he reminded her.

Kaie grumbled to herself but subsided. "All right, I'm listening."

"As I was saying. There is a book. A scholar by the name of Kendreague owns it. This book is bound in leather and illuminated."

"What-in-ated?" Kaie replied. She stared at him in puzzlement. She wasn't dumb by any stretch but she couldn't read much more than her name and the actual books she had seen she could probably count on one hand.

"Illuminated. Someone drew pictures in it. The book has this symbol on the cover." The man removed a piece of cloth from his robe sleeve that someone had drawn on. He held it out to her.

Kaie crossed the room and took the cloth. She returned to her seat and spread it out on her knee. The symbol on the cloth was unisex, just by looking at it, Kaie could not tell if it was meant to be a man or a woman. The body and head were in the center of the paper with the legs winding down and ending in two tails. The hands held what appeared to be the body's hair which wound around the head. When she was finished studying it, she handed it back to the man. "When do you want it by?"

"As soon as you could possibly do it. Tomorrow night if you think that gives you enough time."
Kaie carefully considered her plans for the next day. If she returned home now and slept instead of finding another home, she could get up early and go case out the scholar's house or shop. She should be able to study it long enough that she would feel comfortable going in to steal something that night. "Two questions. Where is the book? At the scholar's home or his shop? And how much are you paying me to do this?"

"The book was last seen at his shop. He has a small one near the town square. He also copies manuscripts for people. It is a copy shop. The fee is four gold talents. And your life. That was three questions and four answers."

Kaie whistled. The fee was more than she could hope to get for a book and she wondered what was so important about some papers. This was why she refused to take commissions. Asking those type of questions could get her more information than she wanted or worse but not asking was almost more than her curiosity could stand. She stood. "One final question. Where do I meet you when I've got the book?"

"Here. In this room. I'll have your talents and exchange them for the book."

Kaie nodded. "I'll meet you here in two nights." She approached the window again somewhat hesitantly, worried that another knife would wing her way. When nothing happened, she swung her leg over the windowsill and slithered out. She hung by her fingertips for a moment until she got her bearings, then dropped lightly to the ground.

She landed in a crouch and scanned the alley that she landed in to be sure no one had seen her exit from the building. She soft footed her way down the alley, placing her feet to avoid rubble and other items thrown from windows. As she reached the street, she stripped off the black tunic she was wearing, turned it inside out and pulled the now brown tunic on. She stepped lightly out of the alley and slipped in among the few people passing by.

Although she had entered the house at just past dusk, darkness was now fully upon the town and she moved cautiously down the street. She would have to cross half the town to reach her rooms in a small boarding house. Kaie was a particularly good thief and was therefore able to afford actual rooms in a boarding house that was not in a horrible neighborhood. Her neighborhood was one of the few that bordered the really bad parts of town and due to her nature, Kaie moved easily between the two different areas of town. Now she left the better part of town that she had entered to steal in and crossed into Bordertown, the area between the two sections. This was the area where she lived.

Now the citizens on the streets were a slightly rougher sort. They carried knives or other weapons openly or under their tunics. Many of them, Kaie included, carried weapons in many places. Kaie did not normally enter houses where people were still home but sometimes, such as tonight, she ran into unexpected surprises. Since she also tended to be carrying desirable goods when she re-entered Bordertown, she never went unarmed.

Her hands were free and loose at her sides now but never strayed far from the dagger tucked in her belt. Two throwing knives rode low on her hip in a twin sheath. Another knife was strapped to her ankle underneath her breeches. An invisible slit in her breeches allowed her to reach the knife without ruining her clothes.

She reached her boarding house, and with a grin, swung into the alley that ran along it. A few moments later she was scrambling up the crates tossed in the alley before boosting herself up and through the window above her. She balanced for a moment on the window ledge and then dropped lightly into her room.

Her room held even less furnishings than the one she had vacated just a little earlier. A tidy straw pallet rested against the wall to her left, it was made up with blankets. Next to it was a small chest that held her meager possessions. Against the wall, opposite her bed, was a small wobbly table and a single straight backed chair. A shelf on the wall above it held a bowl, a plate, a mug, and what was probably her most precious possession; a set of silverware that had belonged to her mother.

She had bolted the door before she left but she double checked it anyway. Striding back across the room, she stripped out of her thieving clothes and dropped them in a heap next to her bed. She pulled on a well-worn and patched robe and tied the belt at her waist. Working with fingers nimble from thieving, she unbraided her long flame red hair.

She had just retrieved her brush from the small chest when the knock sounded. Dropping the brush soundlessly to her pallet, she eased her knife out of its ankle sheath before crossing to the door. She unbolted the door and pulled it open slowly.

Bowen's grinning face and tousled blond hair greeted her. "Caraid, I thought I heard you back. What did you find? Anything worthwhile?"

She dragged him into the room and, before he could react, had him pressed face first into the wall her strong, lithe body pressed up against him and holding him in place. She twisted his arm roughly between their bodies. Bowen had a scant number of inches on her but he was slightly and effeminate and she held him easily. He cried out softly in protest at her rough treatment but Kaie knew at other times that same treatment was a turn on to him. "No, you bloody fool, I didn't find anything worthwhile. I found a man with well-aimed knives and a bloody commission. You set me up!" Her voice was angry, almost strident, but low not carrying farther than their current position.

"No, Kaie, I didn't. By Methos, I swear it. I know nothing about any man." He whimpered as she twisted his arm tighter. "Please let me go. You're hurting me."

Kaie heard the truth in his words and stepped back, releasing him but keeping her knife steady between them. "Where did you hear about that house?"

Bowen dropped to his knees and buried his face in her stomach, crying piteously. "Pillow talk. A new client." With a few succinct sentences, he accurately described the man who had accosted her in the room.

Her anger drained from her as she realized Bowen had been set up as much as she had and through no fault of his own. Tenderly she soothed his hair and held him as he bawled. Bowen had been a victim for as she remembered.

When he finally subsided, Kaie led him over to her pallet and handed him her brush. They settled down, Bowen behind her so that he could brush out her hair. Kaie pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Bowen began to brush out her hair as she spoke, "The man was waiting for me when I entered the room. He was prepared for me and expected me. I would suspect that he studied me enough that he knew you were the key to getting to me."

"I'm sorry, Kaie," Bowen's voice was soft and Kaie strained to hear him. "I could have gotten you killed and then who would have taken care of me?"

"But you didn't, Bowen. I'm fine. I don't want to complete this commission but I'll be able to easily. I'll be very careful and you will stay away from that man."

Bowen nodded. "I will. Believe me I will."

Kaie fell silent as Bowen continued to brush her hair. The repetitive movement soothed her and allowed her to relax enough to consider the job ahead of her. She would need to get some sleep soon and be out in the morning to look at the shop. She reached back and caught the brush as Bowen began to run it through her hair again. "Are you staying here tonight or going out again?"

"I'll stay here. I really am sorry about this."

"We'll survive, Bowen. Go get ready for bed." Kaie crossed her legs and gathered her hair together. She quickly braided her hair again and used a piece of leather to tie it off at the bottom. Her hair, her one vanity, reached almost to her knees and was thick and heavy. She found it easier to sleep at night when it was contained in a braid. She didn't wake up with it wrapped around her or in her mouth. When Bowen stayed with her it was even easier to have it braided because otherwise it wound around them both and made it almost impossible to get up in the morning. She stripped off her robe when she was done and pulled on an old shirt.

Bowen let himself back into the room as she settled the shirt and smoothed it out. He had also changed into a nightshirt and was carrying his clothes. He dropped them near Kaie's on the floor and crawled onto the pallet. He settled on his side with his back against the wall and waited for Kaie to lay down. Kaie got to her feet and crossed the room to blow out the lamp. Then she recrossed the room in the dark, knowing there was nothing there for her to trip over and slid into bed. She turned so that she faced the room and Bowen was behind her back, between her and the wall. She would never consider actually having sex with Bowen, she wasn't his type and he definitely wasn't hers, but he was too scared sometimes to sleep alone.

After a moment, Bowen's arm snaked around her waist and his head settled comfortably next to hers. Within moments the two friends were fast asleep.

* * * * *

Kaie woke first the next morning and wiggled out from under Bowen's arm. She left him sleeping and gathered up her clothes, making her way quietly down the hall to the bathing room. She let herself in and bolted the door behind her. She did not want any visitors or surprises this early in the morning. Most of the denizens of the boarding house would not stir for hours yet but it always paid to be careful. She washed up quickly and then began to dress. This morning she pulled on a shift, the type that goes under a skirt or dress, and then pulled a dark blue dress on over it. She buttoned it up, her normally nimble fingers stumbling over the unfamiliar hooks. She knew that a young woman dressed in breeches would attract more attention than she wanted while she looked around this shop. She pulled on her boots and laced them up, then stood up to fix her hair. She unbraided her hair and brushed it out, then bound it up and crammed it into a net. The net itself was then placed under a white cloth and her hair was completely covered like a proper young woman. It also served the dual feature of completely hiding her hair color. Even in a large town like this, red hair, especially the flame red she sported, was not that common and would make her memorable. She finished dressing by sliding her knife into the ankle sheath. Not the best place for it but the only one that would be inconspicuous.

When she returned to her room, Bowen was awake but still lying in bed. "I have to go out for a while," she told him. "You can stay here or go back to your own room. Just make sure you lock the door if you leave. I should be back in time for supper. Will you eat with me?"

Bowen nodded and then shook his blond hair out of his face. "Where are you going?"

"To get a look at this copy shop. Rest if you need to. I'll see you later." She stooped to kiss his forehead, then scooped up a basket and left the room.

She knew she couldn't pass for a noble, even the best of her clothes was too poor looking for nobility but she could pass for the servant of a noble. Especially if she lifted some things from the market and stuck them in her basket.
It only took her a few minutes of walking to reach the open air market closest to her room. She waited until the sellers were distracted and then liberated a loaf of bread from one stand and a melon from another. A napkin from a third stand covered her pilfered produce and she strolled casually away from the market.

The town square that the man had referred to was actually a plot of grass near the nobles' houses. Kaie was familiar with it because she had often passed it in the dark as she hurried to or from a job. She didn't remember seeing shops around it but assumed she could find them easily enough. The scholar, Kendreague, must cater to the nobles if he lived that close to their homes. Kaie paused before crossing into the nobles' section of town and checked to be sure that her hair was still covered.

She kept her eyes lowered as she hurried through the streets. Soon she reached the town square and began to take more of an interest in her surroundings. She could have found her way back to her part of town with her eyes blindfolded but needed to be aware of her surroundings now so that she would know how to get in and out that evening. She concentrated on watching the others around her. Most of the people she saw were servants like the one she was posing as. She put a little wiggle into her walk as she passed two footmen, knowing that they would expect that.
Kaie passed two more houses and turned off onto the street that was after them. It appeared to have shops instead of houses, since signs were hanging outside the windows proclaiming the types of good or services they provided. She walked down the road, noting the shops that she saw. The tailor's shop and hat shop would not provide any hiding places, nor would apothecary's or the jewelry shop since all of the owners most likely lived above the shops. As far as she understood from the description the man had given her, the scholar she was to steal from did not live above his shop.

She found the shop she wanted about halfway down the block. A weathered wooden sign hung crookedly outside the shop, a quill and ink bottle engraved on it. Kaie settled the basket more firmly on her arm and pushed open the door to the shop.
A silver bell tinkled as the door opened and she stepped through. The door led into a large room, almost the entirety of the shop, that was crammed from floor to ceiling and again with books. All types of books. Kaie looked about her in dismay and wondered how she would ever find the one book the man wanted.

The tinkling of the bell had attracted the attention of an older man who shuffled forward to greet her. His graying hair was tied back with a leather thong and ended halfway down his back. He wore a mustard yellow robe that might have been an attractive color at one time but was now an ugly dingy rag. He walked with a slight bend in his back as if he had spent too many hours bent over a table copying books. His smile as he approached her was kind though and Kaie had brief second thoughts about stealing his book. But he had so many and she could use the talents to feed herself and Bowen for days. "May I help you, paiste?" he questioned.

"I am not a child, sarrah," Kaie replied respectfully, her head bowed again so her eyes were hidden.

"Well then not a paiste but a young serving girl, yes?"

"Yes, sarrah."

"Then may I help you? This is my shop and I know everything in it." He smiled ruefully. "Well almost everything."

"You are the scholar Kendreague?" Kaie questioned to be sure she had the right shop.

"Yes. May I assist you with finding something for your master or mistress?"

"My mistress desires a book, sarrah. Something to entertain her on the long evenings when she is tired of stitching." She smiled bashfully. "Something that she might chose to read to me if you know such a thing."

Kendreague shuffled over to a shelf to Kaie's right. "What types of books do you like to read?" he asked reaching for one on the shelf.

"Oh, no, sarrah." Kaie's look was properly horrified. "I would never read one of my mistress's books."

"Well what types then does she prefer to read to you?"

"The love stories. The ones where the knights sweep their ladies off their feet and away from an evil father or husband or brother," Kaie replied promptly and eagerly with an empty headed smile on her face.

"Oh I know just the one." Kendreague turned about quickly, almost upsetting Kaie and scurried across the room to a stack of books in the opposite corner. He pulled one out, almost but not quite upsetting the pile, and held it out the Kaie. "I think your mistress will enjoy this one greatly. It's only a talent so she will not feel she has been overcharged."

Kaie hesitated to take the book but finally accepted it and opened it. Words, just black squiggles to her, filled the pages. There were not any of the pictures the man had mentioned. She held the book back out to the scholar. "My mistress did not allow me to take that much money this morning. When do you close? Perhaps I can convince her to come here with me before then."

"I close at the fourth bell of the afternoon. I am an old man and I like to be a bed before it gets too late. I open again at the eighth bell in the morning."

Kaie dropped a quick curtsy and bowed her head again. "Thank you, sarrah. I will attempt to return with my mistress before the fourth bell." She backed out of the shop and hurried down the street.

She grinned happily as she made her way back to the boarding house. The street the shop was on was all but deserted and would be even more so by the time she returned. If she could get Bowen to go with her that night, she would have a look-out for trouble and they would easily returned with the book. She also had the suspicious feeling that it would take both of them to find the book in the mess that was the scholar's shop.

Many of the people that lived in her boarding house were up when she returned but her attire deterred them, many of them had never seen her in a dress and they weren't sure who she was. With her dress as a disguise, she was able to slip up to her room without being stopped. She found Bowen still in her room. She had wasted most of the day walking across town and back and then speaking to the scholar. The bell was even now tolling the seventh hour after noon.

Bowen had obviously gone out during the day and had returned with stew. He had also retrieved his bowl from his own room. Kaie dropped her basket to the floor and began to unbutton her dress. "There's bread and fruit in the basket. We can have that with the stew."

"I got it from the inn down the road. It's fresh today. Where did you get the bread and fruit?"

"Pinched it as part of my disguise this morning. Did you sleep all day?" Kaie had finished unbuttoning her dress and slipped out of it and the shift under it. She pulled on a pair of black breeches and reached for a shirt. "You did pay for the stew, right?"

"Yes. I lifted a few purses this morning with enough money to pay for food tonight and possibly something for tomorrow." He waved at the small stack on purses that lay on top of her pallet. "When you're done dressing, can we eat? I haven't eaten all day."

"Neither have I. Cut the bread and we'll eat in a minute." Kaie finished tying her shirt and undid her hair, letting it cascade down her back. Instead of putting it back up, she joined Bowen at the table. He had dragged her chest over and was using it for her seat. She looked at him. "You seem to be eating with me a lot. I suppose I should use a little of the money from this heist to buy another chair."

Bowen shrugged and handed her a piece of bread. "If you want. I'm comfortable on this chest. Were you able to find the shop?"

"Yes and I think I will need your help." As they ate, Kaie described what she had discovered and her plan for locating the book. "Will you help me?" she asked when she was finished.

Bowen nodded eagerly. "I'd be happy to. Then tomorrow you can deliver the book and we will be done with this."

"Yes. And the next time a client tells you during pillow talk about a room full of easily carried trinkets that can be sold..." Kaie paused and made sure he was looking at her. "Don't tell me about it."

Bowen laughed and agreed quickly. "I won't. I'll clean up while you get ready to go."

"Fine." Kaie gathered up her lock picks while Bowen cleaned up. Then she handed him black clothes to match her own and he changed into them. When he had changed, she led the way out the window and then down the alley.

Once on their way, Bowen deferred to her knowledge from her reconnoiter earlier and followed her across town. Kaie had braided her hair again and tied it close to her head so she resembled a slight boy instead of the young girl the scholar had seen that day. They reached the shop without incident and Kaie was pleased to discover that there was only a simple padlock holding the door of the shop closed. While Bowen kept watch, they hadn't seen anyone once they reached the town square but it was better to be careful, she crouched down and quickly picked the lock.

The two shadowy forms slipped into the shop. Kaie was pleased to see a covered lamp burning in the rear. A fire hazard if she ever saw one but strong enough to suit their needs and light up the books they would need to search. "Look for a book with pictures drawn in it. If we're lucky there's only one."

"What if there's more than one?" Bowen questioned.

"I know the symbol that should be on the front of it. Start looking. I want to get out of here as quickly as possible. Just make a pile of any book that has pictures in it."

The two friends began to open books, tossing aside the ones that did not have an pictures inside. They were careful not to place any of the books they searched too close to the lamp. Bowen soon had a small pile of books started that had pictures in then. Kaie nodded when she saw what he was doing but didn't pause in searching her side of the shop.

By the time the bell tolled the third hour after midnight, they had searched most of the shop. Kaie signaled a stop and began to go through the pile of ten books that Bowen had set aside. When she reached the tenth book, she grinned in triumph. There, etched into the leather cover, was the symbol the man had shown her the night before. Still grinning, she held the book up to Bowen and signed that it was the one they wanted.

She tucked the book into the pouch that hung from her belt and the two slipped out of the shop. Bowen kept watch again as Kaie relocked the padlock. Together the two made their way back to the boarding house and Kaie's room.

Bowen took the book from Kaie once they were in her room and opened it up. Unlike her, Bowen had attended school as a child and could read. He settled on the pallet and laid the book in his lap. It took him a moment but soon he was reading aloud to her. "For One will come, more powerful than the others. The One will be the one who frees the People from tyranny. Raised as Freeborn, untouched, untainted shall The One be. The elements will bow before The One; heeding The One's commands. Spirit and Fire. Earth and Water. Air. All shall be at The One's command. In a child's body, The One shall come. Victorious yet untrained, The One shall be. Defeater of the Unjust, The One shall be. The One will have five companions. They shall be The Bard, The Whore, The Warrior, The Scholar, and The Thief. By The One's side the companions will stay, guiding and training." He looked up from the book, his face white. "Kaie, do you know what this is?"

Kaie had changed into her nightshirt as she listened to Bowen's reading. Now she dropped onto the pallet beside him and shook her head. "No. It doesn't sound familiar."

"It's the prophecy of the One." When she looked even more puzzled, he tried to elaborate. "The One. The person who will save all of us from the corrupt Majay."

"Bowen, all Majay are power hungry overlords. No one is going to save us. This is all just drivel to give gullible people hope for something that will never come true."

"Then why does that man want this book? It can't all be drivel."

"Bloody niurin, Bowen. Only a fool would believe that. There is no all powerful person that will come to save the masses. The masses will muddle along hoping not to attract the attention of a Majay and live out their lives."

Bowen set the book down. "I think we already attracted the attention of a Majay."

Kaie snorted. "If he was a Majay, I think he would have threatened me with something other than knives. He's just a man who wants a pretty book. Go to bed, Bowen, stop reading the book. I'll deliver it tomorrow night and we won't have to worry about it again." She pulled the book out of Bowen's hands and set it on the table. "Go to bed, Bowen," she repeated. She waited until he had changed and then blew out the lamp.

* * * * *

The two had returned to Kaie's room as the sun was rising. They slept for the rest of the day, rising as the sun was setting. Kaie quickly dressed in her breeches and shirt and stowed the book in her pouch. "Go buy some stew or lift a few purses. I'll be back as soon as I've delivered the book. It shouldn't take me long at all," she told Bowen as he rose and followed her example by dressing himself.

"I'll buy the stew and meet you back here."

Kaie crossed the town to the room she had entered the first night and hauled herself up through the window. She landed inside the room in a crouch and surveyed the room.

The man was sitting in the same chair he had been in the last time she entered the room. He didn't appear to have moved since she had left two nights prior. His eyes met hers as she rose to her full height. "Do you have the book?" he questioned.

Kaie pulled it out of her pouch and held it up so he could see it. "I want my talents first."

The man pulled out a small purse. Kaie could hear the clink of coins in it. "Move away from the window." Kaie complied and the man tossed her the pouch. She opened it one handed and looked inside. Four gold talents winked up at her. She tossed the book at him. He nodded in approval as he glanced through it. "Good. I'll be sure to contact you if I need anything else removed to my possession."

"Please don't. I really do prefer to work on my own."

The man nodded. "Fine. You may go now."

Kaie took him at his word and slipped from the room. As she hit the ground, she tucked the money away inside her shirt, then took off down the alley to Bowen and home, glad she would never again see the man.