Dame Sara Illou, Knight of the Land, approached the warehouse with slight trepidation. She was a little nervous though that was not overly surprising. She may have been a Knight of the Land and quested bravely to retrieve the Axe of the Mists, but she had never done anything like this before. Yet, it was her duty as a knight to aid Chloe and retrieve the noblewoman's family sword, so Sara intended to see it through.
When she reached the warehouse a man stepped out, looked her up and down, then waved her through. Clearly, they knew she was coming. As she entered the warehouse she was struck by its size but before she could get a real handle on the place a loud shout caught her attention.
It was the captain from the day before. "Freya!" he shouted. "Come here."
She hurried over to him. "Good morning, captain," she smiled.
"Don't good morning me. You're a nothing, a nobody. You work for me now. We're not equals," he spat. "I'm assigning someone to work with you for the day, to make sure you're trustworthy. And don't try anything - he's one of the most skilled swordsman I've ever seen. He'll cut you in two if he has to." He waved over to a figure in the background. "Dayron! Come here."
Sara's eyes opened wide for a moment as she saw Dayron approach, but she quickly concealed her surprise. That was Dayron! What was he doing here? She could not believe he had deliberately decided to work for smugglers and criminals and yet it was quite clear that he was not here under duress. He seemed quite content with what he was doing.
When he saw her his own eyes widened. The captain noticed. "Is there something wrong, Dayron?" he asked, glancing between them. Then his face darkened. "Do you know this woman from somewhere?"
Dayron opened his mouth to speak. Sara knew she had to think of something, otherwise he might incriminate her by telling the truth about her position as a Knight of the Land and her real name. Yet Dame Sara was smart. She immediately had a plan. She cut him off by answering for him. "Forgive me captain, but Dayron and I... had a tryst a few nights ago. I did not know he worked for you."
"A tryst, eh?" The captain looked at her, then at Dayron. His glower became a grin, then he laughed heartily, clapping Dayron on the back. "Good man, Dayron! Freya's a fine-looking woman. I hope you fucked her good!" He laughed again.
"Freya?" Dayron began.
"You've forgotten my name already?" Sara interjected, knowing that Dayron might give her real identity away.
He tilted his head in confusion. "I-"
"You can tell me all about it later, boy," the captain said, cutting him off. "For now, show Freya round the warehouse, but keep it in your pants." He strode off still laughing.
Dayron looked stunned. Sara merely looked at him with a quizzical look on her face. At last he motioned for her to follow him and she walked beside him.
"What are you doing here, Sara? Or is it Freya, really?" he asked after a moment. "And why did you tell the captain about us having sex?"
Sara looked at him. "Because I couldn't have you telling him I was a Knight of the Land. That would ruin everything."
Dayron stopped walking and turned to her. "What do you mean? What would it ruin? Why are you hiding your noble position and your name? And what are you doing pretending to be a guard? Tell me, Sara. I deserve to know."
Sara sighed. "Do you know who you are working for, Dayron?" She desperately hoped he did not.
He furrowed his brow in confusion. "Just a trade company. They import goods from other kingdoms. What do they have of such interest to you?"
Inwardly Sara sighed with relief. Clearly Dayron was a naive fool, but he wasn't a criminal.
"They're smugglers, Dayron," she hissed. "They're thieves and murderers. Nearly everything here is stolen from someone, and you're helping their operation."
Dayron's eyes went wide with horror. "You can't be serious, Sara. I... I didn't know."
"I'm sure you didn't," she soothed. "I know you're not foul-hearted."
"I have to leave for the City Watch at once." He turned, preparing to march straight out of the warehouse.