A World Among Thieves: A Humble Beginning

Chapter 9

I have finally made it out of the forest. Thankfully, I didn't run into any giant spiders on my way out. A small pang of guilt fills my chest but I quickly push it down. I slow my horse down so she isn't sprinting. As we're trotting across the vast plains, my stomach begins to growl. 

"Damn. I didn't eat breakfast," I mutter to myself. 

I continue to ride until I see a rabbit popping its head out from over the grass. 

"There's no point in going after it. I don't have a bow," I mutter.

I growl under my breath as I continue to ride East. I ride for about two hours until the walls of a city are visible in the distance.

"Come on, Rena. When we get there, you can rest up," I say, patting Rena on the neck.

Rena neighs and begins running towards the city walls. Before we enter the city, I hop off Rena and lead her into the city. The people are meandering mindlessly. Talking, laughing, humming happily; it's quite different from what I'm used to. I walk awkwardly in the direction that I think the stables are. Once I find it, I walk up and talk to the stable hand.

"What's a young lady like yourself doing traveling all alone?" The old stable hand asked.

"Personal matters," I state plainly.

"You know it's dangerous traveling alone. Especially a young lady," he says, smirking slightly.

I suppress a grimace, "I can handle myself, sir. So, can I leave my horse here?"

"Of course," the man says, "I'll put her in one of the finest stalls for you."

I reluctantly hand Rena to the stable hand. He leads her into one of the corner stalls and locks her in. He walks back to me and smiles.

"Would you like someone to show you around?" he asks.

"N-No, sir. I can find my way around just fine," I answer.

"Oh, come on. You'll certainly get lost around here. Just let me show you around," he says, putting his arm around my waist to lead me.

"I said no!" I yell.

I whip out of his grasp, pull out my dagger and point it at him. My face is red with anger.

The man smirks and lets out a blood-curdling scream. I flinch slightly and five people come running up.

"What happened, sir?" one person asks.

"This girl threatened to kill me!" he yells, pointing his finger at me.

My eyes widen as my blood runs cold, "No I didn't! You were trying to--" 

Two men from the crowd rush up and grab my arms, forcing me to drop my dagger. I start struggling as they begin pulling me down the street.

"Get your hands off of me!" I yell.

The men don't speak, they just tighten their grip on my arms. I'm brought into what looks like a jailhouse and one of the guards looks at me.

"What's the meaning of this?" he asks.

"This girl threatened to kill the stable hand. Pulled a dagger on him," one of the men answered.

The guard motions for the two men to follow him. They lead me down a dark corridor. Multiple people in cells look over at us walking. My struggling has stopped, but I'm walking slower than what the men would like. The guard opens a cell door and motions for the men to push me inside. They do so, causing me to fall on the stone floor. I glare at the three men as the guard locks me in the cell. As the two men leave, the guard looks at me with disgust in his eyes.

"Your trial will be in a week. Don't get your hopes up, you're probably going to stay here for a while," he sneers.

With that, he walks down the dark corridor. His footsteps echoing. I stand up and look around my small cell. There's a bed, a window with iron bars, and a bucket. I grimace and look out the window. The people of the city are walking happily. A young girl looks up and sees me. She waves and I wave back, smiling. Her mother, noticing what's going on, quickly grabs her daughter's hand and ushers her away while sending a dark glare at me. I sigh and sit on the bed. I look around and notice someone in the cell across the hall. He's staring at me curiously.

"Hey," I greet awkwardly.

"Hey. What're you in here for?" he asks.

"I was accused of threatening the stable hand. But, he was trying to...get with me, if you know what I'm saying," I answer.

"Damn. That stable hand has always been a creep. He only does that with young girls who can't defend themselves. If they try, he gets them locked away for life. He's a disgusting man," the inmate says.

I grimace, "Why are you in here?"

"I got caught selling drugs in the rural part of town. It's not like I want to, I was just doing it to support my family. My mom is sick, and my dad died years ago. My wife stays home to take care of her while I'm out. I hope they're doing okay," he explains.

"I hope so too. I'm sorry," I say.

"Don't worry about it. Besides, my wife is pretty resourceful. I'm sure she'll figure something out," he says.

"How long is your sentence?" I ask.

"Life."

"Really? That's not even that bad of a crime!" I  exclaim angrily.

"The judges and guards are corrupt in this town. Even the mayor won't help the people. He just sits back and let his people suffer. Where'd you come from?" he asks.

"Ashbourne. I was taken in after my family died and I ended up there," I answer.

"Well, why are you here?"

"I ran away. The dad was a drunk, and the mom was very...intolerant of other ways of life. I just hate that I had to leave my friend behind," I explain.

"That sucks. I'm sorry," the man apologizes.

"It's alright. I wanted to leave anyway."

"What's your name?" he asks.

"Allison. Yours?" 

"Sebastian. It's nice to meet you," he says.

"You as well!" I exclaim.

I go and sit in front of the bars where Sebastian and I talk for a few hours before I end up taking a much-needed nap.