| Chapter 9 |

I immediately stood up, just to get pushed down in my seat again. Mole Face, Stew Pants, and Eye twitch all looked down at me with sneers on their faces. All of their names fitting their descriptions perfectly, the Molfe Face with all the moles on his face, Eye Twitch who looked like he probably had a stroke because of the constant twitch of his eye, and last but of course least, Stew Pants the man I spilled stew on.

Mole Face's hand clamped on my shoulder smiling a cold smile.

"Look, it's the disrespecting brat." Stew Pants said as he sat down in the chair next to me.

This wasn't the best situation. It's not like I can just pull out a full assassin on them not saying that I could take three people at once while in a sitting position to start with.

I looked down at the table, the best way to get out of this was to make them feel that I am littler than them.

"Have nothing to say huh?" Eye Twitch said staring down at me.

I shake my head quickly. My chest burning with fury, gulping down my dignity and pride I remained emotionless.

"You know, it can be mighty embarrassing when a little peasant girl disrespects a hard-working man." I feel Mole Face's hand on my shoulder tighten painfully. "Do you have a father? Peasant girl?" Stew Pants said with spite.

I shake my head, well I guess that was the truth, I don't have a father I am an orphan.

"Well, boys, that explains the lack of respect!" They nodded in agreement as I nervously twiddle with my thumbs, trying my best not to attack this man.

"Should we teach her a lesson?" Eye twitch inquires, My insides turned, how was I supposed to handle this without blowing my cover?

'I think that's a great idea, Kurt." Stew Pants said smiling his yellow crooked teeth at me. Kurt grins at Mole Face as Mole Face suddenly pulls me out of the chair, by my arm. His grip making me wince.

"Let's go pretty face." Mole Face's whispers in my ear making me shiver, his breath stinking of ale. I struggled in his grip, yanking my arm away.

"Don't touch me," I said darkly, my blood boiling.

"Feisty." Kurt sneers before pouncing on me grabbing the collar of my dirty dress and dragging me across the room with Stew Pants grabbing my arm with him. I struggled as they took me out of the pub, men looked at me with pity but not enough to actually stand up for me. Stew Pants must scare the other men for not one of them try to help me.

The musty slightly warm summer night blew in my face making me shiver. My boots dragged on the dirt as they bought me to the back of the stables. I could hear the horses neighing as Kurt throws me into a stall making me stumbling fall in a stack of hay. I scowled at the men in front of me who were standing with disturbing lopsided smiles on their faces.

"What do you want to do now Ivan?" Stew Pants turned to Mole Face when he heard his name, Ivan, I mentally shivered at his name.

I scrambled back reaching into my boot for my thin dagger made to slice through the flesh with one swipe. I slowly gripped the dagger's handle between my fingers sliding it slowly from the leather sleeve built in my boots.

Ivan smirked at me wiping his greasy hands on his dirty trousers, his eyes holding an evil glint in them.

"Excuse me, gentlemen." a voice said behind my captures. My hand froze stopping its movement of drawing out my dagger.

"It seems that you are in the last stall available, and you clearly are not using it for your horse." His voice was chilling. He was wearing a long coat with a hood attached making his features a mystery to me. A thick leather strap across his chest over his coat holding his quiver with his bow strapped to his back also. His coat slightly parted showing a Saxon Knife in a leather sheath attached to his belt. A throwing knife strapped to his thigh.

Mole Face, Ivan, and Kurt both whirling around hands-on their belt where their knives were.

"Might I ask? What are you using this stall for?" The stranger's soft voice said, his head tilting to the side so he could see me.

"None of your business!" Ivan spat.

"I think it is my business sense, this is my stall after all." He said walking slowly towards them his horse's reins in his hands. He let go of the reins to his horse letting his horse go, as I watch in surprise when the horse just stands there not disobeying his master by moving.

"Why are you surrounding a young girl in a stall, outnumbering her by three to one?"

"Are you deaf? He said none of your business beat it!" Kurt snaps taking a step towards the newcomer.

The unknown man nodded his head like he was considering it before like a snack shooting his hand out and striking Kurt in the throat causing Kurt to stumble backward gasping like a fish out of water. Ivan immediately unbuckled his sheath taking his knife out and charging the hooded figure. Ivan quickly swiped at his component, as my hero quickly dodged it hitting I can square in the jaw making him stumbling back.

I stood up quickly taking my knife out quickly I leaped a Mole Face, his back face me. Diggin my knee into his back, I knocked him straight into the wall next to him making his head snap back into the wall painfully. I could hear the impact, groaning rolling onto his back as he peered up at me with a snarl on his face. A smile of satisfaction grew on my face as I pulled back my booted foot and rammed it straight in his head making him go limp.

All the air knocked out of me when I was tackled to the ground.

"Not getting out of this one missy." I heard Kurt growl in my ear, probably recovered from his bruised throat. His body on me as he straddled my chest, slowly suffocating me from his weight, as I tried to fight back. His hands holding my wrist pinned to my sides making my knife slowly dig into my hand, my blood trickling down my knife as more pressure causing my hand to get cut more.

My vision blurred, I could see the stranger and Ivan throwing punches before I saw the hodded man take out a knife in one solid movement bring it to the side skillfully slicing into Ivans's abdomen with thin cold metal that spun within his fingertips.

Ivan wobbled before sliding down the wall behind him his hands glued to his stomach while his opponent stepped forward taking his knife and wiping it off with his Ivans trousers before turning to me.

Kurt looked down at me focusing on slowly strangling me as his hands leave my wrist and grab at my throat. Panicked now, I used the knife in my hand and bought it up to his wrist slashing it at his flesh making him hiss. He grabbed his wrist cradling it to his chest before he was kicked off me.

"Get out!" The hooded figure snapped to Kurt. Kurt got up to his wobbling legs before charging my hero. The hooded man easily moved aside before turning around and bring his foot in the small of Kurt's back making Kurt fall to the ground in a heap.

"I did say to get out? Didn't I?" His cold voice said before he lifted Kurt by the collar of his coat from the ground and unceremoniously slamming his head back to the ground, Kurt's body went very still, and I could tell it would be a while before he would be waking up.

"Are you alright?" He said, towering over me. He held out his hand as I nodded. I grabbed his hand but immediately hissed in pain, forgetting about my injured hand.

"How did you injure your hand?" His head tilted as he examined my cut, his hand in mine.

"I'm not sure." I lie, my dagger is engraved with the King's Initials, I didn't want to blow my cover.

"We should probably get that bandaged." He said, whilst grabbing my arming and hoisting me up to my feet.

"Thank you," I mumbled out, as we walked out of the stall.

"No problem." He said while taking his horses reins and walking towards an empty stall.

"You lied," I said matter of factly behind him. He turned around, taking off his hood.

I was expecting this man to be older in his thirties but I was way off. He looked like he was in his early twenties probably twenty-one if I were to guess. He had charcoal black hair, ruffled from his hood. His hazel brown eyes squinting at me as I continued.

"There were plenty of empty stalls. Why did you help me?" I asked. He scoffed.

"So I was supposed to just let those men do whatever they wanted with you? Of course, I was going to help you." He bought his horse into the stall, taking off a bulky clothed satchel from his horse. I watched him as he unsaddled his horse then began to groom it with a brush.

"I was going to be quite fine. I didn't need your help." I said, my pride slightly wounded. He sighed, leaning against the stall wall with his eyebrows shot up, his eyes having sprinkles of amusement in them.

"Your right, I should have just let you alone with those men cornering you with only a tiny dagger in your hands, to add to that the dagger one you eventually cut yourself with while being pinned to the ground by a tipsy man you practically stumbled on you than really attacked you. Your totally right, you had that all under control." The sides of his lips quirked up in a smirk as I hotly glared at him.

"What's your name anyway?" He inquired curiously picking up his bag from the stall floor hanging it on his shoulder.

"Claire," I said bluntly.

"Claire, that's a beautiful name. Well then, Claire, what bought you here in Merton?" He said stepping closer to me.

"I don't see how that is any of your business, and why ask another question when I don't even know you are even your name?" A chuckle rumbled in his chest as I looked at him expectingly.

"Jace, is my name, and now will you answer my question?" I smirked at him.

"Well, Jace, I don't think I remember telling you I would answer your question I am in a hurry you know, I wouldn't want my hand to get infected," I said giving him a smug look before stalking away back to The Housemaid's Inn.

I could feel his eyes burning a hole in my back as I walked quickly into the pub.

Ignoring everyone's stares, especially the scornful one from the waitress, I walked up the stairs and into the hallway.

Brandon's head snapped up when I barged into the room, body still half asleep as I towered over him.

"What? Why can't you enter a room like a normal person?" He groaned. His eyes squinted as he looked up at me.

"Do you have any bandages?"